Constructive Controversy

Constructive controversy is a process through which two individuals or groups of individuals seek to reach an agreement when their ideas, opinions and information are incompatible to those of the other (Johnson, Johnson and Tjosvold, 2006). The process is based on a strong cooperative goal and involves â€Å"deliberate discourse [of the advantages and disadvantages of proposed actions] aimed at synthesizing novel solutions† (Johnson, Johnson and Tjosvold, 2006, p. 1). Participants cope constructively in conflict situations by using differences in understanding, perspective and knowledge as valued resources to find a solution integrating the best thoughts that emerge during the process (Deutsch, 2006). In an organizational context, skillful participation in constructive controversy can lead to higher-quality decisions and solutions to complex problems. During the role play of the ROC case study in class, some participants reflected that while they felt thrown out of equilibrium initially when asked to assume the opposite position, the process opened their minds to new information and helped them engage in a higher-level cognitive and reasoning process. The value of constructive controversy lies in the thought process it induces when participants adapt to and accommodate the perspective of the other (Johnson, Johnson and Tjosvold, 2006). Individuals are more likely to derive conclusions that are enriched by new ideas and information which otherwise may not have been taken into consideration. Coming together to create a solution in the constructive controversy process also fosters stronger relationships among individuals which is crucial to organizational health. The positive feelings and commitment individuals feel in joint decision-making raises interpersonal attraction and produces greater perceptions of peer task support (Johnson, Johnson and Tjosvold, 2006). Individuals are encouraged to manage conflict constructively when the next problem arises and the result is likely to be a higher-quality solution, thereby reinforcing interpersonal attraction and commitment in the organization for the long term. In the ROC case study, the Finance team and the Sales team will likely need to cooperate in the long term to come up with multiple creative solutions to bring ROC back to the black again because sustained profitability cannot be achieved with cost-cutting measures alone or by simply launching a new product. The bedrock of this long-term cooperative effort to revive ROC is a positive relationship between the two teams. However, the constructive controversy process requires dedicated time and resources, which in some situations, may not be the most efficient way of decision-making. In fast-paced, complex and highly dynamic business environments, organizations have to respond swiftly to changing customer demands in order to compete. While the constructive controversy process can generate higher-quality decisions, the timeliness of these decisions is equally crucial. ROC would have suffered a lost opportunity if a rival company had launched a similar product in the time taken for the two teams in ROC to arrive at a decision through the constructive controversy process. Controversies may also increase tensions in a group if participants do not possess the collaborative and conflict management skills necessary to facilitate a constructive controversy process. According to Johnson, Johnson and Tjosvold (2006), the abilities to disagree with each other’s ideas while acknowledging one another’s personal competence and engage in perspective-taking behaviors are critical to creating a cooperative context for controversy. A group comprising mainly of individuals with a dominating style of conflict management is likely to experience a competitive controversy process, with each side adhering rigidly to its position and rejecting ideas and information of the opponent. Dominating persons often ignore the needs and expectations of the other party and may sometimes want to win at any cost (Rahim, 2000). As a result, interpersonal relationships could be strained and more conflicts may arise. References Deutsch, M. (2006) Cooperation and competition. In Deutsch, M. Coleman, P. T. & Marcus, E. (Eds. ) The handbook of conflict resolution: Theory and practice, 2nd edition (pp. 23-42). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Johnson, D. W. , Johnson, R. T. & Tjosvold, D. (2006) Constructive Controversy: The value of intellectual opposition. In Deutsch, M. , Coleman, P. T. & Marcus E. (Eds. ) The handbook of conflict resolution: Theory and practice, 2nd edition (pp. 69-91). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Rahim, M. A. (2000) Mana ging conflict in organizations, 3rd edition. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing.

