The Scarlet Letter Themes and Symbols

The Scarlet Letter, Nathanial Hawthorne’s 1850 novel of a 17th century adulterous affair in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, centers on several themes that would have been very meaningful to the highly religious, pre-industrial community in which it is set: the nature of shame and judgment; the differences between our public and private lives; and the conflict between scientific and religious beliefs. Additionally, several important symbols pop up throughout the novel to highlight these themes, including the scarlet letter, the scaffold, and Pearl. Through the use of these themes and symbols, Hawthorne constructs a world of Puritanical guilt and redemption in the earliest days of America’s history. Shame and Judgment The novel’s most central theme is that of shame and judgment—it is the focal point of the story’s first scene, when Hester Prynne is publicly ridiculed on the scaffold in the town square, and it permeates nearly every part of the book from there on. Prynne is forced to wear the eponymous token over her clothes for the rest of her days in the colony, which is itself a judgment she must endure, as well as an ever-present symbol of her shame and lowly position in the community. As such, wherever she goes she is quickly identified as the person who committed adultery, an act for which the townspeople pass judgment on her, causing her, in turn, to feel some degree of shame. This comes to a head when the townspeople try to take Pearl away from Prynne, an act that mostly stems from their misguided assumptions and views of the mother and daughter. Over time, both the town’s estimation of  Prynne and her own feelings of guilt begin to dissipate, but for many years these feelings are quite strong for each party and serve as a central, motivating force within the story. Public vs. Private The flip side of this form of judgment and shame is experienced by Dimmesdale who, though he has committed the same crime as Prynne, deals with this fact very differently. Dimmesdale must keep his guilt to himself, a state of affairs that drives him mad and eventually to death. Dimmesdales position provides an interesting insight into the nature of judgement and shame when felt privately, not publicly. For one thing, he receives no negative judgment from the others in the colony, as they don’t even know of his involvement in the affair, so he only continues to receive their adulation. Additionally, he has no outlet for his shame, as he must keep it hidden, so it eats away at him over the course of several years. This is not to say that this is worse than Prynnes fate, but the differing situation creates an alternative result; whereas Prynne eventually works her way back, somewhat, into the town’s good graces, Dimmesdale must hide his own shame and literally cannot live with it, as he reveals it and then promptly dies. Through the different ways in which these two are made to endure judgment as well as feel shame, Hawthorne presents a compelling look into the nature of human guilt, as both a public and private phenomenon. Scientific vs. Religious Beliefs Through the relationship between Dimmesdale and Chillingworth, Hawthorne explores the differences between scientific and religious modes of thought and understanding. Given that this novel is set in a 17th century Puritan colony, the characters are deeply religious, and have little understanding of scientific processes. Most of their understanding of the world, in fact, comes from a place of religious belief. For example, when Dimmesdale—who, admittedly, is a priest—looks to the night sky, he takes what he sees as a sign from God. Dimmesdale filtering his perceptions through the lens of his profession is largely the point, though, as he and Chillingworth are used to represent these opposing views. Chillingworth is a new addition to the town, and, as he is a physician, represents the encroaching of science into the religious New World colonies. Additionally, he is often described as representing darkness or evil, or just the devil outright, indicating that his mode of thought is at odds with the others’ in the community, as well as antithetical to God’s order. Interestingly, the two men get along at first, but ultimately grow apart when Chillingworth begins to probe Dimmesdale’s psychological state, suggesting that science and religion are incompatible in analyzing one’s mental anguish. One area in which they do align, however, is over Prynne, as each man attempts at one point to win her love. In the end, though, she rejects both of them, showing that an independently minded woman has no need for either. Symbols The Scarlet Letter Given the book’s title, this object is unsurprisingly a very important symbol throughout the story. Even before the main narrative begins, the reader catches a glimpse of the letter, as the anonymous narrator of â€Å"The Custom House† describes it briefly in the book’s opening section. From there, it appears pretty much right away, and comes to be the story’s most prominent symbol. Interestingly, though the letter represents Prynne’s guilt to the other characters in the book, it has a somewhat different meaning to the reader. It symbolizes not just Prynne’s actions, which, of course, it does symbolize, but it also embodies the town’s viewing of her actions as wrong, and as a punishment forced upon her by her community. As such, it says more about the wearer’s environment, than it does about the wearer herself. It shows that this group is willing to make a very public example of people whom it believes to have transgressed. Notably also, Dimmesdale burns a symbol of some sort—which some claim is an â€Å"A†Ã¢â‚¬â€onto his chest as a sort of atonement for his role in the affair. This highlights the public vs. private theme in the novel, as the two bear the burden of guilt very differently. The Scaffold The scaffold, which appears in the first scene, serves to divide the story into beginning, middle, and end. It first appears in the opening scene, when Prynne is forced to stand on it for several hours and endure harassment from the community. In this moment, it symbolizes a very public form of punishment, and, as