Broken window concept

The â€Å"broken window† concept is among the most popular frameworks, designed for better understanding of the nature of crime and its prevention. George Kelling was the first criminologist, who suggested that even tiny problems are visible – for instance, a broken window points to the house owner’s ignorance and indifference. The paper is intended to discuss the concept and its application in details.â€Å"The essence of â€Å"broken windows† is that neighborhood disorder –physical decay, such as graffiti, litter and dilapidation; and minor misconduct, such as public drinking and vagrancy – will, if left unchecked, signal potential miscreants that no one is watching† (Miller, 2001, p. 27). This means, grave crimes begin with minor misdemeanors, and notorious criminals like serial killers often ‘begin with’ drug or alcohol abuse, which grow into social pathology, constantly reinforced by the conviction in the overall perm issiveness (Miller, 2001).Conversely, when eliminating the traces of minor misconducts like litter and graffiti in public places, the visitors become more conscientious about the overall public safety in this place. At first, the concept was applied in subways: Bratton, who received a piece of â€Å"broken window† advice from Kelling and subsequently wrote: â€Å"Fare evasion was the biggest broken window in the transit system. We were going to fix that window and see that it didn’t get broken again† (Miller, 2001, p.28). Thus, the group increased the number of policemen, supposed to detect the stowaway passengers – as a result, they found that a number of these ‘wrongdoers’ carried illegal arms and some of them had light drugs like marijuana. Finally, the subway became much cleaner and safer, as the number of combats and conflicts substantially decreased. Later, Mr. Bretton was hired as New York police commissioner, assigned to struggle with street prostitution.Violent and aggressive behavior and public drinking. The executive of the law enforcement agency introduced new computerized systems of surveillance in public places and increased the staff of the agency –as a result, the number of felony crimes fell beyond the expected decrease of the aforementioned misdemeanors (Miller, 2001). On the other hand, the causes of crime are still vague, as a complex of factors contribute. Most studies, however, empirically confirmed the â€Å"broken window† idea.For instance, Skogan conducted document analysis and scrutinized the earlier surveys in more than 40 localities. â€Å"He found that measures of social and physical decay correlated with certain kinds of serious crimes† (Miller, 2001, p. 28). On the other hand, new obstacles to policing emerged. As Kelling notes (1999), proactive approach to policing (prevention of crimes through putting the â€Å"broken window† concept into practice) is nowadays viewed by public as â€Å"soft policing†.On the other hand , â€Å"Community policing is inherently proactive: scan for problems; diagnose them; try to prevent them from occurring again; if they recur, try to limit the damage and restore the victim/family/community’s functioning† (Kelling, 1999, p. 10). This means, community policing often involves much more efforts than â€Å"crime fighting†, as in this case the commissioner or the police officer acts as an strategic analyst, supposed to have the ability to anticipate problems.Kelling’s approach to policing inherently includes regular interviews with community members, which means, police officers should keep in touch with the residents in order to identify the discuss the problems the community members are concerned about. In addition, the functioning of the whole law enforcement apparatus should be more transparent for community members, i. e. they should have an opportunity to learn the reason s for their neighbor’s arrest, for instance, as this measure is likely to act as a deterrent for others and a reminder about the policy’s care about public safety.On the other hand, a number of critics expressed their fear of the possible tendency for the expansion of the â€Å"soft policing† and the substantial elimination of reactive and radical measures. In this sense, Kelling alleges: â€Å" The fact that police add options to their repertoire of methods, try to limit damage and restore functioning does not mean that conventional assertive law enforcement is disallowed as a legitimate police tactic.For example, understanding the dynamics of New York City’s â€Å"squeegee men† –unwanted car window washers who intimidate drivers into giving them money – and talking to them did nothing to deter their behavior† (Kelling, 1999, p. 11). Nevertheless, as one can understand, civil law can be used by the police – as Kelling s tates, the new initiatives including such penalties like forfeiture, restitution and civil fines are placed upon those committing domestic violence, illegal weapons possession or disclose aggressive racist behavior.This means, a punishment should refer to the least possible intervention into the person’s life: for instance, if a criminal is not aggressive or dangerous and hasn’t committed grave crime, arrest is likely to appear a redundant measure. To sum up, the ‘broken window’ approach to policing refers not merely to the elimination of minor crimes, but also to the overall prevention of deviance and more extensive use of civil liberties in the issues like discretion.In general, Kerlling’s position is positivistic, as he views individuals as basically disciplined and law-abiding, but in order to increase public awareness in the importance of citizens’ own efforts in the sphere of public safety, it is important to show them that the police a re sensitive and responsive even to the minor misconducts. Reference list Miller, D. (2001). Poking Holes in the Theory of ‘Broken Window’. Chronicle of Higher Education, 2: 27-34. Kelling, G. (1999). â€Å"Broken Windows† and Police Discretion. National Institute of Justice Research Report. Available online at: http://www. ncjrs. org/pdffiles1/nij/178259. pdf

What techniques does Shakespeare use to reveal Iago’s villainy?

The play Othello is a stereotypical Shakespearean tragedy and it uses characters that are stereotypical of the views people had during the Jacobean period. Othello is a tragedy because the main characters die at the end f the play, also throughout the play themes of prejudice; deceit and love/hate are introduced. Shakespeare has used other sources other that his imagination for his plays. ‘Othello' was thought to have been taken from Hecatommithi, a collection of Italian short stories written by Giraldi Cinthio, the story seven contains many of the same names and situations as in Othello. In this essay I will analyze and comment on how Shakespeare uses techniques to reveal Iago's villainy. I will look at what effects the techniques Shakespeare uses have on the way Iago is presented to the audience. In act 2 scene 3 ‘Othello' we can clearly see the way Iago uses his surreptitious mind to persuade Othello that Desdemona is having an affair with Casio. Due to Iago's manipulation of Othello, Othello starts to doubt Desdemona's loyalty and becomes under Iago's control. Iago uses a sly way to get Othello's attention and get him to believe what he has to say is true, he uses phrases such as â€Å"my noble lord† using both a personal pronoun by saying â€Å"my† and flattery by calling Othello his â€Å"noble lord† which would be taken as a huge compliment. Othello interestedly says â€Å"what dost thou say, Iago?† Iago the produces a question â€Å"Did Michael Cassio, when you woo'd my lady know of your love?† which is, in this case, the first question to doubt Othello's mind. Othello replies with â€Å"he did, from first to last, why dost thou ask?† meaning Cassio did know about their love, Othello is a it confused by the question so asks Iago why he asked, Iago then sneakily continues with â€Å"but for satisfaction of my thought, no further harm† and this is to keep Othello interested but still in doubt of what's going on and what's the point of it all. Iago used techniques of withholding information, this gets Othello curious as to why Iago is so inquisitive, this makes Othello frustrated by Iago's confusing answers, he demands an answer, this makes the audience feel Othello is not as good character as he seemed and Iago is not as clever as he previously thought. Othello is very clever in the way that he tells Iago , â€Å"yes, and went between us very oft† here he tries to get information out of Iago about what's going on because Othello had been incidentally reminded but Iago that Cassio has easy and frequent access to Desdemona so therefore senses that Iago is lying, which causes Iago to repeat his words out of coyness â€Å"honest my lord†, Iago is then worried that he had gone too far and saves himself with a brief answer to Othello my lord, for aught I know†. However Othello can't be fooled that easily and still suspects something is going on and therefore assumed Iago is withholding information, so asks â€Å"what dost thou think?† Othello then falls deeper into his daze of doubt and tells Iago that he knows there is more to it that meets the eye, â€Å"nay there's more in this.† Iago then tells Othello he is known of being false and nasty but it is what he has seen and heard â€Å"why say they are vilet false†, and Iago says to Othello that he doesn't want to tell him, but needs to â€Å"it is my natures plague to spy into abuse† Iago tells Othello his story. Although Iago is careful not to say anything that could later be used against him, Othello becomes angry and annoyed, yet upset at what he thinks has happened, â€Å"†¦he echoes me, as if there were some monster in his thought too hideous to be shown† but then Iago cleverly ends the subject with â€Å"my lord, you know I love you† so that he can then bring it up later, and at the same time establishes Othello's trust in him. After a long conversation with each other, Iago becomes more persuasive towards Othello, he tries to get Othello to agree with him but also leaving a bit of doubt in what he says â€Å"†¦I think that he is honest†, which Othello automatically believes he is honest if Iago says so, because he trusts him so much and at the time, is believing everything Iago is saying. Also that words Iago uses is important in the persuasion, such as â€Å"men should be what they seem† and â€Å"†¦ I think Cassio's an honest man†, the significance of these words is important because Iago is leaving no evidence and is making sure he is not saying anything that other characters in the play, including Othello can use against him as evidence to prove he is a villain. This makes the readers feel slightly intimidated by the character Iago; he is cunning and devious and is very clever at carrying out his plans toward Othello. Shakespeare uses specific techniques to show that the manipulation of other characters by Iago. Iago makes the characters in the play believe he is honest when in fact he is deceiving them and is going behind their backs to turn others against them. For example, in act 3 scene 3 â€Å"my noble lord†. Iago is gaining Othello's trust by using personal pronouns and addressing him as if they were the best of friends. By gaining Othello's trust, Iago thinks Othello will listen to him more and is more likely to believe what he is saying. By having this advantage of being able to influence what Othello does and says, the other characters wouldn't know what Iago is doing; but with Othello being in charge, Iago technically has control over the other characters by being able to influence Othello's decisions. He later then says â€Å"o beware, my lord of jealousy† in this statement Iago is making Othello think about Cassio trying to get with Desdemona because he is jealous of Othello and Desdemona's relationship. One of Iago's techniques is to find the characters' weaknesses and use it against them. One example of this is when Iago discovers Cassio's weakness was alcohol; Cassio leaves Iago on his own, this gives him time to explain to the audience what he is planning to do. â€Å"If I can fasten but one cup on him†¦ He'll be full of quarrel and offence† Then convinced him to have a few more drinks, he got drunk and started fighting. Iago did this because he wanted to get moved up ranking and wanted Cassio's position so was trying to get him fired. Typical views of Italian men in the renaissance period involve scheming, and devious behavior. Shakespeare created Iago based on the personality traits of a typical Italian stereotype, Machiavelli. Machiavelli did anything it took to get to the top, much like Iago, who was willing to kill people so he could get a higher position, he was also deceitful and devious like Machiavelli because of his two faced treachery. Iago manages to persuade characters in the play to do things that will benefit him, things that they would not normally do, one of the main victims of this particular type of manipulation is Othello, and Iago manages to [persuade Othello to kill Desdemona, the love of his life! He does this by using persuasive techniques such as reverse intention, this occurs throughout the play, when Othello and Iago are talking about Cassio's dream Othello shouts â€Å"monstrous† but Iago then says â€Å"nay† trying to imply it was only a dream, therefore minimizing the significance, at least, this is what Iago would theoretically be trying to do, however in this case he is actually trying to make Othello suspect more than a dream. At this point the audience know Iago is the villain because of the recent goings on in the play relating to trying get Cassio drunk, and his monologues so realize what he is trying to do. Another instance of reverse intention is when Iago states â€Å"let her live† he puts the idea of killing Desdemona in Othello's mind despite never mentioning it in the first place. Iago purposely uses long sentences so Othello only notices the points he wants him to notice, subtly disguising the hints he imploys to imply Desdemona's guilt, â€Å"I do beseech though I perchance and vicious in my guess ( as I confess it is my natures plague they spy into my abuses and of my jealousy shape faults that are not)-that your wisdom from one that is so imperfectly conceits would not notice, nor build yourself a trouble out of his scattering and unsure observance†, Although the character Iago is saying he is vicious in his guess, and then tries to accuse Othello of mistakenly imagining things, he is basically trying to avoid having to say something unpleasant, trying to direct Othello away from the point that was made. The commentary then gets Othello confused, he asks, â€Å"What dost thou mean?† Iago then has tie plain it, quite distressing Othello, it makes Othello think Iago is accusing him of a life of jealousy which he gets quite offended by. In the play, Shakespeare purposely structures it Iago's villainy it revealed at the end, if this were not the case, and the characters realized Iago's villainy at the beginning or earlier on in the play, there would be no storyline, the play is only based around two days, here would be no themes of deceit, death, heartbreak and villainy, so structuring the play in this way was the best way of presenting the tragedy. Also, because the play was only based on two days, this would not gave given Desdemona any time to be unfaithful to Othello, therefore undermining the belief for Othello's guilt. Iago is clever by covering his deception by never saying anything that he would think Othello would take offence to or not believe, he only says things he knows Othello is thinking anyway so he doesn't get himself into trouble, he never even suggests anything he just presents them as mere ideas so people have nothing to blame on him later on it the play † to grosses issues, nor larger reach than to suspicion† Iago is urging Othello to take a different course of action in certainty he is only planting the idea in his mind. Racism and prejudice would be a difficult theme to portray if Iago's villainy was revealed at the beginning, Othello would never befriend a known villain because he is hated enough for his race, he feels alien to Desdemona and his other characters n the play, â€Å"his own clime, complexion and degree†, this makes Othello feel alienated, â€Å"set on thy wife†, Othello has moved from feeling fine to feeling low, he sunk very quickly after Iago mentioned he is different to Desdemona, he took things to heart easily and took offence very easily. Until the end, Othello has no suspicion towards Iago's villainy, this is strange as Iago is trying to turn Othello against his beloved wife, he tries to imply this has cheated on him, he is jealous and he is imagining things, all false accusations, yet Othello notices nothing, because of the repeated use of the word honest when talking about Iago.

