Abnormal Psychology Reflection Essay

The objective of the course was for a better understanding of mental disorders. This course has given me the ability to apply information learned about human experience, and relate it to psychopathology. During the semester I have learned various types of psychological perspectives and diverse treatment plans; and by taking this class I have been given the tools, and skills to think critically about mental disorders. The course of abnormal psychology is a branch that deals with the description, causes, and treatment of abnormal behavior patterns. Abnormal psychology is the thoughts or behavior that cause social, cognitive, emotional, and various other tribulations for an individual. When there is an abnormal behavior pattern disrupting one’s psychological functioning or behavior, it is due to a psychological disorder. I have realized that to be able to distinguish when a person has a psychological disorder, it is vital to be able to determine the definition of the abnormal behavior. The characteristics that classify abnormal behavior are unusualness, social deviance, faulty perception, significant personal distress, maladaptive behavior, and dangerousness, all traits that need attention and diagnosis. Abnormal behavior can bring unhappiness, conflict, or even discomfort in the individual’s everyday life not only impairing one’s lifestyle, but can affect others. However, behavior that is normal in one region may be considered abnormal in another, henceforth I must also be refined in the cultures around the world and of the patient. Each culture approaches mental disorders differently, and have different forms of normality’s, and solutions for one’s behavior. In this class I was taught how American and western cultures approach mental disorders. Throughout the course I learned about different perspectives of psychology and different approaches to treatment. The perspectives that I consider to best explain abnormal behavior is the biopsychosocial model. The biopsychosocial model is an integrative model, which explains abnormal behavior through the interactions of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors. The reason why IÂ  believe this model is the most accurate is because it takes into account that there is not just one factor that can cause a mental illness. One of the most interesting ways it approaches disorders is that it comes up with the diathesis-stress model. This model is a way of explaining how people end up suffering from mental disorders, by assuming that mental disorders come from the interaction of two things, genetic and life experience. A person that is genetically susceptible, minimal stress from the environment can trigger a mental illness; in contrast a person can withstand immense environmental stress and withstand mental illnesses. I find this model to be conclusive because it explains how all three factors contribute to different mental disorders. The treatment that I found most efficient and effective for mental disorders is cognitive-behavioral therapy. This therapy treats a maladaptive-learned behavior through applying the behavioral principles of learning. This gives the individual the ability to reconstruct his or her thoughts in a more positive matter. Disorders tend to make a person feel hopeless and maladaptive, but this treatment allows the person to have control of their thoughts and feelings. Mental illnesses can lead to disturbances in a person’s thoughts and may be an emotional experience. Mental illnesses tend to make life difficult because a person may find it hard to sustain relationships, keep a job, or motivate oneself to do daily activities. Without treatment, they can and often do make life intolerable to live. From this class I have a better understanding how mental disorders can affect one’s life and what one can do to change their life. Furthermore, this class has given me a better understanding of the various psychological disorders, and how to diagnosis, as well as treat them. This has guided me so that one day I can help other people, and make their lives enjoyable and fulfilling.

