Road Safety Essay Example for Free

Road Safety Essay Road incidents are a major problem in every society. Many lives are taken due to careless driving or misuse of public roads. Road incidents, also known as traffic collision, traffic accidents, motor vehicle collision, road traffic collision, wreck (USA) and car crash (Australia), can be defined as an unexpected and undesirable event , that occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian and other stationary obstruction. Road incidents are not only a rising concern in Fiji but also in every country in the whole world. Increase in the number of road incidents is a matter of concern in Fiji and also other countries in the world. Usually road incidents have very high impact on the people, that is, on the life, mind and family. People who are the victim of accidents normally regret for the rest of their lives because of the suffering they endure due to their carelessness in not following the simple road safety rules. Approximately hundred to two hundred people die each year due to road incidents. An escalation in the number of road incidents is not only a problem in Fiji but in every country in the whole world. Developed and leading countries like Australia and the United States of America also face the problem of road incidents and its impact on the people. In the recent years, the number has increased rapidly and many people are affected due to road incidents in one way or another. Many people lost their lives, family members or loved ones, suffer physical damage and damage to their properties due to not following the simple and easy road safety rules. Due to carelessness of people and failing to follow the road safety rules, this is turning out to be a great concern for Fiji Government and its time that action is taken. Many people are dying everyday. The Government and concerned authorities such as the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and police, are showing their concern by organizing operations to monitor the drivers activities and holding awareness programs to educate people.

Founding Fathers of Psychology Essay Example for Free

Founding Fathers of Psychology Essay These four men that we are about to talk about are some of the, if not the most important people in psychology. One developed psychology as a school of thought and published the first book on the subject which opened the door for another to develop his theories. Years after the book came out another thinker was inspired to look into the human mind and this time with a more scientifically critical mind and approach, there was a common reason people had problem, he just was not positive what. This lead two of his students to move on and one focus on the individual versus what the majority has a problem with and made sure that treatment focused on them. The second looked more in depth into what naturally came into our subconscious and how that affected us and our development. These were the non-official founding fathers of psychology. This man never even practiced medicine yet, after graduating from Harvard he went on to become an influential person in psychology (Stone, 2000). In addition to many other things that William James did to help with the field of psychology, especially the psychological aspects of religion he also dabbled in the use of scientific methods to investigate the mostly untouched spiritual and psychic realm. He was also the first one to fight for psychology to be recognized as a science, everyone after him has him to thank for the distinction as a science (Croce, 2010). The way he fought was just a more unorthodox way of going about it, he did not even like to be called psychologist, in fact he preferred the term philosopher (Goodwin, 2008). He eventually developed a position that would become the foundation for the functional psychologists, this was known as pragmatism. This was based on the belief that a person had control over what they do and life changes those experiences. This lead to a book that would change the way people looked at psychology as something to take seriously, the Principles of Psychology became the first text book type publication on this subject which led to people like Sigmund Freud and others to develop their theories as well. Freud is one of the most famous of them all, when anyone thinks of psychology that has not looking in depth into its history will always think of Freud. Freud was not all the way people portray him either if something seemed to be too damaging for his patient it was stopped (Chessick, 2000). Psychoanalysis is hard on everyone on the situation because it digs deep into what makes a person act the way they do. Freud was said to have a unique approach to his patients for his time frame. He realized that when a person learns something new or experiences something new it does indeed change something about that person, he also knew that the past had something do with it and that there were layers of consciousness to a person that has an effect as well. He made them a part of their therapy and listened to what they wanted out of their therapy instead of dictating to them what they should do with themselves (Frank, 2008). He wanted his patients to be able to be free with themselves and learning their own hindrances that may keep them from doing something that they should be doing with themselves. He wanted them to be their own person and not held back by whatever has brought them to him. Freud himself focused more on assigning a general reason for people to behave the way they did which is what influenced his students to branch out. Alfred Adler joined Freud’s psychoanalytic movement in 1902, but he left the group in 1911 because of persistent disagreements with Freudian theory (Overholser, 2010). This approach that Adler created was called the Individualistic approach this approach focuses solely on the patient and what experiences have shaped them over the course of their life. This is one of the most in depth ways to psychoanalyze people, realizing the perceived flaw in Freud’s theory; he took a look at what made the individual unique and how that changed their human experience. This helps improve the one so that eventually that one will go out into society and become responsible for themselves and each other as good members of it. Adler continued to believe that Freud had made a point by looking back at ones childhood for answers but rather than focusing on the sexual root to the problem, he focused on the feelings that came out of a situation (Lafountain, 2009). For example, if one grew up afraid to take charge of situations because someone else always did it for them, they could have trouble later in life trying to be in charge of themselves or other people. After studying with Freud he went on to focus on how society affects an individual and how that individual functions in society. He believed there were three things a person needed to accomplish in life to be a healthy socially minded person. First is the task of finding how to survive, a job, maintaining ones house, the responsible things. Second is cooperating and being civil as well as respectful to society. Third are intimate relationships, having children, friends, a spouse. All three of these were crucial to being a normally functioning person in society (Lafountain, 2010). Basically a person is unique in nearly all aspects of their life and that needs to be taken into account in each and every case from psychology to teaching because not everyone is going to fit together well. Carl Jung, as with Adler was inspired and influenced by Freud in the early years of his career and as with that came the eventual disagreement and him going his separate way. He redefined some of terms that we are more familiar with today. He gave us the terms; introvert, extrovert, conscious, unconscious, collective unconscious, persona, archetype, and more importantly psyche. These were terms to simplify and classify different processes going on in the brain at any given moment, one of the other more important and less verifiable is the theory of collective unconsciousness, this is the belief that collectively humans have a psychological knowledge that they can draw on that is inherent in our genetic make-up (Carter, 2011). This was closely followed by the archetypes which without collective unconscious as a theory would not be feasible, the archetypes are what those thoughts are made up of in the collective unconscious, something like innate nature that says we are inherently supposed to fear things that would do us harm. Studying this brings out what is instinctual in humans versus what is something that they are aware of doing, much like Freud’s subconscious thought theory. Both agreed that there are things that are in humans that are unconscious and just happen and those needed to be studied and understood as well (Carter, 2010). Jungian followers believed that like Freud dreams had meaning but in Jung’s school this allowed the person analyzing the dreams to free associate the meaning based off of their own knowledge of mythology and life versus what would be from the person who is being analyzed own life. The thought was that collective unconscious would make the analyst come to the correct conclusion based on unconscious thoughts going back and forth between the two. These four individuals shaped psychology as what it is today, they both indirectly and directly influenced each other even when some of them never met and history has diminished their accomplishments. James started it all with the mind of a philosopher who enjoyed the concreteness of what science proved but also the mystery of what it left open. Freud was a philosopher who thought more as a scientist and therefore opened the idea that the brain has hidden information in it that needed to be discovered to learn what makes a person themselves. This led Jung and Adler to take his ideals and expand on them where they agreed and where they disagreed. Without them psychology would not be where it is today and you can see little bits of what they contributed throughout its history. . References  Carter, D. (2011). CARL JUNG IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY. Contemporary Review, 293(1703), 441. Chessick, R. D. (2000). Psychoanalysis at the Millennium. American Journal Of Psychotherapy, 54(3), 277. Croce, P. J. (2010). Reaching beyond Uncle William: A century of William James in theory and in life. History Of Psychology, 13(4), 351-377. doi:10. 1037/a0021106 Frank, G. (2008). A response to The relevance of Sigmund Freud for the 21st century. . Psychoanalytic Psychology, 25(2), 375-379. doi:10. 1037/0736-9735. 25. 2. 375 Goodwin, C. J. (2008). A History of Modern Psychology (3rd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Lafountain, R. (2009). Alfred Adlers Place in the Field of Psychology. Washington, District of Columbia, US: APA Division 1, Society for General Psychology. Overholser, J. C. (2010). Psychotherapy that strives to encourage social interest: A simulated interview with Alfred Adler. Journal Of Psychotherapy Integration, 20(4), 347-363. doi:10. 1037/a0022033 Stone, A. A. (2000). Images in psychiatry: William James, 1842-1910. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 157(10), 1583-1583. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/220496188? accountid=35812.

