Overpopulation is Not the Problem Essay - 1795 Words

Overpopulation is Not the Problem As we sailed into the new millennium, humans crossed a threshold never before witnessed in our species. We flew past the 6 billion mark in number. This is an impressive figure, but not one that we can easily appreciate, unless we are Bill Gates or ExxonMobil. Lets try to understand how incredibly large this number is. Consider that this article has ~9000 letters. Thus, it would take more than 650,000 copies of it to produce enough letters to represent all humans. Or, put in other terms, consider that if all the humans were to hold hands side by side, our species would circumscribe the equator nearly 14 times! And perhaps, most horrifying, if we all were to move to Texas (the 2nd largest state in†¦show more content†¦Massive starvation, as observed in Ethiopia in 1973 and Bangladesh in 1974, didnt occur because food wasnt available. These famines, and many others, occurred because large numbers of the population didnt have sufficient funds to purchase foods, even though food was available-hence a question of distribution not limitation. Current world debts have now reached proportions that developing countries now spend $13 on debt repayment for every $1 it receives in grants (Global Issues)-an economic climate that makes it extre mely difficult for countries to provide for its citizenry. While some countries, including the United States, store away surplus grain production as a security blanket, many human beings dont get enough to eat on a regular basis. In many developing countries, given its rewarding economic payoffs, large landowners harvest export crops (such as coffee and tobacco) rather than food crops for local people. Also, and possibly most damning to the reading audience, a diet rich in meat requires nearly ten times the land than that of a strict vegetarians diet. Nearly 40 percent of U.S. land is used for grazing livestock (which accounts for about two-thirds of agricultural land). While some of this land is more fit for free-range grazing than vegetable crops, much of it would be many times more productive if grains were grown rather than quot;meats.quot; In a very interesting study conducted by the The Union of ConcernedShow MoreRelatedThe Problem Of Overpopulation And Overpopulation1102 Word s   |  5 PagesIreland in the 1720’s, poverty and overpopulation were at a problematic rate. Many of the people who lived in England were exiled to Ireland. Many of these Englishmen felt mistreated and wronged. Ireland was a colony to England. The people of England had more money and power than the people of Ireland because England controlled Ireland. Johnathon Swift, a satirical writer, wrote â€Å"A Modest Proposal† to show the flaws of the current solutions to the overpopulation and poverty crisis in Ireland. He wantedRead MoreOverpopulation : The Problem Of Overpopulation1251 Words   |  6 PagesOverpopulation: The Top Worry Yet to be Proven by the Worried The definition of hysteria is an exaggerated or uncontrollable emotion, usually found within groups of people. An example of hysteria includes overpopulation, the futuristic â€Å"problem† that is not and will not be a dilemma in the foreseeable future. Back in 15,000 B.C., the world population was five million. Today, it is a staggering seven billion plus. This has caused unease that overpopulation will be a problem for our future generationsRead MoreOverpopulation Is A Problem Of Overpopulation1529 Words   |  7 Pagesthe whole humankind. Overpopulation is a problem that every nation is facing but sometimes over looked by due to lack of understanding and awareness. This is a serious issue that should be taken care of immediately. Overpopulation is an undesirable situation where the number of existing human populace surpasses the carrying capability of Earth. There are main factors that are contributing overpopulation such as the rising birth rate and declining of mortality rate. Overpopulation occurs when the birthRead MoreOverpopulation And The Problem Of Overpopulation1388 Words   |  6 PagesTo begin with, in demography, the term overpopulation refers to a condition wherein the total population of a particular region far exceeds the carrying capacity of the region. Although the term by and large refers to the ratio between population and the available area, the ratio between the population and available resources cannot be ignored. First, the rate at which the population is growing; the data compiled by the United Nations shows that the world population grew by 30 percent betweenRead MoreOverpopulation And The Problem Of Overpopulation1747 Words   |  7 PagesOverpopulation Programs There are many organizations that deal with the problem of overpopulation or problems related to the effects of overpopulation such as environmental effects. Some of the organizations that I found related to this topic are the United Nations Population Fund, a group called Population Matters, another group called the World Population Balance and the Center for Biological Diversity. All of these groups deal with the issue of overpopulation and the effects that overpopulationRead MoreOverpopulation a Problem?1464 Words   |  6 PagesIs Overpopulation a Serious Problem? This question seems to be question that is asked quite frequently lately. In the last two centuries, population has skyrocketed. In 1800 the world population was only at 1 billion, and today its estimated that the world population exceeds six billion people. With overpopulation, many problems have arisen. Some believe that overpopulation is the reason for world hunger, global population will reach crisis proportions by 2050, and some believe that overpopulationRead MoreThe Problem Of Overpopulation And Overpopulation872 Words   |  4 PagesHuman overpopulation. Human population can be defined as the condition whereby, the total count of the human inhabiting a certain area exceeds the carrying capacity of the area Bongaarts, (2011). This brings out an issue of the carrying capacity of the region which alludes to the number of individuals who can inhabit a certain area for a given period. It may also be looked at as the situation whereby the available renewable resources in a certain area can satisfactorily support the current populationRead MoreThe Problem Of The Overpopulation Problem1122 Words   |  5 PagesPerhaps one solution for the overpopulation problem is to provide all children, who have reached puberty with Reproductive Education License of Four (REL4). REL4 is a two-step solution program that will provide education and contraception, which will decrease the population growth. Jennifer Weeks (2015) article, â€Å"Global Population Growth,† discusses the number of women without access to birth control. Research conducted by a nonprofit organization showed nearly 225 million women globally, includingRead MoreOverpopulation : The Convoluted Problems Of Overpopulation896 Words   |  4 PagesOverpopulation The convoluted problems concerning overpopulation remain to be a highly discussed issue in various countries throughout the world. Some issues that are in support of overpopulation include the opportunity to place innovative ideas into action, aids in stimulating the economy, creates job openings in new growing industries, increased human resources, encourages competition, advancement in urbanization and development, creates a demand for industries like farming, and allows for cheaperRead MoreOverpopulation Is Not The Problem1395 Words   |  6 Pages Overpopulation Overpopulation is a prominent controversial topic among society, in which some believe the exponential growth of humanity is detrimental to its future, whereas others conclude this theory is a myth due to human nature and resources. In Isaac Asimov’s, â€Å"The Case Against Man†, he elucidated the verity of overpopulation, emphasizing that the disproportion of earth’s carrying capacity and its resources will inevitably lead to humanity’s demise. Introducing the notion that

Dissertation Interim Report Case Study of Contour Global Company

Question: Discuss about the Dissertation Interim Report for the Case Study of Contour Global Company. Answer: Introduction Management structure refers to the process of authority distribution within an organization. According to Ashkenas et al. (2015), management of an organization determines the structure according to the business process. An appropriate organizational structure helps an organization to communicate with the internal and external stakeholders effectively. Here, a literature review has been conducted in order to evaluate the process of management structure enhancement in contemporary organizations. In case of large-scale organizations, it is highly important to maintain communication flow within the company. It ensures high productivity and good communication with the external environment of the company. As opined by Rosenberg and Keller (2016), there are different organizational structures such as entrepreneurial, bureaucratic, professional, divisional and innovative. All these structures have different purpose and the selection of organizational structure depends on the process that the company follows. In order to improve or change the organizational structure, there is a range of strategies that could be implemented. On the other hand, Joseph, Klingebiel and Wilson (2016) argued that the process of structure enhancement is delicate and it can affect people within the organization. In case of restructuring, an organization needs to delegate responsibilities and change job role of the higher and lower level staffs according to the requirements. The process of restructuring is time-consuming and involves many risk factors. Lee, Kozlenkova and Palmatier (2015) stated that the process of restructuring is none other than a change management process. In order to bring organizational change, management needs to follow a systematic process. The first step of this process would be creating urgency for a change. Proper communication with the employees needs to be established before implementing the change. From the evaluation of previous researchers, it has been noted that employees must agree with the proposed change before initiating the process. Otherwise, an organization may face a diverse situation of high employee attrition. While on the other hand, Kopp (2016) mentioned that organizational structure depends on the business process. In this changing market environment, consumers needs and expectation are changing rapidly. Therefore, companies need to hire staffs for satisfying the same. It has a wide impact on job responsibility of the existing staffs in an organization. Therefore, restructuring the stru cture is becoming the globally-acknowledge strategy among the global organizations. Concept of Enterprise Management Structure According to Hashemi (2016), enterprise management structure is known as the authority hierarchy within the organization. The flow of authority determines the roles and responsibility of both higher and lower level employees of an organization. Additionally, Morris Tod and Oliver (2015) said that an effective management structure helps to outline the roles and responsibilities of top management and lower level employees as well. In a hierarchical management structure, employees need to report to their higher authority in order to ensure communication flow. In case of large-scale organizations, the management structure determines by its regions. For example, Procter Gamble has a wide range of products and operating markets. Therefore, the company has its unique managerial structure for different regions and products line. There are several organization structures such as Functional structure and divisional structure, which define an organization according to their operational processes. Ashkenas, Ulrich, Jick and Kerr (2015) pointed out while describing a functional structure that in top management, CEO or the managing director takes the responsibility of decision-making. The second level managers are responsible for monitoring performance of allocated regions, and the line managers are responsible for monitoring the performance of the employees. The process defines have been adopted by a range of organizations in the global market. However, Ocasio and Radoynovska (2016) argued that there are certain factors that infffluence an organization to change the structural format of the organization. This could be changing needs and demands of the customers, which may influence an organization to bring change in organizational structure. Moreover, Ashkenas et al. (2015) stated that internal factors could also tend an organization to change the organizational structure. Organizational management refers to the structure that an organization creates. It illustrates different departments within the organization along with position and responsibilities of both higher and lower level employees. It also describes the position that employees hold. Additionally, the organizational structure represents the communication approach between the departments. Da Fonseca, Silva and Menezes (2015) mentioned that the Human Resource team of an organization is responsible for maintaining the structure of the entire organization. However, Rosenberg and Keller (2016) argued that the management delegates the responsibilities to the Human Resource team. Therefore, it can be said that the management has to be responsible for setting structural behavior. When it comes to the organizational culture, it defines how an organization behaves while managing people. Apart