Gender Differences in Peer and Parental Inuences Body Image Disturbance Free Essays

string(66) " that is shown in adolescent girls and young women \(Rodin et al\." Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Vol. 33, No. 5, October 2004, pp. We will write a custom essay sample on Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In?uences: Body Image Disturbance or any similar topic only for you Order Now 421–429 ( C 2004) Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In? uences: Body Image Disturbance, Self-Worth, and Psychological Functioning in Preadolescent Children Vicky Phares,1 Ari R. Steinberg,2 and J. Kevin Thompson3 Received April 17, 2003; revised January 20, 2004; accepted February 11, 2004 The connections between body image disturbance and psychological functioning have been well established in samples of older adolescent girls and young women. Little is known, however, about body image in younger children. In particular, little is known about possible gender differences in preadolescent children. The current study explored self-reported body image disturbance and psychological functioning in relation to peer and parental in? uences in 141 elementary school-aged girls and boys aged 8–11. Results suggest that girls are more concerned about dieting and are more preoccupied with their weight than are boys. Girls also reported a greater drive for thinness and a higher level of family history of eating concerns than did boys. Correlations suggested that girls’ experiences of body image concerns (body dissatisfaction, bulimia, and drive for thinness) were related to a number of factors (such as family history of eating concerns, peer in? uences, teasing, depression, and global self-worth) whereas boys’ experiences of body image concerns were related to fewer factors. On the basis of these ? ndings, the assessment and treatment of body image concerns in preadolescent children (especially girls) are of great importance. Implications for intervention and prevention programs are discussed. KEY WORDS: body image; peers; parents. The prevalence of weight and body image concerns among preadolescent children is overwhelming. Between 30 and 50% of adolescent girls are either concerned about their weight or are actually dieting (e. g. , Thompson and 1 Vicky Phares, Ph. D. is a Professor and Director of Clinical Training at the University of South Florida. She received her Ph. D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Vermont. Her major research interests are fathers and developmental psychopathology. She recently published a textbook, Understanding Abnormal Child Psychology with Wiley and Sons. To whom correspondence should be addressed at University of South Florida, Department of Psychology, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, PCD 4118G, Tampa, Florida 33620; e-mail: phares@luna. cas. usf. edu. 2 Ari R. Steinberg, Ph. D. graduated from the University of South Florida, where she earned her M. A. in Psychology and her Ph. D. in Clinical Psychology. Her major research interests are cognitive and psychosocial correlates to the development of body image; e-mail: phares@luna. cas. usf. edu. 3 J. Kevin Thompson, Ph. D. is a Professor of Psychology at the University of South Florida. He received his Ph. D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Georgia. His major research interests are body image and eating disorders. Smolak, 2001). Such concerns about size and/or appearance have been found to predict onset of eating disturbances prospectively (Cattarin and Thompson, 1994; Stice, 2001). Although most of the previous research on eating disorders has focused on adult women and adolescent girls, it has recently been shown that weight concerns and body image disturbance exist in younger girls and boys (Cusumano and Thompson, 2001; Field et al. 2001; Ricciardelli and McCabe, 2001; Ricciardelli et al. , 2000; VanderWal and Thelen, 2000). Self-esteem concerns appear to be related to body image disturbance in young children, but there does not appear to be a causal link between self-esteem and body image disturbance (Mendelson et al. , 1996). Speci? cally, body image disturbance and poor self-esteem appear to develop concurrently in young boys and girls. Given the se important issues, the current study attempted to examine the psychological, familial, and social correlates of weight concerns and eating disturbances in preadolescent girls and boys. 21 0047-2891/04/1000-0421/0 C 2004 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc. 422 BODY IMAGE AND DIETING BEHAVIOR IN ADOLESCENTS AND CHILDREN The connections between body image disturbance and psychological maladjustment in adolescence have been well documented. There appears to be pervasive concerns among adolescents with respect to their weight, body image, dieting, and eating behavior (Smolak and Levine, 2001; Thompson et al. , 1999). In fact, averageweight adolescent girls are almost as likely to be dieting as their overweight peers (Rodin et al. , 1985). These patterns are evident in both clinical and nonclinical samples. Bunnell et al. (1992) investigated body shape concerns among 5 samples of female adolescents: anorexia nervosa clients, bulimia nervosa clients, subclinical anorexia, subclinical bulimia, and noneating disordered females. They found that body shape dissatisfaction was a prominent concern for most adolescent girls regardless of their level of eating pathology. Thus, by the time of adolescence, the majority of girls have developed weight and body concerns and many have tried dieting or other strategies to alter their physical appearance. Although these issues have received less research attention in preadolescent children, many of the same patterns have emerged in studies of younger children. Children as young as 6 years old express dissatisfaction with their body and a substantial amount (40%) have attempted to lose weight (Thelen et al. , 1992). There is evidence that children as young as 7 are reliable in their reports of dieting (Kostanski and Gullone, 1999). In a sample of thirdthrough sixth-graders, children were very knowledgeable about weight control methods (Schur et al. , 2000). Body dissatisfaction appears to be related to dietary restraint rather than age. In a study that compared 9-year-olds and 14-year-olds, girls with highly restrained eating patterns in both age groups showed low body esteem, and discontent with their body shape and weight (Hill et al. , 1992). Consistent with research on adolescents and young adults, young girls tend to show this dissatisfaction to a greater extent than boys. In samples of children between the ages of 5 and 11 (Collins, 1991; Cusumano and Thompson, 2001; Williamson and Delin, 2001; Wood et al. 1996), girls reported signi? cantly greater body dissatisfaction than did boys. More girls than boys were dieting in a sample of 10–12 year olds (Sands et al. , 1997). Thus, the â€Å"normative discontent† that is shown in adolescent girls and young women (Rodin et al. You read "Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In?uences: Body Image Disturbance" in category "Papers" , 1985) appears to be present in younger g irls as well. FAMILIAL INFLUENCES ON BODY IMAGE A logical question relates to why these body image disturbances occur in such young children. Theories of Phares, Steinberg, and Thompson body image disturbance include biological, sociocultural, familial, and peer-related in? ences (Smolak and Levine, 2001; Steinberg and Phares, 2001). Recently, a great deal of attention has been focused on familial and peer in? uences in the development of body image. Regarding familial in? uences, 2 primary mechanisms have been proposed: parental modeling of dysfunctional eating attitudes and behavior, and parents’ in? uence over their children by direct transmission of weight-related attitudes and opinions, such as comments or teasing. There has been support for both mechanisms in adolescent samples. When compared with mothers of daughters in a nonclinical control group, mothers of adolescent girls with disordered eating patterns showed greater eating disturbance, had a longer history of dieting, and wanted their daughters to lose more weight (Pike and Rodin, 1991). Rieves and Cash (1996) found that daughters’ eating disturbances were related to their perceptions of maternal concern with appearance and preoccupation with being overweight. These studies suggest that adolescent girls may be modeling dysfunctional eating attitudes and behaviors from their parents. There is evidence that parents in? ence their adolescents’ eating disturbances and body image through direct transmission of weight-related attitudes and opinions. Thelen and Cormier (1995) found that mothers’ and fathers’ encouragement of weight control were related to daughters’ desire to be thinner, daughters’ weight, and dieting behaviors. When actual body weight was controlled statistically, only the relationship between daughters’ dieting and fathers’ encouragement to diet remained signi? cant. Direct parental comments about children’s weight had a strong relation with children’s body image, especially mothers’ comments about their daughters (Smolak et al. 1999). Thus, it appears that both maternal and paternal in? uences may be relevant to the development of body image concerns and related issues. These ? ndings suggest that parents can in? uence their attitudes and opinions of weight through direct transmission, although the relative salience of mothers versus fathers has yet to be established. Negative verbal commentary within the family, also known as teasing, has received attention recently. Teasing can be considered an indirect transmission of parental attitudes and opinions. In a sample of lder adolescent college students, parental teasing of females, but not of males, was related to body image dissatisfaction ( Schwartz et al. , 1999). In addition, higher levels of teasing and appearance-related feedback predicted higher levels of psychological disturbance. Taken together, these studies all point to the relationships between adolescents’ body image concerns and parental attitudes and behaviors. Few studies, however, have addressed these issues in younger children. Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In? uences PEER INFLUENCES ON BODY IMAGE The same point can be made for peer in? uences on body image. Although signi? cant relationships have been found in samples of adolescents, few studies have explored these issues in younger children. When investigating adolescents, one study found that adolescents’ disturbed eating and weight concerns were related to the dieting and weight control strategies of peers as well as to the amount they reported talking with peers about dieting (Levine et al. , 1994). In addition, adolescent girls reported their peers as one of the primary sources of information on weight control and dieting (Desmond et al. , 1986). Adolescent girls, more so than adolescent boys, worried about their weight, ? ure, and popularity with peers (Wadden et al. , 1991). Negative verbal commentary by peers has been explored in relation to body image disturbance. Teasing by peers seems to have a strong in? uence on the development of eating and weight concerns (Rieves and Cash, 1996; Thompson, 1996; Thompson and Heinberg, 1993). Teasing by peers tends to be common durin g childhood with physical appearance and weight as the primary focus. Cash (1995) reported that 72% of college women recalled being teased as children, usually with respect to their facial features or body weight and shape. In a study of adolescent girls, Cattarin and Thompson (1994) found that teasing was a signi? cant predictor of overall appearance dissatisfaction above and beyond the in? uence of age, maturational status, and level of obesity. In one of the few studies done with children, Oliver and Thelen (1996) found that children’s perceptions of peers’ negative messages and increased likability by being thin in? uenced their body image and weight concerns. Overall, peers’ attitudes and teasing appear to in? uence body image concerns. Taken together, these studies suggest patterns of familial and peer in? ence on the development of body image concerns. Little is known, however, about the associations of these issues within young children. Even less is known about how familial and peer in? uences are related to body image concerns and psychological functioning in young girls versus young boys. THE CURRENT STUDY On the basis of the ? ndings with adolescent and young adult popul ations, the current study extends these research questions to preadolescent girls and boys. Because the majority of previous research was limited to maternal in? ences on body image (Phares, 1996), the current study will also extend this line of research to explore paternal in? uences on body image. It was hypothesized that gender effects would be revealed concerning young chil- 423 dren’s body image concerns, with young girls reporting more body dissatisfaction and weight-appearance-related concerns than young boys. It was expected that both girls and boys who reported higher levels of body image concerns would show more psychological problems as exhibited by higher levels of depression and lower levels of perceived competence. Both familial in? uences and peer in? ences were expected to be related to girls’ and boys’ body image and eating concerns. METHOD Participants A total of 141 children (64 boys and 77 girls) from two public elementary schools in a large urban area in the southeast participated in the study. On the basis of a power analysis (? level = 0. 05, power = 0. 80, and a medium effect size), it was determined that a minimum sample size of 64 boys and 64 girls would be adequate to test the hypotheses (Cohen, 1992). The mean age of the overall sample was 9. 23 years (SD = 1. 08) and did not differ between boys (M = 9. 31; SD = 1. 04) and girls (M = 9. 7; SD = 1. 12; t(139) = 0. 79; p = 0. 434). The sample was ethnically diverse (63. 1% Caucasian, 21. 3% African American, 12. 8% Hispanic/Latino/Latina, 0. 7% Asian American, and 2. 1% other). With respect to grade level, 14. 2% were in the second grade, 44. 0% were in the third grade, 27. 6% were in the fourth grade, and 14. 2% were in the ? fth grade. The distribution of girls and boys did not differ for race/ethnicity or for grade level ( ps 0. 05). A total of 77 mothers and 48 fathers participated in the study. Measures Family In? uences Two measures were used to assess func tioning within the family. The Perceptions of Teasing Scale (POTS) is a revised and extended version of the Physical Appearance Related Teasing Scale (Thompson et al. , 1995). The measure has been used with children as young as 10 years old, therefore, the 8- and 9-year-old participants in this study were younger than previous participants who completed the POTS. The Weight Teasing Scale, which consists of 6 questions concerned with the frequency of appearancerelated teasing, was used in the current study. Participants answered these questions for their mother and father separately, and scores were totaled for an overall frequency of parental teasing score. Higher numbers on this 5-point scale re? ect greater frequency of negative verbal commentary. Coef? cient ? s in the current study were adequate for 424 reports of mothers (0. 72) and fathers (0. 84). Note that only 24% of the children in this sample scored above a 0 on this measure. Children, mothers, and fathers completed the Family History of Eating (FHE-Child and FHE-Parent; Moreno and Thelen, 1993). Both versions of the FHE are scored along a 5-point Likert scale and are used to assess attitudes concerning body shape and weight, dieting, and familial eating patterns and behaviors. The parent version assesses parents’ perceptions whereas the child version focuses on the child’s perception of the family. Higher numbers re? ect greater familial concern with body shape and weight. Reliabilities in the current study were adequate based on the coef? cient ? for children (0. 80), mothers (0. 77), and fathers (0. 75). Peer In? uences Children completed the Inventory of Peer In? uence on Eating Concerns (IPIEC; Oliver and Thelen, 1996), which is a 30-item measure of peer in? uence on children’s eating and body shape concerns. The measure consists of 5 factors: Messages, Interactions/Girls, Interactions/Boys, Likability/Girls, and Likability/Boys. The Messages factor re? ects the frequency with which children receive negative messages from peers regarding their body or eating behaviors. The Interactions factors address the frequency with which children interact with peers (boys and girls) about weight and eating habits. The Likability factors measure the degree to which children believe that being thin will increase the degree to which they are liked by their peers (boys and girls). Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale, where higher numbers re? ect greater peer in? uence. For the present study, total mean scale scores of all items were used to calculate a total peer in? uence score. The coef? cient ? in the current study (0. 94) was strong. Obesity Level The Quetelet’s Index of Fatness is a body mass index (BMI) that is computed for each child with the following formula: weight/(squared height). The Quetelet’s Index is used routinely as an index of adiposity and is correlated highly with skinfold and other fatness measures. Height and weight were obtained by self-report. Previous research has shown that young adolescents’ self-reports are highly correlated with actual measurements of weight and height (Brooks-Gunn et al. , 1987; Field et al. , 2002). Eating Disturbance and Body Image Children completed the Eating Disorder Inventory for Children (EDI-C; Garner, 1984), which measures self- Phares, Steinberg, and Thompson perceptions of eating disturbances and body image. Items are answered on a 6-point Likert scale and subscales are averaged to produce mean scale scores. Three of the eight subscales were used in the present study: Drive for Thinness (excessive concern with dieting, preoccupation with weight, and extreme fear of weight gain), Body Dissatisfaction (dissatisfaction with overall shape and with the size of those body regions of most concern to individuals with eating disorders), and Bulimia (thinking about and engaging in uncontrollable overeating, or binging behaviors). Coef? cient ? s were adequate in the current sample for the Drive for Thinness subscale (0. 