What Do Ethics Have To Do With Research?

What Do Ethics Have To Do With Research? Ethical behavior is defined as a set if moral principles, rules or standards governing a person or profession. Most importantly, principles of ethical conduct includes that the researcher should do no harm, that privacy of and anonymity of participants must be protected, that confidentiality of information must be maintained, that informed consent of participants needs to be obtained including assurance that participation is voluntary, with the chance to withdraw from the proposed research, that inappropriate behavior must be avoided, and that, data must be interpreted honestly without distortion. Lastly, the extent to which participants are to share in data ownership and any benefits from the research must be considered. Although the principles seem straightforward, a series of example were provided that exemplified the difficulty in adhering to the principles, often because situations may have a complex array of conflicting interests. The report presents and identifies range of ethical issues on possible divergence that researchers have to deal with when undertaking or participating in research. Following on, ethical considerations in quantitative and qualitative research the investigator must scrutinize; among others are relevant examples of cases that revolve around unethical issues and the penalty of violation. The role of IRB was discussed, which precedes discussion on how ethical issues in research can be solved the conclusions and final remarks. Chapter 1 Introduction What do ethics have to do with research? Ethical code or moralities are expression of how we should behave as individuals and as a society. They are moral judgments that can be applied to particular situations to help us make decisions and guide our behaviors. Without doubt, they are linked to cultural values at a precise time in our history and are subject to change as attitudes and values evolve. What is well thought out to be insensitive today can be normative, just a half century ago. In doing research there may be a conflict between the speedy conduct of a study and the trouble of doing what is deferential to humans or even animals. While, researchers are focused on knowledge expansion and on the methodology of their projects like personnel and equipment, statistical analysis, selection of subject, research protocols and sample size. At the same time, as essentially accountable persons, they try as much as possible to respect the research environment, which requires attention to the suitable exercise not only of physical resources including funds, but also to animal and human subject matter. Merely whilst the research is of adequate quality to potentially contribute to knowledge can we justify involving participants and making use of other resources? Ethical considerations may help to decide whether the research should be done, and if so, how it should be pursued. Thus, it is vital to be capable, transparent, sincere, and adhere to ethical guidelines in regard to research subjects. Definition of Terms: Research Pearson: (1995-2010 prentice Hall) Research is the systematic process of collecting and analyzing information to increase our understanding of the phenomenon under study. It is the function of the researcher to contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon and to communicate that understanding to others. Ethics: Consider the problem of definition of ethical. Ethics, as a term, is commonly used to refer both to morals beliefs beliefs about what are right and wrong to do and ethical theory (justifications for moral beliefs) (Beauchamp and Bowie, 1997). Obviously, ethical issues can be raised throughout all phases of research, notably problem definition, stating research objectives/ hypotheses, literature review, choice of research design, questionnaire design, data collection procedures, data editing and cleaning, choice of statistical methods, data analysis, conclusions and recommendations, and even referencing. Writers vary widely on ethical issues in research. Often, they oppose on what is and is not morally satisfactory in social research. Debates about research ethics highlights certain tremendous cases of supposed ethical wrongdoing, although in fact the latent for unethical research is much larger. Some cases of unethical research are often associated with particular research methods, s uch as disguised observation and deception in experiments. In as much as ethics apply at every stage of the research, it is very imperative as a researcher to uphold ethics in research as this is what the industry mostly needs: Trust- Decision makers trust researchers to make provision for precise information Confidentiality and professionalism Goodwill- This is applicable to the respondent for their willingness to volunteer their personal information on their awareness, manner and deeds. This paper discusses the significance of ethics in research, considerations the researchers must scrutinize and the penalty of violation. Research must be carried out in a safe and ethical approach. The paper will look into range of ethical issues (procedural ethics, practices and cases of ethical violation) in the next session. Chapter 2 Ethical issues in research Ethics is an essential part of any research project. One may assume ethics is just another stage of research, one that is tackled with filing out a standardized set of forms submitted to an ethics committee. (e.g. IRB) may not lend itself to effectively assessing ethical issues. Ethics has become a cornerstone for conducting effective and meaningful research. As such, the ethical behavior of individual researchers is under unprecedented scrutiny (Best Kahn, 2006; Field Behrman, 2004; Trimble Fisher, 2006). In todays society, any concerns regarding ethical practices will negatively influence attitudes about science, and the abuses committed by a few are often the ones that receive widespread publicity (Mauthner, Birch, Jessop, Miller, 2003). Clearly, researchers have liabilities to their line of work, patrons, and respondent and are obliged to high ethical standards to make certain that both the purpose and the information are not brought into ill repute. As a branch of philosophy it deals with the dynamic of decision making concerning what is right and wrong. Scientific research works, as all human activities, is overseen by individual, community and social values. Research ethics engage requirements on daily work, the protection of dignity of subjects and information in the research that is being made known. In recent years ethical thoughtfulness have come to forefront, however, as a Doctoral candidate embarking on a research project, participating in research, we must cope with value systems that are very fundamental in the course of the study. The societal value, which is about the human rights, and the values about the scientific query. (Clarke, 1991) points out that the values may clash with value subjects, communities, and societies and create tensions and dilemmas. Ethics as a discipline deals with the broader value system of our society that encompasses the consensual agreement on what is right and wrong. This set of values is much broader than that which is legislatively defined as legal and illegal. These principles are the essential underpinning that helps to maintain civil and tranquil acceptance and agreement within society. The scientific community needs to address and resolve ethical problems not only because of their natural un-acceptableness to scientific research, but also to avoid the corrosive effect these problems eventually will have, if not resolved, on our society mores. We need to be deeply involved in the ethical dialogue to at least maintain, and if possible, raise the barrier of unethical behavior in science. A climate of silence with regard to these problems will undoubtedly result in lowering ethical barriers, to the determinant of our society. In this paper, the most significant ethical issues will be addressed. This stu dy will also attempt to highlight the possible divergence that researchers have to deal with when undertaking or participating in research. Ethical issues that affect research conduct Whether a researcher is a psychologist, education or anthropologist, the primary responsibilities is to help protect participants and aim should be clear: to consent ought to be obtain, protecting the participants from harm, and privacy should be ensured. Though, there is one area of responsibilities that is often less clear for both the researcher and the participant, which is intentional