Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Effective Communication Essay Example for Free

Effective Communication Essay Effective communication is essential in any workplace, especially within a criminal justice organization. In this paper, the author will discuss the process of verbal and nonverbal communication and the associated components of each, the differences between listening and hearing in communication, the formal and informal channels of communication in criminal justice organizations and the strategies that may be implemented to overcome communication barriers therein. Types of Communication and the Process Involved  Communication is defined as â€Å"a process involving several steps, among two or more persons, for the primary purpose of exchanging information. † (Wallace Roberson, 2009). This process can involve two types of communication: verbal and nonverbal. Verbal Verbal communication includes transmitting information orally. This type of communication can involve sharing information or exchanging ideas between two people or a group. Speaking is just one aspect of verbal communication. Verbal communication does not solely involve the sender transmitting the message to the receiver. Verbal communication also involves listening from the receiver and giving feedback to the sender as a confirmation that the message was understood. In a criminal justice organization, â€Å"oral communication skills are necessary to talk with members of the general public, request assistance from other officers, advise suspects of their Miranda rights, and inform supervisors that certain actions have occurred. † (Wallace Roberson, 2009). Being an officer requires a lot of verbal communication to fulfill some of the essential duties of working in law enforcement. Nonverbal Nonverbal communication includes written communication via reports, memorandums, notes from meetings, notes taken from accounts between officers and witnesses, victims, suspects, etc. Nonverbal can also include facial expressions. Facial expressions and body language oftentimes are used to convey emotions when words are absent. The Process of Communication The process of communication involves transmitting an idea, sending the idea through a medium (verbal/nonverbal), receiving the message, understanding the idea, and providing feedback to the message sender. The first step of transmitting an idea â€Å"implies the formation of one or several thoughts and the desire to express these ideas†. (Wallace Roberson, 2009). The next step involves choosing a method of communicating that idea. This can be done through verbal or nonverbal communication. Despite what method is used, it is imperative to know who the audience is and decide what tone the message is to be delivered. The tone, especially with oral communication, can make a world of a difference in how the receiver interprets the message. When the receiver then receives the message, his interpretation may not be how the message was originally intended to be received. The understanding of the idea or message relies strongly on interpretation of the person receiving the message. The process is then completed when the receiver provides feedback to the message sender by clarifying what he or she understood and then agreeing or disagreeing with the message itself. All these steps are part of the communication process, if one step fails then the communication becomes ineffective and invaluable. Listening vs. Hearing  According to the American Heritage College Dictionary, the word hearing is defined as â€Å"the sense by which sound is perceived; the capacity to hear† (2009). Hearing can include the capacity to hear the audio of the message being received and the words being enunciated, but it cannot ensure whether the message was indeed understood. Hearing is only one part of the communication process. The ability to comprehend by actually listening to what is being said, understanding the message by using the aids such as tone, facial expressions and body language completes this process. Active listening is important to effective communication. Channels of Communication Channels of communication in a criminal justice organization help demonstrate how the information flows from one person or group to another. The flow of communication or channels can include formal or informal methods. Formal Formal channels of communication include orders, directives and written memorandums that follow a chain of command. Communication in this scenario usually flows downward from the highest level of the totem pole, such as a police chief down to its subordinates. This type of channel of communication has both its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage of using a formal channel promote uniformity within the department. All officers, despite their rank, receive the same information. The disadvantage of using formal channels is that it sometimes stops the free flow of communication. If this channel type of communication is used it does not leave much room for officers to exchange freely any information within their department. That is to say that patrol officers usually are not encouraged to communicate amongst their peers but rather just receive instruction from their superiors. This hinders the department because officers are not encouraged to help one another, communicate with each other and possibly provide or exchange crucial information that might help them execute their responsibilities. Informal Informal channels of communication include â€Å"unofficial routes of communication within a law enforcement agency. These channels do not appear on any organizational chart, and they may not be officially sanctioned by the department. † (Wallace Roberson, 2009). This type of communication usually allows a free flow of information within all those employed in criminal justice organization. The