...M. Washington OMM 612: Managing in Social Change Experiencing Work as a Meaningful Activity Dr. L. Flegle December 2, 2012 Experiencing Work as a Meaningful Activity Why do people work? A person may work for various reasons. For some work is fun and full of meaning. For others there may be instances where work is viewed as a burden or an end to a means. When there is a lack of satisfaction, work will not be fun, fulfilling or meaningful. As stated by Harper and Leicht (2011), work is never experienced as a neutral activity. However, according to Budd ((2011), work can be viewed as intrinsically rewarding and not just as a source of income. When individuals have the tools to seek and achieve work as a personal fulfillment, we can better understand how people view and experience work as a rich and meaningful activity. There are no people in my immediate circle of friends and co-workers who view work as a meaningful activity. The most common reason people work is to support a lifestyle. A person works in order to provide for themselves as well as their family with the basic essentials (shelter, clothing, and food). According to Harper and Leicht (2011), a question that often gets asked is whether or not the American economy can make jobs available that allow employees to afford a middle-class lifestyle and the consumer components of the American dream. The recent recession that the American economy has faced adds to the doubt. More people are being laid off...
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...HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT MATTHEW ROBISON 10-28-2010 NOTES FOR INFORMATION ON CHAPTER TWELVE C. Adolescence - - Psychosocial Development (Chapter 12) What are some components of the adolescent’ search for identity? Erickson believes that cognitive development enables them to construct a theory of the self because as adolescents they have a “kind of maturational malice” that is vital to a process that builds on achievements of early stages. What are examples of immature thoughts? Here are several. Trust, autonomy, initiative and industry lay the groundwork for coping with challenges of adulthood; however an identity crisis is seldom fully resolved in all of these factors in the short time of adolescence, as issues concerning identity come up again and again throughout adult life. What is the psychosocial conflict of identity vs Identity confusion and the resulting virtue of fidelity? It is explained as becoming a unique individual adult with coherent sense of self and valued role in society. Identity crisis is based on Eriksson’s life experience. His struggle and confusion caused him to find any identity the leading him to the immigrant status as his identity where he saw and experienced many things that he struggled with and worse yet decided to change and have news thoughts and actions that he had to consciously considered successful in his identity to himself. An adolescent who resolves the identity crisis satisfactorily develop the virtue of fidelity...
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...of the perspectives of others. Depending on what you decide can lead you on a road to success or failure, but it is the most crucial and important. Starting from your hygiene, eating habits, school, work, keeping your body in shape to just simple hobbies may have a big impact on your life's longevity and social aspect. The first step in building good personal responsibility, is by first realizing the flaws and mistakes that you have made, because although it is not an addiction we tend to create bad habits. From our early school years up until your set in your career we must have a schedule to keep us on track and at the same time develop self confidence and motivation to better our selves. Creating a physical work out routine will not only maintain your physical shape, but also provides more energy to the body acquiring more self motivation to keep active. Also while exercising your relieving stress from the body and the brain, establishing more space for knowledge and social view point, therefore, make it is easier to become more educated.When we think about how personal responsibility can be related to education we acknowledge that in order to succeed as a student one must form schedules to study and listen to the advice given to us by our teachers, hard work pays off. As a student eager to succeed in high school as well as college must know that asking for help when in doubt is also allowed. Building a foundation to communicate and interact with other people. Accepting...
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...and nibble on nuts apply potions and lotions, don helmets and hats: All at the behest of my skin. Drinking too much, sleeping too little, lying too long in the sun and I am compelled to feel guilty. Connor says ‘the skin is not a part of the body’ (Connor 2002, 4) and indeed, my skin is like a domineering despot. It petulantly exposes my neglect by painting dark circles under my eyes, smudging the glow and scattering blemishes. It is the reflection of my soul, separate but inseparable from myself - my ‘body’s twin’ (Connor 2002, 5). It is this ‘twin’ (Connor 2002, 5) or my ‘immaterial, ideal, ecstatic’ (Connor 2002. 5) imagining of my skin that constitutes what Cooley described as a ‘looking glass self’. (described by Coser 1997) This concept states that ‘an individual’s self-conception result(s) from assimilating the judgments of their significant others’ (discussed by Mikala, 2012). What we see in this mirror is not our carefully considered actions and the complex thought process that leads us to take them; We only see this ‘shadow’ (Connor 2002, 5) which becomes more than simply the living tissue. It is branded with our outward identity. And so, how we perceive others to view us in turn influences how we see ourselves. This attitude is present without an actual witness though. The...
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...vector of Chickering and Reisser’s theory “Establishing identity.” While one could argue the development of student identities takes place during the creation of a profile, the development of the students’ true identity is something that a profile is likely dependent upon. A student’s Facebook profile will not stay the same throughout the duration of a student’s career, but instead grows and changes with the student as they move along a path of self-discovery. It is through the assimilation of friends, relationships, activities, experiences, education and other factors that a student truly defines a sense of self that can be reflected both corporally and digitally. It is in this vector, among others, that the cyclical pattern of Chickering and Reisser’s developmental process stumbles. As most of the vectors concern processes that are ongoing throughout a student’s collegiate or university career and beyond, the development of identity is itself an ongoing, likely never-ending process students will not cease until some point of complete self-actualization....
