Analysis of Ethical Dilemma Essay

Britney, age 17, has been referred because of problems at school and a shoplifting charge. She admits to â€Å"smoking some dope† every now and then and having a drink or two with her friends. She is dressed in black with pierced ears, nose, and lip. Her appearance is disheveled and her hygiene poor. She appears to be overly thin. Britney’s parents were divorced when she was 5 years old. She has a brother who is 5 years older. They used to live with their mother in the same town as their father. Britney saw him frequently, although she says he was â€Å"always busy with work† and she could never talk to him about much of anything. Britney states that her mother was also busy but would â€Å"usually† stop and listen. She reports that her mother has a temper and is stressed all the time about money and work. She also reports that her mom and dad still fight about money and â€Å"us kids. † She feels like she is in the middle and is always being asked to choose. Britney feels caught in the middle of conflict between her parents. She interprets their being too busy for her as not being wanted by them. Britney’s rebellion serves to distract her mother and father from their fighting and to unite them as they attempt to control her behavior. It also serves to help solve the dilemma of whether she should leave home, leaving her mother alone. She distances herself by using drugs and alcohol but cannot really leave home and her mother because of her irresponsible behavior. Her brother has the role of doing well in the family, being responsible while the parents are in conflict. Through the use of their roles, the estranged family continues to function, albeit less than satisfactorily. Britney and her mother and brother recently moved to a new area, and Britney is at a new school this year. She is currently in 10th grade and has average grades. Her new friends are â€Å"different† from her old friends, but they â€Å"accept her for what she is. † Britney found acceptance in a counterculture when she felt rejection at home. With divorced parents, a distant father, overly stressed mother, and parents arguing over the kids, Britney has poor self-esteem and feels that she is the cause of some of the problems. She finds that using drugs with other kids relieves boredom, fear, and loneliness. She feels accepted and acceptable when she is using with them. The main ethical concerns presented in the dilemma with references to the ethics Britney uses cocaine when with friends. She learned that using helps her fit in—be â€Å"one of the gang. † She described a new, well-defined group of peers who â€Å"I like to hang out with and party with. † She is even supplied by a male classmate at school who impregnated her while they are high on drugs and sex. In addition, she has had some moderate school-related problems (e. g. , lateness) and a shoplifting charge. She entered a guilty plea for shoplifting. But approximately two weeks before her sentencing hearing, Britney inform the judge and her substance abuse counselor that she was pregnant and is still on drugs. Hence, the complexity of this ethical dilemma arises. This case taps into the substance abuse counselor many layers of personal and professional beliefs. However, careful reading of the case reveals a firm commitment to consider – not ignore – fetal interests within the framework of respect for the autonomy of the competent pregnant teenager. The case presented clearly relate to situations in which the pregnant teenager is deemed incompetent. Hence, the counselor needs a clear insight into the right approach to take when a medical intervention can benefit both fetus and mother, as in the case of Britney who is a teenager and is addicted to or abuses drugs. Application of human service profession theories and techniques In this analysis, I bring some issues and concepts of feminist ethics, post-modernism, and critical theory to reflect on an important child’s issue-policy approaches to pregnant teenager who is polysubstance user. Many people, including many law enforcement officials, child protection agents, and legislators, think that teenagers who use drugs during pregnancy should be punished for the harm or risks of harm they bring to their babies. I analyze this punishment approach and argue that the situation of pregnant teenager addicts does not satisfy the conditions usually articulated by philosophers to justify punishment. A punishment approach, moreover, may have sexist and racist implications and ultimately operates more to maintain a social distinction between insiders and deviants than to protect children. Most of those who criticize a punishment approach to policy for pregnant addicts call for meaningful treatment programs as an alternative. I interpret this treatment approach as a version of a feminist ethic of care. For the most part, theorizing about the ethics of care has remained at the level of ontology and epistemology, with little discussion of how the ethics of care interprets concrete moral issues differently from more traditional approaches to ethics. By conceptualizing a treatment approach to pregnant teenage addict as justified by an ethics of care, I propose to understand this ethics of care as a moral framework for social policy. Although I agree with a treatment approach to policy for pregnant teenage addicts, from a feminist point of view there are reasons to be suspicious of many aspects of typical drug treatment. Relying on Michel Foucault’s notions of disciplinary power and the operation of â€Å"confessional† discourse in therapy, I argue that treatment often operates to adjust women to dominant gender, race, and class structures and depoliticizes and individualizes their situations. Thus, I conclude by offering a distinction between two meanings of empowerment in service provision, one that remains individualizing, and one that develops social solidarity through consciousness raising and the possibility of collective action. Punishment Punitive legislation regarding pregnant addicts has been considered in more than thirty states and by the U. S. Congress. Although the testimony of legal and medical experts appears to have succeeded in preventing the passage of congressional legislation, at least eight states now include drug exposure in utero in their definition of child abuse and neglect. In several states without such laws, prosecutors have used existing drug-trafficking laws to file criminal charges against women who use cocaine or other controlled substances during pregnancy. By July 1992 at least 167 women in twenty-six states had been arrested and charged criminally because of their use of drugs during pregnancy or because of some other prenatal risk. A number of these women have been found guilty and sentenced to as many as ten years in prison. The majority of these cases have involved women of color, even though white women also use illegal drugs. The controversy that has been boiling about this punishment approach to policy for pregnant addicts appears in some of the appeals of these convictions. As of November 1992, twenty-one cases had been challenged or appealed, and all of these were dismissed or overturned (Roberts, 1991) As a result of increasing controversy over such punitive policies, some state and local governments have encouraged treatment as a complement or alternative to criminal punishment or child removal. Thus, California has enacted a law that requires drug treatment programs to give priority to pregnant women. The state of Connecticut has mandated that outreach workers seek out addicted mothers and mothers-to-be to encourage them to get treatment. In the fall of 1991, the city of New York instituted a program that allows addicted women to take their babies home after birth, provided that they enter treatment and agree to weekly visits from a social worker (Larson1991). This program and many others that emphasize treatment over punishment nevertheless retain a punitive tendency to the degree that they are coercing women to have treatment. Most prosecutors and policymakers who have pursued a punishment approach to pregnant addicts would deny that racist and sexist biases inform their practices. They claim instead that they are exercising their obligations as state agents to protect infants from harm and to hold accountable those responsible for such harms when they occur. Women who take cocaine or heroin while pregnant are wantonly and knowingly risking the lives or health of future persons and deserve to pay for such immoral harm. Punishing women who give birth to drug-affected babies serves notice to others that the state considers this a grave wrong and will thus deter such behavior. As with most punishments, the primary justifications for punitive policies toward pregnant addicts are deterrence and retribution. Neither justification, however, is well grounded. A deterrence theory of punishment relies on an assumption that people engage in some kind of cost benefit calculation before taking the actions the policies are aimed at. In some contexts this makes sense. If a city wishes to discourage illegal parking, it raises the fines and threatens to tow, and these policies usually do work to reduce infractions. The idea that a pregnant addict weighs the benefits of taking drugs against the costs of possible punishment, however, is implausible, because it assumes that it is within her power to refrain from taking drugs if she judges that the costs are too high. Many health professionals argue that punitive policies toward pregnant addicts does deter them from seeking prenatal care (Mann, 1991). Women are likely to avoid contact with healthcare providers if they believe that their drug use will be reported to state authorities who will punish them. Because drug-using pregnant women’s fetuses and babies are often at particularly high risk, they need prenatal attention even more than most. Experts claim that the harmful effects of drug use on infants can be offset, at least in part, by good prenatal care, when health professionals are aware of a woman’s drug use in a supportive nonpunitive atmosphere (Paltrow, 1990) I think that retribution is most often implicitly or explicitly the operative justification for punitive approaches to pregnant addicts. These women ought to be punished and threatened with punishment because their wrongful actions deserve sanction. Such a retributive justification for a punitive approach to pregnant addicts must assume that these women are responsible both for their drug use and for their pregnancies; if freedom is a condition for assigning responsibility, however, these are problematic assumptions. Most states where punitive policies toward pregnant addicts have been pursued do not prosecute people for drug use alone. Especially where this is so, women are essentially being punished for carrying a pregnancy to term. Such punishment must presuppose that women are responsible for being pregnant, but there are several social conditions that limit women’s choice to be or not be pregnant. Ours is still a society where women often are not really free in their sexual relations with men. Access to contraception, moreover, is not easy for many women, especially poor or young women. And, of course, even when they have it, the contraception sometimes does not work. With rapidly decreasing access to abortion for all women in the United States, but especially for young or poor women, finally, fewer and fewer women have a choice about whether to carry a pregnancy to term (Lewin, 1992). Some prosecutors and policies claim to use a punishment approach primarily as means of encouraging or forcing women into drug treatment. In line with the above arguments, one might say that a pregnant addict is morally blameworthy for harming her child only if she does not seek help in dealing with her drug use. In recent years some small steps have been taken to increase the availability of drug treatment for pregnant women, and to design programs specifically for their needs; for the most part, however, access to more than perfunctory drug treatment is limited. Most programs either do not accept pregnant women or have waiting lists that extend long beyond their due dates. Most private health insurance programs offer only partial reimbursement for treatment, and in many states Medicaid will reimburse only a portion of the cost of drug treatment. Most treatment programs are designed with men’s lives in mind, and very few have childcare options. Mandatory reporting laws or other procedures that force women into treatment, moreover, create an adversary and policing relation between healthcare providers and the women they are supposed to serve, thereby precluding the trust relationship most providers believe is necessary for effective drug therapy( Chavkin, 1991).

