Extended definition about family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Extended definition about family - Essay Example There are different types of families, and they are in many settings. The functions and meanings of families depend on their connection to other societal institutions. A common family is a nuclear family, which also refers to conjugal families in the North America and Europe. To sociologists, there is a difference between the nuclear family and the conjugal family. According to them, conjugal families are relatively independent of the relatives of parents and of other families, while the nuclear families are the ones, which maintain a quite close relationship with their relatives.Extended family is also another family, which can mean people who are related by blood, and can refer to people who are related, and their relationships extend beyond the domestic group and do not fit into the conjugal family. These families refer to the normative structure, which is found in a society.All societies show some differences in the composition and outset of families. Sociologists, historians, an d anthropologists dedicate themselves to the understanding of variations, and changes in the family that result after some time. There is also another type of family called the bourgeois and is a family structure, which arises out of the sixteenth and seventeenth century from the European households. This family is formed from the marriage between a man and a woman under strictly defined gender roles. In this type of family, father is given the responsibly of looking income, while a woman has to take care of family matters.... This family is formed from the marriage between a man and a woman under strictly defined gender-roles. In this type of family, father is given the responsibly of looking income, while a woman has to take care of family matters. The huge transformation that led to current marriage in Western democracies was due to the religio-cultural value system provided by Judaism, early Christianity, Roman Catholic laws, and the Protestant Reformation. In some societies, there exist families, which are headed by the same sex. Although there is increasingly acceptance of the families headed by the same sex in the western societies, the heterosexual families are still the norm against which the same sex families are compared to. The rules of heterosexual marriage, which has encouraged same-sex partnerships to think critically about familial relationships, egalitarian strategies of family practices, and to invent creative family forms (Haviland, Prins & Walrath 242). There are also families, which ar e called blended families or stepfamily. These are families, which have mixed parents, whereby, one or both parents have remarried, and have children of the previous family in the present family. The affiliate of the couple to whom the child is not naturally linked is the stepparents. If the stepparents legally adopt the partners’ children, they become their legal parents. In this case, they may stop using the terms stepparent. However, some emotional issues that are common to stepfamilies may continue to be a problem. Family members should bond with their stepfamilies as with the biological families. Additionally, there are traditional and non-traditional families. The traditional families are those

Kant's Response to Hume's Skepticism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Kant's Response to Hume's Skepticism - Essay Example Another problem that Kant had to content with was the general partition of causal labor between God and created organisms. The main question he faced during his time was the relationship between the causal activity and action of God, considered as the primeval creator and conserver of the world. Kant acknowledged the position that a theory of God’s causal role in the natural course of nature was a precondition of any rational metaphysics of extraordinary intercessions. His personal contribution of this role was influenced by his engagement with three contending theories of divine causation (Nash, 1999, p.4). The first theory, known as occasionalism, postulates that God is exclusively responsible for the existence of beings. According to this theory, God uses his own power and finite substances to create effects in harmony with his own diktat. The second theory of divine causation is known as conservationism. According to this theory, divine activity is restricted to Godâ€℠¢s act in preserving created organisms. These protected organisms are viewed as capable of producing their own powers without any extra divine action. The third theory of divine causation is known as concurrence. It concurs with both occasionalism and conservationism that finite beings exclusively depend on God’s creative and preserving action for their survival (Nash, 1999, p.6). During the mid 18th century, Kant embarked on a serious reflection on the nature of the biological structure of organism. During this period, the scientific discourse on natural history and physiology was powerfully marked by decline of the pre-formation theory-the classical mechanistic theory of the organism. In addition, this period witnessed the emergence of the self-reproduction concept of organic systems which led to the rise of vitalism. Kant examined and reflected upon the methodology of this process. He attempted with the notion of objective purposive-ness to link the idea of reproduction wi th the conservative question of teleology so as to validate the notion of organism adequate to the system of mechanistic science (Nash, 1999, p.9). The classical theory of pre-formation, also called the doctrine of evolution was the deistic conjecture of generation par excellence. In the mechanistic hypotheses of the 17th century, the unique attributes exhibited by organism were perceived to be basic outcomes of the properties of the parts. This was the fundamental principle of the mechanical theory. But how did it come to be that organism had this organization? One of the basic dilemmas that the novel mechanistic science had to resolve was the manner in which different living organisms could have emerged from universal principles of matter in motion. The pertinent question to be answered was not whether an animal or a plant was a machine. Rather, the issue was: presuming that plants and animals are machines, how did they get their structures? The functioning of the beings could be clarified through an anatomical dissection of their structures. However, the elementary theoretical question that had to be addressed dealt with the origin of this structure. In other words, one of the major problems the pre-formation theory faced was explaining how the fundamental structures of various organisms could have emerged through the universal laws of matter in motion. In addition, it was generally assumed that the organization of the particles in the germ also mirrored the organization

