Thursday, October 3, 2019
Explaining Electoral Volatility In Latin America Politics Essay
Explaining Electoral Volatility In Latin America Politics Essay Abstract Many existing explanations of electoral volatility in Latin America have been tested at the country level, but they are largely untested at the individual party level. In this paper, I apply a hierarchical linear model (HLM) to test various explanations of electoral volatility on data of 128 parties in the lower house elections of 18 Latin American countries from 1978 to 2011. My most important finding pertains to the conditional effect of a partys incumbency status on electoral volatility. First, the results show that the effect of party age on reducing electoral volatility is stronger for incumbent parties. Second, an incumbent party has a lower level of electoral volatility than opposition parties during periods of stronger economic performance. Last, while an irregular alteration of political institutions is hypothesized to increase the level of volatility for all the parties in a country, the effect is more significant for the incumbent party. Explaining Electoral Volatility in Latin America: Evidence at the Party Level Introduction Concerns with party system institutionalization and its consequences in developing countries have grown in the past decade. Extant literature underscores that political parties play an important role in linking diverse social forces with democratic institutions, channeling societal demands, managing sociopolitical conflicts, holding government officials accountable to the electorate, and legitimizing the regime (Dix 1992; Sartori 1968; Schattschneider 1942). In this sense, political parties with stable and consistent support across elections not only ensure their long-term survival, but also help institutionalize the party system. A stable and institutionalized party system fosters more effective programmatic representation (Mainwaring and Zoco 2007, 157) and facilitates the institutionalization of political uncertainty (Przeworski and Sprague 1986). In contrast, a democratic country with a poorly institutionalized party system where electoral volatility is very high tends to produce populist leaders and discourage the incumbent party from making long-term policy commitments (Mainwaring and Scully 1995).à [1]à In comparison to Western Europe and the United States, the level of electoral volatility is exceptionally high in Latin America (Payne et al. 2002). In the 1990s, the overall electoral volatility in this region was about twice that in the developed world (Roberts and Wibbels 1999). Weak partisan identities of voters, rapid voting choice changes, and unpredictable election campaigns are prevalent political characteristics in this region (Baker, Ames, and Renno 2006), but what explains the variation in electoral volatility in Latin America? Previous work on electoral volatility has provided explanations about political institutions, national economic performance, social cleavages, ethnic heterogeneity, and historical factors (Hicken and Kuhonta 2011; Madrid 2005; Mainwaring and Zoco 2007; Roberts and Wibbels 1999; Tavits 2005). These explanations have been tested at the country level, but they are largely untested at the individual party level, even though that is the level at which th e effects of certain relevant explanatory factors are expected to work. Why do some parties have higher levels of electoral volatility than others? Do factors cause electoral volatility at the country level have the same impact on party level volatility? Does the incumbent party enjoy certain advantages that opposition parties do not have to secure electoral stability? This paper aims to address these questions by examining electoral evidence at the party level in Latin America. I generated a value of electoral volatility for each party between elections by performing Morgenstern and Potthoffs (2005) components-of-variance model on an original dataset of lower house electoral results at the district level for 128 parties in 18 Latin American countries from 1978 to 2011. I first demonstrate that the patterns of electoral volatility at the party-level differ from that at the country level. I then apply a hierarchical linear model (HLM) to test country-level, party-level, and cross-level hypotheses regarding why some parties are more electorally volatile th an others. The most important result of this study is that the incumbent parties and opposition parties have different behavioral patterns under certain conditions. Specifically, I find that a better national economic performance helps the incumbent party, rather than every party in the country, to reduce the level of electoral volatility. Moreover, I demonstrate that an irregular institutional change greatly increases the incumbent partys electoral volatility, rather than that of every party in the country. At the party level, I find that the effect of a partys incumbency status is contingent on certain party-specific characteristics. The results show that incumbent parties that were founded in earlier periods are generally less volatile than younger incumbent parties. These findings are robust after controlling for a variety of other explanatory factors that will affect electoral volatility, using a different sample of parties, or adopting a different model specification. In sum, relative to previous work, this study is distinctive in that it uncovers patterns of electoral volatility and provides a better understanding of the dynamics of party politics in new democracies. Why Study Party-level Electoral Volatility? I focus on party volatility in this paper, and I argue that examining electoral volatility at the party level facilitates a better understanding of the patterns of party development. In general, electoral volatility refers to the phenomenon in which voters switch voting choice in consecutive elections. Many previous have used the Pedersen Indexà [2]à (Pedersen 1983) to operationalize the level of party system electoral volatility (Birch 2003; Kuenzi and Lambright 2001; Mainwaring 1999; Roberts and Wibbels 1999). However, as Mair (1997, 66) argues, aggregate volatility measurement such as the Pedersen Index explains little about the persistence or decay of political cleavages. Mainwaring et al. (2010) argue that the Pedersen Index fails to distinguish between the volatility caused by vote switches from one party to the other and the volatility caused by the entry and exit of parties from the political system. Morgenstern and Potthoffs (2005, 30) critique is that the Pedersen Index fails to account for the relative electoral movement of individual parties within the system; in other words, the Pedersen Index tells nothing about which party is more volatile than the others. This problematic feature may produce mistaken if not biased inferences. For instance, although the Pedersen Index indicates that Argentinas mean party system institutionalization is lower than that of Brazil and Mexico from the 1980s to the 2000s (Mainwaring and Zoco 2007, 159), it does not indicate that Argentinas electoral volatility is largely a result of the crisis of the Unià ³n Cà vica Radical (UCR) instead of the incumbent Partido Justicialista (PJ) (Levitsky 1998, 461). In short, aggregate electoral volatility is likely to mask patterns of party-level electoral volatility. The level of electoral volatility matters for a party because it is an important indicator of a partys long-term survival. Party volatility is also an indicator of party institutionalization (Dalton and Weldon 2007; Mainwaring and Scully 1995). According to Janda (1980, 26-7), an institutionalized party should have stable partisan support because it can secure stable representation by building strong and regular societal ties with the electorate. A more institutionalized party should have a lower level of electoral volatility and a higher probability to survive over time, and it also implies that this party has a stable, routinized organizational structure and/or supporters with strong partisanship (Levitsky 1998). As Randall and Svà ¥sand (2002) contend, a high level of party system institutionalization does not necessarily indicate that all the parties within the system have an equally high level of party institutionalization. In other words, it is not necessarily the case that a high level of country volatility implies that all the parties in this country are equally volatile between elections. Therefore, a more important research question needs to be addressed: Is a partys electoral volatility determined by country-level factors, features of the party, or both? In the next section, I will discuss and propose testable hypotheses for the empirical analyses. Explaining Party Volatility Party volatility considers the degree to which a partys average vote is stable across two consecutive elections. Previous studies about country-level electoral volatility have considered national economic performance, political institutions, and social structural factors as three competing theoretical explanations of electoral volatility. However, some of the tested hypotheses, particularly those regarding economic voting and institutional theories, are actually derived from behavioral patterns of individual parties. Thus, these hypotheses should be tested at a more appropriate level, that is, the party level. Unlike previous studies of electoral volatility that focus on country-level explanations, this paper focuses on explaining party-level volatility, and such a research design facilitates the testing of party-level, country-level, and cross-level hypotheses. In particular, I argue that the behavior of the incumbent party is different from opposition parties. Moreover, I contend that the effect of a partys incumbency status is contingent on certain factors. Next, I will discuss various competing theoretical arguments about party electoral volatility at different analytical levels. Party Age and Incumbency Status Previous studies have discussed how time affects electoral volatility at the country level. Roberts and Wibbels (1999) argue that an older system is likely to have deeper and stronger historical roots in society than younger ones. Therefore, the level of electoral volatility will decrease with the age of a party system. Adopting a similar approach, Mainwaring and Zoco (2007) propose a democratization timing explanation for why some party systems are more stable than others. The authors demonstrate that the level of democratic governance voters have experienced will affect the level of electoral volatility. In other words, what matters for accounting for stabilization of party competition is the timing when democracy began in the country. Voters in democracies that were created in earlier periods had stronger attachments to parties, so that can help forge stable patterns of party competition (Mainwaring and Zoco 2007, 163). In contrast, political elites in new democracies have less in centive to make efforts in party building, since they tend to depend on mass media and modern campaigns to win the elections. While Mainwaring and Zocos thesis sheds light on the relationship between democratic learning and party system stabilization, it ignores the variation of party age within a country. Clearly, old and young parties can exist in both old and new democracies in Latin America.