The Paradigm Debate Essay Example for Free

The Paradigm Debate Essay The heart of the debate between the quantitative and qualitative paradigms in research is based on the authenticity and correctness of the data gathered from each approach. I believe that the central debate is based on which paradigm best portrays what is real, what is scientific and what is valid. The endless debate of these two approaches will stay if not for the most part of the 21st century but a few more decades from now, since there has been slow development in the field of research methods (Mahoney Goertz, 2006). The quantitative approach says that the rigors of science, the objectivity of the scientific approach and the use of statistics will generate the true picture of the problem as what the research had entailed to investigate. On the other hand, the qualitative approach says that human life cannot be thought of as variables, experiments or even number because it takes out the essence of the social interaction, the emotional and mental processes involved in the experience or the behavior. In the past, the distinction between what data or variables lend itself better to quantitative approach and which data should be examined using the qualitative approach was clear (Tashakkori Teddlie, 2003). But at the moment, the rising awareness of the qualitative approach as a valid research method and the quantitative approach becoming more cognizant of the less objective variables are in a battle to which approach will yield the most valid and truest result. In the past the quantitative approach was the only way to do research, the introduction of anthropology and ethnographic researches have widened the research methodology of various disciplines (Salomon, 1991).   With it was the start of the unending debate over which approach was most beneficial to the research. The idea however is a far cry from the present state of mixed methods approach, recognizing that each approach had its own merits, a different breed of research approach now utilizes the two paradigms and calls it mixed methods approach. As a student of psychology, I am inclined to favor the qualitative approach as it is more able to provide a deeper understanding and meaning of the variables being studied, it would make more sense to me to explore how bipolar construe friendships which can never be captured by the use of a quantitative friendship scale which offers less insight to the experiences and dynamics of friendships. However, the scientific part of me wants to believe in the wisdom of objectivity and science, I have been trained under the old school experimental and behavioral psychology which gave much importance to experimentation and control of variables. This would mean that my orientation towards research is that of the quantitative fervor. Choosing which side to favor is like asking me to choose between the devil and the deep blue see, each approach presents a different understanding of the variables under study and I am often reminded of the nature and nurture debate which predominated the developmental psychology field. Therefore, I would rather say that I support the quantitative approach because it has been around far enough to at least become more refined to provide better measures and control for the study of variables   which in the past have been questioned with regards to the validity and reliability of the results of the study (Adcock Collier, 2001). Moreover, the quantitative approach is the form mostly accepted by the scientific community and therefore is more established and more credible, although it does not mean that all quantitative researches are excellently written but that some may have sacrificed the integrity of the conduct of the research due to budget constraints or a poorly designed research method (Mahoney Goertz, 2006). The quantitative approach has reached an almost cult like following and dissenters have naturally went to support the qualitative approach but whichever it is, I am convinced for now that the quantitative paradigm has more sense and purpose than qualitative approaches (Mahoney Goertz, 2006). References Adcock, R. Collier, D. (2001). Measurement validity: A shared standard for qualitative and quantitative research. American Political Science Review 95; 3: 529-546. Mahoney, J. Goertz, G.(2006). A tale of two cultures: Contrasting quantitative and qualitative research. Political Analysis 14: 227-249. Salomon, G. (1991). Transcending the qualitative-quantitative debate: The analytic and systemic approaches to educational research. Educational Researcher, 20, 10-18. Tashakkori, A. Teddlie, C. (2003). Handbook of Mixed Methods in Social Behavioral Research. Thousand Oaks, CA.: Sage Publications.