Histroy of English Language Essay

History of English language will explain, why learning English as a second language is difficult without proper instruction, even though basic components are same. Throughout its history English has been influenced by the varieties of language. Living languages never remain static. Every language is the product of change and continues to change as long as it is spoken. Only dead languages like Latin or Sanskrit change no longer, since no one speaks them now. The changes, while they do occur are gradual and slow and hence almost imperceptible. Over a span of centuries, however, their cumulative effect is appreciable. Shakespeare English is difficult for modern readers; Chaucer’s is almost is incomprehensible without formal instruction. The History of the English language: The origin During the Roman invasion, the inhabitants of Britain spoke a Celtic language. English belongs, in all its stages, to the Indo European family of languages, formerly called Indo-Germanic, and still earlier Aryan. Indo European is the name given to the set of linguistic forms from which nearly all European languages as well as those of Persia and very large part of India can be shewn to descend. The historians have used the word Indo-European because it merely suggests that the languages it comprises cover most of the Europe and India mark the length of its confines. The predominance and pioneering s of the position of the German Philologist English is one of the most important languages in the world today. More the an 350 million people in Great Britain are native speakers. In addition 150 million non-native speakers of English are there. English however is not spoken by large number of people in the world . Chinese, for instance spoken by more than 880 million people in China alone. Among the western languages English has the advantage in numbers. Spanish in spoken by about 210 million people. Russian is spoken about 200 million people Portuguese is spoken about 105 million people etc . Importance of a language is associated with political role played by the nations using it and their influence in the international affairs. Several reasons may be adduced for current importance and popularity of English. Historically the colonial expansion of the British Empire over which the sun never sets, was responsible for the imposition of the English on aspiring natives. Even after achieving independence many countries like Nigeria, India, Ghana continue to use English as official language for several reasons. The nature of the English language and its tolerance to change has made it very popular. One of the major assets of the English language is the mixed character or its vocabulary. English being the Germanic descent has many words from the Germanic languages viz, German Dutch, Flemish, Danish, Scandinavian, Swedish, Norwegian. It also shares a large number of words with the European languages derived from Latin viz,French Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. Hence English seems very familiar to anyone who speaks a Germanic and Roman language. Instead of making new words chiefly by the combination of existing elements, English has shown the marked tendency to go outside its own linguistic resources and borrow from other languages. These words have been so well assimilated into English the no one ever remembers or recognizes that they have been borrowed. Any etymological dictionary will show that English has borrowed from almost every language of the world; Hebrew Arabic Hindi Tamil,Malay,WestAfrica,Chinese,Brazil etc. This is the reason why we call English a cosmopolitan vocabulary which is an asset to any language which seeks to attain international use. Modern linguists therefore accept the dynamic nature of language. One of their axioms is that there are no pure forms of language, for language, for languages keep changing all the time. If English had remained pure over the centuries, we should still be speaking the language of Chaucer. Throughout the history, the English language has accepted with comparative equanimity words from other languages with which it has been in contact. There have been periods in which speakers and writers have indulged in large-scale use of foreign words. In general, most people will agree that the foreign contribution to English has been useful. Some languages avoid as far as possible the use of alien terms; instead they substitute new words made up of native elements. English however, has always accepted foreign words. Many hundreds of words of non-English origin are now part and parcel of the English vocabulary, indistinguishable from the native stock except to those with some knowledge of etymology. Of all the world languages, English has probably the vocabulary which is the most copious, heterogeneous and varied, at the same time this also one of the reason that learning English as second language becomes difficult. All the people, with whom its speakers have come in contact during more than thirteen centuries of its growth, have left permanent marks on the language. Some of the contacts have been deep and lasting like Greek, French and Latin. A