Women in Technology Fields

Introduction As society evolves to become more dependent on science and technology for growth and development, the occupational segregation of women in the sciences relative to men, not only in terms of absolute numbers but also in terms of visibility in the upper echelons of the professions, represents a misuse of scarce human capital and continues to alarm academics, policy makers and mainstream commentators (Hatchell Aveling, 2008).Advertising We will write a custom dissertation sample on Women in Technology Fields specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More That’s good writing. As observed by a number of scholars (e.g., Huffman et al, 2010; Benson Yukongdi, 2005), it is indeed true that the gendered segregation of jobs and occupations in these critical sectors of the economy is a persistent characteristic in many labour markets globally, and is the proximate foundation of many forms of gender inequality. An extensive and well es tablished literature documents the destructive outcomes of gendered occupational segregation in science and technology fields (Deem, 2007), which include lower wages, expansive income disparities, fewer promotions, and less significant wage increases (Schweitzer et al, 2011). The worrying trend being replicated in nearly all economies worldwide is that although more women are being absorbed in the fields of science and technology than ever before, they persist to be considerably outnumbered by their male counterparts (Jones, 2010; Bhatia Amati, 2010). It is the purpose of the present study to perform a critical analysis of why women continue to be underrepresented in the telecommunication industry in Europe and Middle East. Very good start! Towards the realization of this broad objective, this section sets out to review and analyze extant literature on women’s occupational segregation in technology fields, with specific focus on the telecommunication sector in Europe and Mid dle East. The section will, among other things, analyze existing literature on women in engineering and technology fields, the dynamics of occupational segregation of women in these sectors, barriers to gendered occupation equality, and issues that need to be addressed to encourage and retain women in technology fields.Advertising Looking for dissertation on gender studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More It is imperative to note that due to paucity of literature on women occupational segregation in the telecommunication sector, the analysis of critical literature will assume a broader scope to encompass segregation of women in technology fields based on the rationale that the telecommunication sector is technology-oriented. Women in Technology Fields Hersh (2000) cited in Kusk et al (2007) observed that although there have been marked increases in the number of women taking up technology-oriented occupations over the last two decades, women still remain a minority in these fields in nearly all countries across the world. Indeed, according to Gillard et al (2008), as many Western technology-oriented organizations endeavour â€Å"†¦to recognize and validate difference through diversity policies, they in fact leave the power mechanisms of conformity unchallenged and intact, individualize the inequities, bypass tensions of coexistence, and actually reinforce and homogenize difference† (p. 266). In particular, these authors note that although the telecommunication and information communication technology (ICT) workforce forms fairly new professional sectors, women persistently occupy a minority of positions and gender segregation that has been well documented in many other occupations is being simulated in the telecommunication/ICT industries. Available literature demonstrate that women in telecommunication/ICT industries tend to be concentrated in particular occupational spheres, which are norma lly the lower skilled information technology (IT) jobs related to data entry, implying that women in these critical sectors of the economy comprise a marginal percentage of managerial, design, and software development personnel (Gillard et al, 2008). Yet, according to Bystydzienski (2004), as increasing numbers of women get absorbed into the telecommunication/ICT professions, not only are they faced with a slump in salaries, status, and working conditions but they also have to contend with the domain of masculinity that is well entrenched in these sectors. In other words, men still dictate access to, and advancement in, paid employment in telecommunication/ICT fields (Benson Yukongdi, 2005; Hafkin Huyer, 2007).Advertising We will write a custom dissertation sample on Women in Technology Fields specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Trends in various countries and regions Trends in the United States According to a report released by t he U.S. Department of Labour (2005) cited in Oswald (2008), women currently make up approximately 50% of the total workforce, but they continue to be segregated in many occupations, particularly in engineering and technology-oriented occupations. This gendered occupational segregation, it seems, has its roots in the educational achievements of women. A report completed in 2007 by the National Science Foundation also cited in Oswald (2008) revealed that â€Å"†¦women earned only 29% of the bachelor’s degrees in math and computer science, 21% of the degrees in engineering, and 42% of the bachelor’s degrees in physical science† (p. 196). These disciplines form the foundation for a career trajectory in the telecommunication field. Available literature demonstrates that leading women engineers and ICT experts in the United Sates are regularly burdened with concerns about not being taken seriously, perceived non-performance, exclusionary social dynamics, reliance on hostile workmates or seniors, and excessive pressure to imitate the male paradigm of doing science (Etzkowitz et al, 2010). Such experiences, according to these authors, not only obstruct interpersonal relationships but frustrate the women’s capacity to reach their full potential, no matter how able or talented they are. A survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labour cited in Coder et al (2009) indicates that while women made up an estimated 43% of the information technology (IT) workforce in 1983, the percentage dropped to a paltry 26 % in 2008 in spite of the fact that the total IT workforce had more than doubled for the indicated period. Trends in United Kingdom Sappleton Takrui-Rick (2008) posit that â€Å"†¦despite 30 years of equality legislation, women in science, engineering and technology in the U.K. remain severely underrepresented† (p. 284). Indeed, the U.K. has one of the highest levels of gendered occupation segregation in the European Union, pa rticularly in science, engineering and technology domains. Available statistics contained in a report by the Engineering Council UK (2004) cited in Sappleton Takrui-Rick (2008) â€Å"†¦suggest that only 8% of those employed in engineering work and 15% of those employed in information, communication, and technology (ICT) work in the U.K. are female† (p. 285).Advertising Looking for dissertation on gender studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Current trends, however, demonstrate that organizations are increasingly realizing the intrinsic benefit of encouraging and retaining women in these fields though tangible results are yet to be achieved (Bhatia Amati, 2010). The limited success of intervention strategies aimed at achieving equal gender representation in these fields, according to Sappleton Takrui-Rick (2008), can be partially accredited to the fact that, after â€Å"getting in,† certain influences obstruct women in the U.K. from â€Å"staying on† and â€Å"getting on† in the sectors in parity with their male counterparts. In a recently concluded case study on network engineer training programs in Britain running the Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) module, it was demonstrated that career openings commensurate with their skills were substantially restricted for women employees in general, but particularly so for women single parents (Gillard et al, 2008). A study conductad by Franzway(2 009), found that a large number of men are attracted to technical training programmes and courses. A study conducted by Hafkin Taggart (2001) cited in Gillard et al (2007) found that employers in the UK were reluctant to recruit women CCNA programmers and instructors ostensibly because women are poorly qualified and lack fundamental work experience. Indeed, according to Gillard et al (2008), the â€Å"†¦employers frequently maintained that not only were the supposed physical and computational demands of the job too exacting but that it was too risky to permit inexperienced personnel to tinker with the vital network infrastructure† (p. 272). Preferring to recruit men, this unconcealed stereotyped discrimination in expertise recognition has also been experienced by female telecommunication engineers and network administrators in other parts of the world, with job advertisements for telecommunication/ICT professionals frequently specifying male job applicants (Gillard et a l, 2008; Hafkin Huyer, 2007). Extant literature (e.g., Bystydzienski, 2004; Benson Yukongdi, 2005; Bhatia Amati, 2010) demonstrate that once in formal employment in these technology-oriented sectors, however, women perform as well as, if not better than, their male counterparts. Trends in Middle East Although gendered occupation segregation is far more entrenched in the Middle East and other Arab-dominated regions than in other areas, this is mainly because, the Islamic religion is the main religion in the Middle East region. The Islamic religion, believes that women should concentrate more on their household responsibilities than technical careers. Bhatia Amati (2010) note that it becomes hard to dissect the problem due to paucity of statistical data, particularly sex-segregated data on gender inequality in the Middle East. However, various rationales as to why the problem is so deeply entrenched in the Middle East have surfaced. Benson Yukongdi (2005) posit that owing to reli gious and socio-cultural barriers, many countries in the Middle East abide by a social convention in which women are widely expected to play a supporting role relative to men. According to Hafkin Huyer (2007) cultural prohibitions in many countries in the Middle East restrict women from undertaking any gainful employment outside the home. According to Benson Yukongdi (2005), men in the Middle East are traditionally placed in core occupations and departments, and this becomes the basis for gender divergences in recruitment, promotion, training, rewards and decision-making authority. Dynamics of Occupational Segregation in Technology Fields Available literature demonstrates that in spite of their talent, ability, and opportunity, women continue to be underrepresented in engineering and technology-oriented sectors of the economy (Schweitzer et al, 2011; Bhatia Amati, 2010). This notwithstanding, it is indeed true that unlike other historically male-dominated jobs that have registere d considerable gains in attaining gendered equality, many engineering and technology-oriented fields have remained noticeably unbalanced in terms of gender (Deem, 2007). Still, other studies (e.g., Kusk et al, 2007; Coder et al, 2009; Kotsilieri Marshall, 2004) have demonstrated that underrepresentation of women in engineering and technology-oriented sectors continue to widen as women engineers and technicians find themselves swimming against the tide of prejudice intrinsically reinforced by the social, cultural, psychological and economic realities of life. A study by Hatchel Aveling (2008) found that women telecommunication engineers are eight times more likely to be working part-time, while women working in ICT are six times more likely to be working part-time. This section aims to explore critical literature on the dynamics of occupational segregation in technology-oriented fields, with particular focus on telecommunication and ICT sectors. Consequently, literature on the pipe line theory, the social constructionist perspectives, meritocracy and its implications, and organizational policies and culture, will be evaluated with a view to understand why the problem of gendered occupational segregation in technology-oriented fields continue to persist despite the spirited attempts by governments and