Choose a book that includes a person with a recognisable psychological Essay

Choose a book that includes a person with a recognisable psychological difficulty (schizophrenia). How can we understand the experience of the character that you have chosen Provide a critical discussion - Essay Example The author is a research psychiatrist specifying in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. He is a professor of psychiatry at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Maryland (Torrey, 2006). The male patient exhibited symptoms of schizophrenia with a first incident of psychosis that was difficult for the individual to manage. It also presented significant difficulties to the patient’s family as his behavior was highly unpredictable, changing within a relatively short time span. In some instances, the patient would develop anxiety and anger with every person around him. In the family member’s view, the individual looked confused and apprehensive of family members and friends who are well known to him without any justified reason. The major problem was that it was difficult to convince the person to seek the help of a physician since he did not think that he had a mental health problem. As the problem escalated, the individual continued to develop negative symptoms that deviated from the normal functioning of a healthy person’s mind. He appeared unresponsive to the surrounding nonchalant and apathetic (Torrey, 2006). The first severe episode of psychosis was followed by reduced symptoms that were not easily noticeable. However, the person continued to be socially withdrawn and also began losing awareness of personal hygiene, which kept away friends and many of his relatives. The person lost interest in communal activities in the society and also lacked motivation in life. His lack of interest in family affairs including matrimonial issues broke up his two-year marriage. He could not concentrate on important aspects concerning the living environment and could easily be run over by vehicles as he did not reflect on any potential danger while crossing the road. At times the person would not leave the house and also extended his sleep in an unusual manner. He could

Teamwork - Collaboration vs. Competition in Business is similiar in Essay

Teamwork - Collaboration vs. Competition in Business is similiar in sports - Essay Example Sports is leisure, a mode of entertainment, it can be for entertainment or hobby while business for most of us is for living. Varieties are available in both the activities. Business can be of varying size following different industrial rules and sports are also from individual entrepreneur to large organizations. If a sport where team performance is involved is compared with an organization or a unit of organization some very important features are as follows: The common goal of winning is important for the collaborative efforts. Certain level of competition will be always there within an organization or team among the players to prove one better than the other. It becomes the responsibility of the leader or the head to direct them according to vision and goals and take out best from them. Team work is a collaborative effort of the members of team towards a well defined goal. Maxwell has given The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork. These laws are very significant and cover almost all the activity or action of any team. This law explains the need of collaborative efforts to achieve any goal. In a business where various departments and people from diverse fields and areas are recruited to achieve goals of profits, not single operations or marketing department will be achieve goals of profit alone. Marketing people make promises for what to be delivered and the operations people deliver these promises. This is a broad example of business. To achieve greatness the strength will come from being together. In this condition the significance of a single member is in the team not alone. Within a team with collaborative efforts the individual may contribute achieving the same goal which he would have never been achieved alone. When an individual works in a team he looks at the bigger picture of the performance. This picture is presented to him by the team leader of the team. The most important thing for the members becomes Goal

Cultural and religious diversity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cultural and religious diversity - Essay Example Individual behavior refers to a pattern of behavior that is generally followed by a person and the way a person interacts with other people, while organizational behavior refers to the generally accepted behaviors at the workplace. Diversity becomes an issue at the work place if preconceived opinions affect the way qualified employees are recruited, if the organization loses its customers due to differences and if differences in value affect effective communication at the workplace (Mathews, 2006). Culture diversity means respecting the different norms and standards that are generally acceptable in the society. What cultural diversity means is that our different identities are valued and maintained. Culture is a distinctive set of emotions, intellectual, material and spiritual features of people in a society.Every society has it s basic standards that are allowed such a normal personal space while conversing, eye contact, body language and a negotiating style. For example in the American society, it is proper to converse with some with an eighteen inches distance and at the same time it is in order to have direct eye contacts with people when having a conversation with them. When Cultural diversity is managed well in the organization, it makes the organization stronger as people with diverse cultures bring in creative solutions to problems, new negotiating skills and new and better ways of thinking. Diversity makes people behave in different ways and sometimes when we interact with our peers, we may not understand why people behave in certain ways and this is because our cultures are different. Another instance is when we meet people for the first time, they may behave in a manner that is strange to us but in reality, they are just following their cultures.Ethninicity affects human behavior in so many ways because it is usually experienced at a very early stage in life. By the time a person goes through adulthood, he or she experienced so much of what their culture asks them to and eventually it affects their behavior (Gardenswartz and Rowe, 1998). Gender diversity It refers to the differences in our sexual orientations. It means that a person is either a man or a woman and the proportion of men against women in the society. Initially, women were discriminated against as they were assumed to take home responsibilities as compared to work. Today, organizations are slowly treating women as equals because they believe that women can work as well as men. Gender can also have a very impact on a person's behaviour.At a very early stage in life children already know what is expected of them. For example, girls are taught that it is boyish to play football while boys are taught it is wrong to play with the girls. Boys are taught that they should be playful and be loud while girls are taught that they should be polite. If gender issues are not well balanced at the workplace especially at the recruitment stage, it means that an organization will have a limited pool to select from its human resources and thus reducing its chances of employing the best emp loyees. Religious diversity Religious diversity refers to the different beliefs that people are associated with. People belong to many religious organizations such as Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Islam. Religion plays a big role in determining

Describe and compare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Describe and compare - Essay Example Peasants were the majority and a time was forced to labor or work in military camps by the aristocracy. Much of their wages went to taxes, rent as well as tithes. The towns were more trade/market oriented than the rural set up; however, labor was rewarded by goods just as in the rural areas. Women engaged in mid-wifery and prostitution to raise a living both in small and large towns. Civilization in Europe came with a lot of changes in both rural and urban areas. Population grew due to better health care, diet and general way of life. Majority of people, more so men migrated from rural to urban areas seeking for better paying jobs and the enticement associated with city life. Tarmac roads were constructed to transport agricultural among other raw materials from rural areas to towns or cities. America in the 16th century had stratified population with majority of the family settled along the road. Households were within community structures organized by lords who were the mediators of major cases. Men could spent much of their time in social places like bars while women were majorly engaged in domestic and church related chores. Wheat, corns and pastoral farming were the main economic activities. Trade was conducted along major streets and roads, where one would bring his/her farm produce and exchange it with whatever he/she lacked. Communication was majorly through scrolls and messengers among others. Civilization compelled men to leave their farms and seek employment in construction farms. The major streets were occupied by industrialists and contractors and they become major towns as civilization swept the region (Ferguson, 109). However, civilization in America had some disadvantages, for instance slavery was rampant, crime evolved and environmental pollution was comm on in industrialized areas. Africa’s population was far much lower than that of Europe and America in the 16th century. Africans

Discuss the differences in Leadership between Men and Women Essay

Discuss the differences in Leadership between Men and Women - Essay Example In order to find out the difference in the leadership style of men and women, it is very important to investigate on the nature of the differences. Gender differences in the Communication For being a good leader, it is very important for an individual to have a strong communication skill. Good communication is considered as the most important skill which is very difficult to master. Failure in good communication results in friction and problems arising in an organization. Various situations, cultures, time, gender styles etc. affect as well as complicate the communication process. After studying the pattern of communication for many years, the linguists agree upon the facts that the gender difference is one of the reasons affecting this process. The gender differences may arise from some of the basic genetic or biological differences or as a result of difference in the cultural behavioral expectations. This difference may lead to several problems in interaction within the organizatio n. The main difference in the communication style of men and women arises due to the fact that the view the purposes of their conversations differently. According to many academic research scholars, women use the communication as an important tool for enhancing the social connections and creating relationships whereas men use this as a tool to exert dominance and finally achieve tangible outcomes (Leaper 801). Women seem to be more expressive, polite and curious in their conversations whereas men are hungry for power. Both of the aspects have a positive impact related to the leadership styles. For example, the expressive and polite nature of the women help in creating a strong relationship (as a leader) with the subordinates whereas the dominant nature of the men help in influencing the subordinates to work efficiently within an organization. Women try to be more expressive and social while interacting with others. Men give higher value to their independence. Men try to maintain the ir status as well as dominance in the relationships with the subordinates while interacting with them and do not believe in building intimate bond with them in order to have an effective leadership style. Women are found to use more tentative, polite language as compared to men especially in the situation of conflict. Research studies made on the gender differences related to the communication styles have concluded that men try to be self assertive and try to converse in such a manner that it may lead to tangible outcomes. On the other hand, women value cooperation. The next phase is finding out that how the gender differences in the leadership styles lead to the differences in their leadership styles. Differences in the Leadership Styles across the Genders It has been found that men are mainly task-oriented leaders whereas women believe in relationship-oriented leadership. The task oriented leaders are autocratic and focuses on setting the work standards, job supervision and meetin g the goals of the production. Men are generally very goal oriented in nature when it is concerned about approaching communication for the purpose of leadership. They use the method of conversation to preserve independence, achieve results and also maintain the status in

Private Takeover of Data Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Private Takeover of Data - Essay Example The process of democratization is inherent in the multidimensional and multifaceted interaction of the masses with the environmental factors that have a significant impact. Indeed, history is witness to the fact that they are capable of influencing any future recourse to the formation of a new political equation. Â  The system typically represents social conditioning of the people which may express their values, interests and general behavioral pattern, in given setting. But there is increasing the tendency of collective representation of the group that may be in a position to consciously influence a susceptible audience towards a set course thus explaining the restructuring of the social fabric in a more rational manner that is deliberate and pre-determined. The last fifty years have seen the deteriorating authority of the government control through various processes like privatization, deregulation, and decentralization of power has promoted increasing commercialization of jobs that were hitherto confined to the government agencies for confidentiality and security reasons. Â  The deregulation and de-centralization have brought in private players to the national arena where they are able to bargain with the government. In fact, media has been one the most powerful private player which wields considerable influence over the people and the government. They have become strong advocates for power games. Vested interests now dominate the overall goals and objectives of the media owners. Citizens’ welfare has taken a backseat and manipulation of public opinion has become the norm. With their specific political leaning, they back their own candidates for legislative seats, thereby influencing policies and plans which may make them more powerful. Public representatives are bought by these media giants so that they may advocate the cartel’s dubious aims and objectives.