direction of communication usually does not go up or down the ladder of chain of command. It opens up and encourages communication between officers and the different departments that make up the law enforcement agency. It promotes the sharing of information amongst peers that may ultimately contribute to successfully completing their duty of serving and protecting the community together as a team. Barriers to Effective Communication There are many barriers to effective communication. These barriers include emotional, physical and semantic barriers. Ineffective listening can also be construed as an important barrier as well. Emotional barriers can include an officer having low self esteem. This officer in question perhaps feels the need to refrain from communicating anything because he lacks self-confidence and is afraid to be put down by his peers. Many agencies have confronted this type of barrier by providing peer support groups so that they can work together to break these feelings of insecurity and promote a sense of trust. Physical barriers can breakdown communication. Physical barriers can include the use of faulty equipment where messages cannot be transmitted from one to another because the radio transmitters are not working or the computers in the vehicles or in the office are down. Having readily available and working technological equipment can help with communication between officers. Other types of physical barriers is perhaps the distance between officers when they are communicating. Shortening the distance can help provide a feeling of camaraderie and trust. Semantics involve the selection of words you choose to aid you with your communication. Obviously if you choose the wrong word, the communication will not be as effective and the entire message can be misread. Ineffective listening can also play a role in hindering the communication process. If one is not engaged in the speaker because perhaps they do not find the speaker or his/her topic interesting enough, or perhaps you already have your biases or set opinions on what is being said and so your are listening with a closed mind, this can lend to ruining the communication between you and the sender. Strategies to Overcome Barriers In order to overcome the above mentioned barriers, you must first understand what kind of barrier is preventing the flow of communication. Once pinpointing the type of barrier you can proceed to try and remove those barriers so that you can become an effective communicator. Emotional barriers can be dealt with by working on self improvement such as going to counseling for depression or self esteem issues can help. Law enforcement agencies can provide help with finding the right person to talk to or by providing a peer support group you can join to help deal with these types of emotional barriers. Physical barriers can be handled by ensuring that all equipment used within the department is adequately functioning and therefore the lines of communication can remain open. If the physical barrier involves distance between officers, then that distance needs to be shortened so that the communication between these officers allows for better exchange between them. Barriers that involve semantics can be improved upon by going to school or studying grammar, and word selection. The internet is a great way to explore tools that can help with improving your communication skills with words. Identifying what barriers are preventing someone from exchanging information and finding appropriate solutions to overcome these challenges will ensure a better and more effective way of communicating. Conclusion As children we learned early on how to communicate first without words then learning to speak and finally learning to write. Communication is a vital part of life. Without proper communication, the exchange of ideas and messages cannot be conveyed between people in either a personal or professional setting. Communication within a criminal justice organization is just as important. Learning how the process of communication works and identifying the barriers that breakdown this communication are tools that are needed. Communication is crucial to helping overall with the execution of law enforcement.

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Langston Hughes The Weary Blues Essay examples -- Music Blues Jazz Mu

Langston Hughes' The Weary Blues   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jazz music is often associated with long, lazy melodies and ornate rhythmical patterns. The Blues, a type of jazz, also follows this similar style. Langston Hughes' poem, "The Weary Blues," is no exception. The sound qualities that make up Hughes' work are intricate, yet quite apparent. Hughes' use of consonance, assonance, onomatopoeia, and rhyme in "The Weary Blues" gives the poem a deep feeling of sorrow while, at the same time, allows the reader to feel as if he or she is actually listening to the blues sung by the poem's character.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Blues musical move was prominent during the 1920s and '30s, a time known as the Harlem Renaissance. Blues music characteristically told the story of someone's anguish, the key factors, and the resolution of the situation. This is precisely what Hughes' poem, "The Weary Blues," describes. Hughes uses the rhythmic structure of blues music and the improvisational rhythms of jazz in his innovative development of "The Weary Blues." The poem opens by first setting the scene. "Down on Lenox Avenue" the speaker heard a "mellow croon" (lines 2 and 4). The tune was played on a piano and sung by a man with the emotions coming from the "black man's soul" (15). The piano man expresses his feelings of loneliness and dissatisfaction with his life in lines 19-22 and 25-30: "Ain't got nobody in all this world,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ain't got nobody but ma self.