Week7 assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Week7 - Assignment Example In the process, those who should encourage an alcoholic to get help become part of the hindrance to seeking help. Enabling is the other practice that delays recovery from alcoholism. It refers to a protective behavior in which persons close to alcoholics protect them from experiencing the full consequences of their actions; instead, allowing them to continue drinking in the knowledge that someone is looking out for them. Overcoming enabling is the first step to treating alcoholism. An alcoholic should be prepared to meet the problem personally. Consider a situation where an alcoholic spends money intended for food and paying bills on alcohol. Instead of taking money meant for other purposes to do buy food, the spouse may decide to take the children to a relative’s place for a week and let the alcoholic come to a home without food, lights and water for that period. Only then can such an alcoholic understand and appreciate the depth of the problem. From the delays caused by enabling and denial, it is clear that social factors affect the tendency of a person to abuse substances. Use of high potency marijuana has social impact on society amongst which is the link between marijuana use and violent crime. Studies indicate that crime and drug use occur simultaneously. Friends that encourage others to use marijuana are among the main social factors of high-potency marijuana usage (Stevenson, 2013). Hence, peer pressure and the urge to fit in are rather critical social issues in high potency marijuana use. Second, use of high potency marijuana has adverse social effects on the users; including negative effects on their mind, low esteem, possible addiction and progression to other drugs and obesity (Stevenson, 2013). All these effects negatively affect the social functioning of an individual such as making and maintaining

Explain database security issues Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Explain database security issues - Essay Example Locking refers to the means of synchronization of potentially simultaneous database or even other ordinary resource’s utilization. In operating systems, locking helps in enforcing and ascertaining the occurrence of events in the appropriate series (Pratt & Adamski, 2011). As the most effective means of enhancing security of data, encryption refers to the translation of data into ciphertext form, which cannot be understood easily by illicit individuals. Therefore, encryption involves the conversion of essential data into secret codes. Encrypted data is sent in codes instead of plain, simple words making it necessary for the receiver’s computer to decrypt such data for one’s display. The reader of such data requires a secret password or key to enhance decryption of the data (Pratt & Adamski, 2011). Views refer to the saved select statements, which permit an individual to work upon the outcomes returned from them. Views are essential in provision of column- or row-level data access, wrapping up sophisticated joints, executing sophisticated collective queries, and tailoring data display (Singh & Kanjilal, 2009). Views are fundamental security tools, habitually utilized in thwarting users from having unrestricted access to tables whereas permitting them to operate with the presented data. All consents can be eradicated from the principal tables, and provided the table’s owner is the view’s owner, the user will have the ability of interacting with the given data, but based on authorizations approved to the view (Pratt & Adamski, 2011). Duplication (replication) refers to a set of catalog objects and data copying and distribution technologies from a given folder into another. This is followed by the sychronization between the two databases in order to uphold uniformity. In the process, a database is copied from one server into another, followed by protection of the dissimilar copies in concurrence. Data replication, on the other hand,

IranianSyrian Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

IranianSyrian Relations - Essay Example Border clashes between Israel and Syria, occurring throughout 1960s, culminated into Arab-Israel war of 1967. After six days of war, Israel who fought against the Arab States of Egypt, Jordan and Syria, annexed much of Arab territory, including Golan heights southwest of Syria. Fighting around the Golan Heights continued between Israel and Syria because of mounting tension from the Palestine refugees entering Syria en masse. This resulted into Syria and Egypt going to war against Israel in 1973. Claiming a legal authority by Israel in the Golan Heights, quite antagonist to Syria's demand for Israel to relinquish its claim, further aggravated the hostilities in 1981. Tension between Syria and Israel aggravated when the former demanded the return of the Golan Heights and the creation of the sate of Palestine. As Syria plays a major role in the Middle East, she sent peacekeeping troops in Lebanon to stop a civil war there. But this force remained in Lebanon as late as 2005. In the meantime, however, Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. An alliance of many countries including the United States and Syria was formed to oppose Iraq's illegal annexation of Kuwait. Over 20,000 Syrian troops fought against Iraqi forces to finally oust them from Kuwait in February 1991. After the death of Syrian president Hafiz-al- Assad in June 2000, his son Bashaar al-Assad succeeded him the same year. Many countries insisted Syria to withdraw its forces f... An alliance of many countries including the United States and Syria was formed to oppose Iraq's illegal annexation of Kuwait. Over 20,000 Syrian troops fought against Iraqi forces to finally oust them from Kuwait in February 1991. After the death of Syrian president Hafiz-al- Assad in June 2000, his son Bashaar al-Assad succeeded him the same year. Many countries insisted Syria to withdraw its forces from Lebanon. Rafik Hariri, a former premier of Lebanon was killed by a car bomb in Beirut, Lebanon. Accusations from all over held Syria to be responsible for