à [3]à However, Mainwaring and Zocos argument might imply that party volatility will be higher in a newly-founded democracy, regardless of how old a party is in this country. To avoid this problematic inference, a more appropriate research strategy is to test Mainwaring and Zocos argument at the party level. Specifically, if Mainwaring and Zocos argument holds at the party level, we may expect that political parties that were founded in earlier periods will have lower levels of electoral volatility, because their supporters have much stronger partisan attachments than the supporters of younger parties. In contrast, younger parties will have higher levels of electoral volatility because the elites of these parties will have less incentive to delve into party building. Accordingly, the following hypothesis is generated: H1: A party that was founded in earlier periods will have a lower level of electoral volatility than a party that was founded later. The second testable hypothesis of this study is about a partys incumbency status. Some scholars argue that institutions such as states and parties might have their own strategic goals and behave as political actors in their own right (Cox and McCubbins 1993). While parties can be different in terms of various characteristics, whether or not a party is the presidents party is a crucial for explaining differences in party behavior. Incumbency advantage generally implies that incumbents are more likely to win an election than the counterpart nonincumbents (Erikson 1971; Mayhew 1974). Cox and Katz (1997) and Levitt and Wolfram (1997) decomposed the concept of incumbent advantage into three elements: (1) direct officeholder effect, such as opportunities for providing constituency services (Fiorina 1977; King 1991) and using legislative resources such as personal staff for performing casework (Cover and Brumberg 1982); (2) the ability of incumbents to scare off high-quality challengers (Kr asno and Green 1988); and (3) the generally higher quality of the incumbents due to their experiences and campaign skills (Fenno 1978). The literature on incumbent advantage provides useful insights for this study. Since presidency is often considered as an extraordinarily important political institution in Latin America (Mainwaring and Shugart 1997), it is expected that the presidents party has advantages that opposition parties do not have. In particular, the incumbent party is more likely to receive access to public funds and more capable in allocating targeted resources to secure its survival (Calvo and Murillo 2004). Although being an incumbent party does not necessarily indicate a higher probability of winning an election in the contemporary Latin American context, it is reasonable to expect that an incumbent party should have a more stable electoral performance than opposition parties. However, an incumbent party in a new democracy might not have a stable electoral performance under certain circumstances. The experience in Latin America suggests that, when a country is governed by a new party, the patterns of electoral competition will become more unstable. In Peru, Alberto Fujimoris self-coup in 1992 and the adoption of a new constitution in 1993 helped to dramatically increase votes for the incumbent Cambio 90 in the 1995 election. However, Fujimoris 40-point plunge in public approval ratings in mid-1997 (Roberts and Wibbels 1999, 586), and the demise of Fujimoris party in the 2000 and 2001 elections, not only suggest a high level of unpopularity of Fujimoris neoliberal structural reforms, but also a high level of fluid electoral preference when a country is governed by a new party. Although the effect of a partys incumbency status on party electoral volatility might not be clear, it is possible that this effect is conditional on other factors. In particular, if party age helps to reduce electoral volatility, it then makes sense that the effect should be stronger for the incumbent party. An incumbent party with an older age suggests that it not only has more access to use state resources to enhance its electoral competitiveness, but it also has stronger party organizations and members. Put differently, an older incumbent party might have a lower level of electoral volatility than a young incumbent party. Therefore, I generate the following hypothesis: H2: The effect of party age on reducing electoral volatility is stronger for an incumbent party. Incumbency, National Economy, and Institutional Change Besides the party-level hypotheses, I also test cross-level hypotheses to see whether the effect of a partys incumbency status is contingent on certain country-level factors. The first cross-level explanation concerns the interaction between incumbency and economy. Economic voting theory argues that some citizens will respond to the waxing and waning of the economy by shifting their votes to reward or punish incumbent parties and officeholders (Lewis-Beck 1988). In other words, electoral volatility is driven by voters retrospective evaluations of economic performance of the incumbent government. More specifically, economic hardship can be expected to increase electoral volatility by undermining the loyalties and support for the incumbent party and by increasing the opposition parties votes. By contrast, in a better economic climate, one would expect that people prefer to maintain the status quo by continuing to support the incumbent party so that electoral volatility decreases. The proposition that economic conditions shape election outcomes in democratic countries is robust for studies using individual survey data (Lewis-Beck and Stegmaier 2000). In contrast, analyses of electoral volatility at the country level find inconsistent evidence about economic voting. Remmer (1991; 1993) and Madrid (2005) demonstrate that economic performance has a significant impact on the level of electoral volatility in Latin America. The evidence in advanced democracies also shows that economic performance strongly shapes electoral volatility (Bischoff forthcoming). However, recent analyses of new democracies in post-communist Europe (Epperly 2011) and Africa (Ferree 2010) show that economic voting is not a crucial factor in explaining party system volatility. One possible explanation for these inconsistent findings pertains to the appropriateness of the level of analysis. Specifically, since economic voting theory suggests that national economic performance will affect the extent of vote switches between the incumbent party and opposition parties between elections, it is more appropriate and necessary to test this argument at the party level. If the economic voting argument holds, it is expected that the incumbent party will have a lower electoral volatility than opposition parties when the economic performance is better. Conversely, the incumbent party is expected to have a higher electoral volatility than the opposition parties when the economy is in crisis. Based on the logic of economic voting, I propose the following economic voting hypothesis on party volatility: H3: The incumbent party will have a lower level of electoral volatility than opposition parties when the national economy is better. The second cross-level explanation is about the interaction between incumbency and institutional change. As the literature of rational choice institutionalism indicates, institutions matter because political actors behavior is driven mainly by a strategic calculus facing the limitation and opportunities that particular institutional or organizational settings offer (Hall and Taylor 1996). The stable persistence of political institutions that regulate electoral competition helps political parties to socialize their voters over time, and upholds the legitimacy of a democratic regime. Therefore, a fundamental alteration or an irregular discontinuity in important political institutions is expected to have a shock effect on the competitive equilibrium of elections. Based on evidence from Latin American countries, Roberts and Wibbels (1999) and Madrid (2005) find that the electoral dynamics of a party system is greatly altered by the adoption of a new constitution, a significant enfranchisement, and/or irregular changes in the executive branch such as a presidential self-coup (autogolpe), or a forced resignation of the president. Although these dramatic and irregular alterations of existing institutions are found to increase electoral volatility at the country level, it makes sense that such shocks should also influence party-level electoral volatility. In particular, it is expected that such irregular institutional changes will increase the volatility of the incumbent party to a greater extent. Recent political developments in Latin America suggest that this hypothesis is reasonable. For instance, in Ecuador the adoption of a new constitution in 2008 helped the incumbent Alianza PAIS increase its level of voter support in the 2009 election. In contrast, irregular removal of presidents also leads to higher electoral volatility for incumbent parties, but in a negative direction. The 2009 Honduran coup dà ©tat with the removal of President Manuel Zelaya made his Partido Liberal de Honduras (PLH) suffer a significant loss in the election at the end of the year. Likewise, the resignation of President Alberto Fujimori in Peru in 2000 also led to an electoral fiasco for the governing Cambio 90-Nueva Mayoria. Based on the discussion above, I propose the following hypothesis: H4: The incumbent party will have a higher level of electoral volatility than opposition parties after a shock of an irregular institutional discontinuity. Alternative Explanations of Party Volatility In the empirical analysis, I control for a number of factors that are likely to affect party volatility. At the party level, I control for the size of a party. Party size may influence the stability of electoral performance. The literature of legislators party switching suggests that larger parties in the legislature are more attractive to potential party switchers because they generally have more political influence (Desposato 2006; Heller and Mershon 2008). Therefore, it is possible that a larger party should have a lower level of electoral volatility because it is more attractive to voters who are unwilling to waste their votes on parties with little chance to win the elections. However, it is also possible that smaller parties, especially those with strong regional base, may have low electoral volatility. It is because such parties are able to sustain their survival by securing a small but strong portion of the electorate over time. At the country level, I control for party system fragmentation and ethnic fractionalization. First, according to Pedersen (1983), electoral volatility increases with the number of parties in a system because a greater number of parties suggests that the ideological difference between the parties is small so that voters tend to switch their votes from one party to another between elections. In addition, party system fragmentation will destabilize democratic regimes because it tends to inhibit the construction of inherent legislative majorities (Roberts and Wibbels 1999, 578). Although the hypothesis of party system fragmentation has only been tested at the country level in previous literature (Bartolini and Mair 1990; Birch 2003; Roberts and Wibbels 1999; Tavits 2005), it is possible that a fragmented party system will increase electoral volatility at the party level. Another factor that may explain electoral volatility is social cleavages. Madrid (2005, 3) observes that the theoretical expectation that stronger ethnic cleavages help stabilize party systems (Lipset and Rokkan 1967) presumes that parties will provide quality representation of distinct ethnic groups and establish strong linkages with them. In Latin America, this expectation does not hold since most party systems have been composed principally of catch-all parties that have drawn support from a variety of social groups. Because minority ethnic groups would not feel well-represented under this context, the level of electoral volatility tends to be higher since it is unlikely for them to form strong partisan identities (Birnir and Van Cott 2007; Madrid 2005). In short, it is expected that Latin American parties in a highly ethnically fragmented social context will have higher levels of electoral volatility. Last, following previous studies of country-level electoral volatility (Roberts and Wibbels 1999; Tavits 2005; Madrid 2005), I control for a trend factor of party electoral volatility in the model. In a cross-sectional time-series design, Trend controls for the potential problem of spurious correlation when the values of the dependent variable and the independent variables vary independently but in a consistent direction over time. Measurement and Data The unit of analysis in this research is party-elections-country (e.g. Partido dos Trabalhadores 1994-1998 in Brazil). My conception of the dependent variable requires the collection of legislative electoral returns at the district level across time, differentiated by party or party coalition.