Lived Experiences of High School Students Involved in Fratenities and Sororities Essay Example

Lived Experiences of High School Students Involved in Fratenities and Sororities Paper Chapter I Introduction Almost in all times and among all nations which have reached a sufficient level of cultural development, there have always been fraternal associations formed for higher purposes. The development of Fraternities can be traced from trade unions or guilds that emerged in England. These guilds were set up to protect and care for their members at a time when there was no welfare state, trade unions or National Health Service (Sarmiento, 2011). Various secret signs and handshakes were created to serve as proof of their membership allowing them to visit guilds in distant places that are associated with the guild they belong. Others even modify their body like piercing, tattoo, and burns. †The awakening of the Filipinos to a deep sense of injustice being practice upon them by the colonizers was the introduction of fraternal societies in the islands, and the influence of higher education obtain by those of means to schools of Hongkong and other old-world countries† (Sarmiento, 2011). Nowadays fraternities and sororities  exist for  high school  students as well as college students. Like their college counterparts, most have  Greek letter  names. There are local high school fraternities and sororities with one or two chapters, many of the local chapters of these national fraternities were not tied to or affiliated with individual  high schools  but were instead area based, often drawing membership from multiple  high schools  in a given area. The high-school fraternity has become a serious problem through the years. We will write a custom essay sample on Lived Experiences of High School Students Involved in Fratenities and Sororities specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Lived Experiences of High School Students Involved in Fratenities and Sororities specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Lived Experiences of High School Students Involved in Fratenities and Sororities specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer These organizations have sprung into the schools even in the watchful eyes of the school administrators who suddenly felt the need to act with all forces not easy to control, and remove from school. With the DepEd Order no. 6 series of 1954, which prohibits hazing in schools, and DepEd Order no. 20 series of 1991, which prohibits the operation of fraternities and sororities in public and private elementary and secondary schools and with laid out sanctions, like suspensions and expulsion, administrators and school authorities are aiming to eradicate these organizations. The adolescent is newly concerned with how they appear to others (Erikson, E. H. ). As they make the transition from childhood to adulthood, adolescents ponder the roles they will play in the adult world. Initially, they are apt to experience some role confusion- mixed ideas and feelings about the specific ways in which they will fit into society- and may experiment with a variety of behaviors and activities (e. g. tinkering with cars, baby-sitting for neighbors, affiliating with certain political or religious groups). Human beings are social animals; they develop and mature in dyadic, small group and other group contexts over a long period. Thus, it is not surprising that a growing body of evidence suggests that people are healthier and happier when they experience social belonging. Adolescents participate in a complex social environment populated by many friendship groups, cliques, and crowds. In the last few years, there have been many circumstances in school that are fraternity related. Various steps are taken, like investigation to suspected frat members. The school further promotes co-curricular and extra-curricular organizations and activities that can serve as more wholesome and productive alternatives to fraternities, sororities and like organizations. Various clubs were introduced by the school administrator to stir up students’ interest in different fields and divert them to a more productive group. This study hopes to shed light on old but under-researched phenomenon in the Philippines and based on the results, develop program for interventions which is non-existent at the moment. Consequently, this study will help open a whole new of world of understanding on the subject of fraternities and sororities and its implications to the future, since only few know about these groups. Lastly, the study aims to fill the gap in current research literature in the Philippines on fraternities and sororities. It hopes to provide insight into modern conceptualizations and definitions of fraternities and sororities. This information may be used in future research on fraternities and sororities and for effecting necessary changes on government institutions’ policies that govern fraternities and sororities. Statement of the Problem This study explores, describes and analyzes the lived experiences of high school fraternity members. Specifically, it aims to answer the following questions: 1. What significant reason motivates high school students to join fraternities and sororities? 2. What insights, meaning and inspiration for fraternities and sororities members emerge from these experiences? 3. What do these insights reveal about their involvement in these organizations? 