Understanding Black Holes Essay - 1070 Words

Like the boundaries on earth, mankind has always looked to the sky in awe for it seemed boundless in its ever growing horizon. Out of all the cosmos that’s being found and discovered every day, there is one object that stands to elude scientists still, the black hole. Albert Einstein, and all the brilliant scientists after his, help to design and create a part of the universe that’s very crucial to understanding existence. The perimeters of a black hole have been a great this that has been discussed and observed to the point where it eventually becomes clear as its compared to objects around or like it. The physics of the black holes existence is still unclear for it shows properties that support Einstein’s theory and quantum mechanics,†¦show more content†¦(Clegg, Brian) Karl Schwarzschild found a solution to Einstein’s theory, if enough matter was packed in to a small region of space, he said, it should have a strong enough gravitational field that even light couldn’t escape it. Roy Kerr stated that the bigger the star, the greater the ‘drag’ on the space-time around it. But later his equations were looked at again and it was shown that this theory would be applied to black holes. 1971, an x-ray satellite, Uhuru, had spotted a flicking that was shown by a binary star system of a white supergiant and a black hole. The black hole was taking the gas that was being emitted by the white supergiant and while the gas spiraled in to it, spurts of gas were ripped from the faster then the speed of light. Stephen Hawking shows that black holes may not be black: they may emit a form of radiation that will eventually cause them to evaporate. (Black Hole Encyclopedia yr. 1974) this type of radiation was coined as hawking radiation, for it stated that when hawking particles were near the event horizon, the negatively charged side would fall in while the positive flew out, making the firewall paradox. (Black hole Encyclopedia) The problem with the black hole is the understanding of where does the information go after it’s eaten, thus, the information paradox. The firewall paradox is one of the two that should happen, but don’t. The process of the firewall is when aShow MoreRelatedUnderstanding Black Holes Essay1929 Words   |  8 PagesUnderstanding Black Holes A Black hole is a theorized celestial body whose surface gravity is so strong that nothing, including light, can escape from within its surface. Gravity is the key to a black holes immense power. The black holes strong gravity keeps captured material from escaping. For example, if Earth were the same mass it is now but had only one-fourth its present radius, the escape velocity of someone standing on its surface would be twice whatRead MoreEssay about Understanding Black Holes2354 Words   |  10 PagesThroughout the modern era of astronomy, a single type of celestial object has puzzled astronomers more than any other. Black holes, whose existence was only verified in the early 1990’s, have fascinated scientists ever since Einstein first proposed the theoretical concept in the 1930’s. A black hole is an object so tiny, but also so dense, that it has the power to pull planets, stars, and even light into its core, and ultimately destroy everything in its path. Over the past decade much has been discoveredRead MoreBlack Holes: Forces of Gravity Essay1524 Words   |  7 Pagesfront of you, even if they might be invisible to the naked eye. Sizable leaps in our understanding about the mechanisms of life and our universe are in the process of being made with scientists believing black holes are the major precipice to these greater understandings. Black holes push and break many mod ern understandings of physics and time with many mysterious qualities. Insuppressible forces of nature, black holes, are a little understood entity in our universe with a strong influence on modernRead MoreEssay about Physics of Black Holes845 Words   |  4 PagesBlack holes - the strange scientific phenomenon that has astounded physicists and astronomers alike for decades. Popular subjects in science fiction novels, black holes are one of the greatest enigmas of the scientific world. Even today, the concept of a super-dense ball of matter that not even light can escape from is somewhat farfetched, and many scientists disagree with each other about nearly every aspect of a black hole. This project will attempt to shed some light on these mysterious formationsRead MoreThe Wonderous Mystery of Black Holes1668 Words   |  7 Pagestheories helped predict that black holes actually occupy the universe vastly (Wiki authors). Because black holes are virtually invisible to the human ey e, since not even light can escape their clutches, it is hard to understand something that can’t be seen or even assume it exists. Though the concept of black holes can be traced back to 1795, to Pierre Simon Laplace, who originally proposed the idea. It was Karl Schwarzchild to be the first to start proving black holes exist from the research ofRead MoreThe Violent Development Of Stars1676 Words   |  7 PagesAlthough once foreign giants to man, stars live some of the most explosive lives possible. Over billions of years, the violent development of stars from conception to death is one that had perplexed mankind for a while. Though as we formed a better understanding of how they develop, humans have learned that these stellar orbs directly influence the formation of, or death of objects in the universe. Stars are phenomenal objects in our universe that are instrumental to its development. These celestial bodiesRead MoreEssay on Black Holes1241 Words   |  5 Pages Black holes are one of the many things in the universe that scientists still have a muddy understanding about. However, with the incredible advances of technology, we are able to understand more than what we have in the past. Today, the only way to observe these incredible objects are by looking for radiation from the gas surrounding it. What are they? Black holes are no more than a  ³dead star. ² A star that is considered  ³alive ² would be our sun. The sun still produces energy by converting hydrogenRead MoreThe Idea Of Black Holes1913 Words   |  8 Pagesone of the most misunderstood phenomena in space are black holes. According to NASA, a black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light can not get out. They are packed full of more mass, which is the amount of matter in space, in an area as little as an atom or as large as a big city (Dunbar). Black holes stem from many theories all combined to explain the ever growing universe and its formation. The idea of black holes was first proposed and inspired by Albert Einstein’sRead MoreEssay on Black Holes3683 Words   |  15 PagesBlack Holes Black holes are objects so dense that not even light can escape their gravity, and since nothing can travel faster than light, nothing can escape from inside a black hole. Loosely speaking, a black hole is a region of space that has so much mass concentrated in it that there is no way for a nearby object to escape its gravitational pull. Since our best theory of gravity at the moment is Einsteins general theory of relativity, we have to delve into some results of this theory to understandRead MoreStephen William Hawking : Stephen Hawking1379 Words   |  6 PagesTheory of Black Holes Our original understanding of black holes, according to Einstein s generally theory of relativity, is that everything that crosses the event horizon - the boundary of a black hole - is lost forever. Even light can t escape its clutches, which is why black holes are called black holes. But then in the 1970s, Hawking proposed that radiation actually can escape from a black hole, because of the laws of quantum mechanics. Put very simply, he suggested that when a black hole swallows