83), the Body Dissatisfaction subscale (0. 63), and the Bulimia subscale (0. 76). On all subscales, higher numbers re? ect higher levels of body image concerns or related behaviors. Psychological Functioning Children completed 2 measures that assess their psychological functioning. The Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI; Kovacs, 1992) is a widely used self-report measure of affective, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms of depression in children. Items are scores on a 0- to 2-point scale, with higher scores re? ecting higher levels of depression. The total CDI score, which showed good reliability in the current sample (coef? cient ? = 0. 91) was used. Children also completed the Self-Perception Pro? e for Children (Harter, 1985), which assesses children’s perceptions of themselves across different domains. For the current study, the global self-worth subscale was used. Note that the global self-worth scale consists of questions that are separate from any of the other domains (e. g. , the physical appearance domain is not subsumed under the global se lf-worth rating). Higher scores on the 4-point scale re? ect higher perceptions of global self-worth. Adequate reliability (coef? cient ? = 0. 79) was shown in the current sample. Procedures Active parental consent and child assent were given for involvement in the study. Once consent and assent were obtained and data collection was initiated, no children dropped out of the study nor did any children refuse to take part in the study. Participating children completed questionnaires in small groups at school. Examiners read each question aloud and children put their answers on the questionnaires individually. Parents were mailed their questionnaires (the FHE-P and a brief demographics form) and were asked to return their completed questionnaires to the researchers in a postage-paid envelope. Multiple mail- Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In? uences Table I. Means and t-Tests for Gender Comparisons Variable Body mass index (BMI) Body Dissatisfaction Bulimia Drive for Thinness Family History of Eating—Child Inventory of Peer In? uence on Eating Concerns Perceptions of Teasing—Frequency Depression Global Self-Worth a Statistically 425 Girls (n = 77), mean (SD) 18. 91 (3. 80) 20. 29 (10. 10) 13. 38 (7. 32) 18. 21 (9. 64) 19. 99 (8. 38) 1. 80 (0. 84) 1. 62 (4. 62) 48. 83 (12. 06) 19. 06 (4. 74) Boys (n = 64), mean (SD) 19. 01 (3. 80) 18. 38 (8. 83) 15. 05 (7. 63) 13. 13 (6. 61) 17. 56 (5. 54) 1. 66 (0. 73) 1. 33 (2. 97) 49. 13 (13. 47) 18. 92 (4. 75) t 0. 09 ? 1. 18 1. 32 ? 3. 58 ? 1. 98 ? . 02 ? 0. 44 0. 14 ? 0. 18 p 0. 932 0. 239 0. 188 0. 000a 0. 049a 0. 311 0. 660 0. 892 0. 859 signi? cant. ings were sent in an attempt to obtain maximum parental participation. The ? nal response rate was 54. 6% (n = 77) for mothers and 34. 0% (n = 48) for fathers. RESULTS Gender Comparisons As expected, girls showed somewhat greater concern over weight and body image issues than did boys. Signi? cantly more girls (61. 0%) than boys (35. 9%) wanted to lose weight, ? 2 (2) = 13. 38, p 0. 001. As can be seen in Table I, there were additional gender differences on body image, restriction, and disturbed eating behaviors measures. When compared with boys, girls reported a higher drive for thinness, t(139) = ? 3. 58; p 0. 001, and a more troubled family history of eating concerns, t(139) = ? 1. 98; p 0. 05 (i. e. , girls reported receiving more messages regarding weight and dieting from their parents than did boys). Girls and boys did not differ signi? cantly on body mass index, body dissatisfaction, bulimic behaviors, peers’ eating concerns, or frequency of parental teasing. There were also no gen- der differences in depressive symptoms or global selfworth. Thus, there was some limited support for gender differences. Relations Between Body Image and Psychological Functioning Correlational analyses were computed in order to investigate the relations between body image and psychological functioning. As can be seen in Table II, signi? cant correlations were revealed for all of the measures for girls and most of the measures for boys. Girls’ reports of body dissatisfaction, bulimic tendencies, and drive for thinness were related to higher levels of depression and lower levels of global self-worth. For boys, body dissatisfaction was related to higher levels of depression and lower levels of global self-worth. Bulimic tendencies were not significantly related to either depressive symptoms or global self-worth. Drive for thinness was related to lower levels of global self-worth but was not signi? cantly related to depression. Thus, the expected pattern of results was found for girls consistently, and partial support was found for boys. Table II. Correlations Between Eating Disturbance and Psychological Functioning Variables 1 1. Body Dissatisfaction 2. Bulimia 3. Drive for Thinness 4. Family History of Eating—Child 5. Inventory of Peer In? uences on Eating Concerns 6. Perceptions of Teasing—Frequency 7. Depression 8. Global Self-Worth — 0. 42 0. 42 0. 32? 0. 26? 0. 44 0. 37 ?0. 42 2 0. 47 — 0. 25? 0. 23 0. 10 0. 29? 0. 14 ? 0. 01 3 0. 56 0. 55 — 0. 67 0. 32? 0. 60 0. 19 ? 0. 39? 4 0. 53 0. 56 0. 58 — 0. 12 0. 41 ?0. 03 ? 0. 03 5 0. 49 0. 55 0. 48 0. 53 — 0. 18 0. 29? ?0. 21 6 0. 32 0. 34 0. 27? 0. 44 0. 38 — 0. 29? ?0. 37 7 0. 58 0. 60 0. 55 0. 63 0. 59 0. 45 — ? 0. 58 8 ? 0. 64 ?0. 48 ?0. 49 ?0. 52 ?0. 52 ?0. 35 ?0. 71 — Note. Boys are in the lower left quadrant and girls are in the upper right quadrant. ? p 0. 5; p 0. 01; p 0. 001. 426 Relations Between Parental In? uences, Peer In? uences, and Body Image Disturbance Table II also reports the results of correlations for parental in? uences, peer in? uences, and body image disturbance. For girls, all of the correlations were signi? cant. Speci? cally, girls’ body dissatisfaction, bulimia, and drive for thinness were related to higher levels of family history of eating concerns, peer in? uences on eating concerns, and perceptions of teasing. For boys, 7 of the 9 correlations were signi? cant. Speci? cally, boys’ body dissatisfaction was signi? antly related to higher levels of family history of eating concerns, peer in? uences on eating concerns, and perceptions of teasing. Boys’ tendency toward bulimia was signi? cantly related to perceptions of teasing, but not family history or peer in? uences. Boys’ drive for thinness was related to family history, peer in? uences, and perceptions of teasing. Overall, there was somewhat more support for the connections between parental in? uences, peer in? uences, and body image disturbance for girls, but there was clear evidence of connections for boys when body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness were considered. Phares, Steinberg, and Thompson of family history and children’s reports of eating disturbance and body image concerns. These ? ndings suggest that children’s perceptions of family history and parents’ perceptions of family history are not related strongly. Missing Parental Data To assess whether there were systematic differences between parents who did or did not participate, t tests were conducted to examine any possible differences between children whose parents returned questionnaires and those children whose parents did not return questionnaires. With the exception of family history, t(139) = 2. 33, p 0. 02, no other signi? cant differences were revealed. Children whose parents returned questionnaires reported signi? cantly higher levels of family emphasis on weight and body shape (M = 20. 15, SD = 7. 90) than children whose parents did not return questionnaires (M = 17. 32, SD = 6. 20). There were no signi? cant differences between children with parental data and children without parental data on the following variables: Body Dissatisfaction (from the EDI-C), Bulimia (from the EDI-C), Drive for Thinness (from the EDI-C), peer in? ences (from the IPIEC), or perceptions to teasing (from the POTS). Thus, the exploratory analyses with parental data are likely to be generalizable for all of the variables other than family history. Parental Data For exploratory purposes, paired t tests were conducted to examine the differences in mothers’ and fathers’ reports of parental in? uence regarding weight and body shape con cerns. Mothers (M = 18. 57, SD = 5. 32) placed more emphasis on weight and body shape concerns than did fathers (M = 15. 94, SD = 5. 29), t(47) = ? 3. 96, p 0. 001. Further examination of parental differences revealed that mothers reported placing more importance on weight and body image concerns than did fathers for both their daughters, t(29) = ? 2. 93, p 0. 006, and sons, t(27) = ? 2. 61, p 0. 