deception. These areas are covered in more detail below. Informed Consent: This involves the procedure by which an individual may opt whether or not to be involved in the proposed study by the investigator. The task of the researcher is to make certain that participants have a complete of the purpose and methods to be used in the study, the risk involved, and the demands placed upon them as a participants (Best Khan,2006; Jones Kottler, 2006).) The participant must also understand that he or she has the right to withdraw from the study at any time. The two forms of consent are direct and substitute. Direct consent is the most preferred because agreement is obtained directly from the person to be involved in the study. Substitute consent, or third-party consent, is given by someone other than the person to be involved in the study. Substitute consent may be obtained when it is determined that the person does not have the capacity to make the decision or is dependent on others for his or her welfare, such as children under the age of 18 or people with cognitive or emotional disabilities (Nagy, 2005a; Roberts, Geppert, Coverdale, Louie, Edenharder, 2005). Both direct and substitute consent must meet the requirements for informed consent. Harm: Psychologists must take reasonable steps to avoid harming their clients/ patients, students, supervisees, research participants, organizational clients, and others with whom they work, and to minimize harm where it is foreseeable and unavoidable. (American Psychological Association, 2002, p. 6) When psychologists become aware that research procedures have harmed a participant, they take reasonable steps to minimize the harm. (American Psychological Association, 2002, p. 12) The most basic concern in all research is that no individual is harmed by serving as a participant, as suggested above by the APA and AERA codes of ethics. In the context of research ethics, harm may be broadly defined to include extreme physical pain or death, but also involves such factors as psychological stress, personal embarrassment or humiliation, or myriad influences that may adversely affect the participants in a significant way. Certain types of investigations present potential harm to participants . Research that involves physically dangerous treatment may present real possibilities for harm if the treatment is inflicted on the participants. Unfortunately, there are examples of investigations in which ethical principles were violated in an extreme fashion (see Young, 2005). Other areas of research are specifically intended to examine the effects of psychological or emotional stress. Such research represents tremendously difficult circumstances, especially when the procedures involve actual infliction of stress. There is always the possibility that a subject may become seriously ill (e.g., have a stroke or heart attack) as a result of the stress. In addition, the possibility exists that the stress itself may be harmful to participants from a psychological standpoint. People who are institutionalized or incarcerated, such as prisoners, person with severe disabilities, or people with serious mental illness, may agree to participate in a study either because they should to be abl e to show evidence of good behavior or to gain approval of supervisors. Unfortunately, some troubling examples of ethical violations have occurred with the studies involving these individuals (Field Behrman, 2004; Moser et al., 2004). Highly vulnerable populations should not be taken advantage of in the name of science. Researchers investigating topics involving these individuals must exercise extreme care. Very young children, the elderly, or people with disabilities may be easily convinced that most activities are important, are of little harm, and should be engaged in for the benefit of society (Drew Hardman, 2007; Quadagno, 2005). Privacy: Researchers should know that this is the point at which the objective of study and the right to privacy may come into conflict. Frequently, research of this nature is aimed at obtaining information concerning attitudes, beliefs, opinion and behavior. Thus, pursuing the goals of science, while guarding against unnecessary invasion of participants privacy, present complex issues. As with other ethical thoughtfulness, privacy has become more and more valued right. Seeking privacy is an act of isolation or confidentiality removed from public view or knowledge. According to Hill (2005) identifies three imperative elements to confidentiality in research with participants. These are Public confidentiality- not identifying research participants in study reports, presentations and so forth: Social network confidentiality- not passing on information to family members, friends or other known to the participants, and lastly, third party breach of privacy- where a group or household members reveals something personal about another. (Hill, 2005, p. 75). Privacy considerations in research include both the need to have a safe, private physical location in which the research is conducted, and making sure that participants privacy through anonymity and confidentiality. For example, both these privacy aspects are high lightened in a UK study with lesbian and gay participations that were vulnerable, due to stigmatized identities (Valentine et al., 2001). However, this study, it is vital to have a safe research space in which participants could speak in pr ivate and liberally, and to protect their anonymity and confidentiality so that they were not identifiable. Deception: This occurs when the researcher provides misleading or withholding information from participants about the project. Deception is permissible when the benefits outweigh the costs. This happens when the investigators present their research as something other than what it is. Dishonesty should be minimized and when necessary, the degree and effects must be mitigated as much as possible. However to highlight more on this issue, deception refers to either an omission or a commission on the part of the researcher in terms of interactions with participants. An omission deception could mean that investigator does not fully inform participants about important aspect of the study. Other information or part of it is usually withheld. Commission is a situation in which the researcher lets out false information about the investigation, either to some extent or entirely. More so, the participants may not be aware of the ongoing study, but only to be informed about a section of it. Secondly, they are aware of their involvement in the study, which is out of the ordinary, giving them misleading information regarding the proposed study or activity. Apparently, in this situation the researcher is misrepresenting the study. Regardless of the precise nature of deception, it has become a very prominent issue for investigators concerned with the ethics of conducting research.As we move through the first decade of the 21st century, deception is receiving widespread attention in educational and social science research with increasing concerns regarding its use on the Internet (Keller Lee, 2003; Lichtenberg, Heresco-Levy, Nitzan, 2004; Mishara Weisstub, 2005; Nagy, 2005c; Pittenger, 2003). The next chapter will discuss ethic al considerations in the context of quantitative and qualitative research, how the rationale is to inform researchers as to the ethical issues that possibly will be specific to a given research approach. Ethical considerations in Quantitative and Qualitative research Conceptually, the ethical considerations for both quantitative and qualitative research are the same safety and protection of human rights These are mainly achieved by using the process of informed consent The utilization of informed consent is problematic in quantitative research, but practically impossible in qualitative methodologies in which the direction that the research takes is largely unknown (Ramos 1989) Munhall (1988) argues that informed consent can be achieved in qualitative research by re-negotiation when in expected events occur, but one can argue in turn that this places greater responsibility on the researchers, as well as requiring them to possess a high level of skill, especially in negotiation. Ethics and quantitative research This involves studies of which data that are analyzed are in form of numbers. In this kind of approach, behaviors are counted, accurate answers or miscalculations are counted, and other kinds of measures are documented in terms of quantity. This type of research involves experimental and non experimental research. Ethical issues in experimental research