Organization Design Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Organization Design - Essay Example For example, in the case of a pharmaceutical company, power is retained by the R&D department because it is the very department that generates resources. Which subunits qualify for receiving the information is dictated by the organizational structure. When a certain subunit in the organizational structure has more control over information compared to other subunits, it is capable of influencing the opinions and accordingly influence the decision making process. Subunits that are central to the organization have more power than others. Manufacturing is central in a low-cost organizational culture. Organizations sometimes need to assign more power to a certain subunit in order to ensure that it makes optimal use of the resources. The balance of power between the different subunits is not always suitable for effective utilization of the resources (Jones, 2010, p. 423). Apart from this, there can be relational ties between the executive managers and the head of one of the subunits, which can become a reason for more delegation of power to that subunit compared to

Leadership styles and the behaviour styles

Leadership styles and the behaviour styles Leadership is the behavior of an individual when he/she is directing the activities of a group towards a common purpose.  [1]  A leader is seen as someone who sets the paths in an effort to influence people to adhere to those paths. Leadership is an action and not just a position. It can be shown via different people in various situations. A person is not born to be a leader but cultured through the upbringing and environment. A leaders personal characteristics are also vital for the developments and motivations of the organizations. True leaders such as the teachers who illustrated that leadership is an action (teaching and leading the students) and not a position. Touching the lives and affecting the outcome of many different expectations, a teacher is the epitome of a leader. A leader has his or her own style of motivating the people in the organizations. A leader must find the best skills in order to provide directions, motivations and purposes. Effective leaders are flexible. Organizational Leadership Model The effective leadership influence is not the same for everyone. It depends on their ranks in the organization and abilities which are required in leaders. The three basic leadership roles identified: initiation, speech, and management. 1. Initiation Initiation refers to planned decision making on policy formulation or structural change. These vital decisions are the determinants of the organizations culture and mission. 2. Speech Strategic decisions and methods designed for implementation within the establishment. It includes adjusting or adding on to the present structure towards new policy demands. 3. Management Management is putting into practice the policies and measures that are available to maintain the operations of the organization efficiently. These three kinds of Leadership are naturally executed at diverse ranks in the company with different abilities and skills. The top level management would initiate new policies that involve a change in the businesss structure or understanding the companys mission. An understanding of the entire organization, culture, mission, vision and how it correlates with the external parties is mandatory for these top level individuals. They represent the organization and what the business stands for. Understanding the policy decisions and practicing them to the existing organization via utterance or speech is usually made by the intermediate-level managers. They must uphold a two-way point of reference by taking orders from the above management and adapting them for the lower groups of people in the organization. Type of Leadership Process Typical Organizational Level Cognitive (Knowledge) Affective (Emotion) Initiation: Change, creation and elimination of structure Top echelons System perspective Charisma Speech: supplementing and piecing out of structure Intermediate levels: pivotal roles Subsystem perspective: two-way orientation Integration of primary and secondary relations: human relation skills Management: use of existing structure Lower levels Technical knowledge and understanding of system of rules Concern with equity in use of rewards and sanctions EXHIBIT 16.1 Three Leadership Patterns, Their Location in the Organization, and Their Skill Requirements  [2]   The companys policies and procedures will be administered by the Lower-level supervisors. These personnel must possess both the technical knowledge and a clear perception of the organizations rules in order to be successful. They have to continually deal with issues such as equity, rewards and punishments in leading others. Therefore, leadership plays a crucial role in an organization because the it has direct impact on the effectiveness of the organizations. Leadership is when a person manipulates others to perform a task at their own will which they would not normally do. Leadership is a vital process to an organization and it can be deliberated on three different stages; i.e. the individual, group and organization. Analysis at the individual stage: the leadership studies have paid attention on the successful leader personalities. Behaviors of both formal and informal leaders are focused at the group level. The effectiveness of an organization is decided by the relations between the leader, follower and circumstances. The studies have caused an emergence of different theories of leadership, namely situational and contingency. In Search for Leadership The requirements in selecting and training efficient leaders were emphasized during the World War I and the quarter century between World War l and World War II; numerous studies were made to examine the personal characteristics of good leaders. These studies are usually referred as characteristic studies since the primary goal was to classify the traits and personal characteristics of successful leaders. The diverse methods used to study these leadership traits could possibly be the reason in the irregularities of the results. The manner of studies was not consistent in identifying the leaders. A majority of the studies was in comparing efficient with inefficient leaders or leaders with non-leaders. Some were identified by external observers, others selected by the group by way of recommendation or voting, nominated by observers such as teachers while some were chosen because they are already in leadership positions. The