Making Preschool a Supportive Environment

Making Preschool a Supportive Environment Childcare – Making A Pre-School Setting A Supportive And Safe Environment Introduction Section 1 explores the variety of pre-school providers and summarises the services they provide. Section 2 investigates how children develop. Section 3 examines the strategies pre-school providers need to implement in order to meet the requirements of the Foundation Stage Curriculum. Section 1 – Early Years: Where Your Child Can Learn There is a wide variety of early years’ education and childcare available for young children. It is best to check out the different providers in your area to see what services and facilities they provide. A great deal of learning and development takes place before the age of five, and your child can learn in a number of settings. These include: Nursery classes, nursery schools and day nurseries Pre-school playgroups Reception classes Accredited childminders who are part of an approved network Children’s Centres Finding An Early Education Place Near You – It is possible to find out what is available in your area by contacting your local Children’s Information Services (CIS). Your CIS can also provide help and advice with all aspects of childcare and early years’ education. You can also search for nurseries, childcare and schools online by accessing the following website: www.dfes.gov.uk and clicking on Early Years. This facility provides you with the opportunity to type in your postcode to get a list of providers near you. This on-line facility allows you to: Find a new school Find out more information about schools, such as contact details, School Profiles, Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) reports, maps and achievement tables Find childcare options, such as childminders, crà ¨ches, nurseries, out of school care, holiday care and pre-school care Of critical importance to a child’s long-term development is sourcing a highly effective provider in your local area. School Profiles are the new way for schools to report annually to parents, replacing the Governors’ Annual Report. All schools use the simple format, designed to provide information about the school’s performance and its broader achievements, both in and beyond the classroom. The School Profile is intended to give parents the information they need to understand the school’s performance, strengths and areas for improvement and contains: The school’s successes Details of extra-curricular activities Health and safety information The school’s response to the latest Ofsted report Free Education For Under Fives – All three and four year olds in England are entitled to a free, good quality, part-time early education place. The entitlement consists of a minimum of 12.5 hours per week for 38 weeks a year. It begins after your child turns three (the exact date depends on when their birthday falls). It ends when they reach compulsory school age. Nursery Classes, Nursery Schools And Day Nurseries – Nursery classes and schools fall into two groups: state and private. Most day nurseries are privately run. Most nurseries: Will take your child between the ages of three and five, although many day nurseries take younger children Open throughout the school year, although some private day nurseries open during the school holidays Operate a core day of 9.00 to 3.30 pm, although many nurseries offer longer days Offer five half-day sessions, although some types of nursery will offer part-time or full-time places depending on your needs Nursery schools and classes have a minimum ratio of two adults to 20 to 26 children – one must be a qualified teacher, the other a qualified nursery assistant. Day nurseries have more intensive staffing ratios and different rules on qualifications of staff depending on the ages of children being cared for. Pre-School Playgroups – These are often non-profit making. They may be run by volunteers, often including parents. Most playgroups: Will take your child between the ages of three and five, although some will take two year olds Open throughout the school year Usually offer half-day sessions, although are not always open all week, and others may be able to provide you with longer hours Provide places for between 10 to 20 children – there must be one adult for every eight children, and at least half of the adults must be qualified leaders or assistants Reception Classes – Some primary schools are able to admit children under five into a reception class. Reception classes: Take children aged four and five Open throughout the school year May take your child for half-day sessions at first, and then build up to full-time attendance Are limited by law to up to 30 children – most have assistants Childminders – They usually look after children in their own home. Some childminders work as part of a network to offer early years’ education. All childminders who care for children under eight agree to certain quality standards and must be registered, checked and inspected regularly to make sure they are suitable to look after children. Childminders: Look after your child from a few months old up to the age of five and some will also look after school age children after school and in the holidays Can often be flexible about the days and times they work: however, every childminder will be different so you will have to discuss this with the childminder Can look after up to six children under eight years old, although no more than three must be aged under five years of age. Children’s Centres – Sure Start Children’s Centres can provide early education and full day care for children under five, as well as a range of other services such as family support and health services. They are open a minimum of 10 hours a day, five days a week, 48 weeks a year. Section 2 – Child Development The importance of the first five years of a child’s life in terms of mental, emotional, social and physical development is now widely recognised. To this end the Labour Government since it was elected in 1997 has introduced a number of measures, which have improved the availability and quality of pre-school provision. The variety of this provision was explored in section. All pre-school providers must comply with a number of legal acts e.g. The Children Act 1989, The Care Standards Act 2000 etc, which are administered by a variety of regulatory bodies. The most effective way to make the pre-school environment safe is for the staff to fully understand how children develop. When children are stimulated and are actively encouraged to become involved with learning activities, this reduces the occurrence of bad behaviour and makes a significant contribution to improving the safety of the pre-school provision. This section is concerned with exploring how children learn and develop. How Do Children Develop? During the last 10 years, there has been an explosion in our knowledge of the ways in which humans develop and learn. When educators discuss children’s development, they usually talk about physical, mental, social and emotional development. It is important to remember that some children progress faster than others and that the time spent in stages does not reflect their intelligence. They may have a personality which needs to move slower in order to enjoy life and really internalise their learning. Physical Development – Once born, children develop strength from top to bottom (head, then body, then legs, then feet); from the inside to the outside (trunk, then arms and legs, then hands and feet, then fingers and toes); from large muscle (jumping, hopping, running, throwing, catching, carrying, climbing and balancing) to small muscle (using muscles of the wrist and hand in activities such as cutting, drawing, stringing beads, building block towers, working with play dough) skills. This is a sequence that all humans follow. While children are young we need to do many activities to strengthen their large and small muscles. Muscle skill development and maintaining a healthy body are especially important for future reading, writing, and maths success. Mental Development – When a child is born, he / she comes with a brain ready and eager to learn. The brain is very much like a new computer. It has great potential for development, depending on what we put into it. Early experiences greatly influence the way a person develops. Everyone who works with children has a major responsibility for the future of those children. The activities you do with them from birth to 10 will determine how their learning patterns develop. As children interact with their environment, they learn problem solving skills, critical thinking skills, and language skills. Social Development – First children develop a sense of self and then a sense of belonging to a family. They begin to watch other children and want to interact with them. Children’s plays develops through stages (playing alone, playing near others but not sharing, playing and sharing, playing with a purpose, organised games). These stages develop over time and with practice. Later, children develop their ability to respect the rights of others and to feel empathy for them. They learn to work cooperatively with others and to resolve conflicts in peaceful ways. You can interact with your child in ways that encourage cooperative behaviour and respect for the rights of others. Interacting with others in positive ways is critical to successful life. Emotional Development – As babies grow, they learn that they are not the centre of the universe and that they can depend on others. They develop a trust or mistrust of others. As toddlers, they learn to be proud of their accomplishment and state their opinions and desires. As they become pre-schoolers, children learn to separate from their parents and adjust to the school environment. They begin to participate in classroom activities. They learn to take turns and to solve conflicts using words. They begin to learn to control their emotions. They learn that it is okay to make a mistake. They develop confidence in themselves and learn to love themselves. You can help your children by encouraging them and showing your faith in their abilities. Having confidence in yourself and liking yourself are critically important to future success in school and in life. How Do We Prepare Children To Be Ready To Learn? – There is great interest on the part of parents in teaching children their letters and numbers and writing skills. The following lists show the pre-reading and pre-writing skills and beginning number skills that every child must develop in order to learn to read, write and do well in maths. Reading Skills – Reading skills develop in sequence and teachers try to help each child progress along the sequence as he / she is ready to progress. First, a child develops a love of books. At the same time they are beginning to develop eye-hand coordination. Next, they acquire tracking skills (the ability to follow words and pages from left to right through a book). Then children begin to recognise individual letters and later they realise that letters form words. Next they begin to understand that words remain the same from day to day. Listening skills improve at about the same time. The child begins to hear letter sounds and connect them with the written letters. Later, he/she begins to string sounds together to make words. The child then learns to hear and use the rhythm of the language. Reading ability continues to improve as he/she receives positive feedback from interested adults. Writing Skills – This is a sequence which each child passes through. One step follows another. A lot of practice is required at each stage. First the child begins to develop the sequence of drawing skills (from scribbling to making representational drawings). Encourage them to draw often. Small muscle strength needed for controlling writing instruments is increased through activities using squeezing, pinching and cutting. Then the child begins to imitate letters and numbers for fun and then to write for a purpose. When they receive positive feedback from interested adults, children’s skills will continue to improve at a fast pace. Maths Skills – These skills develop with much practice and we encourage their development as the child is ready. The child begins to count for fun (rote counting). Then they begin to see the purpose for counting and begin counting objects in a set (meaningful counting). Next they begin adding to or subtracting objects from a set. They begin comparing objects in a set. Then the child begins sorting (by size, shape, colour etc.) and ordering (by size, first-second-third etc). They enjoy learning to estimate (guess how many) and predict (what will happen next). They begin to sequence objects (red, yellow, blue, yellow, _____). This is a slow process and requires a lot of practice. At last the child begins to recognise numbers and associate the number with a like number of objects. They also begin to write numbers. Later, they will write the number words. If we make the learning fun, children will enjoy learning maths through their school years. SECTION 3 – FOUNDATION STAGE 3-5 The Foundation Stage was introduced as a distinct phase of education for children aged 3-5 in September 2000. In preparation, Curriculum Guidance For The Foundation Stage was distributed in May 2000 to all schools with nursery and reception classes, and to early years settings receiving education grant funding. This guidance sets out six areas of learning which form the basis of the Foundation Stage Curriculum. These areas are: Personal, social and emotional development Communication, language and literacy Mathematical development Knowledge and understanding of the world’ Physical development Creative development Each area of learning has a set of related early learning goals. Curriculum Guidance For The Foundation Stage is intended to help practitioners plan to meet the diverse needs of all children so that most will achieve and some, where appropriate, will go beyond the early learning goals by the end of the Foundation Stage. The Education Act 2002 extended the National Curriculum to include the Foundation Stage. The six areas of learning became statutory, and the Act also specified that there should be early learning goals for each area. A national consultation on the content of the early learning goals as set out in Curriculum Guidance For The Foundation Stage was carried out in autumn 2002. Following this consultation the early learning goals and use of the Curriculum Guidance as a guide, became statutory in March 2002. The Act also established a single national assessment system for the Foundation Stage, replacing baseline assessment schemes. The Foundation Stage profile was introduced into schools and settings in 2002-03. The Foundation Stage profile has 13 summary scales covering the six areas of learning, which need to be completed for each child receiving government-funded education by the end of his or her time in the foundation stage. The curriculum for the Foundation Stage should underpin all future learning by supporting, fostering, promoting and developing children’s: Personal, Social And Emotional Well-Being – In particular by supporting the transition to and between settings, promoting an inclusive ethnos and providing opportunities for each child to become a valued member of that group and community so that a strong self-image and self-esteem are promoted. Positive Attitudes And Disposition Towards Their Learning – In particular an enthusiasm for knowledge and learning and a confidence in their ability to be successful learners. Social Skills – In particular by providing opportunities that enable them to learn how to cooperate and work harmoniously alongside and with each other and listen to each other. Attention Skills And Persistence – In particular the capacity to concentrate on their own or on group tasks. Language And Communication – With opportunities for all children to talk and communicate in a widening range of situations, to respond to adults and to each other, to practise and extend the range of vocabulary and communication skills they use and to listen carefully. Reading And Writing – With opportunities for all children to explore, enjoy, learn about and use words and text in a broad range of contexts and to experience a rich variety of books. Mathematics – With opportunities for all children to develop their understanding of number, measurement, pattern, shape and space by providing a broad range of contexts in which they can explore, enjoy, learn, practise and talk about them. Knowledge And Understanding Of The World – With opportunities for all children to solve problems, make decisions, experiment, predict, plan and question in a variety of contexts, and to explore and find out about their environment and people and places that have significance in their lives. Physical Development – With opportunities for all children to develop and practise their fine and gross motor skills and to increase their understanding of how their bodies work and what they need to do to be healthy and safe. Creative Development – With opportunities for all children to explore and share their thoughts, ideas and feelings through a variety of art, design and technology, music, movement, dance and imaginative and role play activities. In order to fulfil the requirements of the Foundation Stage Curriculum and provide a safe and supportive environment, pre-school providers need to implement the following strategy: To Encourage Physical Development Pre-School Providers Need To: Feed children meals with good nutritional value and teach nutrition activities to children and parents Teach children and families about good hygiene Practise large motor skills (balancing, galloping, skipping, building muscles in the arms, legs, and trunk) Build small motor skills through practise (cutting, holding writing instruments, drawing, painting, stringing beads, using play dough, water play) Present activities to develop eye-hand coordination Offer many movement activities Play instruments to the rhythm of the music Play games that involve listening to and following directions Parents should be encouraged to take their children for regular medical and dental checkups To Encourage Mental Development Pre-school Providers Need To: Ask open-ended questions (questions which encourage children to think because they have no right or wrong answer) Give children choices Allow and encourage creativity (through art, music and movement, dictation, re-telling stories and creating new ones) Building language skills (through conversation with adults and each other, word games, reading stories, learning nursery rhymes, singing, dramatic play, introduction of new words, providing a writing centre with word cards and writing materials, activities with puppets, listening centre activities) Provide science experiments and introduce concepts about our world to help them make sense of it Learn about the neighbourhood and the city through walks and field trips Provide many manipulative materials which encourage the development of problem solving skills Encourage counting objects through games and individual questions Ask the children for their opinions Make charts with their predictions and their opinions and re-read them often Provide small groups and individual activities involving counting sets and adding or subtracting; provide manipulative exercises which encourage classifying (by size, colour shape, general classes like animals or plants and by function such as library and book) Read daily to the children Help them learn sequencing by telling stories back to the teacher Observe each child in order to provide activities to encourage their individual learning It is important to remember what children know depends on the experiences they gain To Encourage Social Development Pre-School Providers Need To: Set up their classrooms in learning centres to enable and encourage children to work together in small groups Help them develop self-esteem by accepting and respecting their efforts Give children jobs and responsibilities in the classroom Teach children to clean up and straighten up at the end of their work time Help them learn to respect others through adult action, words, stories and conversations Encourage children to help other children in need and to share Give them encouragement Invite them to share their culture with others and encourage their parents to come into centres Introduce them to children of other cultures and different abilities Help children develop a positive attitude by being trustworthy role models Read books and have discussions which show parents leaving their children at school and being there when their children arrive home Talk about careers and jobs and why parents have to work Have a structured day so that children will feel secure Let children help make the rules for the classroom and let them choose projects to work on Through example and opportunity help the children learn to work and play cooperatively with others Give the children the words to use to solve their problems with other children To Encourage Emotional Development Pre-school Providers Need To: Help children learn to control their own behaviour through setting a positive example Help the children to learn to wait for a turn and to share with others Help them develop plans for activities to do while waiting for a turn Reassure children that it is okay to have feelings and to express them in acceptable ways Give them the ability to channel their energy in constructive ways Through showing respect to our children we help them to learn to show respect for each other Give children self-respect through accepting them as they are and helping them develop their negotiating and problem-solving skills REFERENCES Bee, H. and Boyd, E. (2004), â€Å"The Developing Child†, (10th Edition, Pearson Education) Gopnik, A. / Meltzoff, A. / Kuhl, P. (2001), â€Å"How Babies Think†, (Phoenix) Hobart, C. and Frankel, J. (1999), â€Å"A Practical Guide To Child Observations And Assessment†, (Nelson Thornes) Foundation Stage 3-5, QCA, (http://www.qca.org.uk/160.html) Early Years, DFES, (http://www.dfes.gov.uk)

Night :: essays research papers

Throughout history During World War II, millions of European Jews suffered and died at the hands of Adolf Hitler and his anti-Semitic Nazi regime. In the historical fiction Night, the author Elie Wiesel, portrays to the readers the emotional truth behind the Holocaust, based on his experience. He insists: â€Å"The only role I sought that of witness. I believed that, having survived by chance, I was duty bound to give meaning to my survival, to justify each moment of my life.† He opens our eyes and touches our hearts as he takes us to Eliezer’s psychological journey, as the Holocaust robs him of his faith in God and exposes him to the deepest inhumanity of which man is capable. Thus, the author wants us to understand the importance of learning from the tragedy that was the Holocaust: â€Å"The Holocaust, shows that how people think and act needs revision in the face of those facts, unless one wishes to continue the same blindness that produced the darkness of Night. Yet failure to use the Holocaust to call all of humankind into question diminishes the chances to mend the world.† Eliezer started out as religious and studious young man who possessed a strong sense of tradition and faith, as well as being deeply interested in Jewish mysticism. When asked why he prays to God, he answered, â€Å"Why did I pray? A strange question. Why did I live? Why did I breathe?† His belief in God was unconditional. However, his confidence in God diminishes as he is faced with the truth of what lies ahead for them: "Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever†¦ Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust.† This notion is also well illustrated by the author when he describe the hanging of three Auschwitz prisoners – one of them a child.

