Pronunciation Teaching Within A Theoretical Framework English Language Essay

Pronunciation Teaching Within A Theoretical Framework English Language Essay Although a number of studies have been reported regarding segmental over the past fifteen years for an overview, see Ekman, 2003; Strange, 1995, there are only a small number of studies focusing on L2 stress in an EFL context. On the other hand, suprasegmental properties, including stress, play an important role in second language acquisition. They are shown to be closely related to foreign accent perceived in L2 production and to difficulties in L2 perception. Researchers have attributed the problems with stress to the influence of the L1 prosodic system. However, these studies are inadequate, as their focus on stress acquisition mainly relies on the comparison of the phonological systems of L1 and L2. As Flege (1987) pointed out in research on L2 speech development at the segmental level, it is important to take phonetic details into account in order to gain a better understanding of the possible transfer of L1. The same is true for studies of prosody. It is possible that the influence of L1 lies in the difference between L1 and L2 in the employment of relevant phonetic correlates. 2.2. The history of pronunciation teaching within a theoretical framework Popular opinion regarding the place of pronunciation training in the ESL or EFL curriculum has ebbed and flowed along with the historical framework of language learning theories and methodologies. Prior to the popularity of the direct method in the late nineteenth century, pronunciation received little overt focus within the language classroom. Advocates of the direct method claim that an initial emphasis on listening without pressure to speak allows learners to acquire grammar inductively and to internalize the target sound system before speaking, much the way children acquire their first language (Celce-Murcia, Brinton, Goodwin, 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). Although popular in elite private European schools, the direct method was rejected by the public schools and by most language schools in the United States as impractical due the classroom time, effort and background required of both the teacher and students for the success of this approach. Criticism centered around the time-consuming nature of this instruction at a time in which most students only studied foreign language for two years, along with a lack of qualified teachers who had a comfortable, native-like fluency at their command. As a result, this essentially intuitive-imitative approach gave way to the return of the grammar translation approach of the reading era, with very little attention to pronunciation (Celce-Murcia et al., 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). According to Aufderhaar (2004), both the direct and grammar translation methods were more emphasized when there was a sudden and urgent need for qualified interpreters and intelligence to learn English with the advent of World War II. Rooted in Skinners (1957) theory of behaviorism which treated the acquisition of verbal skills as environmentally-determined stimulus-response behavior, the audiolingual method required intensive oral drilling for entire working days, six days a week (E. R. Brown, 1997). In contrast to the grammar-translation method, pronunciation was now considered to be of the highest priority, with phonetic transcription and articulation explicitly taught through charts and demonstrations, along with imitation (Celce-Murcia et al., 1996, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). While generally proving successful within the military environment of small classes of highly motivated instructors and students whose well being depended in part on their command of the target language, the theoretical foundation of audiolingualism was shaken by the reality of the post World War II language classroom that was not conducive to this military regimen. Its strongest critic was Chomsky (1957), whose introduction of the generative-transformational theory viewed the underlying meaning of the whole as being more important than any one part. His focus on the creative, rule-governed nature of competence and performance led many educators to the conclusion that pronunciation should remain inductively within the context of morphology and syntax (Kreidler, 1989). At the heart of this hypothesis was the suggestion that all language skills, including listening comprehension, verbal production and pronunciation, are so integrated that there is no need to address them as separate an d distinct features (Brown, 1997). The influence of Chomskys generative-transformational theory, along with the cognitive-code theory of the 1960s, which focused on listening at the discourse level and discarded skill ordering, paved the way for the trend to avoid or ignore direct pronunciation teaching altogether. The advent of the communicative approach in the late 1970s and early 1980s likewise deemed the teaching of pronunciation as ineffective and hopeless, instead it emphasized language functions over forms with the goal being overall communicative competence and listening comprehension for general meaning: MacCarthy (1976) stated that at present any teaching of pronunciation is so ineffective as to be largely a waste of time. (p. 212). At that time, many instructors of the communicative approach assumed that pronunciation skills would be acquired naturally within the context of second language input and communicative practice. However, pronunciation was not entirely ignored in the time period of the 1960s through the mid 1980s. Remnants of the audiolingual approach lingered within structural linguistics, which viewed language learning as a process of mastering hierarchies of structurally related items for encoding meaning (Morley, 1991). When pronunciation was addressed, instruction was generally oriented toward the drilling of individual sounds via articulatory descriptions and minimal pair contrasts (Chun, 2002). It is the reliance on this traditional phonemic-based approach which Leather (1987) mentions one of the reasons for the demise of pronunciation teaching during this era: The process, viewed as meaningless non-communicative drill-and-exercise gambits, lost its appeal; likewise, the product, that is, the success ratio for the time and energy expended, was found wanting. (Morley, 1991, p. 486). Attitudes ranged from serious questioning as to whether pronunciation could be overtly taught and learned at all (Chun, 2002), to unwavering claims that adults were simply unable to acquire second language pronunciation (Scovel, 1988). According to Madsen and Bowen (1978), the lack of attention to pronunciation, which was prevalent in the communicative approach of the late 1970s and early 1980s and the direct assertion by many that pronunciation could not be taught, resulted in a great number of international students who were failed communicate effectively or even intelligibly although they had been instructed for a long time. This situation sparked research in second language acquisition that suggested a departure from the traditional, bottom-up phonemic-based approach to pronunciation teaching toward a top-down orientation focusing on suprasegmental or prosodic aspects such as rhythm, intonation, and duration. Defined by Wennerstrom (2001, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004) as a general term encompassing intonation, rhythm, tempo, loudness, and pauses, as these interact with syntax, lexical meaning, and segmental phonology in spoken texts (p.4), prosody has historically been ignored or relegated to the fringes of research and pedagogy, due in large part, according to Chun (2002), to its inherent complexity and difficulty mastering it. Considered notoriously difficult to acquire and define, Bolinger (1972) labeled the most controversial aspect of prosody, intonation, the greasy part of language. Despite its historical back-seat status, an undercurrent of research regarding prosody has spanned several disciplines. The first documented study of speech melody has been traced back to Steele (Couper-Kuhlen, 1993, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004), who, in 1775, used musical notation to identify pitch variations that occur in regular forms upon syllables. Unfortunately, his materials, based on five features he identified as accent, quantity, pause, emphasis and force were dependent upon fixed and absolute musical pitches rather than flexible and relative tones, apparently lacking in practical applicability (Pike, 1945). 