study of the history of the English language, therefore, unfolds the panorama of English history-both social and political. With an empire over which sun never sets, the English language has been particularly open to foreign influences. The Romans with whom the ancient Germanic tribes had dealings, the Romanized Britons, the Latin fathers of the church who were once eagerly studied the Danish and Norwegian invaders, the Norman French conquerors, the revival of ancient Latin and Greek classics at Renaissance, the Italian artists and men of letters of the 16th century the colonizing nations of the same century—all these have made their contributions to the English language. Arab mathematicians from Spain have enriched the language: so have American Redskins and Indian sepoys. The Italianate Englishman of Queen Elizabeth’s time of whom Shakespeare made fun and famous writers like Dryden, Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift have left something of value in the English word—hoard. It is no doubt, that such statement might fairly be made about other language and their history; but what stands out so remarkably about English is the abundance, the unparalleled variety and the length of the time during which foreign influences have been effective. Further, no other language has so much copious and heterogeneous material. In historical linguistics the contribution of particular foreign language to another is referred to as borrowing . In common parlance, ‘borrowing’ means getting something form somebody on the understanding that it is to be returned. Luckily, this definition does not apply to words which are borrowed, never to be returned. Linguists wonder whether ‘stealing’ might be a more appropriate term for this phenomenon. As Haugen says† The borrowing takes place without the lender’s consent or even awareness and the borrower is under no obligation to repay the loan. One might as well call it stealing, were it is not the owner is deprived of nothing and feels no urge to recover his goods. The process might be called adoption, for the speaker does adopt element from a second language into its own. Even though English language has adopted variety of languages into it, the basic structure of the English language has not changed. English language’s basic structure is, it has fixed word order. Due to more than two hundred years of English rule, Tamil has borrowed copiously from English. Now these words are not recognized as foreign at all. One hears an uneducated Tamil speaker use words like office school, ticket, gate, bus etc. In fact, practically no one remembers the Tamil equivalent of these words. The problem arises for the second language learners only when they were asked to use the language or reproducing it. Tamil is Dravidian language spoken by more than 65 million people. It is the official language of Tamil nadu state in India and one of the official languages of Srilanka also. Large Tamil-speaking communities also reside in South Africa,Singapore, Malaysia and the other Indian ocean islands. The earliest Tamil inscriptions dates from 200B. C. The literature in the language have a 2,000-year history. There are 247 letters in the Tamil alphabet. The 247 letters in the Tamil alphabet can be divided into 12 vowels 18 consonants, 216 vowel consonants and 1 special letter. The vowel consonants are formed by combining the vowel letters and consonants letters. The vowel-consonants letters also have long and short sounds. The History of English is divided into three ages. Old English, Middle English and Modern English. There are 26 letters and 44 sounds, in that there 6 pure vowels and 18 diphthongs and 20 consonants in English language. Compared to Tamil language English has less number of letters ,but ironically language that has 247 letters(Tamil) has limited in terms of vocabulary, but English language that has 26 letters has million words. According THE HINDU newspaper which published an article duirng 2006, The department of Tamil language in the University of Madras has benn revising, enlarging and updating the Tamil lexicon. During 1924-39, the University of Madras had Published the Tamil Lexicon in seven volumes comprising 124,405 entries. Such a dictionary was pioneering venture in the pre-independence period. Prof. Vaiyapuri Pillai had played a huge role in the complication and publication. There have been persistent demands for updating and expanding the lexicon. The many social, political and technological changes in the six-decade period have direct bearing on the Tamil language. It is in this background that the Department of Tamil language of the Madras University had out forth its plan to revise enlarge and update the lexicon. The present Tamil lexicon, under preparation ,will come out in 10 volumes, comprising atleast 500,000 entries ,will be bilingual in nature and at the same time render the meaning chronologically. On top of the vast difference in the number of letters in their alphabet, the Tamil language also differs in many grammatical items compared to the English language. The earliest period of English was formerly called as ANGLO SAXON. The history of English language