Google Inc. Essay

Google Inc. began in 1996 as the brainchild of two bright computer science grad students, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. These two intellectually gifted men met in 1995 at Stanford University where they were doing their PhDs. During their time together at Stanford, both came up with creative ways of finding and organizing large amounts of data. After that, Brin and Page developed a technology called PageRank that enabled them to analyze a particular website’s significance. The idea of a search engine occurred to Brin and Page after they came up with the idea for PageRank. The search engine was based on the on the same algorithm that PageRank used, but would be much more effective at obtaining better and accurate results than existing search engines. The idea soon became the world famous search engine simply known as Google that was launched on September 15, 1997. Brin and Page’s company was formally incorporated on September 4, 1998 at an acquaintance’s garage in Me nlo Park, California. Google, a play on words, received its name from â€Å"googol†, the mathematical equivalent of the number one followed by a hundred zeros. Naming the company Google was seen by both Brin and Page as the perfect way to reflect their original mission to â€Å"organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful†. Over the years, Google has become so popular that is has gained a vast number of followers who liked its simple design and useful results. In 2000, Google began selling text-based advertisements associated with search keywords in order to maintain an uncluttered page design so that speed is maximized when loading a page. Their innovative advertising system, comprised of its AdWords and AdSense products, is so successful that 99% of their revenue is derived from it. However, the technological industry demands constant innovation and Google’s strong focus on continuous improvement is reflected in the company’s ever expanding line of innovative services and products that includes webmail (Gmail), blogging (Blogger), and interactive maps (Google Maps). Google†™s strong organizational culture that includes values such as creativity, simplicity and innovation plays a huge role in their tremendous success and gives them a huge competitive advantage over their rivals in the search engine market.

Health Care Project Essay

Team B has chosen prescription drugs for our health care reform project and how our current economic status is influenced. We will give ideas and solutions to show how to decrease the drug pricing. Ways that can be implemented toward a solution. Pharmaceutical company’s need to amend their business practices from a high profit, low development model to a moderate profit, moderate to high development model. Structures and regulation that will explain the competition, barriers to entry, and regulations. Taking a look at drug pricing from different perspective, like cost, research, and development, marketing, and the manufacturing of pharmaceutical drugs. The Monopoly of pricing who is involved, and the curves associated with it. Price discrimination how it changes who’s involved and what the criteria are for groups as well as pricing for individuals. How cost of co pays differ from brand names to generic and how the drug formulates come into play. How to make the system work for everyone that will amount to higher than just a 30-day supply, pharmacy assistance programs, local charity programs, and low income opportunities. Better ways to enforce existing legislation, vote in new legislation, and regulate prices across the board. The above affects the insured and non-insured American’s. For most American households, paying for health care to include prescription drugs and medical bills has been one of the hardest financial strains out there. According to a report published by (Consumer Reports, 2012), many have cut back on other household expenses or taken potentially dangerous measures with their health to afford their medications. The most affected population is the working-age Americans who do not have prescription drug insurance coverage. More than half of the people who completed the survey requested by Consumer Reports took one or more prescriptions had to reduce other household expenses or make changes in how the general population manage their finances. These reductions included how much they spend on their groceries, entertainment, activities with the family, and using their credit cards to purchase medications. The problem  was more severe with younger people than elderly people age 65 and older. â€Å"84 percent of them said they had to resort to such measures† (Consumer Reports, 2012) as previously listed. Prescription drugs or better yet the cost of prescription drugs is a discussion in the country of importance. The rise of the cost of prescription drugs is of important to many people in the United States and plays a huge role in the economics of health care. The elevated pricing of prescription drugs has become a focal point of politics and in need of some governance. Even though healthcare and prescription drugs are seen as a private sector issue, the discussion of some socialist measures put into place is a definite need for the economy. Some of those ideas include price-capping expensive drugs and even importing drugs from Canada. Healthcare and prescription drugs have been privatized; however, the government has a huge influence on them both. According to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the government, including state, and federal, has contributed more the 2.7 trillion in 2011. This shows that we have hidden, or more politically correct, blurred the view of a socialist healthcare system. The currently health care system with health care reform has caused confusing for co nsumers. Many people are struggling to pay for the high cost of medication they are on. Some of the patients have to take a different type of medication, which is called alternative medication because their insurance denied paying for it in addition; the process to get approval from insurance takes longer time and more paperwork back and forth from doctors and insurance companies. In reality, health care consumers are the victims, they suffer from their medical illnesses, and they suffer for the high cost of prescription drugs. Health care reform in theory is helping more than forty million people to have health coverage, the demand curve shifts to the right. The important matter at the present time is the supply to cover that many people to have a quality care whereas the economy is gradually recovering. The unemployment rate is not changing much, it is still relatively high. When the prescription drug cost much of our income, seeking for other solution becomes a must do from consumers, they tend to dismiss their prescriptions or buying medication from online market, w hich may cause bad health than curing purpose.

Problem of Slaves and The Article Notes on Virginia Written by Thomas Jefferson essays

Problem of Slaves and The Article Notes on Virginia Written by Thomas Jefferson essays In this article, Jefferson discusses the problems that the institution of slavery created in Virginia and how it affected the slaves. The notes were written while Jefferson was the Governor of Virginia and were based on an inquiry made by the French legation in Philadelphia and discussed several different aspects of life in Virginia. The article explains the reasons why Jefferson believes that freeing blacks would be detrimental to the state. Jefferson begins by explaining that it would be difficult to incorporate the slaves into the state because of the racism that the institution of slavery had caused. Jefferson argues that "Deep rooted prejudices entertained by the whites; ten thousand recollections, by the blacks, of the injuries they have sustained; new provocations, the real distinctions which nature has made; and many other circumstances, will divide us into parties, and produce convulsions, which will probably never end but in the extermination of one or the other race." (Jefferson 182) Jefferson also asserts that the Black race is inferior to the white race on many different levels. He explains that this inferiority would make it difficult for the slaves to function in society. The notions of black inferiority abound throughout the article and the Governor asserts that blacks are inferior intellectually and in the arts, lack physical attractiveness and lack the ability to reason. Jefferson attempts to parallel Roman slaves with American slaves and concludes that the inferiority that he saw in black was not a result of their condition, but instead a result of nature. Because of this perceived "inferiority", Jefferson believes that abolishing slavery would be difficult asserting that the "unfortunate difference of color, and perhaps of faculty, is a powerful obstacle to the emancipation of these pe...

Gender Class and Race Stereotypes in American Television essays

Gender Class and Race Stereotypes in American Television essays Gender, Class, and Race Stereotypes in American Television Gender, class, and race stereotypes abound in contemporary society, much like they have done throughout human history. With the advent of television, however, stereotypical assumptions have become so pervasive, and so diffused, that some call for a serious and purposeful scrutiny of television's contents. On the following pages, various content analyses of television programs will be addressed, followed by discussions on the greater implications race, class, and gender stereotypes have on society. The research method most often used in studying media images is called content analysis. Content analysis is a descriptive method in which researchers analyze the actual content of documents and/or programs. By systematically counting items pertaining to a specific category, researchers are able to conceptualize a larger theoretical framework based on their observations of media content (Wiseman 1970). Content analyses of television programming show, that during prime time hours, men make up the vast majority of characters shown. Furthermore, women characters found during that same time frame are mainly in comedies, while men predominate in dramas. Thus, the implications are that men are to be taken serious, while women should not. (Tuchman 1978). Similarly, content analyses on soap operas reveal highly stereotypical representations of the genders. In soap operas, strong, willful women are predominantly depicted as villainous, while the more "benevolent" women are suspect of vulnerability and naivety (Benokraitis 1986). Furthermore, another sharp gender-stereotypical contrast on television content can be seen in advertisements. In fact, 75% of all television ads using women are for kitchen or bathroom related products (Tuchman 1978) On average, women tend to be portrayed in roles in which they are underestimated, condemned or narrowly defined, resulting in on...

GCSE Distance Learning How to Save Money with an Individual Online Course Plan

GCSE Distance Learning How to Save Money with an Individual Online Course Plan GCSE Distance Learning: How to Save Money with an Individual Online Course Plan Like any other examination or certification, GCSE requires a great amount of effort and time for profound preparation. There are dozens of courses that provide classes, necessary material and assistance in whatever subject your choose, but they are quite costly. Even online lessons of GCSE training start at  £285 – the sum that doesn’t sound affordable at all. But if you are ready to dedicate some time to planning and counting, we have a good, much cheaper   (or even free) option for you – online courses from main knowledge providers on the Internet. You could say that they are irrelevant to GCSE, but you can change that by creating your own individual plan. It’s quite easy to do: Look at the syllabus of a specialized GCSE course – they usually describe in detail which topics will be covered on each lesson. Find free courses that cover those topics. Plan the learning time to make it till certification and arrange lessons for yourself to closely follow the schedule. Want to see how it works in practice? Here you go! Mathematics According to an online course on icslearn.co.uk, it is necessary to cover algebra, geometry and measures, ratio, rates of change and proportion just in the first unit because this is an important foundation, essential to progress further. Let’s see what we can spot on the Internet for free to go through these topics: Algebra Basics: Foundations by Khan Academy Algebra in Mathematics by Alison Introduction to Geometry by EdX Ratios, rates and proportions by Khan Academy As you can see, there is a chance to find at least 2-3 different courses on one topic from various providers. You have a wide range of variants to choose from and that’s the beauty of it. English Language Let’s take another very important subject and try looking for budget compliant variants for you. The interesting fact is that taking paid courses is the main means of preparation among students, but according to a 2016 statistic, the number of people gaining A-C grades in English GCSE dropped by 2.1%. So, it’s not always all about expensive training. Well, the more motivation to try something new ☠º A regular course on the English language GCSE exam includes punctuation, spelling, parts of speech, speaking and writing on different topics as well as reading comprehension. Now, we’ll have a look at its free online counterparts: Grammar and Punctuation by Coursera Parts of Speech: the Noun by Khan Academy (contains a course for every part of speech) Speaking and Writing English Effectively by Alison Speak English Professionally by Coursera Transform Your Writing Skills by Coursera Nowadays, online education is on such a level that you can freely rely on the knowledge it provides, and that’s a great benefit. Of course, this kind of preparation for GCSE coursework will take more time because topics will repeat and some will be omitted (you will have to research them separately). But you have a chance to do it for free, and if money is the governing factor for your decision, hesitate no more. Start planning your own individual course!