Rome and Juliet Essay -- Literary Analysis, Shakespeare

L.O.V.E.: Land of Joy, Ocean of Tears, Valley of Happiness, End of Life Four letters of the alphabet, e, o, l, v, can cause a variety of consequences such as death or happiness because once arranged in a certain order, they spell love. Love happens to have many different forms that change depending on what and who someone feels love for. When varying types of love intersect, they end up creating chaos or happily ever afters. The endings formed by the intersection depend on whether the love is nice or malicious. Nice love causes weddings with horse-drawn carriages, while malicious love causes people to lose their pulse. Sometimes it does not make a difference how powerful love is, just the fact that someone is feeling affection could cause unwise decisions, since the person could be acting with temerity. The different types of love shown in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare end up either complementing or contradicting each other when it comes to the actions of the characters and the fates of those characters. The main and most common type of love in Romeo and Juliet is romantic love. Romantic love is when somebody loves someone in a way that his or her heart connects with the other person’s heart and they go on dates, embrace each other, and sometimes get married to each other. When people amorously love each other, they will do bizarre and insane things for each other, so romantic love is very powerful. Romeo says: Then plainly know my heart’s dear love is set On the fair daughter of rich Capulet; As mine on hers, so hers is set on mine, And all combined, save what thou must combine By holy marriage. (Shakespeare 2.3.57-61) Romeo and Juliet both truly, romantically love each other since their hearts connec... ...p love has to do with people that are not relatives, such as classmates. Fake love is when people think or assume someone is in love and it causes confusion because people are assuming the wrong thing. When types of love complement each other, decisions are simple because the kinds of love support each other. On the other hand, contradicting forms of love make decisions difficult because they do not support each and make the character choose which form of love is more powerful. The different types of love found in a person’s life can amaze some people and when making a decision, thinking about how kinds of love interact can make deciding effortless. Although we all might think those four letters of the alphabet are very trouble-some, we have to admit that without them, our lives would be nondescript because everyone needs a little love in their life to enjoy. Rome and Juliet Essay -- Literary Analysis, Shakespeare L.O.V.E.: Land of Joy, Ocean of Tears, Valley of Happiness, End of Life Four letters of the alphabet, e, o, l, v, can cause a variety of consequences such as death or happiness because once arranged in a certain order, they spell love. Love happens to have many different forms that change depending on what and who someone feels love for. When varying types of love intersect, they end up creating chaos or happily ever afters. The endings formed by the intersection depend on whether the love is nice or malicious. Nice love causes weddings with horse-drawn carriages, while malicious love causes people to lose their pulse. Sometimes it does not make a difference how powerful love is, just the fact that someone is feeling affection could cause unwise decisions, since the person could be acting with temerity. The different types of love shown in Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare end up either complementing or contradicting each other when it comes to the actions of the characters and the fates of those characters. The main and most common type of love in Romeo and Juliet is romantic love. Romantic love is when somebody loves someone in a way that his or her heart connects with the other person’s heart and they go on dates, embrace each other, and sometimes get married to each other. When people amorously love each other, they will do bizarre and insane things for each other, so romantic love is very powerful. Romeo says: Then plainly know my heart’s dear love is set On the fair daughter of rich Capulet; As mine on hers, so hers is set on mine, And all combined, save what thou must combine By holy marriage. (Shakespeare 2.3.57-61) Romeo and Juliet both truly, romantically love each other since their hearts connec... ...p love has to do with people that are not relatives, such as classmates. Fake love is when people think or assume someone is in love and it causes confusion because people are assuming the wrong thing. When types of love complement each other, decisions are simple because the kinds of love support each other. On the other hand, contradicting forms of love make decisions difficult because they do not support each and make the character choose which form of love is more powerful. The different types of love found in a person’s life can amaze some people and when making a decision, thinking about how kinds of love interact can make deciding effortless. Although we all might think those four letters of the alphabet are very trouble-some, we have to admit that without them, our lives would be nondescript because everyone needs a little love in their life to enjoy.

Financial statement analysis Essay