is divided into three main periods . They are old English (from earliest writings till 1100) Middle English extends from about 1100A. D- 1450A. D, from 1450A. D till date its Modern English. The English language is spoken or read by the largest number of people in the world, for historical, political and economic reasons. First and foremost feature of English language is its extraordinary receptive and adaptable heterogeneousness-the varied ease and readiness with which it has taken to itself material from almost everywhere in the world and has made the new elements of language its own. Throughout its history English has accepted with equinamity words from other languages with which it has been in contact. Foreign elements with ease and assimilated them all to its character. Though it is copiousness of vocabulary is outstanding. A second outstanding characteristic of English is simplicity of inflexion-the ease with which it indicates the relationship of words in a sentence with only the minimum of change in their shapes or variation of endings. A third quality of English is its relatively fixed-word order. An inflected language like Latin or Russian can afford to be fairly free in the arrangement of its words, since the inflexions show clearly the proper relationship in the sentence and ambiguity is unlikely. Of all world languages, English has probably the vocabulary which is most copious, heterogeneous and varied. All the peoples with whom its speakers have come into contact during more than thirteen centuries of the growth, have left permanent marks on the language. Some of the contacts have been deep and lasting like those of ancient Rome and France. Others have been casual like those of Spain or Czechoslovakia. During the Roman invasion, the inhabitants of Britain spoke a Celtic language. While the Roman soldiers in town used Latin, the Britons in the countryside spoke Celtic. Later this was replaced by English. The history of the English language in Britain begins with the settlement of the Angels, Saxons and Jutes in Brtian. These three tribes came from the plains near Schelswing Holstein in North Germany. They had to encounter varying degrees of hostility from the Celts. For mutual protection the tribes combined into small kingdoms. The most important among these were: Northumbria, Mercia. East Anglia, Wessex, Sussex, Essex and Kent. Under King Alfred Wessex enjoyed the leadership in learning. The English language of today reflects many centuries of developments. The political and social history of England has exerted a considerable impact on the language. The Christianizing of Britain in 597 brought English into contact with Latin civilization and many Latin words were added to the English vocabulary. Then the Scandinavian invasion resulted in considerable two people and their languages. For two centuries after the Norman Conquest English remained the language of the lower classes. When English once more gained importance, it had been considerably changed from what it was in 1066. In a similar way the Hundred Years’ War, the rise of an important middle class, the Renaissance the development of the British empire, the growth of commerce and industry, science and literature have all contributed to make the English language what it is today. In short the English language reflects in its entire development the political, social and cultural history of the English people.

Morepan Positioning Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Morepan Positioning Strategy - Essay Example From this discussion it is clear tha by entering into the distribution agreement with Geneva Pharma to be the sole supplier, the Company was able to provide a cost advantage to its customers. Moreover, in the case of bulk drugs, the Company has moved into high margin drug products where the multi -production processes are long and complex; however by developing the necessary technical capabilities to tackle such processes in a cost effective manner utilizing low labor costs in India and supplying to international markets, Morepan has been able to create economic value for its customers. According to the study Morepan has also positioned itself not merely as a bulk drug company in the Indian market, but has consolidated its position and created customer value by also entering into the Fast Moving Health Goods category. By hosting an entirely new range of products which could be directly marketed to the customers rather than having to reply upon physician prescriptions, the Company was able to gain direct access to the end customer unlike other drug companies. It developed a range of health products such as Lifelyte which was an electrolytic rehydrate, Y Sugar which was a sweetener, Dab fizz an antacid, and similar products which could directly be targeted at the end customer and marketed vigorously through effective sales and advertising techniques. In this way, the Company ha uniquely positioned itself in the market for health food products. Recently the Company has further expanded its reach into the retail sector in the health care market, through the creation of the Lifespring chain of health and beauty stores.