studies conducted were in conflict as to the way they deliberated on the traits. Some traits were measured by mental tests; others relied on viewers to spot the traits they have seen while some depended on the persons to report their own personality traits. The trait studies were quite unsatisfactory as a whole especially since they had hoped to develop an accurate measure of leadership effectiveness. The spotlight on the leadership research moved because of the flimsy results, to contingency studies which investigated more than just traits of a leader. Numerous traits formed an important divergence in leadership effectiveness and they interrelated with other conditional variables to stimulate the effectiveness of the leader. Physical Behaviors Physical attributes including height, weight, health and appearance are also examined in the studies. It was concluded that there is a relationship between the above features and leadership. Apparently leaders have the tendency to be taller, heavier, better fitness, greater physique, higher energy output and more attractive in appearance. However, these types of results were not always reliable and consistent. The results neither are too weak in general and not consistent to be effective in selecting leaders nor are they helpful for training functions since not much can be made to alter most of these physical traits. Intellect It was generally agreed that leaders are more intellectual than non-leaders and the relationship was shown in the various studies. The relationship could probably begin from the reality that leadership functions depend mostly on success in problem solving. Leadership roles such as initiation, speech and management necessitate great mental ability. In general, it is safe to assume that leaders seems to be more intelligent than non-leaders but the relationships are small. Many other variables other than intellect inspire leadership effectiveness. It was also suggested that leaders should not be too intelligent than the group because associates who are notably brilliant than others are rarely chosen as leaders since the other members tend to snub them. Individuals with high IQs are inclined to have different sets of vocabulary, networks and aspirations that would create communication and inter-relations problems. Leaders do extremely well generally at school/college/university and score better grades. It is important for effective leadership to know how to do things. Thus general and practical knowledge are essential for leaders to make better decisions. Characteristic Traits Only a partial of the characteristic traits seem to be related to leadership and most are not especially convincing. It was suggested that the average leader is more social, has greater initiative, is more persistent, smart in getting things done, highly self-confident, cooperative, adaptable to situations and possesses excellent communication skills.  [3]  Leaders were found to be more emotionally mature than non-leaders in the personality integration or emotional adjustment. It can be concluded that personal characteristics are related to leadership. Effective leadership does not depend on a mixture of personality traits only because situational variables are also important since they always decide whether a character was associated with effective leadership either positively or negatively. Therefore, it can deduced that effective leadership depends on the leaders characteristics, his subordinates and the nature of the task at hand. Many leadership styles were based on studies of leaders behaviors. The finest researches on the styles of leadership are made together at the same time; i.e. The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan. Researchers acknowledged two leader behaviors that were similar although the investigations were conducted separately. As a result, a two dimensional aspects of leadership have been to used to form the Managerial Grid  [4]  . Authoritarian, Democratic, and Laissez-faire  [5]  Leadership Due to the diverse political systems in the US and Germany before World War II, studies of leadership have been inspired which evaluated three styles of leadership: authoritarian, democratic, and laissez faire. In the democratic leadership style, decisions were made by vote of majority; equal participation encouraged; criticism and punishment minimal. In the autocratic leader, the leader made all the decisions and others must follow the set procedures strictly. In the laissez-faire leader, there was minimal actual leadership and others were permitted to work and play as usual without proper directives. Initiating Structure and Consideration The two leadership factors were initiating structure and consideration which include leadership behaviors in organizing and defining the tasks to be performed and goal achievements. A leader who assigns people to do specific jobs, expected workers to follow set routines and meet deadlines. The consideration factor is friendliness, showing trust, exhibiting warmth and concern for followers. Production-Centered and Employee-Centered Leader Behaviors Production centered behaviors were akin to initiating structure in which leaders would establish targets, gave directives, checked on operations and planned the group Employees work. Centered behaviors were similar to the considerations dimension in which the leader would develop a caring personal relationship with the subordinates and encouraged a two-way communication with them. The relationship between production-centered and employee centered behaviors are found to be independent scopes of leadership. A leader with strong production orientation does not mean that he is disinterested in the employees. Managerial Grid  [6]   Robert Blake and Jane Mouton had created a framework which relates task accomplishment to concern for people called the Managerial Grid. They both assumed that concern for production and concern for people would produce the most effective leadership style. There are leaders primarily more concerned with accomplishing the production and task not concerned about people. This person wants the job done and schedule followed at all costs. There is also individual who is not concerned whether the group produces anything but concerned more about the personal needs and interests of the team members. Ideally, leaders should be concerned about meeting schedules in order to get the work done and simultaneously are concerned about the team members interest and feelings too. The Managerial Grid  [7]  is popular among managers. It is extensively used by organisations as part of