Mental Health and Social Inclusion

Title: An examination of social exclusion policy and its effect on adults of a working age with serious mental health problems To begin, this essay will briefly define the term social exclusion and its historical background. It will then move on to the political history of social exclusion in the United Kingdom. Particularly the essay will focus on the reasons behind unemployment, and the resulting effect of excluding people from society.The policies around employment and the benefit system will be discussed in some detail, and their consequences on working age adults, including those with serious long term mental health issues. The French socialist government termed the phrase ‘social exclusion’ in the 1980’s; it was used to define a group of people living on the edge of society whom did not have access to the system of social insurance (Room, 1995 citied in Percy-Smith 2000). The concept of social exclusion has been defined in many different ways since then.The European commission defines social exclusion as referring to the â€Å"multiple and changing factors resulting in people being excluded from the normal exchanges, practices and rights of modern society† (Commission of the European Communities, 1993 quoted in Percy-Smith 2000 p. 3). This was a move away from using the term underclass in the UK, which was not an acceptable phrase to some, as it was more related to poverty (Lavallette et al, 2001). The term social exclusion pointed at a much more complicated problem rather than just money, if you were excluded something or someone was excluding you and that could be sorted out.Although for some this new phrase just represented a ‘new’ form of the word poverty (Room, 1995 citied in Lavallette). In the UK the New Labour government set up the interdepartmental social exclusion unit in 1997 (Percy-Smith, 2000). Its aims were to â€Å"to find joined-up solutions to the joined-up problems of social exclusion† (No10 Website, 2004). The social exclusion task force works within a number of government departments such as work and pension, children school and family and the ministry of justice (No10 Website, 2004)The social exclusion unit published a series of reports in 1997 that criticised the way both central and local government had failed deprived groups and areas (Batty, 2002). It found that deprived area’s had fewer basic services such as GP surgeries and that little effort had been made to reintegrate some who had been excluded through unemployment (Batty, 2002). Unemployment is seen as one of the main causes of social exclusion (Percy-Smith, 2000). Being unemployed can have serious effects on a person’s confidence, sense of purpose and motivation (Percy-Smith, 2000).The person who works is seen as a full citizen, paying tax and contributing to society (Baldock et al, 1999). Unemployment can also be linked to mental health; a person is twice as likely to suffer from depressio n if they are not working. (Department of health, 1999). The period since the 1960’s saw a distinct decline in the British manufacturing industry leading to a shift in the type of work available, the service sector and office based jobs replaced the manual jobs and altered the pattern of demand in the labour market. Baldock et al, 1999) The unemployment rate for semi skilled / unskilled workers if four times that compared to managerial / professional workers (Percy-Smith, 2000). Those people who live in area’s with low demand for low skilled workers are highly likely to be unemployed for a very long time, leading to a near permanence in exclusion from the labour market (Percy-Smith, 2000). Welfare to work policies were the answer from the Labour government in 1997, `They set out plans to encourage people back into the labour market.Labour came up with the New Deal family of policies. These where aimed at specific groups. For example young people, adults and new deal fo r people with a disability (Percy-Smith, 2000). One of the results of this policy was to create Job centre plus from a merger of the Employment Service and the Benefits Agency. (Hoben, no date given) The Tories previously had set up the job seekers allowance, which had changed the Insurance-based unemployment benefit. (Baldock et al, 1999).With this allowance you had to prove you were actively seeking employment or you would not get your allowance. People who became unemployed would have to go for an initial interview where an adviser prepares an action plan, then short interviews are conducted every two weeks to review the claimants success at gaining new employment and to look at new job vacancies (Percy-Smith, 2000). New deal gateway is aimed at 18 – 24 year olds who had been out of work for 6 months. This offers subsidised work experience within the voluntary sector or with an employer with a ? 0 a week incentive. Also full time education/training is offered to those who did not have sufficient qualifications up the recognized NVQ level two. Young people also have an allocated personal advisor who offers assistance around job seeking, careers advice and in some circumstances drugs/homelessness advice (Percy-Smith, 2000). Anyone who refuses to take up these incentives will have their benefit cut. As Gordon Brown put it (the then Chancellor of the Exchequer) there will be no option â€Å"to stay at home in bed and watch television† (Baldock et al, 1999 p149).For people aged twenty five and above who have been on job seekers allowance for over six months then become eligible for a different set of measures, before becoming eligible for the ‘New Deal’. This is called ‘restart’. Work trials are offered as well as help with interview techniques and CV’s writing skills. After twelve months if the individual has not found work they attend a five-day ‘job plan workshop’ to assess the individuals job prospe cts. This happens again at eighteen months. If after two years they are still unemployed this is when ‘New Deal’ applies. New Deal’ offers training grants as well as an employment credit similar to that of the new deal gateway of sixty pounds a week and the benefit of a personal advisor. The budget for this was ? 