Premium Essay

The Power of Culture to Create a Better Future

In: Philosophy and Psychology

Submitted By michaelangel
Words 704
Pages 3
THE POWER OF CULTURE TO CREATE A BETTER FUTURE
Culture is a word, etymologically, driven from the Latin language from the word ‘cultura’ meaning to cultivate. This connotes growing of personality. This entails forming the seed of an individual’s character and life into societal structure. By cultivation, one is schooled in the beliefs and practical attitudes of a particular group of people who own the culture. However, the word culture is most commonly used in three basic senses: excellence of taste in fine arts and humanities; an integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behaviour that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning; shared attitudes, values, and goals. Culture has been defined as the totality of way of life evolved by a people in their attempts to meet the challenges of living in their environment, which gives order and meaning to their social, political, economic, and religious norms and modes of organization, thus distinguishing a people from their neighbours. The understanding of personhood, one’s immanent metaphysics and the idea of phenomenal inquiry into the existence generally is rooted in culture. Culture explains, a great deal, the reason why one acts the way one does. Culture shapes man. It makes man read into his environment as to understand what exactly informs a people’s life style and how the people’s worldview cuts into their life world(by analysis of their existential structure). The explanation of culture opens to us the need for culture in the first place. It is accepted that culture sprang in time from human rationality and this is not without a purpose. Primarily, the need for culture arose from the necessity of maintaining social coherence. Culture comes up to construct social identity and maintain coherence with a social group which is too enormous for the pre-human community building

Similar Documents

Free Essay

The Power of Culture to Create Better Future.

...THE POWER OF CULTURE TO CREATE A BETTER FUTURE Culture is a word, etymologically, driven from the Latin language from the word ‘cultura’ meaning to cultivate. This connotes growing of personality. This entails forming the seed of an individual’s character and life into societal structure. By cultivation, one is schooled in the beliefs and practical attitudes of a particular group of people who own the culture. However, the word culture is most commonly used in three basic senses: excellence of taste in fine arts and humanities; an integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behaviour that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning; shared attitudes, values, and goals. Culture has been defined as the totality of way of life evolved by a people in their attempts to meet the challenges of living in their environment, which gives order and meaning to their social, political, economic, and religious norms and modes of organization, thus distinguishing a people from their neighbours. The understanding of personhood, one’s immanent metaphysics and the idea of phenomenal inquiry into the existence generally is rooted in culture. Culture explains, a great deal, the reason why one acts the way one does. Culture shapes man. It makes man read into his environment as to understand what exactly informs a people’s life style and how the people’s worldview cuts into their life world(by analysis of their existential structure). The explanation of culture opens...

Words: 320 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Econ4400 Term Paper1

...market power and market value was deeply weakened by these new competitors and their new products. The failure of power-decentralized plan and MAPP also proofed that we have to make big changes. Here is my analysis and suggestion: 1. The key of our success is creativity 2. The key of our revival is to regain our creativity 3. To regain our creativity, we have to: * Create an organic management system * Create an open organization culture to encourage creativity * Recreate the Salary system I believed that my analysis could be very helpful for you to redesign our future plan. I hope that this analysis could bring you some different thinking. The Key Factors that Initially Made us Successful : 1. Creativity For any innovative industry, creativity is one of the most important key factors to success. For many years, we have been ranked as the top company in film industry because of our creativity. Creativity and innovation would give us better product and better service than our competitors. In other word, creativity and innovation are our core competiveness. To become as successful as we were, we have to regain our core competiveness. 2. Market coverage We used to have the highest market share and market coverage in the industry. We have thousands stores overall the world. Our leading market coverage would help have better customer resources than others. We could know the market and the customers better than others, and we could have better understanding...

Words: 866 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Links Between Economic Growth and Economic Institution in the Long Run

...Introduction Understanding of the economic growth process and it connection to institutions is highly important for explaining why certain countries are less developed than the other ones. Economic growth is defined as “An increase in the capacity of an economy to produce goods and services, compared from one period of time to another. Economic growth can be measured in nominal terms, which include inflation, or in real terms, which are adjusted for inflation. For comparing one country's economic growth to another, GDP or GNP per capita should be used as these take into account population differences between countries. (http://www.investopedia.com/). The role of institutions in economic growth was first proposed in writings of Adam Smith in 1776. Later in 1993 Douglass North received a Nobel Prize for his work on connection between institutions and economic growth. By studying history, analyzing data and statistics we can see that high quality institution have positive effect on economic growth and therefore on income in a long and short runs. In order to prove it we are going to find out what economic institutions are, why they are matte, what are the reasons behind different institutions in different countries and finally support it with historical facts. 1 Links between economic growth and economic institution What are institutions? The term “Economic institutions” can be defined in mach different way and have multiple meanings. On the one hand North (1990, p...