Hariri's death. The assassination of Hariri triggered massive demonstrations and protests against Syrian for its withdrawal from Lebanon. Syria eventually withdrew from Lebanon in 2005. (Abu-Khalil As'ad, n.d.) Iran - A Brief Introduction Iran is one of the ancient countries in the Middle East and is situated to the southwest of Asia. It has snow-capped mountains, and its land abounds with green valleys, and barren deserts. Tehran, which is the largest city of Iran, is the country's capital. According to the ancient history of civilizations, Iran ranks as the world's oldest countries. The origin of human settlements in Iran is traced back in history to almost 5,000 years ago. The Persian Empire, which covered a vast territory of southwestern Asia and parts of Europe and Africa, had its seat of civilization based in what is now Iran. (Ansari Ali M, n.d.) Map of Iran Fact File - Iran Official Name: Islamic Republic of Iran Capital: Tehran Area: 636,372 sq miles Highest point: Mount Damavand (18,386 ft above sea-level) Official language: Persian (also called 'Farsi') Currency: Iranian Rial Population: 72,048,000 (two-third of Iranian people are of Aryan origin; 60 percent are

Management Accounting & Finance of Nokia and Carphone Warehouse Essay

Management Accounting & Finance of Nokia and Carphone Warehouse - Essay Example In the case of Nokia the expenses incurred in operating the machinery, depreciation of equipment and other assets such as building associated with the production of the company’s products and other overhead costs such as light water and telephone are classified as factory overheads and are therefore included in production costs as part of the companies manufacturing costs. Nokia can determine how much it actually costs to produce a certain level of activity, the types of expenditure involved and their cost in relation to the volume of production. In the case of Carphone Warehouse, the company provides a service which includes selling cell phones and other electronic items and repairing cell phones. The company does not manufacture anything and so the cost of the phones that it sells is the only cost of sales in the company’s income statement. The cost of repairing phones along with the costs of the service it provides are all included as operational expenses. Regular re view of and updating of budgets is essential to the success of these companies. The company should focus on budgets and the competition and seek to add value to its products. Nokia is in an industry where technology is changing rapidly and so it needs to be always focused on external information so that it can make internal changes in the way it does things. This, however, requires the implementation of strategies such as the Balanced Scorecard, which will allow the organization to create value for its many stakeholders including customers.

Employment Relations Essay Example for Free

Employment Relations Essay The dynamic nature of the business environment and the increasing global competition has prompted business owners as well as other stakeholders to pay more attention to the area of employment relations. This can be attributed to the increased level of awareness regarding the relationship between employment relations and productivity . Management teams in most organizations have taken a keen interest in employment relations now more than ever before. Today, human resource practitioners and departments in organizations have rapidly transformed into most vibrant people and departments due to their increasingly important roles. This paper analyses the role played by the management in regard to the formation and structure of employment relations in the context of the retail industry in Australia. Employment relations (ER) refer to the different systems and techniques utilized in managing people. Employment relations are a broad and all encompassing term that also covers human resource management and industrial relations (Guite, T. 1999). Human resource management revolves the directing and controlling of the work force in a particular organization to forge unity so that there can be harmonious relationship between the management and workers for maximum productivity (Nilson, C. 2003. ). Industrial relation has to do with the resolution with work related disputes between the employees and their organizations and the management (Guite, T. 1999). There have been significant reforms in Australia in the last decade in regard to industrial disputation. This has seen the reduction of inconsistencies in the area of dispute and conflict management. ER as a professional field includes the laid down rules and regulations, attitudes, cultures, policies and behavior surrounding the employment relationship (Cranny, C et al, 1992). It involves the participation of key players such as employees with their formal and informal organizations, employers with their associations and the government and its relevant institutions in regard to their employment concerns. Employment relationship refers to the contract between two parties one being the employee and the other the employer. The employee is the person in servitude to the other under contractual terms, which may be written or oral (Walter, J. 2006). In this relationship the employer has an upper hand in the decision-making and conceptually is the one who gives the direction, which is to be followed. Concept This leadership role is key to any organization and may be held by an individual (in cases of small and micro businesses) or a management team in cases of medium or large organizations. The management has the role of controlling and directing people towards achieving corporate objective. Team work is involved where one person is not able to produce what is actually needed in the company. Potential human resources, financial resources and natural resources are all deployed and manipulated through the management (Mullins, L. 2005. ). Management as a function in the organization involves the act of getting things done through people in the most efficient way on a regular basis. The management is also charged with the responsibility of initializing