from that, it also describes how the people with in an organization deal with conflicts and other internal factors (Joseph, Klingebiel Wilson, 2016). Depending on the cultural factors, management needs to understand the most appropriate structure. A structural change should be identified as globally acknowledged before the final implementation. In order to achieve organizational goals and objectives, it is highly important to implement a team-working environment. Here, it is highly important to improve the management structure in order to delegate responsibilities among the employees. Varpio et al. (2016) have stated that the managers of an organization should have a proper understanding of what they are responsible. The proper understanding would help the managers to lead the subordinates in an efficient manner. The structure should be well designed, and it is required to be maintained in order to improve performance quality. According to Islam, Jasimuddin and Hasan (2015), in the contemporary business environment, organizations may require changing the structure as per requirements. Therefore, it can be said that change management is one of the major aspects that contemporary organizations should consider for gaining success. In change management, the organizations need to promote the need for the change in the first step . Furthermore, Wu (2015) mentioned that the management should create urgency for the proposed change in order to increase its importance. The managers and other employees should have adequate knowledge about the reason behind this decision on change. In management structure, the board of directors has the full control over organizational decision-making. Apart from that, the board of directors has the authority to create strategies for achieving the goals and objectives. Concept of restructuring tool Restructuring tool refers to the process of changing organizational structure. It helps to enhance the management structure of an organization. As stated by Fisher, Campbell and Svendsen (2012), this process helps to rebuild the responsibilities of different level of employees within an organization. In restructuring process, management of an organization introduces new job role and responsibilities for both higher and lower level employees. The overall process defines the way in which the personnel of an organization should behave (Cosh, Fu Hughes, 2012). The overall organizational behavior and culture deepen of the structural framework of an organization. Organizational structure refers to the flow of authority within an organization. On the other hand, restructuring is a process through which the flow of authority can be change. There is two impacts of restructuring tool in an organization such as leadership change and cultural change. The leaders within an organization should ha ve a clear understanding of the organizational structure. They should examine the structure continuously in order to respond to certain change. On the other hand, the employees should be ready to accept continuous change in order to improve organizational function. Restructuring helps to empower performance quality of the employees in an efficient manner. In this strategy, leaders can appraise an employee by increasing post. Increasing responsibility of an employee is known as a motivational tool. On the other hand, restructuring can also change the entire responsibility of an employee. It might hamper motivation of an employee, or it can reduce overall organizational productivity. There are different tools for improving organizational structure. An organization can introduce training and development process for increasing performance of the workforce (Cavusgil et al., 2014). Here, the company would be able to increase communication within the organization. However, it would be diff icult for the organization to respond to the external environment. The external environment is changing rapidly, and therefore, it has become important to improve the structure in order to gain superiority in the market. Importance of organizational structure In this competitive age, it is highly important to ensure healthy communication with both internal and external stakeholders. Joseph, Klingebiel and Wilson (2016) mentioned that management of an organization defines its structure in order to ensure that each level of employee is well aware of their responsibilities. Apart from that, a well-designed structure helps the employees to understand how and to whom information needs to be delivered. The existing literature shows that todays business environment is diversified and influenced by different external and internal factors. For example, competition is one of the major external factors that may influence an organization to bring change in its structural format. Alvesson and Sveningsson (2015) opined that in case of small organizations, the workforce strength is weak in contrast to the large organizations. Now, considering the employee strength of mall scale organizations, it is highly important to define roles and responsibilities o f every employee (Strese et al., 2016). The process of structuring organizational authority is less challenging for the small-scale organizations. On the other hand, Ohlsson, Han and Hultin (2016) have stated that in case of large-scale organizations, management needs to pay close attention to the employees skills and abilities before defining responsibility. Understanding the business operations and employees skills would help an organization to reduce the excessive workload of the employees. In this manner, it is possible to increase the motivation of the workforce as well overall organizational performance. In order to ensure high performance, management of an organization needs to monitor the performance of the workforce efficiently. In that case, a strong management is required. It would help to address every possible issue of the workforce. In case of contemporary organizations, management is paying close attention to the organizational structure rather than skill management, technology, economic and natural resources. According to Zhang, Chen and Liu (2016), the major reason of business failure has been identified from the literature review is poor management structure. Nowadays, organizations are restructuring their structure in order to delegate responsibilities among the workforce. Apart from that, the aim of restructuring management structure is to build a coordinative working culture, which can help to address probable challenges faced by the employees. In case of large-scale organizations, it is highly important to improve organizational structure. The structure of the organization defines the way in which an organization should respond to market changes. The structure should be flexible enough in order to respond to the market changes. It helps to perform accordingly with the environmental changes. Moreover, structure defines the responsibilities of the workforce in every stages and phases. When it comes to the restructuring process, it changes the responsibilities of the employees at every level. In case, if the organization has changed the business process or has expanded the business processes, it is highly important to make changes in the current structure. The company could also recruit employees in order to initiate the changes process. However, in case of changing the current process, it would be beneficial to change responsibilities of the existing employees. Recruiting new employees for a new process would increase organi zational cost, which will directly affect organizational profitability negatively. Therefore, it can be said that organizational structure is the major factor that management of an organization should consider as the key success factor. In this competitive market, contemporary businesses are facing diverse situation due to changing external environment. In this changing external environment, people within the organization should communicate with the higher authority in order to gain a positive outcome. In order to delegate responsibilities among the workforce, it is highly important to have an appropriate management structure. The management should have good command on the organization in order to achieve objectives. Therefore, it can be said that the structure of an organization has a wide impact on organizational profitability and development. In case of Greenfield method, an organization needs to understand the external environment of the targeted country. The organizational stru cture needs to be defined as per the environmental factors that would affect business sustainability. Factors affect organizational structure As stated by Morris, Tod and Oliver (2015), there are both internal and external factors that affect organizational structures. The major factor is market competition, which influences the organizations to implement efficient strategies. Apart from that, changing needs and expectation of the consumers is another reason, which tends the companies to change organizational structure. Additionally, the external market forces or the business environment has a wide impact on the organizational structure. In case of small organizations, the need of strong structural format is lesser than large-scale organizations. In small businesses, there is low employee strength, and therefore, management of such organizations needs to focus on task delegation. On the other hand, Strese et al. (2016) have mentioned that large-scale organizations need to manage their workforce along with task delegation. Apart from that, communication is the vital factor for the large-scale organizations. Therefore, manag ement of such organizations needs to implement efficient organizational structure. Following are the factors that affect the structure of an organization. Organizational Size: According to Bellini, Pereira and Becker (2016), organizational size refers to the employee strength and operation area of an organization. Small organizations do not have large employee strength, as the company is operating in the small geographical area. Therefore, the management of such organizations needs to focus on short-term benefits rather than management structure. On the other hand, Ashkenas et al. (2015) mentioned that a large-scale organization has wide operating area and strong employee strength. In such organizations, it is highly important to determine the management structure along with the employees roles and responsibilities. Apart from that, this kind of organizations needs more managers and supervisors in order to ensure high performance. Now, the factor influence to change organizational structure is globalization. In order to expand business in the international market, a small-scale organization needs to change its current organizational st ructure. International expansion, on the other hand, depends on the external market forces. In order expand business in the international market; an organization should understand the cultural background of the targeted country. The company should further recruit new workforce and delegate the responsibilities according to the requirements. Moreover, the company can increase responsibilities of the existing managers for monitoring both the domestic and international business. Here, the managers authority increases, which means restructuring responsibilities of the workforce is another form of restructuring organizational. Business Strategy: Rosenberg and Keller (2016) have stated that in this competitive market, organizations need to response to the competitors strategy quickly. Therefore, large organizations have smaller structures, which help the organizations to accept change in environmental change. Therefore, it can be said that business strategies are the major factor, which influences the organizations to change the organizational structure. In order to gain superiority in a competitive market, it is highly important to adopt an innovative strategy (Joseph, Klingebiel Wilson, 2016). Implementing new business strategy may affect roles and responsibilities of the workforce. In such situation, organizations improve the structure with efficient management structuring tools. Restructuring tool helps to change or modify responsibilities of all level employees within an organization. Apart from that, this process also helps to improve the ability of management for monitoring performance of the workfo rce. Implementing a new business strategy refers to the process of introducing innovative ideas for business improvement. The strategy implementation depends on the employees performance and managerial capabilities. Therefore, restructuring process could help the managers to increase responsibilities of the managers so that they can get a good grip among the workforce. Additionally, it would help to increase responsibilities of the workforce, so that they can achieve objectives within the preferred deadline. Business environment: The external business environment is rapidly changing. Large-scale businesses need to consider the external factors such as market competition, governments policies or social changes among the target market (Lee, Kozlenkova and Palmatier, 2015). Therefore, it is highly important to change organizational processes according to the changing external environment. It influences the organizations to restructure the organizational culture by changing roles and responsibilities of the workforce and managers as well. In this changing environment, internalization is one of the most important strategies. Therefore, restructuring process can be