A Piece of Literatureâ€â€œLost Love” Free Essays

I love you I miss you. When I close my eyes I can still picture Your face Your smile Your voice I can still picture you I don’t know why I love you. The thought of you still brings a smile on my face. We will write a custom essay sample on A Piece of Literature–â€Å"Lost Love† or any similar topic only for you Order Now Though u r many miles away from me, but still I don’t know why I can’t help but think of you. All I wish for is your happiness. I pray for your well being. And I hope the smile that made me fall for you never leaves your face. I have no idea how I fell for you. You are so close to my heart. And I don’t even know why. My heart chose you. You are special. You are the one person in my life who I would choose above the rest. But you don’t know how important you are to me. What I would give to see you. How many tears my eyes have shed missing you. How many nights I have cried myself to sleep just thinking of you. How whenever you got hurt it was almost as if I could feel it a thousand times intensified. How whenever I see your picture my heart melts a little all i wanna do is just look at it. How I am crying a little right now just thinking of you. Most of all you don’t know that I love you probably you never will. Absence makes the heart go fonder. And I am, fond of you. I don’t live in a dream world. I don’t expect myself to have a fairy tale. I mean c’mon let’s be realistic. I have no chance with you. When you moved you took a part of my heart with you. And I want it back. I try so hard not to love you, not to worry about you, not to think of you, but somehow you crawl your way back into my heart. You are the one person in my life of whom my heart cannot let go of. And the funny thing is that I don’t even know how you became this important to me. I don’t know how. I never thought that a girl like me would ever fall for a guy like you. But somehow I did. I have never felt the way for anyone like I felt for you. I try to forget you. But it’s just too hard. Sometimes I miss him, I miss him so much. I find comfort in the thoughts of him with me comforting me, though I know it will only be possible in my dreams. When I am sad, I think of him. I don’t know why but he is very special for me. I don’t know what makes him special. He just has a power over my heart. I can’t stop thinking about him. He is beautiful. Though he is not perfect but in my eyes he is. He is the most beautiful thing in this world deserves all the happiness in this world. I pray for him, I have always done that, I want him to be happy healthy. I want him to get everything his heart desires. I gathered a lot of courage last night before sending him that simple â€Å"hi†. It was almost after 3 months. The 2 minute chat we had was not much, but it made my heart pound as hard as anything could. I was so happy that you remembered me wanted to talk, But I was also kind of disappointed when you didn’t reply after a while. For weeks weeks I always came online in hopes that you would message me but you never did. And I was too scared myself to message you worried that I would be annoying you or that you would have much better things to do than chat with me. So I did nothing. I just used to open your profile see your pictures. You still looked the same way you did before, you still were a little spoilt but a popular guy. You still had that element about you, but something was changed, your expressions, your smile, i found hidden sadness in it. It troubled me. The kind of statuses you shared made it seem that you were heartbroken. And I still remember the caption of 2 pics- It’s hard to forget someone who gave you so much to remember. Distance doesn’t matter if two hearts are loyal to each other. It made me wonder who you were talking about. Oh. , how I wish it was me. But I guess it can’t be me coz its almost impossible that you have a crush on me. Nobody has made me feel this way, nobody. Nobody has made me cry this way. It’s not just one time or two time, hell, not even three times; it’s endless times when my heart misses him. Each time i don’t know why i cry each time I promise myself not to cry again. But then again I see his picture, his beautiful face i can’t stop myself from missing him. Just reading his name causes my heart to flutter a little. I don’t even understand why I miss him so much. It’s not like we were friends or anything. He made friends pretty easily I had hardly any friends. In fact, he was friends with people who used to make fun of me. But I never let myself In the last 4 months we might have had two short chats consisting of 13 messages in total. But still when I read the words you typed, that you actually wanted to talk to me I cannot stop but smile a little. The first chat took place in December last year when you sent me a request on fb. My heart actually stopped for a second there. And when you messaged me, my heart was so full of happiness that I am sure I would have screamed. I tried acting cool to let you believe I was happy in my life I acted cheerfully. And when you messaged to ask if I remember you, oh the irony.! The only reason I joined fb was because of you. The way you typed your messages,,there was something different about it. But then after one message you did not reply back. You were still online, it made me feel like you had more important people to chat with, so I let it go. After that I came online each day as many hours as I could in hopes that you would message me, but you never did. And I was too much of a coward myself to message you, I thought that I would be annoying you. So I never did. Until last week when I finally gathered enough strength to send you that 2 letter word â€Å"hi†. I waited for almost 5 minutes but you didn’t reply,so I felt really stupid for messaging. Then I found out that my stupid internet connection did not load that page properly, so I opened a new tab, see that you had replied in the next minute. I felt so happy, that you took time out of your life to reply to my message. You asked how my exams took plac, I asked about yours, the you tell me you are back in the city. Then my stupid net setter disconnected I couldn’t get a signal for 30 min. Damn..! it never does such a drama when I am doing noting. Anyways, I replied, that night you didn’t come online. That is all How to cite A Piece of Literature–â€Å"Lost Love†, Papers