Inpatient and Outpatient Hospital Services Essay

The main difference between inpatient and outpatient services is that inpatient care is performed by an inpatient facility that is prepared for patients to be able to stay overnight if need be. This inpatient care can be provided by a hospital, skilled nursing facility, or a long term care facility. A skilled nursing facility (SNF) is designed to provide rehabilitation services and/or skilled nursing to injured patients after they no longer need to be in a hospital setting. The skilled nursed help the patient and assist with their recovery. A skilled nursing facility is operated by licensed nurses, with the assistance of a medical physician. A few examples of care given at a skilled nursing facility would include dressing changes, intravenous injections, and tube feeding. A nursing home is an example of a long-term care facility, which provides custodial care for patients who suffer from chronic disabilities or prolonged illnesses. Outpatient care, is also referred to as ambulatory care, is somewhat different from inpatient care in a hospital or skilled nursing facility setting. Outpatient care involves care that does not require and overnight stay. This kind of care is found in a family physician office, ER visit, physical, speech or occupational therapy, and home health care. Due to the different settings and types of treatment received at inpatient or outpatient facilities, there are different codes for all the different procedures. An inpatient care example would be an overnight stay and care that is a round-the-clock due to a surgical procedure received. If it was outpatient care the service or treatment would have been in the doctor’s office or facility. Outpatient care codes differ than inpatient due to their different settings and what services can be performed. Coding for inpatient and outpatient are different, diagnostic coding for inpatient care follow the rules of the Uniform Hospital Discharge Data Set (UHDDS). Inpatient coding differ from physician and outpatient coding, because the main diagnosis is generally determined after study in a hospital setting and coding an unconfirmed condition as the admitting diagnosis is permitted. Inpatient codes can be more complex than outpatient, in general there are more codes used in inpatient care than outpatient.

A Review of Qualitative Research on Teenage Smoking Habits

A Review of Qualitative Research on Teenage Smoking Habits Grand Canyon University: NRS-433V-O103 Introduction to Nursing Research September 20, 2012 Introduction The purpose of this document is to summarize the contents of the research article, explain the research methods implemented, and offer insight on how the findings contribute to nursing practice. Second, there will be an explanation of ethical considerations associated with the conduct of nursing research. Finally, the source document, â€Å"What Determines Teenagers' Smoking Behaviour? : A Qualitative Study† will be attached for review. SummaryThe articles purpose was to study smoking behavior among Malaysian teens. The specific areas of interest included: smoking initiation, cigarette consumption, intention to stop smoking, and attempts to stop smoking. The first stage of teen smoking behavior begins with casual experimentation and is followed by the maintenance phase when everyday ritual smoking is present. The fut ure dependence on smoking can be predicted by the individual’s actions during experimentation with cigarettes. Curiosity, peer pressure, and parental smoking were all reported reasons that teens decided to try cigarettes.In children less than thirteen year old, it was concluded that parental smoking played the largest role in behavior choices. This finding suggests that children are modeling the parents’ smoking behavior. However, older teens in secondary school reported peer pressure to be the reason for choices regarding cigarettes. Seventy-four percent of the participants reported that they smoked less than five cigarettes daily. This same portion or participants admitted that they smoked because they experienced physical symptoms of nicotine withdraw when they didn’t smoke daily.Consumption of cigarettes in this group was reported as a social activity among friends but mostly in secluded areas, to avoid getting caught. Most all adolescents that were active i n this study reported that they had intended to quit smoking in the future. The majority of participants had no clear plan on how they were going to stop and most had admitted to several failed attempts to stop smoking without help. Aspects to consider: relationships, athletic involvement, health concerns, lack of finances, and parental concern are all reasons that would cause a teen smoker to consider quitting.The participants that were able to stop smoking had a plan and picked a specific quit date. Methods of Study This information was collected and processed through a qualitative study. Specifically, it involved twenty-six teens from three public schools. Twenty-thee members of this sample group were smokers while three of the members had stopped smoking. Information was gathered through three focus group interviews, three in-depth interviews over twenty months, and questionnaires.The questions were asked in a non-formal conversational manner with important points or answers rec orded on a document designed to evaluate and sort information (site). The Social Cognitive Theory was used to organize collection of information and analysis. This theoretical framework was chosen based on the need for an explanation of teen smoking related to individuals, heath behaviors, and environments. The expectation is that Social Cognitive Theory would offer more insight on how these three elements would interact with each other simultaneously.Contribution to Nursing Smoking tobacco continues to be one of the top causes of preventable causes for death in America. There are 430,000 deaths, one point five million years of potential life lost, and fifty billion of lost medical debt related to tobacco use (Hollis, J. , Pollen, N,†¦ 2005). Nurses that identify younger clients at risk for tobacco can contribute to decline in morbidity related to smoking and assist in the decrease of medical debt. â€Å"The younger that youth are when they start using tobacco, the more likely they'll be addicted (CDC, 20012). The study offers insight to nursing practice for specific tailoring of a care plan for teens who smoke, parents who smoke, and how to target the education for quitting. The areas that affected teen’s interest in quitting included: athletic improvement, parents disapproval, health concerns, and lack of finances. Nurses can use the information from this study to reinforce the health promotion and benefits of being a non-smoker. The recognition of how parents affect smoking behaviors will aid the nurse in preparing education that is directed at the entire family to deter childhood and teen smoking.The contribution to patient care can be seen with health promotion assessment use. The conclusions were clear about teens needing a plan to quit after they reached the maintenance phase of smoking. This result alerts nurses to assess smoking in younger adolescence and offer assistance with smoking cessation. Ethical Issues First, The Research and Ethi c Committee of University Kebangsaan Malaysia gave approval before the study was started. Second, The Ministry of Education Malaysia offered authorization for interviews in the school system for children who were not involved in some type of major examination.Third, all of the teens along with parents provided a written and signed consent for participation. The confidentiality of current smoking status was kept intact and privacy was maintained. Lastly, at the conclusions of each interview the teens were offered smoking cession counseling at a doctor’s clinic. To ensure reliability of the study, several schools were used and different types of data collection utilized. There was self-reflexivity in minimizing opinions of the researchers. Validation was offered by minimal prompting, statement clarification, and rephrasing of questions. ConclusionThe study identified factors like nicotine addiction, personal, and environmental issues that influence of smoking behaviors in teens . These areas should be of great priority when developing smoking cessation programs for teens. The Social Cognitive Theory utilized in this study is an aid that helps nurses to understand smoking behaviors in teens and how to address barriers to break those influential factors. Since this study was done in one region of Malaysia, it may not apply to all areas outside of it. This was a very small study that cannot be applied to all cultures, geographic locations, and race.A better perspective would have been attained by selecting a wider group with random geographic location and equal gender participation. The male to female ratio for the study was unequal and this causes a shift in the standard deviation when scrutinizing the study from a statistical view. Having unequal gender numbers could cause a type I or II error which makes the information not entirely reliable (Grove, S. , 2012). References Center for Disease Control. (2012, January). We can make the next generation tobacco- free. Retrieved from http://www. cdc. gov/Features/YouthTobaccoUse/ Grove, Susan K. (2012).Statistics for Health Care Research: A Practical Workbook [1] (VitalSource Bookshelf), Retrieved from http://pageburstls. elsevier. com/books/978-1- 4160-0226-0/outline/11 Hollis, J. , Polen, M. , Whitlock, E. , Lichtenstein, E. , Mullooly, J. , Velicer, W. , & Redding, C. (2005). Teen Reach: outcomes from a randomized, controlled trial of a tobacco reduction program for teens seen in primary medical care. Pediatrics, 115(4 Part 1), 981-989. Tohid, H. , Ishak, N. d. , Muhammad, N. , Hassan, H. , & Omar, K. (2011). What determines teenagers’ smoking behavior? : A qualitative study. International Medical Journal, 18(3), 194-198. 194PSYCHIATRY Article Ititernational Medical Joumal. Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 194 – 198 , September 2011 What Determines Teenagers' Smoking Behaviour? : A Qualitative Study Hizlinda Tohid†, Noriah Mohd. Ishak^', Noor Azimah Muhammad†, Hasliza Abu Has san^', Farah Naaz Momtaz Ahmad†, Khairani Omar'* ABSTRACT Objective: The study aimed to explore smoking behaviour among Malaysian teenagers that were related to their smoking initiation, cigarette consumption, quit intention, and quit attempts. Methods: It was a qualitative study that used multiple case study design, involving 26 teenagers (23 smokers and three former smokers) from three public schools.Data was collected via questionnaires, three focus group interviews and three in-depth interviews over 20 months, A standardised semi-structured interview protocol was utilised. Results: Among the participants, 74% of them started smoking after the age of 12 years old. The majority (20/23) of the teenage smokers admitted to smoking every day and 74% of them smoked not more than 5 cigarettes a day. All of the smokers had the intention to quit but only 22 out of the 23 teenage smokers had attempted quitting. Sixty percent of these teenagers had more than three quit attempts.In gen eral, this study captured the complexity of the teenagers' smoking behaviour that could be influenced by multiple factors, including behavioural (e,g, nicotine addiction), personal (e,g, conception of smoking and quitting, curiosity, sensation seeking, knowledge about smoking cessation, stress, maintaining athletic performance, and finance,) and environmental (e,g, socialisation, peer pressure, parental smoking, parental disapproval, and boy- or girlfriend aversion) factors. Conclusions: This study described the complex and multidimensional nature of teenage smoking behaviour.The findings also correspondingly matched the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT), therefore suggesting the theory's suitability in elucidating smoking behaviour among the Malaysian teenagers, KEY WORDS smoking, teenagers, smoking initiation, cigarette consumption, quit smoking INTRODUCTION Adolescence is a crucial time in which a relatively dependent child transforms into a relatively independent adult. During this transitional period, many teenagers often experiment risky behaviours as a proclamation of their autonomy.This risky behaviour includes cigarette smoking, using illicit drugs and cirinking alcohol. (Epps, Manley, & Glynn, 1995; Kulig, & American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Substance Abuse, 2005) Experimenting with cigarette smoking is an initial stage of teenagers' smoking behaviour before it becomes established. (Nichter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Seguire, & Chalmers, 2000; Curry, Mermelstein, & Sporer, 2009) This smoking initiation predicts their long-term tobacco use and heavier levels of dependence. (Breslau, & Peterson, 1996; Escobedo, Marcus,Holtzman, & Giovino, 1993; Chen, & Millar, 1998) Their experimenting behaviour may be influenced by various factors including curiosity, peer pressure, parental smoking, sensation seeking, social norms for smoking, and misconception of smoking (e. g. belief that smoking provides benefits, such as coping, sense of belon ging, style, relaxation, and coolness). (Dijk, de Nooijer, Heinrich, & de Vries, 2007; Naing et at. , 2004; Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Vuckovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; Nichter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997) These factors could cause teenagers to continue smoking.Teenage smoking maintenance is also influenced by nicotine addiction. It has been shown to be substantially significant among teenagers even with low cigarette consumption. (The National Health and Morbidity Survey, 2009; Hammond et al. , 2008; Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Naing et al. , 2004; DiFranza et at. , 2007; Balch et al. , 2004; Amos, Wiltshire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006) This may be due to a very rapid loss of autonomy over tobacco even with minimal exposure to nicotine in adolescents, as demonstrated by the DANDY study. (DiFranza et al. , 2007; DiFranza et al. , 2002)Consequently, majority of teenage smokers struggle to quit smoking. (Balch et at. , 2004; McVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Amos, Wiltshire, Haw, & MeNeill, 2006; Seguire, & Chalmers, 2000) Thus, smoking behaviour among teenagers is a complex phenomenon, since it is influenced by multiple factors. This complexity requires great understanding of the behaviour from those who are involved in the care of these teenagers. This comprehension would certainly help the care providers to curb teenage smoking, which is a dangerous, addictive and destructive behaviour. US Department of Health and Human Services, 2004) Therefore, many studies have Received on Augtist 28, 2010 and accepted on November 29, 2010 1) Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Yaacob Latif, Bandar Tun Razak, 56000 Cheras, Kuala Lutnpur, Malaysia 2) Pusat PERMATApintar Negara, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Bangl, 43600 Selangor, Malaysia 3) Setapak Health Clinic, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Correspondence to: Hizlinda Tohid (e-mails; [email  protected] com) 2011 Japan International Cultural Exchange Foundation & Japan Health Sciences UniversityTobitJ H, et al. 195 Table 1. Participants' gender, status of smoking and types of interviews TYPES OF SCHOOL MALE GENDER FcEeM. . AALIEE SMOKERS STATUS OF SMOKING NON SMOKERS FOCUS GROUP INTERVIEW TYPES OF INTERVIEWS IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SCHOOL 1 URBAN 9 3 9 3 1 3 SCHOOL 2 SEMI-URBAN 7 7 1 SCHOOL 3 RURAL 7 7 1 TOTAL 3 23 3 23 3 3 3 been carried out to examine the phenomenon of teenage smoking. In Malaysia, majority of such studies were quantitative studies. (Naing et al. , 2004; Hoi, & Hong, 2000; Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Zulkifli, Rogayah, Razian, & Nyi Nyi, 2001)Nevertheless, studies that qualitatively describe Malaysian teenagers' smoking behaviour are still lacking. This deficiency may affect our understanding of the matter in great depth and holistically. Thus, this study aimed to explore smoking behaviour among Malaysian teenagers related to their smoking initiation, cigarette consumption, quit intention, and quit attempts. This information could provide us with better conception about their smoking behaviour, and subse-‘ quently eould help us to identify areas for improvement. METHODSThis study used a multiple case study design, involving 26 teenagers (23 smokers and three former smokers) from three public schools (urban, semi-urban and rural). Data was collected via selfadministered questionnaires, focus group interviews (FGI) and indepth interviews (IDI) over a period of 20 months, between 2008 until 2010. Theoretical framework This study utilised the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) to guide the researchers in data collection and analysis. The SCT was also used for ‘analytieal generalisation' in which findings of the study were mapped against the theory.It was chosen as the study's theoretical framework due to its appropriateness and comprehensiveness in capturing a complex phenomenon of eigarette smoking that is influenced by multiple factors. (Baranowski, Perry, & Parc el, 2002) The SCT describes how individuals, environments and health behaviour interact with each other simultaneously (reciprocal determinism). (Baranowski, Perry, & Pareel, 2002) Study population Twenty six teenagers (23 boys and three girls, as shown in Table I) were selected via purposive and snowballing sampling, based on predetermined criteria.The teenage smokers and former smokers were sampled because their experience in cigarette smoking and smoking cessation was crucial for this study. These teenagers were 16 years old Malays, recruited from three different (urban, semiurban and rural) public schools from 2 states in Malaysia. Recruitment of teenagers Teenagers were recruited with the assistance from school counsellors from eaeh sehool. An agreement for no disciplinary action against teenagers who were willing to participate in this study was made with the counsellors prior to the recruitment.The students' smoking status was also eoneealed from other school staff to avoid s tigmatisation. Twelve teenagers who were selected from one of the schools were introdueed to the main researcher during an informal meeting for study briefing (refer to Table 1). The teenagers were invited to participate and were given parental packages, which comprised of an acknowledgement letter to parents, the study's information sheet, and a parental consent form. Subsequently, dates for tbe FGI and IDI were set. The completed parental eonsents forms were eolleeted prior the interviews by the school counsellor.The other 14 teenagers (7 students from each remaining school, as shown in Table 1) were reeruited by sehools' counsellors, who had training in qualitative research and were well informed about the study. Similar method of obtaining eonsent from their parents was carried out by these counsellors. Data collection Three in-depth interviews and three focus-group interviews were carried out (refer to Table 1). Prior to the interviews, all participants were given a brief overv iew of the study and the process of the interviews. Written eonsents from eaeh partieipant were also obtained.They were then required to answer a brief self-administered questionnaire on their socio-demography, smoking status and smoking behaviour (age of initiation, cigarette consumption, quit intention and quit attempts). The interviews were conducted in Malay language and eaeh interview lasted less than two hours. A semi-structured interview protocol was used to guide interviewers in questioning the participants. Anti-smoking posters and pamphlets were also used to facilitate discussion. Data analysis During eaeh interview, the conversation was recorded using digital voice recorders.The voice recording was subsequently transeribed into text by using Microsoft Office Word 2007. The transcribed text was reviewed against the audio-recordings for several times until the accuracy of the transcripts was ensured. Any uncertainty during the transcription, assistance from other researeher s was sought to ascertain its accuracy and reliability. (Yin, 2003; Yin, 1994) The transcribed text was then imported into NVIVO 7. The main researcher then analysed the data to identify themes and categories (‘thematie analysis') that would explain patterns of pereeption related to teenagers' smoking behaviour.In order to ensure high reliability of the eoding proeess, tbe coded data was eross-checked by two experts in adolescence health. Kappa was calculated by using the Cohen kappa formula to determine the reliability index, which was maintained above 0. 