The development of the Islamic financial sector in Bahrain, Qatar and Essay

The development of the Islamic financial sector in Bahrain, Qatar and Dubai - Essay Example They were staunch in their outlook and believed that such profit making activities would violate the principles of the Islam religion. However, in 1975 the Emir of Dubai passed a decree for the establishment of the Dubai Islamic Bank and this heralded a new era of modern Islamic financial activities. Following this example, other GCC nations also established their respective central banking authorities. These Central banks and the other financial authorities always ensured that the countries’ financial activities were conducted in compliance with the regional Islamic principles. Therefore, these business operations are known as the modern Islamic financial and banking functions. In 1982, the state of Qatar established the country’s first Islamic bank. Qatar’s financial economy is dominated by the presence of commercial banks such as the Qatar National Bank, the Commercial Bank of Qatar, the Doha Bank, Qatar Islamic Bank, Masraf Al Rayan, the Qatar International Islamic Bank and so on. These banks have primarily concentrated on expanding their business activities in the domestic economy and have also formed Islamic affiliate institutions for this purpose. For example, the Qatar National Bank has established the Al Islami subsidiary, the Commercial Bank of Qatar has formed its Al Safa Islamic Banking affiliate, the Doha Bank has created the Doha Bank Islamic and so on. Gradually, the small economy of Qatar was flooded by intense competition from a plethora of different financial institutions. This is turn encouraged the country’s existing commercial banks to diversify their business and expand their operations in the international market. Many of the banks established affiliate organizations in foreign countries to enhance their business prospects in those places. The Qatar Islamic Bank formed the European Finance House in London, in

Ali Farrukh Essay Example for Free

Ali Farrukh Essay 1. A search engine site claims that, on average, one out of five visitors clicks on an ad. (a) If 8 users visit the site, what is the probability that at least three click on an ad? b) If 8 users visit the site, what is the probability that less than two of them click on an ad? c) If 800 users visit the site, would the probability that less than 200 click on an ad be higher or lower than the answer found in part (b)? Write a few sentences explaining your answer- computations are not required (or desired) d) Suppose 90 users visit the site during a particular minute, use the normal approximation to estimate the probability that more than 25 of them click on an ad. e) If 900 users visited the site, would the probability that more than 250 of them click on an ad be higher or lower than the answer found in part (d)? Write a few sentences explaining your answer- computations are not required (or desired) 2. Suppose that, overall, 5% of all tax returns are audited by the IRS. (a) If an accountant has 7 clients for whom she prepared tax returns, what is the probability that less than 3 will be audited? (b) If the accountant has 30 clients, what is the probability that at least one is audited? (c) Suppose the accountant prepares 500 returns, use the normal approximation to estimate the probability that more than 20 of the returns are audited. 3. Suppose the weight of eggs produced by Henly Farms has a mean of 59.7 g. with a standard deviation of 3.4 g. Find the probability that a carton of a dozen eggs will weigh less than 727 g. 4. Magazine Marketers is holding a sweepstakes. They list the following prizes and the probability of winning the prize: To enter the sweepstakes, you must pay $1 for postage. Find the expected profit for someone entering this sweepstakes. 6. Given below are the birth weights of babies born to mothers who took special vitamin supplements while pregnant: 3.13 4.37 3.93 4.33 3.39 3.68 4.68 3.52 3.02 4.29 2.47 4.13 4.47 3.22 3.43 2.54 a. Make a 99% confidence interval for the mean weight of babies whose mothers take vitamin supplements. b. Do a hypothesis test to determine if these babies weight is more than the mean weight for the population of all babies which is 3.39 kg using ÃŽ ± = .005 c. In a short paragraph, describe the relationship between your answer to part (a) and your answer to part (b). 8. In a study of the effectiveness of a new pain killer, 46 out of 821 patients tested reported experiencing side effects. Use ÃŽ ± = 0.01 significance level to determine if the proportion who experience side effects from this drug is lower than the 7.8% rate of side effects for the older version of this medication.

Comparison Between Indian And Us Sports News Media Essay

Comparison Between Indian And Us Sports News Media Essay This research on the differentiation between three news channels and how they telecast and cover sports in their respective countries deals primarily with sports journalism. The three news channels are New Delhi Television (NDTV) in India, CNN IBN in India and CNN in USA, here we will study the patterns in broadcasting, the journalistic values, the sports that are prominent in the two countries, the viewership with regards to different sports, the commercialization of sports and sporting events and in all sports journalism as a whole in broadcast media. The world of sports has evolved in the last century and in the first decade of the 21st century the world has seen a lot difference in sports as it has become faster, tougher and more competitive. With sports, sports journalism as well has grown over the years. We can see the change in the way sports journalism, which was just a part of the whole media now it has become unique in itself. We can see the change from the mid 1900s and to the late 1900s and now in the new millennium, sports journalism has become more and more significant and prominent in the media. In 1960, the winter Olympics were held in Squaw Valley, California and the media coverage was nowhere close to that of the 2002, Salt Lake winter Olympics. This was just an example, the 2008 2009 UEFA Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United was the most watched live event in television history beating that years Super bowl. This shows the differences in the way sports journalism is active in different countries and regions. This was the first time the Super bowl was defeated by a football match, the reason for this is the media. They promoted the event of the Champions League final as the match between the two best footballers in the world, Leonel Messi and Christiano Ronaldo and also the winner would be declared as the best in the world. One can see how the media uses its tactics and p roduction strategies to promote the event. Here the news values aspect is reflected in sports journalism. What maybe moral or ethical and what kind of news has to telecasted and covered these days depend on the producers, advertisers, viewers and also which sport is more interesting. Cricket in India will be broadcast in a manner that it will be shown as the most important event on Earth. Whereas, football or hockey will not be shown in the same manner. In most of the countries it depends with tradition and culture. In America the four major sports are basketball, ice hockey, baseball and their version of football. Most of the sports played in countries apart from North America are mostly the same. The most popular sport in the world is football and not American football. In America any big news relating to any other sports would not be given much importance and even if it is, it will find very little time in the whole sports segment of a news channel. Britain will claim that they have invented most of the sports that are being played in the modern day. Their way of covering sports is di fferent to that of America, they give all sports almost equal importance. They also focus on the four American sports and give them more coverage than what America gives to others. One has to consider that the pre and post events for any sporting event are watched more than the event itself. The summer Olympics is an example, the opening and closing ceremony of the event is watched by more people than the Olympics or any part of it. This shows how the media and journalism has changed in a massive way along with the sport itself. The market for sports journalism is by far the most improving and expanding one and the producers and advertisers know this and want to make full use of it for their benefit and the viewers will be shown what they want and not what exactly is happening, the whole thing is to make the event sell and to get the Television Rating Points (TRPs). It has all become commercialization and deregulation of televised sport. It has become such an important commodity. In America it has always existed as a system emphasizing the entertainment values. In many European countries it has been a model emphasizing neutrality. With the existence of exclusive sports channels like Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN), Sky Sports, etc. the news channels have to find something different to make their sports segment sell to the public. So, they use different methods of telecasting sports news. Only in sports one can find other interesting details like the lives, hobbies, relationships of the sports personalities and discuss about them in detail. There is politics in sports as well and the extra information attracts the people especially women to the sports. The term Plausibly Live was coined to describe the production of the 1996 Atlanta summer Olympics. The phrase was used as the broadcasts were not live but could have been. Durin g any event one would get the entire extra detail one any particular team or player as the television crew would be sent to find the information. Then at any time during the show they would give out the information to the viewers. The advertisers now will decide that when there must be a break and how long it must last. Now there will be more cuts in any match as it will create more interest and make the sport much faster and better. The camera angles in modern times are such that they will enhance the event than it actually is. The sport has evolved or it has been made it evolve. That is the whole idea of sports journalism in modern times. To enhance what is there to a level that is more interesting to the viewers than it is, is the way it is in these times. Methodology The methodology for this dissertation would be of two kinds. The first will be quantitative method where there would be the analysis of all the sports segments in the all three news channels and how they have allocated time and news coverage to each sport and sports personalities. Every news channel will have its own policies on telecasting any sport and how much to telecast and it will be different for every news channel. NDTV and CNN IBN would mostly have the same content and same time which is given for every sport. As both are in the country they would focus more on the sports of cricket and cricketers more than any other sport. Both these Indian channels would vary slightly in the manner they telecast the sports news. As they have to get their news segment sell. They will try to focus on what they think would be the best for the viewers and not bother about some other news that maybe important but may not be that sellable. In quantitative method the time allocated for each spor t, e.g. cricket, football, hockey, badminton, etc. is very important. The time given for individual cricketers and other sport personalities in one channel would be analyzed and compared to that of the other two news channels. What is the time given for interviews and for news and features would also be analyzed. With this one can see the difference in the way each of the three news channels differ from each other. The news content in CNN would definitely differ from that of the two Indian news channels. As they are in USA they would focus more on the sports that are famous in that part of the world. But the focus is on the news content of CNN in India and whether it would change for the Indian viewers or whether they would try and promote their sports in India. There is also the fact that CNN and CNN IBN is the same company and whether their policies would be the same or would be the different according to the region. All facts and figures that would come from the analysis of thes e news channels would be a part of quantitative methodology. There is also qualitative method where the main criteria for the analysis are the interpretation that comes out from what the news channels telecast. If one news channel gives more emphasis for one sport genuinely or if it gives more emphasis on a sport if a special occasion is there like the world cup, then the interpretation that comes out would be the basis for qualitative method. Both the methods would be used for this study as it is imperative to know the facts and figures as well as the understanding as to why there is a difference in the way each of the news channels differ in the telecasting of sports news from each other. The analysis and the comparison between these news channels would be essential to determine the difference in policies and the interests of the people in that region, so, both the methodologies are highly essential. Hypothesis Indian news is dedicating time for personalized and sensationalized news items than that of news channels. The language of commentary used by news casters and reporters in Indian news channels are using sensationalized and emotional words than that of US channels. The visual language of India sports news is deliberately generating sensationalism. Scope and Limitations The scope for this dissertation is that in the future more studies can be made on more news channels. The study can be vaster as news channels from other countries can also be included. Further research can be done as news channels can be compared to exclusive sports news channels. This will help to learn the difference in cultures, traditions and interests for sports for the people in the various regions of the world. The limitations to this study is that this study and analysis is only between three news channels, two in India and one in USA. With this it is difficult to analyze the difference between the trends in sports in both countries. By the selection of one news channel in USA one cannot determine the trends and traditions in sports there are that of the whole country. Each news channel will have its own policies and ideas, so, one cannot say that the sports news that they would telecast is the trend of that country and that is their mindset towards sports.

Secularization Essay -- Essays Papers Religion Society Worldly

Secularization The word secularization is derived from the Latin word saeculum(world) it was first used to refer the transfer of property from the church to the civil princes. Now it denotes the process by which religion loses some or all of its power, dominance and authority. Secularization as a concept refers to the actual historical process whereby this dualist system â€Å" this world'; and the sacramental structures of mediation between this world and the other world progressively breakdown until the entire medieval systems of classification disappear, to be replaced by new systems of spatial structuration of the spheres. The structured division of 'this world'; into two separate spheres, 'the religious'; and 'the secular'; has to be distinguished and kept separate. From now on, there will be only one single 'this world';, the secular one, within which religion will have to find its own place. If before, it was the religious realm which appeared to be the all-encompassing reality within which the secular realm found its proper place, now the secular sphere will be the all-encompassing within which religious sphere will have to adapt. There are several conceptions of secularization. 1. Decline of religion 2. Differentiation of institution, practices and activities from religion 3. Transposition of norms from religion to the world 4. Desacralization of the world 5. Conformity of religion to the world There are also causes of secularization 1. Industrializa...