this is the beginning of the book, establishes that tone going forward. Later, the scaffold shows up again when Dimmesdale goes out walking one night and ends up there, whereupon he runs into Prynne and Pearl. This is a moment of reflection for Dimmesdale, as he ruminates on his misdeeds, changing the book’s focus from public to private shame. The scaffold’s final appearance comes in the book’s climactic scene, when Dimmesdale reveals his role in the affair, and then promptly dies in Prynne’s arms atop the apparatus. At this moment, Prynne literally embraces Dimmesdale, and the town collectively embraces the two of them, acknowledging the minister’s confession, and forgiving them both of their crimes. The scaffold, therefore, comes to represent atonement and acceptance, completing its journey, much like the characters themselves, from punishment through reflection, and, ultimately, to forgiveness. Pearl Though Pearl is very much a distinct character in her own right, she also acts symbolically as the living embodiment of her parents’ infidelity. As a result, whenever Prynne looks at her, she must confront what she has done, almost more so even than when she looks at the scarlet letter. Importantly, though, she represents not just her parents’ infidelity, but also her mother’s independence. This is epitomized by some of the townspeople trying to take Pearl away from Prynne, which forces the mother to argue before the governor for the right to keep her child. Essentially, she must fight to prove the validity of her desires and affections in the face of this highly rigid and patriarchal society. Pearl, therefore, represents the sinfulness and the gracefulness balanced in tandem inside of her mother—that is, she is wild but still worth loving nonetheless.

Analysis of the Declaration of Independence Essay

Analysis of The Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson was made in order to give the colonists a way to break free from the shackles of King George. This document has affected the building blocks of the United States and is one of the most important documents in U.S. history. The Declaration of Independance was the foundation of what this country was based on. However, what Jefferson and the other signers might not have expected is the strech, the firm words, would have across the world. The document made such an impression because it was a new and differnet way of dealing with political issues, and they werent asking for anyones permission. It was the first document unlike anything in American†¦show more content†¦This portion of the Declaration as well notes the effort that had been made to easily reconsicle differences since many Americans still felt an attachment to England being the place they origonated from. England ignored the colonies due to the feeling of betrayal, a nd left them to fend for themselves. This neglect was fuel added to the fire. In the conclusion of the Declaration the representives and the people of the colonies of the United States of America had noticed the current arangements that needed to be changed in the government system and intended to take affirmative action immediately. The end of the document discloses these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown. The outcome to the Declaration also includes the support they have for this document, that they vow to protect it and pledge their lives and honor. The Declaration of Independence is one of the most significant documents in the history of the United States. It has completely and forever changed the structure and foundation of our country. The Declaration gave purpose to the Revolutionary war. 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Qualitative vs. Quantitative Methods Free Essays

Discuss the main differences between qualitative and quantitative approaches to data collection and analysis in management research. Your answer should make reference to the philosophical assumptions which underpin these methodological approaches. Introduction Whenever a decision is made to undertake a piece of research a method for conducting the study is required. We will write a custom essay sample on Qualitative vs. Quantitative Methods or any similar topic only for you Order Now In scientific research the techniques typically used for data collection and analysis are those which allow the evaluation of data to test a predetermined hypothesis (Zikmund, 2000). An example of this is a laboratory-based experiment where the researcher can be in full control of all the variables involved and can therefore be sure that any change in the phenomena under investigation is a direct result of an identified and controlled stimulus. In marketing research however, which is usually reliant on some aspect of human influence, it has been proposed that such a uniform, rigid approach is not appropriate: â€Å"There is never a single, perfect research design that is the best for all marketing research projects, or even a specific type of marketing research task. (Malhotra and Birks, 2000: p. 70) The aim of this assignment is to critically evaluate the quantitative and qualitative approaches to research, specifically focusing on the marketing perspective. To do this, consideration is firstly given to the basic differences between the qualitative and quantitative approaches, considering the seemingly opposing theoretical paradigms from which they have origina ted. Subsequently the development of the marketing discipline is examined with a specific focus on how and why different research methods have been employed in the field. Attention is Page 1 of 1 iven to the need for marketing to address both the issue of verifying existing hypotheses, and the requirement to develop new theory. As there appears to be no ideal research method for use in marketing it would seem that what is important is being critically aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the approaches available. Finally, therefore, the notion of pluralism, or methodological triangulation, is explored as such an approach is often used to exploit the strengths and minimise weaknesses in research design through the combination of two or more research methods, often