Financial statement analysis is a process which examines past and current financial data for the purpose of evaluating performance and projecting future risks and potential of a company. Financial statement analysis is used by various people and companies for different reasons, e.g. investors, creditors, lending officers, managers, employees and many other parties who rely on financial data for making economic decisions about a company. The objective of this David Jones financial statement analysis is to identify the company’s performance issues, to provide suggestions and recommendations by employing the Ratio Analysis method and analysing Profitability, Efficiency, Short and Long term Solvency, and by using Market Based Ratios. The following report outlines the financial performance of David Jones Limited based on the FY2011 & FY2012 Annual Reports. The key measures used to assess company performance are Profitability, Efficiency, Short & Long-term Solvency and Market-Based Ratios. David Jones has performed well in a few areas which include having solid cash flows, low debt, a strong balance sheet and assets in prime locations; however there is definite room for improvement with regards to sales performance, and it needs to address the high cost of sales and sluggish inventory in order to turn around company profitability and performance. We have studied your 2011 and 2012 financial reports and statements and can see that your company’s sales performance has been declining year on year. Sales revenue for FY2012 was down -4.8% when compared to FY2011, and FY2011 sales were down -4.45% vs. FY2010. Your chairman and management have blamed this on the depressed consumer sentiment and increased global competition as a result of the strong Australian currency. â€Å"The uncertainty of Europe and USA and volatility in global equity market have contributed to a general feeling of uncertainty, the strong Australian dollar also contributed to price deflation and encouraged spending offshore.† (page 2, Annual Report) Profitability In FY2012, all measures of profitability were considerably down on last year. Gross Profit was down from $767m to $670m, and the Gross Profit margin (GP %) was down 160bp to 37.5% (-4.2% on FY2011: 39.1%). The poor GP % has been the result of discounting in a competitive environment and dealing with excess inventory on hand at the commencement of FY2012 (page 5, Annual Report). When compared to your main competitor Myer (Market Capitalization 1.59b1 Vs. DJS 1.477b2), there is a large variance between the Gross Profit Margins of the two companies (Myer GP % FY2012: 49.3%3, +160bp from previous year, DJs-FY2012: 37.47% -160bp). This can be attributed to Myer’s much lower Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) (Myer 56% Vs. DJs 62.5% in FY2012). Myer has a competitive advantage in the marketplace with a larger network of stores and greater buying power. Their larger volume of purchases may mean they are able to obtain lower cost prices with suppliers. However, there are a few key areas you have identified in your Future Strategic Direction plan which we feel will assist in lowering your COGS and result in a better GP % rate. Firstly, signing exclusive brands to your portfolio will ensure product differentiation to customers and better control over supplier trading terms and prices. Secondly, the Cost Price Harmonisation that you are engaging in with suppliers (page 3, Annual Report) is key to maintaining your GP % and ensuring that your COGS do not rise and prices do not become uncompetitive with international retailers. Thirdly, discontinuing lower margin categories and moving towards a greater product mix of higher margin categories (page 4, Annual Report) will increase your GP % in the long run and ensure you maximize the profit outcome from the inventory you carry. For example, introducing more private label house brands could be one strategy in which to increase the proportion of higher margin products in your portfolio. The Net Profit Margin in FY2012 dropped drastically compared to FY2011 (-36.9%, $101 vs. $168 million), with sales revenue dropping -4.8% ($1.867b vs. $1.962b). It was however, on par with Myer at 5.4%. The main factor contributing to the big fall in net profit were the high operating expenses over FY2012. Depreciation expenses were up by +13.23%, leasing expenses were up by +6.1%, advertising and marketing had gone up +19%, administration expenses were up by +29.4%, and finance costs were up +40%. Excess inventory during the clearance period also resulted in heavier discounting and contributed to the fall in net profit. Whilst your company has noted Cost of Doing Business (CODB) Reductions as one of the points in your Future Strategic Direction Plan, there are many other areas that can be addressed to ease operating costs. For example, a reduction in the size of all or some of your retail stores will result in savings in store costs such as leasing, staff, utilities, and so on. This could be implemented in conjunction with the Omni Channel Retailing strategy as highlighted as the first point in your Future Strategic Direction Plan (page 3, Annual Report), as customers move away from traditional bricks and mortar shops and increasingly to online shopping destinations. The excellent growth rate in HY2013 of your online store4 highlights the opportunities in the online channel and the change in customer shopping behaviour. With regards to the Asset Turnover ratio, your company performed slightly better than Myer Holdings in FY2012 (1.5 Vs 1.34, Refer to Appendix B). Internally, there was an 8% drop that was due to sluggish sales performance (1.5 Vs. 1.63, Refer to Appendix A). Since your Net Profit Margin dropped dramatically in FY2012, the Return on Assets (ROA) followed suit and decreased by -41% (from 13.96 to 8.23, refer to Appendix A); not a good result in asset management performance. Your company’s property portfolio consists of 4 buildings valued at $612 million (page 5, Annual Report). All of these buildings are in the prime locations, with two in the Sydney CBD and two in the Melbourne CBD. The rental income is assumed to be in the vicinity of $39 million per annum (page 5, Annual Report). If a