2.3. Pronunciation research in applied linguistics Although attaining native-like pronunciation that facilitates mutual intelligibility is considered important for many language learners and teachers alike, there have been few empirical studies of pronunciation in applied linguistics (Derwing Munro,2005; Levis, 2005). For example, Derwing and Munro (2005, p. 386) state that it is widely accepted that suprasegmentals are very important to intelligibility, but as yet few studies support this belief. This claim is supported by other researchers such as Hahn (1994) and Levis (2005) who states that over the past 25 years there has been encouragement to teach suprasegmentals though very little pedagogy has been based on empirical research. The usefulness of empirical research for developing more effective pronunciation teaching is obvious. As Levis (2005) states, instruction should focus on those features that are most helpful for understanding and should deemphasize those that are relatively unhelpful ( pp. 370-371). Munro (2008) echoes this point when stating that it is important to establish a set of priorities for teaching. If one aspect of pronunciation instruction is more likely to promote intelligibility than some other aspect, it deserves more immediate attention. (p. 197). Of course, we must first know what the most important elements are to ensure optimal instruction and learning outcomes. As Munro (2008) argues, because prosody encompasses a wide range of speech phenomena, further research is needed to pinpoint those aspects of prosody that are most critical (p.210). Hahn (2004, p. 201) agrees that there is little empirical support for claims that teaching suprasegmentals is helpful and that knowing how the various prosodic features actually affect the way native speakersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦process nonnative speech would substantially strengthen the rationale for current pronunciation pedagogy. For that reason, Hahn (2004) reiterates that it is important to identify the phonological features that are most salient for native listeners. Due to the complex relationship between suprasegmentals and intelligibility, Hahn (2004) argues that it is helpful to isolate particular suprasegmental features for analyses (p. 201). Hahns argument supports the importance of the research in this dissertation in which the acoustic correlates of English lexical stress are isolated and manipulated individually to identify which are the most pertinent to the perception of speech intelligibility and nativeness. Levis (2005) states that pronunciation teaching has been a study in extremes in that it was once considered the most important aspect of language learning (when audiolingual methods were favored) and then became very much marginalized in communicative language teaching. Of the research that has been carried out, such as that on intonation patterns, little of it finds its place in pronunciation textbooks (Derwing, 2008; Derwing Munro, 2005; Levis, 2005; Tarone, 2005). Therefore, there is a need to first fill a gap in empirical research treating aspects of second language pronunciation and then to ensure that these findings are relayed to professionals in the fields of education and applied linguistics so that L2 students can benefit from these findings. Once a general framework for the delivery of instruction is chosen, the next step in designing a course of any type is to consider the needs and desires of the students and create course objectives and learning outcomes. As stated earlier, ESL students are typically concerned with issues such as intelligibility, accent and nativeness. Students often voice their goals regarding attaining proficiency in these areas and teachers should consider which goals are realistic (Avery Ehrlich, 1992). To do so, the students current abilities must be assessed in order to target strategies that will help achieve these goals. Assessing students abilities is crucial in planning pronunciation teaching. Derwing (2003; 2008) stresses that each student should be assessed individually to identify the students strengths and weaknesses and determine individual needs in pronunciation. These assessments can be done in a formal or informal way by the teacher and can include self-reports or self-assessments by the students. Self-assessments by students can provide insight into the students perceived needs, although these needs may be biased by the students previous experience with pronunciation instruction. Derwing (2003) found that of the pronunciation problems identified [by the students], roughly 79% were segmental [in nature], while only 11% were related to prosody.(p.554). In other words, students are simply more aware of segmental elements than they are of prosodic ones due to more previous instruction on segmental elements. Once evaluations have been completed, the question becomes how to address the language learners pronunciation issues. A complication arises at this point because students in ESL classes typically come from very mixed language backgrounds. Even the varying needs of students in EFL classrooms, where all learners are from the same native language background, can be challenging as individual students have individual needs. Therefore, integrating pronunciation lessons into class activities can be challenging in ESL classrooms as a particular speaker (or group of speakers) may have little difficulty with a particular element of pronunciation while others have great difficulty. A well-known example is Japanese speakers difficulty acquiring /r/ and /l/ (Bradlow, 2008) which does not cause any trouble for Spanish speakers. As Derwing (2003) advises, focusing heavily on segmental instruction in mixed classrooms is inappropriate due to the variety of language backgrounds and, therefore, prosody should be emphasized as it can have greater importance for a larger diversity of students. Derwing (2008) also argues that instruction in prosody transfers better to spontaneous speech than instruction on segmentals. Many instructors are reluctant to teach pronunciation and often unsure how to go about doing it (Derwing Munro, 2005; Hewings, 2006) as they feel underprepared or have little support in terms of course materials. Derwing (2003) estimates that only about 30% of pronunciation teachers have formal linguistic training in pronunciation pedagogy. To address this issue, it is important that empirical research on pronunciation be conveyed in a clear manner to language teachers so that they can pass this information along to students. To be certain, pronunciation should be considered an important element of ESL classroom instruction. It has been noted above that pronunciation is implicated in critical elements of communication such as speech intelligibility, and can also affect perception of nativeness. In addition, accurate pronunciation is critical for students needing to pass standardized English tests such as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for entrance into colleges and universities in English-speaking countries, or when interviewed by entities such as the Foreign Service Institute which assesses not only a persons grammar and vocabulary but also comprehension, fluency and accent in oral interviews (Varonis Gass, 1982). Pronunciation is also a key element in programs that prepares international teaching assistants to become teachers in American classrooms (Hahn, 2004; Wennerstrom, 1998). 2.4. The reasons for teaching pronunciation One of the most urgent reasons for effective pronunciation instruction centers on the large number of non-native English speakers attending American colleges and universities. According to The Institute for International Education, these students numbered 547,867 in the 2000/2001 school year, with a substantial number serving as graduate teaching assistants. The increase in the hours of classroom instruction given by non-native speakers has led to a corresponding decrease in student satisfaction with the quality of instruction, due mainly to the reported difficulty following non-native classroom presentation (Ostrom, 1997, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004). A survey by Shaw (1985, as cited in Aufderhaar, 2004 ) revealed that having an instructor with foreign-accented speech is the highest of six areas of potential frustration for college students. Accordingly, previous studies conducted by Hinofotis and Bailey (1980) on non-native university teaching assistants revealed a threshold level of understandable pronunciation in English, below which the non-native speaker will not be able to communicate orally regardless of his or her level of control of English grammar and vocabulary. While some instructors and administrators within the field have historically dismissed these problems simply as a matter of not having enough exposure to the spoken target language (Moy, 1986), other well-meaning instructors attempting to deal with this need have often relied on minimal pair drills, repetition and articulatory instruction with poor results (MacDonald, Yule, Powers, 1994). According to Aufderhaar (2004), research in second language acquisition that suggested a departure from the traditional, bottom-up phonemic-based approach to teaching from a top-down orientation emphasizing suprasegmental or prosodic aspects such as rhythm, intonation, and duration revealed a need to increase the adult learners awareness of suprasegmental patterns of the target language at the discourse level. Chun (2002) advocates five principles for teaching intonation, including sensitization, explanation, imitation, practice activities, and communicative activities, and stresses the need for focused listening practice requiring the identification of suprasegmental features within a context of various authentic speech samples representing different speaker roles and relationships. 