from opposing theoretical paradigms. Basic differences between quantitative and qualitative research Qualitative research can be defined as: â€Å"†¦the collection, analysis and interpretation of data that cannot be meaningfully quantified, that is, summarised in the form of numbers. † (Parasuraman et al, 2004: p. 195) Whereas quantitative research can be defined as: â€Å"†¦the collection of data that involves larger, more representative respondent samples and the numerical calculation of results. † (Parasuraman et al, 2004: p. 195) Historically it has been considered that science based disciplines such as mathematics and physics are especially suited to quantitative research methods. Such methods are considered to be objective and lead to numerical, absolute outcomes, which can be verified through repetition and further testing (Zikmund, 2000); in other words the knowledge is external to the knower (Milliken, 2001), and therefore is available be found by whoever conducts the necessary research (Cunningham, 1999). This view of natural science can be considered to fit within the positivist paradigm, where a paradigm can be thought of as theoretical framework for looking at a situation and a basis upon which phenomena can be analysed and interpreted Page 2 of 2 (Gill and Johnson, 2002). Kuhn (1970) supports the need for paradigms on the basis that they bind disciplines together, and without them there would be no valid position from which to undertake research. Deshpande (1983) suggests that the acceptance of a particular theoretical aradigm is typically followed by a choice of a specific set of research methods that appear to fit within it. This is perhaps exemplified by the significant use of laboratory experiments in pure scientific disciplines. Within the social sciences however there has been a long-standing debate surrounding which philosophical standpoint, or paradigm, it is appropriate for research methods to be derived from (Milliken, 2001). Cohen et al (2000) consider there to be two m ajor, apparently contradictory, views relating to how research should be conducted within social science. The first aligns social science with natural science and therefore implies that research in the field should be directed towards the search for universal laws which regulate individual social behaviour. The second focuses on the human element of social science research, with recognition of the notion that people are not inanimate objects and therefore cannot be treated as such. Aligning social science with natural science arguably implies that data collection and analysis is best performed from a positivist standpoint. As research methods favoured by positivists tend towards those reliant on quantification (Gill and Johnson, 2002), it would follow that in management research the focus should be on quantitative research methods. Research conducted from the positivist viewpoint is usually considered to be reductionist in nature, and is often termed hypothetico-deductive, as it aims to derive a result in relation to a predefined hypothesis (Zikmund, 2000). Conversely, an approach to research which embraces human individuality and places emphasis on how people perceive and give meaning to their own Page 3 of 3 socially created world, can be considered constructivist (Hunt, 1994), and phenomenological (Gill and Johnson, 2002). The focus from this standpoint is therefore on understanding, interpreting and building theory rather than objectively testing, deducing and verifying an existing hypothesis. Such an approach can be considered inductive in nature and therefore favours the adoption of qualitative research methods. ollows: â€Å"†¦the most telling and fundamental distinction between the paradigms is on the dimension of verification versus discovery†¦quantitative methods have been developed most directly for the task of verifying or confirming theories and†¦qualitative methods were purposely developed for the task of discovering or generating theories. † (Reichardt and Cook, 1979: cited in Deshpande, 1983: p. 105 ) This can be explained further as At the extreme of the inductive spectrum lies the concept of grounded theory developed by Glaser and Strauss (1967). Here the researcher builds theory based entirely on the data obtained in a particular study without the influence of predetermined knowledge or preconceived hypotheses. Taking deduction to the extreme hypotheses can only ever be tested, raising the question of how it is possible to obtain a hypothesis in the first place. This presents a number of dilemmas with regard to research in the field of management, including whether it is more appropriate to test existing hypotheses or to develop new theory. The theory-testing versus theory-generation debate is particularly significant in the field of marketing as, due to the relative youth of the discipline, marketers are faced with the challenge of both obtaining and maintaining respect and credibility for the work that has been done so far (Bartels, 1983); and continuing to generate theory needed to develop a coherent, holistic body of knowledge which will clear up marketing’s existing â€Å"theory mess† (Gummesson, 2002: p. 349). Page 4 of 4 Development of research in the field of marketing The discipline of marketing, which came about as a departure from economics not long after 1900, originally had no identity of its own. There was no predetermined framework for its development, nor any real expectation of what it should, or could, become (Bartels, 1983). The way the discipline started to develop however led to a belief that it had â€Å"†¦meritorious scientific character† (Bartels, 1983: p. 34), which subsequently influenced ideas about the way in which credible research in the field should be conducted. Consequently approaches to research in marketing have historically been dominated by deductive processes (Hyde, 2000). Milliken (2001) supports this with the observation that within the marketing literature there has been little attention paid to qualitative research. If marketing was universally accepted to be akin to a pure science then this may be an acceptable situation. It has been suggested however that, rather than being a