01. These results suggest that, regardless of child gender, mothers tend to place more emphasis on weight and dieting than do fathers. To examine the relationship between children’s selfreports and parental reports, correlations were conducted for parents’ reports of family history of eating concerns and children’s reports of eating disturbance and psychological functioning. A signi? cant correlation was revealed for mothers’ reports of family history and children’s reports of family history, r (77) = 0. 25, p 0. 05. These results suggest that mothers and children perceived similar familial in? uences regarding weight and body shape. In addition, signi? cant correlations were revealed for maternal report of family history and children’s report of global self-worth, r (77) = ? 0. 27, p 0. 05. No other signi? cant correlations were revealed for maternal or paternal reports DISCUSSION Overall, the results of this study support and extend previous research suggesting that both parental and peer in? uences are related to the development of body image and weight concerns in preadolescent girls and boys. It is likely that both factors play an integral part in children’s formations of maladaptive beliefs, attitudes, and expectations concerning weight, physical appearance, and body image. Further, there appear to be some differences but some similarities in how girls and boys experience these issues. Similar to previous research, girls in this study exhibited a somewhat greater degree of concern regarding weight and body image issues than did boys. Not only were they more aware of issues surrounding weight and dieting, but girls were more active in attempts to become and/or remain â€Å"thin. † In addition, it appears that girls received more messages within the family setting regarding weight and body image concerns. Although most investigations of body image concerns tend to recruit only female participants (e. g. , Attie and Brooks-Gunn, 1989; Cattarin and Thompson, 1994), the studies of gender differences Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In? uences in body image have used primarily adolescent samples (e. g. , Childress et al. , 1993; reviewed in Cohane and Pope, 2001). The present results support similar ? ndings for preadolescent children, which indicates that these gender differences begin to develop at an earlier age, prior to any pubertal changes (Collins, 1991; Oliver and Thelen, 1996; Shapiro et al. , 1997; Wood et al. , 1996). The results of this study provide support for a relationship between body image concerns and depressive symptoms (Herzog et al. 1992) and self-esteem (Wood et al. , 1996). Overall, children who expressed higher levels of body image disturbance reported higher rates of depressive symptoms and lower levels of global self-worth. Although this pattern was more evident in girls, the same pattern existed for boys when body dissatisfaction was considered. Prior research has revealed support for both parental (Sanftner et al. , 1996; Thelen and Cormier, 19 95) and peer (Cattarin and Thompson, 1994; Oliver and Thelen, 1996) in? uences on children’s eating and body image concerns. This study found support for peer and parental in? ences for girls and to a lesser extent, for boys. Most of the research on peer in? uences has been conducted with adolescent populations of girls (Levine et al. , 1994). In this study, similar patterns emerged for boys and girls when body dissatisfaction (as opposed to bulimic tendencies) were evaluated. It may be that preadolescent boys are struggling with body dissatisfaction, but in such a manner that is not captured by the measurement of bulimic tendencies. The measurement of parental teasing from the POTS measure was particularly useful in helping to understand boys’ experiences. A number of previous studies have documented the connections between negative verbal commentary and body image concerns in girls (Cattarin and Thompson, 1994; Schwartz et al. , 1999). In the current study, boys’ perceptions of parental teasing were related to higher levels of body dissatisfaction, bulimic tendencies, drive for thinness, family history of eating concerns, and depression and lower levels of global self-worth. Thus, further exploration of perceptions of parental teasing in both boys and girls may be fruitful. On the basis of the results of this study, the implications for prevention and intervention are numerous. Given the wealth of support for the existence of body image concerns in preadolescent children (Collins, 1991; Shapiro et al. , 1997; Thelen et al. , 1992; Wood et al. , 1996), it is imperative to address weight and body image concerns with children prior to adolescence. Psychoeducational programs could be helpful to inform children of the parental, peer, and sociocultural in? uences on their attitudes and beliefs concerning weight and physical appearance. Several universal psychoeducational programs 427 have been instituted and evaluated for school-aged children (reviewed in Levine and Smolak, 2001). Although this study found some gender differences in preadolescent children’s experiences of body image disturbance, the common pattern of associations among variables for both boys and girls would suggest that preventive efforts could be targeted to girls and boys together. Intervention programs are also necessary given the connections between familial in? uences and body image concerns in young children and the resultant connections between body image concerns and eating disorders (Cattarin and Thompson, 1994; Steinhausen and Vollrath, 1993; Thompson et al. 1999). Parents need to be educated about the negative consequences of their own weight and body image issues on the development of related problems in their children (Archibald et al. , 1999). Treatment programs should take family functioning into account and should address the strong connections between body image concerns and poor psychological functioning (Steinberg and Phares, 2001). There are several limitations to t he study indicating that these results should be interpreted with caution. First, the ross-sectional nature of the study precludes interpretations related to causality. For example, it could be that higher levels of depression lead to higher rates of body dissatisfaction in both boys and girls. A prospective study of girls and boys from early childhood to adolescence and even adulthood could help answer the direction of causality. In addition, because there was a signi? cant difference in family history of eating concerns (FHE-C) between children with and without completed parental data, the preliminary analyses of parental reports have to be viewed cautiously. Although other studies have found relatively few differences between participating and nonparticipating mothers and fathers (Phares, 1995), the differences in this sample suggest that the parental data may not be representative of the larger population. This study attempted to limit common method variance by including parents rather than just relying on children’s self-reports. This inclusion of parents, however, led to other dif? culties. Future studies in this area could bene? t from more intense efforts to recruit and maintain parents for participation in research. Even with these limitations, this study provided support for parental and peer in? uences on the development of body image disturbance in preadolescent girls and boys. It is likely that both peers and family members contribute to the development of body image disturbance and weight concerns of young children. Although girls appear to be at greater risk for these concerns, this study suggests that attention to both boys’ and girls’ development of body image concerns is warranted. 428 ACKNOWLEDGMENT This study was completed as part of a masters thesis by the ? rst author under the direction of the second and third authors. REFERENCES Archibald, A. B. , Graber, J. A. , and Brooks-Gunn, J. (1999). Associations among parent–adolescent relationships, pubertal growth, dieting, and body image in young adolescent girls: A short-term longitudinal study. J. Res. Adolesc. , 9: 395–415. Attie, I. , and Brooks-Gunn, J. (1989). Development of eating problems in adolescent girls: A longitudinal study. Dev. Psychol. 25: 70– 79. Brooks-Gunn, J. , Warren, M. P. , Rosso, J. , and Gargiulo, J. (1987). Validity of self-report measures of girls’ pubertal status. Child Dev. 58: 829–841. Bunnell, D. W. , Cooper, P. J. , Hertz, S. , and Shenker, I. R. (1992). Body shape concerns among adolescents. Int. J. Eating Disord. 11: 79– 83. Cash, T. F. (1995). Developmental teasing about physical appearance: Retrospective descriptions and relationships with body image. Soc. Behav. Pers. 23: 123–129. Cattarin, J. A. , and Thompson, J. K. (1994). A three-year longitudinal study of body image, eating disturbance, and general psychological functioning in adolescent females. Eating Disord. 2: 114–124. Childress, A. C. , Brewerton, T. D. , Hodges, E. L. , and Jarrell, M. P. (1993). The kids’ eating disorders survey (KEDS): A study of middle school students. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 32: 843–849. Cohane, G. H. , and Pope, H. G. (2001). Body image in boys: A review of the literature. Int. J. Eating Disord. 29: 373–379. Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychol. Bull. 112: 155–159. Collins, M. E. (1991). Body ? gure perceptions and preferences among preadolescent children. Int. J. Eating Disord. 