250 million for the three years between 1999 and 2002 (Percy-Smith, 2000) It can be argued that jobseekers allowance forces people back to work or forces them to appear to be looking for work in a desperate attempt to keep their benefit. It can be seen as punitive (Percy-Smith, 2000) and with no option to opt out, and it does not actually increase the amount of jobs available.Without the creation of a sufficient number of jobs, people may lose their benefit, though not through lack of trying (Baldock et al, 1999). Also critics have commented on the cost of the new deal strategy with some say this money could be better used creating more jobs. (Percy-Smit h, 2000) Other arguments against new deal look at the timescale difference between the young people and adult services, it cost a lot less to intervene early when someone becomes unemployed so why wait for two years in the case of the adult new deal. (Percy-Smith, 2000).The new deal policy has been quite effective, particularly at getting young people back into the labour market. However, for people with long term significant mental health problems finding paid work can be very difficult. (Layard, 2005) If social exclusion can be linked to unemployment then for people with mental health issues they are excluded by default, with not only unemployment but with the social stigma associated with their mental health difficulties (Layard, 2005). â€Å"There are now more mentally ill people on incapacity benefit than there are unemployed people on jobseekers allowance† (Layard, 2005 p1).Evidence suggests that work can be very therapeutic for people with mental health problems, but i t seems doctors are sceptical about their patients finding and holding down jobs. (Layard, 2005) The problem gets worse the longer the person is on benefits, and as time passes social isolation increases and motivation decreases (Layard, 2005). Ninety percent of people on incapacity benefit say they would like to return to work but would find it very hard to find a job that pays as much as the benefit they receive (Layard, 2005).However, it has been an underlying trend in welfare policy that low paid work should always be the better option than state handouts. This goes way back to the poor law of 1832 where the workhouse provided the last option for very poor families, providing food and shelter for the exchange of labour. For most of those who lived in these workhouses life expectancy significantly dropped upon entering these desperate places (Higginbotham, 2008). In current times, however, sacrificing benefits and returning to work may mean a compromise in quality of life.People receiving incapacity benefit may also claim housing benefit, council tax benefit, free prescriptions and discretionary loans from the social fund to buy large more expensive items (Alcock, 2003). With all this help in place it is quite easy to see why people with a mental illness are unlikely to want to go back to full time employment and run the risk of losing money. This is known as the benefit trap. There is another problem, people who have been on benefits for a long time lack the right qualifications to join the labour market (Dummigan, 2007), increasing social exclusion.If a mentally ill person wanted to find a job but had little or no skills, the choices are very narrow normally leading to a low wage job, again making it unlikely for the individual to want to come off his/her benefits (Dummigan, 2007). The government has tried to rectify this problem by offering further incentives to get people back to work, such as disability tax credits that offer a tax break should some on e find work but there is limited awareness of the financial incentives to return to work (Percy-Smith, 2000).Pathways to work is a recent government initiative with the aim of getting the recipients of incapacity benefit back to work, the claimant will have to take a personal capability assessment which is used to determine whether or not the person is eligable for the benefit, but will focus on â€Å"what the customer can do rather than what they cant† (Department of work and pensions, 2007).A mandatory work focused interview will also take place eight weeks after making the intial claim followed by a screening tool to establish who will have to have more work focused interviews and those who will be exempt from further manditory participation (Department of work and pensions, 2007). Pathways to work will offer a range of programmes to support the â€Å"customer† in preparing for work with a fourty pounds a week incentive or credit for twelve months if their salary is below fifteen thousand pounds a year (Department of work and pensions, 2007).Pathways to work is currently operating in fourty percent of the country. In an interesting move, the remaining sixty percent of pathway to work providers will be from the public sector leading to critism that the government is privatising the welfare system. The government's chief welfare