their training program to assess leadership style. However, the effectiveness of the Managerial Grid is not consistently supported. The factors which are considered in determining leadership styles interact in complicated ways which resulted in various leadership styles. SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP In assessing leadership effectiveness, there are many factors that must be combined. A situational leadership model developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard considers three variables: (1) guidance and direction provided by the leaders (task behavior) (2)emotional support given by the leader (relationship behavior) (3) the maturity level exhibited in performing the task As a result, four potential leadership styles have been created using a combination of the above factors : S1: Telling Give instructions and supervise performance closely. Suited for followers who are unwilling but of low maturity. S2: Selling Decide and provide opportunity for explanation. Appropriate for followers who are not able but willing. S3: Participating Sharing ideas in making decisions. Suited for followers who are able but not willing. S4: Delegating Responsibility handed over for decisions and performance. Appropriate for groups who are able and willing. Contingency Theory of Leadership Fiedler studied the interaction of leadership style and situation. He identified and developed ways to measure leadership orientation of the leader and situational factors which influence leadership. Leader Orientation Two types of leaders were identified, i.e. relationship-oriented or task-oriented. Leaders who are relationship-oriented tend to look at others as coworkers and look upon interpersonal relations as a requirement towards accomplishing the task. However, for task-oriented leaders, they react strongly against people whom they could not get along with in performing a task. Situational favorableness (1) relationships between leader and member can be good or bad; (2) the task is relatively well planned or not; and (3) the leaders authority is relatively strong or weak. The task structure becomes the second most important situational variable based on evaluation of four aspects of the task structure. Clarity: whether requirements of the tasks are stated clearly, Multiplicity: which the problems encounter can be solved. Verifiability: which the correctness of the decisions can be ascertained. Specificity: which there are generally more solutions involved in performing the task. Group effectiveness Relationship-oriented leaders perform excellently well in situations where concern for the team members is apparently necessary in order to motivate them to perform well. People naturally prefer leaders who care about them and their welfare. However, task-oriented leaders are clearly more effective in impossible situations. Path-Goal Model Directive leadership: subordinates are told what to be expected. Specific guide, standards and work schedules are provided to ensure that task are performed as expected. Supportive leadership: subordinates are treated equally and show concern for their needs and well-being; develop pleasant interpersonal relationships among the group members. Achievement-oriented leadership: challenging goals are set and subordinates are expected to perform at their highest level, improvement in performance always. Participative leadership: subordinates are consulted on suggestions and ideas in making decisions. Situational factors Characteristics of the followers and environmental factors which affect leadership style are called situational factors. Significant characteristics of the followers which have been identified as determinants of leadership style are: (1). Followers with internal locus of control believe that they are rewarded for their own effort. Meanwhile, followers with external locus of control believe that external forces have a control on their rewards. (2). Authoritarianism: an individuals willingness to accept the influence of others. (3). Abilities: The followers ability and experience influence a leader whether they are able to work with an achievement oriented leader or a supportive leader who are patient enough to provide encouragement and instruction. The path-goal model recognises three environmental factors which effect leadership styles: the nature of the task to be performed, the existing organisations authority system the organisational norms and dynamics The above factors may influence the effectiveness of various styles of leadership in a many ways. Normative Decision-Making Model of Leadership Based on the contingency theory of leadership, this leadership model does not assume any leadership style as appropriate for all situations. Leaders must develop a range of leadership styles and take on the most appropriate style depending on the situation. Leaders are required to know in which circumstances they need to consult others and vice versa. Even though the leader may be the chairman of the group, he is just one of the group members and does not try to influence the group to adopt a particular solution. Criteria for selecting a leadership style. Two criteria used for assessing the efficiency of a leadership style are quality and acceptance. The quality of the decisions made refers to the accurateness of the actions taken and the extent which some objectives are achieved. The quality of decisions depends on accurate and relevant information Conferring with other group members often provides additional information. Diagnostic decision rules. In order to save time and minimize costs, some managers choose the lead autocratically. If the aim was to further the subordinates personal development, the participative style is selected. In some strategies, the manager decides alone. At times, the manager decides on his own after earlier consultations with his subordinates. Comparing the leadership models. All situational leadership models emphasize on the effect of external factors on a particular leadership style. Different leadership styles suggest styles that are determined by various situational factors. The models focus on different methods, which are situational factors and criteria for selecting the best style: task-oriented versus relationship-oriented. The normative decision-making model ascertains three leadership styles, namely autocratic, consultative, and participative. In each model, situational factors which influence the effectiveness of leadership are somewhat different. A significant reason which contributes to this is that normative decision- making model likens leadership