10: 199–208. Cusumano, D. L. , and Thompson, J. K. (2001). Media in? uence and body image in 8–11 year-old boys and girls: A preliminary report on the Multidimensional Media In? uence Scale. Int. J. Eating Disord. 29: 37–44. Desmond, S. M. , Price, J. H. , Gray, N. , and O’Connell, J. K. (1986). The etiology of adolescents’ perceptions of their weight. J. Youth Adolesc. 15: 461–473. Field, A. E. , Austin, S. B. , Frazier, A. L. , Gillman, M. W. , Camargo, C. A. , and Colditz, G. A. (2002). Smoking, getting drunk, and engaging in bulimic behaviors: In which order are the behaviors adopted? J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 41: 846–853. Field, A. E. , Camargo, C. A. , Taylor, C. B. , Berkey, C. S. , Roberts, S. B. , and Colditz, G. A. (2001). Peer, parent, and media in? uences on the development of weight concerns and frequent dieting among preadolescent and adolescent girls and boys. Pediatrics 107: 54–60. Garner, D. M. (1984). Eating Disorder Inventory for Children (EDI-C). Unpublished manuscript. Harter, S. (1985). Manual for the Self-Perception Pro? le for Children. Department of Psychology, University of Denver, Colorado. Herzog, D. B. , Keller, M. B. , Sacks, N. R. , Yeh, C. J. , and Lavori, P. W. (1992). Psychiatric comorbidity in treatment-seeking anorexics and bulimics. J. Am. Acad. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 31: 810–818. Hill, A. J. , Oliver, S. , and Rogers, P. J. (1992). Eating in the adult world: The rise of dieting in childhood and adolescence. Br. J. Clin. Psychol. 31: 95–105. Kostanski, M. and Gullone, E. (1999). Dieting and body image in the child’s world: Conceptualization and behavior. J. Genet. Psychol. 160: 488–499. Kovacs, M. (1992). Children’s Depression Inventory: CDI Manual. Multi-Health Systems, North Tonawanda, NY. Inc. Phares, Steinberg, and Thompson Levine, M. P. , and Smolak, L. (2001). Primary prevention of body image dist urbances and disordered eating in childhood and early adolescence. In Thompson, J. K. , and Smolak, L. , (eds. ), Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 37–260. Levine, M. P. , Smolak, L. , Moodey, A. F. , Shuman, M. D. , and Hessen, L. D. (1994). Normative developmental challenges and dieting and eating disturbances in middle school girls. Int. J. Eating Disord. 15: 11–20. Mendelson, B. K. , White, D. R. , and Mendelson, M. J. (1996). Selfesteem and body esteem: Effects of gender, age, and weight. J. Appl. Dev. Psychol. 17: 321–346. Moreno, A. , and Thelen, M. H. (1993). Parental factors related to bulimia nervosa. Addictive Behav. 18: 681–689. Oliver, K. K. , and Thelen, M. H. (1996). Children’s perceptions of peer in? uence on eating concerns. Behav. Ther. 7: 25–39. Phares, V. (1995). Fathers’ and mothers’ participatio n in research. Adolescence 30: 593–602. Phares, V. (1996). Fathers and developmental psychopathology. New York: Wiley. Pike, K. M. , and Rodin, J. (1991). Mothers, daughters, and disordered eating. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 100: 198–204. Ricciardelli, L. A. , and McCabe, M. P. (2001). Children’s body image concerns and eating disturbance: A review of the literature. Clin. Psychol. Rev. 21: 325–344. Ricciardelli, L. A. , McCabe, M. P. , and Ban? eld, S. (2000). Body image and body change methods in adolescent boys: Role of parents, friends, and the media. J. Psychosom. Res. 49: 189–197. Rieves, L. , and Cash, T. F. (1996). Social developmental factors and women’s body-image attitudes. J. Soc. Behav. Pers. 11: 63–78. Rodin, J. , Silberstein, L. R. , and Striegel-Moore, R. H. (1985). Women and weight: A normative discontent. In Sonderegger, T. B. (ed. ), Psychology and Gender: Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, pp. 267–307. Sands, R. , Tricker, J. , Sherman, C. , and Armatas, C. (1997). Disordered eating patterns, body image, self-esteem, and physical activity in preadolescent school children. Int. J. Eating Disord. 1: 159– 166. Sanftner, J. L. , Crowther, J. H. , Crawford, P. A. , and Watts, D. D. (1996). Maternal in? uences (or lack thereof) on daughters’ eating attitudes and behaviors. Eating Disord. 4: 147–159. Schur, E. A. , Sanders, M. , and Steiner, H. (2000). Body dissatisfaction and dieting in young children. Int. J. Eating Disord. 27: 74â₠¬â€œ82. Schwartz, D. J. , Phares, V. , Tantleff-Dunn, S. , and Thompson, J. K. (1999). Body image, psychological functioning, and parental feedback regarding physical appearance. Int. J. Eating Disord. 25: 339– 343. Shapiro, S. , Newcomb, M. , and Loeb, T. B. (1997). Fear of fat, disregulated-restrained eating, and body esteem: Prevalence and gender differences among eight- to ten-year-old children. J. Clin. Child Psychol. 26: 358–365. Smolak, L. , and Levine, M. P. (2001). Body image in children. In Thompson, J. K. , and Smolak, L. (eds. ), Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 41– 66. Smolak, L. , Levine, M. P. , and Schermer, F. (1999). Parental input and weight concerns among elementary school children. Int. J. Eating Disord. 25: 263–271. Steinberg, A. B. , and Phares, V. (2001). Family functioning, body image, and eating disturbances. In Thompson, J. K. , and Smolak, L. (eds. ), Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 127–147. Steinhausen, H. , and Vollrath, M. (1993). The self-image of adolescent patients with eating Disord. Int. J. Eating Disord. 13: 221–227. Stice, E. (2001). Risk factors for eating pathology: Recent advances and future directions. In R. Striegel-Moore L. Smolak (Eds. ), Eating Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In? ences disorders: Innovative directions in research and practice (pp. 51– 73). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Thelen, M. H. , and Cormier, J. (1995). Desire to be thinner and weight control among children and their parents. Behav. Ther. 26: 85– 99. Thelen, M. H. , Lawrence, C. , and Powell, A. (1992). Body image, weight control, and eating d isorders among children. In Crowther, J. H. , Tennebaum, D. L. , Hobfoll, S. E. , and Stephens, M. A. P. (eds. ), The Etiology of Bulimia Nervosa: The Individual and Familial Context. Hemisphere, Washington, DC, pp. 82–102. Thompson, J. K. (1996). Assessing body image disturbance: Measures, methodology, and implementation. In Thompson, J. K. (ed. ), Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity: An Integrative Guide for Assessment and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 49–82. Thompson, J. K. , Cattarin, J. , Fowler, B. , and Fisher, E. (1995). The Perception of Teasing Scale (POTS): A revision and extension of the Physical Appearance Related Teasing Scale (PARTS). J. Pers. Assess. 65: 146–157. Thompson, J. K. , and Heinberg, L. J. (1993). Preliminary test of two hypotheses of body image disturbance. Int. J. Eating Disord. 14: 59–63. 429 Thompson, J. K. , Heinberg, L. J. , Altabe, M. , and Tantleff-Dunn, S. (1999). Exacting Beauty: Theory, Assessment, and Treatment of Body Image Disturbance. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC. Thompson, J. K. , and Smolak, L. (2001). Body image, eating disorders, and obesity in youth: The future is now. In Thompson, J. K. , and Smolak, L. (eds. ), Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth: Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 1– 39. VanderWal, J. S. , and Thelen, M. H. 2000). Predictors of body image dissatisfaction in elementary-age school girls. Eating Behav. 1: 105–122. Wadden, T. A. , Brown, G. , Foster, G. D. , and Linowitz, J. R. (1991). Salience of weight-related worries in adolescent males and females. Int. J. Eating Disord. 10: 407–414. Williamson, S. , and Delin, C. (2001). Young children’s ? gural selections: Accuracy o f reporting and body size dissatisfaction. Int. J. Eating Disord. 29: 80–84. Wood, K. C. , Becker, J. A. , and Thompson, J. K. (1996). Body image dissatisfaction in preadolescent children. J. Appl. Dev. Psychol. 17: 85–100. How to cite Gender Differences in Peer and Parental In?uences: Body Image Disturbance, Papers

Effectiveness of Treatment Within Legally Constrained Institutional and Community Environments free essay sample

This paper analyzes and evaluates the effectiveness of correctional institutions and community programs. The following paper discusses theories of criminal punishment and examines the advantages and disadvantages of incapacitation. The advantages and disadvantages of community programs are also reviewed and crime prevention strategies that work, do not work, and that are promising are also discussed. Finally, this paper concludes with a proposal to improve the effectiveness of incapacitation and community programs. From the paper: Supporters of deterrence believe that if punishment is imposed upon a person who has committed a crime, the pain inflicted will dissuade the offender (specific deterrence) and others (general deterrence) from either repeating the crime or from committing similar crimes. Incapacitation deprives offenders of the ability or opportunity to commit further crimes that harm society. Rehabilitation seeks to prevent future criminal behavior by providing offenders with the education and treatment necessary to eliminate criminal tendencies, as well as the skills to become productive members of society. We will write a custom essay sample on Effectiveness of Treatment Within Legally Constrained Institutional and Community Environments or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page