Applying Anticipatory Logistics to Business Essays -- essays research

Applying Anticipatory Logistics to Business What is anticipatory logistics? It’s a system made of information which anticipates the requirement of customers needs so suppliers can provide adequate service production to meet their needs. Anticipatory logistics is part of the supply chain management which is how things get from the manufacturer to the customer, but it also is the raw materials that are needed in manufacturing. The U.S. Army uses Anticipatory logistics in their supply chain to manage ammunition, maintenance and fuel needs; they use C4I which stands for computer, command, control, communication and intelligence along with other DOD military branches. Logistics are part of military operation and knowing when solders will need new equipment in the field takes planning and coordination through the supply management board. In this paper I attend to describe anticipatory logistics and why it works well for the army and that is should be used in corporate business. To understand more about anticipatory logistics, it’s important to understand the supply chain management. The supply chain involves how things get from the manufacture to the end user, but its is also how materials which is needed for manufacturing get to the manufacture and the company that makes the goods from them who is the end user in a supply chain of command. If the supply chain isn’t managed correctly, there could be delays in production process or there would be too many shipments and not enoug...

Detailed Overview of HIV Essay -- Biology AIDS

Since the onset of the HIV/AIDS epidemic 15 years ago, the virus has infected more than 47 million people in the world. With more than 2.2 million deaths in 1998, HIV/AIDS has now become the fourth leading cause of mortality and its impact is going to increase. Over 95% of all cases and 95% of AIDS deaths occur in the developing world, mostly among young adults and increasingly in women. HIV can be prevented in many ways, but they are not always followed. People die when they don't play it safe. That's why we have to spread the word on prevention. There are three main ways that HIV can be spread: 1. sexual intercourse 2. intravenous drugs 3. blood transfusions (which are very rare now because all blood is tested) HIV is spreading like wild fire among adolescents because they don't believe it can happen to them. Sixty-one percent of 14-21 year olds are engaged in sexual intercourse. The problem we have to deal with is the spreading of this disease among our generation. Scientists are trying to develop a cure for the AIDS virus. There are three parts to finding the cure. The three parts are: 1. To devise a drug that will kill the HIV virus once it enters the body. 2. To create a vaccine that would prevent the disease. 3. To educate people world wide about the dangers of AIDS and how to prevent the HIV infection. In humans, the immune system acts as a line of defense against foreign organisms in the body. Though the immune system functions throughout the body, its production centers from certain key organs in the body. Various specialized cells are produced by these organs and comprise the immune system. For example: * Lymphocytes o B Cells o T Cells * Macropha... ...CR5. The CCR5 demonstrated fusion for all of the macrophages-tropic isolates but hardly at all for the T-tropic isolates, further supporting previous conclusions on the role of CCR5. Finally the researchers took a northern blot of CCR5 to analysis its RNA. CCR5 RNA was not found in the human cell lines that were tested. The human cell lines were chosen with the criteria that they were not susceptible to M-tropic isolates. Their test further supported the fact that Fusin was used as a receptor for T-tropic virus strains, and when the two strains were compared CCR5 and Fusin are the only fusion cofactors for HIV. Understanding these coreceptors is very important in slowing down the progression of the HIV virus. The HIV virus is irreversible and can only be slowed down. If they can learn more about how the virus enters cells they might be able to deter the virus.

The Other in the Tempest

In order to understand the characters in a play, we have to be able to distinguish what exactly makes them different. In the case of The Tempest, Caliban, the sub-human slave is governed largely by his senses, making him the animal that he is portrayed to be and Prospero is governed by sound mind, making him human. Caliban responds to nature as his instinct is to follow it. Prospero, on the other hand, follows the art of justifiable rule. Even though it is easy to start assessing The Tempest in view of a colonialist gaze, I have chosen instead to concentrate on viewing Caliban as the monster he is portrayed to be, due to other characters that are not human, but are treated in a more humane fashion than Caliban. Before we meet Caliban, we meet Ariel, Prospero s trusting spirit. Even though Ariel is not human either, he is treated kindly and lovingly by his master who calls him my quaint Ariel. Caliban, on the other hand, is called a tortoise and a poisonous slave by Prospero. As Caliban enters in Act 1 Scene 2, we realise his fury at both Prospero and Miranda. He is rude and insulting and Prospero replies with threats of torture. Prospero justifies his punishment of Caliban by his anger at the attempted rape of his daughter, something Caliban shows no remorse for. Miranda distinguishes herself from Caliban by calling him a thing most brutish and inadvertently, a thing that has only bad natures. She calls his speech gabble, but doesn t stop to wonder whether it was she that didn t understand him because she didn t know how to speak his language. Surely Caliban communicated verbally with his mother for the twelve years before Prospero killed her? It seems that Prospero and Miranda expect Caliban to be grateful for the knowledge of their language, but Caliban has just learned how to curse and justifies his anger by claiming rights to the island. Even though they obviously detest each other, Prospero needs him, as he tells Miranda: We cannot miss him: he does make our fire/Fetch in our wood, and serves in offices/That profit us, Caliban stays on because he is afraid of Prospero s art of such power, making Prospero the feared conqueror ad dictator. Prospero is the right duke of Milan and Caliban is the savage and deformed slave. They represent two different extremes on the social spectrum: that of the natural ruler, and the naturally ruled. Their positions on the social hierarchy are largely due to the fact that Caliban responds almost wholly to passions, feelings of pleasure i. e. his senses, while Prospero is ruled more by his intellect and self-discipline i. e. his mind. Although we are not given details of Caliban s birth, it seems likely that a creature as subhuman in appearance as Caliban was not born of a human union. It has been postulated that, to quote Prospero, he was got by the devil himself upon thy wicked dam, from a union between Sycorax and an incubus (an extremely attractive male apparition with intention to tempt). Caliban was therefore a creature born from passion, the offspring of an unholy pleasure. Prospero was not only of noble birth; he was also born to be ruler of the city-state of Milan. Nobility, in Elizabethan times, carried with it heavy implications: it was expected that Prospero would be intellectually superior, and that he would exercise as great discipline over himself as he was expected to exercise over others, in his role of leadership. From their ancestry, Prospero is more ruled by his intellect, and Caliban by his love of pleasure. Caliban s original love for Prospero and Miranda, and his later misdemeanour and subsequent hatred for them, illustrate his fundamental reliance on his senses. Caliban loved Prospero and Miranda because they made much of me; and his response to this was purely sensual in his recollections: Thou strok st me, wouldst give me/Water with berries in t. What Caliban responded to, more than anything else, was the sensation of pleasure that being loved and petted gave him. The action that caused Caliban to be removed from this position and punished was his attempt to rape Miranda, another example of how he seeks pleasure. Prospero s position on sexual relations is quite opposite he tells Ferdinand repeatedly not to take advantage of his daughter, for the obvious reason that rape and taking advantage of someone sexually is considered wrong. This is something Caliban doesn t seem to understand and further distances himself from the human figures. During The Tempest itself, Prospero and Caliban have two very different purposes. Prospero intends to resolve the injury that was done to Miranda and himself, bloodlessly, by the use of his Art. Caliban s dearest wish is to depose Prospero by killing him and, rather than resuming rule of the island himself, submit to the rule of Stephano. Caliban s purpose for attaching himself to Stephano and plotting to kill Prospero is almost wholly passionate. The reason that Caliban believes Stephano to be a worthy ruler, indeed, a god, is that Stephano is the custodian of liquor, a substance that appeals to his senses. His favourable response to Stephano is like his previous response to Prospero- that someone who makes him feel good must be good. Likewise, his attempt at achieving revenge on Prospero is largely in retribution for the punishment Prospero has visited upon his senses. However, though Caliban s desire for revenge is certainly not cerebral, his passions in it are not entirely sensual either. The crafty manner in which he persuades Stephano to aid him in his plan, by mentioning Prospero s riches and Miranda s beauty, shows the presence of some mental ability; as does his attempted tact in trying to keep Stephano s mind upon bloody thoughts. Furthermore, one of his grievances against Prospero is that he stole the island that was, by birthright, Caliban s and imprisoned Caliban upon it. In spite of this, Caliban s mind is subject to his senses, much as Prospero s passions are subject to his mind. Caliban s underlying motives are still passionate. His indignation at having his inheritance usurped loses its weight when we realise that, of his own free will, he will let Stephano rule- showing himself to be naturally ruled, not ruler. At the end of the play, when he recognises that his choice of Stephano as ruler was foolish, it is not mental reasoning that has led him to this conclusion, but the evidence of his senses and experience. Caliban had mid enough to function as part of society, but training him to become part of that society cannot be abstract, like Prospero s failed attempt at educating him with Miranda Caliban s education must be practical and hammered home with his own senses. If the senses represent something natural and the mind represents an art like knowledge or in Prospero s case, magic, then we can say that Caliban represents Nature and Prospero Art. While the need for control over nature is asserted continually, the ending suggests that art must ultimately come to terms with nature (hence Prospero s this thing of darkness I/Acknowledge mine ); for while Caliban s limitations are apparent, his wish to improve himself is promising, and his new relationship with Prospero seems to be more stable and more reassuring than the resentment-filled and extremely uneasy jailer-prisoner/master-slave relationship shown earlier.

Romeo and Juliet Inevitability of fate

Fate and its inherent inevitability have constantly found it’s way into Shakespeare’s work and the work influenced by him, a prime example of this is found within the very prologue of one of his largest pieces of work; Romeo and Juliet.Within the prologue Shakespeare uses many literary techniques such as notions of foreshadowing and dramatic irony that occur throughout the play, some more evident that others; ‘ The fearful passage of their death-mark’d love’ this is an obvious indication of the cursed or uninevitable fate that our main protagonists will share at the end of the play.Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to emphasise the loss that these two share and in turn play to the audiences curiosity. Despite this many readers rarely realise that the prologue is in fact written in sonnet form; consisting of 14 lines, iambic pentameter and a rhyming couplet at the last line written.The structure may connote not only the strong love that both Romeo and J uliet share for one another but also perhaps the love of constantly attempting to evade their fate and follow passion as opposed to reason.Romeo and Juliet are constantly seen to rebel against society’s standards and the regulation set by their house, through this we are able to see that all love has an aspect of fate. Whether it be determined, or inevitable.Correspondingly, many of the poems found within the anthology share both the same connotations, structure and vocabulary that we have found within the prologue. A main specimen of similarity would be found within Sonnet 116, written by Shakespeare in 1609.This, as evident in it’s name is structured in sonnet form just as we have found in the prologue, yet again it does not speak directly of love but instead as a description of what love is and is not. ‘Love is not love.Which alter when it alteration finds’ Shakespeare here states that love is un bent or broken and therefore cannot be created or destroy ed, in this context we can suggest that love is therefore only a path in which one might set upon and that this is decided by only fate, Shakespeare states that you cannot love who you choose but instead love chooses you.‘It is an ever fixed mark’ Shakespeare goes on to describe what love is opposed to what love isn’t and therefore sharing several similarities to the prologue, again describing love as a ‘mark’ due to his repetitive connotation of love and fate within the prologue this may imply that this mark is in fact fate itself and therefore he allows Romeo and Juliet’s love to reside in the creation of his sonnets; ‘love’s not time’s fool’ suggesting love is endless despite Romeo and Juliet’s fast approaching death.