Effects of Medical Marijuana and Marijuana on the Brain System Research Paper

Effects of Medical Marijuana and Marijuana on the Brain System - Research Paper Example These compounds are called cannabinoids. The THC content varies according to the source of cannabis and its preparation (Ashton). Nonmedicinal effect of marijuana is the intoxication it can produce. Marijuana is rolled as cigarettes and smoked. The odor of the smoke is distinct, pungent, and sweet-and-sour. Marijuana is consumed along with food and its decoction is served as tea. All variants of marijuana produce initial excitement followed by depression (NIH). Marijuana is used in ayurveda for its medicinal properties. Its derivatives act as analgesic, anti-inflammatory, hallucinogenic, and sedative. Marijuana is recommended in cancer chemotherapy as an antiemetic and for treating glaucoma. Marijuana plant in ayurveda is used for its hallucinogenic, hypnotic, sedative, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory properties. (Rajasekar). Medical marijuana or medical cannabis is available as leaves and flowering tops. Medical marijuana is a schedule I drug. Derivatives of cannabis or marijuana are in use for their medicinal actions in United States and Canada for a long time. Such derivatives are dronabinol and nabilone that are schedule III and schedule II drugs respectively. Another derivative ‘nabiximol’ has not been approved by the USFDA (Borgelt, Franson and Nussbaum). The nature of formulation and patient’s character influence the pharmacological actions of cannabinoid compounds. The cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 respond differently. The cannabinoid delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol exerts primary psychoactive actions. Cannabinoid derivatives dronabinol and nabilone are used for treating nausea and vomiting during cancer chemotherapy. It is also given to patients suffering from anorexia due to acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Cannabis compounds are recommended for treating pain and muscle spasms (Borgelt, Franson and Nussbaum). More than 400 compounds are present in herbal cannabis. The plant genus cannabis contains more than 60

Reflection Paper #2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reflection Paper #2 - Essay Example Each of these characteristics is particularly important in developing my leadership skills. I first learned about my strengths, when my friends asked me to help them in a rather complicated situation. Then I not only learned about my strengths but also was able to apply them quite successfully. I believe that creativity is particularly important for a leader. It enables the leader to demonstrate an innovative approach to the work of his/her staff and workflow. Creativity in the work of the leader is an opportunity for employees to demonstrate their strengths and a variety of talents, which can have a positive impact on the company. Creativity can be regarded as a supporting element for a successful teamwork. I understand creativity as openness to new, innovative and unconventional approaches to work. Creativity can be expressed in various forms. I believe that creativity is an inherent quality of the modern professional. Any large company needs not only creative managers, but also creative leaders who are able to introduce new ideas to improve the work of the organization. Experience of the most successful people in the world, as well as numerous psychological studies demonstrate that the secret of success in one’s career is such a quality as creativity. In addition, as a creative leader I am able to demonstrate flexibility. Flexibility implies a willingness to adapt to changes affecting various aspects of the team. Flexibility can manifest itself in ways of organizing the learning process, methods of obtaining the desired results, etc. Todays reality is that the professional leader is well aware that he/she cannot always and everywhere show a conservative attitude to different business issues. The task of the modern leader is to respond to various changes quite quickly and adequately. It is no coincidence that that the majority of modern experts in the field of leadership argue

Computer Models Comparison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Computer Models Comparison - Essay Example In this respect, this paper provides a review (comparison) of three amongst the leading computer models that an organization can choose from, namely: HP Pavilion p7-1030, Velocity Micro Edge Z40, and Lenovo ThinkStation S20 (Adams, 2011). The three models are compared on the basis of their price, external features, internal features and performance. Subsequently, recommendations are made on the best model between the three for this organization to purchase. Pricing is a key element to be considered while purchasing a computer product. Retailing at $3,665, the Lenovo would be the costliest of the three models, followed by Velocity which goes for an approximate $1199. Going for $580, Pavilion is the cheapest of them all; about $2000 and $500 cheaper than Lenovo and Velocity respectively. Regarding the external features, Velocity has eight USB 2.0 ports. With that