Cry The Beloved Country Stimulating A Change free essay sample

Cry, The Beloved Country- Stimulating A Change Essay, Research Paper Cry, the Beloved State: Stimulating a Change The intent of Cry, the Beloved Country, is to rouse the population of South Africa to the racism that is easy disintegrating the society and its people. Alan Paton designs his work to show his positions on the unfairnesss and racial hatred that pestilence South Africa, in an effort to conveying about alteration and apprehension. The characters that he incorporates within his narrative, aid to set up a sense of the conditions and adversities that the state is sing, and the presence of fright through the whole of the public. Showing the characters as holding nonreversible personalities or by mentioning to them by a simple label, Paton indicates that these immoralities are cosmopolitan and cardinal within human nature. As Stephen Kumalo hunts for his boy, Absalom, Paton has several events bechance onto Kumalo in order to stand for the rough society that many of the inkinesss live in. We will write a custom essay sample on Cry The Beloved Country Stimulating A Change or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The first event occurs when Kumalo arrives in Johannesburg, afraid from the narratives that he has heard, he puts his trust in another black adult male who appears to be of good purposes, but in world darnels Kumalo of his money. This experience is unlike his clip on the train, in which Kumalo had been treated with huge regard. On the train he is cognizant of the regard that other inkinesss hold for him, because he is a adult male of God, though, in the metropolis, his societal standing demonstrates small significance. This may be taken as a mark that the thought of a God may be questioned or less acceptable to the people, when they have places in a society that are barbarous and non good. Kumalo does happen aid when he asks for aid from an older adult male, who kindly escorts him to the Mission House. The contrast that Paton creates here is the fact that non all inkinesss think with the same intent, a common feature of stereotypes, which Paton feels the people should rise supra. He seeks to connote that opinion of a individual should be based more on the content of character, instead than the general premises of a society. This is a demand in his program to reconstruct a land that is easy falling apart. The following character that is introduced is Kumalo # 8217 ; s sister, Gertrude. Equally shortly as she sees her brother, she becomes engulfed by fright. She proclaims she wishes to return to Ndotsheni, but feels unworthy because of what she has become. She agrees to travel back to her fatherland, but in the terminal, wantonnesss Kumalo and her kid. Kumalo # 8217 ; s brother, John, is the following of his household to be confronted. # 8220 ; [ John ] is corrupt and fallacious, and betrays his brother and nephew at the first chance # 8221 ; ( Hogan, 206 ) . Msimangu, though, feels that if John were non corrupt, he would non solve jobs, but # 8220 ; dip this state into bloodshed # 8221 ; ( Paton, 187 ) . As a magnetic talker, John has the ability to raise the inkinesss against the Whites, but is excessively scared to, fearing the possible revenge of the Whites. Paton # 8217 ; s description of these characters, denote their immoral natures and the fright that exists within their lives, which he feels may be due to their corrupt milieus and the subjugation that they must digest. As a foil to the degrading conditions of the metropolis, Paton expresses state of affairss in which the factor of colour seems vacant. One such juncture is seen as Kumalo is in the mission, and he observes that the # 8220 ; black and white priests [ are ] eating together # 8221 ; ( Alexander, 15 ) . Paton involves this incident, to demo that their is still a possibility that inkinesss and Whites can co-exist peacefully. Arthur Jarvis # 8217 ; effort to make a placid society, plays a contradiction every bit good to the fact that the subjugation of the inkinesss is brought on by the Whites. It plays contrary in that non all Whites seek to suppress, and that there are people who wish to make an equal society. This is another illustration of Paton # 8217 ; s wish to go up above the usage of stereotypes. Arthur # 8217 ; s slaying by Absalom, a black adult male, is a powerful statement that Paton wants to express. The fact that Arthur wished to assist the inkinesss, and is subsequently murdered by one, is Paton # 8217 ; s effort to demo that this greed and hatred that exist within adult male, may destruct the opportunities for a better society. He feels that adult male must break himself in order to carry through this betterment, by let go ofing the choler and hatred that is contained within. Absalom # 8217 ; s arrest and sentence to decease is another powerful announcement, in that it signifies what may go of adult male if he does non better these conditions. Similar # 8220 ; to the rebellious boy of King David # 8221 ; ( Alexander, 16 ) in the bible, Absalom goes against the ideals of his male parent. After he commits the slaying of Arthur Jarvis and is given a decease sentence, we see a alteration in Absalom, an image of what may hold become of Absalom had he chosen a different way. Contained within him is regret and compunction, as he considers the options to his life style. Paton positions this matter as what may be the decision to mankind, in that a alteration may happen within adult male, but the alteration may happen excessively late and the devastation of world will be inevitable. The relationship that develops between James Jarvis and Stephen Kumalo, is Paton # 8217 ; s thought of what needs to come approximately in order to reconstruct the deceasing land. A bond that emerges between the two different colourss, to convey about a cooperation and apprehension of each other is necessary for the resurgence of the state. As Kumalo learns of what is needed to better the land in which he lives, more possibilities of the hope of Restoration and renewed beginnings can be seen. Examples include Gertrude # 8217 ; s boy, Jarvis # 8217 ; grandson and Kumalo # 8217 ; s unborn grandchild ; they stand for the new coevals that can assist convey about the needed alterations and to aide in the healing of the deceasing land. So in decision, Paton seeks to arouse a alteration in the conditions of the society before the impairment of the people will be beyond salvation. In order to carry through this, adult male must first rise above the generalizations and hatred that each race has for each other. This is a necessary measure in order to progress and make a harmoniousness that will reconstruct their state, and take the segregation that runs rampant throughout the community. Alexander, Peter. # 8220 ; Man and manifesto. # 8221 ; Times Higher Education Supplement, August, 1994, 15-16. Hogan, Patrick C. # 8220 ; Paternalism, Ideology, and Ideological Review: Teaching Cry, The Beloved Country. # 8221 ; College Literature, October, 1992, 206. Paton, Alan. Cry, the Beloved Country. New York: Collier, 1987.