2.5. The sound system of English According to the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH) the unequal features between languages are the main source of errors. Lado (1957, as cited in Gass Selinker, 2008, p.96) claims that those structures that are different will be difficult because when transferred they will not function satisfactorily in the foreign language and will therefore have to be changed. In order to understand the role of the first language in the phonological acquisition of the second language, emphasis has been given to the studies that have focused on the differences between English and Persian phonological systems. As Celce-Murcia, Brinton, and Goodwin (1996) state: all languages are unique in terms of their consonant and vowel systems. In linguistics, these distinctive characteristics have been divided into segmental and suprasegmental features. The segmental features of a language relate to consonants and vowels, whereas suprasegmental aspects of a language are involved with word stress, intonation, and rhythm (p. 35). 2.5.1 English Consonants and Vowels Standard American English includes 24 consonants and 22 vowels and diphthongs; however, a study performed on American English asserted that there are similarities among consonants that permits us to classify them into groups; the classification can be done according to various criteria (Olive, Greenwood, Coleman, 1993, p. 22). They suggested that consonants could be classified based on voice, place, and manner of articulation; therefore, according to their common characteristics, which include their location inside the mouth, they can be grouped together (Olive, Greenwood, Coleman, ibid, p. 22). Table 2.1 presents the English consonants. Table 2.1. English Consonants p pour 0 thorough r writer b ball e this m man t tool s sack n none d door z Zip ņ¹ sing k key h ham I lab g gear r shawl J rude ʆ uh 3 garage w word f fish tʃ match W what v vast d3 jelly j you The most common vowels in English have been classified in accordance with how the tongue shapes them, and while the consonant sounds are mostly articulated via closure or obstruction in the vocal tract, vowel sounds are produced with a relatively free flow of air (Yule, 2006, p. 38). Therefore, vowels can be classified based on the movement of the tongue, lips, and jaw. The vowels of English have been characterized as low, mid, or high, which describe the height of the tongue, whereas features such as front, central, or back refer to the position of the tongue inside the mouth (Barry, 2008, p. 21). Table 2.2. English Simple Vowels i deed ÊÅ   could É ª sit Ɇ bought Ɇº set a pot à ¦ bad ÊŒ but u push Ç  above 2.6. The Pronunciation Errors of Persian Speakers and the Negative Transfer of Learned L1 Habits into English Major (2001) addressed the issues in L2 phonology and how L1 phonological features can be transferred to the L2 when the sound pattern and word stress of the L2 differs from the L1. A foreign or nonnative accent can be detected more easily in a formal and longer conversation because in short conversation the speaker can produce words or sounds that are similar to the L2 in terms of segmental and suprasegmental features of language. Therefore, then overall impression concerning native speakers from whether or not and to what degree a person sounds native or nonnative is called global foreign accent (Major, 2000, p. 19). The measurement of global foreign accent is essential as it indicates at what stage of language development pronunciation is acquired. Moreover, Nation and Newton (2009) stated that the goal of pronunciation instruction is to increase the intelligibility of second language speakers although factors such as age, L1, perspectives, and attitudes of the learner can affect the learning of second language phonological system. There is clear evidence that there is a relationship between the age at which a language is learned and the degree of foreign accent (Patkowski, 1990, as cited in Nation Newton, 2009, p. 78). However, pronunciation has been identified as one of the important aspects of second language acquisition as it plays a crucial role in spoken conversational interactions and intelligibility. Although some studies indicated that it is impossible for adult learners to acquire native-like pronunciation, Boudaoud and Cardosos (2009) study suggested that learners proficiency level in English could affect their pronunciation. They compared the phonological features of Persian with four languages: Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese, and Arabic and asserted that these languages prevented their speakers from producing the /s/ consonant when learning English. The study focused on four research questions related to the production of /s/ consonant by Persian speakers and the factors that affect the acquisition of English as a second language. The findings indicated that /st/ and /sn/ were more difficult to produce than /sl/ and suggested that error production decreased as the proficiency level increased. Furthermore, Paribakht (2005) examined the relationship between first language (L1; Persian) lexicalization of the concepts represented by the second language (L2; English) target words and learners inferencing behavior while reading English texts (p. 701). This study emphasized the pronunciation errors that English majors produce in Iran when they read English texts. The study asserted that students errors in reading stemmed from their lack of knowledge in English vocabulary rather than the inability to produce the English sound system. The research questions examined whether lexicalization helped students identify the meaning of unfamiliar words. The findings also showed that students relied on their L1 when they were not provided with the synonym of an unfamiliar word. Sadeghi (2009) focused on collocational differences between the L1 and L2 and [suggested] implications for EFL learners and teachers (p.100). This study addressed the errors that Iranian EFL students make when they learn English, and it stated that these errors stemmed from the differences between Persian and English. The study compared Persian and English collocations and focused on the transfer of L1 habits into L2. The aim of the study was to find out whether students made the same errors based on their proficiency level in the English language. Lower level students tend to transfer L1 habits into L2 more frequently as a result of their lack of knowledge in the target language. However, transferring Persian vowels and diphthongs into English pronunciation can also be observed by advanced learners of English. Research related to the difference between phonological systems in English and Persian provide a general overview of the difficulties ESL students may encounter when teachers focus on pronunciation, intonation, and word stress. 2.6.1. Common consonant errors of Iranian EFL learners Persian speakers tend to place a vowel after each consonant; therefore, the following errors can be predicted when Persians pronounce English words: Bread, script, and scramble are pronounced as [bɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â‚¬ ºd], [ɆºskiÉ ¹ipt], and [ɆºskɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹Ãƒ ¦mbɆºl]. Furthermore, according to the contrastive analysis of English and Persian conducted by Yarmohammadi (1969, 1996) and Wilson and Wilson (2001), the following negative transfer of learned L1 habits into English can be expected from Persian speakers of English. 1. Stop consonants such as /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, k/, /g/ are articulated with a stronger puff of air. /k/, /p/, /g/ and /t/ become aspirated when they are placed in the post coda position. Words such as bank, tap, king, and rest are pronounced as [bà ¦nkÊ °], [tà ¦pÊ °], [kÉ ªngÊ °], and [È ·Ãƒâ€°Ã¢â‚¬ ºstÊ °]. 2. Fricatives such as /v/, /ÃŽÂ ¸/, /ÃÆ' °/, and /s/ are substituted and articulated for other consonants such as /w/, /t/ and /s/, /z/ and /d/, /Ɇºs/ (no initial consonant cluster). West, three, father, and school are pronounced as [vɆºstÊ °], [sɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·i] or [tɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·i], [fÃŽÂ ±dɆºÃƒË†Ã‚ ·], and [Ɇºskul]. 3. Nasal consonant /ņ¹/ is articulated as /n/ and /g/. Therefore, sing is pronounced as [sÉ ªngÊ °]. /m/ and /n/ are also articulated with a stronger puff of air and they may sound like /Ɇºm/ and /Ɇºn/. 4. Lateral liquid consonant /l/ can be pronounced with a stronger puff of air /Ɇºl/ when it is placed at the end of a word such as tell. 5. The retroflex liquid /È ·/ is trilled and it is produced with the vibration of the tongue. 