8. The process of transcription and analysis was repeated for every interview and ‘cross-case conclusion' was drawn between the analyses of eases. Findings of the study were also mapped against the SCT for ‘analytical generalisation'. Ettiical issues, reliability and validity Approval from the Research and Ethic Committee of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia was obtained prior to the study.Authorisation for intervie wing teenagers from the schools was also acquired from the Ministry of Education Malaysia that limited interviewing students who were not sitting for any major examination (i. e. exeept students aged 15 and 17 years old). Apart from these, all of these teenagers and their parents were required to provide written eonsents for their participation. The confidentiality of the participants, e. g. obscuring teenagers' status of smoking from the knowledge of their parents and other sehool staffs, was also guaranteed throughout the study.Finally, medical responsibility of the main researcher in preventing smoking-related illnesses, as she was also a medieal doctor, was realised by offering teenagers consultation for smoking eessation at her clinic. This was done at the end of each interview to prevent any biased answers from the partieipants. Validity and reliability of the study were ensured via a number of methods, ineluding; (1) triangulation of sourees of data (teenagers from three diff erent sehools), as well as methods of data collection 196 What Determines Teenagers' Smokitig Behaviour? Table 2. Smoking behaviour of the teenagers who smokedTEENAGERS WHO SMOKED (N = 23) AGE OF INITIATION (YEARS) NUMBER OF CIGARRETTES SMOKED/DAY STAGE OF CHANGE NUMBER OF QUIT ATTEMPTS FGD(n = 21) IDl(n = 2) TOTAL < 12 5 1 6 > 13 16 1 17 20 2 1 3 PRE COMTEMPLATION 5 1 7 CONTEMPLATION 4 4 PLANNING II 12 0 1 1 1-3 7 1 8 S4 13 1 14 (questionnaire, three FGI and three IDI), (2) self reflexivity in minimising biases that the researchers may bring into the study due to our previous involvement in managing problematic teenagers and chronic smokers, (3) ‘procedural validity' via rephrasing of questions, elarifying of statement and minimal prompting as ecessary,(Fliek, 2009) and (4) inter-coder agreement or reliability index of above 0. 8. RESULTS Twenty three boys and three girls were interviewed (referred to Table 1), in which two of the boys and one of the girls were former smokers . The remaining 23 teenagers were smokers at the time of the interviews. These teenagers' smoking behaviour (age of smoking initiation, cigarette consumption, intention to quit and history of quit attempts) is summarised in Table 2. Age and reasons of smoking initiation Six of the 23 (26%) teenage smokers in this study started smoking during primary school (before the age of 13).The youngest age of smoking initiation was 10 years old. Nevertheless, 74% of these teenage smokers started smoking when they were in the secondary school. Most of the teenagers admitted that curiosity [â€Å"Felt curious to try (smoking)†], sensation seeking [â€Å"Just for fun†], parental modelling of smoking [â€Å"Sinee my father smokes†¦ I always watch him smoking. When he smokes, it looks pleasurable†¦ gratifying†], peer pressure [â€Å"Peer influence†], and misconception of smoking [â€Å"Style (because of smoking). Siyle†] were common factors for them to e xperiment with smoking.The teenagers who started smoking before the age of 13 claimed that curiosity and smoking modelling by parents were their main reasons for experimenting with smoking. This is contrary to those who started smoking at the age of 13 years or older. These teenagers admitted that peer pressure was the major factor for them to start smoking. Cigarette consumption Majority (20/23) of the teenage smokers in this study admitted to smoking every day and 74% of these teenagers smoked not more than 5 cigarettes a day.The teenagers believed that their daily smoking behaviour was mainly due to nicotine addiction in which they described substantial physical (e. g. tiredness, lethargy, flu-like symptoms) and psychological (e. g. slow thinking, depressed, craving) withdrawal symptoms that they experienced during smoking abstinence [â€Å"My brain feels slow†; â€Å"(If I stop smoking) I feel restless. â€Å"]. The daily smokers also admitted to smoking when they were with their friends. They claimed this behaviour could be due to a number of reasons: a) sharing the cost of cigarettes with their friends, thus tend to smoke together, as explained by a teenager: Between 14 of us. we shared RMI per person, we can get 2 big boxes of cigarettes. † b) socialisation, as one teenager noted: â€Å"When we hang around (with friends), we smoke, sis† c) peer pressure, as a teenager claimed: â€Å"When we see our friends smoked, the desire to smoke is too intense. † d) sense of belonging, for example: â€Å"We all belong to a gang who shared our cigarettes together† However, three of the current smokers admitted to smoking only once a week. They stated that they particularly smoked during stressful period [â€Å"Especially when I am doing something. When it's hard then I'll smoke. ]. A few of the teenagers reported that the national anti-tobacco policy, as well as the school regulations had restricted their smoking behaviour. These teenagers admitted to commonly smoke in secluded areas outside of public view, such as in school toilets and stairways of shopping malls. The restrictive environment for public smoking was believed to influence tbeir cigarette consumption. Intention to quit All teenage smokers in this study had the intention to quit smoking. However, 7 of them (30%) did not plan to quit within the next 6 months (in the pre-contemplation stage).Twelve of them (52%) were in the planning stage, but none had set their quit dates. The smokers diselosed that a number of factors could influence tbeir desire to quit, which included: a) impaired athletic performance, as one of the teenagers claimed: â€Å"When (I) sprint†¦ I will hecome breathless† b) boy- or girlfriend aversion, for example: â€Å"Maybe (I get the desire to stop smoking) from my girlfriend. If she said â€Å"If you do not stop smoking, we should break-up†. Huh. (I feel like to quit smoking)† c) parental disapprova l, as noted by one boy: If mother scolded me for smoking, until she cried.. I would feel ? ike I want to quit, but it was temporary only. Afterwards.. I continue smoking† d) concern about health, shown by one of the teenagers' excerpt: â€Å"Smoking can make me feel breathless, sis (that's why I feel like to quit)† e) finaneial problems, as a teenager stated: â€Å"(I) think about my parents, sis. My mother and my father are not wealthy, (when I) think about that, it could (trigger my desire to quit)† Similar motivating factors were also reported by former smokers in this study prior to their successful smoking cessation.Nevertheless, these former smokers admitted that only personalised motivating factors could render them to quit successfully. Their personalised motivators were parental disapproval [â€Å"(Parental disapproval) effective, it's effective. I've stopped smoking. â€Å"], maintaining athletic performance [â€Å"(I) stopped smoking (for athletic p erformance). I got selected (to play football for my district) afterwards†]. and saving money /†/ stopped (smoking) to save money to buy a motorbike†]. Previous quit attempts Almost all (22/23) teenage smokers in this study had attempted smoking cessation prior to the interviews.The teenagers deseribed that quitting was very difficult because of withdrawal symptoms that they experienced during the quit attempts [â€Å"(If I stop smoking) I feel restless†]. Sixty percent of the teenage smokers had actually attempted to quit four times or more. All of the teenagers claimed that they never reeeived any professional helps when they made their attempts to quit in the past. Majority of them declared that they sought their friends' advice on how to quit and among the common methods that they had tried were drinking a lot of water, chewing gums and taking sweets, as one of the teenagers said:Tohid H. et al. 197 â€Å"Usuatty (I) asked my friends how to quit. They a dvised me to drink a tot of minerat water. † DISCUSSION In Malaysia, the mean age of smoking initiation among teenage smokers is between 12-14 years old, (The National Health and Morbidity Survey, 2009; Hammond et at. , 2008; Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Naing et at. , 2004) whieh is concurrent with the findings of this study. The common reasons for smoking initiation, such as curiosity, peer pressure, and parental smoking, reported by tbe participants in tbis study were similar to otber studies. (Naing et at. 2004; Kbairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004) This study also suggested that curiosity and parental modelling of smoking bebaviour could be teenagers' main reasons for experimenting smoking at younger age (less tban 13 years old). In contrary, peer pressure was found to be a major factor for teenagers wbo started smoking at seeondary sehools. However, the significance of tbese associations should be confirmed by future quantitative studies. Cigarette consumption reporte d by teenagers in this study was found to be lesser tban tbose of Malaysian adults, who averagely smoke between 11 to 14 cigarettes per day. World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, 2010) Tbis may be due to a number of factors as suggested by tbese teenagers, such as; (a) insufficient fund to purchase cigarettes, (b) ‘occasional' smoking, and (c) restrictive environment for smoking. Nevertheless, underreporting of smoking behaviour by these teenagers may also explain the lower estimated number of cigarettes smoked by them. Tbis is because teenagers have a tendency to report socially desirable behaviour and attitudes. (Hammond et at. , 