to decision making and considers only this aspect of the leadership function. The model also uses different criteria for evaluating leadership effectiveness. DETERMINANTS OF LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS Although identifying what makes an effective leader seems like a simple task, however, individuals who are in leadership positions are often faced with a dilemma on deciding which leadership pattern to practice. Choosing a Leadership Style Choosing the most appropriate leadership style to adopt depends largely on the context of the organisation. A successful leader must be capable of assessing the situational forces in the organisation and respond accordingly to the needs. The forces include the organisation culture, business goals as well as the organisations strategic plans. Effective leaders must understand themselves, the group, company and social environment. Strategies for Improving Leadership One of the main variable to improve leadership relates largely to the organisations reward system. Leaders should not overlook his capacity to reward his followers accordingly since followers will respond otherwise. For instance, the managers of high- performing groups generally are compensated according to their achievements. Considerate leaders manage to create satisfaction among their performing subordinates while at the same time, changes in the behavior of the leaders could be caused by the performance of the subordinates. Constraints on leader behavior. Leaders have limited opportunities to influence others. Leadership effectiveness is inhibited by a variety of factors. For example, the managerial decisions are planned ahead due to factors such as organisational structure, state and federal law, technological specifications and innovations as well as the absence of other alternatives. Many other organisational factors can impose limitations on the leaders capability to communicate with subordinates or reinforce their behavior towards achieving the organisational purpose. For example, organisational policies, nature of task, skills and abilities of available resources and other external factors may impede the capacities of organisational leaders. External factors. In terms of external factors, leaders are constrained by factors that they have no control on such as state and federal laws. Other external factors include the world economy and global issues. Irrespective of their leadership style, leaders with unskilled resources will face great challenges in leading. The availability of skilled followers is subjected to the external labor market. Organizational policies. The organization may limit a leaders effectiveness by hampering the amount of communication between leaders and followers. The existing company policies may also pose restrictions on the ability of leaders to reward or punish followers. Group factors. Leaders may find it hard to penetrate or influence group members who are highly unified. This will create difficulty for leaders to demonstrate his true capabilities in performing tasks for the organisation. Individual skills and abilities. The leaders own skills and abilities may become their constraints because leaders can only possess limited expertise, energy, and power. Some situations may need greater amount of skills, experience and capabilities compared to what the leader may possibly have. Substitutes for leadership. Leadership is an extremely important function. It has an enormous influence on the value of organizations, especially in a business environment. However, in complex situations, we may not know exactly which leadership behaviour will be the most effective to adopt. In addition, certain situations warrant that leadership may be unnecessary subordinates. SUMMARY 1. Leadership is the increasing influence which occurs when an individual manipulates others to do tasks voluntarily which they would not do otherwise. The basic leadership roles include initiation of policy and structure, speech, and management. Leadership is required within organizations to provide direction to employees towards a common organisational objective. 2. The studies of leadership were mainly studies on traits that tried to identify the characteristics of effective leaders. The studies focused mainly on physical traits, intellect and characteristic. The results were usually weak and inconsistent although some personal characteristics were always related to leadership. Most studies concluded that apart from behaviour characteristics and traits of the leader, the nature of subordinates and the type of task to be performed were as equally important to determine success. 3. Another approach to studying leadership set on leader behaviors; i.e. how leaders actually behave. One of the studies compared three leadership styles: authoritarian, democratic and laissez-faire. Democratic leadership produced the greatest satisfaction among subordinates while autocratic leadership style encouraged high level of productivity in the organisation. 4. Research conducted simultaneously at two different universities identified two groups of similar leadership behaviors. At The Ohio State University, researchers identified these two leader behaviors as initiating structure and consideration. At the University of Michigan, the similar two factors were called production-centered and employee-centered. These two leader behaviors seem to relate leadership functions which are essential to the effectiveness of a group. A matrix named Managerial Grid had been formed based on these two factors. The Managerial Grid correlates the concern for production and the concern for people in identifying leadership effectives. 5. As a result of unsuccessful researches conducted to identify superior leadership behaviors, four situational theories of leadership were developed instead. Theories have suggested that the effective of leadership style depends largely upon situational factors, especially nature of the group and the task to be performed. 6. A situational leadership model that matches various combinations of task and relationship behaviors with maturity of the subordinates. As the number of followers increases, the appropriate leadership style that should be employed would be telling, selling, participating and delegating. 7. Three situational variables are used to assess the most appropriate leadership style. The variables are the relationship between leader and members (good or bad), the task (structured or unstructured) and the strength of the leaders power. Based on findings, the most effective leadership style when these three variables created an extremely favorable or unfavorable situation is task-oriented leadership. However, a leader with a high concern for interpersonal relationships is most effective when there were intermediate levels of favorableness. 