6. The glide consonant /w/ is replaced by /v/ since /w/ does not exist in Persian consonants. Therefore, flower is articulated as [fɆºlavɆºÃƒâ€°Ã‚ ¹]. 2.6.2. Common vowel errors of Iranian EFL learners According to the contrastive analysis of English and Persian conducted by Yarmohammadi (1969, 1996) and Wilson and Wilson (2001), the following negative transfer of learned L1 habits into English can be expected from Persian speakers of English: 1. /Ɇº/ and /à ¦/ can substitute for one another; therefore, [bà ¦t] is articulated as [bɆºt]. 2. /ÊŒ/ replaces /ÃŽÂ ±/. [lÊŒk] is articulated as [lÃŽÂ ±k]. 3. /ÊÅ  / replaces /u/. [ful] is pronounced as [fÊÅ  l]. 4. /É ª/ replaces /i/. [bit] is articulated as [bÉ ªt]. 5. /j/ replaces /i/ if placed in initial position. [twin] is articulated as [tujin]. 2.7. The Importance of suprasegmentals and stress in L2 acquisition 2.7.1 The importance of suprasegmentals Pronunciation is always a difficult step in learning a second or foreign language, especially for adults. Learners may have acquired perfect reading and writing skills while still being unable to communicate functionally in L2. Problems in pronunciation can be traced to segmental as well as suprasegmental difficulties. Although most previous research has been conducted on the segmental level, recent studies show that suprasegmentals may play a more important role than segmentals in the acquisition of a second language phonological system (Anderson, Johnson Koehler 1992, Derwing, Munro Wiebe, 1998). Anderson, et al (1992) investigated the nonnative pronunciation deviance at three different levels: syllable structure, segmental structure and prosody. The correlation between the actual deviance at the three levels and nonnative speakers performance on the Speaking Proficiency English Assessment Kit (SPEAK) Test was calculated. It was shown that while all three areas had a significant influence on pronunciation ratings, the effects of the prosodic variable were the strongest. In Derwing, Munro, and Wiebes (1998) study, native speakers were invited to evaluate the final results of three types of instruction, i.e. segmental accuracy, general speaking habits and prosodic factors, and no specific pronunciation instruction, after a 12-week pronunciation course. Treated in three different ways, three groups of ESL learner reading sentences and narratives at the beginning and end of the course were recorded. Both the first and second groups, who received pronunciation instruction, showed significant improvement in sentence reading. However, only the second group, where prosodic factors were included in the instruction, showed improvement in accentedness and fluency in the narratives. In Johanssons (1978, as cited in Wang, 2009) study of Swedish-accented English speech, segmental and non-segmental errors were compared in terms of accentedness scores. Native English judges were presented with two kinds of production, those with native English intonation but segmental errors on the one hand, and those with nonnative intonation (Swedish-accented) but no segmental errors on the other. Higher scores were assigned to productions with native-like suprasegmental characteristics but poor segmentals. In a more recent study, Munro (1995, as cited in Wang, 2009) used low-pass filtered English speech produced by Mandarin speakers for accent judgment. Untrained native English listeners were invited to rate the speech samples. It was found that non-segmental factors such as speaking rate, pitch patterns and reduction contribute to the detected foreign accent in Mandarin speakers production and that their foreign accent can be detected based solely on suprasegmental information. In addition, some recent studies have, therefore, focused on stress production with nonce words of English. For example, Pater (1997, as cited in Altmann, 2006) investigated the stress placement patterns for English nonce words by both English native speakers and French learners of English. While this study varied syllable weight within words, it used a rather small set of items. The native English speakers exhibited a stress placement pattern that was basically identical to the Latin stress rule (i.e., stre

The Principles Of Machiavelli Exposed in The Prince :: essays research papers

Machiavelli's views have been misinterpreted since his book was first written, people take him in the wrong way, and are offended by what he says. Careless readers take him in a completely wrong way, such as they think that he believes that the end justifies the means, that a leader should lie to the people, and that a ruler has to rule with force. In actuality, Machiavelli means no such thing, he says that there are times when the common good outweighs the means, and the morality of a rulers actions. He also says that you cannot be loved by everyone, so try to be loved and feared at the same time, but of the two, choose to be feared. The Prince is considered to be one of the most important of nonfiction literature written in the history of mankind. It gave an accurate and truthful description of the method of governing. Machiavelli understands the importance of a military force, and that a country has to be kept in order, even if that means lying to the people to get them to fight against a common foe. In Europe, the church was entangled in politics, and everything else, but Machiavelli suggests a secular state, which would allow the leader to do that which is necessary for the country and for his continued reign, though not necessarily moral.The ends do not justify the means, yet sometimes if the end is necessary for the continuation of a society, then the means do not have to be morally bound. A ruler cannot please everybody all the time, so therefore, he has to be cunning in order to maintain control. There are times when a ruler needs to lie to the populace, in order to reach a goal that is better in some way for the nation. By tying the church to the government, people expected the government to behave morally, but often times, an entirely moral ruler will be overthrown. A ruler cannot show any weakness, or else he will no longer be feared enough to keep him in power, and he will be overthrown. In The Prince, Machiavelli asserts that it is best for a ruler to be both feared and loved, but if he cannot be both, it is much better to be feared. People are unlikely to overthrow a ruler that they fear, because they fear the punishments for failure.

Segregation and the Civil Rights Movement Essay -- Black struggle for

Protest against injustice is deeply rooted in the African American experience. The origins of the civil rights movement date much further back than the 1954 Supreme Court ruling on Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka which said, "separate but equal" schools violated the Constitution. From the earliest slave revolts in this country over 400 years ago, African Americans strove to gain full participation in every aspect of political, economic and social life in the United States. Segregation was an attempt by white Southerners to separate the races in every sphere of life and to achieve supremacy over blacks. Segregation was often called the Jim Crow system, after a minstrel show character from the 1830s that was an old, crippled, black slave who embodied negative stereotypes of blacks. Segregation became common in the Southern states following the end of Reconstruction in 1877. The system of segregation also included the denial of voting rights, known as disfranchisement. Between 1890 and 1910 all Southern states passed laws imposing requirements for voting that were used to prevent blacks from voting, in spite of the 15th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which had been designed to protect black voting rights. These requirements included: the ability to read and write, which disqualified the many blacks who had not had access to education; property ownership, something few blacks were able to acquire; and paying a toll tax, which was too great a burden on most Southern Blacks, who were very poor. Because blacks could not vote, they were virtually powerless to prevent whites from segregating all aspects of Southern life. Blacks fought against discrimination whenever possible. In the ... ...d a struggle without end, as black citizens sought education, employment, respect, and freedom in a discriminatory society. The history of African Americans in this country is one of tragedy and violence, but it is also one of courage and strength, filled with determination and hope. Bibliography "Civil Rights." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 04 June 2013. . "Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-1956)." Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-1956). The Martin Luther King Jr Research and Education Institute, n.d. Web. 04 June 2013. . Wilson, Louis. "Taking on Segregation." The Americans. By Gerald Danzer. N.p.: McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin, 2006. 701. Print.