science, marketing is actually an art which belongs both to the world of business and the school of humanities (Halliday, 1999). It was noted by Deshpande (1983) that in the early 1980s there were only four major textbooks dealing with the metatheoretical issues in marketing, and it can therefore be understood that â€Å"†¦self conscious reflection on theory construction in marketing is of fairly recent origin. † (p. 104). Peter (1982), supported by Deshpande (1983), argues that the dominant philosophical approach applied in marketing is that of logical empiricism. Such a positivist approach forces a â€Å"†¦search for causality and the assumption of determinism† (Hunt, 1994: p. 7), which directs those conducting marketing research towards hypotheticodeductive methods for the verification of existing theories rather than development of new ones. Page 5 of 5 Goulding (1999) suggests that the popularity of the positivist paradigm may be down to the more transparent rules which it projects with regard to the basis of hypotheses and their testing, resulting in a clearer picture of what is a ccepted to be known and what remains unknown or untested. As marketing is a relatively young discipline, quantitative methods have therefore been regularly favoured over qualitative methods in an attempt to establish credibility and respectability (Bartels, 1983). Bass (1993) unreservedly supports quantitative research and the scientific view of marketing, on the basis of the need to make general laws and principles which can be widely applied. To emphasise his position further Bass (1993) repeatedly refers to the discipline as not as â€Å"marketing† but as â€Å"marketing science†. Despite this apparent favouritism of qualitative research, for establishing integrity and credence, it has been suggested that marketing as a discipline has failed to develop a coherent theoretical foundation due to the inappropriate selection and use of methods within the framework of logical empiricism (Leone and Schultz, 1980). criticises how qualitative research is implemented. Gummesson (2001) also He questions whether or not it is ppropriate to make a jump from a subjective answer given by a person, perhaps in the form of a questionnaire response, to hard facts about the population being studied, and furthermore if a model being selected for use in marketing research can be an appropriate proxy for the particular situation being studied. Gummesson (2001) instead advocates an interactive approach to research in marketing based on â€Å"†¦a humanistic, hermeneutic and phenomenological paradigm. (p. 40). Deshpande (1983) is in agreement with this and proposes that, rather th at the incorrectly using quantitative research methods, the shortfall in theory development in the field may lie in the inappropriate adoption of a quantitative paradigm where a qualitative one would be more appropriate: â€Å"If we ignore the qualitative paradigm, we also by definition exclude the principal systematic means of theory generation. † (Deshpande, 1983: p. 106) Page 6 of 6 The dominance of logical empiricism in marketing has therefore been seen as potentially detrimental to the discipline, because the successful development of an appropriate holistic and sound body of theory is necessary for the credibility of the field in both management and academe (Bartels, 1983). Hunt (1994) however observes that scholars in the field of marketing, particularly those reviewing papers for publication in academic journals, may themselves be responsible for the lack of theory generation by being over critical when reviewing the work of those who attempt to make an original contribution. According to Gummesson (2001) this behaviour reinforces the belief that to build a publications record, and a respectable reputation, marketers are being encouraged to test existing theory using quantitative methods rather than generate theory through qualitative investigation. This, it has been suggested, has resulted in there being no development in general management marketing theory over recent decades, leaving marketing as an array of disjointed theories and ideas founded on arguably obsolete principles Gummesson (2001). The lack of credibility given to qualitative research techniques in marketing from the academic perspective does however appear somewhat ironic given that such methods are widely adopted in marketing research in industry (Deshpande, 1983). Although it may appear that qualitative marketing research is a relatively recent revelation, Deshpande (1983) argues that this is not the case. He observes that there was significant interest in the topic in the 1950s and 1960s. In the early 1980s, Fern (1982) suggested that the reason one specific qualitative technique, focus groups, had failed to gain prominence was a lack of empirical testing, which would allow the theory development necessary to acquire credibility. In other words a qualitative technique struggled to generate recognition because it could not satisfy the positivistic evaluation criteria needed to do so. This is perhaps indicative of the historical power of positivism in marketing academia in determining what can be accepted as credible Page 7 of 7 nd what cannot, regardless of whether or not techniques are accepted in the commercial environment. Malhotra and Peterson (2001) suggest that for marketing to move forward in the twenty-first century it is necessary to bridge the gap between the academic and commercial positions. There is evidence of increasing acceptance of qualitative methods in marketing research, especially in managing research as the marketplace evolves. For example Kozinet z (2002) developed â€Å"netnography† as a technique for gaining insight into online communities based on a combination of the principles of ethnography and focus groups. Quantitative techniques it would appear still have their place in marketing research too, despite the criticisms levelled at them. The SERVQUAL questionnaire for example, originally developed by Parasuraman et al (1988), relies on the collection of data which can be statistically manipulated to determine levels of service quality. Notwithstanding the substantial criticism it has received (see Buttle, 1996), it is still being used in marketing research today (see e. g. DeMoranville and Bienstock, 2003). What it would consequently appear important to recognise is that both quantitative and qualitative methods have their place in marketing research; neither is sufficient on its own, and there is potentially for significant advances to be made if marketing researchers acknowledge this (Deshpande, 1983). Triangulation and methodological pluralism There is a place in marketing research for both qualitative and quantitative research. There is also a significant risk that overly staunch advocates of a single paradigm will forego the quality of their research by valuing the methodological choice above the aim of the particular Page 8 of 8 study (Bartels, 1983). From a marketing research perspective the importance therefore lies in recognition of the relative advantages and disadvantages of both the qualitative and quantitative research and the understanding of the strengths and weakness of particular methods. Cahill (1996) supports this with the recognition that qualitative and quantitative techniques can be complementary, and Milliken (2001) suggests that the reality of a real research situation demands compromise between the seemingly opposed philosophical standpoints on which the methods are based. Combining qualitative and quantitative methods presents the researcher with an opportunity to compensate for the weakness in each approach. (Deshpande, 1983), and within the field of marketing there appears to be a significant move towards combining qualitative and quantitative research methods (Milliken, 2001). Perry (1998) emphasises the benefit of case study methodology in marketing and suggests that there is no need to consider induction and deduction to be mutually exclusive when selecting a research method. He emphasises that realism is the most appropriate paradigm from which to undertake marketing research as it allows the building of new theory whilst incorporating existing knowledge. Strength in method combination does not necessarily have to include qualitative and quantitative approaches. Hall and Rist (1999) present a marketing study based on the triangulation of purely qualitative research methods including focus groups, observation and document examination. They argue that doing this eliminates the risks of relying on a single method and therefore enhances research quality and strengthens the credibility of qualitative techniques. Page 9 of 9 Methodological pluralism, whilst appearing to offer reconciliation between opposing theoretical paradigms in relation to research method choice, does itself introduce debate and criticism. Gill and Johnson (2002) for example note that embracing realism can be seen as accepting positivism at the cost of phenomenology as it may involve the †¦operationalization and measurement of social reality (stimuli) and action (response)†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 170). Consequently, combining research methods can itself become part of the argument rather than a solution. Conclusion The decision of whether to adopt qualitative or quantitative methods in management research historically appears to be based on the philosophical assumptions upheld by the individual researcher or the discipline in which he or she is work ing. A paradigmatic dichotomy between positivism and phenomenology (or constructivism) would seem to have resulted in a situation where, in some instances, the research methodology choice is deemed more significant than the subject of the particular study. Marketing is a relatively young discipline within the field of management and, as such, is faced with the challenge of obtaining and maintaining credibility. To do this it has been proposed that it needs to both test existing theory and generate new theory, however the processes required to achieve these two goals can be seem to stem from diametrically opposed paradigms: theory-testing being achievable through deductive methods; and theory generation relying on an inductive approach. This incommensurability has however been challenged with the assertion that what is important is selecting an appropriate methodology for a particular study, rather than fitting a Page 10 of 10 study to a method. Methodological triangulation has been suggested as a means of achieving this, with a move towards a paradigm of realism where the relative advantages and disadvantages of a number of research methods can be embraced. Whilst at face value this approach may appear to offer a compromise offering the best practical solution to the methodological choice dispute, it also introduces criticism of its own which, in turn fuels the debate further. The general aim of this discussion, to consider the differences between qualitative and quantitative research methods, has itself been conducted from an ostensibly positivistic standpoint. In fact any discussion, comparison or assessment of research methods is arguably starting from a predetermined premise that an objective evaluation is being undertaken (Gill and Johnson, 2002), and can therefore be seen to be embracing positivist ideals. Taking into account the amount of attention that has been paid to philosophical approaches to management research; the ambiguities that are apparent; the ongoing search for the most suitable and appropriate means for conducting studies; and the motivation to establish and maintain credibility, it would seem unlikely that end to the debate regarding research methods in management is in sight: â€Å"Like the earth being round, thus lacking a natural end, the journey in Methodologyland has no end. You search again and again and again, just as the term says: re-search, re-search, re-search. (Gummesson, 2001: p. 29) Page 11 of 11 References Bartels, R. (1983), â€Å"Is marketing defaulting its responsibilities? †, Journal of Marketing, 47(4), pp. 32-35 Bass, F. M. (1993), â€Å"The future of research in marketing: Marketing Science†, Journal of Marketing Research, 30(1), pp. 1-6 Buttle, F. (1996), â€Å"SERVQUAL: review, critique, research agenda†, European Journal o f Marketing, 30(1), pp. 8-32 Cahill, D. J. (1996), â€Å"When to use qualitative