8. The path goal model theory is derived from expectancy theory. It suggests that effective leaders must clarify the paths to attract followers. Based on this theory, the directive, supportive, achievement-oriented and participative leadership styles emerged. The most appropriate leadership style is dependent on two types of situational factors: characteristics of followers as well as the internal/external environment. Three significant characteristics of follower are the locus of control (internal or external), authoritarianism and personal capabilities. The three environmental attributes are nature of the task to be performed, the existing organisational authority system and norms and dynamics of members. 9. The three leadership styles identified are autocratic, consultative and group decision making. Determining which style is most appropriate depends largely on several factors such as considerations whether adequate information is made available to the leader when making decision alone, whether the goals of the organisation are acceptable by the subordinates, orwhether the followers accept decisions made without their involvement. 10. Members of the group also has a reciprocal influence on the leader. Group member can influence the behavior of their leaders by responding selectively to specific leader behaviors. The power and influence of a leader can also be limited due to certain external factors such as policies of the organisation, norms of the group members as well as the skills and abilities of followers. POSITIONING ON LEADERSHIP CRISIS Many leadership theories have been in existence as more people tries to determine the most effective leadership style available. Arthur G. Jago (1982)  [8]  had proposed a framework that organizes leadership theories based on each theorys focus and approach. However, effective leadership also depends on specific situations. There are various kinds of behavior that leaders can display to its followers. The two leader behaviors that have been consistently identified are called production-centered and consideration-centered activities. A person can change his or her behaviour without being forced based on the amount of influence exerted by another individual. I concur with A. Ange on the presence of leadership crisis but I also foresee the resolutions taken and are still being taken to resolve the problem. Many organizations are spending money in sending their employees to be groomed and trained for future growth of the company whereby they are exposed to different methods of management and how to be great leaders. Leaders are born to leaders but in some circumstances, situations and environments also play a huge role in creating a leader. Leaders come and go and new ones are always on the threshold to take over the empty space. The qualities of the leaders and their leadership styles vary but they are vital in the development and motivation processes of the organizations. There is a crisis in good leadership but it is not at a critical point. Big organizations would have everything in place for the future growth of the company and would have in line the replacements for all aspects of the management. Even is small to medium sized organizations have planned their management line-ups for the future. The ongoing programs and trainings that are conducted by organizations to produce capable leaders and groom them further showed that companies are aware of the could be crisis and had taken steps to overcome the situation. Yes, there is a crisis but the severity of the crisis is not huge enough to cause panics throughout the organizations.

Comparing In Search of Our Mothers Gardens and I Know Why the Caged Bi

In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings      Ã‚  Ã‚   Alice Walker and Maya Angelou are two contemporary African-American writers.   Although almost a generation apart in age, both women display a remarkable similarity in their lives.   Each has written about her experiences growing up in the rural South, Ms. Walker through her essays and Ms. Angelou in her autobiographies.   Though they share similar backgrounds, each has a unique style which gives to us, the readers, the gift of their exquisite humanity, with all of its frailties and strengths, joys and sorrows.    Tragedy struck both of these women at the age of eight.   Ms. Walker lost her sight in one eye.   Ms. Angelou was raped.   Each described the incident as part of a larger work.   Ms. Walker related her experience in the body of an essay published in her book, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens.   Ms. Angelou told her story as a chapter in her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.   Although both wrote about their traumatic experience, the way each depicted the incident was distinct and seemed to be told for very different purposes.    Alice Walker reports the facts to the reader with short sentences written in the present tense.   She chooses words which elicit a forceful emotional response from her audience.   For example, in telling how her brothers were given BB guns and she was not, Ms. Walker writes, "Because I am a girl, I do not get a gun.   Instantly, I am relegated to the position of Indian."   The word "relegated" causes the reader to be irate and indignant.   Most people do not like being "relegated" to anything.   Another illustration of Ms. Walker's use of dynamic words can be found in her descrip... ...e with their help.    Alice Walker and Maya Angelou are both extremely courageous writers.   From each we receive a rare and poignant gift.   As her book suggests, Alice Walker challenges us to search for resolution in the face of loneliness and despair.   Maya Angelou, who "knows why the caged bird sings," reminds us that loneliness and despair never have the last word.   She gently points us to a window of hope.   Both women bless us with shades of being human. Works Cited: Angelou, Maya. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. New York: Bantam, 1993. Draper, James P., ed., et al. Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 77. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1993. Walker, Alice.   "In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens." Major Modern Essayists. Second Edition.   Ed. Gilbert H. Muller with Alan F. Crooks.   Englewood Cliffs:   Prentice Hall, 1994. 329-337.   