2008; Klein, Havens, & Carlson, 2005)Insufficient fund to purebase cigarettes were described by some of the teenagers in this study, who claimed that they had to share their pocket money with their peers to buy cigarettes. Tbis is to ensure their continuous supply of cigarettes and to develop bonding among tbe peer s. (Vuckovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; Amos, Wiltsbire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006; Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Seguire, & Cbalmers, 2000) Tbis practice in turn increases tbe level of acceptance by peers and promote sense of belonging tbat is pertinent to teenagers' psychosocial development. Mermelstein, 2003; Vuckovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; McVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Nicbter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Seguire, c& Chalmers, 2000) However, some teenagers in this study, who had no financial constraint because they had personal income (e. g. from part-time job or significant allowance from parents), admitted to smoke only wben socialising and facing adversities (e. g. relation problems, inability to cope witb academic or part-time job). (Vuekovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; Balch et at. , 2004; Amos, Wiltshire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006; Hoi, 8L Hong, 2000;Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Seguire, & Chalmers, 2000) These teenagers can be defined as occasional smokers, whose smoking was apparently influenced by peer pressure and tbeir inability to control themselves over smoking or to cope with stress. (Vuckovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; Seguire, & Chalmers, 2000; Patten et al. , 2003; Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Mermelstein, 2003; McVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Balch et at. , 2004; Amos, Wiltshire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006; Hoi, & Hong, 2000) Teenagers' smoking in esponse to hardship shows that smoking is their way of coping since it calms them through nicotine effects on the central nervous system. (Niebter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Curry, Mermelstein, & Sporer, 2009) In addition, smoking creates a social space in which they can calm down and relieve tension. (Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugh, 1997; Curry, Mermelstein, & Sporer, 2009) Apart from financial constraint and occasional smoking, restrietive environment for public smoking was also found to be responsible for tbe partieipants' low cigarette consumption in this study.Therefore, these teenagers commonly smoked in secluded areas outside of public view, sucb as scbool toilets and stairways of shopping malls. These findings are consistent with a number of other studies that have found restrictive environment to be effective in reducing teenage smoking. (Wakefield ct at. , 2000; Lipperman-Kreda, & Grube, 2009; Crawford, Balcb, Mermelstein, & Tobacco Control Network Writing Group, 2002) Majority of teenage smokers bave intention to quit. (Khairani, Norazua, & Zaiton, 2004; Krishnan M, 2003; Mermelstein, 2003; Naing ct at. 2004; The National Health and Morbidity Survey, 2009) Tbis was also found by tbis study, in wbich almost all teenagers who smoked eonsidered to quit smoking sometime in the future. They admitted that a number of factors could trigger tbeir quit intention, wbich include; (a) ath letic performance, (b) boy- or girlfriend aversion, (c) parental disapproval, (d) concern about bealtb, and (e) money saving. Tbese faetors were similarly found to motivate teenagers to eease smoking by previous studies. (Vuckovic, Polen, & Hollis, 2003; Mermelstein, 2003; McVea, Miller, Creswell,McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Balcb ct al. , 2004) However, tbe teenagers reported tbat these extrinsie motivations were insufficient to keep them from total smoking abstinence. Nevertbeless, excerpts made by tbe former smokers in this study suggested that teenagers would only stop smoking when they are desperate to change due to compelling personal reasons. This finding is supported by McVea et al who found only 'emotionally compelling and inescapable quit reasons' were the most motivating reasons for teenagers to stop smoking. (McVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009)Even though majority of tbe teenagers in this study had intention to quit smoking, they did not have any quit ting plans, not even setting their quit dates. These findings are similar to those reported by Mermestein. (Mermelstein, 2003) It is possible tbat the teenagers were; (a) not ready to quit (Balch ct al. , 2004) (e. g. some of the teenagers in the eurrent study would only quit when they experience major life transition, such as after graduation and tnarriage), (b) ambivalent about quitting (MeVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Patten et al. 2003) (e. g. a number of teenagers repetitively answered, â€Å"I am not sure† when they were asked about tbeir plan to quit smoking), and (c) very confident that they could control themselves over smoking (Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugb, 1997; Amos, Wiltshire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006) (e. g. a teenager assertively admitted that he could stop stroking on his own without relying on helps from other). The later seems to be related to teenagers' belief tbat ‘quitting is just a matter of will power'. (Amos, Wilts bire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006; Balcb el at. 2004) After all, these teenagers' ehanees for successful quit attempts would be reduced if they did not have strategic quitting plans. Multiple unsuccessful quit attempts were also reported by many teenagers in tbis study, in which the findings were concurrent with other studies. (World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, 2010; The National Health and Morbidity Survey, 2009; Klein, Havens, & Carlson, 2005; Balch ct at. , 2004) This could be due to several reasons which can be summarised into three categories; (1) nicotine addiction,(Amos,Wiltsbire, Haw, & McNeill, 2006; Balch et al. , 2004; DiFranza et at. , 2007; DiFranza ct at. , 2007) (2) factors related to environment and situation which could promote teenage smoking (e. g. strong peer pressure, poor support from friends, smoking tnodelling by family members, stress etc, as higbligbted by tbe current study), (Balch et at. , 2004; Crawford, Balch, Mermelstein , & Tobacco Control Network Writing Group, 2002; McVea, Miller, Creswell, McEntarrfer, & Coleman, 2009; Nicbter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugb, 1997) and (3) personal factors (e. g. oor risk assessment, poor knowledge, poor self efficacy and control, mi,sconception about smoking and quitting, strong belief in unassisted quit attempts etc, as found by this study) (Niehter, Vuckovic, Quintero, & Ritenbaugb, 1997; Balcb ct at. , 2004). These tbree categories appear to matcb tbe model of the Social Cognitive Theory. Overall, this study provides beneficial information for future development of interventions of smoking cessation for teenagers. Nevertheless, appropriate eontext which is similar to tbose of this study should be taken into consideration before applying such information since this is a ease study.Interviewing only teenagers aged 16 years old also limits the findings of this study. This is because teenagers at different stages of adolescence (early, middle and late) may bav e different developmental characteristics which may influence their pereeption and attitude towards cigarette smoking. Teenagers from different stages of adolescence should then be included in future studies as differences in tbeir perception, attitude and bebaviour could be explored. CONCLUSION This study bad captured tbe complexity of tbe teenagers' smoking bebaviour that could be influenced by multiple factors.Tbese faetors included behavioural (e. g. nicotine addiction), personal and environmental factors matched the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT). These 198 What Determines Teenagers' Smoking Behaviour? multiple factors should be considered in developing interventions for smoking cessation suited for teenagers. The corresponding mapping of the findings against the SCT also supports the use of the SCT in helping us to comprehensively understand teenage smoking behaviour and to overcome the influential factors. FUNDING This work was funded by the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia UKM- GUP-TKS-07-12-097 and FF-127-2008). DECLARATION OF INTERESTS All authors declare that they have no conflicts of interests. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors would also like to express gratitude to the Ministry of Education Malaysia, the Ministry of Health Malaysia and the school counsellors who had helped us throughout the study. REFERENCES Amos A. Wiltshire S, Haw S. McNeill A. (2006). Ambivalence and uncertainty: experiences and altitudes towards addiction and smoking cessation in the mid-to-late teens. Heatiti Educ Re. s. 21. 181-191. doi:l0. 1093/her/cyh054 Baick GI.Tworek C, Barker DC. Sasso B. Mermelstein R. Glovino GA. et at. (2004). Opportunities for youth stnoking cessation: findings from a national focus group . study. Nicotine Tob Res. 6. 9-17. doi:l0. 1080/1462200310001650812 Baranowski T. Perry C. Parcel G. (2002). How individuals, environments and health behavior interact. In K. Glanz. B. K. Rimer and F. M. Lewis (Eds. ), hieuttti tiettavior and tieattti education 3rd ed. ( pp. 165-184). Jossey-Bass Inc Pub. Breslau N. Peterson EL. (1996). Smoking cessation in young adults: age at initiation of cigarette smoking and other suspected influences.Am J Public t-teatttt. 86, 214-220. Retrieved from http://ajph. aphapublications. Org/cgi/reprint/86/2/2l4. pdf Chen J. Millar WJ. (1998). Age of smoking initiation: implications for quitting, tiealttt Rep, 9. 39-46. (Eng); 39. Retrieved from http://www. statcan. gc. ca/studies-etudes/82- 003/archive/1998/3685-eng. pdf Crawford MA. Balch GI. Mermelstein R, Tobacco Control Network Writing Group. (2002). Responses to tobacco control policies among youth. Tob Control. 11. 