Visual basic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Visual basic - Essay Example This is an instant messaging software that runs on the console. It supports very many networks such as yahoo, icq2000, jabber, as well as IRC. Are applications designed to run on forms? They are developed in thedotNET framework. Examples of this application include Dinner Now application, as well as another one for stock trading known as Stock Trader. The links to the screen shots of these applications are as follows: The other type of application is Outlook 2003. This is a very good example of windows form application. The screen shot is available at http://castalian.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/outlookuserinterface3.png 2. The next example is the Climbing Game, which demonstrates how the keyboard and clicking interact with each other using JavaScript on adotNET page. http://www.vbtrain.net/samplewebprojects/Web%20Interaction%20Sample/WebForm1.aspx 3. The other application type is Display Server Date and Time – this is an application, which displays a simple web page for retrieving used to retrieve time and date from web servers. It uses a HTTP Post for this function.http://www.vbtrain.net/samplewebprojects/Web%20Interaction%20Sample/httpPostExample.aspx This is a collection of libraries as well as interfaces in dotNET framework.These templates, which have already been coded and only have to be used together with other language components to develop a better complete system. The Library of Congress is a library that contains materials that remind people of the History of the United States of America. There are a lot of collections in the library divided in the form of categories such as Presidents of America, African American History and so on and so forth. The university of New Orleans online database contains catalogs, e-journals, and many other databases of books. Students and subscribers of the library for research purposes use it. http://library.uno.edu/ The planning phase of this program involves finding

Intro to Relat Dbase Mgt Syst week1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Intro to Relat Dbase Mgt Syst week1 - Essay Example These include entities such as students, lecturers, courses, lecture halls, faculties and perhaps dormitories. For this project the key entities under consideration are the students, instructors, and courses. Therefore, it is logical that the first tables to be identified be Students, Instructors, and Courses tables. These are the tables in the 1st Normal Form. These key tables contain attributes that describe the entities they represent. However, the design follows two more tables that do not represent any key attributes that are initially identified. Relative Database Design makes use of relationships that are implemented using foreign keys that originate from parent tables. This process; therefore, proves challenging to implement while still exercising referential integrity. The two extra tables make the design practical since separation of the key entities is paramount (Churcher, 2012). Modification of a key entity does not affect the other key entities. These two tables are Students Allocation table and Instructor Allocation tables. Their attributes contain foreign keys for Students and Instructor tables, and they represent the action of ‘allocating’, which becomes

Iraq war Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Iraq war - Research Paper Example For a long time the United States and the Soviet Union were engaged in a Cold War (1946-1991) as they manifested their rivalry as superpowers economically, politically, militarily. The reasons it was termed as â€Å"Cold War† is because there was nothing like direct military engagement between the two superpowers. The Cold War included continuous bloody proxy wars that were directed to the developing countries of the Global South by the superpowers. The wildly recognized war of Cold War included - the Soviet-Afghan War 1979-1989, here the U.S. forces majorly concentrated â€Å"in the ground† while Soviet forces concentrated â€Å"on the ground.† In the American-Vietnam War 1959-1975, here while the Soviet forces were engaged â€Å"in the background,† the U.S. forces were engaged â€Å"on the ground.† However, in Afghanistan and Vietnam, both the United States and Soviet forces were defeated. Negative effects such as economic hardship, political turm oil, human devastation as well as ideological argument became the subject of discussion within the developing countries of the Global South contrary to the peaceful atmosphere that existed within the countries of the Global North. Like, the aftermath of the American-Vietnam war left 3 to 4 million Vietnamese dead and the same to 1.5 to 2 million Cambodians and Laos as well as many more million of them rendered homeless turning to be refugees, while only 58,000 U.S. soldiers were killed and 300000 were left with wounds. A number approximated to be 700,000 and 1.3 million Afghans were killed in the Soviet-Afghan War and left 4.5 million of them in refugee camps mainly in Iran and Pakistan while only 15,000 Soviet troops were left dead and 37,000 got wounds. Among the strategic goals of Israel when the Cold War was at its peak was to influence the Western powers into forcing the Soviet Union to allow Soviet

Metformin Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Metformin - Essay Example Metformin needs not be used during surgery.Intake of metformin needs to be avoided before or after any surgery,e.g. Dental surgery. Doctor who is about to carry out the surgery should be provided with the knowledge of patient`s consumption of metformin.. Around 48 hours are prescribed by the doctor to wait for the medical procedure to start again. If any of the following symptoms is experienced by the patient after taking metformin then the doctor should be contacted immediately. Extreme tiredness, stomach ache, dizziness, fast or slow heartbeat, weakness, nausea, vomiting, deep and rapid breathing or shortness of breath; dizziness, lightheadedness, flushing of the skin; muscle pain or feeling cold. Consumption of alcohol needs to be mentioned too. The patient need not carry out heavy drinking. Use of alcohol may lead to development of lactic acidosis or may result in a rapid decrease in blood sugar.A geriatric patient is requested not to take metformin without the doctor`s prescript ion. The adult`s medical history is extremely important as the use of the metformin may lead to several unfortunate consequences, worsening the patient`s condition. Adults aging over 80 years old may develop a chance of life-threatening condition called lactic acidosis. If the geriatric patient has experienced stroke, diabetic ketoacidosis, or coma, heart, liver and kidney diseases.  If the following symptoms are experienced during the consumption of metformin, then the doctor should be visited soon.

The Case of Cross-Border Chemicals Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The of Cross-Border Chemicals - Case Study Example g weakness in the NAIOS treaty, and so the governments of Rantania, Aldor, and Pell put forward drafting a regional treaty on vital environmental concerns in this meeting. The biggest environmental issues involve pollution, protection of the endangered Red Crane, health and environmental effects of TCP, and food security. The issues are spread across all the states, with each state being affected with one or more of the issues. However, it is expected that all the issues will be resolved upon drafting and implementing the regional environmental treaty Firstly, the treaty will develop mechanisms and parameters that will define the boundaries that must not be crossed when it comes to these environmental issues. For instance, the use of TCP is beneficial to farmers because it increases yield, but excessive use will be curbed as much as possible. The treaty will define the boundaries and limits which when breached will call for appropriate action against the violators. Secondly, the treaty will define the course of action to be followed whenever the treaty’s terms are violated. For instance, what kind of measures will be taken against violators, and the procedures involved in adopting such measures. Finally, the treaty will define and explicitly state how future environmental issues will be addressed. It is important to note that this treaty is intended to solve current and future issues, and therefore will be dynamic and

Medical Reimbursement Methodologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Medical Reimbursement Methodologies - Essay Example The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans were really the blue prints from modern health insurance. That which started as a hospital plan for public school teachers at the Baylor University Hospital, became the model for Blue Cross Plans around the US. Essentially, these were prepaid plans for hospital services under a contractual agreement. Blue Cross dates back to 1933 where with support from American Hospital Association, this started as a nonprofit plan that covered only hospital charges. By 1946, this plan spread across 43 states and starting from 9% in 1940, in 1950, it covered about 57% of the population. In order to avoid conflict with the in-clinic private practice, to start with this was hospital oriented. This was endorsed by AMA, and later a new plan evolved in 1939, which was known as Blue Shield, and this evolved through development of active service plans. This was sign of commitment to private health insurance as the means to spread the financial risk of sickness without f ear of threatening personal interests of the physician. These plans were literally responses to challenge thrown by national health insurance. In due course of time, they started working together to provide both hospital and physician coverage. Now, these plans jointly provide a comprehensive care through either joint corporations or close working relationships. Since these plans were not for profit to begin with, the commercial insurance providers were skeptical to start with, but later, with the success of these plans, they also started providing health insurance. 3. Explain why the lack of universal health care coverage can raise health care costs. If there is a lack in universal healthcare coverage, there is cost involved in healthcare. Those who are uninsured and uncovered, they will have to pay from their pocket. Therefore, they try to tolerate symptoms and ignore

The Case of Cross-Border Chemicals Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The of Cross-Border Chemicals - Case Study Example g weakness in the NAIOS treaty, and so the governments of Rantania, Aldor, and Pell put forward drafting a regional treaty on vital environmental concerns in this meeting. The biggest environmental issues involve pollution, protection of the endangered Red Crane, health and environmental effects of TCP, and food security. The issues are spread across all the states, with each state being affected with one or more of the issues. However, it is expected that all the issues will be resolved upon drafting and implementing the regional environmental treaty Firstly, the treaty will develop mechanisms and parameters that will define the boundaries that must not be crossed when it comes to these environmental issues. For instance, the use of TCP is beneficial to farmers because it increases yield, but excessive use will be curbed as much as possible. The treaty will define the boundaries and limits which when breached will call for appropriate action against the violators. Secondly, the treaty will define the course of action to be followed whenever the treaty’s terms are violated. For instance, what kind of measures will be taken against violators, and the procedures involved in adopting such measures. Finally, the treaty will define and explicitly state how future environmental issues will be addressed. It is important to note that this treaty is intended to solve current and future issues, and therefore will be dynamic and

Hydroxyl group Essay Example for Free

Hydroxyl group Essay Vanillin is the primary component of the extract of the vanilla beans that is used as a popular flavoring agent in food stuffs. Recently, it was found that some of food processing and food manufacturing companies are making food items using harmful ingredients in order to save their production cost. Since vanillin is used widely in food items as a flavoring agent, I wanted to know more about vanillin through this experiment. The Vanillin constitutes a colorless, prismatic needles which are readily soluble in the common organic solvents. It is also readily soluble in boiling water, but it is sparingly soluble in cold water (E. Gildemeister, 1913). Acetylvanillin will be formed via esterification of vanillin in a basic solution. Procedure1 In this experiment, vanillin will react with the acetylating agent acetic anhydride to form the acetate ester of the phenolic hydroxyl group. Dissolve the vanillin (3. 04 g, 0. 020 mole) in 1 M aqueous potassium hydroxide (22ml, 0. 022 mole) in a 125 ml Erlenmeyer flask. Add it to acetic anhydride (2. 1 ml, 2. 27 g, 0. 022 mole) in ether (45 ml). Stir the mixture until it loses its yellow color and the lower, aqueous layer becomes almost colorless. Pour the mixture into a separatory funnel and draw off the aqueous layer. Decant the ethereal solution into an Erlenmeyer flask and dry the solution with anhydrous magnesium sulfate. Remove the drying agent by gravity filtration into another Erlenmeyer flask. Using the steam bath, strip off the all the ether and allow the residue of acetylavanillin to cool to crystallize. As the final procedure, Recrystlaize the crude product from 40 ml of 50% ethanol in water.