plans and action that ought to be taken by the organization in order to reach the corporate objective. The management therefore is involved in the planning, organizing, motivating, controlling, coordinating the resources in an organization in order to achieve the maximum possible productivity levels. There are different arms under which the management falls including human resource management, operations management, production management, strategic management, financial management and information technology management (Walter, J. 2006). In this section, we are interested in the human resource management where it is noted that the role of this arm of management has been changing and becoming increasingly important in organizations today. The human resource department in any organization has the role of understanding and developing the human capital as well as engaged in dissemination of good organizational culture among the workforce (Cranny, C et al, 1992). The key role of management in employment relations is defined as communication. Various aspects of employees’ relationship with the management are handled according to the laid down rules, policies, and practices of the organization. In the modern workplace the employees are encouraged to air their views and grievances through this important arm of the management. This has the impact of reducing organizational conflicts and thus saving organizations both money and time that would otherwise have been used in the follow-ups of litigation cases. Other specific areas of interest between management and employees include payments of wages, bonuses and salaries, workplace conflict resolution, work timetable, health and safety, productivity targets and general grievances that employees may have . It cannot therefore be said that the management plays a passive role in employment relations rather in this day and age; the management plays an all important role that has the effect of unifying all the resources of the organization especially the human resource in order to maximize productivity. The management ensures that all the employees are working together in harmony towards the cooperate goal. In addition to this, the management has to engage in dialogue with the relevant government institutions in order to ensure that all regulations pertaining to employment relations are adhered to. It can therefore be said that the management has a most central role in holding together the different stake holders in employment relations. That task requires different skills and knowledge of management and leadership methods. Retail industry in Australia The retail industry in Australia is by far the biggest employer employing about 12% of the working population. The retail markets consist of sellers of goods directly to consumers and other final users. This industry is also characterized by the highest number of untrained workers. The working conditions are most varied and working hours are not regulated but are determined by the individual retailers. Important changes to the retail work relations systems have been introduced in the work relations act of 1996 (Pocock, Barbara Masterman-Smith, Helen. 2005). One of the responsibilities for determining all matters touching on the employer/employee relationship is on the hands of these two key stakeholders at the work place. According to the new rules, and agreements employers and employees are encouraged to resolve their matters without relying on external mediators. However, the key areas such as minimum wages and working conditions standards have been established by the Australian fair pay commission as well as the parliamentary decree(Catanzariti, J. Baragwanath, M. 1997 ). There has been a major reform in employee relations in the retail industry in Australia. There have been conscious measures to regulate the work place environment in this industry with different variations sort in recognition to the changes made to the shop trading hours act of 1997. Some of these variations include the expansion and scope of working hours, the minimum wage upgrades (Creighton, B. Stewart, A. 994). There has also been a need for direction on the number of hours that employees should be given for leave. Additionally, when working at odd hours different pay terms have been negotiated. This includes working on Sundays and working at night. In order to ensure that employees are not overworked, it has been suggested that there be introduced a system of working shifts. The federal government in Australia is mandated by the constitution to make laws that regulate matters concerning conciliation and dispute resolution in order to prevent industrial dispute that would extent beyond anyone state (Teicher, J. Lambert, R. O’Rourke, A. 2006. ). Workers in the retail industry in Australia have enjoyed higher standards of living due to significant legislative reforms regarding the work place relation. These reforms have also served to increase productivity due to the lower rates of industrial disputation. However, more reforms are needed to increase the flexibility and options for both employees and employers. These interventions measures by the government are aimed at spurring economic growth as well improve global competitiveness. The retail industry is a good place to begin owing that it is the major employer in Australia. Today, there has been less dependence on awards by industrial tribunals that were used to negotiate and determine the environment as well as compensation and benefits for employees within the traditional work place relations systems. The management, has been empowered further by these new reforms since all matters and disputes that regard work place relations are first to be dealt with between the employees and employers before any further form of remedial action can be taken. The work place relations act of 1996 has ensured that the alias award system by industrial tribunals has a minimum role of determining minimum wages instead of its initial role of determination and prescription of employees’ wages, and conditions allowed by their employers. Decentralized agreement mean that negotiations