When You Listen To A Piece Of Music You Usually Dont Think Of Math, B

When you listen to a piece of music you usually don't think of math, but the two are interlinked and music always involves math even though we don't always realize it. When musicians play music they are using mathematical formulas to play. There are formulas for making cords, scales and a formula for the what notes they play. Musical notation also involves math, you use time signatures while playing along to a piece of music which are basically just fractions, 3/4,7/4, and 4/4 are all time signatures. the bottom number in the fraction gives you the type of note to be played and the top gives you the amount of times it is played. There are five basic types of notes to be played in music, the sixteenth note, the eighth note, the quarter note, the half note, and the whole note. For each of these notes you divide the previous note by two. The sixteenth note is divided into two which gives us eight, the eight into four, and so on (see chart). The easiest note to start with is the whole note there is one beat per measure of a song, for the half there is two beats per measure, and so on until there is sixteen beats per measure. (www.tabcrawler.com) Guitar chords are also made using a formula, first you get the scale of the type of cord you are trying to form, for example lets say c-major the formula for making a major cord would be tone, tone, semi-tone, which would mean the first note in the scale, the fourth, and the seventh. This is how most musicians make a cord. The first note in the scale is always a full tone as is the last this is because this is two octaves apart and they are the root notes. (guitar player, June 1996) There are twelve tones in an octave ex. C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B. A full octave would have another C at the end but it is the same pitch as the first C except an octave higher so it is usually left out. Ancient Greeks came up with this method, they said in an octave each note was an integer multiple of the first. There is not a perfect octave however it is always a couple of numbers off the original frequency. log3/log2= continued fraction[1,1,1,2,2,3,1,5,2,23,...], is the best fraction to get closest to the perfect octave. if we take the notes frequencies, and build fifths we get pretty accurate to a perfect octave. Twelve is by far the easiest number to get closest to a perfect octave which is why there are twelve tones in an octave. A whole tone is usually from one whole note to the other or one # note to the other except on tow occasions: b-c and e-f there is no # note in between those notes so from b-c and e-f is a whole tone but anywhere else it is three notes ex . a-a#-b (www.classic-guitar.com) Math is also very important while making a guitar. A normal guitar usually contains 21 frets, the spaces in between the frets is usually found by getting the total length of the neck, and then using the rule of 18 which is 17.835. You divide the length of the neck by this number and this gives you the length of the first fret. Then you subtract the length of the first fret from the total neck length and then divide the length by 17.835. You do this until you have the full neck fretted Bibliography Bibliography: www.tabcrawler.com, good place for guitar theory www.classic-guitar.com, good place for time signature Book: Drum Basics, good source for musical notation] Guitar Theory, good book for musical theory

Rich and Poor Essay Example

Rich and Poor Essay Example Rich and Poor Essay Rich and Poor Essay The divide between the rich and the poor can be roughly divided into the rich north and the poor south. The north consists of first world countries like the USA, England and France. The south consists of third world countries like India, Kenya and Brazil. The jobs available in third world countries are mainly in shoe or clothe factories. In these places workers are treated as a commodity. Christians believe this is wrong and Christian aid agencies like CAFOD aim to get fair working hours and wages for these people. They also help towns and villages to build their own wells and schools. Without these agencies the rich would get richer and the poor would get poorer.A recent example of the third world being exploited is the case of the Brazilian shoe makers. In the case of Leo she has been working in a shoe factory for seven years and like all workers is paid a meagre wage for work that could be hazardous to health. Christian aid agencies strive to rectify this problem by campaigning fo r fair wages and sensible working conditions for those employed by shoe manufacturers. However one of the problems with the workforce is the fact that if one employee makes a stand they are fired, there are always many more willing workers to take the persons place.Christians feel that this is very unfair as the worker is only standing up for their rights as a citizen of humanity. Leo says, I really want workers to be valued and not treated as commodities which can be discarded. Without us no shoes would be made, yet our own children dont even wear shoes! One day I hope to see all workers receiving a just wage and not being humiliated.In 1948 the UN (United Nations) declared these basic human rights:* Everyone has the right to attend attend meetings and join associations (trade unions).* Everyone has the right to work under just and favourable conditions.* Everyone has the right to equal pay for equal work.* Everyone has the right to fair pay to enable him/her and his/her family to live with self-respect.Employment is a basic need for everybody because people who are employed are paid and people need money to buy food and shelter for themselves and their families. Without those basic requirements we would die so is it fair that these people are forced to nearly kill themselves working so they can survive? Christians also ask this question and to rectify this problem they help to build buildings and show people how to grow their own crops using more modern methods. This makes the third world more self-sufficient and so they are not relying on jobs in the factories so much. Christians believe that every single human being is made in the image of God. The factory managers by destroying people from the inside out are effectively destroying a part of God that should be treated with respect like God intended for all his creations.In the Bible we are taught that to enter in to eternal life we must sell all we have and give everything to the poor. All these rich facto ry owners are giving the poor is inadequate wages and health problems, whether physical or emotional. These workers are being enslaved virtually because they cant do anything about it. The Bible tells us that all people are equal in the eyes of God however some are choosing to ignore this and are ignoring the needs of the poor. In the story of the rich man and Lazarus we are told that the rich man went to Hell because he did not help the poor. He didnt go to Hell because he treated Lazarus badly but because he ignored his needs as a human being. Christians are taught that they should help those less fortunate and those in distress because it is the right thing to do and otherwise they will go to Hell. It is every humans right to live under favourable conditions and Christians believe that everyone should help those that arent.Christians try to emulate Jesus as closely as possible in their daily lives. Jesus was very poor and was so since his birth in a stable. Christians try to live as he did by giving all they have to charities that can then help those in need. Perhaps Jesus would be shocked, if he came back in the twentieth century, by Christians giving to charities rather than directly helping those in need. However I do not think Jesus would have a problem with this as he taught that everyone should be equal and the charities are helping those in need.Some Christians are so involved in helping the poor that a movement called Liberation Theology has emerged. This is a group of people that believe the Gospel tells us to fight actively against the oppression of the poor. Such people include Archbishop Oscar Romero. He spoke out against the abuse of human rights in his sermons and was eventually assassinated in 1980 by four masked gunmen during one of his sermons. His last words were May Christs sacrifice give us the courage to offer our own bodies for justice and peace.Jesus was not a political figure in the normal sense, however he did hold some extremely po litical views. Jesus did not openly challenge the government in, for example, a debate but did fight for people freedom and rights as human beings. He did challenge the government but from the homes of the people. He did everything from the peoples perspective, so he knew exactly what was wrong where. Jesus fought against the poverty of the people and the ignorance of those in power but only through words. Jesus never resorted to violence and even taught that fighting was wrong. Christians realise this and do not fight against the government physically but instead use words and peaceful protests to make themselves heard and understood. However this isnt always enough in the modern world and some Christians ignore the teachings and use violence instead but only as a last resort. These people are known by some as terrorists, by others as freedom fighters it depends on whom theyre fighting.Some Christians are members of organisations such as CAFOD Christian Agency For Overseas Developm ent. Organisations such as these rely on the support of people in general, not just Christians to donate money. CAFOD has many campaigns for fair trading and equal rights. CAFOD has a game called Trading Trainers. By playing this game people are encouraged to think about how much money hard workers in the third world are being cheated out of. By doing this CAFOD encourages us to take a more active part in campaigning for fair pay. CAFOD also pesters big companies to sell products at a price that will give the workers a fair wage and encourages manufacturers to adopt codes of conduct which will improve working conditions and Christians state of mind.