à [4]à The data include 128 parties in the lower house elections of 18 Latin American countries from 1978 to 2011 (N=527).à [5]à Most district-level electoral data are compiled from official electoral results on the website of each countrys electoral administrative body.à [6]à For the countries that were democratized later in the 1980s or in the 1990s, only the elections after the first democratic election were included.à [7]à Since Latin American countries have different timing of democratization and term length, the data structure of this analysis is unbalanced. A party is selected for the analyses if the party once obtained more than 5% of votes in any legislative election hel d between 1978 and 2011 in the country. This selection criterion ensures the inclusion of a diversity of parties. To generate the value of party volatility, I adopted Morgenstern and Potthoffs (2005) components-of-variance model on district-level data between two consecutive legislative elections held within the same constituency border.à [8]à One major advantage of this components-of-variance model is that it simultaneously takes into account various features of a partys electoral performance when generating the value of party volatility. Specifically, Morgenstern and Potthoffs model enables the calculation of three components of a partys vote share in a particular election: volatility, district heterogeneity, and local vote. While Morgenstern and his colleagues have used the latter two components for the research about party nationalization (Morgenstern and Swindle 2005; Morgenstern, Swindle, and Castagnola 2009), I focus on the first component, i.e., party electoral volatility, in this paper. The volatility score assigned for each observation is a continuous variable with values that rang e from 0 to à ¢Ãâ Ã
¾, where higher numbers indicate a higher level of electoral volatility for the party. My primary party-level independent variables are Incumbency, Party age, and Incumbency*Party age. Incumbency is a dichotomous variable, measuring whether a party was the presidents party in two consecutive elections. Following Mainwaring and Zoco (2007), I measure Party age as the natural log of the number of years from the year when the party was officially founded to the year of 2011. The value of this variable does not vary over time, but is constant for all electoral periods for a given party. The interaction term, Incumbency*Party age, examines whether the effect of a partys age on volatility is contingent on a partys incumbency status. To test the economic voting hypothesis, I use two economic indicators: GDP growtht1 and Inflationt1.à [9]à GDP growtht1 is lagged by one year to capture the short term economic impact on volatility. Inflation rate is operationalized as the logged value of the inflation rate for the year before the election year. The logged inflation rate is used to prevent cases of hyperinflation from skewing the results.à [10]à To test whether the effect of the national economy on party volatility is conditional on a partys incumbency status, I include two interaction terms: Incumbency*GDP growtht1 and Incumbency*Inflationt1. In addition, to test whether a shock of institutional alteration will affect the incumbent party to a greater extent, I include two variables: Institutional discontinuity and Incumbency*Institutional discontinuity. I use the index constructed by Roberts and Wibbels (1999) to measure institutional discontinuity. The index ranges from 0 to 3, assigning one point to each of the following types of discontinuities: the adoption of a new constitution; an increase in voter turnout of more than 25 percent due to the enfranchisement of new voters; and an irregular change in executive authority, including a presidential self-coup (autogolpe), a forced resignation of the president, the ouster of the president due to impeachment, or a failed coup dà ©tat attempt when the president was temporarily ousted from the office.à [11]à Finally, I control for several party-level and country-level variables in the model. Party size is measured as the vote share of the party in the previous election.à [12]à Party system fragmentationt1 is measured as the index of the effective number of parties (ENP) (Laakso and Taagepera 1979), lagged by one election.à [13]à Ethnic Fragmentation is measured as Fearons (2003) ethnic fractionalization index. Last, the variable Trend is measured as the number of years since the first election in which a party participated. Estimation Techniques To test the hypotheses about party-level electoral volatility, I employ a hierarchical linear model (HLM) on my three-level data. The three-level model is specified as a level-1 submodel that describes how each party changes over time, a level-2 submodel that describes how these changes differ across parties, and a level-3 model that describes how parties and changes differ across countries. An attractive feature of a multilevel models is its ability to model cross-level interactions in the estimation. Another important advantage of the HLM approach is being able to account for both fixed effects and random effects. In this study, the fixed-effects coefficients and parameters of the HLM estimate a regression line that describes the sample of parties as a whole, while the random-effect parameters reflect variation across parties and variation across countries. Application of the HLM in this study will specify three different levels of analysis: The level-1 submodel represents the rela tionship of time-varying characteristics on party volatility, the level-2 model will incorporate party-level effects that are fixed over time, and level-3 will introduce country-level effects that are fixed over time. I estimate the model using restricted maximum likelihood estimation (REML). In contrast to full MLE estimation, REML takes into account the degrees of freedom consumed by estimation of the fixed effects by eliminating fixed effects from the likelihood fu
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
Angola Millennium Goals Report 2010 Essay -- Goal Analysis
CONTENT 1. Abstractâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦...â⬠¦3 2. Introductionâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.4 3. 2.a. United Nations - Millennium Development Goals Project.......................................4 4. 2.b. Angola â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦4 5. The first goal â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..5 6. 3.a What is the goal ? â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦...â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.5 7. 3.b. Angola`s targets â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.5 8. 3.c.Angola`s challenges â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦...â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.5 9. 3.d. Will Angola complete the goal â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..6 10. 4.The sixth goal â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦........................6 11. 4.a.What is the goal ? â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦..6 12. 4.b.1. Angola`s target â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..â⬠¦...............................6 13. 4.b.2.Angola`s progressâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.............................6 14. 4.c. Angola`s challenges â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦...â⬠¦.............................7 15. 4.d.WillAngolacompletethegoal â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦...........................7 16. 5.Conclusion â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦.....................7 17. References list â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..â⬠¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦Ã¢â¬ ¦..8 1. Abstract There are many regions of Africa involved in war, from the Ivory Coast in the west to sub Saharan Africa. Many of the issues are occur in Africa such as violence, AIDS/HIV diseases, poverty, famine, ethnic or religious conflict, corruption, and economic stagnation .This report analyses two goals from the Millennium Development Goals Project through Angola`s efforts to reach them(United Nation 2010 ). The aim of this paper is to explain the Millennium Development Goals in Angola as an underdeveloped country with a focus on two goals. The first one is reduction of e... ...ewed 17 June 2010 https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ao.html. ââ¬ËLitigation Report Corruption in Angola - A Human Rights Violationââ¬â¢, December 2008,pp 1-54 viewed 20 June 2010. . MDG Monitor 2010, ââ¬ËTracking the millennium Development Goalsââ¬Ë, viewed 22 JUNE 2010, ââ¬ËNational strategy plan on HIV-AIDSââ¬â¢, 2008, pp. 1- 49, viewed 17 June 2010 http://www.womenandaids.net/CMSPages/GetFile.aspx?guid=02a80000-587a../pdf United Nation 2010, ââ¬ËThe Millennium Development Goalsââ¬â¢, viewed 10 June 2010. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/. ââ¬ËThe Millennium Development Goals reportââ¬â¢ 2008, United Nation, viewed 10 June 2010. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/The%20Millennium%20Development%20Goals%20Report%202008.pdf.
The Physics of Cooling Techniques :: thermodynamics physics refrigerator
There are many reasons for wanting to cool things, but whatever the reason, the Second Law of Thermodynamics dictates that cooling something will take effort (sorry, no spontaneously cool sodas). Different techniques have been developed to address this issue, each having its own limitations and ideal uses. The most commonly used method of cooling is with vapor-compression cycles, because it is fairly easy to construct a cooling device employing this method and the cost is low. In fact, conventional refrigerators use this method of cooling to keep your leftovers and drinks chilled! Air conditioners also employ a vapor-compression cycle to cool the ambient air temperature in a room. Basically, vapor-compression refrigeration employs a heat engine run backwards, so heat energy is taken from a cold reservoir and deposited into a hot reservoir. By the Second Law of Thermodynamics, heat energy does not spontaneously transfer from a cold to a hot reservoir. In order to have heat transfer in that direction (and not from from hot to cold, as the system is naturally inclined to do), it is necessary to do work on the system. Vapor-Compression Refrigeration Cycle This refrigeration cycle is approximately a Rankine cycle run in reverse. A working fluid (often called the refrigerant) is pushed through the system and undergoes state changes (from liquid to gas and back). The latent heat of vaporization of the refrigerant is used to transfer large amounts of heat energy, and changes in pressure are used to control when the refrigerant expels or absorbs heat energy. However, for a refrigeration cycle that has a hot reservoir at around room temperature (or a bit higher) and a cold reservoir that is desired to be at around 34Ã °F, the boiling point of the refrigerant needs to be fairly low. Thus, various fluids have been identified as practical refrigerants. The most common include ammonia, Freon (and other chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants, aka CFCs), and HFC-134a (a non-toxic hydrofluorocarbon). Stages of the Vapor-Compression Refrigeration Cycle The Vapor-Compression Refrigeration Cycle is comprised of four steps. The conceptual figure of the process shows the PV changes during each part. Part 1: Compression In this stage, the refrigerant enters the compressor as a gas under low pressure and having a low temperature.