Words: 2485 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Who Is a Leader

...the ideal leader 4. What is leadership 2. A Leader in the society 1. What is positive leadership 2. How is a leader supposed to be 3. Influence from a leader 1. Moral 2. Spiritual 3. Physical 4. The power of a leader 1. Legitimate 2. Reward 3. Coercive 4. Expert 5. Styles of leadership 1. Exploitative 2. Benevolent 3. Participative 6. Characters of a good leader 1. Communication with others 2. Creating a path forward in leading 3. Dedication to tasks 4. Initiation of change where applicable 5. Promoting ethical conduct 7. Other add-ons 8. Conclusion INTRODUCTION Who are leaders? Leaders can be defined as those selected people who practice leadership. What is leadership then? Leadership can be defined as using of influence to make a person do something that the leader wants. Influence here stands for positive, personal, or sentimental bonds conjuring love, liking and admiration as the final result. Leadership, taking into consideration the definition shows that it has an everlasting effect on the practitioner and takes a long-term and can be used not only in the organization setting but also in all the aspects of life. This means that leadership is an art as well as a social science (deals with human behaviour) that creates positive outcomes/responses through positive leadership. Realization of this by the leader will make his followers (result of influence) seek the achievement of the set goals or leader’s vision willingly and...

Words: 2387 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Jack Welch Leadership

...career, constantly delivering more than expected, and rose throughout the GE ranks. In less than 10 years at GE, he was promoted to General Manager of Plastics where he dropped his PhD title and transferred from engineer to businessman. About 10 years later he became CEO on December 1980. As leader of one of the largest and most successful American businesses, Mr. Welch was continually in the public eye and his decisions constantly evaluated. One of the first actions he took as CEO was to eliminate the underperformers and excess of the company. He self admittedly says he fired a lot of people in his early days resulting in the press giving him the early moniker of Neuron Jack. He was deemed soft as he turned his focus to values and culture. From prince to pig and back again, Mr. Welch remained head of GE thanks in part due to his self-confidence that anchored him during times of tough decision making. MBTI Descriptor Jack Welch can be characterized by the MBTI descriptor: ENTJ...

Words: 2732 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Airline Industry, Budget Airlines

...Asia Pacific region and to selected international destinations. Core activities include ? Activity Analysis: First, you identify the activities you undertake to deliver your product or service; Value Analysis: Second, for each activity, you think through what you would do to add the greatest value for your customer; and Evaluation and Planning: Thirdly, you evaluate whether it is worth making changes, and then plan for action. Access the industry’s future growth Current- life-cycle position of the industry Generally, based on the information given, it seems that the airline industry in overall is on a decline. This is supported by the fall in premium air passengers by 25% and the declaration of bankruptcy by Japan Airline However, due to these factors, the initial public offering of Tiger Airways, another budger airline and the prediction of increase in revenue in Jetstar’s operation by Bruce Buchanan, it is likely that the budget airline industry is growing at a rate more than 10%. Key issues affecting future growth |  |Description | |Impact | |Technology |The increase in the availability of high speed broadband allows higher utilization of online | |Medium | |...

Words: 2329 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Change

...determining organizational direction, understanding culture of the organization, leveraging that culture, and planning out the actions needed to make the change. Being successful in implementing change also is directly related to the leadership style of the organization's top leaders. It is also important to assess the costs of change as well as the cost of not changing. Leaders are trained, educated, and rewarded to make things happen in organizations. What leaders routinely fail to recognize is the link between change and human behavior. The link between change and human behavior either supports or impedes successful implementations of change. To become an implementer of change, you must understand what the environment is like, who you are, what your organization is, and reconcile the differences. You will be more successful if you can adjust your leadership style to one that supports the leader performance demands at the strategic level. Culture is deeply seated within organizations and challenging to change, but leaders can influence an organization's culture. It is difficult and timely, but leaders can have an effect on culture. Edgar Schein, Organizational Culture & Leadership, outlines some specific steps leaders can employ: * Culture follows what leaders pay attention to, measure and control. Something as simple as what is emphasized or measured, over time, can have an effect on an organization's culture. * Leader reactions to critical incidents and organizational...