14-19. Retrieved from http://www. bvsde. paho. org/bvsacd/cd26/tc/vl In 1/14. df Curry SJ. Mermelstein RJ, Sporer AK. (2009). Therapy for specific problems: youth tobacco cessation. Annu Rev Psyctwt. 60. 229-255. doi:10. 1146/annurev. psych. 60. l 10707. 163659 DiFranza JR. Savageau JA. Fletcher K, O'Loughlin J. Pbert L. Ockene JK. et at. (2007). Sy mptoms of tobacco dependence after brief intermittent use: the Development and Assessment of Nicotine Dependence in Youth-2 study. Arcii Pediatr Adotesc Med. 161, 704-710. doi:IO. IOOI/archpedi. 161. 7. 704 DiFranza JR. Savageau JA. Fletcher K. Ockene JK. Rigotti NA. McNeill AD. t al. (2002). Measuring the loss of autonomy over nicotine use in adolescents: the DANDY (Development and Assessment of Nicotine Dependence in Youths) study. Arcti Pediatr Adote. sc tvied, 156. 397-403. Retrieved from http://archpedi. amaassn. org/cgi/content/full/l56/4/397 DiFranza JR. Savageau JA. Fletcher K. Pbert L, O'Loughlin J, McNeill AD. et al. (2007). Susceptibility to nicotine dependence: the Development and Assessment of Nicotine Dependence in Youth 2 study. Pediatrics, 120, e974-e983. doi:IO. I542/peds. 2007- 0027 Dijk F. de Nooijer J.Heinrich E. de Vries H. (2007). Adolescents† view on smoking, quitting and health education. Heattti Educ. 107. 114-125. doi:IO. 1108/09654280710731539 Epps R P. Manley MW. Glynn TJ. (1995). Tobacco use among adolescents. Strategies for prevention. Pediatr Clin North Am, 42, 389-402. E. scobedo LG. Marcus SE. Holtzman D, Giovino GA. (1993). Sports participation, age at smoking initiation, and the risk of smoking among US high school students. J Am Med Assoc, 269, 1391-1395. Retrieved from http://jama. ama-assn. org/cgi/reprint/ 269/11/1391 Flick U. Ed. ). (2009). An tntroduction to Quatitative Researcti. Sage Publications Ltd. Hammond D, Kin F. Prohmmo A, Kungskulniti N, Lian TY, Sharma SK. et at. (2008). Patterns of smoking among adolescents in Malaysia and Thailand: findings from the International Tobaeco Control Southeast Asia survey. Asia-Pacific J Public Healtti, 20. 193-203. doi:IO. 1177/1010539508317572 Hoi T. Hong L. (2000). Smoking among students in a rural secondary school. J Univ Mataya Med Cent. 5, 85-88. Retrieved from tutp:lltnyais. fst(ttn. um. edu. myl603HI t/Teti_Kot

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Similarly, Henry Slesar’s short story ‘Examination Day’ relies heavily on its powerful social comment to effectively engage readers. While both texts make significant social comments, various other sci-fi conventions are also used to keep responders entertained. The dominant social comment that entertains the audience in an effective way explored by James Cameron is that technology will ironically be our demise. Cameron cleverly juxtaposes the opening scene of the hustle and bustle of lively Los Angeles to the close up traffic in 2029. However, in this shot the cars are destroyed and an empty playground further indicates the dystopian world of our society. The diegetic laughter of the girl on the swing and the non-diegetic music in the background creates suspense. The extreme white fade out to a dramatic close up of the empty swing swinging back and forth which then brings us to the close up camera shot of a human skull being crushed by the terminator clearly reveals that technology will lead to our demise. With the war of the robots being shown in the opening scene, audiences can immediately conclude that the genre of thriller is brought to the film as suspense is immediately introduced in the opening scene. This war indicates from the outset that technology will be our demise. While the irony of machines destroying humanity is immediately established as a significant social comment in this sci-fi text, Cameron begins to explore the characteristics of humanity in his second social comment. Throughout the film, Cameron relies on the humorous juxtaposition between the T100 and John Connor to highlight the emotional and idiocentric characteristic that are inherently human. It is through this and several other film techniques that Cameron’s second social comment is explored; that being human, is not something that can be taught. The moral and ethical justifications that are intrinsic to being human is clearly explored in the scene where John attempts to explain why, You can’t just go around killing people. John’s dialogue is contrasted with the T100s question; why not? close up camera shots of their contrasting facial expressions highlights this significant idea, that de spite our natural inclination destroy ourselves, reason and morality is only inherent to us Johns invalid explanation, because you just can’t †¦ this stuff is important, highlights the barrier between machine and human. Through this social comment audiences can easily link the text to the science fictional genre. This barrier is further explored when John humorously attempts to humanise the Terminator. Through various satirical scenes Cameron reveals humanitys saving grace is intact their emotions which are ironically aligned to weakness. When the T100 asks, why do you cry? The T100’s crying motif mixed with several film techniques symbolises the disparity between machines and humanity. In an age where technology is seen to advance the human mind, the T100s inability to understand why people cry highlights the superiority of humans, we just cry. Again further explaining the social comment we can still relate the film to the sci-fi genre. The third idea explored by Cameron is the ironic self- destructive behaviour of humanity. Using real life examples Cameron attempts to create a logical link between the creation of the destructive, abominable Terminators and the weapons that are already leadi ng us into destruction it is in your nature to destroy yourselves. While the terminator metaphorically highlights the paradox of our constant creation of destruction, it is the female protagonist Sarah Connor, who provides a fresh face and new insight into sci-fi revealing the contrast between the destructive creation of men and the beautiful, creation that only women are privileged to endure, â€Å"Fucking men like you built the hydrogen bomb. Men like you thought it up You dont know what its like to†¦ create a life All you know how to create is death . Her use of repetition and expletives highlights Cameron’s feministic approach to this social comment, symbolising men’s obsession with creating destruction. This not only makes this sci-fi film unique and original in its exploration of this common theme, it also allows audiences to question why humans are so obsessed with playing God. Similarly to Terminator II the short story Examination Day also explores Sci-fi convections in similar ways. Like ‘Terminator II’, ‘Examination Day’ is driven by its powerful and dramatic social comment. While subtly revealed to be set in the future, unlike ‘Terminator II’ this is not the dominant focus in the text. While the commentary is different to that of Terminator II, both texts entertain audiences primarily by focusing them to question their own lives like all sci-fi text, thus posing the ‘what if’ question. The short story ‘Examination Day’ hyperbolically explores a world where governments obtain ultimate control. This is brought to the readers in the opening paragraphs when Dickies parents are discussing a â€Å"Government intelligence test they give children at the age of twelve†. It is â€Å"the moisture in his mother’s eyes† when readers are aware that the story they have been told has contrasted what really is happening. Even though the links to sci-fi aren’t as clear as the ones in Terminator II we still see the connection through the thriller genre. As both Mr and Mrs Jordan try to avoid the conversation about the test suspense begins to develop as we understand that the test will possibly resemble a big part in the Jordan family’s life. As Mr Jordan explains the details of the test further we learn that the government will provide Dickie with truth serum. In this event readers are immediately informed that the government play a big role in everything which is making civilization less utopian and more dystopian. Is through little key things during the story we can see a resemblance to a futuristic world such as ‘Terminator II’, â€Å"Your classification number is 600-115†. Unlike Terminator II this short story utilises various literary techniques to explore this powerful social comment, relying on descriptive language and body gestures to capture the mystery and anxiety relating to this exam. Furthermore the repetitive image of the moistness of his mother’s eyes heightens suspense, hinting towards the significance of this Government intelligence test. Like Terminator II’ this text uses various sci-fi conventions such as the embedded thriller genre to effectively engaging audiences, k eeping them entertained. As the denouement reveals the unpredictable twist, we regret to inform you†¦ his intelligence quotient is above government regulation, the disturbing social comment become clearer †¦whether you wish his body interred by the government, or would you prefer a private burial place? Slesars clever use of inversion as Dickie fails the intelligence test because he is too smart, seems to be warning readers about the dangers of power and control, and the need for people to be more engaged and aware of governments and other organisations that may abuse their power. Like most sci-fi texts, Examination Day challenges our own world, and contemplates what may happen if we do not take more responsibility and interest in the powerful bodies that govern the people. Again, it is this dramatic yet relatable social comment that most effectively engages readers by shocking them much like Terminator II. While Terminator II looks at humanitys ironic destructive nature and dangerous over reliance on technology, Examination Day focuses on humanitys often gullible and negligent over reliance on powerful forces such as the government. While both texts are strongly driven by the relevant and powerful social comments, both texts follow the conventions of sci-fi through their mutual futuristic settings, advanced technology as well as the utilisation of other genres within; specifically the thriller genre. Along with powerful film and literary techniques, both texts entertain audiences.