Knowledge Management in Malaysia

Knowledge Management in Malaysia CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 OVERVIEW It is so difficult and though for the managers of the organizations to apply knowledge management in their departments, because this major is still new in so many aspects such as business environment and organizational culture or behavior and it has a long way to be completed. It is hard for the managers to believe that, it has so many benefits if they use knowledge management tools in their organizations. Managers should bear in their mind that knowledge management is not an automatic practice, it must be initiated by people and have the support of the whole organization. Something like these myths need to be eliminated and the exact meaning of knowledge management must be clearly understood by managers and the rest of the organizations. This will help the managers to abundantly getting help from knowledge management and apply it in the organizations (Sobahle 2005). The study on American Productivity and Quality Centers International Bench-marking shows that, about 11 organizations are working on the knowledge management area which are: Arthur Andersen; Chevron Corporation; Dow Chemical Company; Hughes Space Communications; Kaiser Permanente; Price Waterhouse; Sequent Computer Systems; Skandia AFS; Texas Instruments; USAA; and National Security Agency, the following was recognized (Ishak, 2002): Share the understanding those techniques which can be used. Apply the techniques to new directions. Further more, the other issues which can assure the success of knowledge management initiatives are something like, emphasizes on the issues such as employees issues, top management leadership and commitment, organizational culture and technological infrastructure. This chapter approaches the literature review on knowledge management. In this chapter the try is made to clarify some of the most important key factors of knowledge management and analyze their respective literature. The attempt is made to show the different aspects of knowledge management. It has a brief introduction on knowledge management which is used by Malaysian organizations then it will be explain about the knowledge management frame works and architectures. In this chapter the most two important factors in knowledge management which, technological approach and human approach, are considered. This chapter will finish by the knowledge management concern, issues and at last discuss about the benefit of knowledge management will be considered. 2.2 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IN MALAYSIA Over past two decades Malaysia has been transitioning from relying on a production based- economy to a knowledge-based economy (Chang, 2005). The concept of knowledge management in Malaysia was born with the establishment of the â€Å"Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC)† in 1990s to accelerate this concept in Malaysia. Actually, there are so many Malaysian companies which they are working on knowledge management and they realize and understand the importance of it in the professional life. In January 15, 2002, one of the prestigious magazines in Malaysia, Computerworld Malaysia organized the Knowledge Management Roundtable ‘A Vital Strategy or Expensive Toy. The participants from various sectors in Malaysia shared their point of views and approaches implemented and exchanged ideas in practicing knowledge management (Chang, 2005). As an example for the practical aspect, there are a number of organizations in Malaysia which are successful in knowledge management initiatives, such as: Malaysian Institute of Microelectronic Systems (MIMOS), MAMPU, Bank Negara Malaysia, Siemens, Nokia Malaysia and Telekom Malaysia, Tenaga Nasional Berhad and Petroleum Nasional Berhad (Petronas) are examples of organizations in Malaysia that have embarked on KM initiatives. There are so many studies on knowledge management in Malaysia, and the structure of Malaysia papers in Malaysia seems to be incomprehensive, there are a few number of out standing articles to mention, which shows in table 2.1. Table 2.1: Knowledge Management: Malaysian Studies Title Author/ Date/Journal Nature of Work Intellectual capital and business performance in Malaysian industries Bontis, Chua Richardson (2000) Journal of Intellectual Capital Research Study (Conducted among Malaysian firms) Knowledge management in healthcare: towards ‘knowledge-driven decision- support services Abidi, (2001) International Journal of Medical Informatics Case Study (Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital located in Kota Baharu, Malaysia) Managing human resources toward achieving knowledge management Yahya Goh, (2002) Journal of Knowledge Management Research Study (Conducted among Malaysian firms) Knowledge management in a public organization: a study on the relationship between organizational elements and the performance of knowledge transfer. Syed Ikhsan Rowland, (2004) Journal of Knowledge Management Case Study (Ministry of Entrepreneur development of Malaysia) Benchmarking knowledge management in a public organization in Malaysia Syed Ikhsan Rowland, (2004) Benchmarking: An International Journal Case Study (Ministry of Entrepreneur development of Malaysia) An empirical study of perceived importance and actual implementation of knowledge management process in the Malaysian telecommunication industry Chong Yeow, (2005) Proceedings of ICTM Research Study (Study among Malaysian telecommunication Industry KM critical success factors: A comparison of perceived importance versus implementation in Malaysian ICT companies. Chong, (2006) The Learning Organization Research Study (194 Malaysian ICT companies) KM implementation in Malaysian telecommunication industry an empirical analysis. Wei, Choy Yeow, (2006) Industrial Management Data Systems Research Study (289 employees working in Telecommunication organizations in Malaysia) KM implementation and its influence on performance: an empirical evidence from Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies Chong, (2006) Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Research Study (Study among Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies) Exploring KM issues and KM performance outcomes: empirical evidence from Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies Chong Lin (2006) International Journal of Technology Management Research Study (Study among Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies) An exploratory study on knowledge management adoption in the Malaysian Industry. Wong, (2008) International Journal of Business Information Systems Research Study (exploratory KM survey conducted in the Malaysian industry) 2.3 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION FRAMEWORKS According to Von Krogh (1998), which he takes a business perspective stating that KMS help increase competitiveness, the purpose of implementing KMS in organizations are various. KMS leads to grater innovation and responsiveness, Hackbarth (1998). Davenport and Prusak (1998) provide three reasons why KMS are implemented in organizations which are as follows: Ø To enhance visibility of knowledge in organizations through the use of maps, hypertexts, yellow pages, directories etc. Ø To build a knowledge sharing culture i.e. create avenues for employees to share knowledge. Ø To develop a knowledge infrastructure, not confined to technology solely, rather create an environment that permits collaborative work. These three things which were proposed by Davenport and Prusak (1998) imply that KMS can support an organization in planning for and dealing with emergencies. Many organizations are still wrestling with their knowledge management and failing to realize its full potential. This is due to their lack of the support of strong theoretical foundation to guide them in its implementation (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). Unfortunately, many organizations do not have a clear knowledge management implementation plan in mind (Liebowitz, 1999). Therefore, in order for an organization to be victorious in its effort to manage knowledge, a guiding framework is essential. This is why in this part a review of diverse knowledge management implementation frameworks and models is presented. The framework consents to researchers as well as practitioners to measure the current state of knowledge management effectively and systematically. Thus, the knowledge management framework should provide not only a unified view of knowledge management phenomena but also help investigators study the field of knowledge management in an organized way. There have been few efforts to de velop a framework of knowledge management. However, none of the frameworks can provide a complete and generalized frame for knowledge management by defining fundamental attributes of knowledge management and their interrelationships because knowledge management can be viewed differently on ones background and interests (Chong, 2005). To know the exact value of knowledge management, an architecture of it, would provide the necessary understanding of different components like, knowledge management activities, knowledge management resources, knowledge management influences (Holsapple Joshi, 1997). The improvement of a framework is to follow and track the progress and maturity of knowledge management of an enterprise, so, it would serve to support the industry-wide improvement of knowledge management programs. Further more, it would provide an acceptable frame of reference for the assessment of the adequacies of an organization by government, commercial customers and prime contractors (Chong, 2005). The knowledge management frameworks can be classified under four categories (Table 2.2) Which are namely, knowledge creation framework, knowledge cycle processes of knowledge management, cases on knowledge management initiatives in industry and high-level knowledge management frameworks. Table 2.2: KM Frameworks and their examples in the literature Knowledge Management Frameworks Examples Knowledge Creation Framework Nonaka(1991, 1994), Nonaka Takeuchi (1995) Knowledge Cycle Processes of KM Bose Sugumaran (2003) Cases on KM Initiatives in Industry Apostolou Mentzas (1998), Lai chu (2002) High-Level KM Frameworks Holsapple Joshi (2002), Jarrar (2002), Wiig (1997) Nonaka and Takeuchi are tried to explain the progress and adaption between tacit and explicit knowledge. In fact, knowledge creation framework is not a knowledge management framework, the reason is, and it only deals with the creation of knowledge which is only a share of what constitutes knowledge management. Also, the knowledge cycle processes of knowledge management frameworks are providing a set of activities where the prominence is on the knowledge cycle processes or activities. They mainly address the phases of knowledge flow (from creation to application) in an organization without providing guidance on how to implement knowledge management. The framework on knowledge management initiatives in industry provide a reference to facilitate the structuring, analysis and evaluation of the knowledge management initiatives undertaken in various case companies. Lastly, High-Level knowledge management frameworks are the ones providing more detailed directions on the implementation of kn owledge management. This type of framework seems to address not only the question of what is but also how to because it prescribes and suggest ways for organizations to engage in knowledge management activities (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). In their review of literature, Wong and Aspinwall, try to have an organized review of the various available frameworks for knowledge management implementation. The acceptable thing for the review was to classify the knowledge management implementation frameworks, find out the short comings of each and finally suggesting a through guide line for developing knowledge management implementation frameworks. They have classified the high level knowledge management frameworks as frameworks such as: 1) System approach, 2) Step approach, 3) hybrid approach.(Table 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 shows the comparisons between frameworks under each approach). Table 2.3: Comparisons of system approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) Holsapple Joshi (2002) Jarrar (2002) Gore Gore (1999) Wiig et al. (1997) Plan - Set strategic priority Define and understand knowledge Formulate vision Conceptualize Reflect Execute - - - Act Evaluate - - - Review Knowledge Types / resources Knowledge embedded in participants, culture, infrastructure, artifacts, purpose and strategy - Tacit Knowledge Explicit knowledge - KM processes / activities Acquire, select, internalize and use knowledge Collect, present, distribute and measure knowledge Mainly focuses on knowledge creation and externalization Develop, distribute, combine and consolidate knowledge KM influences / factors Resource influences, managerial influences, environmental influences Knowledge environment - External and internal developments ‘-, not indicated or not clearly indicated Table 2.4: Comparisons of step approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) McCampbell et al. (1999) Wiig (1999) Plan Form powerful coalition Communicate vision of KM Establish teams for needs assessment Analyze the needs of KM Obtain management buy-in Survey and map the knowledge landscape Plan the knowledge strategy Create and define knowledge-related alternatives and potential initiatives Portray benefit expectations for knowledge management initiatives Set knowledge management priorities Determine key knowledge requirements Execute Identify and collect knowledge Design a technological structure Test the technology Maintenance of the technology Retest the technology Training of knowledge workers Roll out the use of KM practices Make systems go live Acquire key knowledge Create integrated knowledge transfer programs Transform, distribute and apply knowledge assets Establish and update a KM infrastructure Manage knowledge assets Construct incentive programs Coordinate KM activities and functions enterprise-wide Facilitate knowledge-focused management Evaluate Track usage Measure quality and productivity Measure the performance of KM practices Conduct a need assessment review Monitor knowledge management Knowledge type / resources Internal knowledge External knowledge Can be inferred from the step: â€Å" manage knowledge assets † KM processes / activities Identify and collect knowledge Acquire, transform, distribute and apply knowledge KM influences / factors - Can be inferred from the steps: ‘construct incentive programs and ‘facilitate knowledge-focused management ‘-, not indicated or not clearly indicated Table 2.5: Comparisons of hybrid approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) Rubenstein Montano et al. (2001) Mentzas (2001) Plan Strategize, Model Awareness plan Execute Act, Transfer Develop, operate Evaluate Revise Measurement Knowledge types / resources Tacit knowledge, Explicit knowledge Knowledge assets KM processes / activities KM tasks Process KM influences / factors Culture, Strategy, learning Strategy, Structure, System By study on these knowledge frameworks creator an absolute knowledge management implementation framework may include the possible accesses on success of knowledge management. Further more, the obstacles and developers should bear in their mind that if they want to analyze managers in regard with, which elements are likely to disrupt the knowledge management implementation success and which elements may enable their effort towards knowledge management achievements. Finally, a knowledge management implementation frame work should â€Å"make a correspondence view among social and technological approach to knowledge management†. Consideration of the authors demonstrate that most of the time this correspondence is disturb in favor of one approach while the other approach is either totally neglected or received incomplete attention (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). Different types of knowledge resources are identified. The activities and processes which can help to manage them should be mentioned in the knowledge management implementation framework. As an example, there is some of knowledge management processes such as: acquiring, capturing, creating, organizing, storing, accessing, transferring, sharing, applying, distributing and using knowledge. The suggested clues by Wong and Aspinwall for developing a knowledge management implementation framework include five factors, which are as follows: (1) Incorporate a clear structure to organize the tasks. (2) Address the different knowledge resources or types. (3) Include the knowledge management processes or activities that manipulate the knowledge. (4) Point out the influences that can affect the performance of knowledge management. (5) Provide a balanced view between a technological and a social perspective. 