used for improving organizational structure. In internationalization, organizations can modify the structure according to the requirements of the external environment. In case of merging with other organization, both the organizations need to bring change in the workforce. For example, the companies might need to increase or decreas e the employee strength after merging. It helps both the companies to increase financial efficiency. Business environment depends on the financial, political environmental and social factors. In case of changing political stability of a country or in changing the economy of a country, an organization would require changing the organizational structure through the restructuring process. This process would help to improve the overall performance of the company without increasing investment. Apart from that, business environment may change due to increasing or decreasing product demand among the target market. In such situations, an organization can restructure the management structure for increasing organizational productivity. Technology: In order to gain superiority in a competitive market, organizations are adopting innovative technologies. Therefore, it is becoming highly important for the organizations to improve performance quality of the workforce (Rosenberg Keller, 2016). In this scenario, responsibilities of the employee's increases and create importance of organizational structure. The introduction of technological innovation influences the organizations to make changes in organizational structure. In such situations, organizations need to increase responsibilities of the higher-level managers. The managers are solely responsible for leading the change towards success (Strese et al., 2016). Apart from that, the management needs to implement training and development sessions for increasing performance quality of the workforce. Moreover, the employees should understand the urgency of the change in an appropriate manner. Therefore, organizations need to employ managers for increasing the urgency of the change. Communication pattern needs to be changed in order to achieve the change process (Wilensky, 2015). Here, organizations tend to change the organizational structure by increasing responsibilities of human resource department. Restructuring process as a tool of Enterprise Management Structure Optimization According to Kopp (2016), the contemporary organizations have adopted restructuring as the tool of management structure improvement. In this process, organizations are initiating change management process for changing the current organizational structure. The purpose of changing the organizational structure is to gain superiority in a competitive market. Additionally, changing the organizational structure helps an organization to change the entire operational process in an effective manner. There are different strategies for improving organizational structure. For example, an organization can build a management team for monitoring the performance of the organization, or an organization can recruit new employees for a new job position. However, Hashemi (2016) argued that the most efficient and globally acknowledged strategy is restructuring. This strategy helps an organization to conduct internal recruitment while changing the organizational structure (Morris, Tod Oliver, 2015). For example, an organization can change responsibilities of the employees while restructuring the structure. This process helps an organization to empower motivation of the workforce in an effective manner. Employees may not accept the changed responsibility, or they may not be able to fulfill requirements of the new responsibility. Therefore, large-scale organizations should invest for implementing training and development process. It could help the employees to increase their knowledge and skill for the newly appointed responsibility. In case of other strategies of structure improvement, employees may face motivational issues. Small organizations conduct external recruitment for a new position. On the other hand, Varpio et al., (2016) mentioned that large-scale organizations change responsibilities of the existing employees and ensure that employees have accepted the change. In order to conduct an efficient change management, the organizations should communicate with the workforce before taking any final decision. In this competitive era, employee retention is the major concern for the organizations. Therefore, it is highly important to ensure the acceptance rate for the planned change. Apart from that, Ashkenas et al. (2015) opined that organizations measures skills of the workforce before changing their responsibilities. Task delegation is the major concern while restructuring organizational management. This process further helps to provide an increment to the existing employees. Increasing responsibilities of t he employees help an organization to increase motivation level of the workforce. It ensures that the workforce would be able to grow their professional career in an effective manner. The purpose behind restructuring the organizational structure is to reduce the organizational cost. Research shows that the restructuring process can be used in order to adopt lean management. Changing responsibilities of the workforce can minimize organizational lose and therefore, cost cutting can be a purpose of implementing this strategy. Apart from that, this strategy would help while merging with another organization. Here, the company needs to understand the cultural background of the targeted company and restructure the management according to the requirements. According to the previous studies, restructuring is the process through which an organization can fight external environmental issues again in the global market. For example, merger strategy has been recognized as the most profitable strategy for the global organizations. Therefore, the primary activity for those organizations implemented the strategy for merging with another company. On the other hand, the acquisition is another strategy for business internationalization. In this strategy, an organization needs to understand the cultural background of the targeted country. The labor market law and employment legislations are the external factors that influence the organizations to implement restructuring process. The employment law depends on the governmental policies and procedures. Therefore, an organization should adopt the organizational structure of the targeted country in order to increase employee retention. In order to conduct sustainable business, it is highly important to comply with the policies and procedures of government. Therefore, restructuring is the most relevant strategy for enhancing organizational or management structure as well as for complying with governmental legislations. Restructuring tool can be used while merging with another company. In that case, an organization can cut down their employee strength in order to fit within the targeted organization. When two organizations decide to merge up, it is highly important to cut down employee strength for the betterment of the company. Here, the company may decide to change job role of the workforce according to the requirements. Therefore, it can be said that the overall process is flexible enough for mitigating the probable issues within the organizations. In this process, it is possible to improve the performance of the overall organization. Employees with high wages and low responsibility can be identified in this process. Management of an organization can reduce or increase responsibilities of employees in order to reduce organizational cost. In traditional process of organizational structure, the overall process was very fragile. The performance monitoring ability of such structures was low in contrast with the contemporary practice of organizational structure. Therefore, organizations have adopted restructuring approach while improving management structure. Apart from that, the structural framework of an organization defines its functionality (Varpio et al., 2016). The more an organization strengthens its structural framework, the more it would be easy for the company to respond in a diverse situation. Nowadays, organizations have developed a flexible structural framework, which can be changed based on environmental requirements. Restructuring tool helps the companies to change the organizational culture continuously. However, changing the organizational culture continuously can be harmful to organizations. It might harm employee retention of an organization negatively. Impact of organizational structure on business sustainability When it comes to business sustainability, it has been noted that majority of the organizations are implementing random strategies in order to survive in the competitive market. Now, the internal management structure is the major factor, which influences business success. The organizational structure of large-scale organizations has a wide impact on its business sustainability and development (Ocasio Radoynovska, 2016). In order to response to the changing business environment, it is highly important to change the business strategies. Now, bringing changes in business strategies require a changed organizational structure. The organizational structure influences internal and external communication of an organization. An effective organizational culture helps to maintain information flow of an organization. Therefore, it can be said that an effective organizational structure helps a company to achieve overall goals and objectives. The need for changing organizational structure occurs w hen the organizational performance deteriorates. Organizational structure refers to the authority distribution among the organization. In order to improve the organizational processes, it is highly important to modify responsibilities of the workforce accordingly. Apart from that, the company needs to understand the need to restructuring before implementing any strategies. Restructuring the structure would have a negative impact on the business sustainability of an organization (Islam, Jasimuddin Hasan, 2015). The organizational structure defines the way in which an organization communicates within the organization. Changing the structure would affect the communication flow of an organization. For example, changing responsibilities and authority of the workforce have a wide impact on the communication structure as well as the communication flow within the organization. The reporting authority of the lower level employees can be change or remain same, but the overall process and need of information flow would change massively. Now, organizational communication has a direct impact on external communication. In order to conduct sustainable business, an organization should communicate with the external stakeholders in an appropriate manner (Wu, 2015). Therefore, it is highly important for an organization to ensure that external employees are getting appropriate information in an accurate flow. Model of change management Kotter's 8-Step Change Model In order to improve the organizational structure, it is highly important to implement an efficient change management plan. The Kotter's 8-Step Change Model is a management framework, which helps to implement a change management within the organization. This model has an eight-step chronological process, which helps to implement and maintain change within the organization. Following are the evaluation of the in this model. Create urgency: In order to change organizational structure, management of an organization should create urgency for the proposed change. It helps the management to convey the importance of the change among the workforce. In order to gain successful outcome, it is highly important to encourage the workforce to accept the change. In that case, communication is the key factor, which an organization should maintain before implementing the change (Alvesson Sveningsson, 2015). Here, the management should communicate with the employees in order to explain the need for the change. The management should not just discuss individuals performance. Instead, the management should explain the way the organization could exploit opportunities after implementing the change in organizational structure. Formation of the coalition: After building the urgency for a change, management of the organization should convince the people that the change in necessary. Here, strong leadership would be the key factor, which may help the management to take support from the key people within the organization (Bellini et al., 2016). In this step, an organization needs to communicate with the employees for emotional commitments. Bringing change in organizational structure is not an easy process. Here, an organization should build cohesive team effort in order to gain a successful outcome. Creating Vision: In order to lead the change successfully, leaders should build a strong vision. It would help the employees to understand the aim of the organization. The employees are responsible for implementation of the strategies (Hashemi, 2016). Therefore, clear vision is important for increasing awareness about the proposed change. Communication: In order to change the structure successfully, an organization should communicate with all level of employees in an appropriate manner. It would help the organization to convey the overall vision for the proposed change. Remove obstacles: In change management, obstacles could appear at any stage. Therefore, the leaders should