are done between employers and employees or between employers and employees organizations (unions) and thirdly, between the management and government institutions. Employees have the option of requesting for a bargaining agent. The retail workers are also vulnerable to different forms of injustices. The comprehensive reforms in work place relations follow the introduction of work choices legislation in 2005 (Catanzariti, J. Baragwanath, M. 1997). Some of the changes touch on work place health and safety application, new dismissal provision, and new transmission of laid down regulations, buying and selling of businesses, union restriction and the scrapping of no disadvantage test among other changes (Creighton, B. Stewart, A. 1994). All these reforms have the effect of giving more responsibility to the management in this matter of employment relations than ever before. Employer obligations are made known to all in the varied business situations. The reforms have also resulted in employees enjoying more freedom and job securities because employers are required to take great care when effecting a dismissal since employees can now claim compensation against unlawful dismissal or discrimination. These laws are applied widely to even small businesses with less than hundred employees. These small businesses are mostly consisting of retail businesses. The importance of management in employment relation cannot be over emphasized. This is highlighted by the fact that the management as a key stake holder is charged with the responsibility of coordinating all the relations between labor unions and labor laws. This is done with the sole aim of improving the quality of produce as well as achievement of organizational goals. It has to be noted here that the management is responsible to the business owners and stakeholders if there is a slackening in productivity or if profitability decreases. Therefore, the management is under pressure to ensure that there is a conducive working environment as well as quality working life for its employees in order to make it possible for success to be achieved. In the retail industry, the management of these businesses is subjected to the obligation of comprehending the laid down guidelines regarding employment relations. Conclusion. It is evident from these discussions that the management is at the centre of all matters relating to employment relations. The management roles as key stakeholder in organizational structure ensures that the management has not only understand the broader concepts of employers obligations to the employees but also forge a working relationship with the labor unions while ensuring that all the legal regulations are adhered to. Since the last decade several reforms in the area of employment relations have been undertaken and they have served to empower the management and to increase its responsibilities towards its employees and towards ensuring that laws are followed to the letter. These increased responsibilities have helped to streamline the work place environment especially in the retail industry which had been earlier characterized by inconsistencies and to great extent injustices towards employees. The management is now required to be extra vigilant to ensure that employment relations systems in a particular organization are such that they serve to improve productivity and to ensure that the company utilizes all their human resources for the achievement of corporate objective.

Comparative Analysis of Management Theories

Comparative Analysis of Management Theories Fayols management functions, Mintzbergs roles and Katzs skills are still important for the modern day manager. Discuss. The pivotal nature of management theory has seen various trajectories throughout the ages which has caused for discrepancies between administrative theorists who claim to possess the utmost beneficial theorem behind the functions of business activity. As Abedi justifiably proffers; the conventional definition of management is getting work done through people, but real management is developing people through work. The paradigm of proficient management is developing the employees and people of the organization through work, as it is this unification of the people; to impel rather than compel; which will ultimately cause for the augmentation of the business entity as a whole. Management is the development of a bureaucracy that demands strategic planning, co-ordination, directing and controlling of complex decision-making processes (Olum). Interestingly, the foundations and heritage of contemporary management can be traced back to as far as 5000 BC; seen in ancient Sumerian records, the construction of the Egyptian pyramids and rise of the Roman Empire. Additionally, social change during the time of the industrial revolution and the work of Frederick W. Taylor, the father of scientific management (Frederick Winslow Taylor)worked to inscribe the foundations of management theory. This antiquated legacy of management provided Henri Fayol (1916), Henry Mintzberg (1973) and Robert Katz (1955) the knowledge to construct their individual approaches to management. Indeed, Fayols management functions, Mintzbergs roles and Katzs skills are still important for the modern day manager; however, it would be naÃÆ'Â ¯ve for a manager to espouse a particular management theorem due to the changing nature of society and the global economy, but rather to acquire the knowledge of a multitude of theorems and work to manipulate them to suit their individual requirements and business circumstances. Thus, contemporary managerial theory is central to modern managers engineering complex or ganizations, as it cultivates in the rapid contingency of todays changing economy. Henri Fayol (1841-1925), first established the functional approach to management in the early 20th century (Drucker). Fayol outlined the five key functions of management in his treatise, General and Industrial Management, which typified a superior approach to management thinking. Fayols five functions were collectively to forecast prevoyance, organize, command, coordinate and to control the