4. What counseling program can be designed to assist the needs of frat and not frat members? Theoretical/Conceptual Framework This study is anchored on theory of belongingness by Baumeister and Leary’s (1995) individuals have an evolved, and robust, need for closeness, and social belonging. This theory suggests that natural selection favored individuals who maintained close bonds with groups because this attachment provided security, and facilitated reproduction. Man is a social being in he has to be with others in order to cope with this pass paced world. Conceptual Framework Need to Belong Friends Belongingness Interventions Fraternity/Sorority The need to belong. As social being, teenagers as participants study seek to belong to, or identify oneself with others. Friends teenagers often be in the fill the gap if not satisfied in home Scope and Limitation The research is concerned with exploring and probing the lived experiences of 7-10 high school fraternity/sorority members in Canlaon City. The participants in the study are high school students currently enrolled during the school year 2011-2012 and are currently fraternity/sorority member. The participants are at least 12 years old at the time of the study. The study will use in-depth interview. This study will be conducted in public and private high schools Canlaon City for the school year 2010-2011. Significance of the Study The results of the study intend to benefit the following sectors: Educators. The study may spawn valuable insights concerning the real needs of this sector in educational institutions. This study may provide hard facts on their actual needs and the information gathered may be valuable in the school’s attempt to understand them more fully and to help provide opportunities to address their pertinent needs in and outside of the school. This group is expected to benefit directly from the actual data generated in this study. School Administrators. The information gathered in this research may provide baseline data for the administrators to plan and create a more concrete program to address the needs of the fraternity and sorority members. Since this study is a first-of-its-kind in the city, the researcher expects to provide a better and more comprehensive program in the future that addresses the actual needs of the students. Guidance Counselors. This research aims to provide baseline data that will help in the formulation of appropriate guidance programs to answer the need of the students and will help them in their quest to belong. Future researchers. This research is hoped to lay down a solid foundation on the needs of students who join fraternity and sororities for future researchers who may want to further investigate the topic and explore areas not covered by the present study. Furthermore, since local data on fraternity and sorority is scarce, it is the hope of the researcher to contribute to the local literature on the subject to benefit those who would wish to delve deeper into the topic in the future. The Government, Organization Leaders and Policy-Makers. The focus of this study is an attempt to provide new knowledge to leaders of organizations, government and policy-makers. The data can help enhance and develop strategies implementing specialized training, support systems, programs and laws that might protect the welfare of our students who are still in their teenage years. Definition of Terms In order to facilitate proper understanding of the context of how they are used in the study, the following terms are defined conceptually, operationally or both. Age – conceptually and operationally defined as the length of time that somebody or something has existed, usually expressed in years (Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009.  © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. ) Counseling Program – a plan of action that will be the product of the results of this study Family Background – whether participant of the study is living with parents, mother only, father only, uncle/aunt, grandparents, and relatives. Fraternity/Sorority – a group of individuals formed with the spirit of brotherly love Fraternity/Sorority Member – are the participants of the study, they are self confessed affiliates of high school fraternities. Gangs – group of teenagers who perform rights often to harm to the school and society Year Level – current educational status of the participant. Chapter II Review of Related Literature The purpose of this study is to see the real picture of high school fraternities and sororities in high school. This chapter presents the review of related studies that resembles in any way of this study. Several related literature and studies are related to this study. One of these studies is the study made by Timothy E. Bleeker and Sarah K. Murnen (2005) on fraternity membership, the display of degrading sexual images of women and rape myth acceptance wherein it was found out that fraternity men had significantly more images of women displayed in their rooms and that images were rated significantly more degrading than those in the rooms of non-fraternity men. Fraternity men were found to have significantly higher scores on rape supportive attitude scale (RSA). Carolyn Kolb (2008) cites that high school fraternities like the college level groups, have Greek letter name, a motto usually related to the name initials, secret rites and handshakes and a self generating membership: new members have to be voted in by the current members. Moreover Micheal T. Gibbons (2006) in his article â€Å"The Idea of Fraternity Revisited†, mentioned that the aspiration and drive for fraternity are indicated throughout the political history of human beings. An article of Jon Marcus (2004) discusses the controversy over fraternities and sororities in U. S. universities. It is being debated whether fraternities and sororities should be banned due to their involvement in sexism, alcohol abuse, hazing among others. Fraternities here in the Philippines have a â€Å"stigma† according to Juan Dela Cruz (2008). That is, people think that fraternities have nothing to do any good for you. It involves in frat wars, murders and any kind of crimes. He also added that being a fratmen, especially when you are member of a big fraternity is risky and dangerous. It is true that these big frats made services to people. Another research conducted by Brett Wells and Daniel P. Corts (2008) explored on implicit attitudes towards members of social fraternities and sororities. Members of Greek organizations showed preferential responses towards Greek groups over academic and service groups. These patterns of results suggest that many independent students harbor ill feelings towards sorority and fraternity members, and it is possible that the attitudes are stronger than reported typical. Eric A. Storch and Jason B. Storch (2002) examined the relationship between membership in fraternity or sorority and the frequency of academic dishonesty. Findings revealed that (1) members of fraternities and sororities reported higher rates of academic dishonesty as compared to non-members, and (2) the degree of involvement in fraternity or sorority sponsored activities was positively associated with academic dishonesty. Arsenio Baquilid (2010) emphasized that a fraternity