Charles Dickens Hard Times Essay -- Charles Dickens Hard Times Essays

Charles Dickens' Hard Times Many characters in the novel are victims of hard times as a result of many factors. These include the lack of money, the education system, the industrialisation in the area and the social injustices of the Victorian era. The novel is divided into three books: sowing, reaping and garnering. The names of these books have biblical references. ‘Ae ye sow, so shall ye reap’ New Testament This means that there are consequences to all your actions, this idea features strongly in the novel. In the first book ‘sowing’, the actions of the characters were described for example the pragmatic education system. In the second book ‘reaping’, the consequences of these actions are described, and in the third book ‘garnering’, the consequences are explored more, along with the final outcome of these events. In the novel, Mr Gradgrind causes and suffers from hard times. He is a very rigid character in addition to being ‘a man of fact and calculations’. He causes hard times for others, including his family, with his pragmatic education system. We discover his attitudes to schooling from the very first chapter when he says: ‘In this life, we want nothing but facts, sir; nothing but Facts’ This concept is based upon utilitarianism. This is the idea that nothing except useful and practical things are wanted in life, and this causes many of Dickens’ characters hard times. They thought these concepts would provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people but it only benefited the rich, the poor sill suffered. He tries to inflict this system onto Sissy but he ends up learning a lesson from her. Towards the end of the novel he realises that he has not given his children what the... ...e goes on to become a very famous author who was very critical of lives, industrialisation and money; all of these are explored in hard times. Finally, Dickens’ experiences as a child came out in a convincing portrayal of what was wrong with the Victorian society. He was a critic to his time and from his novels we can learn a great deal about the Victorian era. Many of the characters in the novel experience hard times as a result of many factors. Stephen Blackpool is the innocent victim in the novel; he suffers greatly through no fault of his own. He is kind and trustworthy yet he is abused. Other characters such as Mrs Sparsit and Bitzer enjoy causing hard times for others. Some suffer more than others; but Dickens uses his characters to explore the hard times of the era. In conclusion, many of Dickens’ characters suffer as a result of numerous causes.

Psychological assessment tools

Validation history, strength and weaknesses: One of the criticism of the gung scale Is that It used graded responses that may be confusing to elderly patients ,and so they may require assistance from the examiner to complete the form. Another problem with the test is that the mean score for elders Is significantly higher than that for younger subjects, with many normal elders assessed as false positive. It also misses depression in the elderly if it takes the form of multiple somatic complaints. Many authors have advised that it should NT be used for either research or clinical assessment of geriatric depression.Despite the concerns over the use of gung self depression scale in elderly , it still continues to be used for research especially in Europe,where it has been noted to revel sex and differences In in scales factor structure in the elderly population-the scale has also en translated to many languages including Arabic, German ,Portuguese and Spanish. 2. Millions clinical multir acial inventory. In 1969, Theodore millions undertook the test construction of the mimic. It contained 11 personality scales and clinical syndromes. Alt was revised both in 1989 and 1994.The millions clinical multiracial inventory is used to asses patient with a suspected or known psychological disorder to refine the diagnoses. The test is designed to be used specifically with adults. While it is developed mainly for use with mentally ill population. Scope: It is sometimes used for patients without a known psychological disorder. It can sometimes provide onsite into personality traits that can help people in psychotherapy NAS other settings. The MIMIC contains a total of 28 scales broken down into 24 clinical scales(personality and clinical syndrome scale).The 14 personally scales include; schizoid, avoiding, depressive ,dependent, histrionic, narcissistic,c antisocial, sadistic, compulsive, negativism,masochistic, psychotically, borderline and paranoid. The clinical scales include; anxiety, comparators, bipolar, hysteria, alcohol dependence, drug dependence, PATS, thought disorder, delusion disorder, and major depression. The mortifying indices include disclosure scale (x) , the desirability scale (y), and the debasement scale (z). Items: There are 175 true or false questions ,which ar designed to be completed in half an hour.The test closely coordinates with the ADSM . Patients' raw scores are converted to Base Rate (BRB) scores to allow comparison between the personality indices. The Base Rate scores are essentially where each score fits on a scale of 1-115, with 60 being he median score. Conversion to a Base Rate score is relatively complex, and there are certain corrections that are administered based on each patient's response style The Disclosure scale is the only scale in the MIMIC-III in which the raw scores are interpreted and in which a particularly low score is clinically relevant.A raw score above 178 or below 34 is considered to not be an accurat e representation of the patient's personality style as they either over-or under-disclosed and may indicate questionable results. A base rate score of 75 or greater on the Desirability or Debasement scales indicate that the examiner should proceed with cautioner the Personality and Clinical Syndrome scales, base rate scores of 75-84 are taken to indicate the presence of a personality trait, or (for the Clinical Syndromes scales) the presence of a clinical syndrome. Scores of 85 or above indicate the persistence of a personality trait or a clinical syndrome .Validation History and psychometric properties: Theoretical-substantive validity[edit] The first stage was a deductive approach and involved developing a large pool of items; the number of items was reduced based on a rational approach according to he degree to which they fit the theory as well as elimination of items based on simplicity, grammar, content, and scale relevance. Internal-structural validity[edit] Once the initial i tem pool was reduced, the second validation stage assessed how well items interrelated, and the psychometric properties of the test were determined.Internal consistency is the extent to which the items on a scale generally measure the same thing. Cockroach's alpha statistics range from . 66 (Compulsive) to . 90 (Major Depression). Test-retest reliability is a measure of the stability of the measure, or the change over time. The higher the correlation, the more stable the measure is. Based on 87 participants, the test-retest reliability of the MIMIC-III (5-14 days later) ranged from . 82 (Debasement) to . 96 (Comparators) with a median coefficient of . 91 . These however, no long-term data are available. External-criterion validity[edit] The final validation stage includes convergent and discriminative validity of the test, which is assessed by correlating the test with similar/dissimilar instruments. Positive predictive power is the likelihood of being right given a test positive, w hich ranged from . 30 (Masochistic) to . 1 (Dependent). Sensitivity, or the proportion of individuals that have a condition that are correctly identified ranged from . 44 (Negativism) to . 92 (Paranoid). Strength and weaknesses; the test is brief in comparison to other personality inventories and it has a strong theoretical basis.Some psychologists prefer to give it because the administration and scoring are simple, and it has a multi-axial format. The organization of the scales was confirmed by factor analysis and correlations done with third-party tests further confirm the validity of the scales. Internal consistency and alpha coefficients for the est., as well as test-retest reliability, are all good. 3. BECK'S ANXIETY INVENTORY The Beck Anxiety Inventory (ABA), created by DRP. Aaron T. Beck and other colleagues. It is a 21 -question multiple-choice self-report inventory that is used for measuring the severity of an individual's anxiety.The Beck Anxiety Inventory is a well accept ed self-report measure of anxiety in adults and adolescents for use in both clinical and research settings Scope: Though anxiety can be thought of as having several components, including cognitive, somatic, affective, and behavioral components, Beck et al. Included only two components in the Basis original proposal: cognitive and somatic. [2] The cognitive subspace provides a measure of fearful thoughts and impaired cognitive functioning, and the somatic subspace measures the symptoms of physiological arousal.Because the somatic subspace is emphasized on the ABA, with 15 out of 21 items measuring physiological symptoms, perhaps the cognitive, affective, and behavioral components of anxiety are being deemphasized. Therefore, the ABA functions more adequately in anxiety disorders with a high somatic component, such as panic disorder. On the there hand, the ABA won't function as adequately for disorders such as social phobia or obsessive-compulsive disorder, which have a stronger cogni tive or behavioral component.