Pop Culture and Evolution - The Hunger Games

Pop Culture and Evolution - The Hunger Games Evolution is not just a topic for a Biology class in school to cover it is found everywhere. There are many pop culture references and nods to the Theory of Evolution through Natural Selection in todays television, books, music, and movies. With The Hunger Games movie breaking box office records, I could not help but jump on the bandwagon and read the trilogy of books written by Suzanne Collins. Beyond a fast paced, edge of your seat thriller, I saw the authors ideas of a future world from an evolution Biologists point of view. The Hunger Games trilogy is set in the future after the collapse and near complete destruction of the world. The country of Panem has arisen from the ashes of what used to be North America and it consists of a Capitol somewhere in the Rocky Mountains, and 12 Districts that supply the affluent Capitol with all of the goods it needs. When the poor Districts tried to rebel, the Capitol took them down and created a yearly spectacle called The Hunger Games that is broadcast live like a reality show. As a reminder that the Capitol has all the power, each District is forced to send one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 that are chosen in a lottery drawing to compete to the death in the Hunger Games arena that is filled with traps and other dangerous creations made by the Capitol for their entertainment. The following paragraphs may contain spoilers if you have not read or seen The Hunger Games or its sequels, and Mockingjay. If you do not want to know details from these books or movies, you may not want to read the rest of this article. Otherwise, lets get into the world of Panem and explore the new species that reside there. The Mockingjay Arguably the most important new species in The Hunger Games trilogy is the mockingjay. These birds came into existence when female mockingbirds mated with the Capitol engineered male jabberjays. We are first introduced to this new species of bird in The Hunger Games book when Madge, the mayors daughter, gives heroine Katniss the gold pin with the mockingjay to wear as her token in the arena (in the movie, the pin is given to Katniss by her sister Prim). There are also mockingjays in the arena where Katniss uses their ability to repeat songs to communicate with her ally Rue. In Catching Fire we see the mockingjay become an increasingly important symbol. Plutarch Heavensbees watch shows a hologram of the bird. Also, before Katniss enters the arena for a second time, she wears a dress created by Cinna that turns her into a mockingjay after the outer layer burns away. Obviously, this new species of bird is the most important in the book entitled Mockingjay. The bird becomes a symbol of rebellion for the Districts, and Katniss finds herself becoming The Mockingjay as the symbolic leader. How did the mockingjay evolve in this fictional world of Panem? The Capitol created a species of bird through artificial selection called the jabberjay. The jabberjay could spy on enemies of the Capitol and repeat conversations word for word back to them. The Capitol could use this information to stop any rebellion attempts. After the rebels in the Districts figured out the scheme, they would feed the birds false information. Therefore the Capitol left the jabberjays, all male, to die in the wild. Instead of dying, the all male jabberjays began mating with female mockingbirds. Speciation occurred and mockingjays were born. Instead of being able to repeat entire conversations, mockingjays would repeat entire songs. These birds helped Katniss communicate with her ally inside the arena and also helped her become a symbol of hope for an entire nation. Tracker Jackers While it is never specified exactly how tracker jackers are created by the Capitol in any of the books, they are described as genetically altered wasps. Once again, the Capitol was manipulating nature and speeding up the evolution of species to do their dirty work. Tracker jackers will attack anyone who disturbs their nest and will follow them like a homing device until they have been stung with a venom that causes severe hallucinations and possibly death. Katniss uses the tracker jackers as a weapon in The Hunger Games when she is stuck in a tree because of the Career Tributes waiting to kill her below. She cuts a branch off the tree that contains a tracker jacker nest and it hits the ground near the Careers, so the tracker jackers attack and run them off, killing some in the process. While tracker jackers are not a product of natural selection, they are an evolutionary offshoot of wasps created through artificial selection. The genetic engineering of the tracker jackers caused a very swift microevolution of the species into a deadly killing machine. Muttations One last type of Capitol created killer is what Suzanne Collins called a muttation. Clearly a play on the word mutation, these can be combinations of just about anything. In the arena, Katniss and Peeta come face to face with muttations that look to be a mix of something like a wolf and their fellow dead tributes. This type of muttation tears the District 2 Tribute Cato to pieces. The book Catching Fire had a new arena that contained muttations that resembled monkeys. However, these monkeys had sharp claws and teeth that could puncture internal organs. When the Tributes make eye contact and quick movements, the monkey muttations attack and even kill the District 6 tribute. In Mockingjay, muttations appear in the form of something that seems to be a human and lizard hybrid down in the sewers of the Capitol. These deadly creatures come after the Sharp Shooter Squad as they make their way to the Presidents mansion. The talon-like claws even tear apart some of the squadron before they can make it out of the sewer alive. Again, these muttations, much like the jabberjays and tracker jackers, were made in a lab somewhere in the Capitol to continue the punishment of the districts of Panem. It isnt specified exactly how they are made, but genetic engineering that lead to microevolution is the most likely explanation. The only way to see into the future is through the eyes of a novelist. It is interesting to see where they believe evolution will take species many years down the road.