monitor the overall process while leading the change (Joseph, Klingebiel Wilson, 2016). The management should monitor the performance of the workforce in order to ensure that the workforce is successfully achieving their objectives. Short-term wins: Motivation is the major factor that would help to enhance organizational performance. Therefore, the leaders should celebrate for short-term benefits in order to empower performance quality of the workforce. Apart from that, managers should empower motivation of the workforce for achieving short-term objectives. Build the change: This is the final step of Kotter's 8-Step Change Model, which ensures that the changed process is effective for the organization. Here, the organization should not celebrate short-term achievement (Kopp, 2016). The change in organizational structure needs to be examined for long-term basis in order to examine its effectiveness. Type of organizational structure and advantages As stated by Joseph, Klingebiel and Wilson (2016), there are different types of organizational structures such as the traditional hierarchy, flatter organizations and flat organizational structure. In traditional hierarchical structure, management of an organization undertakes top-down approach. In this kind of organizations, the board of directors defines organizational strategies. The second level authorities of these organizations are CEO and first line managers. The managers in this authority monitor activities of the regional managers. The regional managers of this kind of organizations supervise the workforce. These managers are responsible for communicating with both the regional managers and employees within the organization (Alvesson Sveningsson, 2015). In traditional hierarchical structure, employees can communicate with the top management and the top management can communicate with the lower level employees. Therefore, it can be said that this kind of organizational struc ture helps to build strong communication flow within the organization. In flat organizational structure, people with high experience play the role of supervisor. In this kind of organizations, the employees are responsible for reporting to the supervisors directly. As per the viewpoint of Ohlsson, Han and Hultin (2016), the top management of this kind of organization can communicate with the lower level employees as per requirements. The top-down approach of this kind of organization helps to maintain good information flow within the organization. Moreover, this kind of organizations encourages teamwork, where a group of people is responsible for achieving a set of objectives. In flat organizations, the structure tends to be weak at times, but it would help the organizations to react to certain environmental changes. Companies with flat structure would be able to change their structure easily. However, Zhang, Chen and Liu (2016) mentioned that there are certain challenges that would affect the business sustainability of flat organizations. A sudden chan ge in external environment would influence an organization to improve the organizational structure. It would be difficult for a flat organization to restructure the current structure within a short time. In todays competitive business world, every organization follows a particular set of objectives or goals in order to achieve the established targets and organizational structure helps to hinder the progress of accomplishing the goals. Both large and small organization can gain a higher level of sales revenue with employing appropriate organizational structure. There are basic organizational structures, such as divisional, matrix and functional, which determine the ultimate success of the organizations in the specific marketplace (Fisher et al. 2012). The functional structure of an organization involves each portion of the concerned company, which grouped in order to fulfill its fundamental purpose of continuing business operations. A functional organizational structure includes marketing department, production department, and sales department and this type of organizational structure perform well in small organizations. In small organizations, there are few departments and this parti cular organizational structure helps to maintain integration among the existing departments for undertaking suitable decisions for the success of the organization. The functional organizational structure also supports the talent, knowledge, and skill of every associated employee of the organization (Cosh et al. 2012). However, there are also drawbacks and flaws of the functional organizational structure as it limits the communication and coordination in between various departments of the organization. Divisional structure is employed within the larger organizations, which is capable enough to operate its business operations in a vast range of geographic area or a small company, which operates its functions under a group in order to cover several types of offered products in the marketplace. As the scope, possibility and size of the divisional organizational structure are huge. Therefore, it is costly. However, even the small companies also can employ divisional organizational structure on the basis of smaller scale, which has different offices. Matrix organizational structure suggests a hybrid of functional and divisional organizational structure (Cavusgil et al. 2014). Mainly the large multinational companies incorporate matrix organizational structures as it allows the facilities of functional and divisional organizational structure for continuing the business operation in a particular industry. For instance, Woolworths, a famous supermarket retail chain in Australia follows mat rix organizational structure in order to maintain its business activities for holding the best position in the retail industry of Australia and expanding its business in a global manner. As a matrix, organizational structure has the potentiality to generate the struggles of power, as it possesses dual management. Similarly, Woolworths engages various managers for every department such as for function department, production department, division department and marketing department. Hao et al. (2012) have mentioned that there are some formal organizational structures, which involves line organizational structure, committee organizational structure, project organizational structure. Line organizational structure suggests a vertical relationship in between various level of the organization. In this type of organizational structure, only the line department of an organization is the responsible to attain the targeted goal of the organization. Coles, a retail supermarket chain in Australia depends on its line organizational structure, which involves the entire marketing and production department of the company and the higher authority follows the basic chain of command. Gap of literature After reviewing the existing literature, it has been noted that different types of organizations have adopted different structures in order to achieve organizational objectives. The need of restructuring has been identifying through the literature review. Apart from that, a range of strategies has been evaluated for improving the traditional structure of contemporary organizations. However, the study would be more effective with an extensive study on industry specific research. The need of organizational structure depends on the type of organization and its operation. Therefore, it would be beneficial to conduct a study on industry specific literature. Moreover, the external market forces have been evaluated, which may affect the organizational structure. In order to understand the effectiveness of restructuring, it would be better to evaluate other strategies for improving enterprise management structure. Summary Organizational structure refers to the process through which an organization defines authority and flow of communication. In current business environment, organizations are paying close attention to the change in external environment. It helps the organizations to response in competitors activities. In order to gain superiority in a competitive market, it is highly important to improve organizational structure according to the requirements. From the literature review, it has been noted that there are certain factors that tend the organizations to change or improve structure. For example, market competition is a factor that may influence the organization to adopt product or service diversity. Here, the company needs to change or improve the structure in order to ensure success. Restructuring is a tool for management structure enhancement. This tool helps organizations to conduct change thin the organization. Successful implantation of restructuring would help an organization to empowe r skills and the ability of the employees. Apart from that, changing responsibilities of the workforce would help to motivate the employees in an efficient manner. The overall analysis shows that restructuring is a globally-acknowledged process, which improves organizational efficiency and profitability in an effective manner. Chapter 3: Research Methodology Introduction In order to conduct this study, a primary research method has been chosen. Qualitative approach has been chosen in order to gather authentic information from the target population. In order to gather data, interviews has been conducted with different level managers of Contour Global Company. In this chapter, justifications for the selected research methods have been provided. The process of data analysis has been discussed and justified in this section. Research philosophy The purpose of choosing research philosophy is to gather authentic data for the study. The selection of philosophy depends on the study topic. There are three types of philosophies such as positivism, realism and interpretivism (Merriam Tisdell, 2015). In business research, it is highly important to gather factual data. Positivism philosophy helps to identify the factual data based on the study topic. Interpretivism philosophy assists to gather socially constructed information behind the study topic. On the other hand, realism is a mixed approach of these two philosophies. In this study, positivism has been selected in order to gather factual data for identifying effectiveness of restructuring for improving management structure. Justification for chosen philosophy (Positivism) Positivism research philosophy helps to rely on specific data about the study topic. Here, the research topic is to evaluate effectiveness of restructuring process in organizational structure improvement. In order to understand the effectiveness of restructuring process, it is highly important to know how managers of the selected company deal with organizational culture and behavior. Positivism philosophy would help to gather factual data from existing literature. In this manner, it would be possible to understand the strategies adopted by contemporary organizations for improving management structure. Therefore, it can be said that the selection of research philosophy is justified. Research Approach In order to obtain accurate and error free research outcome, it is highly important to evaluate the research variables with appropriate models and theories. Selection of research approach helps to identify the appropriate process of evaluation. Inductive and deductive are the two kinds of research purpose through which the topic can be evaluated (Smith, 2015). In case of inductive approach, it is possible to frame new models and theories based on the research topic. On the other hand, deductive approach helps to evaluate the existing models and theories based on the study topic (Bryman, 2015). In this study, the deductive approach has been selected for evaluating the effectiveness of restructuring tool of management structure enhancement. Justification for chosen approach (Deductive) The reason behind selecting deductive approach is to mitigate time constraint. With this approach, it would be easy to identify the most relevant models and theories within the proposed deadline. On the other hand, with inductive approach it would be difficult to derive new models and theories within the deadline. It will further increase the overall research budget as well. Moreover, the inductive approach process is time consuming and it takes cohesive research from secondary sources. Therefore, deductive approach has been selected in order to mitigate budget and time constraint of the study. Additionally, existing models and theories would help to evaluate the variables in an appropriate manner. Research purpose Identifying the appropriate research purpose helps to understand the research topic in an effective manner. In order to conduct vast literature review, it is important to gain knowledge about the contemporary practice of management structure improvement. There are three kinds of purposes such as explanatory, exploratory and descriptive (Taylor, Bogdan DeVault, 2015). Explanatory purpose can be selected in order to establish link between the study variables. Here, the study variables are management structure enhancement and restructuring strategy. Exploratory purpose helps to access the background of the study topic. On the other hand, descriptive purpose helps to elaborate the study topic. It further helps to explain the topic with use of extensive literature (Smith, 2015). In this study, the descriptive purpose has been selected. It has helped to understand the study topic and its background effectively. Justification for chosen purpose (Descriptive) Selection