Creative Strategy Statement Example Essay

STARGET AUDIENCE The target audience consists of Male and Females ages 18 through to 27 of mixed nationalities. They are keen travellers and enjoy a very active and fun filled lifestyle. They adopt a tight budget to work with due to their income, which would be placed into the low – mid ($15,000 to $38,000). Demographics: †¢ Age: 18 – 27 †¢ Annual income: Low to mid ($15,000 – $38,000) †¢ Sex: Male & Female †¢ Occupation: Student, part-time / Casual worker †¢ Free spirited, party animal, like to try new things †¢ International, domestic Geographic: Potential clients like the beachside aspect of accommodation (water sports, lifestyle), Love to be in the heart of activity (Close to city/town centres). Something different yet at the same time similar to home (international). Psychographics: †¢ Lifestyle: Traveller, explorer, socialite, †¢ Attitude: Confident, inquisitive †¢ Personality traits: Motivated, Thrifty spender, love to party, active and fit MAJOR SELLING IDEA TO COMMUNICATE: The major selling idea for the Black Market Flights campaign is to create a want for Student Flights and its services in the target audience. The advertising campaign communicates to the audience the qualities of the travel experience (full page advertisement). The use of cityscapes featuring world renowned iconic buildings face of the city personality of the city in  the advertisement appeals to the audience on an emotional level, the feeling of excitement and freedom of travelling in these exotic locations drawing the target audience into the ‘Black Market experience†. The concept that becoming part of an exclusive Student Flights community/experience is very important to communicate to the target audience. Communicating these ideas to the target audience will achieve the aim of affirming Student Flights as the new and only place to stay when travelling on a budget. The key benefits of this style of approach are to portray Black Market Flights as ______ and to create a want in the target audience to become part of the Black Market Flights community. CREATIVE STRATEGY STATEMENT: The campaigns emotional appeal will stem from the hard working student or worker’s desire to travel and visit exotic locales. The barriers that are encountered by most of the target market involve work and university demands which lead to a day-in day-out-repetitive nightmare. As the â€Å"________† campaign is employed, the promotional characteristics of Black Market Flights are conveyed through the audiences want to â€Å"escape† from their current life. However, by embracing the â€Å"I want to escape my current repetitive grind† the brand will be positioned in this light – Always different, always fun, always _____.