organizations across the world to curtail the inequality progression. The unsuccessful Pipeline Theory According to Schweitzer et al (2011), â€Å"†¦the pipeline theory suggests that increasing the number of women in male dominated fields should lead to more equality in the labour market†¦This presumes that women and men in the pipeline expect comparable career outcomes† (p. 422). Given institutional, organizational and countrywide efforts to get girls into engineering and technology-oriented disciplines in institutions of higher learning, it was expected that, with a large proportion of women entering the engineering and technology fields, they w ould obviously filter into the traditionally male-dominated upper levels of these critical sectors in large numbers (Hatchel Aveling, 2008; Franzway et al, 2009). Indeed, according to these authors, the metaphor of the â€Å"pipeline effect† was based on the assertion that gender imbalances noted in engineering and technology-oriented occupations would be successfully dealt with once women overcame their reluctance to enter these sectors and acquire the requisite qualifications. However, as has been demonstrated in a number of research articles concerned with assessing the reasons behind gender-based underrepresentation in the labour market, the movement of more women into the pipeline failed to correspond with the attainment of enviable trends for women careers, particularly when it comes to engineering and technology-oriented sectors of the economy (Schweitzer et al, 2011; Coder et al, 2009). Hatchel Aveling (2008) are of the opinion that the pipeline theory promised â₠¬Å"†¦false hope as the pipeline turned out to be very leaky indeed† (p. 357). This view is reinforced by a host of other scholars (e.g. Coder et al, 2009; Bhatia Amati, 2010), who suggest that women are yet to achieve comparable outcomes relative to men in these sectors even after sustained efforts from various quarters, including organizations and governments, to â€Å"feed† the women into the pipeline. Various scholars have attempted to dissect why the â€Å"pipeline effect† failed to deliver the intended outcomes, particularly in the attainment of comparable career outcomes for women in engineering and technology-oriented occupations. Hatchel Aveling (2008) maintain that the pipeline theory has several limitations that make it impossible for women to achieve comparable career outcomes. According to these authors, the theory â€Å"†¦posits a straightforward linear career progression that is quite restrictive and does not easily accommodate the more complex life-patterns of females† (p. 358). Women employees have unique needs and demands, which in most occasions act as barriers to successful gendered occupation equality not only in the science fields but also in other areas (Gillard et al, 2008). These barriers will be discussed at length in the succeeding sections of this review. Other scholars have observed that the pipeline theory fails to take into consideration the multiple layers of culture in its attempt to guarantee comparable career outcomes for women relative to men. To understand the dynamics of occupational segregation and institute a framework which will enable women to achieve comparable career outcomes, therefore, â€Å"†¦gender must always be seen in terms of its cultural context, in which the intersection of gender and culture is closely linked to the issue of power† (Hatchel Aveling, 2008 p. 358). Lastly, the pipeline theory fails to account for why women are leaving science, engineering an d technology-oriented organizations in large numbers relative to their male counterparts (Screuders et al, 2009), even after successful efforts made by various agencies to encourage more girls into science and technology at the school and even the undergraduate level (Hatchel Aveling, 2008). The Social Constructionist Viewpoints Various scholars have attempted to explain the occupation segregation of women in engineering and technology-oriented occupations using the social constructionist perspectives. Kotsilieri Marshall (2004) are of the opinion that the experiences and characteristics accredited to women, portrayed in academia and industry as contributing to their current occupational segregation in engineering and technology-oriented fields, are not timeless and universal but are socially, historically, psychologically, and politically located. To deduce that all women judge, think, or relate in distinctive and universal ways when making career choices, particularly in fields traditionally considered as male-dominated, inarguably denies the contextualise that frames behaviour (Benson Yukongdi, 2005). To better understand the social constructionist perspectives in general and, by extension, the contextuality that denies behaviour, it is important to explain the difference between sex and gender. Gillard et al (2008) explain that â€Å"†¦while sex reflects biological difference, gender – although often based on biological sex – is a social construction† (p. 264). This therefore implies that individuals are born and straight away categorized as female or male, but with time obtain a gendered identity, that is, what it implies to be feminine or masculine. These authors further posit that â€Å"†¦both gendered concepts are relational, that is, they are construed in relation to each other by defining what the female is not in relation to the Western masculine norm; this varies from one environment to another and shifts over tim e† (p. 264). According to Bhatia Amati (2010), one of the most elaborated features of the social constructionist perspective is the recognition that women and men are located divergently in society and that not all women or all men share similar experiences or challenges. In pursuing the social constructionist line of thought, Gillard et al (2008) observe that the gendering of work, technology and indeed many other facets of occupational life and orientation â€Å"†¦constitute individuals as different types of value-added labourers can be made visible by documenting cultural values, beliefs, and activities, which contribute toward identity formulations, roles and responsibilities, and personal aspirations and opportunities† (p. 265). Consequently, these authors underline a value preposition suggesting that the micro dimensions of our everyday existence, reinforced by community, organizational and institutional hegemonic philosophies and processes that maintains th e normalized status quo, provides the basis for gendered occupational segregation not only in technology-oriented fields but also in other areas. Meritocracy its Implications The concept of meritocracy came into the limelight in the late 1950s to denote a social system that prescribes to merit, talent and capabilities as the foundation for recruiting employees into positions and dispensing rewards (Castilla Bernard, 2010). To date, opinion still remains divided on whether meritocracy promotes gendered occupation equality or occupational segregation. As observed by these authors, â€Å"†¦advocates of meritocracy stress that in true meritocratic systems everyone has an equal chance to advance and obtain rewards based on their individual merits and efforts, regardless of their gender, race, class, or other non-merit factors† (p. 543). This implies that men and women in engineering and technology-oriented occupations have equal opportunities for advancement despite the exi stence of gendered imbalances and barriers that may act to hinder one group, particularly women, to advance in their careers. Indeed, meritocracy has been culturally accepted as a reasonable and justifiable distributive standard in many developed capitalist countries and organizations (Castilla Bernard, 2010). In her research, Deem (2007) noted that meritocracy is a universal value that is absolutely compatible with gendered occupation equality, ensuring that recruitment and promotion in the workplace is through open competition rather than through concession or networks of associates. Critics of meritocracy, however, argue that the concept has failed to deliver equal gender representation in a number of occupations, particularly in the sciences. In their research, Castilla Bernard (2010) came up with what they called the ‘paradox of meritocracy’ to refer to a situation where organizations that prescribe to meritocratic principles were found to demonstrate greater bia s in favour of men over equally competitive and performing women. Many modern technology organizations, though based on meritocracy in recruitment and promotions, are heavily bureaucratized. Gillard et al (2008) note that â€Å"†¦the bureaucratization of gender guidelines all too often tends to reinforce institutional influence and silences those whose voices rarely get aired in the development forums where decisions are made† (p. 266). Recent empirical studies as quoted in Castilla Bernard (2010) found that occupational segregation continues even with the adoption of merit-based recruitment and reward systems, affirmative action and other diversity-oriented policies and strategies. Indeed, according to these researchers, some organizational practices and procedures instituted to entrench the meritocratic paradigm in the organization have been found to negatively affect employees’ opportunities and professions, particularly those practices developed to diminish i nequalities for women and ethnic minorities. This assertion leads Bhatia Amati (2010) to conclude that some organizational policies and practices supposedly adopted to enhance meritocracy are only factored in for symbolic reasons and do not in any way achieve their stated objectives. For example, research has revealed that some organizational recruitment programs and reward practices intended to reflect the meritocratic paradigm act to increase gender and racial inequalities by virtue of the fact that they introduce bias into employee recruitment and compensation decisions (Baron Cobb-Clark, 2010). Deem (2007) noted at least two challenges with the conception of meritocracy in relation to gendered occupation inequality. First, the researcher argued that meritocracy hindered women’s recruitment and progress in key sectors of the economy due to the â€Å"†¦individualistic focus of meritocratic judgments that reward the successful and stigmatize the unsuccessful† ( p. 617). Meritocracy, it was argued, has the supremacy to transfer the responsibility for unequal recruitment and promotional results back onto the individual and consequently to stigmatize the unsuccessful applicants as unskilled or incapable. A second challenge with meritocracy, according to this particular researcher, is the insinuation that it applies culturally and value-neutral standards to the recruitment and promotion of workers. However, it is unfeasible to develop totally neutral standards or evaluations by virtue of the fact that cultural and social ideals do enter into the recruitment and promotion processes. Organizational Policies Culture Organizational policies and cultures, of different societies, act as facilitators of gender segregation. A number of studies (e.g., Gillard et al, 2008; Bhatia Amati, 2010) have attempted to offer a gender construction in which critical reflection is applied to how occupational segregation of women in science and technology fields, of which the telecommunication sector is an integral component, is woven in organizational, national and international policies, business practices and concerns, and public and private employment configurations. Many organizational policies and strategies orient themselves to the unfounded paradigm that women posses less levels of human capital relative to men (Benson Yukongdi, 2005). Some organizational perceptions practiced in many countries, particularly in the Middle East, makes it permissible for occupations to be allocated along gender lines, implying that women are left with little prospect to develop the necessary work experience that is fundamentally needed in many technology-oriented organizations. On the other hand, there was something in the news last week about men being not allowed to serve customers in women’s clothing shops. For example, men in the Middle East are traditionally placed in core occupations and departments, and this becomes the basis for gender divergences in recruitment, promotion, training, rewards and decision-making authority. In a similar fashion a broad range of organizational policies and practices serve to prevent women