to work adviser, David Freud, said recently: â€Å"I worked out that it is economically rational to spend up to sixty thousand pounds on getting the average person on incapacity benefit into work, somebody will see a gap in the market and make their fortune. † (Quoted in Vaux, 2008).Some voluntary sector organizations have criticized the rather aggressive approach taken by the public sector organizations in winning the contracts, and feel that the voluntary sector would be in a better position to deliver the contracts (Vaux, 2008). Mind charity has criticized the pathways to work initiative stating it â€Å"place s all the emphasis on the individual to find work†, yet, it said  there  was no obligation on employers to actively recruit people with mental health problems. It would also seem that if you disclose to an employer that you have a mental health problem you are more likely to be sacked before your sane colleagues.Also there is a lack of support in the work place for mental health sufferers, which lead to higher sickness rate, which in turn puts off employers recruiting future pathways to work employees (Lombard, 2008). In the recent action plan on social exclusion â€Å"Reaching out† the government recognizes the need for encouragement in the workplace for recruiting people with mental health issues and supports employer based anti-stigma campaigns. It also states that the government alone cannot address social exclusion, and that the wider community has a role to play.But most of all, the individual must want progress for themselves and those around them (Reaching O ut, 2008). In the last five years mental health services have improved greatly (Layard, 2005) Better treatment and early intervention have empowered people to control their own lives, but though these services have improved the medical condition, mentally ill people still suffer from exclusion from society. The association with dependency that being on benefits brings leads to a segregation (Percy-Smith, 2000). In conclusion, social exclusion is a far reaching problem and not an easy task to overcome.Evidence suggests that the government still identifies the problem with unemployment and poverty, and has taken a great deal of measures in providing policies that aim to get people back into the work place. Unfortunately for some, as has been shown, work is not always a viable or the best option, and people who fall under this category may stay on the boundaries of society due to no fault of their own, or be forced into working at the detriment of their health. The changes around the i ncapacity benefit rules may leave some people worse off than when on benefits and this may increase the chances of a relapse in mental ealth issues, which in turn will make them less employable, continuing the cycle of social exclusion. As we enter another recession and unemployment rises again, this is likely to be a huge focus, and the government will have to rethink existing policies around unemployment. Those who are recently unemployed must be given sufficient support to regain employment to avoid falling into the benefit trap in order to avoid the danger of becoming socially excluded. Bibliography Alcock, P (2003) Social policy in Britain, Basingstoke, PalgraveBaldock J, Manning N, Miller S & Vickerstaff S (1999) Social Policy. Oxford University press, Oxford Lavalette,M & Pratt A (2001) Social Policy a conceptual and theoretical introduction. Sage publications London Percy-Smith, J (2000) Policy responses to social exclusion. Open university press. Oxford Batty, D (2002) Soci al exclusion: the issue explained (Online), available at http://www. guardian. co. uk/society/2002/jan/15/socialexclusion1 (accessed on 28/10/08) Department for work and pensions, (2008) Pathways to work process. (Online) Available at http://www. dwp. gov. k/welfarereform/pathways_process. asp (accessed on 5/12/08) Department of health, (1999) National service framework for mental health, modern standards and service models. (Online) available at http://www. dh. gov. uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_4009598 (accessed on 1/12/08) Dummigan, G (2007) The benefit trap. (Online) available at http://news. bbc. co. uk/1/hi/programmes/politics_show/6403329. stm (accessed on 4/12/08) Higginbotham, P (2008) Poor laws (Online) available from http://www. workhouses. org. uk(accessed on 4/12/08)Hoban,M & Thomas, J (No date given) DW response to welfare to work – discussion paper. (Online) available at http://www. voicefromthewheelchair. co. uk/ pages/dw-response-to-welfare-to-work (accessed on 1/12/08) Layard, R (2005) Mental health: Britain’s biggest social problem? (Online) Available from http://cep. lse. ac. uk/textonly/research/mentalhealth/RL414d. pdf (accessed on 1/12/08) Lombard, D (2008) The replacement of incapacity benefit. (Online), available at http://www. communitycare. co. uk/Articles/2008/10/27/109795/incapacity-benefit-reform-will-leave-some-disabled-people-worse-off. tml (accessed on 5/12/08) Reaching out, (2006) An action plan on social exclusion (Online), available from http://www. cabinetoffice. gov. uk/media/cabinetoffice/social_exclusion_task_force/assets/reaching_out/chapter1. pdf (accessed on 28/10/08) Social exclusion trends show success (2004) Online, available from http://www. number10. gov. uk/page5544 (accessed on 28/10/08) Vaux, G (2008). Pathways to work, to help those unfit for work. (Online), available at http://www. communitycare. co. uk/Articles/Article. aspx? liArticleID=107551&Pr interFriendly=true (accessed on 1/12/08)