My Learning Style

This article was downloaded by: [74. 60. 153. 191] On: 14 March 2013, At: 19:04 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental Educational Psychology Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www. tandfonline. com/loi/cedp20 Learning Styles: An overview of theories, models, and measures Simon Cassidy a a University of Salford, UK Version of record first published: 05 Oct 2010.To cite this article: Simon Cassidy (2004): Learning Styles: An overview of theories, models, and measures, Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental Educational Psychology, 24:4, 419-444 To link to this article: http://dx. doi. org/10. 1080/0144341042000228834 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Full terms and conditions of use: http://www. tandfonline. com/pa ge/terms-andconditions This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, ystematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents will be complete or accurate or up to date. The accuracy of any instructions, formulae, and drug doses should be independently verified with primary sources. The publisher shall not be liable for any loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand, or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material.Educational Psychology Vol. 24, No. 4, August 2004 Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles: An overview of theories, models, and measures Simon Cassidy* University of Salford, U K Although its origins have been traced back much further, research in the area of learning style has been active for? at a conservative estimate? around four decades. During that period the intensity of activity has varied, with recent years seeing a particularly marked upturn in the number of researchers working in the area.Also of note is the variety of disciplines from which the research is emerging. Increasingly, research in the area of learning style is being conducted in domains outside psychology? the discipline from which many of the central concepts and theories originate. These domains include medical and health care training, management, industry, vocational training and a vast range of settings and levels in the  ®eld of education. It is of little wonder that applications of these concepts are so wide ranging given the centrality of learning? and how best to do it? to almost every aspect of life.As a consequence of the quantity of research, the diversity of the discip lines and domains in which the research is conducted, and the varied aims of the research, the topic has become fragmented and disparate. This is almost certainly how it must appear to practitioners and researchers new to the area, with its complexities and convolutions dif ®cult to comprehend and assimilate. As such, it is perhaps timely to present an account of the central themes and issues surrounding learning style and to consider the instruments available for the measurement of style.This paper aims to provide such an account, attempting to clarify common areas of ambiguity and in particular issues surrounding measurement and appropriate instruments. It aims to bring together necessary components of the area in such a way as to allow for a broader appreciation of learning style and to inform regarding possible tools for measurement. It is anticipated that such an account will promote research in the  ®eld by presenting it as more accessible and by developing a greater appre ciation for the area across disciplines and in researchers and practitioners new to the area.Introduction For some time now educational research exploring the issue of academic achievement or success has extended? rightfully so? beyond â€Å"simple† issues of intelligence and prior academic achievement. There are a number of learning-related concepts, such as perception of academic control and achievement motivation which have been a focus of attention when attempting to identify factors affecting learning-related *Directorate of Psychology, University of Salford, Allerton Building, Frederick Road, Salford M6 6PU, UK. Email: s. [email  protected] c. uk ISSN 0144 ±3410(print)/ISSN 1469 ±046X (online)/04/030419-26 a 2004 Taylor & Francis Ltd Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com 420 S. Cassidy performance (Cassidy & Eachus, 2000). One concept in particular which has provided some valuable insights into learning in both academic and other settings is learning style. There is general acceptance that the manner in which individuals choose to or are inclined to approach a learning situation has an impact on performance and achievement of learning outcomes.Whilst? and perhaps because? learning style has been the focus of such a vast number of research and practitioner-based studies in the area, there exist a variety of de ®nitions, theoretical positions, models, interpretations and measures of the construct. To some extent, this can be considered a natural consequence of extensive empirical investigation and is to be expected with any continually developing concept which proves useful in gaining understanding of such a crucial and prevailing endeavour as learning.However, the level of ambiguity and debate is such that even the task of selecting an appropriate instrument for investigation is an onerous one, with the unifying of subsequent  ®ndings within an existing framework problematic, at best. This paper do es not seek to achieve an absolute resolve and converge upon the ideal model and measure of learning style, but rather to inform through description and comparison.It is intended as a resource for researchers and professionals who desire a broad appreciation of the area of learning style and who may, previously, have been working with an in-depth understanding but, perhaps, only a narrow awareness of the  ®eld. Riding and Cheema (1991) have previously noted that researchers in the  ®eld of cognitive style/learning style often present only a very limited (if any) account of the variety of theories and instruments which exist for the measurement of style.Whilst educators in all  ®elds are becoming increasingly aware of the critical importance of understanding how individuals learn, it is equally important that any attempts to integrate learning style into educational programmes are made from an informed position. John Yerxa, Education Of ®cer with the Department of General Pra ctice and the Adelaide to Outback GP Training Programme, comments: â€Å"Simply being aware that there can be different ways to approach teaching and learning can make a difference† (Yerxa, 2003).Whilst there may be some truth in such comments, they are not helpful in a drive towards research- and practitioner-based activity which exhibits good awareness of learning style theory and empirical evidence. This paper aims to provide an accessible overview of theories, instruments and empirical work in the  ®eld of learning style. Key Terminology ? And some fundamental issues De ®ning the key terms in this area is not a straightforward task. The terms â€Å"learning style†, â€Å"cognitive style† and â€Å"learning strategy† are? understandably? frequently used imprecisely in theoretical and empirical accounts of the topic.The terms learning style and cognitive style are, on some occasions, used interchangeably, whilst at other times they are afforded sepa rate and distinct de ®nitions. Cognitive style is described by Allport (1937) as an individual's typical or habitual mode of problem solving, thinking, perceiving and remembering, while the term learning style is adopted to re? ect a concern with the application of cognitive style in a learning Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles 421 situation (Riding & Cheema, 1991).Riding and Cheema (1991) go on to describe cognitive style in terms of a bipolar dimension (wholist ±analytic) while learning style is seen as encompassing a number of components which are not mutually exclusive. It is also likely that cognitive style? at the very least? can be regarded as one signi ®cant component of learning style. Hartley (1998) provides the following de ®nitions: cognitive styles are the ways in which different individuals characteristically approach different cognitive tasks; learning styles are the ways in which individuals charact eristically approach different learning tasks.A third key term in the area, learning strategies, Hartley (1998) de ®nes as the strategies students adopt when studying. Hartley (1998, p. 149) continues: â€Å"different strategies can be selected by learners to deal with different tasks. Learning styles might be more automatic than learning strategies which are optional. † This  ®nal point, which attempts to distinguish between style and strategy, re? ects a recurring issue in the area. The â€Å"state-or-trait† debate associated with so many human psychological characteristics (such as personality) is, not surprisingly, relevant here.Learning style may be considered as stable over time (structural)? a trait? or as changing with each experience or situation (process)? a state. Perhaps the more workable view is that a style may well exist is some form, that is it may have structure, but that the structure is, to some degree, responsive to experiences and the demands o f the situation (process) to allow change and to enable adaptive behaviour. The â€Å"motherboard/software† and â€Å"hard/soft† wiring analogies have also been used to describe the interface of style (motherboard/hard wiring) and strategy (software/soft wiring).Investigating the issue of stability in learning style Loo (1997) did  ®nd evidence to support consistency in learning style over time, but was critical of current techniques of analysis and recommended caution in drawing any  ®rm conclusion regarding stability. One  ®nal term worthy of de ®nition here is â€Å"preferences†. A number of authors refer to the favouring of one method of teaching over another (such as group work over independent-study) as learning preferences. The major preferences are fairly well integrated within a number of the models discussed and are often dealt with explicitly by the more elaborate models of learning style.Characterising Learning Style: Simplifying matters The preferred way in which an individual approaches a task or learning situation? their learning/cognitive style or approach or strategy? has been characterised in several different ways based on a variety of theoretical models. Before reviewing these models and characterisations, it may be helpful  ®rst to consider existing attempts at simplifying and categorising current systems along key dimensions (see Table 1). Curry's Onion ModelUsing the way in which learning/cognitive style is measured to propose a layer-like model of learning behaviour, Curry (1983, 1987) utilises an onion metaphor to illustrate inner and outer layers of the construct. Initially proposing three layers, Curry Witkin (1962) Field-dependence/independence Kagan (1965) Impulsivity ±re? exivity Holzman and Klein (1954) Leveller ±sharpener Pask (1972) Holist ±serialist Pavio (1971) Verbaliser ±visualiser Gregorc (1982) Style delineator Kauffmann (1979) Assimilator ±explorer Kirton (1994) Adaption ±innova tionAllinson and Hayes (1996) Intuition ±analysis Kolb (1984) ELM Honey and Mumford (1992) LSQ Vermunt (1994) LSI Entwistle & Tait (1995) Surface ±deep Biggs et al. (2001) SPQ Schmeck et al. (1991) ILP Hunt, Butler, Noy, and Rosser (1978) Conceptual level Dunn, Dunn, and Price (1989) LSI Reichmann and Grasha (1974) Styles of learning interaction model Ramirez and Castenada (1974) Child rating form Reinert (1976) ELSIE Hill (1976) Cognitive Style Interest Inventory Letteri (1980) Learner types Keefe and Monks (1986) Learning style pro ®le Model d d Social interaction d d d Instructional preference d d d d d d d d d Information processing Curry (1987) d d d d d d d d Riding and Cheema (1991) Wholist ± analytic Personality centred d d d d d d d d d Cognitive centred d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d Learning centred Rayner and Riding (1997) d d d d d d d d d d Cognitive personality Table 1. Taxonomy of learning style models Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com 422 S. Cassidy Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles 423 ater includes â€Å"social interaction† as a fourth layer. â€Å"Instructional preference† refers to the individual's preferred choice of learning environment. It is described as the outermost layer, the most observable layer and the layer most susceptible to in? uence, making it the least stable level of measurement. Instruments cited as measuring instructional preference include the Learning Preference Inventory (Rezler & Rezmovic, 1981). Social interaction provides the next layer and relates to the individual's preference for social interaction during learning.Reichmann and Grasha's (1974) Student Learning Style Scale de ®nes learners according to their type and level of interaction (independent/dependent, collaborative/competitive, and participant/avoidant). The third and more stable layer is â€Å"information processing st yle† and is described as the individual's intellectual approach to the processing of information. Instruments associated with the measurement of this layer are Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (Kolb, 1976), Cognitive Preference Inventory (Tamir & Cohen, 1980) and Inventory of Learning Processes (Schmeck, Ribich, & Ramaniah, 1977).The  ®nal layer described is â€Å"cognitive personality style†. This appears the most robust component, described as a â€Å"relatively permanent personality dimension ? apparent only when an individual's behaviour is observed across many different learning situations† (Riding & Cheema, 1991, p. 195). Associated instruments for measurement are the Embedded Figures Test (Witkin, 1962), Myers Briggs Type Indicator, (Myers, 1962) and Matching Familiar Figures Test (Kagan, 1965). Riding and Cheema's Fundamental DimensionsHaving identi ®ed in excess of 30 labels used to describe a variety of cognitive and learning styles, Riding and Cheem a (1991) propose a broad categorisation of style according to two fundamental dimensions representing the way in which information is processed and represented: wholist ±analytic and verbaliser ±imager. The wholist ±analytic dimension represents the manner in which individuals tend to process information, either as a whole (wholist) or broken down into components parts (analytic). Quoting Nickerson, Perkin, and Smith (1985), Riding and Cheema describe the wholist ±analytic dimension using commonly associated terms: analytic? eductive, rigorous, constrained, convergent, formal, critical and synthetic; wholist? inductive, expansive, unconstrained, divergent, informal, diffuse and creative. The verbaliser ±imager dimension describes the degree to which individuals tend to represent information as words (verbaliser) or as images (imager). They suggest a number of models of cognitive style which can be subsumed under these dimensions (or families). Table 1 includes examples of these family groupings along with the categorical frameworks proposed by Curry (1987) and Rayner and Riding (1997).Riding and Cheema (1991) make the point that many of those styles identi ®ed do not feature heavily in empirical work and that attention has focused on only a small number of styles. They conclude that whilst there is relatively little research comparing the various styles, they can at least be placed into the two broad categories of wholist ±analytic and verbal ±imagery. The two fundamental cognitive styles exist 424 S. Cassidy independently and are not contingent upon one another; an Imager may be positioned at either end of the wholist ±analytic dimension.Riding (1991) has developed the Cognitive Styles Analysis (CSA) as an assessment tool integrating the two dimensions. Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Cognitive-Centred, Activity(Learning)-Centred and Personality-Centred Approaches Using Grigerenko and Sternberg' s (1995) discussion of style-based theory and research, Rayner and Riding (1997) consider learning style within the framework of personality-centred, cognitive-centred and learning-centred approaches.There is only limited discussion of personality-centred approaches given, according to Rayner and Riding, its limited in? uence in the area and the existence of only a single model (Myers Briggs style model) which explicitly incorporates personality as a major factor. Cognitive-centred approaches focus on the identi ®cation of styles based on individual difference in cognitive and perceptual functioning. The discussion of cognitive-centred approaches attempts to integrate the earlier work of Riding and Cheema (1991), categorising models according to holist ±analytic and verbal ±imager principles. The discussion revisits models considered earlier by Riding and Cheema and extends to include a number of additional models including Riding's (1991) Cognitive Style Analysis (CSA). The C SA is a computerised assessment tool which identi ®es an individual's position along both the wholist ±analytic dimension and the verbaliser ±imager dimension. The CSA is an example of a model and instrument of learning style which incorporates the two proposed fundamental dimensions of style.Learning-centred approaches are distinguished on the basis that there is a greater interest in the impact of style on learning in an educational setting, and the development of new learning-relevant constructs and concepts, often born out of the utilisation of assessment instruments. Rayner and Riding's subsequent discussion of learning-centred approaches is framed around the distinction between process-based models, preference-based models and cognitive skills-based models.Process models are de ®ned in terms of perceiving and information processing, with Kolb's Experiential Learning Model representing one such approach. Preference models focus on individuals' preferences for the learni ng situation and include preferred time of day for study, temperature, light, preference for group/independent study. Cognitive skills-based approaches are characterised by the desire to apply cognitivecentred models of style to a learning situation. These approaches focus on  ®elddependency, perceptual modality and memory. Further reviews are provided by De Bello (1990) and Swanson (1995).De Bello provides a systematic review of 11 of what he considers â€Å"major models†, selected according to the following criteria: represent a historical perspective; have in? uenced others; re? ect individual practitioners' attempts to identify style; relate to concurrent issues in education; are research oriented; or are widely known in the  ®eld. De Bello presents a comprehensive account of those models reviewed with an evaluative component, making this a useful guide for the selection of appropriate models for work in the area. Swanson's review uses Curry's onion model as a framewo rk forEducational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles 425 categorising models and measures according to the outlined component layers of learning style. Swanson's article also provides a relatively rare review of the effects of culture and ethnicity on learning style. Curry's (1987) review is concerned with the psychometric properties of measures of learning style. Her article examines 21 measures of style, focusing on issues of reliability and validity, issues which continue to be raised as a matter of concern in the area (Rayner & Riding, 1997).Whilst each of these reviews offers a slightly different perspective on the topic, the impetus for each of them is the wish to rationalise an area littered with a confusing array of terms, de ®nitions, models, and measures. Theories, Models, and Measures The following discussion of learning style models and instruments is? as is frequently the case? by no means exhaustive. It is, however, fai rly comprehensive and includes descriptions of most of the models at least referred to in recent and signi ®cant review papers (De Bello, 1990; Riding & Cheema, 1991; Rayner & Riding, 1997).The selection process certainly did not centre on identifying models which differed from each other in such a way as to provide alternative perspectives. Rather, the aim is to make a point of reported overlaps between different models in order to make explicit the need for rationalisation in research and practice and encourage readers to identify further similarities. Whilst it would, conceivably, be possible to compile an exhaustive list of instruments, this would probably include many derivatives and adaptations along with a number of instruments without an empirical base and an absence of reliability and validity data.Witkin's Field-Dependence/Field-Independence (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family/ Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Field-dependence/ ®eld-indepe ndence is essentially an individual's ability to disembed in perceptual tasks? likened to spatial intelligence (Widiger, Knudson, & Rorer, 1980)? and is associated with the ability to disembed in non-perceptual problem solving tasks (Riding and Cheema, 1991). Evidence that  ®eld-dependence was also relevant to intellectual ability as ell as a range of other psychological competencies, such as sense of self, has led to the construct being given the broader label of â€Å"differentiation†. As a style it associated with a general preference for learning in isolation ( ®eld-independence) as opposed to integration ( ®elddependence) (Witkin & Goodenough, 1981). Field-independent learners are characterised as operating with an internal frame of reference, intrinsically motivated with self-directed goals, structuring their own learning, and de ®ning their own study strategies.Field-dependent learners on the other hand are characterised as relying more on an external frame of reference, are extrinsically motivated, respond better to clearly de ®ned performance goals, have a need for structuring and guidance from the instructor, and a desire to interact with other 426 S. Cassidy learners. These characteristics will clearly have implications for the preferred learning situation and consequently learning outcomes. Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. andfonline. com Measurement. Tests such as the Embedded Figures Test (EFT), involving the disembedding of a shape from its surrounding  ®eld, have been used to measure the construct. Comments. Although it has stimulated a great deal of research in the  ®eld of education in particular, Witkin's theory is criticised on the following grounds: to generalise performance on perceptual tasks to personality and social behaviour is an over-extension of the theory (Grif ®ths & Sheen, 1992); and that  ®eldindependence? ecause of its high correlations with measures of intelligence (Arthur & Day, 1991)? is a measure of ability as opposed to style and therefore is of little value in the  ®eld of cognitive style. Kagan's Impulsivity-Re? exivity (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model and measurement. Impulsivity-re? exivity is measured using the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT) which requires familiar line drawing of objects to be matched against several possibilities.Individuals who make quick responses after brie? y scanning the alternatives are labelled â€Å"cognitive impulsives† while those who scrutinise each alternative before making a  ®nal decision are labelled â€Å"cognitive re? ectives†. Comments. Of note here is the association reported between  ®eld-dependence/ ®eldindependence and impulsivity-re? exivity with a number of studies reporting signi ®cant correlations between MFFT and EFT scores (for example, Massari & Massari, 1973). Re? ctives are reported as more  ®e ld-independent and impulsives as more  ®eld-dependent (Messer, 1976), indicating a signi ®cant overlap in the two constructs. Convergent-Divergent Styles (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Convergent style is characterised by the generation of the one accepted correct answer from the available information and divergent style as a propensity to produce a number of potentially acceptable solutions to the problem.Measurement. Assessment of convergent thinking is the more straightforward of the two, using standard intelligence tests, multiple-choice items, as well as being inferred from performance on the EFT and MFFT. Because the number of Learning Styles 427 Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com potentially correct answers is used as an index of divergent thinking, tests such as Uses of Objects Test and the Consequences Test are usual methods of assessment.Comments. There are a number of suggested implications here: that certain subject areas may encourage, and therefore reward, convergent over divergent thinking (that is, science-related disciplines); that there needs to be a like-for-like match between teacher and student in terms of preferred style (Hudson, 1966); that, because of the inherent structure and routine in most formal educational settings, divergent thinking proves unpopular with teachers and is discouraged (Getzels & Jackson, 1962).There has been an association drawn between divergent thinking and  ®eld-independence (which is considered to be more creative), given that individuals scoring high on divergent thinking also score high on  ®eld independence (Bloomberg, 1971). Holzman and Klein's Leveller-Sharpener Styles (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Using the degree of complexity with which the individual perceives the task, Holzman and Klein (1954) introduced the sty le dimension leveller ±sharpener.The leveller has a tendency to oversimplify their perceptions of the task, assimilating detail and reducing complexity. In contrast, the sharpener fails to assimilate effectively but instead introduces complexity, treating each piece of detail or event as novel. Assimilation is therefore the dimension de ®ning this particular cognitive style, with levellers and sharpeners being positioned at the extremes of the continuum. Measurement.The â€Å"failure to assimilate† characteristic is demonstrated by the Schematising Test which requires the individual to judge the size of a series of squares of light which get progressively bigger. The tendency is to underestimate the size of previous squares judged against the current larger squares. Whilst levellers show a particular sensitivity to this effect, sharpeners make more accurate estimations as a consequence of failing to assimilate current and past events (squares of light). Comments.Whilst th ere is relatively little work utilising the leveller ±sharpener cognitive style (Riding & Cheema, 1991), Riding and Dyer (1983) were able to identify similarities between this style and  ®eld-dependence/independence. Pask's Holist ±Serialist Style (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Interestingly, Pask (Pask, 1972; Pask & Scott, 1972) makes the point that Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com 428 S. Cassidy hilst both groups operate through a different process for learning? in the end? both groups achieve a similar level of understanding. Serialists operate a step-bystep approach to learning, choosing to deal only with small amounts of information or material at any one time before going on to link these steps and achieve understanding. Holists on the other hand will utilise signi ®cant amounts of information from the start, looking to achieve understanding by identifyin g and focusing on major patterns or trends in the data.The serialists perceive the learning task in terms of a series of independent discrete topics and issues and focus on developing links between them, but for holists the focus is on the task as a whole. Pask observed the relative characteristics of serialists and holists as: serialists? stepby-step, logical linear progression, narrow focus, cautious and critical leading to a tendency to fail to see the task from a global perspective; wholists? broad perspective and global strategies resulting in a tendency to make hasty decisions based on insuf ®cient information or analysis. Measurement.Pask and Scott (1972) devised a series of problem-solving tasks which allowed individuals to adopt either a step-by-step or global approach to solving the task. Individuals adopting a step-by-step strategy to test simple hypotheses were labelled as serialists while holists were those individuals who attempted to reach a quicker solution by test ing more complex hypotheses. Comments. Riding and Cheema (1991) point out that despite being widely accepted, the dimension is based on only a relatively small sample and has not bene ®ted from any empirical work examining its association with other learning styles.Notwithstanding these comments, Pask (1976) did report that holists scored higher on the Analogies Test and Divergence Test than serialists, suggesting possible similarities with the convergent-divergent style dimension. Pavio's Verbaliser ±Visualiser Cognitive Style (Verbaliser ±Imager Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model and measurement. The assertion that individuals have an habitual propensity to process information either verbally or imaginally emanates from dual coding theory (Pavio, 1971) and may have important implications for learning.The verbaliser ±visualiser cognitive dimension is assessed through tests examining individuals' ability to generate information not present but dependent upon the presence of a spontaneous image (Riding & Taylor, 1976). Individuals capable of responding quickly are considered visualisers and those with slower response rates verbalisers. Evidence exists to support the notion that, whilst the ability to switch between modes exists, some individuals rely heavily on one or other mode (Riding & Cheema, 1991).The fact that individuals have preferences for either visual or verbal thought has implication for learning. Alesandrini (1981) reported that the tendency for visualisation was inversely related to science and verbal analytical Learning Styles 429 ability, while the generally reported  ®nding is that verbalisers learn best from textbased material and visualisers from pictorially presented material (Riding & Buckle, 1990). This suggests that a mismatch between learner and mode of presentation will adversely affect performance.Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Gregorc 's Style Delineator (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Gregorc (1982) describes four distinctive and observable behaviours: abstract, concrete, random, and sequential tendencies. A combination of these tendencies is indicative of individual style. These tendencies are, Gregorc believes, re? ective of in-born predispositions but individuals need to be capable of functioning outside their natural style.Four learning styles are identi ®ed: concrete sequential, featuring direct, step-by-step, orderly, sensory-based learning; concrete random, featuring trial and error, intuitive and independent approaches to learning; abstract sequential, featuring analytic, logical approaches and a preference for verbal instruction; and abstract random, featuring a preference for holistic, visual, experiential, and unstructured learning. Measurement. The Style Delineator is a 40-item self-report inventory involving the rank ordering of sets of words.The format is similar to that of Kolb's (1976) Learning Styles Inventory and it has been suggested that observation and interviews should be used alongside the instrument to assist in the identi ®cation of learning style and preferences (De Bello, 1990). The measure identi ®es an individual's learning style according to Gregorc's model. Comments. Rayner and Riding (1997) argue that the wholist ±analytic dimension of cognitive style is present within Gregorc's model. Kaufmann's Assimilator ±Explorer Style (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / CognitiveCentred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model.The assimilator ±explorer cognitive style (Kaufmann, 1979) de ®nes style in terms of an individual's propensity to solve problems through either novel or familiar strategies. The style was developed around problem-solving behaviour and has a close association with the use of creativity. Measurement. A-E style is measured using a 32-item self-report questionnai re developed by Kauffmann and Martinsen (1991) in which individuals are scored according to their level of apparent desire for novelty (denoting explorers) or familiarity (denoting assimilators) in cognitive function. 30 S. Cassidy Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Kirton's Adaption ±Innovation Style (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Grounded in an assumption that cognitive style is related to creativity, problem solving and decision-making strategies as well as aspects of personality, Kirton (1994) argued that style develops early in life and remains stable over both time and situation. Kirton introduced an adaption ±innovation dimension along which cognitive style could be measured ith adaptors characterised by the desire to do things better and innovators by the desire to do things differently. Measurement. A-I is assessed using the Kirton Adaptor ±Innovator Inven tory (KAI), a 32-item self-report instrument developed for use with an adult population with both workplace and life experience. Seen as a measure of problem-solving style and creativity, the KAI is in frequent use in the  ®eld of management and training. Allinson and Hayes' Intuition ±Analysis Style (Wholist ±Analytic Style Family / Cognitive-Centred Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model.The Cognitive Style Index was developed by Allinson and Hayes (1996) in an effort to operationalise cognitive style for use in the area of management. It focuses on the dimension of intuition versus analysis which, Allinson and Hayes argue, represents a superordinate dimension of cognitive style. Hemispheric asymmetry underlies the dimension, with right brain orientation characterised by intuition with a tendency for rapid decision making based on feeling and the adoption of a global perspective. Left brain orientation is characterised by analysis where decisions are a result of logic al reasoning focusing on detail.Measurement. The CSI is a 38-item self-report questionnaire which provides a score suggestive of either an intuitive or analytic nature. Kolb's Experiential Learning Model (ELM) and Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) (Learning-Centred Processed-Based Approach / Information Processing Style) Model. Kolb (1976, 1984) proposes a four-stage hypothetical learning cycle. Individuals will show a preference for or will cope with some stages better than others and learning is seen as a continuous, interactive process.The four stages of the ELM are described as: concrete experience (CE; experiencing) which favours experiential learning; abstract conceptualisation (AC; thinking) where there is a preference for conceptual and analytical thinking in order to achieve understanding; active experimentation (AE; doing) involving active trial-and-error learning; and re? ective observation (RO; re? ecting) where extensive consideration is given to the task and potential so lutions before there is any attempt at action. The four learning orientations form two orthogonal bipolar dimensions of learning. Educational Psychology 2004. 4:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles 431 The  ®rst dimension is prehension? the grasping of information from experience? and is constituted by the bipolar orientations CE ±AC. The second dimension described is transformation? the processing of grasped information? and is constituted by the remaining orientations AE ±RO. Relative positioning along these dimensions de ®nes the learning styles described by Kolb as convergence, divergence, assimilation and accommodation. The individual who adopts a convergent approach uses abstract conceptualisation to drive active experimentation.Action is based on abstract understanding of the task and projected strategies for successful completion of the task. Divergers combine re? ective observation with concrete experience to devise an often creative soluti on. Divergers are often described as creative learners because of their propensity to consider multiple potential strategies for learning and problem solving. Assimilators, concerned primarily with the explanation of their observations, favour abstract conceptualisation and re? ective observation. As such, assimilators seek mainly to re ®ne abstract theories rather than develop workable strategies and solutions.Lastly, Kolb de ®nes the accommodator. Using active experimentation and concrete experience, these individuals have a clear preference for hands-on learning. The accommodator has been described as having a tendency for prompt action and a noted ability for adapting to diverse situations (Lynch, Woel? , Steele, & Hanssen, 1998). Measurement. Originally developed as a 9-item self-report scale (Kolb, 1976), the revised LSI (Kolb, 1985) is a 12-item self-report questionnaire. Respondents are required on each of the items to rank four sentence endings corresponding to each of the four learning styles.LSI scores re? ect an individual's relative emphasis on the four learning orientations and enable categorisation according to the corresponding learning style. Two combination scores measure an individual's preference for abstractness over concreteness (AC ±CE) and action over re? ection (AE ±RO). Comments. Assertions that the styles outlined by Kolb will be associated with student performance have been borne out in a number of studies where, for example, convergers perform better on conventional examinations involving concrete answers (Lynch et al. , 1998).Despite such support, studies examining the psychometric properties of the LSI have raised concerns regarding its reliability and validity (Freedman & Stumpf, 1981; Geiger, Boyle, & Pinto, 1992; Geller, 1979; Newstead, 1992; Sims, Veres, Watson, & Buckner, 1986). Kolb's emphasis on experiential learning and the developmental nature of learning suggests a potential for change in style (Rayner & Riding, 1997). Studies which have examined stability and change using the LSI present a mixed picture. Low test-retest reliability statistics and changes in style classi ®cation reported by Sims et al. 1986) are countered by reports of exceptionally high test-retest reliability of 0. 99 found by Veres, Sims, and Locklear (1991). Although also reporting high test-retest reliability 432 S. Cassidy Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com statistics, Loo (1997) is cautious about them, believing that inappropriate statistical techniques may be masking individual changes in style in favour of group effects. The ELM forms the basis of the work of Honey and Mumford (1986) in the  ®eld of learning style and management and the development of their Learning Styles Questionnaire.Honey and Mumford's Learning Styles Questionnaire (Learning-Centred ProcessedBased Approach / Information Processing Style) Model. Honey and Mumford's (1992) description and measureme nt of learning style is grounded in Kolb's experiential learning model, with styles closely corresponding to those de ®ned by Kolb. The Learning Styles Questionnaire (LSQ) was developed for use with management trainees and has been proposed as an alternative to Kolb's LSI. The four learning styles measured by the LSQ are: activist (Kolb's active experimentation); re? ctor (Kolb's re? ective observation); theorist (Kolb's abstract conceptualisation; and pragmatist (Kolb's concrete experience). Measurement. The LSQ is an 80-item self-report inventory based on Kolb's ELM but developed speci ®cally for use in industry and management. Individuals' tendency towards a preferred learning style is indicated by their ratings of behavioural and preference orientations. Comments. Although developed for use with management trainees, the LSQ has been used in a range of settings including education.However, concerns regarding the psychometric qualities of the LSQ have been raised. Duff and Duf fy (2002) report a failure to support the existence of either the bipolar dimensions or learning styles proposed by Honey and Mumford and found the LSQ to have only modest levels of internal consistency (ranging from 0. 52 to 0. 73 for the four style subscales). Given that their sample was 388 undergraduate students, Duff and Duffy conclude the LSQ is not an acceptable alternative to the LSI and that its use in the  ®eld of higher education is premature.Vermunt's Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) (Learning-Centred Processed-Based Approach / Information Processing Style) Model. Vermunt (1992) describers the concept of learning style in terms of: processing strategies, including an awareness of the aims and objectives of the learning exercise used to determine what is learnt; regulation strategies, which serve to monitor learning; mental models of learning, encompassing the learner's perceptions of the learning process; and learning orientations, described as personal aims, intentions and expectations based on past experience of learning.Based on these strategies and orientations, Vermunt derives four learning styles: undirected, Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Learning Styles 433 where there is dif ®culty in assimilating learning material, coping with the olume of material and prioritising the importance of components of the material; reproduction, where little or no effort is made to understand but instead information is reproduced to complete the task or achieve the minimum required standard; application directed, which is characterised by the application of learning material to concrete situations in order to gain understanding; and lastly, meaning directed learning, which involves attempts to gain a deeper understanding of learning material and to draw on existing and related knowledge to achieve critical understanding.Vermunt's Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) was developed as a diagnostic tool for use in a h igher education context. Measurement. The degree to which each of the four styles is favoured is assessed using Vermunt's LSI (Vermunt, 1994). The LSI comprises 20 subscales and 120 items relating to study strategies, motives and mental models. Individuals respond to statements along a  ®ve-point scale according to the degree to which the statement is descriptive of their behaviour or the extent to which they agree with the statement.Comments. Vermunt's (1992) own reports of acceptable reliability and validity of the LSI received some support form Busato, Prins, Elshout, and Hamaker (1998) who con ®rmed the existence of four factors corresponding to learning styles described by Vermunt. The in? uence of Kolb, Honey and Mumford, and Entwistle and Tait (see below) all seem present in Vermunt's approach to the assessment of learning styles. Entwistle et al. ‘s Approaches to Study Inventory (Learning-Centred Process-Based Approach / Information Processing Style)Model. Based on earlier work by Marton and Saljo (1976) Entwistle, Hanley, and Hounsel (1979) developed an instrument for assessing learning style which focuses on the level of engagement or depth of processing applied during learning. The proposed model centres around four modes of orientation of the learner: meaning orientation; reproduction orientation; achieving orientation; and holistic orientation. Tendencies towards particular combinations of orientations identify individuals as conforming to one of he following learning styles: deep (intention to understand, relating ideas, use of evidence, and active learning); surface (intention to reproduce, unrelated memorising, passive learning, and fear of failure); strategic (study organisation, time management, alertness to assessment demands, and intention to excel); and apathetic (lack of direction and lack of interest). Measurement. The original 64-item ASI has undergone a number of revisions, its most radical in 1994 when it was abbreviated to 38 items, and then to 44 items in 434 S. Cassidy Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. om 1995 (Entwistle & Tait, 1995). The revised ASI (RASI) is a 44-item self-report inventory of learning activities using a Likert scale response format. The RASI now identi ®es six approaches to learning: deep approach; surface approach; strategic approach; lack of direction; academic self-con ®dence; and metacognitive awareness of studying. Comments. The ASI inventory has been used extensively in educational research and a recent study examining the psychometric properties of the RASI and its utility in an educational setting recommends its continued use for educational management and research (Duff, 2000).Biggs' Study Processes Questionnaire (SPQ) (Learning-Centred Process-Based Approach / Information Processing Style) Model and measurement. Entwistle's model was further developed by Biggs (1985) to incorporate an extended motivational dimension de ®ned as intrinsic, extrinsic and achievement orientation. Bigg's study processes measure includes both a strategy dimension? deep/surface? and a motivational dimension? deep/surface. Measurement. Originally a 42-item self-report questionnaire, the revised two-factor SPQ (Biggs, Kember, & Leung, 2001) has 20 items and provides scores in relation to strategy (deep/surface) and otive (deep/surface). An overall composite score is indicative