from entering technology-oriented occupations. Benson Yukongdi (2005) point out the challenge of statistical discrimination, where organizations not only in telecommunication/ICT sectors but also in other fields make decisions on recruitment, promotion and training â€Å"†¦based on generalized data rather than on the actual experiences of individuals† (p. 287). For instance, absenteeism data for all women in the firm would be utilized to evaluate the commitment of particular women applying for promotion while not taking into consideration other dynamics that are unique to women, such as maternity leave and family responsibilities. Such an orientation only serves to enhance gendered occupational segregation. In line with this, it is indeed true that many organizations either do not have a statistical database on women occupational segregation or fail to collect such data in a consistent and regular manner, making it almost impossible to address the challenge (Franzway et al, 2009). As underscored by Hafkin Huyer (2007), the paucity of statistical data on gendered occupational segregation in the telecommunication/ICT sectors makes it difficult, if not unfeasible, to develop a case for the inclusion of gender issues in telecommunication/ICT policies, plans, and strategies to employers and policymakers. Extant literature demonstrate that although there is a substantial increase in the number of women joining engineering and technology-oriented firms (Morganson et al, 2010), the gains are being watered down by misplaced organizational policies and governance issues, which ensure that women do not stay longer in these critical sectors of the economy (Huffman et al, 2010). As noted by Hatchel Aveling (2008), â€Å"†¦the issue is no longer one of attracting women into the sciences but rather one of keeping them there† (p. 359). Morganson et al (2010) observes that when women complete undergraduate training in technical disciplines, they persist to be underrepresented in these fields and are more likely to leave the labour force than are men. A number of researchers (e.g., Bhatia Amati, 2010; Bystydzienski, 2004; Franzway et al, 2009) have blamed the gendered dimensions of organizational culture for the high turnover of women in engineering and technology-oriented organizations, while others (e.g., Gillard et al, 2008; Hafkin Huyer, 2007) argue that structural, cultural, interactional, and identity arrangements, even though irreversibly associated, are important classifications in understanding why women’s occupational segregation in engineering and technology-oriented fields can be fundamentally attributed to the gender subtext of organizations. Barriers to Gendered Occupation Equality in Technology Fields Many studies have be en conducted over time to understand the reasons behind the current gendered occupational segregation of women in engineering and technology fields. Kusk et al (2007) is of the opinion that women’s success in engineering and technology-related fields is often contingent upon them adopting an overtly male career pattern, implying that male domination in these sectors is barrier to entry of more women. This view is consistent with Morganson et al (2010) observation that the technology environment is often typified as a chilly environment, â€Å"†¦which tends to be male-dominated, highly impersonal and individualistic† (p. 169). According to these authors, the lack of support in the traditional engineering and technology working environments may be particularly destructive to women given that a number of researchers and theorists have continuously emphasized the fundamental importance of personalized relationships and interpersonal associations to women’s psyc hological development and well-being. The education system continues to be blamed for the swelling underrepresentation of women in technology-oriented fields, such as the telecommunication sector. According to Bhatia Amati (2010), girls in institutions of higher learning observe that there are few women in science and technology fields and, consequently, make a conclusion that a career trajectory in these fields is more suitable for men than for women. Indeed. Faced with the knowledge of both the bleak and subtle obstacles that face women in the male-dominated science and technology fields, girls in colleges and universities opt out of the disciplines and orient themselves for other fields that guarantee better opportunities of educational and career success. This view has been reinforced by Benson Yukongdi (2005), who observe that â€Å"†¦education, and particularly higher levels of education, has been denied to many women as families and society place more emphasis on wome n’s role as mother and homemaker† (p. 287). As a direct consequence, few women ever make it to technology-oriented occupations because these fields traditionally require higher levels of education. Historically, the image of technology fields have been perceived under the lens of complexity, time-intensive, challenging tasks, and involving machinery, and, consequently, both women and men continue to perceive engineering and technology fields as masculine both in nature and association (Kusk et al, 2007). Gillard et al (2008) describe how employees in telecommunication/ICT fields, interacting across time and space, are constantly obliged to work long hours to accommodate divergent time zones and regularly operate in crisis mode with strict project deadlines while having to continually update the job skills in response to rapid shifts in technology. In addition to these occupational demands, â€Å"†¦the mobile nature of these types of occupations often works to wome n’s disadvantage as they experience difficulties when faced with long hours, expectations of overseas travel, and participation in informal social networks† (Gillard et al, 2008 p. 271). Benson Yukongdi (2005) observe that even in instances where women have similar levels of education to their male colleagues, childbirth and family responsibilities implies that, for many women, gaining the pertinent and equivalent work expertise needed in technology-oriented occupations is impossible. Academics and industry view the gender pay gap as a strong contributing factor toward continued gender segregation of labour in science, engineering and technology sectors. As observed by Blau Khan (2007), women telecommunication engineers continue to earn substantially less than men even when they are tasked with the same responsibilities. Many research articles (e.g., Blau Khan, 2007; Franzway et al, 2009) have digested a positive correlation between gendered pay gap on the one hand a nd prejudice and discrimination on the other. Baron Cobb-Clark (2010) suggest that the notion of prejudice and its negative ramifications are readily transferrable to women versus men, while Etzkowitz et al (2010) conceptualized discriminatory preferences of women in engineering and technology fields as arising from an active desire by engineering-oriented organizations to maintain social distance from women due to their perceived family responsibilities, which negatively affect their performance and productivity. To reinforce this view of normalized discrimination in the workplace, Hatchel Aveling (2008) observe that many technology-oriented organizations are more likely to hire males than women, not mentioning that males working for these organizations are more likely than females to be given credit for ideas, concepts or work completed. According to Etzkowitz et al (2010), women are expected to work twice as hard to prove that they are capable of becoming productive telecommuni cation engineers, systems analysts and ICT experts. There is compelling evidence that women continue to be discriminated against in science and technology-oriented occupations due to their low levels of experience relative to men (Franzway et al, 2009). As rightly pointed out by Blau Khan (2007), â€Å"†¦the qualification that has proven to be quite important is work experience because traditionally women moved in and out of the labour market based on family considerations† (p. 9). Experience and the accumulation of skills that are fundamental in science and technology fields go hand in hand. Consequently, available studies (e.g., Blau Khan, 2007; Franzway et al, 2009; Deem, 2007) have demonstrated that women may particularly avoid career trajectories obliging large investments in skills that are distinctive to a particular endeavour mainly because of the fact that the returns to such investments are reaped only as long as the employee remains with that employer. Indee d, many employers may exhibit reinforced reluctance to hire women for such occupations because the organization bears some of the costs of such sector-specific training, not mentioning that their fear is further compounded by the fact that they may not get a full return on that investment due to higher turnover of women telecommunication engineers (Jones, 2010; Bhatia Amati, 2010). The lack of benefits perceived to be unique to women has worked to the disadvantage of women in technology-oriented fields. Indeed, Gillard et al (2008) posit that the majority of newly created technology and telecommunication occupations in developed as well as developing countries are predominantly found in the private sector, but the absence â€Å"†¦of benefits available means that women are unlikely to pursue these types of employment, instead having to opt for public sector work that is more likely to offer childcare provision, flexible hours, and maternity leave† (p. 272). As some gover nments formulate policies aimed at passing legislation for these benefits, which are perceived to encourage more women into technology and telecommunication occupations, the full responsibility for availing them often falls into the hands of private sector employers who are then inclined to discriminate against offering job positions to women in a bid to circumvent the financial cost of affording these services and benefits (Gillard et al, 2008; Baron Cobb-Clark, 2010; Franzway et al, 2009; Deem, 2007). Benson Yukongdi (2005) note that some organizations avail little in the way of family friendly policies or child care that would assist women professionals to deal with the role conflict arising from engagement with family related responsibilities as they perform organizational roles. According to Kusk et al (2007), â€Å"†¦explicit admittance of a belief in gender differences serve as a mechanism to sustain the status quo of the gender order by affirming current inequalities and prejudices as a natural difference† (p. 111). Women traditionally are perceived to be more oriented toward undertaking family responsibilities than engaging in paid labour. Where women engage in paid work, they nevertheless undertake major domestic responsibilities in addition to their organizational responsibilities. In many instances, as noted by Benson Yukongdi (2005), the gender-based division of family responsibilities and domestic work leaves women with few choices but to downsize their professional ambitions to fit with their family demands. In addition, some growth mind-sets have been found to influence girls into believing that they are not as good as boys in science and technology-oriented fields, and that men are more appropriate to venture into scientific careers than are women (Jones, 2010). Consequently, when girls and women take a stand that they only have a fixed amount of knowledge that is undesirable in scientific careers, they are more likely to believ e in the stereotype, lose confidence and self-belief, and eventually disengage from science, engineering and technology-oriented disciplines. This implies that women career trajectories in the mentioned disciplines become misplaced early in life due to the stereotype (Gillard et al, 2008; Schreuders et al, 2009). Inflexible and unfavourable organizational environment, reinforced by strategies and policies that are unfavourable to the progression of women in engineering and technology fields, have been blamed by leading scholars and practitioners as one of the foremost barriers to gendered occupational equality in these fields (Franzway et al, 2009). Indeed, Kusk et al (2007) observe that some of the best women telecommunication engineers are opting to retire early and set up their own businesses because they can create the type of environment that is free of unfavourable organizational policies and working environment. Encouraging Retaining Women in Technology