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Psy ch
The following are all examples of descriptive research EXCEPT: (Points : case studies. Correlation research design. Naturalistic observations. Surveys. Question 2. 2. A scientist studied whether climate affected growth in rats. All rats were the same age and from the same parent rats. For the study, they were raised in three distinct climates: tropical, arctic, and multinationals. In this study, the climates are categorical variables . (Points : 1) dependent variables independent variables extraneous variables Question 3. . Changes based on biological and psychological forces are functions of roommate age-graded influences cultural and age-graded Influences normative and cultural influences biological and cultural influences Question 4. 4. Professor stone follows patterns as they relate to human habitats, development, and behaviors. She is an evolutionist an ideologist a behavioral a cognitive Question 5. 5. In a hypothetical study, researchers found that 5. 7 out of 10 people prefer red dogs to cats.These data results are statistically significant statistically insignificant statistically relevant statistically Indeterminable Question 6. 6. Surveys: (Points : 1) are self-reporting and always reliable. FIFO reporting and may result in dishonest or unreliable results. Returns with reliable results. Question 7. 7. The Law of Effect is the foundation for psychodrama theory psychosocial theory behavioral theory ecological systems theory provide nearly 100% Question 8. 8. You have observed and noted the behaviors of one learner in your classroom, who you believe to have a learning disability.You take detailed notes over a designated period of time, with time and date stamps identifying significant reference markers, improvements, or other changes in learning achievement and behaviors. By following this protocol you have conducted empirical study a case study a phenomenological study a comparison study Question 9. 9. Thomas is a teacher who guides his students gradual ly and only as they require. His students' learning grows on the foundational building blocks in a scaffolding fashion within a zone of proximal development. Thomas adheres to the reciprocal process as theorized by Freud Bandeau Woos KY Erikson Question 10. 0. Many people believe that vaccines cause autism. This is an example of a proven theory an inaccurate theory a folk theory a research theory Question 1 1. 11 . Gender is a social construct referencing cultural behavioral expectations for men and women. (Points : 1) True False Question 12. 12. Is a theorist who believed in a psychosocial model in (Points : 1) Frontbencher Question 13. 13. When evaluating sources, the following is true: (Points : 1) Begin with wick sources as the first step. You can always rely on governmental or educational sources. Blobs and news sources are rarely sufficient for academic study.Skepticism is not always accessory. Question 14. 14. Psychosocial development considers personality, social, and emotio nal factors temperament, cognitive, and physical factors emotional, temperament, and cognitive factors temperament, social, and cognitive factors Question 15. 15. Puberty is a function of development physical development maturation emotional development psychosocial Question 16. 16. Jenny is a single mother of three, whose children range between the ages of 6 and 16. She has decided to return to school at the age of 45. Her circumstances are examples of graded influences normative influences roommate maturation Question 17. 7. Cognition refers to the way about other people normative history- . (Points : 1) people think people process language, thought, and problem solving people believe in intelligence people use mnemonic devices for memory Question 18. 18. In a hypothetical study on the effects of aging in older adults, 100 a representative sample an aggregate sample an age-appropriate sample a random sample Question 19. 19. A researcher studied children and noticed that most advan ced in a fixed set of maturational or developmental stages, and that they were predictable by hierological age rather than in a relative or variable sequence.The researcher's hypothesis reflects the theory of Pigged Question 20. 20. By the statement, ââ¬Å"Stages of adult development are social constructs,â⬠the text means that consistent across cultures life stages are development is linked to chronological age each culture or society identifies markers, which may or may not be consistent with chronological age, for maturation or adult development maturation markers are consistent with chronological age across all cultures, regarding maturation or adult development
Monday, September 30, 2019
Graduating from High School Essay
Most grade-schoolers dream about the day they will walk across the stage on beginning day and receive their diplomas. They are under the impression they will be free from all work in their life, and be able to finally live. A person graduating from high school can take many directions in life; most graduates also go to dorm at college, travel to college, or start working. First, many graduates run from their parents and desire to go to college as far away from home as possible. When students move away, they get their first feel of living away from home. Which brings everyday jobs like Cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry are a few examples of how college students have to learn to give for themselves. Also, earning a college degree gives a person greater earning like the ability to work in the field of their choice. Going away to college can be a wonderful time for a person to grown-up and start their adult life. Another decision a person may choose after graduating high school is commute to a college. Traveling is not a possibility for everyone graduating high school because of location, but can be a great chance for those who are in drivable distance to a college. Living with parents and driving to college can save college student money because they do not have to pay to dorm. Staying with parents means mom is still around to give home cooked meals and life does not change from high school. Commuting to college can be a great way to save money, while still earning a college degree. Last, many high school students decide not to go to a college and join the work force right after high school. This means they will not be able to pay back expensive school loans and will be able to have more financial freedom in the short term. A person joining the work has the ability to stay in touch with friends in the area they live in and a few years after graduating or find their own place to reside. Joining the work force out of high school is a great option for some people who choose to do so but is not the best plan for those who want to more education. A personââ¬â¢s decision about what they will do after high school, weather it is going away to college, commuting to college or joining the work force, will affect them the rest of their life. A lot of thought and prayer should go into any decision, especially those which will affect a person for the rest of their life. In the end, if a person they believe God wants them to does it will end up the way God wants it.
Sunday, September 29, 2019
How to Write a Research Paper Essay
ââ¬Å"This should be sent to a journalâ⬠ââ¬Å"Very good work, but Iââ¬â¢m not sure why Alan Bundy hasnââ¬â¢t written this? â⬠Anonymous review: ââ¬Å"Clearly the author fails to understands Walshââ¬â¢s previous work on this topicâ⬠â⬠¢ 1st Lesson â⬠¢ Donââ¬â¢t lose heart â⬠¢ Even if you do everything right, reviewing is imperfect Good papers will be rejected But try to learn from your knock-backs! â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Why you? â⬠¢ Academic career â⬠¢ Publish or perish â⬠¢ Have an impact â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Communicate your results Many have not had the impact they deserve for being bad writers â⬠¢ Writing is fun! Outline â⬠¢ How to get your paper rejected â⬠¢ There are many traps even experienced researchers make Myself very much included â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Hints about how to write a paper â⬠¢ Writing is a craft not a science! How to be rejected â⬠¢ Submit over-length â⬠¢ Blind man: send in 7 pages even though the instructions clearly say 5 Once they see quality of work, theyââ¬â¢ll be pleased you sent in more material â⬠¢ How to be rejected Submit over-length â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Diplomatic immunity: put extra 2 pages in appendix Appendices clearly donââ¬â¢t count Similarly, bibliography doesnââ¬â¢t count â⬠¢ â⬠¢ How to be rejected â⬠¢ Submit over-length â⬠¢ LaTeX hacker: â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ change from 11 to 9 point font squeeze inter-line space â⬠¦ â⬠¢ No one will ever notice How to be rejected â⬠¢ Submit late â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Deadlines are meant for everyone else Review schedules have plenty of slack Your paper is worth the wait! How to be rejected â⬠¢ You donââ¬â¢t have room for space wasters like: â⬠¢ Motivation, Background, Related work â⬠¢ Why do review forms always have these on them anyway? How to be rejected â⬠¢ Annoy reader/reviewer â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Proof is trivial, when it isnââ¬â¢t Prove the trivial Fail to cite their work Only cite yourself How to be rejected â⬠¢ Annoy reader/reviewer â⬠¢ Donââ¬â¢t bother to spell check â⬠¢ What do computers know about spelling anyway? â⬠¢ Use all the old cliches â⬠¢ ââ¬Å"There has been a lot of interest recently in global constraints. â⬠How to be rejected â⬠¢ Annoy reader/reviewer â⬠¢ Be pompous, boring, â⬠¦ â⬠¢ This is science not literature guys, who said it should be fun? â⬠¢ Be overly formal â⬠¢ Theorems and formulas add weight How to be rejected â⬠¢ Annoy reader/reviewer â⬠¢ Make them really work â⬠¢ After all, these are dif? cult concepts and it took you some time â⬠¦ â⬠¢ Ignore reviews â⬠¢ Just keep sending paper in, eventually it will be accepted How to write a paper â⬠¢ Hints about how to write â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Preparation Writing itself Ethics Preparation â⬠¢ Read, read, read! â⬠¢ To learn how to write, read a lot â⬠¢ I spend over 20% of my time reading â⬠¢ 1 day/week in library Read, Read, Read â⬠¢ Related literature â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ So you can cite it So you donââ¬â¢t re-invent wheels So you know what others think are important research questions Read, Read, Read â⬠¢ Other conference/journal papers where you intend to publish â⬠¢ â⬠¢ So you learn the ââ¬Å"houseâ⬠style So you can place your work within the bigger picture So you learn how to ask good questions â⬠¢ Read, Read, Read â⬠¢ Any sort of literature â⬠¢ Magazines, novels, biographies, â⬠¦ â⬠¢ Writing is a skill, learn from others â⬠¢ I read approx one novel/week as a way of trying to learn how to write And I have the luxury of writing in my own language! â⬠¢ Review, Review, Review â⬠¢ Review as much as you can â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ So you see good/bad writing So you see the newest results (but see ethics) So you ask yourself good questions â⬠¢ What is the contribution here? What are the weaknesses? â⬠¦ Write, Write, Write â⬠¢ The best preparation to writing is to write â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Writing gets easier the more you do it Writing is easier if youââ¬â¢ve drafted much of what you already need Writing is the best way to organize your thoughts Writing is a good way to record what you have done. â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Writing â⬠¢ Work out the timetable â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Rushed papers frequently rejected Late papers are almost always rejected If you always write to deadlines, writing will seem more painful than it is Writing â⬠¢ Work out the message â⬠¢ You should be able to convey this in one sentence â⬠¢ ââ¬Å"We propose a new global constraint, provide a ? ltering algorithm and show it useful on some standard benchmarksâ⬠Writing â⬠¢ Work out the message â⬠¢ You should be able to convey this in one sentence â⬠¢ ââ¬Å"We identify an important class of symmetry, and show how to break itâ⬠â⬠¢ Write to the message! Writing â⬠¢ Distribute the work â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Play to your strengths If you have a native speaker, have them write intro/conclusion â⬠¦ â⬠¢ Write to length â⬠¢ Brutally cut papers are frequently rejected Writing â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Structure paper before you write it I write template for paper with sections and subsection headings ? rst â⬠¢ Intro, Background, Theoretical results, Empirical results, Related work, Conclusions Writing â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Start where you are most happy Often write from the middle outwards â⬠¢ Theoretical results, Experiments, â⬠¦ , Conclusions, Introduction, Abstract Writing â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Rule of Three Say everything 3 times! â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Introduce idea (introduction) Develop idea (body of paper) Summarize result (conclusions) â⬠¢ But donââ¬â¢t copy verbatim the same text! Title â⬠¢ Make it meaningful and brief â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Donââ¬â¢t make a joke Remember someone reading reference needs to be able to work out likely contents Good: the TSP phase transition Bad: Easy Problems are sometimes Hard â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Abstract â⬠¢ Executive summary â⬠¢ Try for one sentence or so on: â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Motivation Method Key result Conclusions Introduction â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ What is the problem? Why is it interesting? What are your contributions? What is the outline of what you will show? Introduction â⬠¢ Lure the reader in a with a good ? rst sentence â⬠¢ Bad: There has been a lot of work recently on phase transition behaviourâ⬠¦ Good: Global constraints are central to the success of constraint programmingâ⬠¦ â⬠¢ Background â⬠¢ Often need to set scene â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ De? ne formalism Get reader up to speed Identify research problem Body of Paper â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Derive theoretical results Propose new algorithm Describe system engineered â⬠¦ Results â⬠¢ Bullet proof paper â⬠¢ Theoretical results â⬠¢ Experiments only provide a limited view â⬠¢ Experimental results â⬠¢ Theory doesnââ¬â¢t show if results are useful in practice. Related work â⬠¢ Has many purposes â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ You give proper credit to prior work You are not re-inventing wheel You can compare what you do with what has been done before Conclusions â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Remind reader of what you have done Place work in wider context â⬠¢ ââ¬Å"What general lessons might be learnt from this study? â⬠â⬠¢ Flag all the exciting open research directions Acknowledgements â⬠¢ Thank all who have helped you â⬠¢ Provided code, data sets, â⬠¦ â⬠¢ Thank ? nancial sponsors Writing â⬠¢ Keep it simple! â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Active, not passive Present, not past or future Long words Short sentences Writing â⬠¢ Avoid temptation to include every result you have â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Paper needs to be coherent Paper needs to be understandable Many papers are rejected for having too many results! Ethics of Writing â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Authorship Citation Submission Publication Authorship â⬠¢ Who should be an author? â⬠¢ Anyone who has made a signi? cant contribution May not have written any text! Always err on the side of caution â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Authorship â⬠¢ Who should be an author? â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Ask! Youââ¬â¢ll be surprised how often people refuse You can be sure theyââ¬â¢ll not work with you again if they feel they should be Authorship â⬠¢ Should my advisor be an author? â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ In ? rst few years of thesis, probably yes .. Once you graduate, you should (be able to) write papers on your own Again, ask! â⬠¢ Citation â⬠¢ Cite all relevant work â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Reviews always ask about Related Work Youââ¬â¢ll want them to cite you Itââ¬â¢s central to the scienti? c method â⬠¢ We stand on the shoulders of others Citation â⬠¢ Do I cite myself for a blind review? â⬠¢ â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Yes! You must credit all previous work Either cite [Author, 2004] Or write ââ¬Å"As Walsh has shown previously [Walsh 2004] â⬠¦ â⬠Submission â⬠¢ Can I submit to multiple conferences? â⬠¢ Whatââ¬â¢s the deal with the disclaimer (â⬠This paper is not under review ..â⬠)? â⬠¢ Can I submit to a journal immediately? â⬠¢ â⬠¢ No hard and fast rules My rule, once reviews are back and paper is effectively in press â⬠¦ Publication â⬠¢ Can I publish my conference paper as it is in a journal? â⬠¢ Probably not, even though conference is not archival Most journals ask you to extend conference paper substantially â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Proofs, more experiments, â⬠¦ Final words â⬠¢ It takes time to learn how to write â⬠¢ Donââ¬â¢t be put off if at ? rst your have papers rejected All of us have papers rejected â⬠¢ â⬠¢ Spend time learning how to write â⬠¢ It will be worth the investment.
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Women and Advertising
2AHIFA? JELAI Itââ¬â¢s the Image that Is Imperfect Advertising and Its Impact on Women Advertisements and media images have a stronger impact on shaping gender images than books on feminism and scholarly experiments on gender equality. Stereotypes and generalisations in ads continue to objectify women, and place stress solely on their appearance, thus devaluing their innate worth. INDHU RAJAGOPAL, JENNIFER GALES Prologue I n examining higher education, there is a tendency to assume that all students have equal opportunities and only merit matters. There are, however, some unique factors that mitigate chances for qual treatment for all groups because of different ascriptive characteristics of students who wish to access, and achieve merit in, higher education. Gender is one such ascriptive characteristic that blocks girls and women both socially and academically from realising their fullest potential. In this paper, we will examine how gender-based social images that are transmitte d through the media act as barriers to realising studentsââ¬â¢ full potential in their life. Could higher education intervene in and vitiate these media images? As far as gender issues are concerned, it can be proven that the power of advertisements nd media images has a stronger impact in shaping gender images than what books on feminism and scholarly experiments have on gender equality. On the assumption that education shapes our intellect, we proceed to explore in this paper how media shape the images, especially those of girls and women. The Image-Making As we sit here watching the new Leviââ¬â¢s commercial ââ¬â yes, the one with the catchy tune with the singing belly buttons ââ¬â we find ourselves becoming a victim to the Economic and Political Weekly power of advertising. We were thinking how good these jeans would be especially for someone with my body type as we hum he song and do the dance. Then it hit us we are turning into the advertiserââ¬â¢s best friend ââ¬â the one who believes anything they say. Furthermore, we are getting ready to tell our friends about the new ââ¬Ëitemââ¬â¢ on the market and how there are jeans to fit women with the wide hip too! The power that advertisements carry with them is sensational. They have the ability to change and shape peopleââ¬â¢s opinions of themselves with one picture of an image that is technologically modified to represent the advertiserââ¬â¢s perspective of what is seen as perfect by viewers. The key word is advertiserââ¬â¢s perspective because often he person who has created what she or he deems as the ideal image has also created the model. Often advertisements do not correctly represent the majority of society or even a small percentage of how women actually look. This analysis is intended to enlighten readers on the effect advertisements carry with them, specifically on women. First the discussion will expand on the societal milieu that ads hold, and then continue to e xplain the effects consumerism and promotional messages on this group of individuals. By looking at advertisements, and at theoretical and scholarly literature as well as popular culture material on the topic, this nalysis will show how the images advertisements allude to can influence and shape a womanââ¬â¢s perspective of herself. Matlin (1987) explains how the mediaââ¬â¢s misrepresentation of women in advertise- August 10, 2002 ments has created plenty of stereotypical representations of women. She lists seven empirically documented stereotypes that have been created by advertisements. Matlinââ¬â¢s1 sixth stereotype states that womenââ¬â¢s bodies are used differently from menââ¬â¢s bodies in advertisements [Matlin 1987: 43]. In advertisements, men are shown accompanying the female and looking directly into the camera whereas females are portrayed with their eyes ooking away from the camera. Women are often shown in a sexual or vulnerable position in order to sell t he