Summary Multimedia Database

INTRODUCTION 1) Background a) Combine text + graphics b) Visual + audio c) Catalog and index image + efficient storage and delivery 2) 4 Difficulties d) Data type e) Data manipulation f) Data storage g) Data delivery 3) Importance h) Store Image (eg:museum) i) Search and manipulate content 4) Types j) Images k) Audio l) Video m) Document n) Handwritten 5) Application o) GIS,CAD,Face-retrieval,doc imaging, medical db, web 6) Characteristic p) Treat mdb same way as data based 7) 4 Challenges q) Size r) Time s) Semantic Nature of Multimedia ) Operation of individual media 8) 5 Features u) Support diff. multimedia data type v) Handle large no. multimedia obj. w) Hierarchical storage structure & archiving data x) Information-retrieval y) Database capabilities More Summary of Devil at My Heels MULTIMEDIA DATA 1. Multimedia data size [Size of media data makes storage, processing, transmission and reception of the data very costly] a. Multimedia data acquisition * Data capture: photo/audio/video * Sampling: convert analog to digital * 8bits = 256 colors * 24bits = 16 million colors b.Dealing with Media Object Size * 2 approaches : store references/reduce size media * SQL:1999 2 data type BLOB & CLOB Lack in (PK, FK ,equality test) * Oracle9i: support 2 LOB #internal LOB: BLOB & CLOB #external LOB: BFILE * IBM DB2: BLOB,CLOB,DBLOB(china) c. Reducing Media Object’s Size * Compression algorithm *remove duplicate information *abbreviating information * Objective *Reduce bandwidth/storage *Decode signal close to original *Robustness,scalability,extensibility * 2 stages: *Predict-estimate redundant & select algorithm Transform-Compress & Decompress * 2 form of compression *Lossless-lose none,2:1,3:1 *Lossy-lose some,10:1,80:1 * Two ways *Run-length encoding *Huffman coding * 2. Real-Time N ature of Multimedia Data d. Segmentation: subdividing video obj e. Manual segmentation costly so focus on automatic segmentation 3. Semantic Nature of Multimedia Data f. Semantic: metadata describe multimedia obj. g. Refer as: text desc/characteristic of metadata(texture of image,frequencies of audios,font size for text)Database Management System and Data

Will offering work-life balance programs result in positive outcomes Essay

Will offering work-life balance programs result in positive outcomes for organisations and for employees - Essay Example Work-life balance programs vary widely depending on organisational policy and include such programs as flextime, telecommuting, paternity leave and even job sharing. These programs are implemented so that the organisation can demonstrate a solid commitment to improving employee relations and to allow employees to balance their personal demands with job role obligations. Work-life policies, in most instances, provide exceptionally positive outcomes for the organisation and employees who make use of the availability of these programs, including employee motivation, increased employee commitment, cohesive organisational cultures and reduced employee turnover that satisfies cost control issues at the organisation. The outcomes of work-life balance programs Positive outcomes associated with work-life balance programs can be attributed to social exchange theory, a psychological supposition that human relationships are founded on reciprocal actions and mutual negotiations between two or mor e parties (Emerson 1976). Social exchange theory posits that employees will repeat an action if they find they are rewarded for the behaviour (Robbins, Chatterjee and Canda 2011). Work-life programs are established by organisational leaders in an effort to provide incentives for employees to provide superior effort and motivation. As a result of this reward, employees respond by exerting maximum effort even when the job role involves an intensification of work responsibilities (Kelliher and Anderson 2010). Hence, there is a quantifiable set of positive psychological outcomes under social exchange theory that provides superior return on investment, in terms of increased productivity and motivation, to the employer. Also at the psychological level, work-life balance programs provide greater employee satisfaction which provides the incentive for employees to be more productive. Having some level of personal control over an employee’s working conditions is considered very valuabl e to workers that engage with these programs (Kelliher and Anderson 2010). It is recognised in research studies that when an employer provides workers with workplace autonomy, it is positively linked to job satisfaction (Emery and Barker 2007). This satisfaction leads to happier workers and job productivity increases (Nauert 2011). The research evidence indicating a positive link between satisfaction and higher productive outputs in the job role illustrate that work-life balance programs maintain considerable positive benefits to both the employee and the employer. Employee commitment is enhanced and there is overall better job performance when an employee is able to work in autonomous work environments (Nauert 2011). From the business perspective, the ability of work-life balance programs to provide perceptions of autonomy even leads to lower employee turnover, thus saving the organisation costs associated with recruitment and training of new employees. Work-life programs also prov ide the organisation with much less overhead costs that is sustained through employees working from home (Beauregard and Henry 2009). In a business where employees are not offered work-life programs, such as telecommuting, businesses must absorb a variety of costs, including office supplies, utilisation of electric services, telephony, and many other administrative costs. By having employees work from home, businesses can reduce their daily operational expenses, thereby satisfying budget concerns. This is a positive outcome from an organisation perspective, especially