Fields While it is cl ear that some of the issues and challenges contributing to gendered occupational segregation in technology-oriented firms represent the unique situation in a particular country, various studies have concluded that, in most cases, the problems and challenges are more universal in nature and scope (Benson Yukongdi, 2005). This implies that the solutions to the gender inequalities can also assume universal dimensions. Upon undertaking a comprehensive review of extant literature on continued occupational segregation of women in engineering and technology fields, Kusk et al (2007) noted that â€Å"†¦encouragement from family, friends, teachers and advisors is pivotal both in choosing and succeeding in engineering education† (p. 111). Blattel-Mink (2002) cited in Kusk et al (2007) posited that â€Å"†¦true gender equality requires both that those individual women in scientific subjects should have strong career orientation and that structural, institutional and cultural environs should become more welcoming towards women† (p. 111). Benson Yukongdi (2005) posit that increased access to educational opportunities for women, particularly in tertiary-level course, could deal a major blow to gendered occupational segregation in technology-oriented fields. Organizations and countries need to pass legislation that will minimize gendered occupational segregation in technology-oriented field as â€Å"†¦legislative reform constitutes an important component of any strategy to achieve equality in employment† (p. 289). According to these authors, legislation can be instrumental in setting up a community standard, not mentioning that it can serve to demonstrate acceptable behaviour. However, legislation cannot avail a swift remedy to the embedded gender equality segregation in technology-oriented fields, and can lead to manifold informal strategies to outwit the intent of such legislation. Countries also need to pass legislation that would all ow the girl child to have access to technology in elementary schools with a view to downgrade or diminish the gendered stereotype that a career in technology is only meant for men. According to Hafkin Huyer (2007), â€Å"†¦ICTs impact men and women differentially, and in almost all cases, women have many disadvantages that result in their having less access to technology and therefore less use of it† (p. 26). Etzkowitz et al (2010) observe that the access to technology in many countries across the world has allowed women to enhance their economic conditions, progress politically and widen participation in science and technology-oriented occupations for future generations. Benson Yukongdi (2005) are of the opinion that increased marketization of childcare and domestic work could assist women to achieve equal employment opportunities in technology-related sectors by neutralizing the division of domestic labour and the role expectations placed on women. Increasing the ran ge of governmental and organizational support mechanisms through marketization of these services will go a long way to assist women institute a more focused and equitable balance between work roles and family responsibilities. This notwithstanding, the role conflict experienced by women as they attempt to balance their domestic responsibilities and organizational roles will only be assuaged when more substantial social, cultural and attitudinal change transpires within society (Benson Yukongdi, 2005; Deem, 2007; Schreuders et al, 2009). Coping skills and strategies should be taught in institutions of higher learning to make girls understand the barriers and limitations that women in engineering and technology-oriented curricula face and the coping strategies known to be effective in these environments (Morganson et al 2010). These researchers posit that â€Å"†¦coping is a transportable skill that can continue to assist girls and women in overcoming barriers as they move forw ard in their careers† (p. 170). It is important to note that men and women cope in different ways; while men tend to cope by attempting to either alter the stressor (problem-focused coping) or ignore it totally (avoidant coping), women, in contrast, engage in social support coping. Consequently, women must rely on others in the work environment not only for emotional support but as a way to deal with work or family related challenges and seek assistance from others to overcome the stressors (Morganson et al, 2010; Schreuders et al, 2009). Lack of adequate social support coping mechanisms in technology-oriented organizations, therefore, may translate into recruitment of fewer women and higher turnover of women. Conclusion From the analysis it is clear that despite spirited attempts by governments and organizations to achieve equal gender representation in engineering and technology-oriented fields, the problem is far from over. In countries which have achieved tangible outcomes in narrowing down the gap, â€Å"†¦the steady increase in participation of women in science is marred by the tendency of fields to lower in status as women achieve equality of representation, and by continued resistance to women reaching positions of authority† (Etzkowitz et al, 2010 p. 83). Consequently, these negative progressions must be reversed if women are to enjoy the economic and social gains that are attached to the highly prestigious fields of science, engineering and technology. Collecting and analyzing data on why women fail to, make a tangible impact in these fields is a necessary prerequisite to achieving more gendered occupation equality in the industry. As noted in a report by the United Nations Development Programme cited in Hafkin Huyer (2007), â€Å"†¦without data, there is no visibility; without visibility, there is no priority† (p. 26). It is this understanding that provides the impetus for the next section, which aims to collect data t o analyze why there are few women employees in the telecommunications sector in Europe and Middle East. Summary of Conceptual Frame Work From the analysis and statistics, carried out in various regions globally, it is evident that careers which comprise of; technology, engineering, computer science, mathematics, physics, telecommunication and ICT, have little or no women in them. This is because of the gender disparity that is exorbitant in diverse societies globally (Baron 2010, p.203). Whereby, the believes in these societies, define different careers in terms of being feminine or masculine. This has affected women in making career choices, where most of the women find it odd to choose careers that are more masculine in the society than they are feminine. Moreover, even when women take technical occupations, the job market prejudices them because it prefers men to do masculine occupations. Organisational policies that do not encourage women on technical careers have watered down e fforts to eliminate gender segregation in occupations (Schreuders 2009, p103). Meritocracy, which is a strategy developed to eliminate occupational gender segregation, has also failed due to this same prejudice in the job market. The pipeline theory, established to maximize and increase the number of women in masculine occupation, also failed since women who acted in reaction to this theory, did not take masculine and technological occupations (schreuders 2009, p110) On the other hand, unusually many societies globally have painted technical courses masculine. However, despite this, most men have shown a lot of unfading interest in these courses. This has raised a real, crucial question why it is so. Various sociological researchers have answered this critical intriguing question. First, the greatest fear of a man is to become a failure, and for man to overcome this fear he has to find something that is sufficient so as to overcome this fear. Hence or otherwise, most men go for tech nical courses because they are more prestigious in the society and moreover because the job market is remarkably open and diverse for technical course (Franzway 2009, p96). In addition to that, there’s an enormous guarantee that technical courses offer jobs to men. All in all, men have majorly many family responsibilities in life, and so it is necessary for a man to take a course that will guarantee the security of his family sufficiently. However, this is not enough reason for occupational gender segregation in technical courses. Lastly, occupational gender segregation can be eliminated with time if the systems of various organisations and associations globally can be changed to be more feminine friendly in relation to technical careers (Franzway 2009, p103) References Baron, J.D., Cobb-Clark, D.A (2010). Occupational Segregation and the Gender Wage Gap in Private- and Public-Sector Employment: A Distributional Analysis. Economic Record, 86 (273), pp. 227-246. Benson, J., Yukongdi, V (2005). Asian Women Managers: Participation, Barriers and Future Prospects. Asian Pacific Business Review, 11 (2), pp. 283-291. Bhatia, S., Amati, J (2010). ‘If these Women can do it, I can do it, Too’: Building Women Engineering Leaders through Graduate Peer Mentoring. Leadership Management in Engineering, 10 (4), pp. 174-184. Blau, F.D., Kahn, L.M (2007). The Gender Pay Gap: Have Women gone as Far as they Can? Academy of Management Perspectives, 11 (2), pp. 283-291. Bystydzienski, J.M (2004). (Re)Gendering Science Fields: Transforming Academic Science and Engineering. NWSA Journal, 16 (1), pp. 8-12. Castilla, E.J., Bernard, S (2010). The Paradox of Meritocracy in Organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 55 (4), pp. 543-576. Coder, L., Rosenbloom, J.L., Ash, R.A., DuPont, B.R (2009). Economic and Business Dimensions: Increasing Gender Diversity in the IT Workforce. Communications of the ACM, 52 (5), pp. 25-27. Deem, R (2007). Managing a Meritoc racy or an Equitable Organization? Senior Managers’ and Employees’ Views about Equal Opportunities Policies in UK Universities. Journal of Education Policy, 22 (6), pp. 615-636. Etzkowitz, H., Gupta, N., Kamelgor, C (2010). The Gender Revolution in Science and Technology. Journal of International Affairs, 64 (1), pp. 83-100. Franzway, S., Sharp, R., Mills, J.E., Gill, J (2009). Engineering Ignorance. Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies, 30 (1), pp. 89-106. Gillard, H., Howcroft, D., Mitev, N., Richardson, H (2008). â€Å"Missing Women†: Gender, ICTs, and the Shaping of the Global Economy. Information Technology for Development, 14 (4), pp. 262-279. Hafkin, N.J., Huyer, S (2007). Women and Gender in ICT Statistics and Indicators for Development. Information Technologies International Development, 4 (2), pp. 25-41. Hatchell, H., Aveling, N (2008). Those same Old Prejudices? Gendered Experiences in the Science Workplace. Journal of Workplace Rights, 13 (4), pp. 355-375. Huffman, M.L., Cohen, P.N., Pearlman, J (2010). Engendering Change: Organizational Dynamics and Workplace Gender Desegregation, 1975-2005. Administrative Science Quarterly, 55 (2), pp. 255-277. Jones, J (2010). Closing the Gender Gap. Civil Engineering, 80 (7), pp. 60-63. Kotsilieri, F., Marshall, J (2004). Hellenic Women Managers in the Telecommunications Sector: Living in Transition. New Technology, Work Employment, 19 (3), pp. 177-191. Kusk, F., Ozbilgin, M., Ozkale, L (2007). Against the Tide: Gendered Prejudice and Disadvantage in Engineering. Gender, Work Organization, 14 (2), pp. 109-129. Morganson, V.J., Jones, M.P., Major, D.A (2010). Understanding Women’s Underrepresentation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics: The Role of Social Coping. Career Development Quarterly, 59 (2), pp. 169-179. Oswald, D.L (2008). Gender Stereotypes and Women’s Reports of Liking and Ability in Traditionally Masculine and Feminine Occupations. Psy chology of Women Quarterly, 32 (2), pp. 196-203. Sappleton, N., Takrui-Rick, H (2008). The Gender Subtext of Science, Engineering, and Technology (SET) Organizations: A Review and Critique. Women’s Studies, 37 (3), 284-316. Schreuders, P. D., Mannon, S.E., Rutherford, B (2009). Pipeline or Personal Preference: Women in Engineering. European Journal of Engineering Education, 34 (1), pp. 97-112. Schweitzer, L., Ng, E., Lyons, S., Kuron, L (2011). Exploring the Career Pipeline: Gender Differences in Pre-Career Expectations. Industrial Relations, 66 (3), pp. 422-444. This dissertation on Women in Technology Fields was written and submitted by user Diamond Bishop to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Race in Public Health