Words: 1806 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

The Wisdom of Crowds Reflection

...from all users of the internet using a search engine such as Google to a small team of scientist working to find a vaccine for SARS. His general theory includes four main characteristics to what makes wise crowds. They must include diversity in opinion where everyone has their own private information or interpretation of the information. Also, there must have independence of opinion. Opinions can’t be based off of the opinions of others. Next, decentralization where people can draw from their own local knowledge is a key to wise crowds. Lastly, information must be able to be aggregated. This is the ability of judgments to be turned into a collective agreement. With these four characteristics, crowds are able to collectively create a better source of information and decision making. After reading this thought-provoking book, my eyes were opened in terms of how I view business and management. Management cannot be successful without the use of teams. Properly used teams are a key aspect to proper decision making and finding information. Through individual analysis and discussion with my team, I have noticed that this is the most important aspect of The Wisdom of Crowds. Not only was this one of the main point Surowiecki was trying to get across, but it greatly affected how I will look at business and management...

Words: 1477 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Ol Keywords

...by virtue of which he is considered extraordinary and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. 2) Who is a charismatic leadership? Ans: Charismatic leadership is a leadership based on the leader’s ability to communicate and behave in ways that reach followers on a basic, emotional way, to inspire and motivate. 3) Define the term “transactional leadership”. Ans: A transactional leader is one who guides and motivates his follows in the direction of establish goals by clarifying role and task requirements. It involves exchange relationship between leader and the followers. It is a perception for mediocrity and that transformational leadership leads to superior performance in organization facing demands for renewal and change. 4) Differentiate between transformational and transactional leadership. Ans: | Transformational leadership |Transactional leadership | |Builds on man’s need for meaning |Builds on man needs to get a job done and make a living | |Is preoccupied with purposes and values, morals and ethics. |Is preoccupied with power and position,...

Words: 4081 - Pages: 17

Free Essay

Transcending Myths: Trickster

...Transcending Myths: Trickster    “The  Power  of  Black  Music:  Interpreting  its  History  from  Africa  to  the  United  States”,  by  Samuel  A.  Floyd,  observes  a  new  way  of  listening to  the music  of black  America, and  appreciating its  profound  contribution  to  American  music.  Examining   folklore,  myths,  music,  and  rituals,  Floyd  offers  cultural  heritage  in  modernism.  He   recognizes  European  influences,   while  demonstrating  how  much  black  music  has  continued  to  share  with  its African  counterparts.  One  of these elements that  African  music  has  attributed  is  the  element  of  “Tricksters.”  Although  Tricksters  is  a  motif  existent  in  times  before  Chris,  Tricksters   have  been  transmitted  to  be  taught  and  learned  in  cultures  in  the  West  and  Japan today.  The  archetypal  “Trickster”  is  allegorical   or  a  metaphorical  teaching  in  stories of a polytheistic  culture  and  religion.  According  to  Floyd,  in African stories, “Trickster tales are  not just  for humor, but  to  instill  discipline  and  ingrain  fear,  a  sense   of  accomplishment,  pride,  and  humility”1   Floyd  continues  on  to  explain  that  stories,  such  as  one’s  with  Tricksters,  are  transmitted  into  words  and  edited  into   methods  for  people  to  understand  it better.  Music  is  the example that he  gives, noting that  both  people  within  and out of the culture will have  a better understanding of the teaching in ...

Words: 671 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Mngt 5000 Final

...1. Explain why ethics are an integral component of the manager’s toolbox in the 21st century. (5 Points) Ethics are integral in the 21st century due to the evolution of business, technology, and government oversight. There is a legal responsibility to do what is right by the customer – if you produce a product knowing that there is a high risk of harm to the consumer, you will be eventually be found out, prosecuted, and held liable. Organizations have put a high priority on ethics, which can be hard to balance in the highly competitive business world. But with the advancements in technology and social media, consumers are highly aware of how an organization behaves – and this information travels the world quickly. There is little tolerance in most companies for unethical behavior that threatens the mission, vision, values, strategy and goals of the company, not to mention the consumer base. 2 Describe how and why ethics can and do guide managers’ decision making process (10 Points) Individual ethics, and the organizational ethical climate, do a great deal to guide the decision making process. If a company has the climate of utilitarianism, the manager will base their decision on what will do the most people the most good. For example, if there was a choice between two options as outlined below: Option A – has defect rate of 50%, can suspend production for 1 month to fix defect costing $350,000 to reduce defects to <5% Option B – has defect rate of 50%...