Group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Group - Essay Example (Group Dynamics, n.d.) Informal groups on the other hand are formed on their own. They do not have a time frame and are generally not formed by the organizations. Anybody can become a part of the informal group. Friendship groups, reference groups and interest groups are all informal groups. Even though the informal groups are not formed to achieve organizational goals they can have a strong positive or negative influence on the working of an organization. For example, they can either talk about how to develop a production method or how to create shortcuts that would eventually endanger quality. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) It has been observed that groups are most productive when an assignment entails the requirement of multiple skills, experiences and decision making abilities. They are able to assemble quickly, take decisions and if the need arises then they can disperse and move on to another task. Compared to individuals, groups have a lot of enthusiasm to complete the job. Groups are responsible for completing most of the work in an organization. Thus it would not be incorrect to say that the success of an organization depends largely on the effectiveness of its groups. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) Answer (02): Various factors are responsible for a team to be effective. A team can be effective only if the socialization of all the members of the team are at par with each other. Socialization is nothing but a process of learning. It is regardless of the surroundings or age of the individual. In every group the members of the group have to learn the rules, regulations and expectations of that group for the group to be effective. (Socialization, 2006) In order to understand all the factors responsible for the team to be effective one has to understand the group dynamics. Group dynamics not only tries to understand why the group is formed but also how it is formed. Bruce Tuckman in the 1960's provided a framework to study the reasons of group formation. According to Tuckman, when a group is initially formed it is not very effective. The group has to undergo various stages of development before it becomes productive and efficient. Most of the groups go through similar developmental stages with comparable conflicts and resolutions. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) According to Tuckman's theory there are five stages of group development. The five stages are forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. It is during these stages that the members of the group have to deal with several issues or problems and depending upon how these are dealt with determines whether or not the group will be successful in attaining its goals. Question (03): Review the main findings on the nature of behavior in groups. Answer (03): Group work helps to explore and express varied ideas and suggestions of the group members in a cooperative way. Working in groups involves mutual support. A group can be successful only if all the members believe in the culture of shared commitment. Group work is not about competing with the peers. It involves using the range of resources available in the group to deepen their understanding and extending their knowledge to their collective advantage. (Working in groups,n.d.) Good team behavior requires development and supervising. It is imperative

Occupy Wall Street Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Occupy Wall Street - Essay Example The strict actions should be taken by the government and other legal bodies to eradicate them from the parks completely. â€Å"The protesters accuse many on Wall Street of unethical and criminal practices. They blame the banking industry for causing the Great Recession, beggaring the American middle class and many senior citizens to the extent that trillions in the assets of Americans in every sector of our society have been lost† (Koch par. 2). To demonstrate an example, a private business has developed much and is much tired of the attack, rapes, public defecations and other illegal activity on their possessions, and request for trespassers to be expelled. Not anything concerning this actuality reminds the First Amendment. The people here totally behave in a messy and a disorganized way by making the places totally unhygienic and polluted. The people at Occupy WallStreet are not menacing anyone excluding the politicians who have determined to apparent them out and defy their right to free speech, passive assembly, and appeal. To state another one example of attempt rape, the rape cases where reported in the parks by the Wall Street Protestants to the ladies who were for a recreation day out. At the beginning on the protesters was frequently youthful, partially as social networks throughout which they encourage the protests are also taken up by the young hands. As the protest grows, elder protesters also grow to be concerned. The normal age group of the activist was 33, with citizens in their 20s evenhanded by citizens in their 40 age group. Diverse spiritual faith has been representing at the protest together with Muslims, Jews, and Christians. The enormous mass of the protesters, considered the logic the unfairness to the all who are concerned. Along with those protester groups are revolutionary who are beside any government, some of whom are looking to connect in violence with the cops; others are essentials

The Epic of Gilgamesh Essay Example for Free

The Epic of Gilgamesh Essay The Epic of Gilgamesh is an adventurous tale of the mighty King Gilgamesh that is so enthralled in making his name written in the stones of history forever. In his many challenges against this goal of his from meaningless slaughter of an appointed guardian to quarrels with the gods, he loses his loving brother, who was seemingly his other half. With the endless amount of grief the king is almost consumed in, his actions become selfish and fearful of death, which sends him on the quest for eternal life. Some interesting points about the reading include how femininity, repetition, and dreams are used to portray some of the oddest ideas. First off, femininity is something used so loosely, the phrase â€Å"like the love of a woman† could be talking about anything from a rock to another man. This aspect of the text can be almost confusing when the reader tries to correlate the previous example to the current. One example would be that Gilgamesh refers to his affection towards his brother as â€Å"like the love of a woman†, and then refers to a meteor in a dream in the same way. With those two things being nowhere near each other in meaning, a raised eyebrow is a common side effect to this confusion. Also, the traits of women such as long hair and how they refer to a harlot as teaching Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s brother, the â€Å"art of a woman†, can be easily misconstrued to either men or women. Repetition is also a strangely used figure in this story. At times, the same sentence can essentially be used for almost an entire page. The purpose for such extensive repetition could be a number of things, like emphasis of a certain action or thought. It could also be to give the reader the same feeling that the character is facing when it comes to walking what seems like forever through a dark forest, repeating the same dreary sentence referring to how dark and endless it seems continually for half of a page can in turn create a longing for sunlight in the reader. Lastly, the dreams in The Epic of Gilgamesh are looked at as almost fortune-tellers. Before Enkidu and Gilgamesh meet, Gilgamesh has a dream involving a meteor that he can’t touch, and everyone in the city of Uruk flocks to, so he consults his mother. She has a very odd interpretation that he will love the meteor like the love of a woman, which is odd in it, especially in that we find out that the meteor actually stands for Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s equal sent from the gods. Another dream is after the two equals fight off the Bull of Heaven, Enkidu has a peculiar dream about the gods talking amongst one another about killing one of the two. Since the person who dreams a dream in this story can never interpret it, Gilgamesh now interprets the dream, and once they both understand, Enkidu dies for Gilgamesh to live on. From femininity to dreams to seemingly unnecessary repetition, the uses of figurative and confusing language in The Epic of Gilgamesh are very strange in how any way of thinking about them could be right. It seems that nobody will ever know exactly what everything in it means.