Dilemmas Of The Individual In Public Services Social Work Essay Example

Dilemmas Of The Individual In Public Services Social Work Essay Introduction This book is intended to give the reader an overall apprehension of what Lipsky calls street-level bureaucratisms and administrative officials through an insightful analysis of front line pattern in public administrations. It is an effort at developing a theory of street-level bureaucratisms by analyzing the professional behavior and daily patterns of the administrative officials who operate within a model of supplying public services to the population. Lipsky defines street-level administrative officials as public service workers who interact straight with citizens in the class of their occupations, and who have significant discretion in the executing of their work ( 1980:3 ) . Some illustrations include instructors, constabulary officers and other jurisprudence enforcement forces, societal workers, Judgess, public attorneies and other tribunal officers, wellness workers ( 1980:3 ) . While he defined street-level bureaucratisms defined as public service bureaus that employ a im portant figure of street-level administrative officials in proportion to their work force ( 1980:3 ) . Lipsky argues that it is non through the authorities acts or Torahs that policy is best understood but through the crowded offices and day-to-day experiences of the administrative official. It is these administrative officials who through the proviso of public services implement a big sum of influence over how public policy is really carried out. Initially drawn to public service for selfless grounds, the worker is easy corrupted, overworked, and exhausted by assorted force per unit areas including battle with deficient resources and obscure policy ends ( Lipsky 1980: thirteen ) . Therefore, in order to cover efficaciously with these force per unit areas, the administrative official with comparative liberty from organizational authorization and high degrees of discretion exercises a figure of determinations, modus operandis, and get bying mechanisms which efficaciously become the public policies they carry out. The purpose of the book being to demo the broad disagreement between wh at authorities policies claim to make and what really happens when policy is implemented. Drumhead We will write a custom essay sample on Dilemmas Of The Individual In Public Services Social Work specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Dilemmas Of The Individual In Public Services Social Work specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Dilemmas Of The Individual In Public Services Social Work specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The book is divided into four subdivisions each covering with a specific portion of the complex features of street degree bureaucratisms. Section one provides an introductory overview of the subject to give an apprehension of the nature of bureaucratisms, it besides examines the function of the administrative official in the devising and execution of policies. Section two examines the common work conditions of the bureaucratism with specific attending given to the resources, ends, and public presentation steps instigated, the purportedly supportive relationship between the client and the administrative official, and the work induced disaffection. Section three explores the forms of pattern or get bying mechanisms developed by the administrative official in order to cover with the work conditions and high degrees of clients, including rationing and curtailing clients, routinisation, and the control exercised in client processing. Section four focal points on the hereafter of street-le vel bureaucratisms, and proposes new agencies of cut downing client tensenesss and doing administrative officials more accountable. The first chapter points out the grounds why street-level bureaucratisms are so important, which include the Numberss employed, the monies to fund and pay forces, and the impact on persons lives particularly those of lower incomes. Its chief focal point is on the critical function played, and struggle experienced daily by administrative officials due to their placement as go-betweens ; between clients who hope for effectual intervention by the authorities through the services provided, and the public assistance province who hopes for economical proviso of public services. It posits that administrative officials in their place as service suppliers have a immense duty as their actions straight impact on clients lives. Using their powers of discretion to make up ones mind how to present the service, who should profit, and to what extent, they enact a signifier of societal control by necessitating certain behaviors and actions by the client. Therefore straight impacting on a client s lif e opportunities by either giving or taking off of benefits and using penalties or negative countenances for non-conformity. The purpose of the 2nd chapter is to exemplify how as a effect of their interactions with clients, enabled by their usage of discretion in determination devising, and their comparative liberty from the organizational authorization, it is the administrative officials who on a regular basis make policy. It is posited that even though there are regulations, ordinances, and norms to be followed, if a successful service is to be provided that is both cost effectual and timely discretion must be applied. Discretion is a described as a cardinal feature of the administrative official s place, necessary due to the really nature of the work i.e. the human dimension which frequently renders a really complex state of affairs necessitating flexibleness and consideration of all the grounds before doing a determination. The relationship between the lower degree administrative official and managerial governments of the administration being both dependent and conflicting is besides highlighted as inf luential in the behavior of administrative officials and determination devising procedure. Lipsky posits that because of differing involvements, deficiency of understanding on ends and aims, and contradictory positions on acceptable degrees of discretion and autonomy struggle arises. This struggle consequences in opposition from the administrative official to direction through avenues such as the organizational processs non being followed and new processs being developed by the administrative official therefore doing new policies ( 1980:19 ) . Section two focal points on the work environment which gives rise to commonalties found among street-level bureaucratisms which conditions the manner they perceive jobs and frame solutions to them, therefore giving rise to common forms of pattern that impact the administrative officials ability to take action ( 198:27 ) . In chapter three Lipsky highlights the issue of unequal resources, saying that street-level bureaucratisms will ever be inveterate missing in countries such as clip, information, and experience. Added to this the of all time increasing caseloads and demand for services which will ever transcend supply, the inevitable tensenesss between the client, administrative official, and director will doubtless hold a negative impact on both the clients and administrative officials experience. In chapter four he observes how in order for the administration to work efficaciously and expeditiously it needs to put down ends and aims which are frequently, at best, ill-defined a nd equivocal, and struggle with the administrative officials ain ends. This deficiency of congruity on ends makes it hard if non impossible for the director to garner public presentation measurings, and consequences in answerability besides being elusive. In chapter five, Lipsky describes the kineticss of the bureaucrat-client relationship as being common to street-level bureaucratisms. The administrative official exerts control over the non-voluntary client who must entree services either because they are non available elsewhere or they are on a low income, and therefore must follow with outlooks and determinations made in order to have benefits or avoid countenances ( 1980:60 ) . Finally in chapter 6, the issues of disaffection and the at odds function of protagonism are explored. Bureaucrats are expected to work for the client, have their best involvement at bosom, and guarantee the best intervention, but this conflicts with the outlooks of the bureaucratism. Bureaucrats being ex pected to work within a remit of maintaining control of resources and avoiding particular intervention are therefore, yet once more, put under great emphasis. Alienation, harmonizing to Lipsky, occurs because the administrative official merely works on parts of the merchandise, has no relationship to the result