Monday, February 24, 2020

Philip Zambardo Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Philip Zambardo - Research Paper Example He has written many useful psychology books and text books for students. The Lucifer Effect and The Time Paradox are his famous books. He is currently heading a movement for everyday heroism and working as the director of The Heroic Imagination Project. In his book, The Lucifer Effect, Zimbardo explains how good people lead to engage in evil actions. He has formulated his theories after 30 years of research and his theories and arguments about how good people become bad people were hotly debated topics in America at present. There are many incidents in which people with good backgrounds turned to criminals. Zimbardo’s theories give us insights about the reasons for such transformations. He has conducted a prison study (Stanford prison study), in which he tried to study the behavior of innocent people when they face jail terms. This study has relevance now, especially because of the events such as the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuses in Iraq. I decided to research about Philip George Zimbardo mainly because of that. This paper analyses the life and contributions of Philip George Zimbardo. Philip George Zimbardo was born on March 23, 1933 in New York City in a family of Sicilian immigrants. He has completed his BA from Brooklyn College in 1954, with psychology, sociology, and anthropology as the major subjects. He has completed his M.S. degree in 1955 and achieved a PhD in psychology from Yale University in 1959. Initially he worked in various universities as a professor. New York University, Columbia University, Stanford University and Yale are some of the institutions in which he worked as a professor in psychology. While he was working in Stanford University, he has conducted prison study in 1971 which is famous as Stanford prison study now. He has selected some college students and assigned them roles of "prisoners" or "guards" in a mock prison located in the basement of the psychology building at Stanford. He was forced to stop his studies after six days ev en though he planned the study for two weeks because of the emotional problems faced by the students. Even though the student volunteers knew that they were being used in a study and all the actions performed in this study are only mock actions, it was difficult for them to keep their emotions intact because of the terrible settings created by Zimbardo. On arrival, the â€Å"prisoners† or the student volunteers were stripped, searched, shaved and deloused which caused a great deal of humiliation in the designed Stanford prison. Zimbardo succeeded in creating a real jail like environment and it was too difficult for the participants to adjust with it for longer period. â€Å"The test got so out of hand that it was broken off after only 6 days. Since then, Zimbardo has never spoken about the experiment, until the arrival of his book entitled ’The Lucifer Effect’† (Zimbardo breaks his silence). The â€Å"Lucifer Effect† describes the point in time whe n an ordinary, normal person first crosses the boundary between good and evil to engage in an evil action. It represents a transformation of human character that is significant in its consequences. Such transformations are more likely to occur in novel settings, in â€Å"total situations,† where social situational forces are sufficiently powerful to overwhelm, or set aside temporally, personal attributes of morality, compassion, or sense of justice and fair play

Saturday, February 8, 2020

Challenges in Hiring Talent Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Challenges in Hiring Talent - Research Paper Example Prince (25), states that there has been a 10 % decline in the average quality of a worker since 2004. This has prompted companies to redouble efforts aimed at hiring the best candidates for the job at whatever cost. Between 1946 and 1964, America experienced massive economic growth that triggered the emergence of more companies and the increase in profitability of businesses in the country (Yates 47). During this time, a new breed of talented and driven managers, entrepreneurs and personnel also emerged, supported by the emergence of ‘baby boomers’ that propagated economic growth and increase in population. The last decade has seen the retirement of a large percentage of these individuals, and a large vacuum has been left that may not be filled as soon as is expected. Businesses have therefore found it paramount to ‘fish’ for the best and most qualified people by employing whatever means necessary to make them a part of their vision. Apart from a decline in the quality of workers available and the shrinking of the pool from which companies used to draw their workers, there has been a great shift in the type of individuals required in the workplace. Between 1946 and 1964, there was a massive increase in manufacturing, spurred by an increase in demand for industrial products and goods (Gilmore 34). A lot of emphasis was therefore laced on the need for workers who could support the manufacturing process, and this called for individuals who mainly had to follow procedures and carry out instructions as required. Little reasoning and judgment was required in these types of jobs that can also be referred to as transactional or transformational. A change in needs, priorities and focus has left companies with no option but to scout for intelligent and clear-thinking people who can make decisions on their own and come up with solutions to problems without relying on their seniors. These types of workers are also good team players who are capable of working with other employees for the benefit of the company (Noe 76). This can be attributed to the emergence of a new type of jobs that are classified under the tacit category, in which intellectual capability and contribution is preferred over physical labor. Question 2: Incentives (apart from salary) that a Company may use to Encourage a Prospective Employee to Accept a Job Offer With the changes taking place in the workplace, companies appreciate the fact that better or higher remuneration is no longer sufficient when looking to hire employees. Other factors have now been found to play a huge role in the ability of a company to not only hire but also retain the best workers (Hunt 59). These factors include opportunities for growth, good working conditions, good moral and ethical values and an appreciation of current and prospective employees. Employees need to know that they can grow in a company and become better at what they do. Nobody wants to work for 10 years in the sam e position when there are other avenues for growth elsewhere. For instance, I may be paid $100,000 a year to head the sales and marketing department in a company, but I may not be willing to remain in the same position (especially if I deserve to be promoted). If a sales representative rises to be my deputy and I am still holding the same position I have had for the last 10 years then I am not growing on my job. The salary may be attractive but growth is more important. When hiring