number, it falls short of Lenovo by four ports while beating Pavillion by two ports. On the upper part of the front panel, t he Pavilion further has multimedia card reader ports (MMC, XD, MS/Pro, SD and Compact Flash). At the back all the three have an Ethernet port, three audio jerks (audio-in, microphone in and audio-out) as well as a DVI video and VGA for connecting the desktop to an external display or monitor. They also come with a wired USB optical mouse and USB keyboard. The one notable downside about Velocity is that, unlike the other two, it may not come with a monitor (Adams, 2011). Internally, the Pavillion is loaded with a 1TB 7200rpm hard drive and a PCIe Mini card which delivers 802.11n Wi-Fi therefore negating the need for long Ethernet cables when connecting to the Web (Adams, 2011). It also has 8GB of DDR3 RAM which although more than sufficient, occupies the only two DIMM slots available, thereby leaving no room for expansion unless the user chooses to do so by removing one or both pre installed memory sticks. Similarly, the Velocity feature 1TB, 7200rpm hard drive, but does scale down o n the memory to provide 4GB of DDR3. Having a 500GB SATA 7200 rpm hard drive and 2GB of DDR3 RAM, Lenovo appears to scale down on two of the most essential internal features, but on the other hand, the model proceeds to compensates for this by providing ample space for two more memory sticks and two more internal hard drives. Of noteworthy, as far as internal features are concerned, the make comes with pre-installed software. In terms of operating system, all the three come with a pre installed Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64bit. Similarly, they all come with a pre installed starter version of Microsoft Office 2010. In terms of software, the only major difference between the three is that of the anti virus software pre installed in each of them. Whereas the pavilion features a 60-day trial of Norton Internet Security 2011, Lenovo comes with a 30-day trial McAffee Internet Security package. However, unlike Pavilion, Lenovo’s McAffee is merely made to lie on the hard drive un installed. This is seen as a good thing by many, because it saves organizations the steps of cleaning their PCs if they happen to use a different solution (Adams, 2011). Performance Regarding the performance, the ordinary office setting does not allow for computer games and gaming tests. And whereas it is

Predictors of Sexual Satisfaction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Predictors of Sexual Satisfaction - Essay Example This study constitutes an important first step, and invites other researchers to explore the topic further. The methodology was entirely through self-reporting, measuring the participants' sexual satisfaction and their perceived self-image in relation to body, fitness, and activity level. Two hundred and ninety women and one hundred and eighteen men participated in the study; all were voluntary participants enrolled in an undergraduate health class at a university. The majority of the class was white, with other races nominally represented. The respondents completed a questionnaire which included demographic information, "An 11-item modified Derogatis Sexual Satisfaction Scale (Young et al., 1998)" (Penhollow and Young "Predictors" par. 12) and a "A 13-item body image self-consciousness scale (Wiederman, 2000)" (Penhollow and Young "Predictors" par. ... their satisfaction with everything from individual body parts, the quality of their orgasms, and how satisfied they were with their level of physical activity. This allowed researchers to draw very specific conclusions about which aspects of body consciousness affected sexual satisfaction. All the data was compiled and statistics reached using a Statistical Analysis System, and multiple regression analysis was run with sexual satisfaction as the independent variable (Penhollow and Young "Predictors" par. 15) The study succeed in its goal to identify the variables in self-esteem and body image that most affected sexual satisfaction. The researchers found that: For females, the three most important variables were concerns about being nude, fitness level, and exercise frequency. Together these three variables accounted for 44% of the variation in sexual satisfaction. For males, the three most important variables included strength and build, exercise frequency, and concerns about being nude. Together these three variables explained 21% of the variation in sexual satisfaction.(Penhollow and Young "Predictors" par. 20) Thus, the variables for sexual satisfaction and body image were established, but the link is as yet uncertain as to causation; this study, like many important and informative scientific studies, opens more questions than it answers. Do people suffering from mild to moderate depression generally report both low sexual satisfaction and heightened insecurity about their body image Does exercise create better self-image, better sexual satisfaction, or both Could an experiment be conducted where participants exercise and then self-report sexual satisfaction and body image, to more fully understand this correlation Does the media influence people (especially