focus on individual protection that receives an intervention. For example, an intervention may involve training participants in group communication where a great deal of self disclosure is required. This is a technique where people are instigated to talk about their feelings, attitudes, and experiences, of which this may be quite personal. In addition to the problems related to participants who receive an experimental treatment, there are also difficult ethical issues involving those who are in a placebo or control group. Such would be the case where one group of students in a high school receives a newly developed science program (ex perimental treatment) that appears to be very effective, and a second group receives the science program that was used for many years with limited effectiveness (control group). One ethical perspective is that the researcher has the responsibility to provide the new treatment to all participants. However, some researchers may have a very different view. This opposing perspective is often called the natural state argument. This argument contends that the untreated participants are not being denied a benefit they already have; they are merely being left in their natural state. In the example above, the high school students in the control group continued to receive the science program that had been used in the school for many years. Clearly, neither of the above positions is acceptable for all research (Field Behrman, 2004; Gross, 2005; Roberts et al., 2005). Ethical issues also exist in conducting no experimental research where an investigator does not impose or manipulate conditions. Although ethics in no experimental designs (e.g., survey research) are often less complex or harmful than experimental studies, it is important for investigators to be aware of basic principles for protecting the participants, including full disclosure and consent. For example, in survey research, each respondent should be fully informed as to the purpose of the study, participant demographics (e.g., teachers, college students, and the general public), confidentiality of responses, how the results are intended to be used, and who will have access to the data. Bacon and Olsen (2005) also indicate that survey researchers have the ethical responsibility of not wasting a respondents time and to only collect data that has utility (real use). Schenk and Williamson (2005), in discussing the ethical responsibilities involved in conducting no experimental research on children, suggest if the information gathering activity will not directly benefit the children involved or their community, do not proceed (p. 17). Ethics and qualitative research This kind of approach involves recorded data in narrative descriptions, not numbers. A researcher makes use of qualitative methods to observe and describe conditions rather than control them. An essential ethical principle for qualitative researchers is this: Do not interfere with the natural setting under the study. More to the point is the fact that participant and non participant observations are vital components of qualitative research and are used extensively in the fields of education, sociology and anthropology. However, each presents unique ethical issues in regards to consent, privacy and deception (Brinkmann Kvale, 2005; Haverkamp, 2005). Informed consent is necessary but can be problematic when relying on observations in a qualitative research study. Although potential harm from treatment is not generally a threat, there are other ethical concerns. Clearly, there is a substantial threat to privacy. A revelation of observed conversations and behaviors could cause harm to p articipants in their families, communities, or place of employment. In addition, the actual research participants, who have given consent, may not be the only people observed. In natural settings, people move in and out of interactions and settings for many reasons (Creswell, 2005; Denzin Lincoln, 2005). To conclude, from the discussion quantitative and qualitative methods are dissimilar; one approach is not superior to the other, both have recognized strengths and weaknesses and are used preferably in combination. Recognizing the tension between researchers about quantitative and qualitative research, and attempting to comprehend it, may serve to create relevant and distinctive modes of enquiries. Cases that revolves around unethical issues As more and more organizations, industries realize the importance of ethics in research; they take initiatives to apply them at every stage of their investigation. Some examples of cases are been looked into below: Case 1: Two infamous studies of obedience to authority The ethical principle of beneficence refers to the Hippocratic be of benefit, do not harm. Beauchamp and Childress, puts forward that the principle of beneficence includes the professional mandate to do effective and significant research so as to better serve and promote the welfare of our constituents. According to the studies Milgrams (1963) electric shock experiments and Haney, Banks, and Zimbardos (1973) prison studies were perceived as villainous, and to further investigate the issues, the experiment conduction was not in accordance with the principles as expected, and more to the point is the fact that, provision for precise intention was not known by the participants. The complex ethical issues raised in this studies relates to the potential harm that was incurred by partakers. Ford and Reutter, (1990) points out that beneficence relates to the benefit of the study, while non malificence relates to the potential risk of participation. Non malificence requires a high level of s ensitivity from the researcher about what constitutes harm. While Burns and Grove (2001) discomfort and harm can be physiological, emotional, social and economic in nature. As a researcher you do not want to do anything that would cause physical or emotional harm to your subjects this could be something as uncomplicated as being cautious how responsive or tricky questions are worded during the experimentation. As stated in the studies, there was no consideration of all possible consequences of test and or balance of the risk with proportionate benefit. Conversely, to justify these benefits there is need for a precise safeguard and guidelines to protect the interest of the subject involved in the experiment conduction. Case 2: A covert study of unofficial rewards Researchers involved in research have to consider many ethical problems relating to the issues of informed consent. In addition, they must ascertain that the participants have comprehended fully their right to withdraw at any time. According to the study, Daltons (1959), one of the key ethical issues is the concerns of lack of informed consent, as participants were in no position to be able to judge whether or not to become involved in the research, as they were only vaguely aware of the nature of researchers interest. Consent, can however, be a major ethical issue for researchers, they need to provide full explanation at the end of their data collection, even if they cant disclose to the participants, the true research objectives. Although the strategy of the researcher was to help protect their anonymity. Apparently, the respondent had volunteer to give out there personal information since they trusted the researcher in other words he should protect their dignity and privacy as wel l. Researchers are expected to obtain informed consent from all those who are directly involved in research or in the vicinity of research. This principle adheres to a larger issue of respect to the participants so that they are not coerced into participation and have access to relevant information prior to the consent. Case 3: Studying health-seeking behavior When embarking on a research, one should be sure that they are not taking advantage of easy to access of individuals. Sound ethical suggests that it is the duty of researchers to preserve, protect privacy, dignity, well being and freedom of the participants. Meaning to say potential participants are entitled to know the purpose of and nature of the proposed research so as to choose whether or not to be involved. According to the case, a team of social scientist are concerned about the improvement of womens health, of which they wants to learn why women do not return to hospital for the results of Papanicolaou (Pap) tests. The aim of the research is to find out how to improve services to these women. As pointed out in the case, social scientists were granted permission to conduct their investigation, and were also provided with records of patience in the hospital with names and addresses so as to enable them visit the patients in their homes. The ethical issues been violated, is the c oncerns of lack of informed voluntary consent, invasion of privacy and confidentiality. This principle adheres to a larger issue of respect to the respondents assuring that confidentiality of information shared and anonymity wont be revealed. The subjects were to be informed of the proposed research involving them; thereby they can express their views and opinion, knowing that the information is going to be utilized in a confidential manner. It is not justifiable to grant permission to the investigator to use the records of the potential patients without their consent as a matter of fact I will say confidentiality was breached in this situation, of which it wasnt inappropriate that the they paid the patients visit at their residence without their permission.