or sorority is a choice of lifestyle for a lifetime. It has a strong influence on ones personality. He also stressed the truth that there are fraternities that pride themselves on academic performance, extra-curricular activities, leadership development, community service and may other achievements. The organization is a venue where a person can practice the full development of an integrated personality. However Ben O’Donnell (2009) argues that, despite negative stereotypes and news stories, fraternities can make a positive contribution to campus life. He notes that fraternity friendships create lifelong bonds between members, expose people to a variety of personality types because of the necessary diversity in any group and offer real diversity in fraternities at his alma mater, Dartmouth College. Juan Dela Cruz (2008) also included in his article that fraternity also made lot of services every year like outreach program. They adopt a baranggay and help the people there. They educate the children and give them goods. Through all the studies showed no concrete evidence on the concrete experiences and purpose of fraternities and sororities. The researcher persisted in conducting this study on the phenomenological study on the lives of high school students involving fraternities and sororities membership: Basis for a Counseling Program. Chapter III METHODOLOGY This chapter describes the research design, the participants of the study, the sampling procedure, the statistical tool, the data gathering procedure and analyzing the data. The Research Design The study mainly uses the qualitative-phenomenological approach in research. The study will use the descriptive type of research methodology as to the nature of the problem. The researcher will employ the field survey and the phenomenological in-depth interviewing methods. The qualitative approach used in-depth and key informant interviews with high school fraternity/sorority members to determine their experiences in the organization. The Participants of the Study The participants of this study are 7-10 high school students who are members of fraternity and sorority in Canlaon City. The age range will be 12-20 years old. The participant will be a mixture of frat members from different organizations. In order to protect their identity and ensure confidentiality, the participants were assigned pseudonyms (quoted in parenthesis). These were the names consistently used all throughout the paper when there was a need for the researcher to refer to the participants. The Sampling Design Due to the sensitivity of the study, the researcher conducted a pre-survey. The study employs purposeful sampling in identifying the participants. The researcher selects individuals and sites for study because they can purposefully inform an understanding of the research problem and the central phenomenon under study (Creswell, 2007). A Snowball or Chain sampling will also be used by which it identifies cases of interest from people who know people who know people who know what cases are information-rich, that is, good examples for study, good interview subjects (Patton, 1990). More specifically, the study uses criterion sampling wherein only the participants who met the criteria set by the researcher were involved in the study. The criteria used are the following: (1) first, participants are high school students enrolled in the current year and (2) second, they are members of fraternity/sorority for at least 6 months prior to the interview; and (3) third, they are 12 to 20 years old. For phenomenological studies, the use of small number of participants is justifiable due to the nature of the data-gathering procedure Research Instruments An interview guide will be used by the researcher to gather data. The researcher himself will make his own questions and will not rely on pre-prepared questionnaire to gather information. Guided by an interview protocol he will gather data and the flow of the interview will largely depend on his skill in asking the right questions, probing for depth and eliciting the necessary responses from the participants. Validity of the Research Instrument As suggested by Creswell (2007), the following validation techniques will be utilized: Firstly, the use of external audits (Erlanson et al. 1993; Lincoln and Guba, 1985; Merriam, 1988; Miles and Huberman, 1994 cited in Creswell, 2007) allows an external consultant, the auditor, to examine both process and the product of the account, assessing their accuracy. The auditor should have no connection to the study. This means that the open-ended questions for the in-depth interview will be subjected to face and content validity by seeking the expert suggestion of research practitioners engaging in qualitative research in order to ensure that the questions would gather the true essence and meaning of the participants’ experiences. Secondly, the use of the commonest forms of triangulation is to combine interviews with observation. Observation will test and fill out accounts given in interviews, and vice versa (Pratt, 2006). Thirdly, considerable effort was made in order to establish trust by building rapport with the participants through prolonged engagement, immersion and persistent observation. It also involves checking for misinformation that stems from distortions introduced by the researcher or informants (Ely, et al, 1991; Erlandson, Harris, Skipper and Allen, 1993; Glesne and Peskin, 1992; Lincoln and Guba, 1995; Merriam, 1998, cited in Creswell, 2007). Fourthly, clarifying researcher bias from the outset of the study is important so that the reader understands the researcher’s position and any biases or assumptions that impact the inquiry (Merriam, 1998, cited in Creswell, 2007). In this clarification, the researcher comments on pass experiences, biases, prejudices, and orientations that have likely shape the interpretation and approach t the study. Reliability of Research Instruments In qualitative research, reliability or consistency of responses of the participants is established using a good quality recorder in order to capture the details of the in-depth interview. In this case the researcher will use the recording function of a cellular phone. The recorded responses will be transcribed in order to see the nuances of the responses, the significant verbal and nonverbal cues, including the