of research purpose depends on the type of study that has been conducted. In this study, there are two research variables such as management structure enhancement and restructuring strategy. Therefore, it is highly important to elaborate both the variables in order to gain adequate knowledge about the study topic. Descriptive purpose helps to investigate each variable closely and therefore, it has helped to understand the research topic efficiently. On the other hand, explanatory purpose helps to build relation between the research variables. However, through explanatory, it would not be possible to describe the variables properly. Apart from that, exploratory purpose only evaluates the background of the study. Descriptive purpose would help to discuss both the variables in literature review. It would further help to represent an argumentative viewpoint of the previous authors. Therefore, the selection of the descriptive research purpose is justified for this study. Research Strategy Research strategy helps to implement the appropriate data collection process from the selected sample. Focus group, case study, interview and survey are the research strategies that would help to conduct the study. Focus group and case study strategies are appropriate for secondary data collection process (Silverman, 2016). On the other hand, survey and interview process would be conducted for primary research. In this study, interview strategy has been selected, which has helped to conduct qualitative research. This process has helped to conduct a face-to-face interview session with the selected population. It helps to gather accurate and authentic information regarding the research topic. Justification for chosen strategy (Interview) In order to gather data for this study topic, primary research has been taken into consideration. In primary study, a qualitative approach has been chosen for this study. Interview strategy has been selected for conducting the primary qualitative study. Here, a group of respondents has been selected as the sample population. Interview questions have been created as per the research objectives. This process has helped to communicate with the respondents individually. On the other hand, in survey process, it is not possible to communicate with the respondents individually. This process allows creating survey questionnaire for the respondents and encouraging the respondents for responding. The low response rate is the major constraint of this process. Apart from that, respondents in this process may provide arbitrary responses, which may harm the quality of the research outcome. On the other hand, case study and focus group strategies are appropriate for secondary research method. There fore, it can be said that interview strategy is justified for this research. Data collection In order to obtain error-free research outcome, it is highly important to select appropriate data collection process. Several data collection processes would be adopted for gathering research data. Primary and secondary are two types of data collection process through which data can be gathered. In secondary data collection process, authentic resources such as journal, articles, and websites can be accessed (Lewis, 2015). On the other hand, primary data can be gathered through two data collection techniques such as qualitative and quantitative. In the quantitative technique, the survey can be conducted with the selected group of the population. On the other hand, the interview can be conducted in order to initiate the qualitative technique. In this study, interview process has been taken into consideration for gathering authentic information. This process of data collection has helped to gather valid information regarding the management structure enhancement strategy (Merriam Tisdel l, 2015). Following are two types of data collection processes and their advantages. Primary data collection process In primary data collection process, a group of respondents has been selected for conducting data collection. This process helps to investigate the research issue by taking feedbacks from the targeted respondents. In this case, data collection can be done by targeting managers from the selected company. In this process, there are two types of data collection techniques such as qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. Following is the descriptions of both data collection techniques along with their advantages. Qualitative technique In the qualitative technique, the interview can be conducted with a set of respondents. Here, interview questions can be created according to the research objectives. In this process, it is possible to gather appropriate viewpoint of the respected authority. The data gathered in this process is authentic and therefore, it can be said that selection of qualitative technique is justified in this study. Quantitative technique Quantitative technique refers to the process in which a survey can be conducted. In this process, survey process can be conducted with a group of the respondent. The quantitative process allows in selecting a group of respondents for conducting the survey. The survey questions are made according to the research aim and objective. However, the data quality of quantitative data is lower than the quality of qualitative data. In this process, respondents may provide fabricated feedbacks, which may harm the quality of the research outcome negatively. Secondary data collection process In this type of data collection process, data can be gathered from authentic sources such as journals, websites and press releases. In this process, the viewpoint of previous researchers and authors have been gathered (Eriksson Kovalainen, 2015). It has helped to conduct a cohesive literature review in order to understand the research variables such as organizational structure enhancement and structuring process. Through this process, it is possible to gather relevant and authentic information about the research topic. Sample selection In this study, three level managers of Contour Global Company have been selected as sample. From an executive level, six managers have been selected from three operations such as finance and administration, planning and budgeting, development and tax. From middle management, 12 managers have been selected from four operations such as finance and administration, planning and budgeting, IT, legal and development Apart from that, 12 managers have been selected from specialist operations of finance and administration, planning and budgeting, IT, legal and development. Therefore, total 30 managers from Contour Global Company have been selected for conducting an interview session with every individual. Some of the selected respondents are ex-employee of the study company. The duration of every interview would be 30 minutes to 1.5 hours. Here, the interview has been conducted on the phone and Skype. Data analysis In this study, qualitative data collection process has been taken into consideration. Therefore, the interview has been conducted with the selected group of the population. Here, content analysis has been adopted in order to analyze the gathered data from the selected population. This process has helped to observe the data closely for more interpretative analysis (Eriksson Kovalainen, 2015). Through this data analysis process, it is possible to evaluate comments of the respondents accurately. Here, summarization, classification, and tabulation have been done in order to get a better outcome from the gathered data. The purpose of this data analysis process is to covert the general data to specific information (Bryman Bell, 2015). This process highlights the important comments of the respondents and summarizing them into a tabular format. Ethical consideration The methodology selected in this study has many ethical constraints. In order to conduct ethical research, researchers should comply with the research ethics policies. According to the research ethics, researchers should not force the participant to take part in the data collection process. It affects the response rate of the data collection process negatively (Smith, 2015). Apart from that, the researcher should protect the gathered data in order to comply with data protection act. However, it is important to share the respondents comments while recording the data for the study. In interview session, the researchers should not be biased while communicating with the respondents. It would help to improve the data analysis and research outcome as well. Limitation of chosen methodology The methodology chosen for this study is primary qualitative. In this process, it is possible to collect authentic data from the authorized respondents. Interview process helps to communicate with each respondent individually. However, there are certain limitations of this particular method. For example, respondents of the interview may refuse to share organizational information. However, the quality of the research depends on the gathered data. Apart from that, respondents may manipulate the data due to confidentiality of organizational information. The low response rate is another limitation of this study. Respondents may not take part in the interview session. However, it is important to communicate with each selected respondent in order to provide accurate research result. References Alvesson, M., Sveningsson, S. (2015).Changing organizational culture: Cultural change work in progress. Routledge Ashkenas, R., Ulrich, D., Jick, T., Kerr, S. (2015).The boundaryless organization: Breaking the chains of organizational structure. John Wiley Sons Bellini, C. G. P., Pereira, R. D. C. D. F., Becker, J. L. (2016). Organizational structure and enterprise systems implementation: Theoretical measures and a benchmark for customer teams.Information Technology People,29(3), 527-555 Bryman, A. (2015).Social research methods. Oxford university press Bryman, A., Bell, E. (2015).Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA Eriksson, P., Kovalainen, A. (2015).Qualitative Methods in Business Research: A Practical Guide to Social Research. Sage Hashemi, M. S. (2016). The effect of infrastructure, corporate culture, organizational structure and information technology on Competitive Intelligence in Organizations.Human Resource Management,3(3), 43-50 Joseph, J., Klingebiel, R., Wilson, A. J. (2016). Organizational Structure and Performance Feedback: Centralization, Aspirations, and Termination Decisions.Organization Science Joseph, J., Klingebiel, R., Wilson, A. J. (2016). Organizational Structure and Performance Feedback: Centralization, Aspirations, and Termination Decisions.Organization Science Kopp, S. W. (2016). Tell all your friends: multilevel marketing is an organizational structure for (ECONOMIC AND PERSONAL) GROWTH. In2016 Global Marketing Conference at Hong Kong(pp. 534-540) Lee, J. Y., Kozlenkova, I. V., Palmatier, R. W. (2015). Structural marketing: using organizational structure to achieve marketing objectives.Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science,43(1), 73-99 Lewis, S. (2015). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches.Health promotion practice, 1524839915580941 Merriam, S. B., Tisdell, E. J. (2015).Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation. John Wiley Sons Morris, R., Tod, D., Oliver, E. (2015). An analysis of organizational structure and transition outcomes in the youth-to-senior professional soccer transition.Journal of Applied Sport Psychology,27(2), 216-234 Ocasio, W., Radoynovska, N. (2016). Strategy and commitments to institutional logics: Organizational heterogeneity in business models and governance.Strategic Organization, 1476127015625040 Ohlsson, J., Han, S., Hultin, M. (2016, January). How to Achieve Sustainable Business IT Alignment--Designing a Circular Organizational Structure at SAAB. In2016 49th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS)(pp. 5116-5125). IEEE Rosenberg, A., Keller, M. (2016). Making sense of organizational structure change: a practice-based approach.Baltic Journal of Management,11(4) Silverman, D. (Ed.). (2016).Qualitative research. Sage Smith, J. A. (Ed.). (2015).Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. Sage Strese, S., Meuer, M. W., Flatten, T. C., Brettel, M. (2016). Organizational antecedents of cross-functional coopetition: The impact of leadership and organizational structure on cross-functional coopetition.Industrial Marketing Management,53, 42-55 Taylor, S. J., Bogdan, R., DeVault, M. (2015).Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource. John Wiley Sons Wilensky, H. L. (2015).Organizational intelligence: Knowledge and policy in government and industry(Vol. 19). Quid Pro Books Zhang, M., Chen, H., Liu, J. (2016). Business Process Study of Change in Organizational Structure: Using Complex Network Controllability.Journal of Computational and Theoretical Nanoscience,13(1), 607-614 Fisher, D.R., Campbell, L.K. and Svendsen, E.S., (2012). The organisational structure of urban environmental stewardship.Environmental Politics,21(1), pp.26-48. Cosh, A., Fu, X. and Hughes, A., (2012). Organisation structure and innovation performance in different environments.Small Business Economics,39(2), pp.301-317. Cavusgil, S.T., Knight, G., Riesenberger, J.R., Rammal, H.G. and Rose, E.L., (2014).International business. Pearson Australia. Hao, Q., Kasper, H. and Muehlbacher, J., (2012). How does organizational structure influence performance through learning and innovation in Austria and China.Chinese Management Studies,6(1), pp.36-52.