(Adapted from material developed by the UNDP/ UNFPA/WHO/World Bank Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction, Bangkok Thailand, 2004.) Case 4: Invasion of privacy in visual research Whether a researcher is a psychologist, educator, or anthropologist, the primary responsibilities to participants are clear: obtain consent, protect from harm, and ensure privacy. However, there is one area of responsibility that is often less clear for both the researcher and the participants: intentional deception. They may have a combination of these and other characteristics that render them unable to exercise free will and make decisions. For such individuals, the question then becomes one of who can give consent on their behalf and what should be considered in the process. There is a need to constantly be vigilant in these situations. Gall 1996, states that all researchers have good intentions, but if they are not careful, their studies can place individuals in situation that involves risk. The issue in the case revolves around anonymity and confidentially of which this is potentially more problematic due to the recognizability of what is involved in the proposed research. Part icipant feel positively about been involved in any test or experiment, it is because of the fact that it will serve as a useful purpose. Some actually enjoy been the subject and are quick at giving their opinion, while others strongly resent or even mistrust aim of the research. This is as a result of the fact that most participant fear if sophisticated techniques to probe their deepest feeling and utilizing this knowledge might be used against them. In as much as legal issue is more complex, specifically the one pertaining to copyright ownership, researchers are supposed to take measures to protect dignity and privacy for their employment not to be in jeopardy. Researcher should carefully weigh the gains achieved against the cost in human dignity. There should be a provision of full and accurate explanation to participants at the conclusion of study, including counseling, if appropriate. An example is when a researcher pretends to be who they are not in order to carry out their intention. On the other hand, this method can result into a severe invasion of privacy and the researchers obtain information they would prob ably never have known. Case 5: An example of an ethical fieldwork dilemma Robbins and Trabichet (2009) defined a dilemma as a situation where one has to choose between two options but does not know which side to take because both seem legitimate (p.52). Complexity and uncertainty are other distinguishing characteristics of an ethical dilemma, Ethical dilemmas are dilemmas because the right course of action is not always clearly visible (Liddell, Cooper, Healy, Stewart., 2010, p14). Kitchener (1984) described an ethical dilemma as a situation where there are good, but contradictory ethical reasons to take conflicting and incompatible courses of actions (p. 43). In the case of Holliday (1995: 17-18) the issues of ethical dilemma faced was that the participant was technically coerced in committing industrial espionage. This involves such unethical and or illegal behavior so as to help disclose operational secrets or even production formulas. This is not intentional but due to the crisis pressuring the company owner, he was looking for a means of helping his business succeed. Each companys culture is different, but some stress profits and results above all else. In the ongoing situation within the company setting, the company owner has turned a blind eye to ethical breaches since the participant has no choice other than to execute the proposed intent offered, giving the firms mentality of the end justifies the means. Conclusively for the cases, ethical issues, conflicting values and ambiguity in making of decision, are persistently emerging from literature review on research. Due to lack of simplicity in ethical standards researchers must endeavor to develop an awareness of this issues and an effectual framework to deal with these problem involving human rights. This is very obligatory in order to come into terms with the issues of the researchers value relative to the rights of individual versus the interest society. As long as there are professional codes, laws, regulations, and ethics committees can make provisions for guidance but the final determinant of how research is conducted, rest with the researchers value system and moral code. Chapter 3 Discussion on how ethical issues in research can be solved As researchers or students, you are bounded by the code of conducts and ethical standards imposed by college or university. In as much as there is an establishment with Institutional Review boards (IRBs), their job is to make certain that, research involving human subjects must be reviewed, approved and monitored. This is a design made for critical oversight. As pointed out by Bi

The Scarlet Letter Essay -- Literature

In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne analyzes Hester, Dimmesdale, and Chillingworth. In the story, Hester is the main character of the story and was called Mistress Prynne (Hawthorne 70). Dimmesdale, in the story was referred to as Reverend Dimmesdale (Hawthorne 90). Chillingworth was originally named, Roger Prynne but later in the story he changed his name to Roger Chillingworth. In the story, Hester committed adultery with Dimmesdale against Chillingworth and in the beginning she got punished and sent to prison and later she got to get out of prison but with the exception of having to wear the letter A on her breast every time she went out in to town. In The Scarlet Letter, Hester is the main character. Hester is referred to as â€Å"Mistress Prynne† (Hawthorne 70). The Scarlet Letter also mentions she is holding her three month old baby, Pearl, in her arms who winked and turned her head by the sun’s rays (Hawthorne 71). She is described as having an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread â€Å"letter A† on the breast of her gown (Hawthorne 71). Hester was also a tall woman (Hawthorne 72). Her hair was dark and abundant her hair shined while the sunshine gleamed off her hair (Hawthorne 72). Hester had a marked brow and dark black eyes (Hawthorne 72). Hester Prynne is often described as a lady-like person (Hawthorne 72). Hester’s role in the story is described as sleeping with a priest and got accused of committing adultery and got punished by having to wear a scarlet letter â€Å"A† on the breast of her gown (Hawthorne 71). Hester Prynne’s punishment is to go to prison and then with her child, Pearl, go and stand out on the platform in front of everybody wearing her scarlet letter on the breast of her gown (Howells). Hester... ...1. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 2 Feb. 2012. Reid, Bethany. "Narrative of the Captivity and Redemption of Roger Prynne: Rereading The Scarlet Letter." Studies in the Novel 33.3 (Fall 2001): 247-267. Rpt. in Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed. Jessica Bomarito and Russel Whitaker. Vol. 158. Detroit: Gale, 2006. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 3 Feb. 2012. Symons, Arthur. "Nathaniel Hawthorne." Studies in Prose and Verse. E. P. Dutton & Co., 1904. 52-62. Rpt. in Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed. Laurie Lanzen Harris. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale Research, 1982. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 3 Feb. 2012. Tamkang Review. "John Updike's S." Tamkang Review 25.3-4 (Spring-Summer 1995): 379-405. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 126. Detroit: Gale, 2002. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 2 Feb. 2012.