respondents’ tone and volume, the variations, pauses and the nuances of their responses. The stability of these responses will be the hallmark of a reliable instrument. The researcher will also use a detailed field notes to indicate of a good reliability index in qualitative research. This can be achieved by a good and competent way of transcribing the data gathered during the interview, to be conducted several times until the necessary information related to the inquiry is saturated. Data Gathering Procedure The following procedures will be observed during data gathering. The researcher will conduct a pre-survey to determine who are willing to participate in the study. Those who will agree to be participants of the study will be ask to refer others who are members of fraternity. Statistical Treatment of Data The study will use simple percentage to show the participants profile like gender, age, year level, family background and the recruitment procedure. Other findings will be in a descriptive type. Bibliography Baquilid, A. U. (2010, June). Being A Fraternity Member: Advantages and Disadvantages. http://arseniobaquilid23. blog. com/ Baumeister, R. F. , Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human emotion. Psychological  Bulletin, 117,  497-529. Bleecker, T. E. , Murnen, S. K. 2005, October). Fraternity Membership, the Display of Degrading Sexual Images of Women, and Rape Myth Acceptance. Sex Role; Vol. 53 Issue 7/8, p487-493, 7p. Dela Cruz, J. (2008, October). Life of a Fratman in the Philippines: From Heaven Down to Hell. http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/1079233/life_of_a_fratman_in_the_philippines. html? cat=7 Foubert, J. D. , Garner, D. N. Thaxter, P. J. (2006, June). An Exploration of Fraternity Culture: Implic ations for Programs to Address Alcohol-Related Sexual Assault. College Student Journal; Vol. 0 Issue 2, p361-373, 13p. Gibbons, M. T. (2006). The Idea of Fraternity Revised. Perspective on Political Science; Vol. 35 Issue 4, p205-209, 5p. Kolb, C. (2008, November). Frat Boys. New Orleans Magazines; Vol. 43 Issue 2, p188-189, 2p. Marcus, J. (2011, June). Schools for Scandal: Can Fraternities shed their image? The Times Higher Education Supplement; Issue 2004, p20. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009.  © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Newman, M. (2002, August). High School Group’s Hazing Was Open Secret, Some Say. New York Times. O’Donnell, Ben. (2009, December). What’s Right with Fratenities. Chronicle of Higher Education; Vol. 56 Issue 16, pA76. Sarmiento, Louie Blake S. (2011). Research studies and lectures on Philippine fraternalism. Storch, E. A. Storch, J. B. (2002, June). Fraternities, Sororities, and Academic Dishonesty. College Student Journal; Vol. 36 Issue 2, p247. Wells, B. Corts, D. P. , (2008, September). Measuring Attitudes Towards Sorority and Fraternity Members: Indication of Implicit, Ingroup Favoritism. College Student Journal; Vol. 42 Issue 3, p842-846, 5p. Erikson, E. H. (1950). Childhood and society. New York: Norton (1950); Triad/Paladin (1977), p. 242. Creswell, J. (2007). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches, 2nd ed. Sage Publications, Inc. Thousand Oaks, California. Patton, M. Q. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (2nd ed. ). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. Pratt, N. (2006). Qualitative Research.  © P Woods, Faculty of Education, University of Plymouth, 2006

Effective Communication Paper

Effective Communication Paper Effective Communication Paper Effective Communication Paper Debra L. Penta HCS 325 January 13,2014 Sandra Marken Effective Communication Paper Trends in virtually every workplace require employees to connect with co-workers and people who work at different locations in a professional and cohesive manner. Our employees are being asked to add to their job descriptions in order to facilitate what is needed to be achieved during the course of the day. Just as job descriptions change periodically, so do the requirements. One the biggest areas of change is how your organization may choose to communicate and share knowledge with their employees and their vendors as well as other people who come into contact with your organization (Lombardi, 2007). I have selected the Matrix Model to pattern the organization after. While I can see where it may be difficult to use with two managers who could disagree a lot, I think of the other models, this is the one which would allow the most lateral growth. By that, I mean that even though you may have two people who do not get along, hopefully they would put the best interest of the organization first. By lateral growth I mean that the managers should still do their jobs and set up their teams to meet their objectives. Not only that, but the managers need to continue to be supportive, clear, and honest with what they expect from their teams (Lombardi, 2007). As a team member I would find it much easier to work with a knowledge of what I was supposed to do as an employee and it would make it would it make for a pleasant work environment if my managers were approachable. To keep their team informed the mangers should plan to hold weekly meeting at which any new information could be shared w ith their teams. In order to make these meetings beneficial to the managers they could apply the Round Robin Technique to extract suggestions from hesitant employees. The Round Robin Technique is a technique that can be verbal or non-verbal or both. A question that may be asked from a manager can be answered verbally or written on a piece of paper, either way it is allows people who do not generally get involved with participating in meetings the chance to be heard (Lombardi, 2007). Maybe down the road when they become comfortable with how the meetings are run will no longer feel the necessity to write their answers down but will communicate verbally. The technique that I found that was the least successful was the use of sticky notes posted here and there. I don’t find it to be very logical. I believe that if the information is imperative and important enough to be communicated immediately the use of a smart phone and a text would be appropriate. I also think if that fails, a phone call could be the next course of action. Stress also plays a large part of workplace annoyances. Some of the ways a manager can help their employee’s with stress is make them aware of the fact that you are aware of their stresses and provide some suggestions in the form of posters in the break room. 1.- Realize when you’re stressed, recognize your particular stress response, and become familiar with sensual cues that can rapidly calm and energize you. The best way to reduce stress quickly is through the senses; through sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. But each person responds differently to sensory input, so you need to try to find things that are soothing to you (Seagal, 2013). 2.-Stay connected to your internal emotional experience so you