business entity these functions are still relevant to the roles and actions of the modern day manager. During the 1920s, Henri Fayol earned the title of being the father of management (Mote), as scientific management principles were displaced by the classical management school of thought. Classical management emphasized the identification of universal principles of management which, if adhered to, would lead to organizational success (Mote). These universal principles systematically created two broad categories being the identification of business functions and the structuring of organizations a nd management of employees. In addition to Fayols acknowledged five functions of management, he also established 14 principles of management. The legacy of these principles continues to influence modern management theory. Interestingly, Wren (1994:193) stated; Fayols elements of management provided the modern conceptualization of a management process; his principles were lighthouses to managerial action. Fayols model for the functional approach to management was design was the coal-mining business he owned and managed. At that time, the coal mining company was a large business in the early 20th century; however, in todays age would have been considered fairly small (Drucker). This idea of functional organization is still, arguably the best way to structure in particular a small manufacturing business. In the same fashion, and arguably the precedent of functionalism, is its clarity and stability. Therefore, his approach to management through functionalism performs exceedingly well for the simplistic kind of business it was designed for. However, the functional model does not possess the performance capabilities needed to deal with anything more dynamic or complex a crucial factor in demand from the modern day manager. Additionally, Fayols functional principle leaves little scope for innovation and is thus, inadequate when working to develop, test and prepare employees. Peter Drucker, author of the book Management: Tasks, Responsibilities and Management, importantly outlined that; In businesses that exceed Fayols model, in size, in complexity, in innovative scope, functional design should be used only as one principle and never as the principle (Drucker). Finally, functionalism is immensely uneconomical, which is the result of its rigid design nowadays, the development of a business even to a mere moderate size, will cause for friction to build and end up being costly and resource inefficient. Thus, Henri Fayols principles of functionalism is an excellent approach for a small business, and especially small manufacturing business like Fayols own, however the idea of functionalism on its own, is not a practical approach for a business exceeding Fayols model and it was not until Mintzbergs roles that sought a new trajectory in the field of management theory. The pivotal nature of management theory sought a new direction in the early 1970s as experts began to question the rigidity of Fayols fundamental principles. Henry Mintzberg argued that Fayols principles of management did not embody the turbulent nature of managerial work. In contrast to Fayols systematic perspective on management theory, Mintzberg conducted empirical research, which involved observing and analyzing the activities of CEOs from five private and semi-public organizations (Ten Managerial Roles). Mintzberg composed his studies on real word business managers as opposed to Fayol, who consolidated his managerial principles through the study of organizational structure. Additionally, Mintzberg identified ten separate managerial activities that fall into three categories: interpersonal, information processing and decision making (Chapter 9: Marketing Information Systems). Mintzbergs empirical research on the nature of managerial work (Ten Managerial Roles), typified several f laws from Fayols management functions. Mintzberg wrote; the pressures of the job drive the manager to take on too much work, encourage interruption, respond quickly to every stimulus, seek the tangible and avoid the abstract, make decisions in small increments, and do everything abruptly. (Mintzberg) Mintzberg realized the changing world that confronted the modern day managers which worked to consolidate his strategic approach towards management. Interestingly, Mintzberg expressed that effective managers must be proficient at responding to numerous and varying problems without responding too abruptly, and working the tangible information into a comprehensive picture (Mintzberg). Mintzberg furthered this approach through stressing the importance of a broad picture; the manager is challenged to deal consciously with the pressures of superficiality by giving serious attention to the issues that require it, by stepping back in order to see a broad picture, and by making use of analytical inputs. (Mintzberg) Finally, Mintzberg found that although individual capabilities influence the implementation of a role, it is the organization that determines the need for a particular role, addressing the common belief that it predominantly a managers skill set that determines success. Effective managers develop protocols for action given their job description and personal preference, and match these with the situation at hand. In 1974, Robert L. Katz proffered the importance of skill amongst all administration. Katz stressed the importance of skill under varying conditions; a skill implies an ability which can be developed, not necessarily inborn, and which is manifested in performance, not merely in potential. So the principal criterion of skillfulness must be effective action under varying conditions (L.Katz, 1974). Additionally, Katz advanced this broad notion of skill and concluded that effective administration depends on three basic skills, categorized as technical skill, human skill and conceptual skill. First of all, Katz studied the notion of technical skill, in which the manager must possess an adequate magnitude of technical skill in order to master the mechanics of the particular job for which he will be culpable. Secondly, is the idea of human skill; in