hamlet Essay -- essays research papers

Hamlet’s soliloquy, â€Å"To be or not to be, that is the question,† found in Act 3, Scene 1, of William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, is one of the most recognized and famous soliloquies in all of English literature. Hamlet uses this moment alone to ponder what he will do in response to his father’s death. In this statement, Hamlet explores the idea of living and dying and what can be found in death. Is death like a dream while one sleeps? Or do we cease to sleep? Or is it just nothing? These are questions that Hamlet considers while deciding the fate of King Claudius. Hamlet wants to seek revenge on Claudius for killing King Hamlet and for marrying the queen, yet he knows that if he were to kill Claudius, he himself would also be killed. Hamlet’s debate of life versus death makes him question the advantages and disadvantages of existence and whether or not it is right to end his life or that of another. â€Å"To be or not to be† or more simply stated is it better to live or die. During this famous soliloquy, Hamlet wonders whether he should take action against his "sea of troubles" and seek revenge for his father's death or live with the pain of his father's murder. He also wonders that if he were to commit suicide, what could he expect in the afterlife. He questions whether or not suicide is morally right in an otherwise painful world. Hamlet has such grief that he frequently longs for death to end his suffering, but he fears that if he commits...

Conflict in a Dangerous Spring :: essays research papers

In the novel Dangerous Spring, by Margot Benary-Isbert, conflict is a reoccurring theme between many characters and events that provides the driving force for actions in the story. The story takes place during the final days of World War II. Although this point in time provides the basis for the conflict, there are many other situations where conflict is shown. The main character, Karen Lorenz, experiences the most of this trouble. Conflict is the theme that is shown best in this story, because there are many situations that build up. We then see the resolution of each situation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The story begins in spring on Easter Monday, April 2nd, of 1945. Karin Lorenz and her family live in the small town of Erfurt in Germany. The Lorenz family hears news that the Allied invasion is expected to be storming through into surrounding areas of Erfurt. Conflict is immediately shown here in that there is war taking place between Germany and the Allies. The advance of the Allies causes Karen to attempt to convince her family to escape to Eberstein, where Pastor Helmut Lobelius, Karen’s boyfriend, lives. Helmut had invited the family numerous times, but Karen’s father was against the idea because he is a doctor and needs to tend to his increasing number of patients. Karen’s parents also believe they are in safety because they deem that there is not much fighting left to do. This shows conflict in that Karen’s parents do not believe in her ideas. They think she is just an impractical girl with a silly idea, and they believe that eve rything will be fine with time. Word is then heard that Erfurt is in the path of the Allies and that the town is to be invaded soon. Karen finally persuades her parents they need to escape Erfurt while there is still time. At the close of the novel, the war resolves to an end. The Lorenz family returns home to a war-damaged Erfurt. Another resolution is that Karen grows more mature and her parents learn to listen to her more.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Karen’s brother, Till, is a very strong supporter of Hitler at the beginning of the novel. He was involved in the Hitler Youth Movement, called the H.J. Till was carefree, daring, and brave at the beginning. Till must leave the H.J. when the family leaves for Eberstein. While Till’s family is staying at Helmut’s, Till meets a girl who offers him work at her father’s farm.

A Swot Analysis of Starbucks

Introduction Starbucks is a famous coffeehouse. Until the mid-1980s it was only a provider of coffee to fine restaurants. Thereafter Howard Schultz, director of retail operations and marketing, was impressed of the popularity of coffee in Milan while he was in Europe . His idea was born. He wanted to bring the coffee bar culture to the Americans. So Starbucks started to realise his idea and so created a new trend. The clue is not only to sell coffee, but to sell an experience. Today Starbucks has got about 20 million customers each week in about 5500 coffeehouses all over the world . While haunting to increase sales more and more, Starbucks has got a special growth strategy. They open a lot of stores in a very short period of time, expanding numerous food offerings and also getting into new segments, for example supermarkets. They develop new products like bottled coffee or Starbucks-flavoured ice cream. In addition to that, Starbucks tests new coffeehouse concepts, for example with live music. Since a few years, Starbucks opens more and more stores outside America. The important question is, if Starbucks’ growth rate will continue within next years because on the one hand critics say that Starbucks grows too fast and is loosing the focus while on the other hand some critics compare Starbucks’ coffee with Mc Donald’s? hamburger and believe that they will grow up more and more as the dominant player on this market . With the help of the SWOT analysis and the BCG matrix the situation of Starbucks can be analyzed after finding out, why people pay more money for a coffee, than in other coffeehouses. What has suddenly made people across the world willing to pay three to four times more for a cup of coffee than they used to? Starbucks has created a new trend. They do not just sell coffee, they sell an experience. To drink coffee at Starbucks is different from drinking coffee in another coffeehouse according to a Starbucks executive who said, that â€Å"Starbucks is not in the business of filling bellies but in the business of filling souls† . They recognised that they were getting into a new niche, which did not exist before. While having great success, Starbucks grows rapidly to have an advantage according to a bunch of competitors who also entered this new niche. With the high-quality coffee, Starbucks creates besides a new brand a new lifestyle which is known all over the world. Furthermore, they offer a lot of different flavours which differs from other coffeehouses. But coffee is not the only reason why people are willing to pay a lot more there than in other coffeehouses. The mission statement declares that the employees’ job is not only to sell coffee. They should enthusiastically satisfy every customer to give him the special feeling and experience at Starbucks . All in all Starbucks recognised a new niche and satisfied the customers with their special flavoured and high quality coffee. To get an idea of Starbucks’ success, it is necessary to take a close look at the company by using the SWOT analysis and the BCG matrix. A SWOT analysis of Starbucks Strengths The company has a strong presence in the United States of America and a good reputation for creativity and coffee. Starbucks has started a real trend and many people enjoy drinking a Starbucks coffee. However, it is not just coffee but rather an experience Starbucks sells. Starbucks operates in more than 5,500 stores worldwide. This presence provides a wide and strong customer base. It is a global brand and is widely known. Starbucks built up a reputation for fine products and the name is a common brand label and this gives Starbucks a competitive advantage because people connect coffee with Starbucks. Every week more than 20 million customers visit Starbucks to get a coffee once or twice a day. In the last years the company could tripled their earnings. Another strength