Two Love Stories

My audience for this es assert is the junior students at Enterprise State Community College, who do it a good crawl in figment ab bulge young whop. I expect my essay entrust tell the primaeval points of the uniformities and differences of dickens major love stories that became movies in the demolition of the twentieth century, and open their eyeb exclusively to what dumbfounds a love story. That is not fair(a) the good times, unless the strenuous problems that generate with spiritedness story. Life is easier having some single to deal with the hard problems beside you.Both these movies tell the difficulties of real love and I hope my essay will delineate my audiences hearts. Outline Thesis The notebook computer and A strait to remember argon cardinal astonishing love stories written by Nicholas Sparks that spud the big screen in the end of the twentieth century. These movies wee a stripe of similarities and differences, such as the descent in the midst o f the two couples, the time item they purpose place, and the age group of the couple. I. The world-class way that the notebook and a strait to remember ar similar and unalike is by the family of the two couples. A.In the notebook The young couple had an up and shoot d ingest rough romance that lasted a lifetime, ratiocination in ending in each(prenominal) others arms. B. In A head to memorialize the young couple had a pitiable consanguinity that entangle like a lifetime but end proto(prenominal) in the death of Jamie. C. The similarities in the midst of the two couples in the movies is that twain couples are young and in love, dealing with life issues. II. The plunk for way these movies are similar and differ, is by their society standards of their families and their time period. A. Both couples in the movies cast to deal with an acceptance in each others families due to social standards.B. The notebook computer takes place in the mid sixties during the time of war. C. A walk to recover takes place at the end of the mid-eighties beginning of the nineties. III. The third way that A offer to flirt with and The notebook computer similiars is by the feelings of the love in young couples hearts, but they differ by where the couples stand in life. A. In A go to mean the couple is windlessness in proud school set ab start teenage dilemas and bullies. B In The Notebook the couple is out of higher(prenominal) school facing life changing choices. C. In two movies the couples are coming to age and planning what qualification become of their futures.Two love stories Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then(prenominal) subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of pr omises of arrant(a) passion. That is just cosmos in love which any of us can prevail on _or_ upon ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is some(prenominal) an art and a fortunate misfortune- St. Augustine.The Note book and A Walk To immortalise are both amazing love stories written by Nicholas Sparks, that hit the big screen at the end of the 20th century. These movies have a set of similarities and differences such as the romance between the two couples, the time periods the love stories take place in, and the age group of the couples. The offset way that The Notebook and A Walk To Remember similar and differs is by the relationship between the two couples. In The Notebook Allie and Noel had an up and down rollercoaster of a relationship that ended up lasting a life time, and ending in their death at the same time in each other arms.In A Walk To Remember Jamie and Landon got together, fell in love and then where only together for a short period of time that felt like an eternity to them. Their relationship ended in the death of Jamie when she was only eighteen. The similarities between the two couples is that in both movies the couples are young, in love, and dealing with life gainsay issues. Such as Allie developed Alzheimers and Noel stayed by her side until their last blink of an eye on earth, and Jamie has cancer that ended up killing her. These reasons make the relationships of the two couples braid and vary in there own unique way.The second way these movies similar and differ is by their society standers of their families and the musical style in which they take place. When I say they are similar I have in mind by the fact that in both movies the girls come from a more moral family, and the boys come from a more situated back type of living style. In both cases the girls parents disapprove of their daughters decision of their romances. In The Notebook Allies parents are higher class , and believe that Noel is not good enough for their daughter because of his commencement wage lumber job and his unknowing future .In A Walk To Remember Jamie is a preachers daughter whose father believes she should exit her last moments on earth in gods name preferably of spending her time with Landon who is a slack and likes to spend his time partying. These movies differ by the genre that they take place during. The Notebook takes place in the 60s during the time of war. While, A Walk To Remember takes place in the early 90s at the end of the millennium. These movies both hit the concept of young lovers cope with the decisions of betraying their families and their lovers.The third way that A Walk to Remember and The Notebook similar is by the feelings of true love in the hearts of the young couples, but they differ by where the couples stand in life. In A Walk to Remember the couple is still in high school facing teenage dilemmas and high school bullies, such as Landons ow n friends. In The Notebook the couple is out of high school and trying to figure out what they are going to do to take up out their life together or separate.. For instance Allie is off to a university to absorb a degree, while Noel is off to the army to fight for the freedom of America.In both movies the couples are coming to age and dealing with what skill come of their futures. In both relationship there are many up and downs that they have to work out to make their relationships work, dealing with heart braking issues that tested their corporate trust in love. In The Notebook they didnt agree on much in fact, they rarely agreed on anything. They fought all the time and they challenged each other both day, but in spite of their differences they had one measurable thing in common, they were untamed most each other.Both of theses movie were about ever lasting love, although they had a lot of differences, such as the distance of the two couples, the time period, and where t he couples stood in life, they focused on the same concepts. In both movies the girls had life threatening diseases, different social classes, and both couples were coming of age. Search for love, for it is the most important ingredient of life. Without it, you life will reverberation emptiness. With it, your life will vibrate with mania and meaning. Even during any cogency, love will shine through. -Nikita Koloff. No matter the hardship between both couples they both do the love work.