which it is essential for the manager to work cogently as a group member whilst being collegial within the organization he is leading. Finally, Katz stressed the idea of Conceptual skill, being the ability to visualize the enterprise as a whole (L.Katz, 1974). Sound conceptual skill enables managers to decipher the consequences of change in any section of the entity on other areas of the organization and how the differing functions of administration must unify and work in synchronization of one another. In fact, Katz extended the idea of conceptual skill to include a sound relationship of the individual business to external relations affecting the business entity and hence, should enable the business to achieve inclusive affluence. Interestingly, Katz wrote on the paradigm of skill, defining it as an ability to translate knowledge into action (L.Katz, 1974), and hence, facilitate in the differentiation of these complex skills. Additionally, the importance of the skills varies with accordance to the level of managerial responsibility. Human and conceptual skills, although important in all levels of management seem to be of greatest use in the higher levels of administration, whilst technical and human skills are most important in the lower levels. However, it is the notion of conceptual skill that becomes most important for the top managers when working to achieve prosperity. Katz emphasized that; This three-skill approach emphasizes that good administrators are not necessarily born; they may be developed (L.Katz, 1974). The idea that good administrators may be developed rather than born is important for the modern manager as it gives managers the incentive to advance their skills in order to advance their business output. Additionally, the categorization of Katz skills, and the identification of the skills needed at the differing levels of management, provides an instrumental starting point for the training, and advance of executives (ArticlesBase). Thus, Katz skills will enable the modern day manager to achieve the optimum level of output labor and business efficiency. Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them. Paul Hawken Paul Hawkens idea on good management is without a doubt significant to the progression of a modern manager. It is important to note, and, as mentioned earlier, management is the development of a bureaucracy that demands strategic planning, co-ordination, directing and controlling of complex decision-making processes (Olum). In essence, management is the process of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, efficiently accomplish selected aims (Koontz and Weihrich 1990, p. 4). With this in mind; and, to varying degrees, it is believed that Fayols management functions, Mintzbergs roles and Katzs skills are still of importance to the modern day management. In fact, according to Pearsons textbook on Management, an exceptional manager is separated from an average manager through the recognition, acceptance and mastery of managing paradoxes the ability to cope with forces that pull managers in different directions. Great managers do not avoi d these tensions but embrace them, harness them and use them (Hitt, 2007). Management theory has seen a significant change from the classical approach, through the behavioral school and then into more recent developments in management theory with the systems approach, contingency theory, chaos theory and team building approach to management. Agreeably, each management approach contains its advantages and limitations, and the manager must interpret the variables before practicing the differing approaches on the business. In this manner, the dexterity of Fayols management functions, the influence of Mintzbergs administrative roles and the usefulness of Katzs skills are all of fundamental importance for modern managers and interestingly simplistic businesses still advocate Fayols classical approach to management. However, it is the manager who strives to convert the theory behind Fayol, Mintzberg or Katz, whilst systematically integrating the appropriate management approaches, will unq uestionably increase the level of productivity within their business rather than the manager who adopts an experimental or trial and error approach to management. This will enable managers to achieve a common objective; being to create a business surplus through increased productivity. Written by Hamish Farquhar

Etiology of Substance Abuse

Etiology of Substance Abuse â€Å"Drugs are a bet with your mind.† (Jim Morrison). People start taking drugs by their own choice. In early stages they feel stress-free and euphoric but as life goes on they start getting dependent on it and face difficulty to depart it from their lives. A true feelings and perceptions which abuser has for them are â€Å"I am sick and tired of being known as an addict.† (Arun et al.2004). To live with these perceptions are challenging but to abandon drugs is even more challenging for them. According to (DSM-IV), â€Å"Substance use disorders are now defined as maladaptive patterns of substance use leading to inability to control, use despite significant consequences†. According to National Institute of Drug Abuse (2014), Substance abuse has a lot of effects on society and cause deaths. Use of substance abuse in adolescent, adults and elderly people is creating problem to fulfill their responsibilities and its consequence are very much destructive. According to Annual prevalence of drug use in Pakistan (2012) as cited in UNODC (2013), an expected 5.8 percent of the people in Pakistan utilized illicit substances in the previous 12 months. 