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I's gwine to quite ma frownin'   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  And put my troubles on the shelf."   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  "I got the Weary Blues   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  And I can't be satisfied.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Got the Weary Blues   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  And can't be satisfied-   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I ain't happy no mo'   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  And I wish that I had died." The piano man, in a slightly backward order, tells how he wished that he had died because he feels so alone. But, instead of an ultimate end, the piano man decides to "put his troubles on the shelf," or rather, push them aside and continue living without the distraction of those pains.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The tone of "The Weary Blues" is quite dark and melancholy. This matches the sorrowful theme of the poem. Sound patterns play a key role in this poem. They enhance the already somber mood by way of consonance, assonance, onomatopoeia, and rhyme patterns. Consonance is found within the first line of the poem. "Droning a drowsy?" brings a hard 'd' sound to... ...  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  O Blues! The end of each of the above lines has the long 'u' or 'oo' sound but doesn't exactly rhyme with the preceding line or lines. This off-rhyme gives this blues poem more dimension. With precise rhyme, the poem would seem too forced but with this off-rhyme, the true flow of the blues is apparent and works very well. Additionally, the near rhyme of the long 'u' or 'oo' sound reinforces, once again, the sorrowful and melancholy theme of the poem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With the consistent use of consonance, assonance, onomatopoeia, and rhyme patterns of "The Weary Blues," Langston Hughes produces a poem with a great deal of emotion. The feelings of sadness and loneliness resonate throughout the poem. The long, lazy melodies and ornate rhythmical patterns of jazz music and the blues are really brought to life in "The Weary Blues" via Hughes' intricate workings of sound patterns that are cleverly implemented in every nook of the poem. Because of these descriptive sound words, I can almost picture myself walking down Lenox Avenue and hearing the old piano man and his "Weary Blues." Bibliography: Hughes, Langston. Selected Poems. New York: Random House/Vintage Books, 1987.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Management Studies Essay

1. What steps should be taken by an organization that is committee to shattering the glass ceiling? I would use selection plans as a method to shatter the glass ceiling. Selection plans forces a company or organization to conduct a job analysis, establish career ladders and consider alternatives to the traditional ways used in promotion systems. Companies and HR should back away from the use of these traditional methods of assessment in ways consistent with the selection plan. Move away from casual methods such as supervisory recommendations, performance ratings, quick reviews of personnel files, and informal recommendations. Use a more formal, standardized, and job-related assessment method. The organization should pay attention to the types of KSAOs necessary for advancement, and begin training programs to teach these KSAOs to potential employees. Such programs could include: key job and committee assignments, participation in conferences and other networking opportunities, mentoring and coaching programs, and skill acquisition in formal training programs. 2. What guidelines do the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures offer to organizations when it comes to setting cutoff scores? The UGESP advises that cutoff scores be set so as to be reasonable and consistent with normal expectations of acceptable proficiency within the workforce. Applicants should be ranked on the basis of properly validated selection procedures. Applicants scoring below a higher cut-off have little or no chance of being selected for employment. Although the higher cut-off score may be appropriate the degree of adverse impact should also be considered. Companies should ensure their hiring standards are not so high that they create an adverse impact. 3. What are the steps an employer should take to develop and implement its policy regarding employment-at-will? Employment at will involves the right of either the employer or employee to terminate the employment at any time, for any legal reason. To enact a policy of employment at will, a company needs to ensure that job offers are for an indeterminate time period. The job offer should include a statement that the employment will be strictly at will. All written documents, such as employee handbooks and applications must affirm the at will relationship. 4. Discuss some potential problems with downsizing as an organization’s first response to a need to cut labor costs. While downsizing has an immediate impact on decreasing labor costs, too many companies downsize without considering alternatives. There are many problems that can occur based on using downsizing first. Companies initially make job cuts that are too deep. This results in a workforce which is understaffed and unable to function effectively. This affects the other employees who become demoralized, unmotivated, and unproductive. Many organizations that downsize immediately have discovered that they failed to achieve most of the business objectives associated with the downsizing to begin with and they rehire at least some of the staff that they let go. Essay Questions (15 pts each) – No more than 2 pages, double-spaced. 