methods: a new approach†, Marketing Intelligence Planning, 14(6), pp. 16-20 Cohen, L. , Manion, L. and Morr, K. 2000), Research Methods in Education, 5th Edition, Routledge: London Cunningham, A. C. (1999), â€Å"Commentary confessions of a reflective practitioner: meeting the challenges of marketing’s destruction†, European Journal of Marketing, 33(7/8), pp. 685-697 DeMoranville, C. W. and Bienstock, C. C. (2003), â€Å"Question order effects in measuring service quality†, International Journal of research in Marketing, 20(3), pp. 217-231 Deshpande, R. (1983), â€Å"Paradigms Lost: On theory and method in research in marketing†, Journal of Marketing, 47(4), pp. 101-110 Fern, E. F. 1982), â€Å"The use of focus groups for idea generation: the effects of group size, acquaintanceship, and moderator on response quantity and quality†, Journal of Marketing Research, 19(1), pp. 1-13 Gill, J. and Johnson, P. (2002), Research Methods For Mangers, 3rd Edition, London: SAGE Publications Ltd Glaser, B. G. and Strauss, A. L. (1967), The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research, Aldine Publishing Company: Chicago Goulding, C. (1999), â€Å"Consumer research, interpretive paradigms and methodological ambiguities†, European Journal of Marketing, 33(9/10), pp. 59-873 Gummesson, E. (2001), â€Å"Are current research approaches in marketing leading us astray? †, Marketing Theory, 1(1), pp. 27-48 Gummesson, E. (2002), â€Å"Practical value of adequate marketing management theory†, European Journal of Marketing, 36(3), pp. 325-349 Hall, A. L. and Rist, R. C. (1999), â€Å"Integrating multiple qualitative research methods (or avoiding the precariousness of a one-legged stool)†, Psychology Marketing, 16(4), pp. 291304 Page 12 of 12 Halliday, S. 1999), â€Å"I don’t know much about art, but I know wh at I like: resonance, relevance and illumination as assessment criteria for marketing research and scholarship†, Marketing Intelligence Planning, 17(7), pp. 345-362 Hunt, S. D. (1994), â€Å"On rethinking marketing: Our discipline, our practice, our methods†, European Journal of Marketing, 28(3), pp. 13-25 Hyde, K. F. (2000), â€Å"Recognising deductive processes in qualitative research†, Qualitative Market Research, 3(2), pp. 82-90 Kozinets, R. V. (2002), â€Å"The field behind the screen: Using Netnography for marketing research in online communities†, Journal of Marketing Research, 39(1), pp. 1-72 Kuhn, T. S. (1970), The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 2nd Edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press Leone, R. P. and Schultz, R. L. 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Teamwork and Its Issues Related to Society- myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Write about theTeamwork and Its Issues Related to Society. Answer: Introduction In accordance to many scholars, the definition of the teamwork can be many and different, but as per my understanding the term teamwork signifies the meaning of working together for the achievement of one goal. As the term indicates teamwork is working within a team. As I have worked various organizations I have experienced teamwork and I personally feel there are some basic as well as underlying rules of working within a team which makes the effective result of the same. At the same time, I personally feel that every person in the team must understand and follow these rules for a smoother outcome of the activity. However, in the following section of the essay I will be discussing my experience in teamwork from various organizations I have worked for. Along with this, I will present the basic norms of the team working for any purpose. Being a student of the university, I have worked for many organizations for earning my pocket money and while working with various people I have learned and experienced the meaning of team work. Not only all the time I have gained a smoother working experience, but also I have encountered several issues within the same context. From my experience, I feel that all the issues have some connection to the society and well as to the personal life of the people. Besides, I strongly feel that the team working refers to ones realization of the responsibility imposed upon him. However, I realized that working within a team helps one enhancing his abilities, sense of responsibilities, performance, trust and most importantly makes one a positive and better person. For example, while working in various organizations I have gradually developed my interpersonal skills and communication is the finest example of it. Apart from that, I have not only developed my communicative and other personal skill s, but have become more responsible and sensible person which is important for living in a society. I have realized that there will definitely arise some issues within the team while working together and to certain extent the issues create impact on the team members as well as on the societies. On the other hand, the issues are responsible for creating conflicts among the group members and hazards in the intended activities. Therefore, I feel that one must ensure the proper understating and realization of the rules and ethics of working in a team in order to avoid the any conflicts and hazards. Some of the issues that I have encountered both in my part and in the part of my co workers are in the contexts of communication, leadership, accountability and responsibility, creativity, participation, decision making and many others. However, I will be highlighting there mentioned issues in this essays and the connection of the same to the society. The first issue that I want to mention is about communication. I strongly feel that the communication is the most important aspect of the teamwork. Without effective communication among the group members as well as with the leaders the intended objectives cannot be met. The purpose of the effective communication is to have a proper understanding among the members of the team which helps the team to achieve the goal set for them. Poor communication in a team refers to the talking of one member over another or interrupting the conversations of others. Apart from that the poor communication also indicates the