2.4 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS CATEGORIZATION 2.4.1 Knowledge Management System Definition Knowledge management system (KMS), are mostly IT based systems for managing knowledge in organizations and are used for supporting, creating, capturing and disseminating of information. The main concept of knowledge management system (KMS) is to make a facility for employees to have an access to the organizations information, sources, document base facts and their solutions. As a matter of fact a knowledge management system (KMS) could be any of the following things: Ø Social computing tools which can help to create a knowledge management system (KMS). Ø Knowledge management system (KMS), assist in creating network maps in organizations which is used in communication among individuals and entities. Ø Document based, any formatted that permits, control, manage. Ø Use Artificial Intelligence (AI), for customized representation schema to demonstrate the problem domain. Further more, the benefits of using knowledge management in organization can be categorized as: 1. Valuable organizational data and information sharing. 2. Reduce redundant work. 3. Decrease time for new incomers like new employees. 4. Retention of intellectual property. Based on this definition Gupta and Sharma (2004) divide knowledge management system into seven major categories, which are as follows (tables 2.6): Table 2.6: Example of KMS Source: Gupta and Sharma (2004) KMS Technology Description Expert Systems, artificial intelligence and knowledge based management system (KBMS) Main purpose of these systems is to capture knowledge and perform analysis on existing knowledge base to assist in decision making. Often associated to rule based and pattern recognition systems. Computer Supported Collaborative Work (Groupware) Systems that permit sharing and collaborative work. Often described synonymously to Lotus Notes. However, one could suggest that asynchronous (e-mail, wikis e-log) and synchronous systems (videoconference, chat) are newer applications that can fall into this category (Bates and Poole, 2003). Groupware can also include Group Support Systems (GSS) that is intended to support groups make decision (Mandviwalla, 1994). Document Management Systems Systems that support the need for managing text and images to make information much more accessible. Similar to the idea of office management systems i.e. use of various word documentation and spreadsheet software. Decision support systems (DSS) Business applications that usually contain summaries of large amounts of data, filtered and synthesized particularly to support strategic decision-making. View records related to this term5. The focus of DSS is on analysis of quantitative data and presentation tools for managers. Semantic Networks The focus is on systems that explain not just relationships between entities but the meaning based on how the entities are structured. Can be used to â€Å"represent domain knowledge explicitly and shared† (Gupta and Sharma, 2004). Relational and Object oriented databases Systems that permit management of both structured (relational) and much more complex data sets (OODBMS) Simulation tools Systems that run computer based simulations for a variety of purposes. 2.4.2 Knowledge Management Architecture Base on Gupta and Sharma (2004) findings, they suggest architecture for knowledge management which has seven levels and it is shown in table 2.7. Table 2.7: Overview of Knowledge Management Architecture Source: Form Gupta, Sharma Hsu (2004) Level Key Activities Customer Knowledge Detailed, knowledge sharing relationships. Understanding the requirements of customers. Identifying new opportunities. Stakeholder Relationships Becoming a better knowledge flows among suppliers, shareholders, employees, community, etc. Use this knowledge to inform key points strategies. Business Environment Insights Systematic environmental scanning including political, economic, technology, social and environmental trends. Competitor analysis. Market intelligence systems. Organizational Memory Knowledge sharing. Best practice databases. Directories of expertise. Online documents, procedures and discussion forums. Intranets. Knowledge in Processes Embedding knowledge into business processes and management. Decision-making. Knowledge in Products and Services Knowledge embedded in products. Surround products with knowledge, e.g., in user guides, and enhanced knowledge intensive services. Knowledge in People Knowledge-sharing fairs. Innovation workshops. Expert and learning networks. Communities of knowledge practice. As it shows above there is a seven layer for knowledge management architecture and each level related to a particular aspect of knowledge management. So, in this regard there is a summarization for this table which summarize the important part of this layers and compact it in just three layers, it is summarized in table 2.8 as follows: Table 2.8: Knowledge Management Architecture Source: Gupta, Sharma Hsu (2004) Layer Level Brief Explanation Data Sources layer According to different data sources which are accessible within organizations, this layer has both internal and external data sources. As an example, data repository, email repository, databases. Knowledge Management Layer The processes of knowledge management layer include acquisition, refinement, storage, retrieval, distribution and presentation of required knowledge. An example would be a knowledge base which assists decision making processes during an emergency situation. Knowledge Presentation Layer This layer represents the interface that forms the basis of interaction between users and the system. This can be called a knowledge portal that can guide decision making in dealing with an emergency situation. The knowledge portal can be designed to support communication, collaboration and information sharing requirement. There is two more explanation in detailed view for knowledge management architecture and knowledge management process model. The most important part in knowledge management architecture and knowledge management process are capturing knowledge, create a new knowledge, share it and distribute it as it is shown in 2.1 and 2.2. 2.4.3 Performance of Information Technology (IT) in Knowledge Management System (KMS) Information Technology (IT), plays an important role in acquire, store, disseminate and manage knowledge than ever before. Alavi and Leidner (2001), proposed an admired framework, which can be used to analyze and test the role of Information technology (IT) in design and fulfillment of any Knowledge Management System (KMS). The table (2.9) which is adapted from Alavi and Leidner (2001), shows the different perspectives of knowledge management initiatives and knowledge management system (KMS), design particularly. Table 2.9: Knowledge Perspective and impact on KM and KMS Source: Alavi and Leidner (2001, p.11) Perspective Meaning Implication for KM Impact on KMS Role in IT Knowledge vis-à  -vis data and information Data is consider as a fact, raw numbers, information is processed/ contextual data/ interpreted data knowledge is personalized information e.g this would entail once experience and exposure. KM initiative should expose employees to relevant information and facilitate assimilation of information. KMS may not necessarily be different from an existing information system. The differences are that any KMS should help employees assimilate the information. Role of IT is to ensure KMS design permits information assimilation. Knowledge as a state of the mind Knowledge is ones state of knowing and understanding. KM initiative should provide an information base that enables individuals to recognize the existence of knowledge. This can enhance individual learning and understanding. Accessibility to where knowledge resides rather than to knowledge itself- i.e. provide a means to an end. This would include web and wireless access to knowledge base. Knowledge as an object Knowledge that is stored and subject to manipulation. KM initiative should permit development and management of knowledge base. IT can support KMS to gather, store, and disseminate knowledge. This would include the use collaborative tools e.g. wikis. Knowledge as a process Knowledge visualized as a process of applying expertise. KM initiative should focus on effective flow of knowledge within the realms of knowledge creation, sharing and dissemination. by providing links to various knowledge sources which includes internal and external sources. This would include use of web based systems, hyperlinks, markup languages and access to databases. The idea is to offer a wider breadth and depth of knowledge flows Knowledge and accessibility to information Knowledge is a condition of access to information. KM initiative should provide ease of access to and retrieval of content in a given system. IT can be used to enhance indexing, query and locating relevant information. Knowledge as a capability As a capability knowledge has the potential to influence action. KM initiative should focus on developing core competencies and understanding the strategic intent of the initiative. It can increase the intellectual capital through development of individual and organizational competencies. Table 2.9 proposed that Information technology plays an important role in knowledge management initiatives in organizations. Alavi and Leidner (2001) defined a knowledge management system (KMS) as IT- based system develop to support and enhance the organizational processes of knowledge creation. They observe that not all knowledge management initiatives will implement an IT solution, but they support IT as an enabler of knowledge management (Raman, M. Muthaiyah, S.). In addition, knowledge management system (KMS) can assist organizations in dealing with dynamic and complex situations such as emergencies (Gupta Sharma, 2004). 2.4.4 Appropriate Theories to Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) This part consists of two theories which can help to design and implement decisions of any knowledge management systems (KMS) to support knowledge management in organizations. Those mentioned theories are, Information Processing Theory (IPT), and, Contingency Theory. 2.4.4.1 Information Processing Theory (IPT) George A. Miller (1956), has afforded two theoretical ideas which are the basic concepts of the information processing framework and cognitive psychology. The first approach is â€Å"chunking† and the capacity of short term memory. He insists that short term memory can get just 5-9 chunks of information (seven plus or minus two). A chunk could refer to digits, words, peoples faces or any other meaningful units. The second idea which Miller was mentioned is people process information akin to a computerized system. They take input into the memory like the computer, then the human minds take the information, analyze it, store the content and locate it in the best situation of memory and then retrieve as and when needed based on the given situation. In this context, Burnell (2004), state that:†As diversity of resources, processes or outputs increase inter process coordination requirements and system complexity increase. As uncertainty increases, information processing requirements increases become of managements inability to predict every situation.† Information processing theory is widely applied in the study of human learning and cognitive styles (Miller, 1960). As a matter of fact Information Processing Theory (IPT) has some principles which are often applied by instructors for the following reasons: Ø Gain the students attention Ø Point out important and critical chunks of information, separating them from trivial ones. Ø Provide opportunities for students in linking new to existing information. Ø Presenting information in clear manner. Ø Emphasize on meaning of information i.e. not memorizing them. Actually, those mentioned principles for information processing theory can be applied to design of knowledge management system (KMS) to support emergency preparedness as well (Kostman, 2004). Particularly, in approaching emergency situations, knowledge management system can be elaborated to enable decision makers to: Ø Retrieve information that is critical, quickly. Ø Focus on the situation without being loss amidst voluminous information. Ø Create and share a knowledge base by linking past experience to existing information base. Ø Structure emergency related information clearly. Ø Understand different meaning and interpretation of critical terminology used in dealing with an emergency. 