Analyze How Embraer Has Structured Itself Economics Essay

Analyze How Embraer Has Structured Itself Economics Essay This paper will focus on the commercial aircraft industry. The report will analyze how Embraer has structured itself and gained competitive advantage in lower end segment of the aircraft industry and then the analysis of cost of capital of Embraer will be projected. The commercial aircraft industry has faced a tough times in recent past which resulted in failures, mergers and joint ventures. The aircraft industry has faced a lot of competition from two of the giants Boeing and Airbus which have dominated the whole aircraft market and has maximum market share. These two giants have huge pool of investment, better infrastructure and government support and because of that they are dominating the aircraft market. All these companies see the current business environment possessing the challenges of a weak global economy and demand due to the economic turmoil, high and unstable fuel costs, and lack of foreign investments. Brazil PEST Framework: Political: Federal Republic framework which is similar to that of United States of America. The federal republic has three independent branches independent branches: executive legislative and judicial. The President heads the executive branch. The increasing divergence between US and Brazilian foreign policy creates high geopolitical risk. This will lead to increasing confrontations between the US and Brazil and the continued decline of foreign direct investment. The main source of violence in Brazil is criminal rather than political. Personal security is poor as there is an extremely high rate of criminal activity in major cities. Police fails to assure safety for citizens as well for business. Brazilian legal system is not very effective and has several faults in them. Honest government is also a big problem in Brazil for ex. the impeachment of a former Brazilian president Mello in 1992 who have been involved in an extortion scheme, and the current corruption scandal of the ruling party of Lula. Inefficient government policies towards economic development of a country for ex. continuous budget deficit, negative net income, high external debt, etc. Poor and inefficient public health and safety conditions infant mortality and mal-nutrition are the leading reasons. Inefficient education system both lack of quality and quantity are the main issues and government is not paying much attention towards this issue. Government regulations favour the minority shareholders. Government policies towards globalisation and openness to market had favoured exports. Economic: Brazil is considered to be as the worlds tenth largest economy and one of the largest economies of South .Its GDP (PPP) per capita is $10,200, putting Brazil in the 105th position in the world. The inflation rate in Brazil is 4.2% which has decreased from 5.9% in 2008. Major export products include aircraft, electrical equipment, automobiles, ethanol, textiles, footwear, iron ore, steel, coffee, orange juice, soybeans and corned beef. The country has been expanding its presence in international financial and commodities markets, and is one of a group of four emerging economies called the BRIC countries. Economic environment still considered volatile as compared to more stable economies. Complex tax policies and regulations. Multiple taxes affecting business plans and increasing risks of contingencies. Considerable bureaucratic rules and regulations for certain businesses and industries. High demand for investments in the distribution channels and infrastructure. Difficulties in reorganizing companies quickly, including high costs for employee terminations. Lack of local financing coupled with high real interest rates. Economic growth risks are high. Private consumption will be constrained by high unemployment and continued erosion of real earnings. The risk of a significant decline in foreign exchange reserves is high because of the economic turmoil. Investment risk in Brazil is much higher than generally perceived. High public debt exposed to domestic interest-rate trends and maturity that is still too short Lack of investment in infrastructure building. Social: The culture of Brazil is very much similar to that of Portuguese culture. The official language of Brazil is Portuguese which is spoken by almost all of the population. Important cultural customs, including a different perception of the due diligence process. Semi-skilled and unskilled labor in certain developing areas. Unequal distribution of wealth a significant portion of the population not participating in the consumer market. Socio-political obstacles to necessary structural reforms (education, social security, job market, taxes, regulations). Technological: In Latin America, Brazil is a leading nation in the field of science and technology. Sectors like bio fuels, agricultural research, remote sensing and aircrafts manufacturing Brazil operate as a global leader. Government put more emphasis on the development of research labs and innovation and RD in these particular sectors to foster growth and development. Overall Risk Assessment of Brazil: Positive Brazil has abundant natural resources. Fiscal and monetary policy has been prudent and realistic. Domestic market potential and low labour costs have continued to attract foreign investors. The current level of growth foster Brazilian companies to be competitive. Strong international financial support. Policy of maintaining fundamental macroeconomic equilibrium. Size and potential of the domestic market. Broad industrial base and a diversified economy. Government policies favoured globalisation. Negative External financing needs are too great in comparison to currency earnings due to the debt amortisation burden. Socio-political obstacles to necessary structural reforms (education, social security, job market, taxes, regulations) Lack of investment in energy, rail, road, port, and airport infrastructure Exposure to fluctuations in world prices for certain staple commodities. Economic environment still considered volatile as compared to more stable economies. Complex tax policies and regulations. Improper financing regulations. Commercial Aircraft Industry Analysis: Embraer is now the worlds third largest aircraft manufacturer they had gained competitive advantage by creating cost- efficient and innovative aircrafts in the lower end segment. Competitive rivalry among existing players: The competitiveness in the aircraft industry is very high but the competition is not very fierce because most of the market is shared between Boeing and Airbus and rest is with Embraer and Bombardier. The aircraft industry is truly a global industry so each of the manufacturers has to think globally. Barrier to exit is very high because of huge investment and high specialised equipments. Boeing and Airbus had gain market share from each other using prices, product design, advertising, and direct selling efforts. Due to the intensity of the rivalry among Boeing and Airbus, the profits are shared. The industry is technically very sound i.e. there is not much differentiation between the players and their products hence, there is much price competition. Threat of new Entrants: Enter into aircraft manufacturing market is very tough because it requires huge capital investment and knowledge of technical know-how. Cost advantages of big players like Boeing and Airbus because they have enormous experience and knowledge about the industry. These two giants have dominated the entire aircraft industry and they also have strong brand loyalty of their products because they are the best in the business. They have a proper network of loyal supplier and distributor for their products and long term after sales service contracts. Threat of substitutes: No immediate substitutes are present for aircraft manufacturers. The players and their products in the industry are substitutes of one another. Bargaining power of Customers: The bargaining power of customers is relatively low in aircraft industries because most of the buyers in the aircraft industries are government of different countries and some private airlines. Aircrafts are very expensive commodities and show high in cost when switching aircrafts because of that the bargaining power is low in aircraft industry. But because of intense competition between Boeing and Airbus the bargaining power of buyers is moderately higher between these two companies otherwise its relatively low in terms of industry. Bargaining power of Supplier: The aircraft industries is dominated by two big giants Boeing and Airbus and they are such big companies that they have more bargaining power than their suppliers so because of this reason the bargaining power will be low in the aircraft industry. The aircraft industry needs huge investments and high class technology the forward integration is very low or impossible for the suppliers. According to this analysis the main components which are needed to compete in aircraft industry are global strategy, cost effectiveness, innovative and high class technology and huge capital. Core Competencies of Embraer which helps them to compete in Aircraft Industry: Country Factor: The Brazilian government has had a strong affect on Embraer. As mentioned, the company was founded by the government in 1969. Before its privatization in 1994, Embraer had established several partnerships abroad and was very focused on exporting its aircraft to new markets. The government does have strategic power and has ability to refuse certain decisions. Global Strategy: Embraer has proven itself a truly global company in many ways. Embraer has more than 90% of its sales outside Brazil. It has a worldwide operation network. It has appeased global investors because it deals mostly in US dollars. Embraer focuses on business growth, solid corporate culture, and strategic partnership to operate globally and market analysis before entering a new market. Economies of scale: Embraer is proved to be a very efficient company in the aircraft industries because Embraer recognises that China has skilled cheap labour and technology intensive manufacturing centre so they have opened their research hubs and manufacturing units in China. Embraer has been able to design common platforms for its aircrafts with superior performance capabilities which helped them to compete in the aircraft industry and now they have become the worlds third manufacturers and they have overtook Bombardiers in several aspects. Innovation: Embraer has focused its RD on the development, systems engineering and integration of the more than 28,000 parts and components that make up an aircraft. Embraers strategy has been to focus its RD funds on key technologies that it can effectively produce in house. It has outsourced the production of components that other companies can manufacture more efficiently. Embraer trains its engineers, not only in aeronautics, but also in market research and finance, allowing a broader understanding of the industry. Determined Approach: Embraer has very determined company they are very much determined of what they are doing and thats why they have succeeded to gain market share from their competitors like Boeing and Airbus. Embraers ability to continually and successfully forecast future global demand and its ability to meet that demand in unique and innovative ways will be the keys to its future success. Cost of Capital Analysis of Embraer: Cost of capital is the minimum required rate of earning or the cut off rate for capital expenditure. Soloman Ezra. To calculate cost of capital we have to calculate cost of equity and cost of debt. Cost of Equity: The minimum rate of return that a firm offers to its shareholders is called cost of equity. Formula: Cost of equity = Risk free Rate + Beta (Mature Market Premium) + Country Risk Premium First to calculate Beta for Embraer: Average Beta = 1.19 Market D/E Ratio = 22.94% Tax Rate = 20.05% Unlevered Beta = 1.00 Cash/ Firm Value = 7.90% Unlevered Beta corrected for cash = 1.09 To calculate Levered Beta the formula is: Levered Beta = Unlevered Beta (1 + (1- tax rate) (D/E ratio) = 1 (1+ (1-.2005) (.2294)) = 1.18. Risk free Rate = Market Interest Rate Default Spread (Brazil) = 8.75 2.60 = 6.15% Equity Risk Premium Brazil = 4.79% * 25.83% / 15.27 = 8.10% Country Risk Premium Brazil = 8.10% 4.79% = 3.31% Cost of equity = Risk free Rate + Beta (Mature Market Premium) + Country Risk Premium = 6.15 + 1.18(8.10) + 3.31 = 19.01% Cost of Debt: (Rf + credit risk rate)(1-T), where T is the corporate tax rate and Rf is the risk free rate. Cost of debt Emerging Market company After Tax= Riskless Rate + Country Default Spread + Company Default Spread (1-T) = (6.15 + 2.25 +2.60) (1- .2005) = 8.79% Sovereign Bonds of Brazil = 2.25 Corporate Bonds of Brazil = 2.60 Country Rating of Brazil is Baa3. WACC Calculation: The WACC equation  is the cost of each capital component  multiplied by its proportional weight and then summing: WACC = E/V * Re + D/V * Rd * (1- T) Where: Re = cost of equity Rd = cost of debt E = market value of the firms equity D =  market value of the firms debt V = E + D E/V = percentage of financing that is equity D/V = percentage of financing that is debt T =  corporate tax rate = 20.05% Market Value of Embraers Equity = 5970531 Brazilian Real for year 2008. Market Value of Embraers Debt = 6990127 Brazilian Real for year 2008. V= 12960658 Brazilian Real WACC = 5970531/12960658 * 19.01 + 6990127/12960658 * 8.79 * (1- .2005) = 10.71%