absence of one member of the team from communication with others. All these examples of poor communication are capable of arising argumentative situations within the team which can hamper the activities. For example, while working in a restaurant as a delivery boy, I had to maintain proper communication both with my co workers as well as with the customers. Effective communication was the basis of my job. If I failed in communicating with the people I was working with, the purpose of my job would not be fulfilled. On the other hand, the failing to establish proper communication once created severe conflicts with the customers of the restaurant. For example, once I took an order from the customers and asked to prepare the same to my co workers. Unfortunately, he somehow misunderstood my saying and delivered the wrong order to the customer. Naturally, there arose conflicts between the customer and the delivery boy. This was one of my initial experiences that I have gained while working within a team. These kinds of situations has arisen many times after that I from all the situations I have learned and realized that communication issues are general in teamwork. I have come to realize that the communication issues have both direct and indirect connection to the society. The social value of the people is to certain extent determined by the communication. As per my understanding of the issues deriving from the communication, the communication of the people determines the social standards of them. Improper communication between two people is capable of the disrupting the social standards and values of both. Apart from this, there is positive aspect of the communicative issues that I have realized had helped me developing my communicative skills. Through the various jobs and number of different issues deriving from communication, I have helped to gradually enhance my communicative skills in terms of the effective social communication. Leadership is another major issue that frequently occurs in the teamwork. Any team needs a leader who guides and motivates the team to meet the target. Leaders of the team defines the activities and tasks to the team members for certain purpose. Therefore, I believe that the leaders of the team are strengths and base of the same. As I have worked with various organizations with various teams, I have seen many issues deriving from the leadership. I believe that, the basic style of leadership must portray the positive and inspiring aspect of the leader so the team members are motivated to work for the targeted goals. However, there are various styles of the leadership as stated by various scholars. According to my experience, there can arise many issues within a team related to leadership. Ineffective leadership, de-motivating or dominating leaders, poor decision making are some of the issues that can be highlighted in leadership activities in teamwork. I strongly believe that the leaders of the team are responsible for providing the team members with inclusive vision and purpose for working. Failing to do the same can be mentioned as the ineffectiveness of the leadership. Besides, the leaders of the organizations are also responsible for managing any kind of change within the organization for making the team members understanding the necessity of the change. Therefore, as the scholars stats and according to my experience in professional context, the leadership issues are one of the major in the teamwork and are capable of hampering the usual workflow within the same. Among the various organizations I have worked in supermarket as sales executives, which I believe is one of the challenging jobs. We were a team of fifteen people under one sales manager. We were responsible for selling the goods to the customers. The responsibilities of our sales manager were to guide us in our job and motivate us for the same as this job at times felt boring and frustrating. Being the sales manager, he was the leader of the sales group and was responsible for managing his team. However, I found out that he failed to do his job which made some of the team members to leave the job. The leadership of the manager was ineffective in terms of communication, guidance and motivation. He failed to make us understand our job responsibilities and guide us for the same. On a different note, this needs to be mentioned that both the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of the leadership can be seen in the political leadership. If the people of the nation are considered as the team then the political leader can be considered as the team leader. I believe that the leadership of a broader perspective can be developed from the smaller context. Therefore, I feel that the leadership has the direct connection to society in terms of its effectiveness and responsibilities. The next issue that I want to highlight in regard to the teamwork is the responsibility and accountability of each person working within a team. Being responsible for the given job and accountable for own deeds is one of the major aspects of the teamwork. Since, I have gained wide experience from various professions; I have encountered many issues within the team regarding responsibilities and accountability of the team members. I personally opine that these two qualities of a person reflect his personality. At the same time, I understood that these qualities are at the same time necessary and important for working in team in order to maintain a proper coordination and understanding among the team members as well as about the intended activities. I would like to provide an example of the issue regarding the responsibility and accountability in teamwork. While working in a restaurant we had team of twelve people and each of us was given different responsibilities to work for. I found out that some of the team members are not serious about their responsibilities and often commit mistakes in their job. When asked about the same they refuse to admit about their mistakes and usually blame another person responsible for their deeds. This kind of situations often created conflicts within the team. Therefore, I feel that sense of responsibilities and accountability