product, whether it is an advertisement for shaving cream or alcoholic beverage, for instance, Edge Shaving Cream, Pepsi-Cola or Absolute Vodka. Is this a reasonable representation of how women act and dress? No, it is not; but these types of ads are able to change what women think they should look like. When magazines feature pages on ââ¬Å"make your butt look good in every outfitâ⬠, you have to wonder whether your butt does not look good now. You think: ââ¬Å"I must have had a problem all along and I never noticed! Then, as you read on, you see some skinny and obviously attractive woman is advertising this article, which makes you think, ââ¬Å"I will benefit and look like her if I read this article and buy the productâ⬠! Matlin illustrates how, when women look at advertisements showing beautiful female models, they tend to be less satisfied with their own attractiveness [Matlin 1987:44]. It is evident that the media will be the catalyst for these women to have body image problems. But do you blame them? Anyone would be self-conscious of his/her image after looking through a magazine filled with attractive women who portray unattainable images.Matlin describes how the medium is an important force in shaping reality [Matlin 1987: 43]. It is these stereotyped representations that help to shape womensââ¬â¢ opinions of what they should look like. Often girls and women forget that, and become sensitised by advertisements. They do not realise that they are conforming to what the ads show by reading the magazine adââ¬â¢s prescription that will help them look like the woman in the ad in just three weeks! Realistically, these gender stereotypes only create more barriers for women. By creating 3333 these unrealistic images of women both genders are affected by these unreasonable nd often unattainable expectations and goals. The power of ads shapes menââ¬â¢s expectations for finding women who are over five feet and six inches tall, but still wei ghing less than 100 pounds, who look great in tight clothes, and demure and submissive. This is not a practical or reasonable expectation. In real life situations, it creates a downward spiral of disappointment and disillusionment. We live in a world where the goal of many North American women is to look like the next model in the Victoriaââ¬â¢s Secret advertisements, which is one of the few catalogues a man generally grabs from the mail pile nd eagerly reads. Kang tries to answer the question: what messages do magazine advertisements on women transmit to society (1997: 979)? Following closely on Erving Goffmanââ¬â¢s original study on gender analysis, the findings in this article are quite similar to the original survey that not much of a change has occurred over the years in the way womenââ¬â¢s roles are portrayed. Advertisements have consistently confined women to the traditional role of a mother, or beauty, or sex symbol, and these do not represent womenââ¬â¢s diversi ty [Kang 1997: 981]. This is similar to what Matlin refers to as gender stereotypes in ads.Ads use women not as humans but as objects. Stereotypes and generalisations in ads continue to objectify women, and place stress solely on their appearance, thus devaluing their innate worth. Kilbourne (1995) points out that a picture ad by only looking at one part of the body, for instance, the breasts, dismembers the womanââ¬â¢s body and objectifies her. This effect is demonstrated in alcohol or beverages or perfume ads that use a womenââ¬â¢s body as the bottle. Ads seem to show more often skinny women cleaning the bathroom, making dinner or even worse putting on make-up; the women in these pictures are never heavy or even verage in size. The ads are made to portray unrealistic and over-exaggerated images. Women may indeed be engaged in such tasks; but how many women at home are organising their husbandââ¬â¢s clothes and dusting antiques, wearing the latest makeup collection or the newest and trendiest outfit? These ads are so reminiscent of the 1950s image of June Cleaver waiting for her husband Ward to come home, while she cooks dinner and waters the plants wearing her pearl necklace. Again, we 3334 see the emphasis on the woman being attractive, no matter what role she plays. Once more, we see that advertisements ranslate and portray attractiveness as being tall, skinny and with flawless skin to condition the onlookers and attract them to such representations made in the ad. Kilbourne is a pioneering researcher on the topic of misrepresentation of women in advertisements. She is an avid lecturer, and has produced many videos on the topic of her lectures. Her most recent book Canââ¬â¢t Buy My Love (1999) talks about the way advertising can influence women and mould their opinions. Just as we are more vulnerable to the glory and heartbreak of romantic love than we will ever be again, at no time are we more vulnerable to the eductive power of advertising an d of addiction than we are in our adolescence [Kilbourne 1999: 129]. Thus, we are shown how a woman is actually influenced by ads and can end up physically trying to change to fit what she sees as acceptable because the advertisers show her that she needs to be skinny. In her video ââ¬ËKilling us Softly 3ââ¬â¢, Kilbourne continues to look at magazine advertisements and the images they promote. She looks carefully at what Goffman outlines as his ââ¬Å"categoriesâ⬠to analyse advertisements. 2 Kilbourneââ¬â¢s mandate is to make people take ads seriously because they do have an effect on humans and specially marginalised groups in this case, women. In her video, she touches on the obvious, but often forgotten, fact that technology plays a part in what we view as the perfect-looking person [Kilbourne 2000]. It is impossible to remove every line or blemish to create the illusion we viewers try to create. That is why I feel that ads are not healthy for women because they gi ve that fond hope that we could look like that person if we just, do/use ââ¬Ëthisââ¬â¢ and take ââ¬Ëthatââ¬â¢. What many viewers do not realise, as Kilbourne so quickly pointed out, is that often what we see are advertisements that have been air-brushed or created from a atabase of physical parts of various attractive human beings [Kilbourne 1995]. So Kilbourne asks the real question: when only 5 per cent of women can look like models why do we rush around to look like something we cannot be? [Kilbourne 2000]. Kilbourneââ¬â¢s research proves that young girls are easily influenced by these ads and will do anything to create the look granted as attractive. Cultivating a thinner body offers some hope of control and success to young women with a poor self- image [Kilbourne 1999: 132]. The image of beauty in thinness is often the only body type ever advertised, and therefore shown to women.Marilyn Monroe was a national sex symbol, but was a size 12! [Kilbourne 2000]. It wa s originally thought that the extra skinny women would wear clothes well for a designer, and that way the audience would only see the outfit not the body because there was not much to see. Unfortunately, that plan backfired and the media had a field day with stressing the beauty of the women under the supposed item in question, the outfit. In the past, women who were skinny were not attractive, and were even thought of to be living a povertystricken life because they were so thin. In the present day, many young girls do not ee that these images of being thin are unattainable, and turn to being anorexic or bulimic [Stemple and Tyler 1974: 272]. Having advertisers choose what is sexy is not correct or healthy for a society. Girls live day by day on what is cool or not because the latest issue of Cosmopolitan dictates what is cool. Their life revolves around the new ââ¬Ëget fit dietââ¬â¢, or around the top that makes them look like they have extra big breasts. The advertisement i n the Martha Stewart magazine (January 2002) is an example of how women of all ages can become the new target audience. It would be logical o assume that ââ¬ËBilli Joââ¬â¢ can be seen as a middle-aged person (shown in the picture of herself in the inset before she lost weight). Following her use of the Jenny Craig Ultimate Choice Program, she was able to lose weight and feel good again. Keep in mind that it does state that results are not typical, but still the persuasive language and attractive picture only assist in making the advertisement truthful. The advertisement was featured in the prestigious Martha Stewart magazine. This magazine personifies a specific image of good taste and sophistication, which is another way to promote these ad images s acceptable. Kilbourne talks about the objectification of women. This is a common advertising tactic often used. ââ¬Å"Many ads feature just a part of a womanââ¬â¢s body ââ¬â a derriere, a headless torsoâ⬠[Kilbourne 1 999:258]. An article in Newsweek explored the truth of stereotypes and how these stereotypes affect the genders. In the eyes of Cross (1996), this can be seen as gender typing: the process by which we identify not only people, but also vocabulary and speech patterns, gestures and behaviours, objects Economic and Political Weekly August 10, 2002 and activities as either masculine or feminine [Cross 1996: 94].By allowing this to happen, stereotypes are formed and perpetuated by the people who believe in these gender stereotypes. Claude Steele, a Stanford University psychologist, showed something more important ââ¬â the impact on targets of a stereotype whose behaviour is most powerfully affected by it. A stereotype that pervades the culture the way ââ¬Ëditzy blondesââ¬â¢ and ââ¬Ëforgetful seniorsââ¬â¢ do, makes people painfully aware of how society views them ââ¬â so painfully aware, in fact, that knowledge of stereotypes can affect how well they do on intellectual and other tasks [Begley 2000: 66]. This in turn emonstrates the truth of how gender stereotyping contributes to this problem and sustains its existence. Generalisations of this nature can be seen to have a role in advertising campaigns. Either they are the ads that create the gender stereotype or sustain it through pictures and catchy slogans, such as ââ¬Ëyouââ¬â¢ve come a long way, babyââ¬â¢. The ad for Victoriaââ¬â¢s Secrets shows a woman, but all you see is her body with a caption of ââ¬Ëall you see is curvesââ¬â¢. This modelââ¬â¢s gestures and behaviour are portrayed as feminine, and she only helps to further the idea of women as objects and more so as merely shadows in the dark.Another example of how popular culture material only encourages the stereotypes to exist is e-mail that defines what are seen to be the differences in male and female vocabulary patterns; this is a demonstration of what Cross defines as gender typing. Stemple and Tyler (1974) are ab le to give a brief synopsis of the historical changes of women in advertisements, ultimately showing how the