Race in Public Health Racial Categorization in Public HealthBy: Alex Thau2/10/14As humans of the modern age, it is within our internal instincts to categorize those around us into specific groups based off of a variety of factors. In terms of public health, disparities due to race and ethnicity have the ability to create many discrepancies within our healthcare system. The use of 'race' as a classification for humans has the potential to be extremely harmful when addressing various aspects of society such as public health and medical research.For many years racism itself has been portrayed as a negative aspect of American society; yet the concept of race has many flaws that people are unaware of. For example, the perception of race has not been clearly defined, and there is no consensus definition (LaVeist 17). Due to this lack of understanding of the term, it is often used out of context.WAIS-IV FSIQ Scores by Race and EthnicityThe understanding of a person's race cannot solely be determined based off of their skin color, which has become a common misconception in todays' society. We label people based off of their appearance, which causes us to put them into groups that they do not necessarily belong to. This concept pertains to many public health studies that take place within society all the time. Surveys and cross sectional studies that are distributed to various organizations such as schools, houses, and workplaces often contain few selections when determining race. If someone does not fall under one of the listed racial categories, they have no choice but to select an option that is incorrect. Many people are a combination of different races, which is also not taken into account within these investigations. This is harmful in terms of public health because specific norms are established based off of what people say in...

Case study of sleep disorder and sleep apnea

Case study of sleep disorder and sleep apnea Sleep disorder is one of the most vital problem face by many people in life. Mostly face by older generations and adults. Sleeping is controlled by hypothalamus which is one of the part of a human brain system. Body temperature in some way controls the activities of one’s body, playing a role like a switch for on/off. Higher temperature brings alertness while lower temperature causes sleep. Sleep disorder comes in many different forms like Bruxism, Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS), Cataplexy Rapid eye movement behavior disorder (RBD), insomnia, sleep apnea, night terrors, nightmares and somnambulism. Interfering with normal sleeping habits frequently and continuously can be listed as sleep disorder. Sleep disorder are capable of influencing emotional, physical and mental health of a human being. Moreover, sleeping disorder not only causes trouble to the victim but the person staying in the same house at them. Polysomnography is one of the a test commonly use to test for sl eep disorders. Before the 20th century, sleeping problems are face by many people and there’s no cure and research about it but till this century, due to the rapidly increasing knowledge of mankind, many research have been brought up just to find solutions for all diseases. In the UK, most of the research are mainly focus on sleep apnea but not others as a proof that they are lagging on knowledge of sleep medicine and possibility of treatment in other sleeping disorders. There are some general principles of treatment that could be find worldwide but mostly in US. Treatments for sleeping disorders can generally be grouped into four different categories that are behavioural/ psychotherapeutic treatments, rehabilitation, medications and other somatic treatments. Treatments such as this does not provides a 100% success and not suitable for all sleeping disorders. History of different people and medical reports of everyone is so greatly different so it is best to say that specific treatment are given to specific patient’s diagnosis. Disorders such as narcolepsy are best treated pharmacologically. Chronic sleep disorder influenced 70% of children development and psychologically while sleep-phase disruption affects adolescents who could not attend regular school schedules. Effective treatment will begin with careful diagnosis and modifications in sleeping hygiene may reduced the problem. It si said that special equipments are used for several disorders( obstructive apnea). Research also shows that some sleep disorders are also found to be compromise glucose metabolism. Sleeping is absolutely the essential thing for a normal and healthy lifestyle, according to the United States, roughly about 40 million suffer from long term sleep disorder while nearly 20 million experience mild/ occasional sleep problems. Sleeping disorder suddenly became an important issue because many more people are facing it and body needs sleep to survive because study shown that s leep is essential for immune system and maintaining the ability to fight against diseases and sickness. Learning, growing, functions of brains also comes from the amount of rest absorb because it is said that sleeping helps regenerate and repair cells. Sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is one of the most well-known sleep disorder face by many and said to be one of the most dangerous disorder to be faced compare to others. Another name for sleep apnea is call sleeping breathing disorder. This disorder is a serious sleep disorder that occurs when a person’s breathing is influenced by some activities during sleep. Untreated sleep apnea patients will normally face stop breathing repeatedly during their sleep almost hundreds of time. Facing this disorders means that the brain and body are not getting enough oxygen. There are actually two different kind of sleep apnea: Obstructive sleep apnea(OSA) and Central sleep apnea. OSA is more common of the two forms of apnea and normal the causes is a blockage of the airway usually the soft tissue in the back of the throat collapses during sleep while Central sleep apnea is unlike OSA where there’s no blockage but the brain fails to signal the muscle to breath which will due to instant instability in the respiratory control centre. After having modern research from scientist, sleep apnea can affect anyone at any age even children, the causes of having sleep apnea are gender(mostly male) , being overweight, older after the age of forty, having a large neck size, large tonsils, family history and some other problems. Having untreated sleep apnea could cause quite severe effects like high blood pressure, stroke, heart failure, diabetes, depression and worsening of ADHD. Having poor performances in activities in many different places could be one of the sign of facing sleep apnea.

Employee Engagement Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Employee Engagement - Coursework Example 6). It refers to the amount of â€Å"discretionary effort† exhibited by the employees at work, in the form of extra time, brainpower or energy (Towers-Perrin, 2003 as cited in Carter, 2010). What it is not employee engagement is â€Å"staff satisfaction surveys† published by staff survey companies, because employees can give a high rating to surveys but do no meaningful work at al (Gable, et al., 2010). It is more about productivity and performance by a staff inspired to go the extra mile, willingly (Elsworth, 2011, p. 6). The T&D editorial staff concurs in their article â€Å"Employee Engagement Correlates to Career Advancement and Training† (T&D, 2011), where it affirms that â€Å"employee engagement needs to be part of the everyday culture of an organization, not addressed only through annual surveys† (p. 21). ... On the other hand, the Partnership for Workplace Mental Health, a project of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), reported in 2009 that only one in every five workers is engaged in their work. Viewed in tandem with the T&D article, then, it appears there has been an improvement in the number of engaged workers, from 20 per cent to 30 per cent of the work force, indicating the effectiveness of government and private sector efforts to encourage employee engagement. On the other hand, the Partnership for Workplace Mental Health, a project of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), reported in 2009 that only one in every five workers is engaged in their work. Certain organization responses were undertaken with the corresponding engagement ratios: Engagement Levels by Organization Responses Action Taken % Engaged Layoffs/downsizing 25% Salary reductions 26% Hiring freeze 27% Salary freeze 28% Reorganization/ restructure 28% Postponement of projects 30% New business venture 37% â€Å"Employee Engagement Report, 2011† by BlessingWhite, cited in T&D, 2011 From the foregoing table, it is apparent that the most radical and severe actions were taken in those companies for which the ration of engaged personnel were lowest; as the ratio increased, the action taken was seen to be more tempered and less drastic, creating less displacement for the business. 2. Terms of reference This body seeks to address the following course requirement: â€Å"Employee Engagement was described by one presenter as having a positive impact on their own Company performance. Your Chief Executive is keen for you to critically review the concept and to find evidence as to whether and how such an impact could be achieved.† (1st question). From the statement, it is

Dissertation article Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Dissertation article - Essay Example Quality: The topic chosen in the paper is quite interesting. Studying security threats has always interested to the masses especially after the internet boom in the early 1990s. Protection of personal valuable data is one of the majors reasons for the developing interest in cyber security. Regarding research into earlier work the paper hasn’t identified a lot of previous works by different researchers especially considering the fact that there is so much literature present regarding computer security, vulnerability and cyber threats (Lowe & Byres, 2004). However the lack of literature can be explained due to the fact that VoIP has only recently gained popularity. In order to obtain maximum information regarding the threats the authors of the paper have conducted vast researches using various books and secondary sources. The paper also uses various case studies of companies that provide security to organizations and personal users using VoIP. The facts stated in the paper are c orrect and provide an excellent detail of all the threats that is faced by every organization and user making use of VoIP technology. The authors have also been able to identify and discussed all measures that can be taken against these threats. For future studies the authors of the paper have summarized required efforts into two categories. The first factor that the authors recommend is focusing on the improving the security structure of VoIP services. The second factor that the author points out is the need to set proper standards regarding the security of VoIP systems. Structure of the paper: The paper was very well structured in terms of headings. The paper started with the abstract where the author explains briefly the purpose of the paper and an overview of what VoIP is. The next section covers the introduction of VoIP technology in detail and provides details of its working. The main body of the article has been divided into two sections. The first section provides a brief in troduction of what security is and why is it important to VoIP. After introduction to security the first section then deals with discussing what the potential threats there are to the VoIP system. The second section then deals with recommendations made by the authors on how to prevent these attacks. The third section of the paper states the conclusion drawn by the authors from their research paper. Conclusion is one of the most vital parts of the research paper. The conclusion sums up all the work of the paper and sheds a light on whether or not the research question was answered (Wallwork, 2011). The last part of the paper covers the reference list and works cited by authors. The paper was written in simple English and could easily be understood by various readers who have slight knowledge regarding the field of computer science. The flow of the paper was also quite nice different parts of the paper were related to each other. As for the length of the paper the paper was of ten pag es which is regarded by many as the average length of research papers (Bing, 1988). Conclusion: The analysis of the paper brought three main factors about the paper into light. For the first factor is that is compared to the literature available on the subject, the authors have not provided enough support to their claims in the paper. Adding more references in a paper increases the credibility of