Why We Celebrate Womens History Month In March

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Corporate and global strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

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Effect of the Internet on Brain and Cognition

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The idea behind this study is that, theoretically, one individual and the Internet can form a sort of transactive memory system in which the individual feels that the vast stores of knowledge on the Internet are readily accessible at any time, and the individual will feel much more confident in his or her ability to answer general knowledge questions simply because he or she can query an Internet search engine (the other party in this sort of transactive memory system) at any time and access the knowledge stored on the Internet. To test this hypothesis, the researchers used a between subjects design with two groups of participants and two conditions. Participants in the first group were asked a series of general knowledge questions and told to use the Internet to find answers. Participants in the second group were asked the same set of general knowledge questions; however, they were told not to use the Internet to find answers. After this, participants from both groups were asked to rate their ability to answer unrelated questions from various subjects. The study didn’t test actual ability to answer subsequent, unrelated questions, but rather perceived ability, or confidence. The resulted showed that participants who used the Internet to look up general knowledge questions prior to being asked to rate their confidence in answering other questions were significantly more confident in their ability to answer the subsequent, unrelated questions than the individuals who did not use the Internet to search for answers to the initial knowledge questions. Various additional experiments were performed by the researchers to account for time spent answering questions while searching the internet and whether participants were considering Internet knowledge when self-assessing confidence. Additionally, the study showed that this confidence-boosting effect is a result of having access to and using an Internet search engine. After using an internet search engine, participants were much more confident in their own knowledge and in their ability to answer any other general knowledge question, even though the knowledge was not stored in their mind but on the Internet. Article 2: â€Å"Narcissism and the Use of Personal Pronouns Revisited† (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Published online March 30, 2015) In this study, researchers wanted to determine whether or not a connection exists between an individual’s usage of â€Å"I-talk† and his or her level of narcissism. â€Å"I-talk† is the use of first-person singular pronouns such as I, me, and my. It is a commonly held belief that individuals who talk about themselves frequently and use a large amount of I-talk are more narcissistic than those who do not. However, this intuitive relationship between I-talk and narcissism hasn’t been thoroughly tested and concretely proven or disproven. The goal of this study was to definitively identify a relationship between the two, if such a relationship exists at all. Very few studies have been done on this topic, and the results of those studies have been inconsistent. Additionally, previous studies on this topic have not employed very large sample sizes. This research study’s goal was to come to a concrete conclusion on the topic by employing a very large sample size and answering a few related questions concerning the relationship between gender, I-talk, and narcissism and context, I-talk, and narcissism. To accomplish this goal, researchers set up a large database of information from over 4,000 participants and 15 individual samples collected across five laboratories in the US and Germany. Each sample contained anywhere between 68 (in the case of Sample 2) and 1,209 (in the case of Sample 14) participants. Each sample was assigned to participate in a different activity designed to identify usage of I-talk in participants. For example, in Sample 1, university Psychology students videotaped self-descriptions that were later transcribed and analyzed for I-talk. In Sample 4, university Psychology students were seated in a classroom at random and asked to individually step forward and introduce themselves to the other participants in the classroom. They also participated in various other tasks, including writing down attributes about themselves and rating the other students’ presentations. Everything was transcribed, recorded, and analyzed for I-talk usage. Other samples involved a nalyzing participants’ Facebook status updates, performing a stream-of-consciousness recording task, and other various activities designed to allow for the measurement of I-talk. Additionally, each group’s assigned task was categorized based on the context of the activity prescribed by the task. These included identity, personal, impersonal, private, public, and momentary thought contexts. After each participant in each sample group participated in the prescribed activity, he or she completed a narcissistic personality questionnaire and a self-esteem test. Most participants were administered the 40-item or 16-item Narcissistic Personality Inventory and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem test. After analyzing the data, the researchers found that there is not a statistically significant connection between I-talk and narcissism. Participants’ self-esteem and narcissism scores had no significant correlation with their usage of I-talk. Additionally, the