Perception of Plp Level I Nursing Student on Taking the Nursing Aptitude Test as Basis for Selective Retention Program free essay sample

PERCEPTION OF PLP LEVEL I NURSING STUDENT ON TAKING THE NURSING APTITUDE TEST AS BASIS FOR SELECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM A Thesis Proposal Presented to College of Nursing and School of Midwifery In partial fulfillment Of the requirements for Nursing Research I By: Mark R. Antolin Cassandra A. Cabigas Mitchelle Frances Mae A. Camilon Isadel Angelic A. Chio Mary Grace C. Cuenca Mary Grace Joy T. Julian March 2011 Chapter 1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND Nursing education in the Philippines has earned a good reputation. Ruth Padilla, the past president of the Philippine Nurses Association coined that Filipino nurses are world class and it is a legacy to protect during a convention in Honolulu, Hawaii in January 2006 of the Philippine Nursing Association Phil. (PNA-Phil. ) and the Philippine Nurses Association of America (PNAA ). Although it was based on American nursing curriculum, it is never a mirror image reproduction according to Catherine Ceniza Choy . The Philippine schools / colleges of nursing made adaptations in its curriculum to reflect the needs of its patients. We will write a custom essay sample on Perception of Plp Level I Nursing Student on Taking the Nursing Aptitude Test as Basis for Selective Retention Program or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page As a matter of fact, the Philippines is one of the eight countries in the world ( the others are Canada, Sweden, Portugal, brazil, Iceland, Korea and Greece) which require a four year undergraduate education in order to practice nursing. Its admission standard has always been high that it produced nurses at the bedside that have established reputation of hard work, dedication and competence. March 2006, PNA-NY Newsletter, Wong, Clemencia, MA,RN) In 2001, When the United States announced the nursing shortage, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo announced government initiatives to ensure the production of top notch nurses who will have an easier time getting jobs overseas. The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) issued a memorandum on guidelines to be followed in the admission of professionals entering the nursing program. The Philippine Nursing Act of 1991 was repealed for a more responsive nursing profession ( March 2006, PNA-NY Newsletter, Wong, Clemencia, MA,RN) Due to the unabated rise in the number of nursing schools, CHED declared a moratorium on the opening of new schools, part of the nursing development plan to address the issue of quality of nursing education. This way, the Technical Committee for Nursing Education can concentrate on monitoring and regulating the schools that are open. Last 2006, development of the National Nursing Aptitude Test (NNAT) was ;planned. (Lorenzo, Marilyn, RN, PhD). The Nursing Aptitude Test is important in helping the student for them to decide whether nursing is the right career. It is based on applied sciences, Daily Life science, Communication skills, Mathematical skills, interpreting the written words and analytical reasoning. (Pataliah, B. A. 2004) Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay (PLP), College of Nursing School of Midwifery (CONM) is one of the colleges that offer the nursing course. The College mission is to produce quality health care professionals through world class education and pursue a highly competitive skill in maintaining the ideals of the vocation of the future health professionals. And to fulfill this aim, the College is doing its best to train the students both in academic and clinical field. Because of this, the College strictly complies with the CHED memorandum and requirement on policies, standards and guidelines governing nursing students. One of the actions taken is the implementation of Nursing Aptitude Test. This will determine who among the freshmen will pass the exam in order to be a part of the selective retention program. This program allows only prospective first year students to continue to the second year level of the nursing course. This research is about the perceptions of the first year level nursing student of the Pamamtasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay about the nursing aptitude test as basis of the selective retention program. The researchers would like to determine the orientation, preparedness and how serious the freshmen are in dealing with NAT as a part of the curriculum. PURPOSE The purpose of this study is to gain insights on the perception of PLP level 1 nursing students on taking the NAT exam as basis for Selective Retention Program and whether their perceptions are influenced by their age, civil status, gender and National Career Aptitude Test result. OBJECTIVES The Objectives of the study are the following: 1. To gather perceptions of the level 1 nursing students on taking the Nursing Aptitude test (NAT) as basis for selective retention program in terms of their orientation, preparedness and seriousness. 2. To assess the student perception based in the area of orientation, preparedness and seriousness in taking the nursing aptitude test. 3. To establish the degree of relationship between the demographic profile, National Career Aptitude Examination and the perceptions of level 1 nursing students of PLP-CONM. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM The study will attempt to answer the following questions; 1. What are the demographic profile of the PLP Level nursing students with regards to: 1. 1age 1. 2civil status 1. 3gender 2. What are the National Career Aptitude Examination scores of PLP Level 1 nursing students? . What are the preparations done by PLP Level 1 nursing students in the areas of: 3. 1Orientation 3. 2Preparedness 3. 3Seriousness 4. Is there a significant relationship in the demographic profile, NCAE scores and perceptions of PLP Level 1 nursing students in NAT as basis for selective retention program? STATEMENT OF THE HYPOTHESIS H0: There is no significant relationship between the demo graphic profile, NCAE score and perceptions of PLP Level 1 nursing students on taking the Nat as basis for Selective Retention Program. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This study will be conducted to gather the perceptions of the PLP level 1 nursing students on NAT as basis in the selective retention program. Students shall be informed on the possible consequences they will face if they either pass or fail from the said examination. A. Students The perceptions of the students about taking NAT will be heard and given attention. They can express their opinions and thoughts about the said matter which may be possibly influenced by their age, civil status and gender. The students will be able to understand the real purpose and objective of taking the NAT. Thus, it will help them become more oriented and get prepared before taking the said examination. Furthermore, it will open their minds and help them decide whether Bachelor of Science in Nursing is the right choice. This will enhance their decision making capacity about choosing their preferred career. B. Administration The president of the PLP, the Dean of the College of Nursing and School of Midwifery (CONM), the and faculty will be able to take action or respond appropriately according to the outcomes of implementing the NAT as a basis of selective retention program for those students involved in this program. The administration will be able to determine the perception of the students based in the area of orientation, preparedness and seriousness. The administration will be able to create more effective tool with regards to the implementation NAT as basis for Selective Retention Program. They can discuss ways in developing through orientation among the students prior to taking the NAT exam. C. Other Researchers This study can help other researchers to obtain further information about the outlook of nursing students in taking the NAT based on their age, civil status and gender and whether or not their perceptions are affected by these variables. SCOPE AND LIMITATION The research will be conducted in the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay ,College of Nursing and School of Midwifery, P. Burgos St. Pasay City. The respondents are BSN level 1 regular students enrolled in the school year 2010-2014 and are qualified to take the Nursing Aptitude Test. The only demographic profiles that will be collected are the students age, civil status and gender. Their National Career Aptitude Examination scores will be required to determine the level of their intelligence. The perceptions that will be gathered are based on OPS (orientation, preparedness and seriousness) in taking the NAT. The perceptions of the students will be assessed and classified according to their age, civil status, gender and NCAE scores. Only questionnaires will be used to gather the pertinent information needed from the respondents. DEFINITION OF TERMS AGE It is an individuals development measured in terms of the years requisite for like development of an average individual In the academe, college students are within the adolescent age which is consists of 13-19 years old and young adulthood which is consists of 20-40 years old. BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN NURSING The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) is a four year academic degree in the science and principles of nursing, granted by a tertiary education university or similarly accredited school. CIVIL STATUS It refers to the materials status of a person, either single or married. LEVEL 1 NURSING STUDENT It refers to the freshmen nursing students. NURSING APTITUDE TEST The Nursing Aptitude Test (NAT) is used to measure the academic achievement level of students wishing to enter the nursing (R. N. ) program. PERCEPTION It is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information. PREPAREDNESS It refers to the state of being prepared for specific or unpredictable events or situations. It is an important quality in achieving goals and in avoiding and mitigating negative outcomes. SELECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM It is the program implemented in the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay, College of Nursing and School of Midwifery which is used to classify students who are capable of pursuing to the next level. Qualifying examinations in every year level must be passed prior to enrollment such as Nursing Aptitude and Achievement Examination. SEX It is defined as being male or female. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. Foreign Literature Nursing service can be characterized as generous, loving and compassionate care. Nursing career is considered as a collaborative job because it involves a lot of team work especially with the other health care team members. A nurse performs different roles such as a discipline care giver, a counselor, a manager, a teacher, etc. Every action done should be focused on the bivalence of the patients. ( http://www. personality-and-aptitude-career-tests. com/nursing-career. html) During the past years baccalaureate nursing program enrollment, have increased. In 2001 the enrollees increased up to 3. 7%, in 2002 and 2003 it had also increased up to 8. 1 and 15. 