of a consistently deep or surface approach to learning. Achieving approach is no longer separated out as in earlier versions. Schmeck's Inventory of Learning Processes (ILP) (Learning-Centred Process-Based Approach / Information Processing Style) Model. Schmeck et al. ‘s (1977) learning processes style construct is developed around the belief that it is the quality of thinking during learning which affects the learning outcome.Like the models proposed by Entwistle and Biggs, the learning process model follows the work of Marton and Saljo (1976), fo cusing on learning orientations with an emphasis on information processing (Duff, 2000). The four subscales of the ILP are: synthesis ±analysis; elaborative processing; fact retention; and study methods (Rayner & Riding, 1997). Measurement. The ILP was originally a 62-item self-report inventory with the four subscales identi ®ed above. A revised version (ILP-R) has 160 items and seven subscales (Schmeck, Geisler-Brenstein, & Cercey, 1991).However, each version of the ILP has come under heavy criticism and Richardson (2000) concludes that the ILP cannot be recommended for use in investigating student learning. Learning Styles 435 Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Hunt et al. ‘s Conceptual Level Model (Learning-Centred Process-Based Approach / Information Processing Style) Model. Hunt, Butler, Noy, and Rosser (1978) described learning style in terms of an individual's need for structure and the conditions under which that individu al will learn most effectively.Students requiring a highly structured learning environment, who are impulsive and concrete, are described as having a low conceptual level (CL). High CL students are independent, inquiring, self-assertive, and have little or no need for structure. The aim of the model therefore is to match students' learning style with the most appropriate methods of teaching. Measurement. The Paragraph Completion Test requires individuals to complete and elaborate on six incomplete sentences.Because responses are scored according to their degree of complexity, scoring and interpretation of the test requires specialist training (De Bello, 1990). Comments. Suedfeld and Coren (1992) reported an association between conceptual level and divergent thinking and support the existence of the construct as a cognitive style rather than a mental ability. Some evidence for the validity of the CL model was presented by McLachlan and Hunt (1973) who found that low CL students showe d signi ®cant bene ®t in their learning from a high as opposed to a low structure teaching method.It was also reported that teaching method did not impact signi ®cantly on learning in high CL students. In line with such  ®ndings, Hunt believes that although teaching needs to be geared towards students' learning style to facilitate learning, there may be a developmental component to style which would allow for teaching methods to become gradually less structured to encourage more independent learning. Dunn et al. ‘s Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) (Learning-Centred Preference-Based Approach / Instructional Preference / Social Interaction)Model and measurement. Dunn, Dunn and Prices' (1989) LSI is a 100-item selfreport questionnaire asking individuals to respond to items relating to the key factors of the construct: environmental (light, sound, temperature, and design); emotional (structure, persistence, motivation, and responsibility); sociological (pairs, peers, adults , self, and group); physical (perceptual strengths: auditory, visual, tactile, kinaesthetic, mobility, intake, and time of day); and psychological (global-analytic, impulsive-re? ctive, and cerebral dominance). Versions of the scale have been developed for use with primary and secondary school children and with adults (the Productivity Environmental Preferences Survey). The factors are reported independently to provide pro ®les which can be used to guide the construction of the learning situation, material and teaching approach. 436 S. Cassidy Comments. Curry's (1987) review of different learning/cognitive style models reports the LSI as having one of the highest reliability and validity ratings.The LSI has also been identi ®ed as being practitioner oriented and the most widely used assessment for learning style in elementary and secondary schools (Keefe, 1982). Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Riechmann and Grasha's (1974) Style of Learning Interaction Model (LearningCentred Preference-Based Approach / Instructional Preference / Social Interaction) Model. Described as a social interaction scale (Jonassen & Grabowski, 1993), the style of learning interaction model focuses on learner preferences but introduces social and affective dimensions to the measurement of style.The three dimensions described by the model are: avoidant-participant; competitive ±collaborative and dependent ±independent. The model incorporates the belief that style is, to some degree, ? uid and will alter according to the learning situation. Measurement. The Student Learning Styles Scale (SLSS) is a 90-item scale presented in two versions, one to assess class style and one to assess individual style. Comments. Rayner and Riding (1997) note the similarity between the style of learning interaction model and the model proposed by Dunn et al. (1989) because of the focus on learning preferences.Ramirez and Castenada's (1974) Child Rating For m (Learning-Centred Cognitive Skills-Based Approach / Cognitive Personality Style / Instructional Preference / Social Interaction) Model and measurement. The model incorporates the cognitive style dimension  ®eld-dependence/ ®eld-independence (Witkin, 1962) and focuses particularly on cultural differences and minority groups. Field-independence is viewed as positive because its associated traits (detail orientated, independent and sequential) are those which Ramirez believes are rewarded by schools.The Child Rating Form is a direct observation tool measuring behaviour frequencies which is completed by teachers or can be completed as a self-report questionnaire by the student. The Edmunds Learning Style Identi ®cation Exercise (ELSIE) (Reinert, 1976) (Learning-Centred Cognitive Skills-Based Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model and measurement. Described as a form of assessment which aims to â€Å"provide the teacher with information which will be used to work to the s tudent's strengths or preferred mode of responding to learning stimuli† (Rayner & Riding, 1997, p. 9), the ELSIE aims to identify the individual's natural perceptual modality in the context of a learning situation. The 50 one-word items of the instrument assess Learning Styles 437 response in terms of imagery, verbalisation, sound, and affect. Similarities between ELSIE and several other models including those of Dunn et al. (1989), Hill (1976) and Keefe and Monks (1986; the NASSP-LSP) have been noted. Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. comHill's Cognitive Style Interest Inventory (Learning-Centred Cognitive Skills-Based Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. De ®ning learning style in terms of the unique way in which an individual searches for meaning, Hill (1976) used a process of cognitive style mapping, attempting to establish perceptual modality (auditory/visual), modalities of inference (such as critical thinking and hypo thesis testing), and cultural determinants in order to integrate learning style with curriculum design. Hill labelled the resulting construct â€Å"educational cognitive style†.Measurement. The Cognitive Style Interest Inventory is a 216-item self-report questionnaire designed to assess educational cognitive style using the following categories: symbols and their meaning (perceptual modality); modalities of inference; and cultural determinants. There is also an interview component to the measure. Comments. The instrument itself suffers from a lack of empirical support (Jonassen & Grabowski, 1993), poor reliability and validity (Curry, 1987) and has been criticised for the elaborate and time-consuming nature of the instrument (De Bello, 1990).De Bello (1990) draws comparisons between Hill's model and both Ramirez and Castenada's (1974) model, because of the identi ®cation of cultural differences, and Dunn et al. ‘s (1989) model because of the in? uence of peer and fami ly orientation. Letteri's Learner Types (Learning-Centred Cognitive Skills-Based Approach / Cognitive Personality Style) Model. Viewing learning essentially as information processing involving the effective storage and retrieval of information, Letteri (1980) was concerned with the diagnosis of ineffective cognitive processing and advocated interventions teaching effective cognitive skills.The model identi ®ed three types of learner: Type 1 is re? ective and analytic; Type 3 is impulsive and global with a lack of direction; and Type 2 falls midway between Types 1 and 3 in approach to learning. Letteri provided evidence linking Type 1 learners with above average and type 3 learners with below average academic success. Measurement. Letteri's instrument represents a number of existing cognitive dimensions, including  ®eld-independence/ ®eld-dependence, impulsivity ±re? exivity, 438 S. Cassidy scanning/focussing and levelling/sharpening, which are assessed through a series of bi polar continuums.In general, bipolar extremes correspond to either wholist (global) or analytic characteristics. Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Keefe and Monks' (1986) Learning Style Pro ®le (Learning-Centred Cognitive SkillsBased Approach / Cognitive Personality Style, Instructional Preference and Social Interaction) Model. Keefe and Monks' (1986) Learning Style Pro ®le (LSP) was the result of extensive re-examination of existing learning style models with the aim of developing a single instrument capable of assessing learning style across the range of already established characteristics.The LSP assesses style in three areas: cognitive skills, including information processing and memory; perceptual response to visual and auditory stimuli; and study and instructional preferences, including motivation and environmental preferences. The model is intended for use in the development of educational programmes and focuses on the developm ent of effective cognitive skills for learning. Measurement. The LSP is a 126-item assessment tool for secondary students which includes self-report items and cognitive tasks (derived from the EFT).Responses are computer scored and provide students with an individual learning style pro ®le. Comments. Not surprisingly, given its origins, the LSP has been found to correlate signi ®cantly with other instruments, most notably Dunn et al. ‘s (1989) LSI and Reinhart's (1976) ELSIE (Curry, 1987; Keefe & Monks, 1986). Commenting on these reported correlations, De Bello (1990) notes Curry's (1987) concerns regarding the reliability and validity of ELSIE. Learning Styles in Action? Some Examples Interest in de ®ning, characterising and studying the associated effects of learning style results? ainly? from its distinction from ability and its association with performance. Whereas the relationship between ability and performance is relatively straightforward, such that performance i mproves with increased ability, the effects of style on performance are contingent on the nature of the task. For example, imagers are likely to perform better on pictorially-based tasks than on verbal-based tasks (Riding, 1997). In support of the independence of learning style and intelligence, Riding and Pearson (1994) found that there were no signi ®cant correlations between intelligence? s measured by the British Abilities Scale? and the wholist ±analytic and verbal ±imager dimensions of learning style. A less clear distinction between learning style and personality is presented (Riding & Wigley, 1997), although only a tentative link is reported. The identi ®cation of an individual characteristic, separate form Learning Styles 439 ability, which impacts on learning performance has led to the application of learning style theory and measurement in a number of diverse areas. Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. andfonline. com Academic Achievement Cassidy and Eachus (2000) used the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (Tait & Entwistle, 1996) to measure learning style in undergraduate students. They found that academic achievement was positively correlated with a strategic approach, negatively correlated with an apathetic approach, and unrelated to a deep approach to learning. Learning style was also found to correlate signi ®cantly with other academic performance-related factors such as academic self-ef ®cacy and academic locus of control.Clinical Training in Medical Schools McManus, Richards, Winder, and Sproston (1998) found, in a large-scale prospective study of two cohorts of medical students at a London medical school, that the students' learning styles, but not their  ®nal examination results, were related to the amount of knowledge gained from clinical experience. Using an abbreviated 18-item version of the Study Process Questionnaire (Biggs, 1987) they reported positive correlations between strate gic and deep learning styles and amount of knowledge gained from clinical experience. Career DevelopmentIn reviewing weaknesses in current practices within industry towards the retention and development of individuals labelled as â€Å"high ? yers†, Bates (1994) lists learning style as one key factor. Bates cites Honey and Mumford's (1986) model of learning style as an appropriate model for individual learning and one capable of encompassing a framework for high ? yer development. In the move to cultivate the â€Å"top managers† of the future, Bates calls for individual learning styles to be taken into account through the provision of a variety of learning situations which should create the opportunity for the development of a full range of styles.Police Training In a review of existing methods of police training in the U. S. , Birzer (2003) criticises traditional behavioural approaches in favour of instructional methods which recognise individual differences in learni ng. Citing recent studies identifying individual approaches to learning, Birzer illustrates the paradoxical way in which much police training is currently delivered with little regard for individual differences in learning, and calls for a more student-centred approach to training in the future.These examples illustrate the range of potential applications of learning style and underline the need to promote clari ®cation and rationalisation in the  ®eld. 440 S. Cassidy Educational Psychology 2004. 24:419-444. downloaded from www. tandfonline. com Working with Learning Style The researcher or practitioner entering the area of learning style may well do so with some sense of trepidation given the volume, diversity and apparent dissociation of writing, theory and empiricism in the  ®eld. De Bello (1990) notes that there exist almost as many de ®nitions as there do theorists in the area.For the academic concerned with pure theory this may offer an exciting