Application of Statistical Concepts in the Determination

Experiment 1: APPLICATION OF STATISTICAL CONCEPTS IN THE DETERMINATION OF WEIGHT VARIATION IN SAMPLES LEE, Hyun Sik Chem 26. 1 WFV/WFQR1 ————————————————- Nov. 23, 2012 A skillful researcher aims to end his study with a precise and accurate result. Precision refers to the closeness of the values when some quantity is measured several times; while accuracy refers to the closeness of the values to the true value. The tool he utilizes to prevent errors in precision and accuracy is called statistics.In order to become familiar to this tactic, the experiment aims to help the researchers become used to the concepts of statistical analysis by accurately measuring the weights of ten (10) Philippine 25-centavo coins using the analytical balance, via the â€Å"weighing by difference† method. Then, the obtained data divided into two groups and are manipulated to give statistica l significance, by performing the Dixon’s Q-test, and solving for the mean, standard deviation, relative standard deviation, range, relative range, and confidence limit—all at 95% confidence level.Finally, the results are analyzed between the two data sets in order to determine the reliability and use of each statistical function. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION This simple experiment only involved the weighing of ten 25-centavo coins that are circulating at the time of the experiment. In order to practice calculating for and validating accuracy and precision of the results, the coins were chosen randomly and without any restrictions. This would give a random set of data which would be useful, as a statistical data is best given in a case with multiple random samples.Following the directions in the Analytical Chemistry Laboratory Manual, the coins were placed on a watch glass, using forceps to ensure stability. Each was weighed according to the â€Å"weighing by differenceâ₠¬  method. The weighing by difference method is used when a series of samples of similar size are weighed altogether, and is recommended when the sample needed should be protected from unnecessary atmosphere exposure, such as in the case of hygroscopic materials. Also, it is used to minimize the chance of having a systematic error, which is a constant error applied to the true weight of the object by some problems with the weighing equipment.The technique is performed with a container with the sample, in this experiment a watch glass with the coins, and a tared balance, in this case an analytical balance. The procedure is simple: place the watch glass and the coins inside the analytical balance, press ON TARE to re-zero the display, take the watch glass out, remove a coin, then put the remaining coins back in along with the watch glass. Then, the balance should give a negative reading, which is subtracted from the original 0. 0000g (TARED) to give the weight of the last coin. The p rocedure is repeated until the weights of all the coins are measured and recorded.The weights of the coins are presented in table 1, as these raw data are vital in presenting the results of this experiment. Table 1. Weights of 25-centavo coins measured using the â€Å"weighing by difference† method| Sample No. | Weight, g| 1| 3. 6072| Data Set 2| Data Set 1| 2| 3. 7549| | | 3| 3. 6002| | | 4| 3. 5881| | | 5| 3. 5944| | | 6| 3. 5574| | | 7| 3. 5669| | 8| 3. 5919| | 9| 3. 5759| | 10| 3. 6485| | Note that the data are classified into two groups, Data Set 1 which includes samples numbered 1~6 and Data Set 2 which includes samples numbered 1~10.Since the number of samples is limited to 10, the Dixon’s Q-test was performed at 95% confidence level in order to look for outliers in each data set. The decision to use the Q-test despite the fact that there were only a few, limited number of samples and to use the confidence level of 95% was carried out as specified in the Laborat ory Manual. Significance of Q-test The Dixon’s Q-test aims to identify and reject outliers, values that are unusually high or low and thus differ considerably from the majority and thus may be omitted from the calculations and usages in the body of data.The Dixon’s Q-test should be performed, since a value that is extreme compared to the rest can bring inaccurate results that go against the estimated limits set by other calculations and thus affect the conclusion. This test allows us to examine if one (and only one) observation from a small set of replicate observations (typically 3 to 10) can be â€Å"legitimately† rejected or not. The outlier is classified objectively, by calculating for the suspected outlier, Qexperimental, Qexp, and comparing it with the tabulated Qtab. Qexp is determined by Qexp equation (1). Qexp=Xq-XnR (1)Where Xq is the suspected value, Xn is the value closest to Xq, and R is the range, which is given by the highest data value subtracted by the lowest data value. R=Xhighest-Xlowest (2) If the obtained Qexp is found to be greater than Qtab, the outlier can be rejected. In the experiment, the sample calculation for Data Set 1 is given below: Qexp=Xq-XnR=3. 7549-3. 60723. 7549-3. 5574=0. 14770. 1975=0. 74785 Since Qtab for the experiment is set as 0. 625 for 6 samples at 95% confidence level, Qexp>Qtab. Thus, the suspected value 3. 7549 is rejected in the calculations for Data Set 1.The same process was done for the lowest value of Data Set 1 and the values for Data Set 2, and the values were accepted and will be used for further calculations. This is shown in table 2. (Refer to Appendix for full calculations. ) Table 2. Results of Dixon’s Q-Test| Data Set| Suspect Values| Qtab| Qexp| Conclusion| 1| 3. 7549| 0. 625| 0. 74785| Rejected| | 3. 5574| 0. 625| 0. 15544| Accepted| 2| 3. 