Cybercrime in Indonesia Essay Example for Free

Cybercrime in Indonesia Essay Even if Indonesia has not ratified or signed the Convention on Cybercrime yet, officially Indonesia has implemented almost all cyber crime provisions set forth in the Convention. These provisions are set out in several articles in Law No. 11 Year 2008 on Information and Electronic Transaction. The seven provisions, among others; offense related to child pornography, illegal access, illegal interception, data interference, system interference, misuse of devices, and computer related forgery. The provisions of computer-related fraud and attempt and aiding or abetting are no longer regulated under this Act due consideration has been accommodated by the existing provisions in the Penal Code. Likewise, some offenses related to infringements of copyright and related rights are deemed to have been sufficiently set forth in the Law on Intellectual Property Rights. In addition to the above provisions, the Law No.11/2008 is the merely cybercrime statute in Indonesia, which also includes provisions on e-commerce and e-signature referring to the UNCITRAL Model Law and the EU Directives on such subjects. This is by virtue of the awareness of regulator about inevitable legal convergence of telecommunications, media, and informatics. By means of the principle of neutrality and efficiency, this product of law will be able to encompass the three specialties. Moreover, hacking, according to BATAN is defined as ‘infiltrating or breaching activities into an electronic system without rights, which usually aim to misuse or damage the system.’ Identical definition of hacking is also proposed by David S. Wall which is ‘deliberate unauthorized access to spaces over which rights of ownership or access have already been established.’ Therefore, hacking can be incorporated into illegal access provisions. In the Article 30, there are three paragraphs that organize illegal access, inter alia; 1. ‘Setiap Orang dengan sengaja dan tanpa hak atau melawan hukum mengakses Komputer dan/atau Sistem Elektronik milik Orang lain dengan cara apa pun.’ It means ‘any person intentionally and without right or unlawful access to computers and/or electronic system belongs to any other person in any way.’ 2. Setiap Orang dengan sengaja dan tanpa hak atau melawan hukum mengakses Komputer dan/atau Sistem Elektronik dengan cara apa pun dengan tujuan untuk memperoleh Informasi Elektronik dan/atau Dokumen Elektronik. It means ‘any person intentionally and without right or unlawful access to computers and/or electronic system in any way aim at obtaining electronic information and/or document.’ 3. Setiap Orang dengan sengaja dan tanpa hak atau melawan hukum mengakses Komputer dan/atau Sistem Elektronik dengan cara apa pun dengan melanggar, menerobos, melampaui, atau menjebol sistem pengamanan.’ It means ‘any person intentionally and without right or unlawful access to computers and/or electronic system in any way by infiltrating, trespassing, surpassing, and breaking through a security system.’ The first offenses are to be punished with imprisonment up to 6 years either with or without an administrative fine of up to IDR 600 million. Meanwhile the second offenses are to be sentenced by imprisonment up to 7 years either with or without an administrative fine of utmost IDR 700 million. The latter is to be sanctioned by imprisonment up to 8 years either with or without an administrative fine of up to IDR 800 million. During the past four years since enactment, a myriad of hacking incidents have taken place in Indonesia . However, only two cases were successfully expressed and processed in court. The first case is a case of hacking (defacing) the Election Committee website in 2004 by Dani Firman. While the second case is a similar case against the website of one Indonesias largest party, Golkar, by Iqra Syafaat. In fact, according to data from the Association of Indonesian Internet Service Provider (APJII), in 2003, it has recorded 2267 cases of network incidents and in 2004 there were 1103 such cases. It can be concluded that the cases which fails to trial far less. Furthermore, another concern is phishing, defined as ‘the pursuit of personal financial information that is subsequently used to defraud the victim and relies upon the recipient’s inability to distinguish a bogus email from a real one.’ Hence, it should be categorized into ‘computer related forgery’ provision. Article 35 states ‘Setiap Orang dengan sengaja dan tanpa hak atau melawan hukum melakukan manipulasi, penciptaan, perubahan, penghilangan, pengrusakan Informasi Elektronik dan/atau Dokumen Elektronik dengan tujuan agar Informasi Elektronik dan/atau Dokumen Elektronik tersebut dianggap seolah-olah data yang otentik.’ It implies ‘any person intentionally and without right or unlawful manipulate, create, delete, alter, or suppress any electronic document and/or information with the intent that it be considered as if it were authentic.’ Accordingly, this breach is to be sentenced up to 12 years in prison and a maximum fine of IDR twelve million. Unfortunately, there is no case hitherto which is brought to court proceeding. Finally, rare incidents of cybercrime exposed and processed in court trial as the aforementioned are caused by several factors, inter-alia; the lack of awareness among users, the absence of single identity number, the reluctance of victims to report, the limitedness of infrastructure or equipment and devices in the field of IT, and also the lack of law enforcement officers who have expertise in the field of IT. [ 1 ]. Indonesia Law Number 11/2008 about Information and Electronic Transaction, entry into force on April 21,2008 [ 2 ]. See (n 1) art 27 and art 9 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 3 ]. See (n 1) art 30 and art 2 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 4 ]. See (n 1) art 31 and art 3 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 5 ]. See (n 1) art 32 and art 4 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 6 ]. See (n 1) art 33 and art 5 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 7 ]. See (n 1) art 34 and art 6 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 8 ]. See (n 1) art 35 and art 7 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 9 ]. art 8 in Convention on Cybercrime, Council of Europe, entry into force on July 1, 2004 [ 10 ]. (n 9) art 11 [ 11 ]. (n 9) art 10 [ 12 ]. Indonesia has several Laws on IPR such as Law No.12/1997 about Copyright, Law No.29/2000 about Vegetal Variety Protection, Law No.30/2000 about Trade Secrecy, Law No.31/2000 about Industrial Design, Law No.32/2000 about Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits, Law No.14/2001 about Patent, and Law No.15/2001 about Trademark [ 13 ]. See UNCITRAL Mode Law on E-commerce on http://www.uncitral.org/pdf/english/texts/electcom/05-89450_Ebook.pdf and UNCITRAL Mode Law on E-signature http://www.uncitral.org/uncitral/uncitral_texts/electronic_commerce/2001Model_signatures.html accessed September 28, 2012 [ 14 ]. (n 1) Explanation [ 15 ]. BATAN is an Indonesian government institution which constitutes one of consulting agents of ICT, http://www.batan.go.id/sjk/uuite.html accessed September 29, 2012 [ 16 ]. Wall, David S, ‘Cybercrime: The Transformation of Crime in the Information Age’, (Polity Press 2008) 53 [ 17 ]. (n 1)

Urban Essay -- essays research papers

Urban Decay: barricading our cities, And our minds Everyone bemoans the way street crime, visible poverty, deteriorating infrastructure, decaying homes and boarded-up businesses are becoming increasingly common features of city life, but we rarely ask ourselves how this deterioration in the world around us is affecting the way we look at the world. In not asking that question, we underestimate the importance of urban decay as a problem in its own right, and the degree to which it promotes other social ills. Inner city decay is part of a dangerous and silent progression that is not being given the attention it deserves: the fragmentation of our society into potentially or actually hostile camps, barricaded off from each other. And it has the potential, in the end, to exercise an important influence on the course of national politics. In order to see why, we have to start by looking at how decay happens. It begins with an anti-urban bias, a belief, deeply-rooted in Canada and the United States, that cities are, at best, a necessary evil, and the likely scene of violence, social disorder, dirt and tension. Rural and small-town life, by contrast, is associated with cleanliness, sturdy reliability and family values. The conclusion: We may need cities for our livelihoods, but they are not good places to live. These conceptions have been promoted by a profusion of media images. Consider The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, Anne of Green Gables, or that odious MÃ ¼slix comme...

HCS 483 Final project: health care robots Essay

Types and Uses of Health Care Robots Health Care Information Systems HCS 483 September 08, 2013 Types and Uses of Health Care Robots Health care robots are exciting advancements in health care delivery by providers. The future of robots in health is promising and the different types of robots are growing. Using robots helps the providers give better care to their patients and using robots behind the scenes for more accurate delivery of care as well. Surgical robots The da Vinci is currently the most known surgical robot. It is the only surgical robot available for commercial use. The da Vinci robot is in use for gynecological, prostate, and cardiac surgeries. The da Vinci allows the surgeon to work from a computerized workstation across the room from where the patient is prepped on the operating table. The surgeon maneuvers the robotic arms to perform the surgeries. Using the da Vinci eliminates the natural hand tremor that surgeons have through the software in the computer system created specifically for that function. â€Å"’Penelope’ has been developed at Columbia University by general surgeon Dr. Michael Treat with funding from the US Army’s Telemedicine and Technology Research Center, in Fort Detrick, MD† (Schimpff, 2013, p. 1). Penelope is not currently in use but is a promising robot on the health care horizon. Dr. Michael Treat created Penelope to replace the current surgical assistant that hands the surgeon instruments during surgery. Penelope is equipped with electromagnetic grippers that allows for picking up the instruments the surgeon needs. Penelope arranges the instruments for the procedure, recognizes voice commands, and verbally can respond back to the surgeon. Pharmacy robots Pharmacy robots currently are in use for dispensing medications. The uses  are beneficial to the entire hospital staff by reducing medication errors, orders are entered in by the physicians using computerized physician order entry (CPOE), and charging the cost of the medication to the patients account. The ROBOT-RX is currently in use in 34 states around the country. â€Å"The ROBOT-Rx ® automated medication dispensing system prevents medication errors, reduces pharmacy labor, and lowers drug inventory. The hospital pharmacy robot automates medication storage, selection, return, restock, and crediting functions for 90 percent or more of a hospital’s daily medication volume† (â€Å"ROBOT-RX,† 2013, p. 1). Telemedicine robots Remote Presence Virtual + Independent Telemedicine Assistant (RP-VITA) is used to assist physicians who are not on-site when a critical patient is admitted to the hospital. The robot is used to connect the off-site physician to the bedside of the patient to assess the patient and give orders to the staff for tests and medications needed for immediate care. Especially useful in the immediate care of stroke patients in the emergency department when time is crucial for the delivery of medicines. If the physician is off-site or across the hospital helping other patients, the RP-VITA allows for faster face-to-face response between the physician and the patient. References Improves patient safety and process efficiency with robotic medication dispensing. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.mckesson.com/pharmacies/hospital-and-health-system/inpatient/pharmacy-automation/robot-rx/ Schimpff, S. C. (2013). Robotics can revolutionize the delivery of medical care. Retrieved from http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2012/01/robotics-revolutionize-delivery-medical-care.html