Words: 3677 - Pages: 15

Free Essay

Obc1

... • 5. Personal appeals. Referring to friendship and loyalty when making a request. • 6. Exchange. Making express or implied promises and trading favors. • 7. Coalition tactics. Getting others to support your effort to persuade someone. • 8. Pressure. Demanding compliance or using intimidation or threats. • 9. Legitimating tactics. Basing a request on one’s authority or right, organizational rules or policies, or express or implied support from • , social power is defined as “the ability to marshal the human, informational, and material resources to get something done.”22 • • Two dimensions of power that deserve our attention are (1) socialized versus personalized power and (2) the five bases of power. 5 bases of power: Reward power. A manager has reward power to the extent that he or she obtains compliance by promising or granting rewards. On-the-job behavior shaping, for example, relies heavily on reward power. Coercive power. Threats of punishment and actual punishment give an individual coercive power. For instance, consider this heavy-handed tactic by Wolfgang...

Words: 2125 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Mr. Modou L Manjang

...companies to form one entity. This decision is usually mutual in both firms. In a merger, assets, employees and programs are combined to form either a new organization representing the best of the two companies or one of the companies posing as the surviving entity. 2. Glencore and Xstrata will have a great combining power. This is because Glencore operates in 40 countries from Australia to Argentina and Xstrata on the other hand is active in more than 20 countries globally. So this merger will result to a total number of 130000 employees with increased revenue of $200bn which would eventually create the world’s biggest exporter of coal for power plants and the largest producer of zinc. 3. The new changes would affect the structure, behavior and processes of the organization by the formation of a new executive body because there should be one organizational structure comprising of the different portfolios. Also, the employees will be eventually increased as the two companies merge together. Moreover, the culture of the newly formed organization will change as the two companies both had separate organizational culture. Lastly, they would also have the combining power of involving in commodities trading and mining and this will obviously the profitability and production level of the organization. 4. With an estimated number of 130000 employees, the new management can fit in their employees in order to give that competitive advantage by creating a large scale of employment...

Words: 892 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Business Analysis

...change in any organization. Furthermore, the cohesion of the employees will be more effective overall. During the last two months of the company prior to the change, I would create a team of creditable employees consisting of managers and workers. The goal of this change management team would be to convey a message that is clear to avoid any confusion among the ranks of the employees. Furthermore, the team would help answer questions and give advice for employee's; that will be leaving the company in the near future, as well as employees that might be changing positions, or employees that could be transferring to another division entirely. I feel by building a team to help manage the new changes the next three months following the acquisition will become a smother transition. During the next three months, I would have the team focus giving attention to the retained employees, by reassurance and guidance of the fact that letting go of the old company culture and thinking of the new culture and adapting to it should be done easily. This would ultimately give the employees more productive and efficient work in the future and long run, and will make the employees feel more comfortable about the transition. William Bridges has good thoughts on change called the marathon effect which will give employees a better understanding of the transition. Trust and honesty goes along way when people are straight forward in the ending or letting go phase and ultimately will help transition people...

Words: 1169 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

The Heart of Change

...employees as well. Kotter and Cohen explained that change involves an eight-step process. Those eight steps are increasing urgency, building the guiding team, getting the vision right, communicating for buy-in, empowering action, creating short-term wins, do not let up and making change stick. Discussion Urgency is defined as pressing importance or requiring speedy action (Merriam-Webster.com). According to Kotter and Cohen, the first stage of large-scale transformation should be to create a sense of urgency that the change is necessary. Urgency helps motivate personnel to overcome complacency, fear, anger, or pessimism, which may result in resistance (Kotter & Cohen, 2002). Individuals resist change because they fear what will happen to them. The reasons for resistance could include the threat of loss of position, power, economic insecurity and feelings of inadequacy. Resistance can pose a barrier throughout the organization as well. Those barriers could include perceived threats to the power balance and structural inertia (Ivancevich, Konopaske & Matteson, 2010)....

Words: 1849 - Pages: 8