context of the activity did not affect this finding. There was a slightly higher correlation between male participants’ use of I-talk and narcissism than females’ use of I-talk and narcissism, but it was still statistically insignificant and near-zero, just as for the female participants. The researchers found that, contrary to popular belief, there is no connection between I-talk and narcissism, and this applies to all conversational contexts and genders. Article 3: â€Å"Finding a Needle in a Haystack: Toward a Psychologically Informed Method for Aviation Security Screening† (Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. Published online November 3, 2014) The researchers involved in this study identified a significant problem with current aviation security screening procedures and introduced a new security screening method of their own creation. They provide experimental evidence suggesting that their method is much more accurate and consistent in detecting deceptive passengers passing through airport security checkpoints. Currently, most aviation security checkpoints employ a behavioral method of deception recognition. Security screeners look for nonverbal behavioral cues from passengers that may indicate that the passenger is trying to deceive the security screener, including twitching, nervousness, aggressiveness, fidgeting, and some verbal indicators such as stumbling over words and hesitating while speaking. This method results in an alarmingly low rate of passenger deception detection of 5%. This is, according to the researchers, a result of the failure of this method to account for the real content of the passenger’s verbal account and the truthfulness of his or her statements. The researchers proposed an alternative method of screening called Controlled Cognitive Engagement (CCE), which was developed based on laboratory studies done on veracity testing techniques in two-person verbal exchanges. CCE does not focus on behavioral cues, but rather on the actual verbal exchange and conversation content between screener and passenger. CCE involves a security screener conducting a short, one-on-one interview with a passenger. The interviewer does not ask scripted questions; instead, the interviewer uses a process to create new questions in real time for the passenger that are based on the conversational context of the interview. CCE is trained to security screeners as an algorithm that the screeners can use while conducting an interview to create unique questions for each passenger that are designed specifically to test for passenger truthfulness. Interviewers can then analyze a passenger’s answers to all of the question for consistency and, thus, truthful ness. To experimentally test CCE and compare it to the traditional, behavioral method of aviation screening, the study employed two groups of security agents and two groups of passengers. The first group of security agents was assigned to use traditional behavior-based screening at a checkpoint, and the second group was assigned to use CCE screening. The first passenger group was a genuine group of passengers selected from individuals passing through the airport checkpoint. The second group of passengers was a sample of individuals chosen by the researchers to pass through the same security checkpoint, but with a deceptive cover story being told to screeners. The two passenger groups were matched in composition by the researchers. The researchers measured the rate of detection of deceptive passengers for non-CCE security agents and CCE security agents. The results of the study show that veracity testing methods, like the CCE method developed by the researchers, are significantly more effective at detecting deceptive passengers. Traditional behavior-based screening methods only detected about 5% of deceptive passengers in this study, but CCE, a method of veracity testing, detected 66% of deceptive passengers.

Best practices in project quality management/leadership for information technology Essay

Most people simply accept low quality from many information technology (IT) products. So what if ones laptop crashes a couple of times a week? Just ensure there is back up for data. So what if one cannot log in to the business intranet or the internet right now? Just attempt a little later when it is less busy. So what if the latest version of word-processing software was shipped with several bugs? One may like the software’s new features, and all new software has bugs. Is quality a real problem with information technology projects? Yes, it is! IT is not just a luxury available in some offices, homes, or schools. Firms throughout the world provide employees with access to computers. The majority of people in the US use the internet, and usage in other countries continues to expand rapidly. It took only six years for 60 million people to use the internet compared to 20 years for 60 million to use cell phones (Kathy, 2008, p. 292). Many issues of individual and or group lives depend on high-quality IT products. Food is produced and distributed with the help of computers; vehicles have computer chips to monitor performance; students use computers to aid them learn in school; organizations depend on technology for many business functions; and millions of people depend on technology for entertainment and individual communications (Kathy, 2008). Many IT projects develop mission-critical systems that are utilized in life-and-death circumstances. Such as navigation systems on aircraft and computer components built into medical equipment. Financial institutions and their clients also depend on high-quality information systems. Clients get very upset when systems present inaccurate data or display information to unauthorized people that could result to identity theft. When any of these systems fails, it is much more than a mere inconvenience (Taguchi, 2004). 1. 