1. For this question you will refer to the Application entitled â€Å"Evaluating Staffing Process Results† found on pages 676-678 in your text. Read the application and answer questions 1&2 ONLY on the bottom of page 677. 1. Determine the yield ratios (offer receivers/applicants, new hires/applicants), time lapse or cycle times (days to offer, days to start), and retention rates associated with each recruitment source. The days to offer measures the average number of days it takes to make job offers to applicants. The days to start measures the average number of days it takes from the beginning of the entire staffing process to the time the new applicant is hired and begins their jobs. From highest to lowest effectiveness are employee referrals, newspaper ads and the employment agency. Employee referrals have the highest rate of return. The recruitment method from highest to lowest is employee referral, employment agency and newspaper ads. Specifically, employee referrals had the smallest days-to-offer and days-to-start figures. In terms of retention methods from highest to lowest are employee referrals, newspaper advertisements, and employment agency. 2. What is the relative effectiveness of the three sources in terms of yield ratios, cycle times, and retention rates differ in their relative effectiveness? Employee referrals were the most effective recruitment method based on yield ratios, time lapse, and retention rates. Current employees fully understand the company, its culture, and the basic job requirements. Due to this situation they are able to recommend people they know who might fit well with the job and the organization. This was the most effective recruitment method. This occurred because current employees did a good job prescreening individuals before they became candidates. The newspaper ads and employment agency did not do as well. These methods normally generate large numbers of applicants without any real screening taking place. You have just signed on as the Manager of Human Resources for a large manufacturing company in the Chicago area. Your company manufactures parts to the automotive industry such as air duct assemblies for various models of new vehicles as well as to the secondary market for these same parts. Upon conducting an audit of HR initiatives and trying to understand the challenges you want to tackle, you find that the overall turnover rate for this company is 37%. You have not worked in this specific industry but you feel at first glance that this number is high. Based on this limited information that you have, lay out a strategy for addressing turnover. You should include the following in your answer: a. a detailed explanation of what other information you must try to uncover to find out if the turnover is an issue that you must tackle b.assuming that you find that turnover is problematic, what strategies you might suggest to the CEO to address the issue, specifically addressing the possible causes of the high turnover in your answer. The 37% turnover rate is a major cause for concern. The turnover is high enough to warrant attention. It would be helpful to have some industry data to make a turnover comparison. Initially I would suggest that the CEO appoint a Senior Manager within HR to look at the backgrounds of the employees who left the in the last year. It would be helpful to know how long they were on the job before they quit and how they were performing in their position. It would extremely valuable to interview the workers who quit to learn more about why they decided to leave. The exit interview data is probably the single most valuable piece of information that can be used to deal with a retention problem. The costs of the turnover are massive. It is disruptive to the organization, it affects the time and resources used to process the departing employees, and require additional time and resources to recruit hire and train new employees. Other costs could include damage to the morale and productivity of other employees and an increased likelihood that some of these workers may quit. I would create a formal exit interview process to find out why workers are leaving the organization. The results of these interviews should be shared with the managers of the departing employees as well as human resources. I would task HR with conducting an annual employee survey to assess the work environment.

Sunday, January 5, 2020

Sleep Deprivation, Nightmares, And Sleepwalking - 976 Words

Blog Post Night Terrors, Nightmares, and Sleepwalking At night, you lock the house down, tuck the kids into bed, clean your home, and you might even finish some last minute work. I bet you never thought about the things that can happen at night. As we kiss our children goodnight, our favorite line is â€Å"Goodnight, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite†. You never thought about your son sleepwalking through the night or even your daughter screaming out her sleep. What about your twins, who are both, having nightmares! Let us think about one more thing, did you even know that this could happen to anyone at any age, even you. Many Americans around the world lack the knowledge of realizing how important sleep really is. The lack of sleep can cause short-term and long-term health problems. Night terrors, nightmares, and sleepwalking are all cases that fall into sleep disorders called parasomnias. Parasomnias are disruptive sleep disorders that can occur during arousal from either rapid eye movement or even non-rapid eye mo vement. Children from the age’s four to twelve of ages experience night terrors. Considering, less is associated with adolescents and youngsters who are dealing with insomnia, which is the inability to fall asleep, is effected by twenty-five percent. Therefore, when one does fall to sleep a frequent awakening may occur. However, obstructive sleep apnea is just