reduced size store was considered, a potential income of $10-15 million could be generated per annum, increasing the net profit percentage by 9-14% (Net Profit FY2012 – $101,103,000). Your company’s re-development consideration is a long-term process and we believe it will be successful in generating positive ROA with the appropriate planning. Improving the Gross Profit margin while maintaining current overheads will result in a positive increase in the Net Profit margin position and enhance the overall performance of the company. Efficiency Efficiency is more meaningful when compared to peers in the same industry and can assist in identifying businesses that are better managed relative to others. By comparing your figures with Myer, your company performed better in Inventory Turnover (89 days vs 96 days, Appendix A & Appendix B), which means you have a better stockturn and are generating revenue from your inventory in a shorter period of time. However, 89 days is still a fairly high measure as it means you are sitting on stock for an average of 3 months before it is sold through. To improve your inventory turnover, you could consider dropping your bestselling items more frequently to stores, but with smaller quantities each time. This will ensure that the stores which are selling through the stock quickest remain in stock at all times, without a large amount of unsold stock building up in the slower performing stores and affecting your inventory turnover. It also means you will be generating sales and cash more quickly from your stock investment. Myer performed slightly better on â€Å"Average Days Sales Uncollected† (DJS: 3.5 days vs. Myer: 2.5 days, Appendix A & B). To improve this measure for example, you could encourage more online sales to generate faster turnover into cash than store card sales which are monthly billings. Internally, FY2012 performed slightly better than FY2011 in Average Days Sales Uncollected (FY2012: 3.5 vs. FY2011: 4 days) but worse in Inventory Turnover (FY2012: 89 vs. FY2011: 87 days). The differences were negligible. Short-Term Solvency David Jones has a good ability to meet its short-term financial obligations, with a Current Ratio of 1.05 in FY2012 (Appendix A) outperforming Myer at 0.88 (Appendix B). However, since the Quick Ratio is not high at 14.4% (Appendix A), short-term liquidity could be an issue. When compared with Myer at 11% (Appendix B), David Jones has performed better. The Current Ratio performed better in FY2011 than FY2012 by 14.6% (Appendix A). The main reason for this is the 15.1% increase in Current Liability ($306 million Vs. $266 million), with the $40 million difference due to an increase in Account Payables. There is no change in the Quick Ratio from FY2011 to FY2012 (14.4%), i.e. on the low side and short-term liquidity can be an issue, should not allow it to be deteriorate. The â€Å"Cash & Cash Equivalents† and â€Å"Receivables† figures totaled $36.935 million which represented around 14% of â€Å"Payables† in the 2012 Annual Report. In order to achieve a better short-term liquidity position, a more efficient ordering & inventory control system should be implemented. Less inventory on hand equates to more cash and liquidity. Excess inventory can jeopardize a company’s liquidity, in addition to causing stock problems and markdowns at the end of a season as was evidenced in FY2012. Long-Term Solvency You company performed much better than Myer Holdings in the area of Long-Term Solvency. Your company has demonstrated consistency in this area and long-term solvency should not be an immediate issue with your organization. The Debt to Equity ratio showed that there was an increase of 11% in FY2012 compared with FY2011 (Refer to Appendix A), i.e. the liability has gone up relative to shareholders’ equity. The main contribution to the increase is due to the +22.3% ($265m Vs. $216m) increase in the Payables account. It is important to ensure that this trend does not continue and that debt does not continue to rise when compared to equity levels. With strong non-current assets of $917 million & total assets in excess of $1.24 billion, the Debt to Total Assets ratio is healthy, with FY2011 at 35% and FY2012 at 37% (Refer to Appendix A) respectively. The extra 2% was due to the liability increase and it was the fallout of excess inventory as discussed in the short-term solvency section. Market-based Ratios To calculate the Price/Earnings (P/E) Ratio, we used the share price on 16/5/2013 ($2.80). This equates to a PE ratio of 14.43, with the Earnings yield ratio at 6.93% and the Dividend yield ratio at 6.25% (dividend was 17.5c). Myer Holdings’ dividend yield was around 7% (dividend of 19c with share price at $2.70). The market-based ratio is higher than your main competitor (Myer PE ratio is 11.8)5. However the Price/Earnings ratio indicates that today’s share price of the company is on the low side as it is below 15. The majority of analysts believe that the company is performing below par and do not recommend buying or holding David Jones shares at the moment. Eva Brocklehurst of FNArean.com is quoted as saying in March 2013, † David Jones (DJS) is transforming. For brokers it’s not a moment too soon, as department stores have been plagued by a soft consumer environment and a need to respond to new trends in shopping. In its first half results the company has flagged progress with its strategic plan, reducing costs and expanding margins. Earnings were ahead of expectations for the half but sales growth was not. What pleased was the increased margin. What concerns brokers? Most importantly, a lack of sales momentum. There’s no Buy rating on the FNArena database. Two brokers have downgraded ratings to Sell in the wake of the results. There are five Sell ratings. There was one upgrade to Hold, and there are three Hold ratings. The consensus target price is $2.73, suggesting 11.5% downside to the last traded share price. A dividend yield of 5.5% is reflected in consensus earnings forecasts for FY13.