of their work or the natural stuffs, ensuing in the worker being alienated from their occupation. Section three examines whether the commonalties listed supra lead to common behavior apparent in street-level bureaucratisms. First, the commonalties listed above all contribute to the administrative official who joined the public service for selfless grounds going unmotivated, and dissatisfied with their place, and therefore negatively impacting on the services provided to the client. Lipsky states that forms of pattern or get bying mechanisms are developed by the administrative officials in different businesss in order to cover with the work conditions described in subdivisions one and two and the overloading of clients. He posits that in order to carry through their undertakings administrative officials ab initio set up modus operandis to simplify the complex occupations, but because these are capable to personal and political biass they straight impact what the modus operandi is seeking to accomplish and add up to contemplations of the administration and therefore direct policies ( 1980:86 ) . He highlights a figure of ways in which they ration and curtail services including ; waiting in lines, inordinate paperwork, pigeonholing likely wrongdoers, practising favoritism and symbolic entreaty processs ( 1980:81-82 ) . Bureaucrats besides retaliate against the emphasiss and strains imposed on them by direction by modify their ain behaviors to accomplish their personal ends, specializing or restricting and even spread outing duty to acquire things done harmonizing to how they think they should be ( 1980:142-150 ) . Section four concludes with a expression to the hereafter of street-level bureaucratisms, discoursing the impact of the 1980 s financial crisis in regard to answerability and potency for reform. Lipsky argues that it is virtually impossible to keep administrative officials accountable where the nature of the work employs high degrees of liberty and discretion ( 1980:159 ) . He believes that the force per unit areas of the financial crisis to cut down fiscal outgos while understating impact cuts will merely function to increase unequal resources and lessening service quality. He concludes by suggesting two ways of cut downing client tensenesss and doing administrative officials more accountable ; by including clients in bureau determination devising, and pins his hopes on new professionals who will perpetrate to seeking to accomplish greater societal and economic justness and shun personal position sweetening ( 1980:204 ) . Review Michael Lipsky is surely more than qualified to compose about street-level bureaucratisms, holding graduated from Oberlin College and received an MPA and a PhD in Politics from Princeton University. He has taught in the countries of public policy, American political relations, and societal motions since 1975, and has written, edited, and contributed to many books and diaries. He is presently a Research Professor at Georgetown University s Public Policy Institute and a Senior Program Director at Demos, a public policy and protagonism administration based in New York ( Georgetown University 2012 ) . Sing his educational background it is rather delighting to happen the book is easy to read and follow. It uses an informal, enlightening tone and non excessively many big indecipherable words which means it is suited for all to read ; bookmans, pupils, and the wider public. It provides a comprehensive analysis of street-level bureaucratisms and administrative officials which has an copiousn ess of real life illustrations which assist the reader in understanding Lispky s hypotheses. Lipsky developed his theory following a book reappraisal he wrote and a subsequent paper Toward a Theory of Street-Level Bureaucracy which laid out his initial ideas and guesss on the importance of work construction in set uping the relationship between citizens and these public employees ( 1980: seventeen ) . His uses a qualitative experimental attack to his survey and did non execute any methodical empirical research but alternatively used a figure of empirical illustrations and secondary literature to show his statement. However, he besides uses rather a figure of mentions to common sense analogies which win in bolstering his statement. His theory, it must be noted, is strong in placing and explicating the issues environing policy execution and could therefore be described as descriptive theoretical account ; a theoretical account to depict how they do run, to simplify the survey of how they make determinations ( Hogwood and Gunn, 1984, as cited in Cairney 2012:32 ) . Execution can be described as the executing of a program for making something ; it can mention to the bringing of a programme or to an array of activities initiated by the authorities to accomplish ends and aims set frontward in a policy. Policy execution is portion of the policy rhythm which by and large involves policy design followed by policy bringing and so policy reappraisal. It is concerned with set uping or using an administration to take duty for execution, guaranting that the administration has the resources to make so, and doing certain that policy determinations are carried out as planned ( Cariney 2012:33 ) . The survey of execution is centred on the hypothesis that determinations made by policymakers may non be carried out suitably ( 2012:34 ) . Lipsky can be understood as working from a bottom-up attack to policy execution, a direct challenge to the top-down attack which believes that cardinal authorities is the chief influence on policy results. He sees policy as being created in a complex field of tensenesss and demands by the single actions of the implementers, in this instance street-level administrative officials who have a critical function in implementing policy. Lipsky s thesis is based on the impression that policy is in fact what bureaucrats do, utilizing discretion in both positive and negative ways to voyage the complex and multi-faceted country of human services. For Lipsky, discretion occurs in a context of struggle between front-line workers and directors ; between a desire to top-down control and resistance to it. His work gives great lucidity to the motivations behind the actions of street-level administrative officials, every bit good as indicating to the policy and resource morass which lends itself to the burnt-out attitude frequently presented by front-line staff. Research by Wandersman et Al ( 2008 ) identified a figure of factors which influence execution in pattern which corroborate Lipsky s theory that front line administrative officials have an of import function to play in the policy execution process. They identified a figure of including single features, such as practictioners education, experience, and attitude toward the invention, every bit good as organizational and community factors. A study from the Mental Health Commission ( 2009 ) besides supports Lipskys theories saying that effectual execution is synonymous with co-ordinated alteration at system, administration programme and pattern degrees . Evans ( 2011:3 ) has besides shown that Lipsky s ideal of street-level bureaucratisms are comparable to modern-day societal services in that they are administrations controlled by directors where there is concern for what is produced non the procedure. Even though this book is based on American experiences it can still be applied to the Irish experience and I believe is relevant to the Irish Welfare State and its policy execution schemes. For illustration, Community Welfare Officers can be understood as street-level administrative officials who use discretion in their work to make up ones mind who shall have benefits and when, impose countenances. They use commanding mechanisms such as inordinate signifier filling, and long waiting lines to enable them to routinize their processs and implement the policies of the public assistance system. Probation Officers who work under the remit of the Criminal Justice Department can besides be understood as street-level administrative officials who operate with great discretion in their daily operation, and have to set and make their ain policies to enable them to run expeditiously. Other authors have besides found that Lipsky s work can be applied to states with much differing public assistanc e provinces such as Winter ( 1981 ) whose qualitative instance surveies in Denmark identified extended header mechanisms amongst street-level administrative officials. The overall purpose of this book has been to demo the broad disagreement between what authorities policies claim to make and what really happens when that policy is implemented. It has portrayed the life of a street-level administrative official as being invariably under duress from both sides of the system and shown how choler and bitterness evolve to develop into get bying mechanisms to cover with clients and the confines of work conditions. I believe Lipsky has been most successful in this enterprise and produced a all-around, nonsubjective survey of the procedure of policy execution as evidenced in street-level bureaucratisms.