Analysis of War Photography

Analysis of War Photography War photography has existed since the nineteenth century, when Roger Fenton set out to photograph the Crimean war in 1855. From the beginning of war photography questions have always been raised about their representation of the truth. Compared to modern day cameras the exposure time required to take a photograph ensured that action shots were not possible. The images could only be of dead on the battlefield or posed for. This was apparent throughout Alexander Gardeners photos of the American Civil. The photographer, who created the book Photographic Sketch Book of the Civil War, was famed for staging various shots. The image which was captioned, The home of a rebel sharpshooter was proved to have been staged. Civil war experts reviewed the image revealing that Gardner had dragged the body into the shot and twisted his head towards the camera. The gun also within the image was placed strategically by Gardner. During World War two the staging of photographs continued. The cameras used during this war were a significant improvement and allowed for action shots to be taken but still questions were being asked about the authenticity of some of the photographs. Yevgeny Khaldeis famous photograph of a Soviet soldier placing the Soviet Unions flag atop of the Reichstag building in Berlin was in fact staged. The photo was taken three days after the Soviets had firstly placed a flag at the top. The image was taken at such an angle to prevent showing other Soviet soldiers who were looting and the soldiers were handpicked by Khaldei. Another of a photo which is circled by rumours of being staged is the most reproduced photo in the world. Jim Rosenthals photo of the flag rising at Iwo Jima was claimed to be, too perfect. The image taken was not the first picture of a flag being raised. Marine Photographer took the first picture of a flag being raised earlier in the day while the marine were under heavy fire. Rosenthals photo was taken later in the day and pictured a much larger flag. There has always been a partiality of representation in major wars simply because usually only one side is reported on by journalists representing news institutes from the same country as the army they report on. This begs the question of what is the purpose of war photography. Is it to inform the public or to provide morale for troops and the home public? The purpose of war photography has shifted throughout the years. During earlier wars photos were purely used to inform the public. Images were sent back to keep the public updated on what their troops were doing. In contrast, recent war photography, due to censorship and embedding, has become nothing more than propaganda. Staged and altered shots are created in order to show the military in a positive light, therefore limiting the offence they create to the viewing public. Other factors need to be taken into account, in order to determine whether war reporting is purely for morale of the country or to inform the public, such as the safety of the nation. For instance the World wars threatened national survival, so therefore reports and photographs released and published were intended to create a sense of morale and keep the war effort going. This was mainly as everyone would have been affected by the war., while wars being fought in foreign countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan lead to a sense of anonymity as it is out of direct view of the public. Reports and images published from these photojournalists need to carry a certain amount of truth to inform the public back in their home countries. The Vietnam War is known as the war that was lost on TV. The media was allowed to publish all kinds of images. During Vietnam the press was given remarkable freedom to report the war without any government control. Vietnam was the most heavily covered war in which reporters were not subject to extensive censorship. Pictures of decapitated bodies and civilians injuries were being broadcast back in America causing the public to think twice about the war that was taking place. President at the time Richard Nixon stressed this issue by saying, In each nights TV news and each mornings papers the war was reported battle by battle, but little or no sense of the underlying purpose of the fighting was conveyed. Eventually this contributed to the impression that we were fighting in military quicksand, rather than toward an important and worthwhile objective. The severity of the images was one of many factors that contributed to the American government losing the will to fight on in the war. Many journalists generally reported what they saw both positive and negative, according to James Reston, journalists didnt think it was their mission to serve the war effort. The freedom they were given was interpreted in several different ways, with the majority reporting the war in a completely subjective way. Reston goes onto say, for better or worse it was the journalists views that prevailed with the public, whose disenchantment forced an end to American involvement. This was especially prominent in independent photographers, as they would not have an editorial agenda to adhere to. Inevitably during military briefings they would lose the idea of the big picture. Although it can be argued that military briefings are often thinly disguised as propaganda anyway. The general stance on reporting the war started to change as the war progressed. The longer the conflict continued the more graphic the images and reports were. The offensive and disturbing reports from Vietnam as well as conscription and the fatality rate led to many people staging an anti war protest and voicing their concerns about the war. The largest of which was at Washington DC when a reported two hundred and fifty thousand people gathered in joint protest. Although it is claimed to be one of the contributing factors Professor Daniel Hallin of the University of California at San Diego conducted a study into the Vietnam coverage. He concluded that the war coverage was almost completely sanitised on television, due to the need not to cause any offence to any of the soldiers families. As a response to what happened in Vietnam, the censorship put upon the press by the British government during the Falklands war was at an extreme. Every inch of columns and pictures had to be check thoroughly by army officials before it was then passed onto the Ministry of Defence, who then proceeded to check it again before it could be published. The censorship in the Falklands was so extreme that it led to the word censored actually being censored. Due to the negative press that was created throughout Vietnam, the British government made a deliberate attempt to stop people knowing what was going on. The government were keen to project a positive picture back the British public and it did this by starving the press of any influential information. This was evident on the 14th of May 1982 when an Exocet missile hit HMS Sheffield. The military ensured that the news was delayed in reaching the reporters present. All reporters were also kept at arms length any live footage sent back to Britain was shot from a few hundred metres away. Very few clear picture of HMS Sheffield were shown back in Britain. Before the invasion of Iraq it was decided that journalists would be embedding among soldiers The concept of embedding reporters was an initiative proposed by the US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld. The concept was introduced after initial pressure from the countrys news media. The press were disappointed with the level of access that they were granted in previous conflict zones. The concept of Embedding reporters was not a new on but it was never carried out on this kind of scale before. After deciding to embed reporters among soldiers Rumsfeld explained the reasoning behind his decision, We need to tell the factual story-good and bad-before others seed the media with disinformation and distortion, as they most certainly will continue to do. Our people in the field need to tell our story-only commanders can ensure the media get to the story alongside the troops. The main concept of embedding reporters is that they would identify with the troops around them. Each journalist would be assigned to a company of soldiers and would experience the war first hand in the frontline. Each reporter would be issued with military equipment; they would also eat and sleep alongside their respective soldiers. By assigning a journalist to a troop, it meant that the reporter could be placed anywhere. This meant that the position of the embed could be decided by the military. Around six hundred national and local journalists were embedded with troops as they entered Iraq. The system of embedding reporters tended to have a psychological effect upon reporters causing them to lose the ability to remain objective. The system also led to reporters having tunnel vision especially when reporting on tactical operation. Journalists would only see one or two units in action, and therefore only reporting upon what they were doing. Gordon Dillow an embedded reported said, I fell in love with my marines I wasnt reporting; the point was I was reporting the Marine grunt truth which had also become my truth. The following images and articles will be analysed using Roland Barthes theory of semiotics. Building upon Ferdinand de Saussures linguistic theories Barthes constructed his own theory of semiotics. According to his paper Myth today (1957) the theory consists of a signifier, the signified and the sign. The signifier is the term used to describe the image, which is being examined, and the signified is the term used to describe any ideas which are raised by the signifier, and the sign is the correlation of the signifier and the signified. Barthes also noted that anything signified by the signifier is culturally specific, Signifieds have a very close communication with culture, knowledge, history, and it is through them so to speak, that the environmental world invades the system. Barthes (1967) This would suggest that whatever is being signified may change over time and that different people would interpret signifieds differently. For example within an Indian culture cows are perceived as a sacred holy animal, while in western culture the cow is simply a provider of food. Due to the fact that each signified is culturally specific Barthes theory also takes into account the uses of denotation and connotation. Denotation is a literal description of the image or object being examined while connotation is the ideas associated with the image or object. When analysing press photographs it is important to also include the caption, as Barthes claims that the image and the caption are two different structures. Barthes uses the terms anchorage and relay when referring press photograph captions. Anchorage refers to when the text within the caption, directs the reader through the signifieds of the image causing him to avoid some and receive others. Barthes (1977). Relay describes the addition of something in the caption, which is not actually present in the image. Barthes also included in his theory of semiotics the element of myth. Myth is described as, a second-order semiological system. Barthes argues that signification is divided into two different sections connotations and denotation and myth is signification in the connotative level. Myth sees the signifiers in its raw form. Similar to signifieds myth is divided into two categories, the language object which is the linguistic system and myth itself which is described as metalanguage because it is a second language which talks about the first one. Barthes described the use of myth as, When he reflects on a metalanguage, the semiologist no longer needs to ask himself questions about the composition of the language object, he no longer has to take into account the details of the linguistic schema; he will only need to know its total term or global sign (Barthes 1967) When using Barthes theory two competing myths can be attained about war. One myth is based upon General William Tecumseh Shermans quote that reads, It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for bloodWar is hell. The competing myth to this is that war can be fought in a morally acceptable way. Making a war morally manageable is minimising the risk to casualties and soldiers and hence political and electoral risks to their masters. By using various photographs and articles from differing conflicts such as Vietnam, the Falklands, and Afghanistan, this essay will use Barthes theory of semiotics to test the theory that images from non embedded reporters will support the myth that war is hell and embedded photographers will show that war can be fought in a morally acceptable way.