9% consecutively (Health Care Financial Management Association and Group, 2006) According to Tony Abari in 2010, Aptitude Test measures a person’s acquired knowledge based on the past education and experiences before taking the test. It is used to evaluate a person’s ability to learn (Abari, 2010) And because of the said program anyone who does not pass the aptitude test will not be able to continue to pursue their dream. Because of this, different perceptions of the students have risen and they vary in varies to different sex, age and civil status. According to Jean Piaget, intelligence is not the same at different ages. It changes qualitatively, attaining increasing broader, more abstract and more equilibrated structure thereby allowing to different level of organization in the world. In his cognitive theory he created 4 stages of cognitive development the sensory motor stage, pre-operational stage, concrete operational stage and formal operational stage consecutively (Piaget 1980’s). In his formal operational stage which is the fourth and final stage of cognitive development in Piaget’s theory. Individual move beyond concrete experience and begin to think abstractly, reason logically, draw conclusions from the information available. As well as apply all this processes to hypothetical situations. During this stage the young person begins to entertain possibilities for the future and fascinated with what they can be (Piaget, 1980) Social status has been defined in various ways. Homans (1961) it suggests that the status of an individual is the complex set of stimuli that are evaluated by others as better or worse, higher or lower. Based upon an assumption that every single characteristic of a person differentiates individuals from others, Homans classifies status characteristics into three kinds: (a) characteristics of the individuals themselves (e. g. , attractiveness, age, sex, skin color, educational achievements, income, religion, etc. ), (b) characteristics related to relationships with other individuals, groups, organizations, or communities (e. g. seniority at work, authority, and marital status), and (c) characteristics that relate to others perceptions of the individual (e. g. , approvals and esteem) (Homans, 1961) Berger and his colleagues explain social status as status inequalities generated by expectations about future performances. According to Berger, social status can be categorized into two types: (a) specific status characteristics that are associated with specific expectations for dealing with specific abilities, and (b) diffuse status characteristics which people can infer general assumptions, such as individuals’ competence, ability, or value (e. . , race, class, education, age, occupation, physical attractiveness, and gender). Because of this it also affects the people on how they think. Social Status is one of the important factor in making decisions because when a person is single he or she can only think of his/her but when a person is married he/she needs to consider lots of this such as if her/his family can benefit on it. (Berger, Cohen, Fisek, 1974; Berge, Cohen, Zelditic 1972) B. Foreign Studies Nursing programs chose students by ranking them according to factors such as graduates in prerequisite classes and test score result. Students in various other programs also were required to take assessment test for course placement purposes. The said programs are allowed to continue requiring prospective student to complete science prerequisite course to be eligible to apply. Validation studies also must be conducted in order for district to require application to obtain grades higher than a â€Å"C† on perquisite classes. The above program shows the defined policies they implemented on the regulation of the selective retention program. It evaluated ranking of factors such as grades in prerequisite classes and test score result before letting the student to be undergone on the assessment exam, the national aptitude test. The validation study showed that the students who fail to satisfy such requirements are â€Å"highly unlike† to succeeding in nursing program (Paul Steenhausen and Steve Boiland, May 2007). According to Sarah E. Newton, PhD, RN and Gary Coore, PhD, RN in September 2009, there are 50% attrition rate of Bachelor of Science in Nursing Student nationwide. In decreasing attrition or loss of a student is BSN, Nursing Aptitude Test is now adjunct to scholastic aptitude data so that it can be vague knowledge about the reliability in using NT to predict the readiness of the students in National Council Licensure Examination. The study finding suggest that there is still a need for explanatory model in attrition of Nursing Student and this will also serve as a guideline in admitting students to ensure that students taking the NCLEX are from BSN program (Journal of Professional Nursing Vol. 25, Issue 5, Pages 273-278, Sept. 2005) According to Eme R, Maisiak R, Goodale W. June 2005, the two most worrisome problems among the early adolescents are careers and grades. The study emphasizes that these young men are not that focused on their study. Likewise, according to LeBow JA, April 2004, there are some factors that may affect the seriousness of adolescent adjustment reactions such as the framework of adolescent’s age, social situation, general stress factors, and developmental history. C. Local Literature Today, the Philippines is bloody full of nurses. Many nursing schools have busied themselves adjusting their requirements to fit the need of a new type of student. Middle age professionals seeking new, career are journalists, accountants, clerks, teachers, and doctors are some of the professionals that chooses to become nurses because of the high demand. (Santos, 2010) Because of this, the Philippine Nursing Board becomes strict in their policies and laws. They are the one who is responsible in maintaining the number of graduating students in the nursing field. As part of what they amended, the Selective Retention Program is a solution for the over population of the nursing students in the Philippines. (Santos, 2010) On March 10, 2009 Dr. Rizalina Mitra- Pangan used the the NAT as a criterion for retention in every college of nursing it was design to determine the students learning preferences and talents (Malimbag, 2009) Nursing Aptitude Test (NAT) measures the person’s acquired knowledge based on the past education and experiences before taking the test. It includes the subject, Math, English, Language and Literature, Science and reading Comprehension. Anyone, who did not pass the NAT, will be subjected for removal. Selective Retention Program is used in this type of deliberation. In nursing, Selective Retention Program (SRP) is the way how the institution identifies the candidates who are likely to succeed as nurses. By predicting the nursing student’s success even before, he or she begin the duty in the wards would give the students, the opportunity to enrich the quality of education offered to those candidate, most likely to succeed. (Schivley 2005) The NCAE was developed to assess the aptitudes of the fourth year high school students and guide them in choosing an appropriate career path after graduation. Unlike the National College Entrance Examination that was discontinued in 1994, the NCAE is used entirely for recommendation purposes in career guidance. Lapus stressed that the conduct of NCAE last August 2007 and the distribution of the individual results last November 2007 will give students and their parents time to choose career options vis-a-vis aptitudes or inclinations (Lapus, 2007). DepEd is currently implementing enhanced curriculum in some 261 technical-vocational secondary schools out of 5,078 public secondary schools nationwide to give students in these tech-voc schools skills training and a resulting wider array of life choices. Given the introduction of ladderized education, students may build on their skills acquired in these tech-voc schools and choose technical or engineering courses in college while some may decide to take post-secondary courses given by TESDA. The department of Education (DepEd) announced that it will be conducting the National Career Assessment Examination (NCAE) for fourth year students of public and private high schools on August 28. The NCAE, which replaced the National College Entrance Examination, was given for the first time in January 2007. D. Local Studies The Philippine Nursing Law, R. A. 877 was amended by the Philippine Nursing Act of 1991, R. A. 7164. The Law provides for the scope of nursing practice and specifies that for a nurse to be professional, he or she must acquire a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, be physically and mentally fit and secure a license to practice nursing in the country. The BSN curriculum aims to produce a full functioning nurse who has developed a sensitive awareness to the health needs of society as well as commitment to the alleviation of problems arising there from, acquired the necessary skills, knowledge and attitudes for the promotion of health, prevention of illness, restoration of health and alleviation of suffering, and (3) developed a research attitude through the use of the nursing process. Such attitude, among others, leads to the utilization of research findings (Venzon, 196-197). A study conducted by Thelma Corcega and colleagues in 1999 on the supply and demand of nurses in the Philippines revealed that â€Å"In 1998, there was an estimated 323,490 registered nurses but the reported demand for nurses was only 178,045, 84. 75% of which was demand from international markets† (UP Manila Journal Vol. 5 No. 1, 2000, p. 1). It also reveals that a total of 16,240 Filipino nurses have been deployed abroad from 1998 to 2000. There were 13,608 professional nurses and 1,714 nursing personnel deployed to Saudi Arabia and 3,177 to United Kingdom. All of these nurses are graduates of nursing institutions throughout the country. It indicates that Filipino nurses who earned their degree from the Philippines are recognized abroad. However, the extent to which they remain competitive in this fast changing world is the accountability of quality education. (Philippine Maritime and Nursing Education: Benchmarking with APEC Best Practices; page 8-9 Veronica Esposo Ramire, December 2005) The exam evaluates students’ general scholastic abilities bur also adds several new test layers, including technical-vocational aptitude, occupational interests and entrepreneurial skills. The new test components allow parents and their children to assess career options based on the students’ skills toward any field of interest. It can also be basis for students’ goal towards college and possible entrepreneurial capabilities. The DepEd has also been pushing its Technical-Vocational (tech-Voc) program, which include special curricula that high school students can take to hone their skills in various fields. The program covers arts, electrical technology, welding, computers, software skills and technical drawing. (Villafania, 2007) According to Mamaoag and Magno nursing achievement test usually correlates other cognitive measures such as critical thinking, mental ability, grades with demographic factors such as age, gender and parent’s educational level. Dispositional factors such as nursing traits were nit explored during previous studies because concurrent studies were driven by the factors explained by other previous studies. This poses a need to explore and use ot5her kinds of disposition (Mamaoag Magno, 2005). Theoretical Framework Figure 1: Imogene King’s metaparadigm Imogene King formulated the Goal Attainment Theory, which focuses on creating a positive behavior that can be adapted to achieve goals. She defined person as social custom and belief through language. They exhibit common characteristics such as ability to perceive, to think, to feel, to choose between alternative course of action, to set goals, to select the means to achieve goals and to make decisions. On the other hand, she viewed environment as the process of balance involving the internal and external interactions inside the social system. Reactions from the interactions between the internal and external environment can be biological, Psychological, physical, social or spiritual. King’s model is composed of three interacting system namely the Personal, Interpersonal and social communication. These levels are independent and at the same time co-exist to influence over-all nursing practice. Specifically, in her personal framework, king stated how the nurse views and intergrades self based from the personal goals and beliefs. It includes perception, feelings, self body image and level of growth development. According to her perceptions is the process of human transaction with the environment. It involves organizing, interpreting and transforming information from sensory data and memory. Furthermore, King discussed interaction as a process of perce3ption and communication between person and environment that are goal directed. King also used the word action to describe the means of behavior or activities that are towards the accomplishment of a