portrayal of women has not changed very much over time. There is still the emphasis placed in the ads on what we should be, but not what we are. The ever so prominent theme still jumps out to the reader of how advertising elped to create an obsession with a womanââ¬â¢s physical appearance. The obsession became so deeply imbedded in women in a short span of time that they began to believe that if they did not work to look like the women in the advertisements ââ¬â beautiful and youthful ââ¬â they would never get or keep a man [Stemple and Tyler 1974: 272]. The most surprising aspect of this article was the survey conducted on how 30 college women interpreted these advertisements. Stemple and Tyler found that these women were not affected by the images the ads showed and felt no real Economic and Political Weekly negativity.These results were questionable, but still u seful in showing the different assumptions that can be made on this topic. Not knowing the criteria or specifics of these individuals, I speculate that the sample that saw these ads was small, and maybe these women have been exposed to this type of ad so often that they are immune to the message and image from these ads. As mentioned earlier in this paper, Kilbourne talks about how ads need to be taken seriously and not disregarded because there is a larger picture that results out of the message the advertisements give off; the idea of ââ¬Ëperfectionââ¬â¢ for women.She has shown how womenââ¬â¢s obsession with body image has been nurtured by the advertising industry, and how historically this has not changed the idea that only skinny and pretty women live on earth. Women have to remember that it is the image that is imperfect, not the body [Wrinkler 1994: 231]. Sullivan and Oââ¬â¢Connor give you an idea of alternative bias on the topic of advertisements influencing what women think. Results indicate that current advertisements in some ways reflect more acutely the true diversity of womenââ¬â¢s social and occupational roles than did those of earlier time periods (1988: 181). This is not to say that hanges have not occurred in the area of advertising. We have seen an increase in the appearance of males in magazines, but they are still not being degraded in the same manner as women are usually portrayed. This is an extreme limitation to a controversial argument that ads create an unrealistic image of what women should look like and in turn causes women to feel a large sense of insecurity about themselves. One reason for the findings could be that this article did take its conclusions from the late 1950s to the early 1980s. On the contrary, the earlier article by Stemple and Tyler (1974) concluded that not much as changed in the way women are shown in ads. Sullivan and Oââ¬â¢Connor looked specifically at the connection between social changes and the way in which the media has reflected these changes in advertisements since 1910. These authors are able to argue that ads have gone against what they have been stereotyped to do; show women in the home, needing the help of a male, and as decorative pieces. They feel that those responsible for the creation of magazine advertising have begun to recognise the increasing economic and social status of women in America [Sullivan and Oââ¬â¢Connor 1988: 188]. The reasons for August 10, 2002 hese assumptions could range from their choice of magazines analysed to the nature of sample group they used. Even though they were able to state that changes had occurred on the image and the way women are used, they still felt that there was room for improvement. How many ads realistically depict women in their true form? The argument would seem to centre on whether advertisements have changed to realistically portray women or that there is no change in their portrayal. But both sides will agree that there can always be more improvement in this area. The true goal of advertisers is to create an image hat will generate profits for the product they are selling. The question remains whether these advertising executives are conscious of the societal problems created by them or whether they have intentionally created them as part of their selling strategy. We will never be told. We do know is that they do profit from advertisements that encourage girls to want something more, something difficult to attain/achieve in the context of where they are now. Looking through various current magazines, it was apparent that the stereotypes are evident, but maybe not to the extent that we have seen in the past. Could a hange be taking place? Sullivan and Oââ¬â¢Connor feel that advertisements are changing with time. Women should be better represented, and not as Matlin would say, stereotyped characters. Kilbourne disagrees with this so-called change, and feels that much larger problems h ave been created by advertisements. Her research has shown that womenââ¬â¢s selfesteem goes down at adolescence due to advertisements that portray a fake reality of women to these susceptible teenage minds [Kilbourne 2000]. This is not to say that men are left out of this process of stereotyping. They are stereotyped too, but men are usually generalised as being too ld or extremely wealthy [Kilbourne 2000]. Advertisements for men often do not degrade them by comparing them to objects, or focus on their thighs being too large and hence needing the new cream to create longer legs in four days or less! Advertisements and Their Impact A recent article in a York University student newspaper, Excalibur (January 2002) illustrates the feeling the university student experiences with advertisements and the allure of new products. The caption defiantly uses gender-specific terms to only 3335 emphasis the stress of being a woman these days. If people do not ââ¬Ësmooth their wrinkles or im prove their pigmentââ¬â¢, they ay not feel like a woman or even a person. This ad seems to carry plenty of sarcastic overtones of hate for this type of environment at York University. It seems that institutions such as a university are a focal point for advertisers to market their new ideas and watch if the trends take off. Another article in the university newspaper contributes to this materialistic critique of the university environment. The title, ââ¬ËYou are What You Wearââ¬â¢, sums up the basic point of how the York students feel that clothes, and in a larger sense looks and appearance, shape the views of others. The interesting point of the article is that t is written from a black womanââ¬â¢s point of view on the topic of ââ¬Ëlabelââ¬â¢ dressers. The author seems to be more embarrassed that black students follow the trends and sport the labels because, ââ¬Å"wearing these name brands gives the wearer an elevated statusâ⬠[Barnes 2002:8]. Her argument s eems to be similar to mine, that if you know yourself, then you may not be caught up in this fashion trend. But when looking at university students and this fashion environment, I cannot help but question whether this is a problem only for this age group. Advertisements have now changed their target towards multi-audiences with ne ad. Why would we think that this label issue affects only our demographics? Well it does not, and the message sent through ads is that everyone should be a part of this cultural trend of dressing well. Advertisements have the power to make the poor, rich, fat or skinny students feel insecure about their selves. If they did not, then what good would these ads be? The insecurity created by pictures ensures that the consumer will be spending or trying something to fix their appearance. Labels are just another area where advertisers use a name to target the audience. A name goes a long way, especially when ttractive individuals wear the advertised clothes. Kle in (2000) attacks this problem created by advertisers. A major reason why these advertisements are placed in schools is due to one basic fact. The advertising agencies are aware that students form their opinions in this environment, and take them with them wherever they go. Is it not better to start at this easy, impressionable age and have students edified into believing what the advertisements preach? They want conformity and lack of decision on 3336 the consumerââ¬â¢s part. That is what I see as so ironic, we are in an institution to learn and form our own views and not try to be haped by others. Oddly enough, in a university or college, there is an effort made in using other peopleââ¬â¢s views, and then shaping our own, for example, to learn about Freudââ¬â¢s or Eriksonââ¬â¢s theories on child socialisation and then creating your own point of view. The use of popular cultural material creates a vehicle that makes it a lot easier to shape a personââ¬â¢s point of vi ew. This is second nature to the advertisers producing this abundance of ads in magazines. The university is seen as an ideal starting point. Klein focuses on the university as a tool/ venue used by brand-name companies to establish themselves.For example, many universities will turn to the scientific community for funding of new university building and locations, such as the University of Western Ontarioââ¬â¢s 3M Centre devoted to research in the sports medicine field. Or they will accept donations placing these company names before the university name on the large sign that greets students before they enter their new learning environment. Klein concludes by saying how, ââ¬Å"university campus in particular with their residences, libraries, green spaces and common standards for open and respectful discourse play a crucial, if now largely symbolic, role: they are the one lace left where young people can see a genuine public life being livedâ⬠[Klein 2000: 105]. This seems t o be ideal but not evident from our conversation on advertisements and the power they hold to possess individuals to create unrealistic goals for themselves. Universities are filled with logos ââ¬â ideals and images to follow which only create a larger plain of unrealistic pictures of what women should be like. The difference between viewing an image and hearing or imagining is that ones imagination can create an unrealistic image in a personââ¬â¢s mind. Itamar Marcus is the Canadian director of the Palestinian MediaWatch, which is a privately funded organisation that monitors the mediaââ¬â¢s influence on the citizens of that country. Through his presentation on the topic of media and the powerful influences they create, he demonstrates the power pictures and words have. He explains that the media has shaped the lives and views of these people. People believe what they have been told, and furthermore what the specially edited books tell them [Marcus 2002]. In this case, Ma rcus shows how the school books have been rearranged to teach the youth a history different from what is taught elsewhere in the world. The Palestinian ids learn