1 Definitions Before one can enhance the quality of IT projects, it is good to understand the fundamental concepts of project quality management. Indeed, it is hard to define project quality management. According to the international organization for standardization (ISO) quality can be defined as the totality of features of an organization that bear on its ability to satisfy stated or implied requirements (Kathy, 2008). It can also be defined as the extent to which a set of inherent features fulfils needs (ISO9000). Other professionals define quality based on adherence to needs and fitness for use. Adherence to needs means project’s products and processes meet laid down specifications. Fitness for use implies a product can be used as it was intended. The purpose of project quality management is to make sure that the project will fulfill the requirements for which it was undertaken. Project management involves among others things meeting or surpassing stakeholder requirements and anticipations. The project group must initiate good relationships with core stakeholders, especially the primary client for the project, to comprehend what quality implies to them. Many technical projects fail because the project management group aims only at meeting the written requirements for the project (Juran and Frank, 2002). Quality, therefore, must be on an equal basis with project scope, cost, and time. If the project’s stakeholders are dissatisfied with the quality of the project management or the end products of the project, the management group will require adjusting time, cost, and scope to fulfill stakeholder needs. In which case meeting only documented requirements for time, cost, and scope is not sufficient. To attain stakeholder fulfillment, the project group must come up with a good working relationship with all stakeholders and comprehend their implied or stated requirements. Best practices: over the years, organizations have become mesmerized with the term-best practice-but after continued use, experts began scrutinizing the expression and now better definitions exist. A best practice starts simply with an idea. Knowing that there is a process, tool, activity, or method that can deliver results effectively than any other method and provides one with the desired results with less barriers and predictable complexities is a welcome. As a result, one apparently ends up with an efficient way of completing a task by use of a repeatable procedure that has stood the test of time for quite a large number of IT projects (Kathy, 2008). As project quality management evolved, so did the meanings of best practices. Some definitions of best practices are complicated while others are somehow simple. Yet, they both address the same aim of encouraging project quality management throughout the organization. Firms must decide on the depth and extent of their best practices. Must it be at high level and generic or at a low level and detailed? A generic best practice may not attain the desired efficiencies whereas a detailed one may not have unlimited applicability. Basically, any firm can decide to have own definition of best practices and there might even be company quality requirements on the definition of such best practices. For example, a best practice can be defined as something that: works, works well, works well on a repetitive basis, leads to a competitive advantage, can be identified in quest to improve business, and prevents the firm from problems. 1. 2 Principles Generally, there are 3 basic principles/processes of project quality management: 1. 2. 1 Planning quality Planning for quality involves identifying which quality standards are relevant to the project and how to fulfill those standards. Integrating quality standards into project design is a core portion of quality planning. For an IT project, quality standards include enabling system growth, planning a considerable response time, or making sure that the system produces accurate and consistent information. The core outputs of quality planning are a quality management plan, quality metrics, quality checklists, a process improvement plan, and project document updates. 1. 2. 2 Performing quality assurance Performing quality assurance includes periodical evaluation of the whole project performance to make sure that the project will meet the desired quality standards. The process involves assuming roles of quality in the entire project life cycle. Senior management must take the lead in emphasizing the roles all employees play in quality assurance. The core outputs of this process are organizational process asset, project management, project document, and change requests updates (Kathy, 2008). 1. 2. 3 Performing quality control Performing quality control involves monitoring specific project results to make sure that they adhere to the desired quality requirements while identifying methods to enhance ultimate quality. This process is mostly linked to the technical techniques and tools of quality management, such as quality control charts, statistical sampling, and Pareto charts. The main outputs of quality control include quality control measurements, validated deliverables, change requests, validated changes, organizational process asset updates, project management plan, and project document updates (Kathy, 2008). This research seeks to: †¢ Incorporate the best practices in project quality management with quality leadership/ team work within a quality focused company, †¢ Evaluate the significance of project quality management for IT products and services, †¢ Understand the techniques and tools for quality control, and †¢ Describe how leadership model relate to enhancing quality in information technology projects. 2. 0 Review of Literature In his book on quality control, Juran (2002) stressed the significance of top management commitment to continuous product quality improvement. In 2000, Juran published the fifth edition of his famous book. In both texts, Juran developed and built upon a trilogy involving quality improvement, quality control, and quality planning. Juran emphasized the difference between the manufacturer’s view of quality and the client’s view. He observed that manufacturer’s focused on adherence to requirements, but client’s focused on fitness for use. In this book, Juran developed 10 stages to quality improvement. These include; building awareness of the need and chance for improvement, set goals for improvements, organize to reach the goals, provide training, carry out projects to solve problems, report progress, give recognition, communicate results, keep ratings, and maintain momentum by establishing yearly improvement part of the regular systems and processes of the economy. Crosby (1979) wrote Quality Is Free and is best known for suggesting that firms struggle for zero defects. He stressed that the costs of low quality