11 % of substance utilization was present in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 6.5 % of substances used in Sindh and 8.5 % of illicit substances used in Punjab. Substance abuse is referred as terrible deed as it violets societal standards and values by accelerating savage acts. This topic has a huge impact on individual lives, socioeconomic status, health care system and their psychology. Moreover in my clinical rotation, I encounter 25 years old lady being hospitalized for attempt to suicide. During our discussion, she confesse s that her husband is a substance abuser since 2 years and despite the fact she was pregnant, her husband beats him so badly that her baby abort. As this incident touches my heart which endorse me to write about this topic. This paper would profit the readers in a manner especially to those individuals who are indulge in substance abuse so they will know what elements cause substance abuse and how its perilous impacts effects on their lives. It will also talk about, what therapies individuals can approach to depart illicit substances from their lives. Some individuals are at higher risk of substance enslavement. No single variable can anticipate dependence on substance abuse. According to the recent Drug Use in Pakistan Technical Summary Report (2013), â€Å"an estimated 6 ·45 million (5 ·8%) people aged15–64 years in Pakistan used plant-based or synthetic drugs, or prescription drugs for non-medical purposes in the past 12 months†. (pp.2153). Alternately, there are a few causes that make an individual more inclined to it. The etiology of substance abuse in youth is divided into three classes i.e. Familial, Social, and Individual. Familial factors include childhood mal-treatment in which children could have physical, sexual, emotional abuse and neglect by parents so they grope dismissed and end into substance abusive behavior. According to Whitesell et al. (2013), â€Å"29% of children who experienced maltreatment participating in some level of substance†. (p.3). Additionally if any family member is abusin g drugs in front of child so they imitate same behavior as they perceive parents their role model. Research shown that parental substance abuse increases genetic predisposition for substance use disorder (Dunn et al. 2002). In my opinion parental training plays an essential part in guiding child about substance abuse matters and lack of education can incline a child for substance abuse. Other factors are marital status of parents, child perception that parents approve of their substance use. (Whitesell et al, 2013). Social elements that may include deviant peer relationship in which adolescence joins those gatherings who uses illicit substances. Teenagers who experience childhood in unsteady community conditions are really less vulnerable to deviant peer relationship. (Whitesell et al, 2013). In my opinion individuals affiliate themselves with distinctive gatherings and they imagine that utilizing substances make them popular. Research also supports that youths who classify themselves as famous have indicated to have expanded predominance of substance utilization when contrasted with those who dont recognize themselves† (Whitesell et al, 2013). According to Taylor et al. (2009), bulling is related to substance abuse behavior. 12 % individuals who suffered from bulling experienced life time use of alcohol. (Taylor et al, 2009). There are many individual factors that end up in substance abuse. One of them is depression; it encompasses feelings of sadness, pain, despair, or anger. In my opini on people use to abuse substances to cope from depression but it is also as vice versa because after usage of drugs depression cans occur. According to shafiq et al. (2006), In Pakistan 65% can lead depression I have seen many people in my community who are using illicit drugs because they feel that drugs can alleviate their stressful feelings. Transition of individual from adolescence to young, middle and older adult hood has increases burden in everyday life. Life stressors like financial burden, loss of job and poverty may trigger the use of illicit substances. According to Drug Abuse Master Plan (2010-2014), â€Å"In Pakistan 32 % of the opioid users were unemployed in the past six months† (p.7). People with mental problems also suffered from substance abuse problems. Research suggests that about 50 % of the individuals with psychiatric issues likewise experience the substance abuse problem. (chrome et al., 2009). Substance abuse has a lot of devasting impacts on abusers lives. They can be divided in to three domains i.e. physically, socially and psychologically. Physical impacts are, as abusers use syringes for administration of drugs and due to lack of syringes they apply contaminated syringes on each other which make them vulnerable to blood borne diseases like HIV and hepatitis C. As study also supported that, In Pakistan73% people uses same syringes as there more syringes are not available. (UNODC, 2013). High risk sexual behaviors are observed among drug abusers i.e. un- protected sex which leads to further sexually transmitted disease i.e. In Pakistan â€Å"36% reported having sex with those clients who are HIV positive†. (UNODC, 2013). As drugs impact our central nervous system so it causes different psychological impacts like anxiety in which people have feeling of uneasiness and disturbance in sleep is also common. Substance abuser can suffer from different mood disorders like bipolar disorder. According to moal et al. (2007), Study has revealed that more or less 35% of addicts met lifetime criteria for a mood issue and 45% for an anxiety issue. Substance abuser also suffers from aggression. (Moal et al. 2007). There are many social impacts of substance abuse. In my opinion Isolation can be one of them and on the other hand, absence of acknowledgement from society additionally makes them evade social collaborations. As I have observe in my community that couples fighting is very common and it can further cause separation. Usually people indulge themselves in so much addicted behaviors so they lose their jobs and financial burden increases. According to Angres et al. (2008), Substance abuse negatively impacts public safety, reduces workers, productivity, and contributes to higher healthcare costs, premature deaths, and disability. (pp.696).Abusers have risky behaviors which also detoriate their health. Prendergast (2009) affirms that substance abusers are involved in different criminal acts. Generally individuals crave for drugs and to satisfy their need they involved in criminal acts like robbery so they can purchase their drugs. Leisure