7549| 0. 466| 0. 53873| Accepted| | 3. 5574| 0. 466| 0. 048101| Accepted| The statistical values were then computed for the two data sets, and were compared to relate the significance of each form of statistical functions.The values required to be calculated are the following: mean, standard deviation, relative standard deviation (in ppt), range, relative range (in ppt), and confidence limits (at 95% confidence level). Significance of the mean and standard deviation The mean is used to locate the center of distribution in a set of values [2]. By calculating for the average value of the data set, it can be determined whether the set of data obtained is close to each other or is close to the theoretical value. Thus, both accuracy and precision may be determined with the mean, coupled with other statistical references.In the experiment, the mean was calculated using equation (3). The sample calculation used the data from Data Set 1, which had 5 samples after the outlier was rejected via the Q-test. X=i=1nXi=X1+X2+X3†¦+Xnn 3 =(3. 6072+3. 6002+3. 5881+3. 5944+3. 5574)5=3. 5895 Mean is represented by X, the data v alues by X, and the number of samples by n. It can be observed that the mean indeed shows the precision of the accumulated values, as all the values are close to each other and the mean. The standard deviation, on the other hand, is a relative measure of precision of the values.It shows how much the values spread out from the mean. A smaller standard deviation would show that the values are relatively closer to the mean, and a bigger one would show that the values are spread out more. This does not determine the validity of the experimented values. Instead, it is used to calculate further statistical measures to validate the data. The equation (4) was used to calculate the standard deviation, where s represents standard deviation, and the rest are known from the mean. The data set used is the same as the mean. s=1n-1i=1nXi-X2 4 =15-1[3. 072-3. 58952+3. 6002-3. 58952+3. 5881-3. 58952+3. 5944-3. 58952+3. 5574-3. 58952] =0. 019262 Mean and standard deviations by themselves are relative ly poor indicators of the accuracy and precision of the data. These are manipulated to give clearer views on the data. One of the measures of precision is the relative standard deviation. RSD=sX? 1000ppt (5) =0. 0192623. 5895? 1000=5. 3664 The relative standard deviation is a useful way of determining the precision of the data compared to other sets of data, as the ratio would be a good way of differentiating the two.This will be expounded further. Range is easily found with equation (2) to give the value of 0. 0498, taking note that the highest value was rejected via the Q-test. R=3. 6072-3. 5574=0. 0498 The relative range is also a way of comparing sets of data, just like the relative standard deviation. Again, it will be discussed when comparing the values from data sets 1 and 2. RR=RX? 1000ppt (6) =0. 04983. 5895? 1000=13. 874 Significance of the confidence interval The confidence interval is used to give the range at which a given estimate may be deemed reliable.It gives the in terval in which the population mean is to be included in. The boundaries of the interval are called confidence limits, and are calculated by equation (7). Confidence limit=X ±tsn 7 =3. 5895 ±2. 780. 0192625 =3. 5895 ±0. 023948 Using the confidence limit and the interval, one can easily determine the value that can be estimated if the same experiment was performed. The confidence limit shows that there is a 95% confidence that the actual mean lies between the values of 3. 5656 and 3. 6134. Difference between Data Set 1 and Data Set 2The statistical values computed from the two data sets are arranged below in table 3. Table 3. Reported values for data sets 1 and 2| Data Set| Mean| Standard Deviation| Relative SD| Range| Relative Range| Confidence Limts| 1| 3. 5895| 0. 019262| 5. 3664| 0. 0498| 13. 874| 3. 5895 ±0. 023948| 2| 3. 6085| 0. 057153| 15. 838| 0. 1975| 54. 731| 3. 6085 ±0. 040846| The two data differ in all the components, but what’s important are the relati ve standard deviations and the relative range. The standard deviation and the relative range, along with the confidence limits went up from data set 1 to 2.This shows that the data became less precise as more values were added, which is normal since one cannot always expect perfect results from every trials. The relative values all show the precision of the data from each other—the lower the number, the more precise they are. However, since the number of elements increased as the relative values increased as well, we can say that data set 1 is more precise but it isn’t accurate, since the sample population is quite limited. Statistical values have been computed and analyzed so that when further, more difficult research arises, the researchers will be able to accomplish them without problems.These values are significant in determining the accuracy of the experiment. For example in this experiment, the actual weight of 25 centavo coins is found to be 3. 6g for brass plat ed steel coins minted from 2004. It can be deduced that the majority of the coins used are indeed from that value, and that the mean became more accurate to the true value as more samples were used. REFERENCES Silberberg, M. S. (2010). Principles of general chemistry (2nd ed. ). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Jeffery, G. H. , Bassett, J. , Mendham, J. , & Denney, R. C. (1989).Vogel’s textbook of quantitative chemical analysis (5th ed. ). Great Britain: Bath Press, Avon http://www. bsp. gov. ph/bspnotes/banknotes_coin. asp. Accessed Nov. 21, 2012. Appendix Working Calculations Q-test Data Set 1 (Highest) Qexp=|3. 7531-3. 6921|0. 1920=0. 3177 0. 3177