Lord Of The Flies And The Withered Arm Comparison :: essays research papers

I have chosen â€Å"The Lord of the Flies† and â€Å"The Withered Arm† because they are similar even though they were written in different time periods. Lord of the Flies was written in the 20th century and the Withered arm was written in the 19th century. Lord of the flies by William Golding The title signifies Death, devil (Beelzebub).The Withered arm by Thomas Hardy The title signifies decay or decline. Settings:The withered arm is set in the 19th century on a farm. This is in Anglebury .The story starts of on Mr Lodges farm and finishes on the farm. Gertrude lodge lives in a mud built cottage.The lord of the flies is set on a fictitious remote island in the 20th century. The story starts of in the jungle. They later move onto the beaches. They then move to other locations on the island such as the fort and the mountain.Differences and similarities between settingsBoth of the settings are isolated. Lord of the Flies, is on an island so they cant get off but in the Withered Arm there is not much transport so wherever you went you would have to walk or get a horse.The settings are different because they are set in different periods. Themes:Lord of the flies:Good and evil, good and evil is a fairly large theme in the story. Early in the novel good is represented by the conch this is a symbol of decency and order. The two tribes Represent good and evil in the best way. However, there are other things such as the beast and the ship. The beast frightens them because they think it is an evil sign. The ship is a good sign but they do not manage to flag it down, because Jack had not looked after the fire. This springs an almost air of hatred between Ralph and Jack.Law and order, plays a big role in the story. It comes into play at the very beginning with the conch. Ralph and Piggy find the shell and Ralph blows it, this draws all the children onto the beech. The conch later becomes an element of law and order, because the boys are only aloud to talk during meetings if they have the conch. Fear, fear is probably the biggest theme in the story there is a big list of elements of fear such as the fear of the beast, the isolation of the island, the war outside of the island, the fear of not being rescued, the fear of Jacks group (savages) and the fear of fear itself.