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...Individualism is the idea that the sense of self is greater than the community. It urges its supporters to explore the depths of their psyche, even if it challenges accepted doctrine. To moral criticism, individualism is its greatest enemy. At its core, moral criticism finds its strength through the community over all ideology. This desire for communal uplift allows the people to serve a common purpose when advancing the community. But because of this, the voices of the individual are lost to the wind. During the Age of Romanticism, the people had had enough of being silenced; they sought to wholeheartedly explore their inner self. Through their writings, Washington Irving and Herman Melville were two men fighting for the people’s individuality; much to the dismay of moral critics. Washington Irving, famous writer and individualist, sought to bring individualism to the forefront of society’s progression. He believed the exploration of one’s self was more important than seeking communal prosperity. Irving wanted the people to see the world through lenses untainted by God, religion and the established doctrines. For him, the world’s morality was meant to be created by the individual. This way of thinking was quite scary to the moral critics of this era. The sense of community was being lost in novels centered on individuals. These novels allowed the people to play God, and by doing so, they were able to concoct their own morality. Irving’s writings continued to propagate the...
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...The third theory have been used is The Self and Symbolic Consumption. Hellerich et al.(1998) states that endeavoring to create the self in contemporary society is inseparable from consumption, which is central to the meaningful practice of our everyday life (Wattanasuwan 2005). However, The Self and Symbolic Consumption theory is focus on the concept that we employ consumption not only to create and sustain the self but also to locate us in society (Elliott 1994 et al, cited in Wattanasuwan 2005). There have two main purposes to consumption of products, activities or beliefs, the first one is to satisfy ours needs, whereas the second one is to carry out out “self-creation project” in a saturated world (Wattanasuwan 2005). “Self-creation project” means that we desire for a sense of meaningfulness in our pursuit of “being” in order to feel “alive” in this world (Gergen 1991,cited in Wattanasuwan 2005). We can symbolically acquire it from our everyday consumption and to bridge the intermediate state between our selves and others in society. Therefore, in relation to our advertisement, a woman desires to have a beautiful and formal coloured hair within a limited time for a ball. Kao Kiese not only satisfy anyone whose demand to have a colour hair within a limited time, but also provide symbolism that a beauty image for female in a special occasion. Brown 1995 et al argue that so as to seduce consumers in a marketing campaign, the more those signs and images are detached from their...
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...literature can be ethically revealing is worth defending. At some level a great work of literature represents a form of human existence, to which we may respond as human beings. That there is a moral dimension to human existence I assume. Hence, it seems clear that literature may represent that dimension. Robert Bolt’s 1960 play can serve as an instance of how literature can stimulate ethical reflection. And, at the same time, it is not the kind of text where ethical themes are only marginally present; to the contrary, they are quite central and accessible. In this paper, my goal is to illustrate the potential of literature to stimulate ethical reflection by analyzing Bolt’s play. I will focus for the most part on three ethical themes: self and society, moral heroism,...
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...social world and how they build relationships/interact with others. Developmental psychologists believe that a sense of self develops at around 18 months and is the starting point when children begin to understand others, they also comment that in order for children to understand others first they must have an understanding of their self. Lewis and Brook-Gunn 1979 conducted a study on a group of mothers and their babies, aged 9-24 months. The aim of the experiment was to see what age a baby recognised itself in the mirror. The babies were placed in front of a mirror and observed to see how they reacted, then the mother would remove the baby and wipe their nose with red blusher (the mother would wipe the baby's face in a way that the baby would just think the mother was cleaning dirt off its face.) The baby was then placed back in front of the mirror and observed again. They found that babies under 15 months tended not to recognise the baby in the mirror as themselves, they may have found the reflection similar but there was no difference in reaction when they saw the red spot on their nose. By 21 months though the babies were actively trying to wipe the red mark off their face, this shows a heightened sense of self awareness compared to the 15 month olds as they recognised that the baby in the mirror was them. Researchers also studied childrens self-awareness to learn about the development of emotions such as embarrassment. Lewis conducted a further study in 2000, he...
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...Academic procrastination in college students: The role of self-reported executive function Procrastination is the intentional delay of due tasks. The term is a known phenomenon in a college setting so I decided it would be beneficial to examine an experiment that evaluated how procrastination hurts different aspects of a college student’s life. The experiment I found was by Laura A. Rabin, Joshua Fogel and Katherine E. Nutter- Upham and they hypothesized that procrastination can negatively impact learning, achievement, academic self-efficiency and quality of life and that understanding the factors that produce and maintain this behavior will improve things overall. In the experiment, 212 college students age 30 and below were asked to fill out a 20-item questionnaire that examines behavior tendencies to delay the start of completion of everyday tasks. They rate various statements on a five point scale (1 = extremely uncharacteristic; 5 = extremely characteristic). An example of this would be “I often find myself performing tasks that I had intended to do days before” or “I usually start an assignment shortly after it is assigned.” After doing that, participants rated the frequency of 75 problematic behaviors over the past month on a three point scale (1 = never; 2 = sometimes; 3 = often). A higher score indicated a greater degree of executive dysfunction. Then finally they filled out something that measured their behavioral regulation or the ability to not act on an impulse...