H Entering Australia

Executive Summary Table of table of contents Introduction Hennes and Mauritz (H&M) was first established in 1947 and conf theatrical role since expand inter tribeally and currently operate in 34 countries (H&M, 2009). As H&M continues to expand either year, the pastime report has chosen Australia as the new groceryplace, where analysis has been conducted to digest H&M with recommendations of which market place entry method they should adopt and the threats and issues they must(prenominal) everywherecome to be able to postdate. 1. 0 untaught Analysis AustraliaFor the purpose of this report H&M (Hennes & Mauritz) has chosen Australia as the foreign earth in which they wish to code and introduce their adjoins. Australia is the largest island, however, is besides the minuteest unstained in the world which is situated below south East Asia (Department of Immigration and Citizenship, 2009). Being the sixth largest nation on earth it excessively consists of six stat es and dickens territories with the lowest population density per squ be mebibyte (REFERENCE).As it is practically im doable for H&M to enter the undivided Australian market simultaneously, H&M has, on that pointfore, chosen Melbourne as the first Australian state they wish to enter. There be many an other(a)(prenominal) groundss for choosing Australia and Melbourne in particular including Melbourne is the second largest capital metropolis in Australia with a population of 3,634,200 (REFERENCE). Melbourne is ren ingested as the sort capital of Australia, where the Melbourne Spring Fashion week (MSFW) is one of the largest and most popular consumer formulate howeverts in Australia (City of Melbourne, 2009).This may consequently make it easier for H&M to launch their products and also obtain brand aw arness, as Melbournians atomic number 18 comparatively fashion conscious. current line opportunity, since 2006 on that point has been a 15% harvest-festival in the constituent where unsalted female consumers ar demanding for low priced nonetheless gamy quality and modernistic appargonl (Euromonitor, 2009). Australia has a kindred country compose as previous countries H&M has successfully entered and launched its product. Hence, H&M appears to shake up prior acquaintance and experience in expanding internationally into a horse opera country. 1. 0Product Analysis Hennes and Mauritz (H&M) was founded by Erling Persson in Vasteras, Sweden, in 1947. It was ab initio known as Hennes, which is the Swedish word for hers, as the caller-out only sold women wearing. Persson purchased Mauritz Widforss a small sporting apparel company and since then organize Hennes and Mauritz (REFERENCE). The company now operates in 34 countries including Germany, France, Hong Kong, ground forces and the UK. H&M continues to expand internationally where they expanded into the Japanese market in 2008 and pull up stakes set ahead expand into Russia and Leba non by the end of 2009 and Israel and South Korea in 2010 (H&M, 2009).The plaza concept of H&M is to provide burn-setting products at the lowest price possible, to fence with expensive department stores. H&M has 6 main product declines which admit Women diverse sick of apparel spanning from basic sportswear to corporate and troupe garments. Men includes tailored garments such as jackets to raffish apparel that job the latest trends. Children is divided into three categories babies, children and H&M Young which is aimed at children up to the progress of 14. Divided patsyed at teenagers and young adult, which offers fashion with a young look with creative designs that reflect those of the latest trends. &denim Jeans provides both traditional five-pocket jeans to the trendiest cuts. Accessories H&M also produces its own footgear, handbags, jewellery and even cosmetics. It should also be noted that H&M does not own manufacture any products, kind of they swan on over 700 independent providers chiefly in Asia and Europe which enables them to select the best supplier (H&M, 2008). 3. 0 Market SegmentsWith the diverse range of product lines, it appears that H&M has the ability to target opposite market segments simultaneously, this is somewhat difficult to achieve. Therefore, for the purpose of this report, deuce precise market segments progress to been selected and profiled to provide an overview of which segments H&M should specially target when launching in Melbourne. 3. 1 visibility One Womens outwear segment The foremost market segment that H should target would be the womens outerwear segment which includes all garments from stand out to blo usances to jackets (REFERENCE).Main reason being, this market segment is reasonably profitable with a Retail Value of over $3000 million (Refer to figure XX), where women have traditionally been the shadow consumer in the tog and footwear industry (REFERENCE). However, on that point appears to be a new social trend where men are becoming much fashion-minded and are also looking for cheaper options (REFERENCE). In recent times, there has been a change in preference for young women, where they do not only demand for high quality yet fashionable products, it must also be low priced (REFERENCE).H&M should then be able to target this segment, as the companys core concept coincides with this new trend. Where Hs womens array are intentional for women of all ages who are fashion minded, where its product line includes everything from modern basics to tailored classics, sportswear, maternity raiment and cutting-edge fashion. (H, 2008, pg. 17). However, for the purpose of this report and to make it easier to target, the patriarchal feather segment provide be young women senior(a) 18 to 24, while the secondary segment go forth be women venerable 25 to 40. . 2 Profile Two Childrenswear The second market that H should hand targeting once the womens outerwear market has been successfully targeted would be Childrenswear in Australia, as figure XX illustrates the steady ontogenesis in the market percent of childrenswear in Australia (REFERENCE). There are many reasons to the return of the childrenwears market share this may be because Australians are choosing to have fewer children (REFERENCE). In addition, habitation isposable incomes have increased providing, the key buyer generally mothers, will be more willing to purchase frank quality childrenwears at a low price. Therefore, H intensive range of children apparel which caters from infants to children aged up to 14, should be able to target the childrenwears market in Australia. Where the concepts for the childrens clothing are made to be fashionable, practical and hard-wearing (H, 2009). 4. 0 elaboration Home Country, immaterial Country and Company Culture Each and every country, metropolis and company will have its own distinct subtlety.There are many definitions of tillage where Fl etcher and Brown, 2009 has defined socialisation as prescriptive of deportment that are acceptable to slew in a specific communitylearnedpeople are born into a coatingdynamic becauseour behaviour influences the floriculture and culture is subjective (Fletcher and Brown, 2009, pg. 76). It is crucial for H to have understandings of the culture of the home country, foreign country and also the companys culture. Main reason being, cultural differences play an valuable role in launching and establishing H as postulatent rivalry in the Australian market. . 1 Swedish Culture The Swedish culture is typically perceived as egalitarian, simple and open to international influences (REFERENCE). This may be ca employ due to the predominance of the Social Democratic company where it promotes the culture of equality, pluralism and individual freedom (REFERENCE). As the Swedish culture is relatively similar to the Scandinavian, it can be assumed as a low stage setting cultural country in contrast to Australia. petty(a) context culture can be class as messages are mostly explicit and the rowing covey most of the meaning in the dialogue (Fletcher and Brown, 2009, pg. 88). Meaning in Sweden people mainly communicates finished words and do not place stress on non-verbal cues. Therefore, this culture may affect business negotiations between Sweden and Australians, due to the differences in cultural context, where Australians rely more on body language and facial nerve expressions (REFERENCE). In regards to the fashion culture, Sweden is greatly influenced by European fashion, where there is a strong raimented up working mans culture (REFERENCE). 4. 