is another major aspect of the teamwork. The accountability refers to the responsibility for own deeds and it is important for maintaining appropriate culture within the team as well as in the workplace. I believe that each person of the team must be accountable for their own activities which I feel will make the achievement of the targeted goal easier for the team. As per my personal opinion, I also feel that accountability also denotes the understanding of own responsibilities that have been provided to me. Therefore, I understood and feel that the sense of responsibilities and accountability is important in teamwork for serving the purpose which the team has been provided with. The responsibilities and accountability is directly connected to the society and I feel the same is developed from a smaller context. I believe that every one of us has certain responsibilities towards the society and each must perform the same for the sake of the society. Besides, everyone must be accountable for their own activities that makes harm to the society. Hence, I affirm that the issues regarding the same has the direct and major connection to the society for which everyone of the team must ensure the importance of the sense of responsibilities accountability. Apart from these major issues there are some issues that can be identified as other influencing issues of teamwork. Creativity is one of the minor issues that are capable of influencing the usual workflow of the teamwork. Creativity is important within the team in order to modifying the workflow. Any issues within the team regarding the creativity such as lack of creativity; ineffectiveness of creativity can disrupt the usual workflow of the team. On the other hand, the participation of all the member in the team in important for attaining the required and intended goals. The lack of full participation of each member of the team in the team activities ensures the effective and successful teamwork. Another important issue is the decision making which is crucial in decision making. Each of the team members is responsible for decision making of the team as the whole towards the certain goal. Any issues within the team regarding the decision making for certain purpose hampers activities of the team. In accordance to my understanding and opinion of all these minor issues, these issues to certain extent can be linked with the social context. As I have stated, creativity is important in a team in order to generate new and fresh ideas for serving the provided purpose. To certain extent, creative and innovative ideas of team members and the leaders determines the success of the team. The lack of creativity is considered to be one of the minor but important issues within a team that is capable of disrupting team work. On the other note, the creativity of the team is related to the society in terms of development. The society is constantly and consistently striving for development and reaching this aim the society needs new and creative ideas which cannot be grown by an individual. Therefore, the teamwork is important in terms of creativity for the development of the society. I consider the participation of each people in the team necessary since I feel that without the proper and full participation of all people in the group, the achievement of the target is not possible. The complete participation of the people I believe, ensure the performance of the team towards the certain goal. Considering this fact, any issue regarding the participation such as lack of participation, unwilling participation is indirectly linked with the society. For example, while working as the waiter in Starbucks one of my colleagues was reluctant to join our team. Later I found out that that particular person was also reluctant to participate in any social activities. Therefore, I realized that any issues regarding the participation of the people in the group has a broader impact in terms of social perspective. The last but not the least issue is regarding the decision making. I personally feel that decision making is one of the important aspects of the teamwork as the decision making impacts of the activities and performance of the team for a certain purpose. The lack of ability to make decisions or ineffective or poor decision making can affect the performance of the team (Levi, 2015). Again, if the fact is considered on a broader perspective like society, the lack of efficiency in decision making impacts on the social life of the people. Therefore, I would like to conclude that all the above mentioned issues are primarily thee different aspects of teamwork.I realize that if all these aspects are not maintained properlythese emerge as the issues and these issues are capable of disrupting and affecting the natural workflow of team. Along with this, the issues influence the performance of team as the whole. Apart from this, the issues are directly or indirectly connected to society in terms of maintaining social values and standards for living in the society. From the great amount of experience, I have gained from various professions; I have developed my realization and personal skills through the numerous issues in the teamwork. Reference: Bennett, J., Pitt, M., Price, S. (2012). Understanding the impact of generational issues in the workplace.Facilities,30(7/8), 278-288. Lee, H., Bonk, C. J. (2014). Collaborative Learning in the Workplace: Practical Issues and Concerns.International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning,7(2). Levi, D. (2015).Group dynamics for teams. Sage Publications. Rosenbach, W. E., Taylor, R. L., Youndt, M. A. (2012).Contemporary issues in leadership. Westview Press. Salas, E., Rosen, M. A. (2013). Building high reliability teams: progress and some reflections on teamwork training.BMJ Qual Saf,22(5), 369-373. Tannenbaum, S. I., Mathieu, J. E., Salas, E., Cohen, D. (2012). Teams are changing: Are research and practice evolving fast enough?.Industrial and Organizational Psychology,5(1), 2-24. Thory, K. (2013). A gendered analysis of emotional intelligence in the workplace: Issues and concerns for human resource development.Human Resource Development Review,12(2), 221-244.