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...things get tough and has guided me to be the better person that I am. I also learned that I have to love myself first because if I don't have enough love for myself, I can't possibly have any to share. Another thing is that, were all happiest and have that sense of contentment when we're doing what we love. As for me , if I have some time to spare, I paint or play the flute and realizing that dong what we love that we feel most alive. Celebrate being beautifully imperfect! Another Agustinian values that I have developed is INTERIORITY. Before I have body issues and insecurities. But I realize that I need to developed my self-confidence and the first step to achieve that is to be grateful for what I am born with and that I need to embrace my uniqueness. I just need to believe in my self and that is possible. As what they said, "you are what you think you are". If we think that we are beautiful, our actions will follow our thoughts. I saw my true reflection from those people who loves me for who I am which are my family and...
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...The dictionary defines excess as “more than or above what is necessary, usual, specified; extra” (Dictionary). Americans, as a whole, deserve a prize for the amount of paraphernalia they hold. According to CBS News, three-fourths of middle-class American families cannot park their cars in the garage because of the vast amount of clutter hidden in every nook and cranny (Vanderkam). Additionally, the families had enough food to survive every natural disaster and 47% of families had a second fridge, cluttering the house with material excess of the house (Vanderkam). A similar study done by Becoming Minimalist found that the average American home had 300,000 items, and threw away sixty-five pounds of clothing a year (Becker). The amount of material goods is what Lars Eighner described as the “gaudy bauble” by the “rat-race millions” in the conclusion of his essay “On Dumpster Diving” (151). After reading Eighner’s “On Dumpster Diving,” I found myself reflecting on the amount of material goods I hoard in my dorm room and how I throw away items without thinking about it. I grew up in a house full of hoarders, where it was normal to have the basement, garage, and attic filled to the brim with material goods, which causes me to hold onto an excess ammount of material goods. My need to collect various objects began at a young age. The plethora of toys I owned were not only stored in my room, but were also in the hallway closest, cabinets of the playroom, and guestroom closet. I had...
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...consider the possibility that our schema may be faulty. As a result of schemata, we might act in such a way that actually causes our expectations to come true. Schemata can influence and hamper the uptake of new information (proactive interference), such as when existing stereotypes, giving rise to limited or biased discourses and expectations (prejudices), may lead an individual to "see" or "remember" something that has not happened because it is more believable in terms of his/her schema. For example, if a well-dressed businessman draws a knife on a vagrant, the schemata of onlookers may (and often do) lead them to "remember" the vagrant pulling the knife. Such distortion of memory has been demonstrated. A schema for oneself is called a "self schema". Schemata for other people are called "person schemata". Schemata for roles or occupations are called "role schemata", and schemata for events or situations are called "event schemata" (or scripts). Modification of Schemata New information that falls within an individual's schema is easily remembered and incorporated into their worldview. However, when new information is perceived that does not fit a schema, many things can...
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...freedom, which is only found in Christ. Introduction Religion and psychology have often been viewed as incompatible. However, Christian counseling attempts to integrate the two in a meaningful fashion, so that clients are healed from their personal traumas while they become spiritually reborn in their connection to Christ. According to Dr. Neil T. Anderson's (2003) Discipleship counseling, God is the unspoken presence within every counseling relationship. The counselor does not have to consciously and constantly invoke God, and may choose not to do so because of the immediate needs or personality of the patient. But the sense that there is a higher power that is bigger than the self is always present. The therapist must realize that he or she is not God and do the work of the creator; he is merely a facilitator, she is merely a guide (Anderson 2003: 98). Through an integrated approach to religion and counseling, the client can let go of past bitterness, heal ancestral relationships, and become a new person in Christ. Integrating theology and psychology Anderson likens the human psyche to a computer that has been designed to be used in a particular way by its creators. God created human beings to...
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...Introduction: The case was analyzed to determine the impact of the SDTs on organizational efficiency, proficiency, and overall effectiveness. Background: In 2003, John Amasi, the Director of Production and Engineering for RL Wolfe introduced the concept of Self Directed Teams into their newly acquired plastics manufacturing plant in Corpus Christi, Texas. Problems: Line workers were treated a lower grade than the maintenance staff. Lack of incentive for extra work and the lack of empowerment for decision making. No control over the day to day activities and no team work Oppotunities: The key Advantages Self Directed Teams are improved quality, productivity and service, greater flexibility, reduced operating costs, faster response to technological change, better response to workers' values, increased employee commitment to the organization, ability to attract and retain the best people. Recommendations: The management team needs to relook its commitment to the self-directed approach and commit to the goals and objectives of the SDT concept. Information by way of feedback from the coordinators and teammates need to be sought to understand the problems with the self-directed teams. There should be continuous training and development for the various line operators and technicians. Employee empowerment and motivation Conclusion: In my opinion SDTs have proven to be an effective tool for improving productivity and staff moral; there are several areas that need to...
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