is that Starbucks has a strategy they follow. These strong principles include that Starbucks looks after their employees and threat each of them with respect. They create a nice and friendly environment that they also reflect outwards. Starbucks offers different flavours through its position as a disciplined innovator and introduces diverse products. They also pay attention to the high standards and want to offer the best quality. Starbucks decided to push into supermarkets because the majority of people bought their coffee in stores before. Therefore Starbucks came to the conclusion to make a deal with the Kraft company. This deal combines Starbucks experience in producing premium coffee with Kraft’s knowledge of marketing, selling and distributing. That was a good step for Starbucks to reach a new channel and to get the entry to 25,000 supermarkets. It makes sense that the company wants to reach the people at home and to include more people into the Starbucks lifestyle. Beyond stores, Starbucks sells its beans to hotels, several airlines and airports. Starbucks sells gourmet coffee, beans as well as gifts and related goods. (Starbucks also signed a deal to operate coffee shops within Waterstones bookshop superstores. Also the homepage of Starbucks has become successful and a ‘lifestyle portal’, where the company sells a variety of products like tea, coffee making equipment, compact discs and collectibles to satisfy their customers needs with different products. Weaknesses One of Starbucks` weakness is that their primary product is just coffee. They are therefore dependent on this main product line. Starbucks is however testing to launch food offerings like sandwiches and chips in combination with coffee. Its goal is not only to expand more and more in its offerings but also to reach further target groups . A problem is that Starbucks has a slow ability to diversify into other sectors which could be fatal because the company believes in being successful not only because it is selling coffee but rather it is selling an experience . This makes them different from other competitors who might only sell coffee. â€Å"Coffee Lifestyle† may vary from time to time due to the fact that the global coffee market is a very competitive sector . Another weakness are high prices of its products. People pay up to $3. 15 for a caffe latte. One supposes that people buy this product only because they think that it is a premium product . But it is especially the brand name which tempts customers to buy the product without taking the high prices into consideration. As already mentioned before, the customer is not only buying the product, he is buying it with an experience. Another weakness of Starbucks is that they are simply relying on the philosophy that coffee is just an experience. There exists no doubt a good marketing strategy but it is questionable if this is helpful to maintain over time on the market with the strategy of only focusing on one product. â€Å"We are not in business of filling bellies; we’re in the business of filling souls† says one Starbucks executive. That shows another very good and appealing philosophy of Starbucks. This makes the product and its uniqueness but it is only a question of time when people are saturated of this experience. You have to point out that Starbucks itself tries hard to achieve this effect by the people through a competent public relationship. Opportunities Starbucks has a widespread presence and practices in about 1. 415 stores and just last year they build up 400 new stores. The company has seen opportunities to open further stores all over the world due to the heavy demand and space to expand. For example Indiana in the US has only one Starbucks. Furthermore, Starbucks has the opportunity to expand its global operations. The company is now expanding rapidly and in 2003 the number of stores has increased in 24 international markets compared to 1996 when they had only 11 stores outside the United States. Starbucks also tests new food which represents that food might be the next step they want to go. With this the company would have the chance to offer food that could be successful as its coffee. They test everything from doughnuts to Greek pasta salads. Starbucks also teamed up with PepsiCo to adopt the brand on Frappuccino drinks and a newDoubleShot expresso drink. Beyond this Starbucks ice cream is nowadays a leading brand of coffee ice cream after Starbucks established a joint venture with Breyer’s. In addition, Starbucks invested in Cafe Starbucks, a European-style family bistro, where the costumer has a wide choice from huckleberry-pancakes too oven-roasted seared sirloin. Alongside, Starbucks is testing Circadia, a new food venture, where the customers have Internet access and listen to live music. Starbucks has always been able to offer new coffee experiences as well as creating new products or opening new kinds of stores. Threats One of the biggest threats of Starbucks is its grand expansion all over the world. When launching a new product numerous customers are visiting the company’s stores world wide each week. It is especially Starbucks growth strategy which stands for a threat for the company. Starbucks especially concentrates on store growth. Almost 85 per cent of sales are generated through its stores. Although they have great success, Starbucks always finds new places for further expansion on the local as well as on the national market with being aware of the fact that the local as well as the national market may be saturated of its product. The creation of new retail channels also shows that Starbucks is not concerned about peoples` rejection or about failing to be successful. Apart from their strong presence in kiosks, several airlines, hotels and the co-operation with Waterstones’ bookshop superstores, Starbucks enters 25,000 supermarkets to sell their products next to their strong competitors like Nestle and Kraft. They also offer coffee, tea and its equipment on its website to be internationally present for a wider target group. To intensify its presence they are not deterred by joining with other companies to have its logo to be seen everywhere. Several ideas should achieve various people. They are full of ideas only of the fact of not wanting to stop their expansion. However, the international growth is remarkable. While having only 11 coffee-houses in 1996 outside North-America, they now launch their products into 24 international markets. The great success of Starbucks has also brought negative consequences for the company because many competitors try to imitate them. These are companies like Caribou Coffee, Costa Coffee, and Coffee Republic. However, it is very hard to maintain on the global coffee market which is a very competitive sector. These days one speaks about an increasingly over caffeinated marketplace. So Starbucks must compete against the offers of restaurants, coffee shops and street carts. A major competitor with substantially greater financial, marketing and operating resources than Starbucks could enter the market at any time and compete directly against the company. Starbucks must be aware of competition on all levels and maintain its operational performance if it is to retain status as the world’s leading specialty coffee retailer. Finally you could say that Starbucks is more concerned about the fact that there are still plenty of local places as well as internationally places which is not taken over by them. Instead of being worried about the fact that their rapid expansion could also lead to a rapid decrease and failure in several markets. The whole marketing strategy of Starbucks may cause to a loss of the main focus through stretching its resources by further expansion. Main focus should be first put on the product itself and not on international expansion in this way. Why not ensure the popularity of the product itself than making it something