Herbal Medicine: Echinacea and Kava Essay

The use of herbal medicine and remedies as opposed to traditional prescription medications is becoming increasingly popular among doctors, therapists, and patients. Many herbs, whether administered in the form of tea, capsules, or simply eaten, have been proven to ease various pains and ailments; and when taken on a daily basis, there are herbs that help maintain overall health and wellbeing (Meuninck, 2008, p. 4). Studies have shown that two herbs in particular, Echinacea and kava, have been effective in treating a series of symptoms including anxiety and depression, headaches, and fibromyalgia (Mindell & Hopkins, 2009, p. 219). The use of these herbs benefits doctors and patients alike, as they offer an alternative treatment to symptoms that many people experience on a regular basis. Echinacea can be commonly found in beauty products, diet supplements, and herbal teas. Due to its ability to balance and maintain the immune system, some people take Echinacea in one form or another every day (Watson & Preedy, 2008, p.  687). This herb, in fact, is among the most popular and widely used dietary supplements in the United States, with people taking Echinacea or a type of derivative from the plant. According to the Southern Medical Journal, Echinacea today is used mostly to treat and prevent upper respiratory tract infection, or URI, which includes the influenza and the common cold—illnesses that account for 40% of the time that Americans lose from work and 30% of the time they call in sick from school (Islam & Carter, 2005, p.  311). It is evident that this particular herb can be used for the treatment of a specific temporary ailment as well as in a preventative manner. As soon as a person feels as if they have a cold coming on, they are advised to begin taking the herb orally in order to combat the spread and onset of the cold or flu virus. Echinacea has scientifically been proven to possess many anti-inflammatory properties, which explains its effectiveness at fighting respiratory problems (Zili et al. , 2007, p. 232). This herb, however, is not only beneficial in terms of warding off common cold symptoms. It has also been able to ease pain and discomfort associated with other diseases as well. First, it is crucial to understand that Echinacea can be an extremely powerful herb that may be used to fight different forms of bacteria, which is why it is used so often when a person has a cold or flu virus. A Canadian study observed six Echinacea extracts that are currently sold commercially, and the effect that those extracts had on 15 human pathogenic bacteria as well as two pathogenic fungi. Five bacteria were especially sensitive to the Echinacea extracts—Streptococcus pyogenes, Legionella pneumophila, Haemophilus influenzae, Propionibacterium acne, and Clostridium difficile—which indicated that the herb did have a significant effect in fighting certain forms of bacteria, such as that which causes strep throat (Sharma et al. , 2008, p. 111). Many factors were taken into consideration, such as the effect of light on the bacteria and fungi, as well as the forms and preparations of the different extracts; and this greatly reduced any assumptions made. This study was quite thorough, although it was limited by the number of extracts, bacteria, and fungi that they were able to test. With the samples they did test, however, they were able to conclude that â€Å"†¦certain preparations of Echinacea†¦ could provide useful protection or symptom alleviation in cases of pharyngitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, and various cutaneous lesions, including acne vulgaris, [and] wound infections†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Sharma et al. , 2008, p. 115). Another study outlined in the Journal of Women’s Health also conducted a survey to determine how many women with fibromyalgia turned to herbal treatment as opposed to other forms of medicine. The assumptions were that women were taking herbs because they worked, and not because they were left with no other alternative—that is, fibromyalgia is quite complicated and there are very few medications that can alleviate the pain. The test subjects therefore could have been turning to herbs like Echinacea as a last resort as opposed to taking the herb because it actually helped with their discomfort. Additionally, the limitations of this study are that the group of subjects was not randomly selected, and the results were entirely self-reported. At the end of the study, it was concluded that women with Fibromyalgia were likely to take herbal supplements and use herbal remedies in order to treat the several symptoms associated with their condition (Shaver et al. , 2009, p. 716). This shows Echinacea’s applicability to a wide range of illnesses and symptoms, and how it can be used by naturopaths and other doctors in the treatment of their patients as opposed to over-the-counter medications. Unlike Echinacea, kava is an herb that has received mixed reviews in terms of the safety of its use. Kava is an anxiolytic drug that has been used for hundreds of years by people in the Pacific Islands, yet it is currently banned in the United Kingdom (Ernst, 2007, p. 415). When used in large quantities, it has been shown to have toxic effect on one’s liver; but when administered in safe doses, there are many people who swear by its healing benefits. The Pacific Islanders have been known to use kava as a sedative, a hypnotic, and aphrodisiac, an antiseptic, and a diuretic. Kava has also been popular in Germany, where people use various kava products for the treatment of anxiety, restlessness, and abdominal discomfort (Richardson & Henderson, 2007, p. 418). One of the greatest benefits of kava use, however, is for the treatment of anxiety and depression—especially since those disorders, while mental, can result in serious physical symptoms. An Australian study sought to determine the mental effects of kava by studying a random group of 28 adults suffering from major depressive disorder and anxiety. Assumptions included the test group not taking additional anti-depressants on the side, and that the small dose of kava would be enough to take effect. This study was also limited by the mix of kava with St. John’s Wort (Sarris et al. , 2009, p. 41). Rather than it being administered in a pure form, it was more of an herbal cocktail. Both, a placebo and a kava supplement were administered for four weeks each. At the end of the study, the majority of those in the study group reported having a reduced feeling of depression after taking the kava rather than the placebo. Although they did not report their quality of life or level of anxiety as being significantly improved, it is clear that their overall state of depression was affected by the kava. Regardless of the fact that some professionals believe kava to be dangerous and toxic, its long history in Pacific Island culture far outweighs its risks (Sarris & Kavanagh, 2009, p. 828). Kava has been one of the ways in which many islanders have been able to maintain mental and emotional balance and fight depression without the use of anti-depressants, which are typically linked to dangerous side effects. Consider some of the physical symptoms of depression and anxiety—migraines, muscle tension, and widespread aches and pains. With kava’s abilities to aid in one’s state of depression, people can benefit from the plant’s positive effects on pain in general. So long as it is administered in proper doses, as they do in the Pacific Islands, kava provides people with another option to treat depression and any other symptoms that may be caused by tension or emotional imbalance. Although herbs alone cannot cure all forms of disease or discomfort, these studies illustrates how Echinacea and kava both possess health benefits that may help with several symptoms and disorders. Herbs such as kava may be disputed for their levels of potential toxicity, but many prescriptions pills can prove to be just as dangerous or even more so. Regardless of whether Echinacea or kava can necessarily cure a certain illness, they provide patients and doctors with another option—a natural approach to relieving pain or sickness, as opposed to over-the-counter medications.