2.4.4.2 Contingency Theory Contingency theory was founded by Lawrence and Lorsch (1967), in the study of ten firms in plastic, food, containers, which are three different i Knowledge Management in Malaysia Knowledge Management in Malaysia CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 OVERVIEW It is so difficult and though for the managers of the organizations to apply knowledge management in their departments, because this major is still new in so many aspects such as business environment and organizational culture or behavior and it has a long way to be completed. It is hard for the managers to believe that, it has so many benefits if they use knowledge management tools in their organizations. Managers should bear in their mind that knowledge management is not an automatic practice, it must be initiated by people and have the support of the whole organization. Something like these myths need to be eliminated and the exact meaning of knowledge management must be clearly understood by managers and the rest of the organizations. This will help the managers to abundantly getting help from knowledge management and apply it in the organizations (Sobahle 2005). The study on American Productivity and Quality Centers International Bench-marking shows that, about 11 organizations are working on the knowledge management area which are: Arthur Andersen; Chevron Corporation; Dow Chemical Company; Hughes Space Communications; Kaiser Permanente; Price Waterhouse; Sequent Computer Systems; Skandia AFS; Texas Instruments; USAA; and National Security Agency, the following was recognized (Ishak, 2002): Share the understanding those techniques which can be used. Apply the techniques to new directions. Further more, the other issues which can assure the success of knowledge management initiatives are something like, emphasizes on the issues such as employees issues, top management leadership and commitment, organizational culture and technological infrastructure. This chapter approaches the literature review on knowledge management. In this chapter the try is made to clarify some of the most important key factors of knowledge management and analyze their respective literature. The attempt is made to show the different aspects of knowledge management. It has a brief introduction on knowledge management which is used by Malaysian organizations then it will be explain about the knowledge management frame works and architectures. In this chapter the most two important factors in knowledge management which, technological approach and human approach, are considered. This chapter will finish by the knowledge management concern, issues and at last discuss about the benefit of knowledge management will be considered. 2.2 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IN MALAYSIA Over past two decades Malaysia has been transitioning from relying on a production based- economy to a knowledge-based economy (Chang, 2005). The concept of knowledge management in Malaysia was born with the establishment of the â€Å"Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC)† in 1990s to accelerate this concept in Malaysia. Actually, there are so many Malaysian companies which they are working on knowledge management and they realize and understand the importance of it in the professional life. In January 15, 2002, one of the prestigious magazines in Malaysia, Computerworld Malaysia organized the Knowledge Management Roundtable ‘A Vital Strategy or Expensive Toy. The participants from various sectors in Malaysia shared their point of views and approaches implemented and exchanged ideas in practicing knowledge management (Chang, 2005). As an example for the practical aspect, there are a number of organizations in Malaysia which are successful in knowledge management initiatives, such as: Malaysian Institute of Microelectronic Systems (MIMOS), MAMPU, Bank Negara Malaysia, Siemens, Nokia Malaysia and Telekom Malaysia, Tenaga Nasional Berhad and Petroleum Nasional Berhad (Petronas) are examples of organizations in Malaysia that have embarked on KM initiatives. There are so many studies on knowledge management in Malaysia, and the structure of Malaysia papers in Malaysia seems to be incomprehensive, there are a few number of out standing articles to mention, which shows in table 2.1. Table 2.1: Knowledge Management: Malaysian Studies Title Author/ Date/Journal Nature of Work Intellectual capital and business performance in Malaysian industries Bontis, Chua Richardson (2000) Journal of Intellectual Capital Research Study (Conducted among Malaysian firms) Knowledge management in healthcare: towards ‘knowledge-driven decision- support services Abidi, (2001) International Journal of Medical Informatics Case Study (Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital located in Kota Baharu, Malaysia) Managing human resources toward achieving knowledge management Yahya Goh, (2002) Journal of Knowledge Management Research Study (Conducted among Malaysian firms) Knowledge management in a public organization: a study on the relationship between organizational elements and the performance of knowledge transfer. Syed Ikhsan Rowland, (2004) Journal of Knowledge Management Case Study (Ministry of Entrepreneur development of Malaysia) Benchmarking knowledge management in a public organization in Malaysia Syed Ikhsan Rowland, (2004) Benchmarking: An International Journal Case Study (Ministry of Entrepreneur development of Malaysia) An empirical study of perceived importance and actual implementation of knowledge management process in the Malaysian telecommunication industry Chong Yeow, (2005) Proceedings of ICTM Research Study (Study among Malaysian telecommunication Industry KM critical success factors: A comparison of perceived importance versus implementation in Malaysian ICT companies. Chong, (2006) The Learning Organization Research Study (194 Malaysian ICT companies) KM implementation in Malaysian telecommunication industry an empirical analysis. Wei, Choy Yeow, (2006) Industrial Management Data Systems Research Study (289 employees working in Telecommunication organizations in Malaysia) KM implementation and its influence on performance: an empirical evidence from Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies Chong, (2006) Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Research Study (Study among Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies) Exploring KM issues and KM performance outcomes: empirical evidence from Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies Chong Lin (2006) International Journal of Technology Management Research Study (Study among Malaysian multimedia super corridor companies) An exploratory study on knowledge management adoption in the Malaysian Industry. Wong, (2008) International Journal of Business Information Systems Research Study (exploratory KM survey conducted in the Malaysian industry) 2.3 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION FRAMEWORKS According to Von Krogh (1998), which he takes a business perspective stating that KMS help increase competitiveness, the purpose of implementing KMS in organizations are various. KMS leads to grater innovation and responsiveness, Hackbarth (1998). Davenport and Prusak (1998) provide three reasons why KMS are implemented in organizations which are as follows: Ø To enhance visibility of knowledge in organizations through the use of maps, hypertexts, yellow pages, directories etc. Ø To build a knowledge sharing culture i.e. create avenues for employees to share knowledge. Ø To develop a knowledge infrastructure, not confined to technology solely, rather create an environment that permits collaborative work. These three things which were proposed by Davenport and Prusak (1998) imply that KMS can support an organization in planning for and dealing with emergencies. Many organizations are still wrestling with their knowledge management and failing to realize its full potential. This is due to their lack of the support of strong theoretical foundation to guide them in its implementation (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). Unfortunately, many organizations do not have a clear knowledge management implementation plan in mind (Liebowitz, 1999). Therefore, in order for an organization to be victorious in its effort to manage knowledge, a guiding framework is essential. This is why in this part a review of diverse knowledge management implementation frameworks and models is presented. The framework consents to researchers as well as practitioners to measure the current state of knowledge management effectively and systematically. Thus, the knowledge management framework should provide not only a unified view of knowledge management phenomena but also help investigators study the field of knowledge management in an organized way. There have been few efforts to de velop a framework of knowledge management. However, none of the frameworks can provide a complete and generalized frame for knowledge management by defining fundamental attributes of knowledge management and their interrelationships because knowledge management can be viewed differently on ones background and interests (Chong, 2005). To know the exact value of knowledge management, an architecture of it, would provide the necessary understanding of different components like, knowledge management activities, knowledge management resources, knowledge management influences (Holsapple Joshi, 1997). The improvement of a framework is to follow and track the progress and maturity of knowledge management of an enterprise, so, it would serve to support the industry-wide improvement of knowledge management programs. Further more, it would provide an acceptable frame of reference for the assessment of the adequacies of an organization by government, commercial customers and prime contractors (Chong, 2005). The knowledge management frameworks can be classified under four categories (Table 2.2) Which are namely, knowledge creation framework, knowledge cycle processes of knowledge management, cases on knowledge management initiatives in industry and high-level knowledge management frameworks. Table 2.2: KM Frameworks and their examples in the literature Knowledge Management Frameworks Examples Knowledge Creation Framework Nonaka(1991, 1994), Nonaka Takeuchi (1995) Knowledge Cycle Processes of KM Bose Sugumaran (2003) Cases on KM Initiatives in Industry Apostolou Mentzas (1998), Lai chu (2002) High-Level KM Frameworks Holsapple Joshi (2002), Jarrar (2002), Wiig (1997) Nonaka and Takeuchi are tried to explain the progress and adaption between tacit and explicit knowledge. In fact, knowledge creation framework is not a knowledge management framework, the reason is, and it only deals with the creation of knowledge which is only a share of what constitutes knowledge management. Also, the knowledge cycle processes of knowledge management frameworks are providing a set of activities where the prominence is on the knowledge cycle processes or activities. They mainly address the phases of knowledge flow (from creation to application) in an organization without providing guidance on how to implement knowledge management. The framework on knowledge management initiatives in industry provide a reference to facilitate the structuring, analysis and evaluation of the knowledge management initiatives undertaken in various case companies. Lastly, High-Level knowledge management frameworks are the ones providing more detailed directions on the implementation of kn owledge management. This type of framework seems to address not only the question of what is but also how to because it prescribes and suggest ways for organizations to engage in knowledge management activities (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). In their review of literature, Wong and Aspinwall, try to have an organized review of the various available frameworks for knowledge management implementation. The acceptable thing for the review was to classify the knowledge management implementation frameworks, find out the short comings of each and finally suggesting a through guide line for developing knowledge management implementation frameworks. They have classified the high level knowledge management frameworks as frameworks such as: 1) System approach, 2) Step approach, 3) hybrid approach.(Table 2.3, 2.4, 2.5 shows the comparisons between frameworks under each approach). Table 2.3: Comparisons of system approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) Holsapple Joshi (2002) Jarrar (2002) Gore Gore (1999) Wiig et al. (1997) Plan - Set strategic priority Define and understand knowledge Formulate vision Conceptualize Reflect Execute - - - Act Evaluate - - - Review Knowledge Types / resources Knowledge embedded in participants, culture, infrastructure, artifacts, purpose and strategy - Tacit Knowledge Explicit knowledge - KM processes / activities Acquire, select, internalize and use knowledge Collect, present, distribute and measure knowledge Mainly focuses on knowledge creation and externalization Develop, distribute, combine and consolidate knowledge KM influences / factors Resource influences, managerial influences, environmental influences Knowledge environment - External and internal developments ‘-, not indicated or not clearly indicated Table 2.4: Comparisons of step approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) McCampbell et al. (1999) Wiig (1999) Plan Form powerful coalition Communicate vision of KM Establish teams for needs assessment Analyze the needs of KM Obtain management buy-in Survey and map the knowledge landscape Plan the knowledge strategy Create and define knowledge-related alternatives and potential initiatives Portray benefit expectations for knowledge management initiatives Set knowledge management priorities Determine key knowledge requirements Execute Identify and collect knowledge Design a technological structure Test the technology Maintenance of the technology Retest the technology Training of knowledge workers Roll out the use of KM practices Make systems go live Acquire key knowledge Create integrated knowledge transfer programs Transform, distribute and apply knowledge assets Establish and update a KM infrastructure Manage knowledge assets Construct incentive programs Coordinate KM activities and functions enterprise-wide Facilitate knowledge-focused management Evaluate Track usage Measure quality and productivity Measure the performance of KM practices Conduct a need assessment review Monitor knowledge management Knowledge type / resources Internal knowledge External knowledge Can be inferred from the step: â€Å" manage knowledge assets † KM processes / activities Identify and collect knowledge Acquire, transform, distribute and apply knowledge KM influences / factors - Can be inferred from the steps: ‘construct incentive programs and ‘facilitate knowledge-focused management ‘-, not indicated or not clearly indicated Table 2.5: Comparisons of hybrid approach frameworks Source: Wong Aspinwall (2004) Rubenstein Montano et al. (2001) Mentzas (2001) Plan Strategize, Model Awareness plan Execute Act, Transfer Develop, operate Evaluate Revise Measurement Knowledge types / resources Tacit knowledge, Explicit knowledge Knowledge assets KM processes / activities KM tasks Process KM influences / factors Culture, Strategy, learning Strategy, Structure, System By study on these knowledge frameworks creator an absolute knowledge management implementation framework may include the possible accesses on success of knowledge management. Further more, the obstacles and developers should bear in their mind that if they want to analyze managers in regard with, which elements are likely to disrupt the knowledge management implementation success and which elements may enable their effort towards knowledge management achievements. Finally, a knowledge management implementation frame work should â€Å"make a correspondence view among social and technological approach to knowledge management†. Consideration of the authors demonstrate that most of the time this correspondence is disturb in favor of one approach while the other approach is either totally neglected or received incomplete attention (Wong Aspinwall, 2004). Different types of knowledge resources are identified. The activities and processes which can help to manage them should be mentioned in the knowledge management implementation framework. As an example, there is some of knowledge management processes such as: acquiring, capturing, creating, organizing, storing, accessing, transferring, sharing, applying, distributing and using knowledge. The suggested clues by Wong and Aspinwall for developing a knowledge management implementation framework include five factors, which are as follows: (1) Incorporate a clear structure to organize the tasks. (2) Address the different knowledge resources or types. (3) Include the knowledge management processes or activities that manipulate the knowledge. (4) Point out the influences that can affect the performance of knowledge management. (5) Provide a balanced view between a technological and a social perspective. 