Kennedy address Essays - Rhetorical Techniques, Kennedy Family

Kennedy address Essays - Rhetorical Techniques, Kennedy Family Kennedy address The youthful energy found in John F. Kennedy's speech is evident throughout. He had just won a long hard fought campaign, yet chose not to focus on the policies that helped him win specifically. The goals he has are illustrated in strong appeals to emotion, by making a connection with the everyday American citizen. He personalizes his speech in looking forward to the future while using the past as an example. Kennedy remains active with his words by never relenting on the main goal he has of unison between two opposing forces. In talking about all that he must deal with as a president and global icon striving for peace, he states, "I do not shrink from this responsibility - I welcome it," near the end of the speech. This shows his persistence as a leader and allows listeners to hear the strength of this determination. He shares his energy with the people, claiming that the goals of a better world can be attained if only effort by everyone is given. The activism in his words can most clearly be seen when he focuses on what both sides can do to solve the problem. His ultimate goal of peace between opposing forces becomes evident in his idea to, "bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations." "Absolute" lends to the strong diction used throughout his speech, and is used here to bring this example of zeugma together. He understands people are sca red of the world, and he stands strongly before them showing someone out there is not afraid to negotiate for peace. The metaphorical diction creates some of Kennedy's best appeals to the audience. He uses a metaphor here in a pledge to Southern nations, "to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty." Not only does his goal of liberation become more evident with the use of this metaphor, but he also shows the injustices of the past will not be repeated freely with a metaphor. He refers to evil dictators of the past saying, "those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside," clearly shows his intentions of becoming a just figure on the international level. Formal diction evokes a sense of national pride especially in referring to past Americans as "forebears," a sign of respect. During his opening line he wisely follows the addressing of many prestigious government figures by ending with fellow citizens. He puts the Americans on par with the other figures mentioned. Kennedy's use of short paragraphs, in some cases one-sentence paragraphs, allows him to not drag too long on one point. The appeal to a larger demographic can be made as he uses short rhetorical questions that can apply to anyone. This can be seen when discussing the call to unite against global enemies, he asks, "will you join us in this historic effort?" Long complex sentences are the norm in the speech. Contradictory statements like the famous "ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country," can be seen everywhere, and they lend themselves well to the points he tries to make. The use of parallelism creates some of these complex sentences with his listing of several key ideas fitting together in one long sentence. Kennedy likes to use declarative sentences to emit the strength he has. He makes declarations "to those new states whom we welcome to the ranks of the free," and, "to those peoples in huts and villages across the globe. The repetition of these declarative elements makes it seem that he will actually carry out his plan of action. Calling people into action makes up a good portion of his speech. The use of hortative sentences like when he repeatedly uses "let both sides" shows that he plans on not doing this alone. The humility comes through in these calls to action, but he also stays with his active approach by using imperative sentences. He commands that citizens ask themselves how they can help out the situation. Through the arrangement of the sentences so that he first says what not to do, and then what should

Online reputation for Patrizia Pepe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Online reputation for Patrizia Pepe - Essay Example In this technologically modern world, where the internet is becoming more and more prominent in social as well as economic spheres, e-commerce has emerged as a particularly potent avenue for business expansion and a decidedly effectual and savvy technique for the modern business to completely penetrate its target market. Countless businesses have taken up this avenue and shown rapidly escalating positive results and more and more businesses have caught the online commerce train in their wake. Patrizia Pepe is one such example. Patrizia Bambi and Claudio Orrea in 1993, created Patrizia Pepe (PP), a clothing and accessories line for men and women and the brand has since then, through constant innovation, an open mindset towards change and incorporation of modern technologies and production and retail methods and techniques progressed rapidly and grown successfully across international borders. PP has in the line of innovation and change, also taken up e-commerce through which it has ex panded its business reach to its target market and hence, the resulting sales. Presently, PP uses numerous online websites, which include social networking groups and websites for online purchasing as the medium for reaching its consumer base across the world. Patrizia Pepe has established its brand website, which displays riveting pictures of the new collections, which have been timed to keep flipping so that it keeps the customer’s first glance engaged longer. The website offers information about the current ad-campaigns and press, the latest collections for men and women, the location of the company’s stores, an option to shop online through the website, and a link called community, which leads the customer to a page with links to different social networking

GrammLeachBliley Act and its effect in Economy Essay

GrammLeachBliley Act and its effect in Economy - Essay Example The GLB Act is also known as the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999. As its name suggests, it is meant to bring into practice or reality what were then needed at that point –_ to modernize financial services. Signed into law by President Bill Clinton to repeal part of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which limits what banks could do, GLB created opening up of the market among securities companies banking companies, and insurance companies. Under the Glass-Steagall Act, the three companies cannot be combined in any way but under GLB, they were made free to do so. The GLB Act therefore gave more power to the players of the financial services industry as it allowed consolidation or combination of commercial banks, investment banks, securities firms, and insurance companies. The 1998 case of Citicorp, a commercial bank holding company, merging with Travelers Group, an insurance company by forming conglomerate Citigroup exemplified the case in point. A temporary waiver pro cess1 for combining securities, insurance, and banking was needed or the merger in 1998, would have violated the Glass-Steagall Act and the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956. GLB therefore legalized the merger on a permanent basis. How it became a law through the legislative process? Through congressional vote by chamber and party, GLB came about in 1999. Prior to said date, the banking industry had been seeking the repeal of the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act since the 1980s, if not earlier. In 1987, the Congressional Research Service reported on the matter, after exploring the cases for and against preserving the Glass-Steagall Act2. This was followed by respective versions of the legislation being introduced in the US Senate by Phil Gramm and US House of Representatives Jim Leach with the support of Rep Bliley, Jr, Chairman of House Commerce Committee from 1995 to 2001. As stated earlier, the banking industry

Marketing and Public Relations for Music and Media Essay

Marketing and Public Relations for Music and Media - Essay Example On the basis of research an appropriate marketing strategy comprised of guerrilla marketing tactics. The paper would also analyse the impact of demographics, supply chain and distributors towards influencing the business prospects and viability of the band. Based on this research an appropriate product mix would be formulated with a detailed financial analysis of the financial outcomes of the strategy. Finally a set of plausible recommendations would be framed that would serve to summarise the findings of the study and suggest certain strategies for the music band so as to make it popular among the target audience and establish a brand name and favourably position itself in the highly competitive market. General Overview In present competitive world, the role of marketing has become more prominent and a key success fact for the competing companies. With development of modern business concept, the there also have been significant improvements in the marketing practices. The process of drafting an efficient marketing plan includes a number of tasks, and the most important aspect in this process is that the marketers always aim to follow a customer centric of customer focused marketing plan. The target customers can also be defined as the target audience. The primary objective of marketing plan is to deliver the predefined message to the target audience. The process of delivering g message to the relevant and potential target audience is known as communicational marketing. Communication is an integral part of marketing mix that must be designed effectively with by considering a number of factors like public relation, advertising, effective campaign message, and target audience etc (Trehan and Trehan, 2010, p.17). This paper will attempt to present a comprehensive promotional marketing plan for promoting music and media through an effective communication process. This promotional marketing plan basically strives to develop a campaign plan for promoting a brand imag e of rock-music band. In meet this task, multiple marketing models, tools and theories will be used by focusing the target audience. The band is UK-based and hence, this promotional plan will focus on UK market. The product of this band is basically its music which will be distributed through CDs and online download. Therefore, in order to promote the music specific target markets will be identified and defined. Marketing Strategy Overview In the age of high competition it has become very essential for business organizations to develop a marketing strategy that effectively communicates its product or services among the members of the target audience such that the consumers are aware of the product and are able to distinguish between the product and services offered by the competitors in the market. Music bands also face the same situations as there are a large number of such players in the market. The marketing strategies of the bands must largely include a comprehensive framework c omprised of a step wise plan that includes