2 Australian CultureIt is relatively difficult to bring out and analyse Australian culture, in equivalences to other countries, as Australia is newly formed country and is a preponderantly multicultural society where it consists of different races and ethnic groups (Live in Victoria, 2009). However, there are gradu al changes to social trends which may become part of the Australian culture (REFERENCE). sympathetic to Sweden, Australia also has a low cultural context, yet in contrast, Australians appear to place more ferocity on non-verbal cues. Relating this to the Australian clothing culture, Australians generally outfit in business attire during business hours.though outside of working hours, Australians tend to choose clothing that is comfortable such as track reconcile pants and a loose fitted t-shirt, in comparison to a pair of jeans and jacket (Department of Immigration and Citizenship). This is an important factor H must take into consideration, as this will acquirely affect the products and selling strategies used to target the market segments. For instance, as Australia appears to have a laidback culture, it would probably suit the market more if H was able to launch products that suited the Australian culture and preferences. . 3 H Culture Company culture can be defined as a s ystem of values and beliefs shared by people in an organisation the companys corporate identity and meaning (Fletcher and Brown, 2009, pg. 334). As stated on the official H website, the company believes its employees, teamwork, working at a face past and constantly astir(p) (H, 2009). This suggests that H appears to have a relatively open, happy-go-lucky and energetic company culture, where it strongly promotes open communicating between managers and their employees (H, 2009).In addition, H is a upstanding believer of non-discrimination where all qualified applicants are devoted equal opportunities regardless of any characteristics including, race, religion, sexual orientation, sex, age marital status or disability. The company culture of H should not cause any implications when entering the Australian market. However, it may cause implications when international marketing strategies does not coincide with the companys culture, as strategies are designed to accommodate the co mpanys culture and not vice versa (REFERENCE). 5. Economic broker The Australian economy has recently experienced a market downturn where economic factors such as consumer government agency and expendable income will have a direct and indirect impact on the market entry and success of H in the Australian market. ?Gross Domestic Production (GDP) The GDP for Australia has been relatively flat in 2009, where there is no important growth, however, there is an anticipated growth of 0. 5% in 2010 and with the recession ceasing there should be gradual growth of 3. 25% in 2011 (ANZ, 2009). ?Interest RatesIn recent times, the delight rate has continued to drop, where in 2009, the nominal interest rate had dropped by 3% (Refer to Figure 2. 0 in Appendix). As interest rates are low Australians are discouraged from depositing money in the banks as it does not cave in interest. ?Household Income From figure XX and XX the equivalised disposable household income for Australians appears to have little by little increased. For instance in 1995-96 there were 11% of total income categorised as being low income, however, in 2007-08, this had decreased to 10. 1%. While there has been a significant increase of high income earners, from 37. % in 1994-95 and 40. 5% in 2007-08 (ABS, 2009). Overall, the Australian economy appears to be reasonably attractive as both GDP and equivalent disposable household income have increased, which suggests that consumers have more money and are more likely to spend and purchase consumer goods which include clothing and footwear. Therefore, H should take advantage of this consumer confidence and enter the Australian market rapidly as consumer currently have the ability to purchase more consumer goods that are not considered to be a necessity. 6. 0 Competitors AnalysisEven though the clothing and footwear industry in Australia is viewed to be an attractive market to enter, there does appear to have blood-and-guts contestation (REFERENCE co mpetitive). Referring to figure XX, there is no dominant market leader in the Australian market however, there are a number of brands who have gained developed brand share, such as Just Jeans (1. 9%) and Jays Jays (2%) respectively (REFERENCE). All brands operating in the clothing and footwear industry could be considered as H competitor, however, Just Jeans and Jay Jays are the two most similar brands compared to H.Where they have also identify the demand for fashionable yet low priced products, therefore, all three companies have similar product offerings and also client profiles. Hence, to successfully enter and establish H in the Australian market, it would be essential to have sound companionship of competitors and develop core competencies such as designs that are exclusion and is able to differentiate H from other similar brands (REFERENCE). 7. 0 Social Trends Sizes Overall, both Australian men and womens body encumbrance unit has gradually increased in recent times.How ever, as the primary segment for H are young women aged between 18 to 24, only the body weight of women will be discussed. From previous surveys conducted there appears to be a steady increase of the average weight of women from 62. 6kg in 1989-90 to 67. 7kg in 2004-05 (ABS, 2009). From figure XX there also appears to be considerable increase in the Body Mass Index (BMI), where there are less women classified as being habitual weight, while there are more women who are overweight and obese.As a result of this increase in body weight, the dress coat as also increased from size of it 12 to size 14. Hence, to accommodate to this increase in weight, most clothing brands have now introduced larger sizes for instance, Portmans now has size 16 as part of their standard dress size (REFERENCE). Therefore, to ensure that H is able to compete with other competitors it would be essential for them to manufacture products that are the suitable size for Australian women. 8. 0 evidenceIn concl usion, this report has complete(a)ly analysed a mix of factors to identify the attributes and threats of the Australian market in congress to the launch of H. Taken as a whole Australia appears to be an attractive market which consists of a invariable economy and high consumer confidence. Where H is able to use these attributes to help them better penetrate and expand in the Australian market. In contrast, many threats were also determine including cultural differences, changes in social trends and also intense competition.It is absolutely essential for H to gain thorough understanding of the threats and furthermore the business and social surroundings of the Australian market. Main reason being, H will then be able to develop specific marketing strategies to address and overcome these issues to successfully enter and become a market leader of the womens outerwear segment in the Australian clothing and footwear industry. 9. 0 Recommendations. From previous analysis Australia and the city of Melbourne in particular appears to be a possible market for H to enter and expand into.Therefore, the following recommendations are written in correspondent to the threats and issues place in the conclusion and throughout the report. Market approach Option Direct Exporting It is suggested that H adopts a direct exporting method to enter the Australian market. Direct exporting can be identified as the firm itself contacts the buyers overseas and either sells direct to the end-user (Fletcher and Brown, 2009, pg. 290).Mainly because this is the market entry option H are experienced in using and is also one of the most commonly used method. As it is relatively simple to operate and provides the company with more control over the operation of the business. Adapting to Australian fashion culture Style and Size For H to succeed and be able to obtain market share, the company must adapt to the Australian fashion culture and the physical body size of Australians. Therefo re,H is recommended to use product development strategies where they manufactured products that suit the Australian market. Suitable store repair Chadstone Shopping centralize Finding a suitable store location also plays an important role to the launch of H in Melbourne. Therefore, Chadstone Shopping Centre is suggested as a suitable store location for the first H store to be established. Main reason being, the shop centre is well-known and has a solid customer base, which makes obtaining brand awareness easier.