must include all costs of not doing the work right the first time, such as rework, scrap, wasted man hours and machine hours, customer ill will and wasted sales, and warranty costs. Crosby proposed that the cost of low quality is so misappropriated that firms can profitably spend unlimited amounts of money on enhancing quality. Like Juran, Crosby developed 14 stages for quality improvement; these include making it clear that management is committed to quality, organizing quality control teams with representatives from each section, establishing where current and potential quality problems lie, evaluating the cost of quality and explaining its use as a management tool, raising the quality awareness and personal concern of all employees, take actions to correct problems identified through previous steps, establishing a committee for the zero defects program, training supervisors to actively carry out their part of the quality improvement program, holding a-zero defects day-to allow all employees realize that there has been a change, encouraging individuals to establish improvement goals for themselves and their teams, encouraging employees to communicate to management the barriers they face in achieving their improvement goals, reorganizing and appreciating those who participate, establishing quality councils to communicate on a regular basis, and reworking to emphasize that the quality improvement program never ends. Crosby (1979) initiated the Quality Management Process Maturity Grid. Such a grid can be applied to a firm’s attitude toward product usability. For instance, the initial level in the grid is ignorance, where employees might think they do not have any difficulties with usability. The last level is wisdom, where employees have changed their attitude so that usability defect prevention is a routine part of their activities. Ishikawa (1976) developed the concept of quality circles and pioneered the utilization of cause-and-effect graphics. Ishikawa made notable contributions to quality management, the most important being Ishikawa’s total quality perspective, organization quality control and emphasizes to human based quality, the quality diagram, and the creation and use of his 7 basic quality tools. The tools are: Pareto analysis, stratification, cause and effect diagrams, check sheets, scatter charts, histograms, and process control charts. Ishikawa believed these 7 tools must be known in depth, if not by all, in a firm and used to evaluate problems and create enhancements. Used effectively the tools form a powerful quality kit. Genichi (1998) believed it is good to develop product that is stout and or insensitive to manufacturing process variation, rather than trying to control all variations during manufacturing. To practice this idea, he embarked on the already developed knowledge on design and made it more practical and usable for quality experts. Genichi’s idea was mainly about the routine maximization of process and product prior to actual processing rather than quality control through inspection. Reliability and quality are ensured at the designing stage. Genichi went on to break off-line quality into 3 core levels. These levels include; system design, tolerance design, and parameter design. Foster (2004) identified leadership as being core to the quality improvement process, assuming minimal difference between management and leadership. The role is of a facilitator, and the foundation is-managing by walking, allowing the leader to be in touch with clients, people, and innovation, the three primary sections in the expedition of excellence. Foster believes that, as the leader walks, three main operations are occurring: listening, facilitating, and listening; suggesting caring, able to provide instant help, and transmission of values respectively. Foster, having analyzed key American firms concluded that any smart concept to organizing had to take into account 7 variables, a framework that was designed to include both the software and hardware of a firm. 3. 0 Findings 3. 1 Best practices Every organization has its own point of view of best practices. But generally there seem to be four basic reasons for embracing best practices. The four are: †¢ Improving efficiency, †¢ Standardization, †¢ Improving effectiveness, and †¢ Consistency In whatever definition, the company must identify which of the four, or combination therein, the firm targets. The paper focused on best practices as practiced at Orange Soft-Link Ltd, an IT company based in Switzerland (Crosby, 1979). †¢ A best practice is an experience based, published, and proven way to achieve company objectives. †¢ The company has detailed best practices in its procedures/policies and work flows. There are templates and guidelines as well as procedures that the company embraced. Additionally, when it closed a project, the company conducts a formal lesson learned section. The session involves the sponsors, core team, project manager, and other stakeholders impacted by the project. The lessons are stored in a common database and reviewed with the whole team. Its best practices depend on lessons learned. The company shares these practices with other IT firms for those vendors for which the company is a reference site. All Orange Ltd templates, procedures/policies, and work flow can be accessed when necessary and, by request, the quality leadership team set conferences to give feedback as well as explain in details all practices. †¢ Any tool, activity or template used by a quality manager that has had a positive impact on quality delivery, knowledge, and process. For example, performing to satisfy customers is a best practice in this IT Company. This is done by assessing each phase of a project. †¢ Generally the company views a best practice as any process or activity that enhances a given quality issue, eliminates the need of other more complicated procedures, or significantly improves an existing procedure. Each best practice is a living unit and subject to amendments, removal, or review. †¢ For Orange Soft-Link ltd, a best practice is any process or method that has been successful in producing the desired outcomes through practical application. This IT Company do not embrace professional or industry standards as a best practice until it has been proven that the process or method works in its corporate environment (Kathy, 2008).