Secondhand Smoke in Asthmatic Children Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Secondhand Smoke in Asthmatic Children - Article Example Results of the study conducted by Dr. Robert McMillen and others (2003), show that 70% of US adult smokers do not prohibit or do not have smoking prohibitions at home which puts their spouses', children's and other inhabitants' health at risk. The same study confirmed that parent's cigarette consumption influence their children's exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) (McMillen, 2003). According to Randall (2006), secondhand smoke, also known as passive smoke, is the involuntary breathing of other people's smoke. In his study, he found out that more than 40% of British children live in a house with at least one person smoking. And secondhand smoke being worse than firsthand smoke, these children is even more in danger of acquiring illnesses such as asthma. Asthma is said to be the most common chronic illness in children (Hansen, 2002). And because studies show that a large number of US homes do not prohibit smoking inside the house, there is a great possibility that the children acquire or inhale some of the secondhand smoke from cigarette and tobacco.

Accounting Management at Shell Company Case Study

Accounting Management at Shell Company - Case Study Example Management accounting information is the information which is necessary for the higher management to take into consideration when making important decisions regarding the organization. It allows the management to make well-informed decisions which can drastically help the company to achieve improved results. Management accounting information is future-oriented which means that unlike financial accounting, it does not just report the past performance of the company but also highlights the sections which can be improved to achieve greater efficiency and profitability. There are basically three types of management accounting information which can be significant for business decision making. This information can be classified into three statements or reports which include the cost allocation reports, budget reports, and forecasting statements. The first type of management accounting information that can be used by Shell management is the cost allocation reports. This report consists of t he information regarding the money invested or supposed to be invested, in particular projects. Organizations today have limited resources and they need to evaluate very carefully the projects they invest in. In the case of Shell, most of its projects involve huge investments and they cannot afford to make a mistake in choosing the right project. Therefore, Shell management can use the cost allocation reports to evaluate the projects which give the highest possible return and also are in line with its company goals and strategy. The second type of management accounting report is a budget report which usually has to be formulated and presented at the start of the financial year. A budget report will consist of the money the business should invest in each business operation and function. Managers usually refer to master, standard and flexible budgets to take decisions. Master budgets include all the allotted resources for expenditures of the whole company as well as for separate depar tments. On the other hand, a standard and flexible budget can help the management to compare the actual and budgeted expenses of the company which can again provide very useful information to the Shell management.

Home Land Security Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Home Land Security - Research Paper Example In terms of the security issues at port, the maritime transport act was introduced to provide more security in the ports and to decrease the case of smuggling and entry of terrorist. In road transport, the overall surveillance of the transport system increased considerably with implementation of technology to improve the security system. The transportation Security in USA has become matter of prime concern since the September, 11 attacks in the country. The US government dedicated their best efforts in increasing the security system of the country in every mode of transportation. As an initiative to make the transport system more secure, the Transportation Security Administration started operating under the US Department of Homeland Security. The primary objective of the agency was to provide safety and security to the traveling public based in the country so that any an incident like 9/11 does not occur again. Special task was assigned to develop policies to protect the overall transportation system in the country with a special focus on airport security and in the prevention of hijacking of aircrafts. The federal government also adopted special policies to look after the security issues in highways, roads, railways and in ports. Over the years the security in the transportation system have modified in a large exte nt to protect the common public. In the process of securing the transportation system the US government faced massive challenge in as providing security to hundreds of airports along with the sea ports and transit service proved to a daunting task. Much of the responsibility for strengthening the aviation system was assigned to the TSA which came into existence just after the massive attack on world trade center. TSA was engaged with the screening process of the passengers and the property. In the newly reformed security system in aviation, explosive