certain action. It is both physical and mental. The accomplishment of a task begins with mental action. Actions are aimed towards setting goals through communication between the nurse and the client then exploring and agreeing means to perform them thereby achieving the set goal. In relation to the formulation of an individual’s own perception by king, another theory describes how an individual was able to formulate his thoughts. Jean Piaget’s theory of Cognitive Development is a comprehensive theory about the nature development of human intelligence. It deals with the nature of knowledge itself and how humans come gradually to acquire it, construct it and use it. He developed the four main periods of cognitive development that varies through different stages of life and changes a person on how think and make decisions. In his fourth and final period known as the Concrete Operational Stage that commences at around 11 yrs. of age and continues to adolescent, individual move beyond concrete experience and begins to think abstractly, reason logically and draw conclusions from the information available. Through this theory it can be understood how adolescent differ from the one who are younger than them. Different ages have a different ways of thinking. People under Concrete Operational Stage are able to produce answer through hypothetical-deduction in which they use best guess. But some decision became different because of the future effect of it. Human have different perception and it varies through different age, sex and civil status. Father of Socio-biology Dr. Edward O. Wilson of Harvard University said that females tend to be higher than males in empathy, verbal skills, and social skills, While men tends to be higher in spatial and mathematical skills. By knowing the differences of the male and female according to cognition, we can identify the reason how they both differ in perception related to subject matter. (Wilson, 2005) Though the enactment roles, static social position is brought to life. According to the concept of the Role theory developed by Lindersmith and Strauss in 1968, a status may include number of roles, with each role appropriate to a specific social context. An individual occupies a status, but plays a role. Role behavior in any given situation depends on the status occupied by interacting individuals. The role an individual plays has a profound effect on attitude and behavior as well as self perception. Other theory that is involved in the perception of man is the cognitive-field theory which originated from gestalt psychology. The cognitive-field psychologist considers learning to be closely related to perception. They define learning in terms of reorganization of the learner’s perceptual or psychological world in his or her field. The field includes a simultaneous and mutual interaction among all the forces or stimuli affecting the person. Relationship of the Theories to the study Based o the Goal attainment theory of Imogene King, The primary person involved is the students. The students are rational human beings who are capable of communicating ideas and expressing their own thoughts. They have the ability to perceive things and select means to achieve their goals. The environment where they live influences the way they interact with other human beings. Students spend most of the time in their school, less in home. This kind of setting may influence how the student will react from the environment physically, emotionally, socially, mentally and spiritually. In relation to the personal framework of King, students may formulate perceptions based from their personal goals and beliefs. In formulating their perceptions in NAT as basis for SRP, the students may have different outlook in the topic because they will eventually have different plans in life. These are the factors that may affect the creation of perceptions among the Level 1 nursing students. These are the age, civil status, gender and NCAE scores. According to Piaget, when the person reaches his 11th year, he begins to think abstractly, reason logically and draw conclusions from the information available. Meaning those level 1 nursing students are already capable of perceiving this and becomes concerned with the hypothetical, future and ideological views. His perception in NAT in terms of OPS may depend on his age. The older the age, the higher desire the student has, to pass the NAT. In terms of civil status, the role theory suggests that the role that an individual play have a profound effect on attitude and behavior as well as on self perception. If the student is single and not engaged in any relationship, they do not have big responsibilities to hold. Dr. Edward O. Wilson of Harvard University discussed about how the gender affects the intelligence of a person. Females tend to excel in empathy, verbal skills, and social skills, while men excel in spatial and mathematical skills. The NCAE plays an important role in considering the cognitive function of level 1 nursing student. The NCAE scores of the students may reflect their intelligence quotient. The more intelligent the students are, the better perception he has towards NAT. Conceptual Framework SELECTIVE RETENTION PROGRAM Figure 1: Conceptual Framework The figure above shows the research study metaparadigm. The two circles represent the determinants for passing the Selective Retention Program (SRP). These are the demographic data and NCAE results. These circles are enclosed in a funnel which represents the NAT. This means that the determinants are properly filtered and selected to ensure the prospective students who will stay and continue in the second level of the nursing course through Selective Retention Program. The first circle is the demographic profile of Level 1 nursing students specifically age, civil status and gender. These data are factors that affect the creation of perceptions of students in Nursing Aptitude Test (NAT) as basis for Selective Retention Program (SRP). Age plays an important role in pursuing a career. The older the age, the more the person is eager to finish the study. Being a male and female is considered as one of the determinants in creating perceptions. It was believed that both have differences in their behaviour and how they think. Their biological factors affect the interest and sex role attitude. Civil status is briefly defined as being single or married. Married persons have greater responsibility compared to those who are single. Thus, it can affect one’s choice of career and eagerness to finish the college course. Second circle is the NCAE score of the students that may reflect their intelligence. The funnel is the perception on the orientation and preparedness of the Level 1 nursing students. Orientation is defined as the state of full mental function. Preparedness, on the other hand, is the state of being prepared for specific or unpredictable event or situation. The perceptions of students can serve as a baseline to assess and determine their preparedness and orientation about the significance of taking NAT. The output is the Selective Retention Program (SRP). NAT will be the sole basis of SRP. It will determine who among the students are qualified to stay and continue to pursue the nursing course. Chapter III METHODOLOGY Research Design Approach use in the research is descriptive approach which is use to describe and interpret points of view or attitude that are held or not held, practice that prevail or do not prevail, procedures that are continuing or otherwise, effects that are being felt or trends that are developing. The variables include the perception of PLP level 1 nursing students and the Nursing Aptitude Test as a basis for selective retention program. The students are subjected to undergo the Nursing Aptitude Test to determine and measure what knowledge the students has already acquired prior to taking the test and also as a basis of selective retention program by the administrator in anticipating academic achievement. Afterwards, the students are given a measurement tool provided by the researcher to determine their perception toward the relationship of Nursing Aptitude Test and Selective Retention Program and its effect to the students Instrumentation The researchers developed a student’s perception questionnaire validated by Dean Iris C. Castillon, RM, RN, MAN, MAEd. and Arcelli Francisco, RN, MAN to identify the student’s perception in taking the Nursing Aptitude Test. The questionnaire has both types of questions: Unstructured forms which are â€Å"open-ended† questions; and structured forms which are â€Å"close-ended† questions. This questionnaire will be provided by the researchers for the level 1 nursing students. They have to answer by filling up the blanks adjacent to the free response question. On the other hand, in close-ended questions, checking the appropriate response in each question will be the method of answering. Both will help the researchers to determine their perception in the Nursing Aptitude Test. The researchers ensure that the questions are organized into units and progresses from one type to another according to their relationship. It is also made simple and interesting to avoid too much time in answering the questionnaire and promote interest in answering. Data Gathering Procedure In order to conduct the data gathering procedure, the researchers respectfully approach the Dean of the College of Nursing of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay to ask for approval and permission, furthermore interview to the dean will be accomplished as part of the requirement in the research. Libraries, bookstores, and even website in the internet were visited by the researchers in collecting related literatures and recent studies from years 2005 up to present. This literatures and studies are used in evaluating its relationship to the research. Through the effort of the researchers, also with the aid of formal letter in asking for approval to different librarians, they successfully obtained essential information to formulate the research. Finally, researchers gave a questionnaire to the respondent in determining the perception of level 1 nursing students to the Nursing Aptitude Test as a basis of Selective Retention Program. Research Locale Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay is located at Pasadena St. F. B. Harrison Pasay City. The College of Nursing and School of Midwifery is located at P. Burgos St. Pasay City. It is a government institution founded on 1994. On May 13, 1995, Ordinance 452 amended Ordinance 2712 stating among others, the power and functions of the governing body of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay. On September 17, 1996, Ordinance 665 further amended ordinance 271 establishing Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay as a public educational institution. It stated that, by virtue of the provisions of the Local Government Code of 1991, the function of the municipal corporation is a dual in nature in that, one is governmental and the other is proprietary, thus making the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay, operated by the city Government of Pasay, government in character. It, therefore, justifies the charging of its operational and maintenance expenses to the Special Education Fund. It offers educational programs at different levels from primary and secondary education, college degrees and graduate school. Sampling Technique Non-Probability Sampling is the technique use for selection of group to be studied. The method also referred as a purposive sampling, the research subject in determining perception to Nursing Aptitude Test as basis of selective retention program which includes all level 1 nursing students of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay with regards to certain characteristics such as age, civil status and gender. Statistical Treatment The data gathered from the survey will be analyzed and interpreted through the computation of the following: a. Mean The mean (or average) of a set of data values is b. Weighted mean The weighted mean is a mean where there is some variation in the relative contribution of individual data values to the mean. Each data value (Xi) has a weight assigned to it (Wi).