2.4 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS CATEGORIZATION 2.4.1 Knowledge Management System Definition Knowledge management system (KMS), are mostly IT based systems for managing knowledge in organizations and are used for supporting, creating, capturing and disseminating of information. The main concept of knowledge management system (KMS) is to make a facility for employees to have an access to the organizations information, sources, document base facts and their solutions. As a matter of fact a knowledge management system (KMS) could be any of the following things: Ø Social computing tools which can help to create a knowledge management system (KMS). Ø Knowledge management system (KMS), assist in creating network maps in organizations which is used in communication among individuals and entities. Ø Document based, any formatted that permits, control, manage. Ø Use Artificial Intelligence (AI), for customized representation schema to demonstrate the problem domain. Further more, the benefits of using knowledge management in organization can be categorized as: 1. Valuable organizational data and information sharing. 2. Reduce redundant work. 3. Decrease time for new incomers like new employees. 4. Retention of intellectual property. Based on this definition Gupta and Sharma (2004) divide knowledge management system into seven major categories, which are as follows (tables 2.6): Table 2.6: Example of KMS Source: Gupta and Sharma (2004) KMS Technology Description Expert Systems, artificial intelligence and knowledge based management system (KBMS) Main purpose of these systems is to capture knowledge and perform analysis on existing knowledge base to assist in decision making. Often associated to rule based and pattern recognition systems. Computer Supported Collaborative Work (Groupware) Systems that permit sharing and collaborative work. Often described synonymously to Lotus Notes. However, one could suggest that asynchronous (e-mail, wikis e-log) and synchronous systems (videoconference, chat) are newer applications that can fall into this category (Bates and Poole, 2003). Groupware can also include Group Support Systems (GSS) that is intended to support groups make decision (Mandviwalla, 1994). Document Management Systems Systems that support the need for managing text and images to make information much more accessible. Similar to the idea of office management systems i.e. use of various word documentation and spreadsheet software. Decision support systems (DSS) Business applications that usually contain summaries of large amounts of data, filtered and synthesized particularly to support strategic decision-making. View records related to this term5. The focus of DSS is on analysis of quantitative data and presentation tools for managers. Semantic Networks The focus is on systems that explain not just relationships between entities but the meaning based on how the entities are structured. Can be used to â€Å"represent domain knowledge explicitly and shared† (Gupta and Sharma, 2004). Relational and Object oriented databases Systems that permit management of both structured (relational) and much more complex data sets (OODBMS) Simulation tools Systems that run computer based simulations for a variety of purposes. 2.4.2 Knowledge Management Architecture Base on Gupta and Sharma (2004) findings, they suggest architecture for knowledge management which has seven levels and it is shown in table 2.7. Table 2.7: Overview of Knowledge Management Architecture Source: Form Gupta, Sharma Hsu (2004) Level Key Activities Customer Knowledge Detailed, knowledge sharing relationships. Understanding the requirements of customers. Identifying new opportunities. Stakeholder Relationships Becoming a better knowledge flows among suppliers, shareholders, employees, community, etc. Use this knowledge to inform key points strategies. Business Environment Insights Systematic environmental scanning including political, economic, technology, social and environmental trends. Competitor analysis. Market intelligence systems. Organizational Memory Knowledge sharing. Best practice databases. Directories of expertise. Online documents, procedures and discussion forums. Intranets. Knowledge in Processes Embedding knowledge into business processes and management. Decision-making. Knowledge in Products and Services Knowledge embedded in products. Surround products with knowledge, e.g., in user guides, and enhanced knowledge intensive services. Knowledge in People Knowledge-sharing fairs. Innovation workshops. Expert and learning networks. Communities of knowledge practice. As it shows above there is a seven layer for knowledge management architecture and each level related to a particular aspect of knowledge management. So, in this regard there is a summarization for this table which summarize the important part of this layers and compact it in just three layers, it is summarized in table 2.8 as follows: Table 2.8: Knowledge Management Architecture Source: Gupta, Sharma Hsu (2004) Layer Level Brief Explanation Data Sources layer According to different data sources which are accessible within organizations, this layer has both internal and external data sources. As an example, data repository, email repository, databases. Knowledge Management Layer The processes of knowledge management layer include acquisition, refinement, storage, retrieval, distribution and presentation of required knowledge. An example would be a knowledge base which assists decision making processes during an emergency situation. Knowledge Presentation Layer This layer represents the interface that forms the basis of interaction between users and the system. This can be called a knowledge portal that can guide decision making in dealing with an emergency situation. The knowledge portal can be designed to support communication, collaboration and information sharing requirement. There is two more explanation in detailed view for knowledge management architecture and knowledge management process model. The most important part in knowledge management architecture and knowledge management process are capturing knowledge, create a new knowledge, share it and distribute it as it is shown in 2.1 and 2.2. 2.4.3 Performance of Information Technology (IT) in Knowledge Management System (KMS) Information Technology (IT), plays an important role in acquire, store, disseminate and manage knowledge than ever before. Alavi and Leidner (2001), proposed an admired framework, which can be used to analyze and test the role of Information technology (IT) in design and fulfillment of any Knowledge Management System (KMS). The table (2.9) which is adapted from Alavi and Leidner (2001), shows the different perspectives of knowledge management initiatives and knowledge management system (KMS), design particularly. Table 2.9: Knowledge Perspective and impact on KM and KMS Source: Alavi and Leidner (2001, p.11) Perspective Meaning Implication for KM Impact on KMS Role in IT Knowledge vis-à  -vis data and information Data is consider as a fact, raw numbers, information is processed/ contextual data/ interpreted data knowledge is personalized information e.g this would entail once experience and exposure. KM initiative should expose employees to relevant information and facilitate assimilation of information. KMS may not necessarily be different from an existing information system. The differences are that any KMS should help employees assimilate the information. Role of IT is to ensure KMS design permits information assimilation. Knowledge as a state of the mind Knowledge is ones state of knowing and understanding. KM initiative should provide an information base that enables individuals to recognize the existence of knowledge. This can enhance individual learning and understanding. Accessibility to where knowledge resides rather than to knowledge itself- i.e. provide a means to an end. This would include web and wireless access to knowledge base. Knowledge as an object Knowledge that is stored and subject to manipulation. KM initiative should permit development and management of knowledge base. IT can support KMS to gather, store, and disseminate knowledge. This would include the use collaborative tools e.g. wikis. Knowledge as a process Knowledge visualized as a process of applying expertise. KM initiative should focus on effective flow of knowledge within the realms of knowledge creation, sharing and dissemination. by providing links to various knowledge sources which includes internal and external sources. This would include use of web based systems, hyperlinks, markup languages and access to databases. The idea is to offer a wider breadth and depth of knowledge flows Knowledge and accessibility to information Knowledge is a condition of access to information. KM initiative should provide ease of access to and retrieval of content in a given system. IT can be used to enhance indexing, query and locating relevant information. Knowledge as a capability As a capability knowledge has the potential to influence action. KM initiative should focus on developing core competencies and understanding the strategic intent of the initiative. It can increase the intellectual capital through development of individual and organizational competencies. Table 2.9 proposed that Information technology plays an important role in knowledge management initiatives in organizations. Alavi and Leidner (2001) defined a knowledge management system (KMS) as IT- based system develop to support and enhance the organizational processes of knowledge creation. They observe that not all knowledge management initiatives will implement an IT solution, but they support IT as an enabler of knowledge management (Raman, M. Muthaiyah, S.). In addition, knowledge management system (KMS) can assist organizations in dealing with dynamic and complex situations such as emergencies (Gupta Sharma, 2004). 2.4.4 Appropriate Theories to Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) This part consists of two theories which can help to design and implement decisions of any knowledge management systems (KMS) to support knowledge management in organizations. Those mentioned theories are, Information Processing Theory (IPT), and, Contingency Theory. 2.4.4.1 Information Processing Theory (IPT) George A. Miller (1956), has afforded two theoretical ideas which are the basic concepts of the information processing framework and cognitive psychology. The first approach is â€Å"chunking† and the capacity of short term memory. He insists that short term memory can get just 5-9 chunks of information (seven plus or minus two). A chunk could refer to digits, words, peoples faces or any other meaningful units. The second idea which Miller was mentioned is people process information akin to a computerized system. They take input into the memory like the computer, then the human minds take the information, analyze it, store the content and locate it in the best situation of memory and then retrieve as and when needed based on the given situation. In this context, Burnell (2004), state that:†As diversity of resources, processes or outputs increase inter process coordination requirements and system complexity increase. As uncertainty increases, information processing requirements increases become of managements inability to predict every situation.† Information processing theory is widely applied in the study of human learning and cognitive styles (Miller, 1960). As a matter of fact Information Processing Theory (IPT) has some principles which are often applied by instructors for the following reasons: Ø Gain the students attention Ø Point out important and critical chunks of information, separating them from trivial ones. Ø Provide opportunities for students in linking new to existing information. Ø Presenting information in clear manner. Ø Emphasize on meaning of information i.e. not memorizing them. Actually, those mentioned principles for information processing theory can be applied to design of knowledge management system (KMS) to support emergency preparedness as well (Kostman, 2004). Particularly, in approaching emergency situations, knowledge management system can be elaborated to enable decision makers to: Ø Retrieve information that is critical, quickly. Ø Focus on the situation without being loss amidst voluminous information. Ø Create and share a knowledge base by linking past experience to existing information base. Ø Structure emergency related information clearly. Ø Understand different meaning and interpretation of critical terminology used in dealing with an emergency. 2.4.4.2 Contingency Theory Contingency theory was founded by Lawrence and Lorsch (1967), in the study of ten firms in plastic, food, containers, which are three different i