et al, (2007) affirms that drug abusers are usually involve in gambling which increases financial burden. In substance abuse relapse is commonest among individuals. According to yaqub (2013), â€Å"Studies have revealed that the relapse rate in Pakistan is around 90%†. In theory brain reward mechanism in which addictive substances trigger brain reward circuit which in turn initiate certain behaviors. The effects of these abusive drugs on mesolimbic dopaminergic system are very serious and associated with creating rewarding effects. If this system does not work properly so it may create certain addictive properties. Dopamine expands extracellular; focus overriding the control of motivated and objective regulated behavior, which motivates them to take drugs. Certain medications are known to alter dopamine discharge and reuptake which modify reward system and increases uptake and relapse. (Eps et al. 2012). The congnitive behavior model of relapse tells about the high risk situations in which person is prone to have relapsed. He describe eight categories like how person interact with different people (â€Å"affect, coping, self-efficacy, outcome expectancies†) and certain environmental factors like (â€Å"asses to drugs, cue exposure and society influence†). It depend on individual that how he cope with these situations and it depend on him whether he uses substances or not. If individual decided and involve in substance abuse so they may suffer from AVE (Abstinence violation effect). AVE includes two things one affective response, in which person feels embarrassed and disgrace because he thinks he is responsible for this and second is cognitive domain which is based on attributional therapy, in which person perceived that this lapse is due to my personal factor and I cannot control them so he may have greater chances of relapse and if he thinks that it happens because of external factor and I can control it so relapse chances are deceased. (Marlatt and Witkiewitz, 2007). On my clinical I have encounter patient 15 years old with relapse of substance abuse. He verbalized me that he had left substance abuse for 3 months but because it was easily available and my friends influenced him so he took drugs and end up in relapse. If we related it to cognitive therapy of relapse environmental factors influence him to end up in relapse which created feeling of guilt and embarrassment It is recommended that government should arrange certain awareness programs on substance abuse. Not only have that media played vital role in substances promotion so government should band those advertisement. Government should create certain institutions and build certain rehabilitation centers in community which are in reasonable cost. More over certain therapies can help patient to quit substance abuse .These therapies are : In Motivational enhancement therapy, counseling approach is used and attempts to modify the behavior of substance abusers. MET is derived from Trans theoretical Model of Change. In this model counselor tend to change person behavior by five levels. In first level of Precontemplation individual does not consider his/her behavior problematic and don’t try to change it. In level two Contemplation people consider his challenging and think to modify it. In third level Preparation, person in this stage plans for a particular change. They assess and select measures for behavioral change. Another level is Action; in which individual is modify his behavior. The last level is maintenance in which individual try to maintain his new behavior and try to adjust new behavior in his surroundings. (Prochaska et al, 1992). Contingency Management Therapies is based on operant conditioning which was proposed by skinners in which desire behavior is achieved by reward and punishment. The positive behavior which have given reward will be more likely to repeat for example when client has positive behavior so we can provide different gifts and voucher and if undesirable behavior exist so punishment should be there. (Carroll onken, 2005). Moreover with therapies we can likewise provide certain interventions. Substance abuse is a problem which cant drive away instantly and it requires significant time for individual to recuperate from it. At community level we can take some measures to prevent substance abuse. According to National Institute of Drug Abuse, you have to develop a community plan in which the first step is â€Å"Assessment†. In assessment we will identify the population who are abusers and who are at risk for becoming abusers like people with low- economic status. In second step is â€Å"Build† we will try to identify resources for example we need for different awareness programs in community. Than third we will build â€Å"Short term goals† than after achieving short term goals we will run projects and simultaneously observe efficacy of preventive plan. According to National Institute of Drug Abuse affirms that Family-based preventive projects ought to strong family attachment and con nections examining and uses different family approaches to alleviate on substance abuse. In conclusion substance abuse is tremendously common issue among individuals. There are numerous reasons which are responsible for substance abuses in youth are familial, social and individual factors. As Age progresses, the risk of consumption of substances in adults also increases. The reasons behind substance abuse in adults are unemployment, poverty, traumatic events and any psychiatric problem. Substance abuse has a considerable amount of negative impacts physically, socially and psychologically. Even after treatment, some individuals again end up with state of relapse. Cognitive behavior therapy of relapse tells us about the risk factors that lead relapse. Some more therapies like motivational enhancement therapy and contingency Management Therapies help us to modify behavior of substance abusers. In my opinion we can develop insight in abusers and can modify their behavior. I would like to end up with quotation â€Å"Addiction should never be treated as a crime. It has to be treated as a health problem†. (Ralph Nader).