Marketing Management of Freshbins

Marketing Management of Freshbins Executive Summary The aim of this paper is to provide marketing ideas for a new invention, Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer, which is a highly efficient product that will contribute to keeping the Australian cites clean, increasing the hygiene, and lowering the level of diseases caused by airborne germs.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Marketing Management of Freshbins specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It would work as a supplier of the Australian governmental and non-governmental organisations, which maintain cleanliness of the cities and appoints labour to work on field. This product will help such organisations to boost their efficiently by making them able to undertake huge number of bin cleaning programs at very short period of time and reducing the human efforts apart from saving time. This product will also be offered to private individuals and families for carrying out their household activities; therefore, fo r having such a large group of customers, the revenues generated by this single product will be huge, even if the prices are set at a moderate level. In order to provide marketing advices to the marketer of the product, this paper will focus on introducing the background information of the invention, conducting an environmental analysis consisting of the PESTEL analysis and the Porter five forces analysis, assessing the consumer behaviour analysis of the country, and concentrating on the segmentation, targeting, and positioning of the invention. It would also construct appropriate product and pricing plans for the marketer followed by a few concluding remarks. Introduction to the Background Information of the Invention With the consideration of the prospective market demand and the idea of improving the waste disposal system of Australia and accordingly reinforce the efforts to ensure environmental sustainability, the newly invented Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer is chosen for been mar keted at a large extent throughout the country. According to The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (2011), Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer is an extremely contemporary bin clearing and disinfecting method invented by Paul Sewell, which uses three-facet visions to assist the mechanical limb to pick up a dustbin that is mechanically rinsed in an ozone-disinfecting process before being returned to the land; amazingly, the entire procedure needs about only 30 seconds.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The product has patented mechanized technology to convey one of the most protected, ecologically sustainable, and competent bin maintenance procedure in the globe; besides, the truck performs the entire task with the driver seated in cabin; most importantly, the truck can process 1000 bins in a day; therefore, the pickup ability of the robotic-arm is among its highly ess ential features. The location of the dustbin is not a problem; it could even lie on land; however, the arm uses sensors to find a dustbin at 68 likely positions, whilst a second sensor identifies any creature or child’s movement around the dustbin; in addition, it saves vast quantities water (whist clearing one domestic-size bin manually requires about 100 litres of water). However, it is important to note that although the product possesses a number of highly significant features, the success of marketing it can be doubtful if appropriate brand building strategies and awareness programs are not properly undertaken. Hoeffler Keller (2002) stated that brand awareness programs are necessary for marketing all sorts of products through different marketing campaigns; on the other hand, Hoyer Brown (1990) pointed that in order to ensure repeat purchases of a product, constructing relevant marketing strategies are crucial in order to sustain for long run. Environmental Analysis of Freshbins PESTEL Analysis Hitt, Ireland, Hoskisson (2001) has noted that it is necessary for marketers to conduct PESTEL analysis before considering to launch any product in the market as a thorough environmental analysis assists to better understand the present conditions of the industry. Moreover, Pearce Robinson (2006) argued that without a proper environmental analysis, businesses might fail to apprehend actual circumstances of the industry and subsequently undertake poorly researched strategies leading to breakdown of sales and revenues. The PESTEL framework for Freshbins is illustrated below: Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Marketing Management of Freshbins specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Figure 1: PESTEL Analysis Source: Self generated from Hitt, Ireland, Hoskisson (2001) Political Factor The current political circumstance of Australia is fairly unwavering with the government of the country trying to provide the best possible corporate responsive impression to each its national markets with an intention to boost the gross national product and per capita income. More decisively, the government constantly promotes and aids the enlargement of the neighbouring companies by dictating the governmental financial institutions to provide sufficient loans to start up businesses after assessing their prospects, which makes it easier for Freshbins to enter. Economic Factor According to Index mundi (2011) in spite of the harsh situations arising from the global economic turmoil, the economy of Australia has recovered quite quickly and is still recovering to revive its industries and job sectors. The following figure shows the real GDP growth rate comparison for recent years, outlining that the GDP has recovered after the 2009 slump: Figure 2: The real GDP growth rateAdvertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Source: Index mundi (2011) The graph below illustrates that the purchasing power parity of the Australian consumers is increasing, providing an optimistic outlook for Freshbins: Figure 3: The purchasing power parity Source: Index mundi (2011) Socio-cultural Factor The social and cultural aspects of Australia are highly diverse with the presence of people from many ethnic backgrounds; however, it is notable that Freshbins would stay beside the neighbouring communities and contribute to the societies by helping to better uphold a clean image to the world. Technological Factor Although the country has a booming technological sector, the industry competition is quite lower in terms of the market of Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer, as this is a pioneering innovation with highly equipped mechanics containing unique features not accessible in other similar products of Australia. Environmental Factor A number of environmental laws are present in Australia, which prevent the businesses of the c ountry to perform activities associated with massive pollutions. However, it is notable that the marketer of Freshbins will be socially responsible to reduce adverse affects in the environment by introducing more and more eco-friendly technology to eliminate germs from bins. Legal Factor For every start up business in Australia, a few numbers of problems arise due to lawful barriers such as environmental and labour legislations associated with the formation of the business and related advertisements of the products. Porter five forces of the Invention Porter (2004) has noted that environmental analysis of the industry helps the marketers to sort out the dilemma associated with the anticipation of the level of competition and the position of the particular business in the industry. However, the competitive position of Freshbins in accordance with Porter’s five forces is presented below Figure 4: Porter’s five forces for Freshbins Source: Self generated from Porter (2 004) Threat of New Entrants The threats of new entrants are quite low in the industry, because Freshbins has unique technology, which is also patent protected and so no new comers can quickly copy it and raise the level of competition. Bargaining power of buyer Bargaining power of buyers are low because there are no such services presently available in the Australian market where they can switch on. Bargaining Power of Suppliers The bargaining powers of suppliers are moderate because the supplies of the raw material needed to produce Freshbins come from much specialised producers who are lower in number, so the switching costs of the marketer of Freshbins are higher. Rivalry among competitors A low rivalry exist in the market owing to the individuality of the product and due to the fact that it is newly invented; moreover, even when slightly similar items are available, those are not as competent as Freshbins in terms of time saving, cost efficiency, and technology. Threats of subst itute product No substitutes are currently available and it is not possible to bring one because of the patent protection provided. Consumer Behaviour Analysis According to Bowden (2009), in order to influence consumer behaviour, the process of customer engagement needs to be enough dynamic in terms of strategic implementations put forward. Oliver (1999) noted that the marketer should not only endow focus to influence consumer behaviour, but also ensure that the respective policies are affirming consumer loyalty. Prus Randall (1995), Recklies (2006), Percy Rossiter (1992), and Cavero Cebollada (1997) stated that understanding behaviour and acting accordingly by overseeing customer awareness could lead to successful branding for any product. Conversely, successful branding reinforced by proper advertising will lead to repeat purchases of that item (Chi, Yeh, Yang, 2009; Deighton, Henderson, Neslin, 1994; and Macdonald ï ¼â€  Sharp, 2000). Because of all these reasons, customer behavioural analysis is essential; Sands Ferraro (2010) identified that Australian customers have turned more intrusive, pessimistic, demanding, and impulsive, expending cautiously and seeking console in dependable and trustworthy brands; moreover, about fifty percent of Australians started to search internet before purchasing in-store, whereas, 89 percent expend about three hours researching the product’s features. On the other hand, Sands Ferraro (2010) added that seventy-nine percent Australian customers now try to purchase online, so it is necessary for the marketer of Freshbins to build a website and sell over internet, as it is expected that further eighty-three percent people will buy online by the next year, whereas the sales will reach $23.4bn by 2014. Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning Segmentation Johnson, Seholes, Whittington (2006) stated that before marketing any product, a properly conducted customer segmentation and configuration of people of the targ eted country would enable the marketer to obtain an idea about the probable clients and undertake marketing policies that would suit that market. For example, through the age configuration of people, it would be easy to understand the numbers of adults in the economy, providing a rough idea about people requiring a household bin-cleaning machine. Moreover, a rising growth rate of the economy would illustrate the future opportunity of having a further expanded customer base; so according to Kotler Armstrong (2006), market segmentation is crucial; the customer segmentation by gender and age configuration of people of the country are outlined below: Customer segmentation by gender and age configuration of people Total number of people 21,766,711 in 2011 estimation * Zero to fourteen year olds 18.3 percent (men 2,040,848 women 1,937,544) * Fifteen to sixty-four year olds 67.7 percent (men 7,469,092 women 7,266,143) * Sixty-five year olds and above 14 percent (men 1 ,398,576 women 1,654,508) * Total average age of population 37.7 yrs * Men: average age 37 yrs * Women: average age 38.4 yrs * Inhabitants development rate 1.148 percent in 2011 projection * Birth- rate 12.33 births per thousand population * Death- rate 6.88 deaths per thousand population * Ethnic origins in the country White ninety two percent, Asian seven percent, native other one percent * Below fifteen years 1.05 man per woman * Fifteen to sixty-four years 1.03 man per woman * Sixty-five years and above 0.84 man per woman * Literacy 99 percent men and 99 percent women * Table 1: Customer segmentation Source: Self generated from Index mundi (2011) Targeting The targeted customers of the Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer are the governmental and non- governmental organisations of the country, which act together with the vision of upholding hygiene in the national communities. This product will be supplied to such businesses in bulk, makin g high profit margins and keeping contribution over the socially responsible behaviours. Another target group are the private individuals and families that suffer great troubles for carrying out their household activities because of the busy lifestyle of people. This would help working men and women to finish tasks that are highly time consuming and require touching dirt by hand. Besides, rather than busy or working people, retired or unemployed people will also be the targeted group as most of them are old and frail and require help from technology to do it rapidly without any need for hard work. Positioning The following figure shows the market positioning of Freshbins; it shows that the product will be of high quality, and pricing will be higher because of uniqueness: Figure 5: Market positioning of Freshbins Source: Self-generated from Kotler Armstrong (2006) Product and Pricing Plans The product has a number of distinctive features, for example, using ozone as a disinfectant, it reprocesses water and remarkably uses merely 63ml per dustbin, whereas manually it requires about 100 litres; moreover, no chemicals are required for the purpose; therefore, there is no chemical remains either creating risk to the operator or atmosphere. In addition, no microbes will enter the atmosphere as the ozone even neutralises the toxicants in the waste; so, the wastes sent to the landfill is entirely germ-free; conversely, the operator has CCTV pictures of the entire activity and he manages them from a touch screen within the truck cabin. All such features indicate that the pricing needs to be quite higher for this invention; Brealey Myers (2002) noted that the more the uniqueness of the product, the more viable it is to set the price at high level, as no other substitute-items are available for consumers. However, Malhotra (2009) identified that a proper marketing research is essential before setting the prices, which should include quantitative or qualitative question naires intended for surveying the prospective customers in order to assess the amount they are likely to spend over such an item. Nevertheless, it can be argued that as this invention is completely new and the product is patent protected, it is not likely for any other businesses to bring out items with the same technology and offer those at lower prices gaining competitive advantage over Freshbins; as a result, there will be almost market domination by the Freshbins. Therefore, it will be feasible for the marketer of Freshbins to focus on premium pricing at the initial stage; however, considering the performance of the product for a substantial time, the pricing strategy can be reconsidered by evaluating demand and production costs. Conclusion It is important to state that although Freshbins Robotic Sanitizer has great opportunities after penetrating the market, it is necessary to conduct a market survey to identify the consumer confidence of Australia and the extent to which they are able to spend over the item. This is because although the economy has recovered from the recessionary impact, the current condition of the Euro zone crisis can get severe and spread over the Australian financial institutions, it which case, it would be tough for the marketer to collect the finance that is needed to enter the market, which includes costs such as outlays of advertising campaigns. Reference List Bowden, J. 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