the opposite in which, it affects around two to four percent of kids’. The results of sleepShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Sleep On Children And Adolescents1530 Words   |  7 Pagesrecorded having a sleep parasomnia, most of them being young children or adolescents. Parasomnias range from very common disorders such as sleepwalking, to a few some may have never heard of, for instance: sleep paralysis. Sleep parasomnias are â€Å"disorders characterized by abnormal or unusual behavior of the nervous system during that occur during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep or rapid eye movement (REM) sleep† (Paras omnias). NREM sleep (also referred to as slow wave sleep) contains more commonRead MoreSleep And Non Rem Sleep Disorders1869 Words   |  8 PagesIntroduction Parasomnias is a variety is sleep disorders that cause abnormal behavior in brain activity. Para means â€Å"faulty†, and the Latin origin of somnia, â€Å"somnus† means â€Å"sleep† (source 5). About 1% to 10% of the population experiences those sleeping disorders, most of which are children. This sleeping disorder usually occurs during the transition from one sleeping stage to another; the two sleeping stages include Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep and non-REM sleep (source 4). Those that have parasomniasRead MoreSleep Deprivation And The Sleep Cycle940 Words   |  4 Pagesrecover its energy. Anyone, who doesn’t sleep well, can have many disorders that we will discuss later. We have first to explain what is a typical night`s sleep cycle then go ahead and describe how sleep deprivation impacts your ability to learn and your health as well. Regular night`s sleep cycle can always be described in 4 stages N1, N2 and N3. Where each stage has different information and different description. N1 can be said for light sleep. N2 is for sleep spindles. N3 is for the delta waves.Read MoreNight Terrors2287 Words   |  10 Pagesrepresents a classic episode of night terrors, or sleep terrors (the terms are interchangeable). Night terrors Ââ€" called incubus in adults and pavor nocturnus in children (Durand 31) Ââ€" fall into a larger category of sleep disorders called parasomnias, which are sleep disorders that are classified by abnormal or paranormal brain activity (psychnet). Its also considered a disorder of partial arousal, where the child is in a mixed state of both sleep and awakenness. The child will be awake enoughRead MoreSleep Tight And Don t Let The Disorders Bite3239 Words   |  13 Pages â€Å"Sleep Tight; Don’t Let the Disorders Bite†: Exploring the Relationship between Abnormal Sleep and Behavioral Problems in Adolescence Meredith A. Henry University of Alabama at Birmingham â€Æ' Sleep can be disturbed in a variety of different ways and problems with sleep are a major health concern. In fact, the issue is considered to be such an important one that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) established National Sleep Week to promote awareness of disordered sleeping and promoteRead MoreThe Science of Sleeping950 Words   |  4 PagesSleep timing is controlled by the circadian cycle, working as a inner timekeeping, temperature controlling device, and the part of the body that act as a transmitter associated with wakefulness. Sleep duration is also controlled by circadian rhythms; that is, the time one goes to sleep influences sleep duration. (Zimbardo, and Richard 143). A consistent pattern of cyclical body activities, this cycle constantly working on restoration and conservation of our bodies take place. About a third ofRead MoreSleep Disorders And Sleep Disorder1447 Words   |  6 PagesEvery single person in the world sleeps, but why or what exactly makes us sleep? This is a very good question because everyone does it without actually thinking about it. Knowing or even trying to understand how one sleeps can be a very interesting topic to dissect. This also gives researchers a wide area of study for collecting data and then interpreting that data for doctors to help patients. It is important to learn and study sleep, especially if one has one or more sleeping disorder(s). We canRead MoreRem Sleep : Types And Stages Of Sleep1496 Words   |  6 PagesREM Sleep Most people do not realise how vital of a role REM sleep has on our everyday life. Almost everyone has remembered when they had had an extremely vivid dream. Well that is because they were in a stage in their sleep called REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. REM sleep is a part in the sleep cycle where your eyes move back and forth and is also the part of the sleep cycle where you dream the most. Our bodies need REM sleep in order to maintain proper function and health. In fact, we are programmedRead More Sleep disorders Essay2896 Words   |  12 Pages Sleep Disorders Child Sleep Disorders: Is Your Child at Risk? Recent research has proven that children just are not getting the sleep they need these days. Kids today seem to be doing poorer in school and have less attention spans. Most parents are not aware of a common problem effecting thousands of children in this country: sleep disorders. Parents often fail to follow there childrens sleeping patterns which can result in some serious side effects if that child has a sleep disorder. A studyRead MoreRem Sleep : Types And Stages Of Sleep1494 Words   |  6 Pageshow vital of a role REM sleep has on our everyday life. Almost everyone has remembered when they had had an extremely vivid dream. Well that is because they were in a stage in their sleep called REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. REM sleep is a part in the sleep cycle where your eyes move back and forth and is also the part of the sleep cycle where you dream the most. Our bodies need REM sleep in order to maintain proper function and health. In fact, we are programmed to sleep each night as a means of