†6 Performance Issues As highlighted above, your declining sales performance is the biggest concern for shareholders and needs to be addressed immediately. Whilst earnings were ahead of expectations, this was managed by cost reductions and a move towards increased margins. An improvement in sales in conjunction with the efforts you’re undertaking to reduce expenses and the cost of doing business will result in an improvement in the bottom line and signal confidence in the company and a turnaround for investors. David Jones has been labelled as an up-market department store. Australia’s $12 billion fashion retail industry is forecast to grow by only 0.5% in FY2012 with only an average 1.2% annualised growth expected for the next 5 years, according to analysis group IBISWorld. Furthermore, IBISWorld says shoppers are now more likely to buy low to mid-range priced clothing which has contributed to the declining value of retail sales. In general, the outlook is not too positive for the industry.7 Greater differentiation is required between David Jones and Myer in order to attract and retain customers. Mark Ritson, Associate Professor of Marketing at Melbourne Business School commented, â€Å"David Jones and Myer are just two sides of same boring coin.† He says, â€Å"I still believe to this day that most people coming out of either David Jones or Myer on Bourke Street don’t know which one they just come out of.†7 Some of the issues have been addressed by your company’s Future Strategic Direction Plan, for example, a move towards Omni Channel Retailing, building a â€Å"Home of Brands† strategy which differentiates David Jones from Myer, and cost improvements including GP margin improvements, CODB reductions and Cost Price Harmonisation with suppliers (pages 3-6, Annual Report). Conclusion A thorough review of your company’s FY2011 and FY2012 Financial Report & Statements has indicated that David Jones has a strong balance sheet, solid cash flows, low debt, and assets in prime locations. David Jones has performed on par, or better than Myer in the areas of Net Profit Margin, Asset Turnover, Inventory Turnover, and Short & Long-term Solvency. However, the company’s declining sales performance is the biggest area of concern. Almost all measures of profitability were worse than Myer and have been falling when compared to David Jones’ own performance in prior years. We believe that further differentiation from Myer, cost reductions & margin improvements, harmonization of prices to become more competitive with international competitors, better inventory management & a reduction in excessive stock, reduced retail floor space, and the move towards Omni-Channel Retailing will enhance the value of your company and result in better performance for all stakeholders. We hope this report has provided insightful recommendations into improving the performance of your company. This report has been generated for your company’s own reference and not for any other purposes. Other companies or individuals should not use or rely on any material contained within this report without the consent of our office.

Imagining the Future in Iraq Essay - 1293 Words

Imagining the Future in Iraq The future of Iraq remains unclear. There are those who have tried to categorize the current conflict as the next Vietnam. Others have dubbed it the next Afghanistan, and others still see a future for Iraq unlike any seen in history. In the midst of all this speculation, one thing is certain: eventually, the US military must withdraw from occupied Iraq. As a matter of history, occupation does not last unless there is a concomitant colonization and/or a significant population influx. Since the latter is absent from the current situation in Iraq, it holds that an eventual American military withdrawal is inevitable. Interestingly enough, the U.S.s divide and conquer method, i.e. one which attempts†¦show more content†¦Just as in George Orwells 1984, where the government was in the business of tampering with public records to push their agenda, so too is the current administration sugar-coating the truth with falsehood and deceptively harming the American public by keeping them in the dark. Wouldnt it be ironic though if Iraq managed, as in Iran, to take over the American Embassy and declare the independence of its own theocratic state? The current situation does after all mirror Irans prior to the Revolution of 1979 in several ways. The United Statess presence was one that encouraged the political repression of those against the established power in Iran and does the same today in Iraq. Further, Shias, who constitute sixty percent of the Iraqi population and almost all of Irans, tend to gather more than Sunnis in large groups during such mourning holidays as Ashura and Arbaeen, and so have a ritual means of gathering en masse. Also, just like the thousands of troops the U.S. has stationed around the country, so too did the Shah employ tens of thousands of SAVAK agents, or secret police, to keep a tight grip on any potential insurrection. Ultimately, the instability of the mass protests frightened the Shah and he fled to Egypt shortly afterwards. In Iraq, escalating American deaths and an unstable situation could convince theShow MoreRelatedIraq Is A Multicultural Country1220 Words   |  5 Pages Thesis: Iraq is a multicultural country that is located in the Middle East. Iraq borders Kuwait to the south, Saudi Arabia the south, Jordan the west, Syrian Arab Republic to the northwest, Turkey to the north, and the Islamic Republic of Iran to the East. 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