normal due to the fact that it is present almost everywhere. It can be seen undoubtedly that Starbucks has the potential for development in many different ways but it has to have its growth under control. This may be a challenge for Starbucks. BCG Matrix The BCG matrix is an instrument, developed in the early 1970? s by the Boston Consulting Group to analyze the product portfolio of a company or a business unit. The matrix is based on the product life circle. The matrix is mainly used in the strategic marketing sector. The matrix shows in a coordinate plan the positions of different strategic business units. The interesting categories are on the one side the business growth rate on the y-axis and the market share on the x-axis. The method brings cognitions in three relevant areas: ?Analysis of the strategic position of a company. ?Determine the capital in the several business units with a view on the whole company and therefore the cash flow in the company. ?Every quadrant responds to a norm strategy which could be used as a guideline to verbalize strategic activities in the company . It is also necessary to look after the whole portfolio especially on the statistical financial compensation. The products in the portfolio should be based upon on another and finance one another. To create a long-term value a company should have a portfolio of products that includes fast growing products which need a high input of money and slowly growing products which are creating a high amount of cash. The BCG matrix has two dimensions: relative market share and market growth rate. The idea behind this matrix is: if a product has a high market share or the market of the product is growing fast than it is an advantage for the company. Analysis of Starbucks using the BCG Matrix Cash cows: Benefits from the generation of cash should be high. Because of the low-growth rate capital expenditures which are necessary should be hold low. Often cash cows are the stars of yesterday and build the base of a company . One of Starbucks’ cash cows is their coffee ice cream. This is a relatively risk free investment that doesn’t absorb great amounts of cash. Through the partnership with Breyers, Starbucks doesn’t need to spend money on the production process. With Breyer? experience and the Starbucks name the ice cream was sure to succeed on the market. With it now being one of the market leaders on the coffee ice cream market, Starbucks can â€Å"milk† it and benefit from the sales, knowing that there is not a high cost factor. Another, but quite small cash cow is their bottled Frappuccino drink. Once again Starbucks took on a similar strategy by working with an already established beverage manufactur er. The investments are once again a lot lower than their sales, giving them a high profit margin. Stars: Stars use a high amount of cash. These are leader in the business and hence they should create a high amount of cash. Stars are often in balance with the net cash-flow. The company should do their best to hold the market share on stars because stars will become cash-cows if the market-share is held by the company . Starbucks’ biggest star is the coffee sold and consumed in their coffee shops (stores). With an incredible 85% of sales coming from their stores it is their biggest source of cash intake . Although competitors offering similar products have emerged, the market growth still looks promising. Some states like Alabama and Mississippi don’t have any Starbucks stores meaning that there is still a large market to expand onto. The people living in these states have not been able to enjoy a cup of Starbucks coffee. The revenues from their coffee sales should therefore be used to invest in new stores making it possible to sell their coffee. Another one of their stars is the packaged coffee sold in supermarkets. With the help of Kraft Starbucks has gained quick access to the packaged coffee market. Thus they have been able to quickly increase their market share on a rapidly growing market . Unlike their other joint ventures with PepsiCo and Breyers, Starbucks has done more than just put their name on the product. As they are still roasting and packaging their own coffee they need to invest a lot to further establish their position on the market. Dogs: Dogs are discontinued models of the company. A company should minimize, better avoid the number of dogs. Dogs have to make cash, otherwise they are divested . Starbucks? dog is the sandwiches sold in their stores. Although they experiment with different foods in their stores, they do not make a lot of profit from food sales. Furthermore it can be said that the sandwich market is not growing and Starbucks do not have a high market share. However, this SBU should not be divested immediately as it may help them to draw in further customers who know that they will be able to grab a sandwich to go with their coffee. Question marks: Question marks are the newcomer of the products. The have a high growth-potential. They have the worst cash features of all, because they have a high demand of cash but perform low outcomes because of their low market-share. If the market-share is unchanged are question marks using a high amount of cash. The management has to decide to invest in the product or to give it up. Starbuck’s further attempts to boost their growth such as selling coffee to airlines and hotels can be classified as question marks. At the moment the demand for premium coffee to be sold in airports and hotels might be high, but so far only Marriott, Sheraton and Westin have deals with Starbucks meaning that there are a lot of hotels not selling their coffee . If they want to expand on this market they will need to invest a lot of money into new deals with other hotels. It will take time before they can increase their market share and make a profit. Cafe Starbucks and Circadia, two new store concepts are also question marks. At the moment they are only experimenting to see how customers will react to a different kind of Starbucks experience. Setting up a chain of these new concepts will require a lot of money and time before they can establish themselves on the market. If they succeed in competing with other cafes of a similar style this SBU could be another profitable SBU in the future After positioning Starbucks? products on the BCG matrix it can be said that they have a stable source of revenue. With the majority of their sales coming from the coffee sold in their stores and two profitable, if on a smaller scale, joint ventures they have enough money to invest in other new products or stores to ensure that they will be as successful in the future. Besides investing this money in new stores enabling them to serve an even larger market, it can be invested in their coffee sold in supermarkets. Rapid growth of the premium coffee segment indicates that it won’t be long before a number of competitors force their way onto the market. Investing into this SBU will enable it to develop into a cash cow in the future. Regarding the sandwiches sold in their stores they need to reconsider if this is something they should continue to invest in the future. The prospects for the future look promising as they have two strong stars and other smaller products that can carry the company in the future. Looking at Starbucks as a whole it can be seen as a star. Although there are a number of â€Å"copycats† trying to move in on their market share, there is still the potential for the company to grow. Up until now not all states have their own Starbucks store, an indication that the market is still growing. Although they have tripled their sales and profits over the last 5 years, they need this money to invest in new stores in states such as Alabama and Mississippi and their new store concepts such as Cafe Starbucks . If they are able to expand successfully and the market ceases to grow they will eventually turn into a cash cow.