that Israel is not a country, and they are told that cities like Jaffa are a part of their land. By viewing these distorted maps or pictures they believe what they are told even more. This shows the power that words carry and the effect that images have on a group of people. Another example is the manner in which the youth of Palestine are taught to hate westerners. With pictures of westerners raping and killing their people, they are made to believe what they are told to be the truth about the western world. Marcus points out how images such as these are so ââ¬Å"powerfulâ⬠that the youth are socialised to become martyrs or their country because they see it as the right way to act. The government is using its power to create images that are not necessarily true. Verbal or written images will coerce individuals to use their own reference to imagine the truth, but pictures show exactly what they want us to believe. This is a situation illustrating how the way an image when projected with design has power and an undeniable appeal and validity. In North America, the advertisers use their power to create unrealistic images for whatever products they are hired to advertise. These images have the power to create an impression, a desire and a reality that ay not always be true. By creating a possibility, a hope and a dream, women are made to hear and then see pictures of other attractive women achieving these goals through using or having these products. These images have a strong and somewhat subliminal effect on them. It is easy to forget that we need to celebrate the differences among human beings and the uniqueness of each. We are not ââ¬Ëtransformer toysââ¬â¢ or ââ¬Ërobotsââ¬â¢ that can change body parts with a snap of the wrist and a new outfit. Advertisers hope that we will buy into these changes. Unfortunately, this misconception is perpetuated by the advertising industry.The more that women and even men realise that it is all right to listen and read the ads as long as you realise it is not a way to judge yourself by their standards that you will survive in the advertising war of pictures and words. It seems hard not to be concerned with your appearance when there is such an emphasis to look good, right or wrong. Essentially, this paper has been looking at various literature and current advertise- Economic and Political Weekly August 10, 2002 ments to speculate what effect advertisements have on womenââ¬â¢s self-images. There still is another facet of the topic that has roubled me: is it not a question of socialisation? Does the way a woman is socialised as a child maturing into adolescence determine the likelihood of her being affected by the mediaââ¬â¢s depiction of women? If a young girl is taught to be confident and happy with her own self, would sh e still be influenced by advertisements? Why should the advertisements have the final say on beauty? The simple answer is that we let them. Can girls be properly taught that these pictures and images are not always truthful and that they should not use them as a mirror? Could self-confidence be the proper tool for teenaged girls to overcome he messages from the advertisements? As Marshall McLuhan said, the medium is the message. We need to teach girls how to deal with the message. The message will continue to be strong and distorted. Instead of fighting the images, we should teach girls that these ideals are unattainable and that they should not literally kill themselves to try to look like something that is impossible to achieve. Possibly these young women have been socialised into a pattern of insecurity or worthlessness even before they view advertisements. When they see these images on paper, the images reinforce what they already assumed about their role and omenââ¬â¢s roles in society. It has been stated, however, that since the early 1900s advertisements have depicted women in an insulting and often degrading manner. Hypothetically if the women who grew up during these periods are now mothers, then most likely they taught these norms to their daughters as well. Then the next generation is influenced by these advertising stereotypes, and in turn transfer these ideals to its youth. It believes in what was shown because it was not taught any better. Socialisation is a lifelong process, but it does not guarantee that a person can change or has the tools to change.With presentday slogans of ââ¬Ëgirl powerââ¬â¢ from the Spice Girls, it seems hard to take them seriously when the same girls preaching girl power are wearing close to nothing on stage and over-made up with exaggerated cosmetics and costumes. Stemple and Tyler touch on how the womenââ¬â¢s liberation movement has been devalued. The authors showed, however, that ads are a blatant co-optin g of the womenââ¬â¢s movement; the offensive ââ¬Ëbabyââ¬â¢ in ââ¬Ëyouââ¬â¢ve come along way, babyââ¬â¢ clearly indicates we have not [Stemple and Economic and Political Weekly Tyler 1974: 273]. It has been shown that advertisements create a vicious cycle that emands an audience to become engulfed with an idea in order to create a profit for their clients. These advertisements and social ideas, rather than education that teaches you to be objective and critical, have been engraved in oneââ¬â¢s culture and in the psyche of the general population. It seems to be illogical and naive on the part of any women who feel they need to starve themselves or throw up their food in order to look ââ¬Ëgoodââ¬â¢. It is obvious to see how these girls feel that this is what they are supposed to do to deal with societal pressures of looking a specific way. It is difficult to accept, but women have been ingrained with hese pseudo-images. In turn, women and girls buy into this fantasy in the hope of fulfilling their desires and dreams. -29 Notes 1 Margaret Matlin outlines what she views as ââ¬Ëstereotyped representationsââ¬â¢. She states, ââ¬Å"Hundreds of studies have been conducted in the representation of women in the media. From these resources we can draw the following conclusionsâ⬠. She continues on to outline seven stereotypes that target women these are: 1) Women are relatively invisible; 2) Women are relatively inaudible; 3) Although most women are employed they are seldom shown working outside the home; 4) Women are shown oing housework; 5) Women and men are represented differently; 6) Womenââ¬â¢s bodies are used differently from menââ¬â¢s bodies in advertisements; 7) Women of colour ââ¬â when they are shown at all ââ¬â are often represented in a particularly biased way [Matlin 1987: 43-44]. Her conclusions are helpful in deciphering the reality of how women are affected by advertisements. It was very useful to have the se stereotyped representations to add a sense of soundness to the conclusions made on the advertisements and the societal situation that has been created. 2 Kang, Mee-Eun, ââ¬ËThe Portrayal of Womenââ¬â¢s Images in Magazine Advertisements: Goffmanââ¬â¢sGender Analysis Revisitedââ¬â¢ Sex Roles: A Journal of Research 37 11/12 (1997): 979-996. pp 984985: The following theoretical definitions in Goffmanââ¬â¢s Gender Advertisements are utilised in this study: (1) Relative size: One way in which social weight (eg, power, authority, rank, office, and renown) is echoed expressively in social situations is through relative size, especially height. The maleââ¬â¢s usual superiority of status over the female will be expressible in his greater girth and height. It is assumed that differences in size will correlate with differences in social weight. (2) Feminine touch: Women, more than men, re pictured using their fingers and hands to trace outlines of an object or to cradle it or to caress its surface or to effect a ââ¬Å"just barely touchingâ⬠. This ritualistic touching is to August 10, 2002 distinguish from the utilitarian kind that grasps, manipulates, or holds. (3) Function ranking: When a man and a woman collaborate face ââ¬â to face in an undertaking, the man is likely to perform the executive role. This hierarchy of functions is pictured either within an occupational frame or outside of occupational specialisations. (4) Ritualisation of subordination: A classic stereotype of deference is that of lowering oneself hysically in some form or other of prostration. Correspondingly, holding the body erect and the head high is stereotypically a mark of unashamedness, superiority, and disdain. The configurations of canting postures can be read as an acceptance of subordination, an expression of ingratiation, submisssiveness, and appeasement. (5) Licensed withdrawal: Women more than men are pictured engaged in involvements which remove them psychol ogically from the social situation at large, leaving them unoriented in it and to it, and dependent on the protectiveness of others who are present. Turning oneââ¬â¢s gaze away rom anotherââ¬â¢s can be seen as having the consequence of withdrawing from the current thrust of communication (p 62). The individual can also withdraw his/her gaze from the scene at large, and be psychologically ââ¬Å"awayâ⬠from the scene. References Barnes, Alicia (2002): ââ¬ËYou are What You Wearââ¬â¢ Excalibur, February 1. Begley, Sharon (2000): ââ¬ËThe Stereotype Trap: from ââ¬Ëwhite men canââ¬â¢t jumpââ¬â¢ to ââ¬Ëgirls canââ¬â¢t do math,ââ¬â¢ negative images that are pervasive in the culture can make us choke during test of abilityââ¬â¢, Newsweek, November 6, p 66, downloaded from: Gale Group Database, January 30, 2002. Cross, Mary (1996): Advertising and Culture:Theoretical Perspectives, Praeger Publishers, Westport, CT. Kang, Mee-Eun (1997): ââ¬ËThe Portr ayal of Womenââ¬â¢s Images in Magazine Advertisements: Goffmanââ¬â¢s Gender Analysis Revisitedââ¬â¢, Sex Roles: A Journal of Research 37, 11/12, 979-96. Kilbourne, Jean (1995): ââ¬ËSlim Hopes: Advertising and Obsession with Thinnessââ¬â¢, videotape, Cambridge Documentary Films. ââ¬â (1999): Canââ¬â¢t Buy My Love, Touchstone, New York: Simon and Schuster. ââ¬â (2000): ââ¬ËKilling Us Softly 3: Advertisingââ¬â¢s Image of Womenââ¬â¢, Videotape, Cambridge Documentary Films. Klein, Naomi (2000): No Logo, Random House, Toronto. Matlin, Margaret W (1987): The Psychology ofWomen, Orlando, Florida: Harcourt Brace and Company, pp 41-45,461-70. Marcus, Itamar (2002): The Encouragement of Suicide Bombers and Terrorists in the Official Palestinian Authority Newspapers (a speech) January 22. Stemple, Diane and Jane E Tyler (1988): ââ¬ËSexism in Advertisingââ¬â¢, The American Journal of Psychoanalysis, 34. 1, pp 271-73. Sullivan, Gary L and P J Oââ¬â¢Conn or (1988): ââ¬ËWomenââ¬â¢s Role Portrayals in Magazine Advertising: 1958-1983ââ¬â¢, Sex Roles: Journal of Research, 18. 3/4, pp 181-88. Winkler, Mary G (1994): ââ¬ËThe Model Bodyââ¬â¢, The Good Body: Asceticism in Contemporary Culture, Yale University, Connecticut. 3337
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)