Patriarchal (sexist) society oppresses women: Women sexuality is marginalized

Abstract The Oedipus complex is a name coined from the notorious Kind Oedipus, a Greek legend, who kills his father so that he can marry his mother. The term denotes the notions and emotions that the mind keeps in the unconscious condition, through the dynamic repression that concentrates on the desire of a child to sexually possess the parent. This paper describes the Oedipus complex in detail and discusses how the beliefs influence women by discussing how the sexist society oppresses women. A summative paragraph is then provided to offer an overview of the discussions. Introduction The Oedipus complex gets its name from notorious Kind Oedipus, a Greek legend, who terminates the life of his father so that he can marry his mother. This is an act of incestuous ferocity that is predicted that he would commit by an oracle early in his life. Frightened, he tries to use everything at his disposal to run away from his destiny, but he unavoidable fails and consequently tears his eyes out, and then blinds himself the despicable actions he had committed. Freud adopts the Kind Oedipus’ Greek Legend to illustrate the perverse bond that children of opposite sex and their parents take part. Fortifying the early children’s developmental years, positive passage through the period can be determined by whether the risk of castration encourages or enhances the formation of the conscience of a child and hence entrance into the consequent ‘period of latency.’ All these stages of development have varying and inexplicable effects on the psychological develop ment of a person. A critical point of view consists just in perceiving the Oedipus Complex as the focal point or hinge of humanization, as a change or development from the natural life register to a cultural one of group exchange and thus of legislations, organizations and symbols. However, Freud brings about the irony that due to the lack of penis, the risk of castration does not hurt a young girl to the same level as a male child and hence the formation of the conscience is frail (Bloom, 2003). Influence on women There is no doubt that Freud is the most popular individual in the history of psychology. The theories that he created have influenced the field of psychology and are still influential even at present. Despite his several influential and important contributions to the field of psychology, his theories have faced several criticisms. One of the major criticisms is his views on women, or, more accurately, the huge gap in his theories about women (Gregory, 2005, p.68). In Freud’s early theories, he extended his beliefs of male sexuality to the women, regarding women as just men who lack penises. His male view of sexuality is comprehensible, even though problematic, since it marginalizes female sexuality. According to the theory, female sexuality is exactly the same as the male sexuality until they reach the phallic phase of psychological development, as the women do not have penis. However, they experience the envy of penis, which is the possessiveness that young girls feel toward s their male counterparts and the hatred towards their mothers, to whom they lay their blame for lack of penis (Gregory, 2005, p.74). Although he did not suggest the ‘Electra complex,’ it is possible to infer it from his theories that young girls shift their attractions to their fathers from their mothers in trying to obtain a penis. Since they are female, they are not in a position of identifying with their father, and then they come to the realization that gaining a penis is an impossibility, they decide to have children. Freud, just as the early sexologists regarded women as sexually passive, where they only have sex for the purposes of having children. Since they lack a penis, they come to assume that they lost theirs, and then have male children in trying to obtain a penis. In women, penis envy is an issue that Freud thought could never be resolved completely, hence condemning all of them to the underdeveloped conscience, meaning that they will always be inferior t o men morally (Gregory, 2005, p.76). According to Freud, men are able to have conscience that is fully developed. For an individual who has his theories focused on the subject of sex, he appeared satisfied to remain deliberately ignorant of the female sexuality and the way it might differ from that of the males. The views of Freud on female sexuality and women were plainly phallic-focuses, which made his research and exploration into the sexuality of females very limited. It is very interesting to note that despite the fact that he worked with is theories on the sexuality of females remained limited and focused on males. He was also not left out by the general sexism of the period, stating that the sexual life, in men alone is accessible to investigation, while it is veiled in the impermeable darkness, in the women, partly as a result of the cultural stunting and on the traditional reticence and untruthfulness of women’s account (Gregory, 2005, p.79). It appears troublesome t o dismiss the women together with their sexuality in such a manner not only because Freud treated several women, but because his beliefs still exist today, and continue to influence sexologists and psychologists in the same way. Freud creates a paradigm in which the lack of a penis and the discovery of this fact plague a little girl in her youth, who views this absence as a weakness to the opposite sex. Freud, (3) explains that in trying to justify this absence, a little girl clarifies it by having an assumption that at one time she was having an equally large organ on her body, which she lost through castration. She goes further to claim that she will be able to acquire just as big organ as the one possessed by the boys when she grows older. She eventually adopts the mother’s attributes and ends a strong desire and lust for her father, with the hope of having her own child ne day to compensate for lack of a large organ as the one that boys possess (Glen, 2010, p. 66). In add ition, Freud argues that a little girl is spared the cruel awakening, since it is not a social taboo for a girl to have a flirtatious yet less harmful connection with the father. Similarly, being the father’s favorite girl can be a long lasting relationship, as it is not necessarily regarded as improper. Due to the benevolent and kind nature of this experience, she is starved of the reconciliation with the social taboo and as a result renders the woman morally weaker as her conscience will never be as strong as that of a man (Anouchka, 2010, p.123). In cases where mutual idealization and insensible shame have played a significant role in a marriage relationship, if it ends, the couples usually appear to fight each other to find who will win or lose the battle. They usually enlist their children’s loyalty against each other. The one that will succeed in turning the children against the other will always proclaim victory over the former partner. This is a heartbreaking c ase of the narcissistic requirements of that particular parent overriding their concern for the wellbeing of the children; that is the wish to revenge on the former partner forces them to sacrifice the fundamental needs of the children for a good and smooth relationship with both of them. This is a dynamic that usually damage the children, even though it can be particularly harmful when it is added to the dynamic of Oedipus complex; this complex in such situations mostly influences women. For instance, here is a case that may be common to many individuals. It will be described in relation to the mothers who are divorced and their male children. In instances where the infidelity of the father caused the separation, the former wife might always have formal grounds or reasons to be angry, however, that would not be a justification to the type of tragic narcissistic behavior that is sometimes experienced (Glen, 2010, p. 67). `The claim that Oedipus complex as it is perceived classically and applied in the practice of psychoanalysis comes from the situation of males both in the mythic expression and in its clinical extensions. However, it is a critical flow from the female experience’s point of view. When the Oedipus complex is applied to females, male desire and rivalry mediate it, and then clumsily appended to the development of female. The phallocentrism that is most clearly expressed by the declaration by Freud that the young girl is a young man (p118) has left its traces all through the vocabulary of the theories of psychoanalysis of development and no other place as evident as in the discussions about the female Oedipus complex. Expectations and perceptions are shaped by language; that is, it organizes reasoning. When thinking about Oedipus, people think about ‘penis envy’ and ‘castration,’ but not about vagina or pregnancy. When talking about the stage of ‘phallic-Oedipal’ in the young girls, people distract them selves from the critical development need of the young girls to identify with the mother. The female triadic condition does not have its individual name, but rather floats like an incomprehensible ‘something that is not nothing’s’ signifier (Rosman, Paula, Rubel, and Maxine, 2009, p.152). If a father gives a loving affection to the daughter, the little girl will be able to grow up more smarter and successful. She will also be les nervous, less immoral and also less likely to be a user of drugs. From the girl’s early years, they expect their fathers to provide love, reassurance and admiration. The response of a father greatly influences the ability of the daughter to have positive relationships and trust other men. The level of self-esteem of a girl is influenced to a great deal by the relationship with her father. So, what happens when there are no fathersOr even they become too busy to have time for their daughtersBetween the ages of three and eight, the young girl naturally abandons their attachment to their mothers and turn to the father. This is comparable to the Oedipus complex, which is used in the description of the competition between a girl and a mother to have the affection and love of the father (Butler, 2014, p.35-90). It is part of a normal phase in the development of a girl. The changing of family configurations, where there are more relationship or marriage breakups than ever experienced before, has hampered normal development of a girl. About forty to fifty percent of first marriages break up after a short period of stay, which leads to more single parents. Whether the Oedipus complex actually exists or not is a subject to debate among academicians, but what appears to be clear is that the attachment of the girl to her father or mother is determined by the situational or cultural factors. The quality of attachments as such shapes the personality and results of the girl. Characteristically, the girl should have been gi ven a clear directive by the father such as she should not order her father around or that she is supposed to shoe kindness to her mother and even love her (Lacan, 2012, p.97). Without having to force the situation too much, it is apparent that there would have been restoration of the ‘order’ and the young girl could have known that the parents work together in a learning enterprise that includes boundaries and respect. Some men wrongly think that their wives are supposed to treat them just like their daughters, as ‘perfect heroes.’ They please and obey their daughters so that they cannot lose their respect. Early experiences shape the lives of individuals. Denial, abandonment and rejection in the people’s childhood might force them into a long lasting quest for healing their wounds. However, deficiencies in parenting also make a big score. Conclusion Freud’s beliefs in the psychoanalysis are greatly biased towards women as it views women as sexually passive, who just engage in it to have children. His view in Oedipus complex greatly influences the development of females in the way they live, as when it is applied to females, male desire and rivalry mediate it, and then clumsily appended to their development. Even the young girl is not fair to her mother whom she blames for her lack of a penis, thus the hatred. The beliefs are centered on males where it is believed the development of a female to a responsible and respectable person is associated with the father, as that is where they draw their inspiration, and that is why a young girl tends to fight off her mother in order to take her position as the father’s favorite. The changing of family configurations, where there are more divorces than ever experienced before, has hampers normal development of a girl. References Anouchka G, 2010, No More Silly Love Songs. London, p. 123 Bloom H, 2003, Sophocles. New York: Chelsea House. Butler, J. 2014, Undoing Gender. London, England: Routledge: p 35-90. Glen O. G, 2010, Long-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy, London. p. 67. Gregory, J, 2005, A Companion to Greek Tragedy, Oxford. Lacan, J. 2012, Ecrits: A Selection, trans. Bruce Fink. New York: Northon: p 97. Rosman, Paula G. Rubel, Maxine W, 2009, The Tapestry of Culture: An Introduction to Cultural Anthropology, Ninth Edition, Abraham, AltaMira Press, p. 101. Freud S, 1965, The Interpretation of Dreams Chapter V â€Å"The Material and Sources of Dreams† New York: Avon Books. Ian C, and Allen, A, 2005, A Guide to Greek Drama. London: Blackwell.

Literature review of Women at workequality versus inequality: barriers for advancing Essay

1. Introduction Women in our days choose to get educated and pursue careers. To do this most of them have to learn to deal with dual roles; the role of the employee and the role of mother/wife. The majority of them have managed to move from working at the traditionally female occupations (such as teachers and nurses) to male-dominated areas such as managers and engineers (Atwater and van Fleet 1997; Chater and Gaster 1995; Krambia-Kapardi 2006). Furthermore, gender equality is a fundamental principle for democratic countries; women and men should participate as equals in the social, cultural and economic life. Even though improvements have been made, gender equality is still not achieved as men and women are not represented and are not treated equally in the workplace. Unfortunately, the increasing number of working women did not bring equal career advancement opportunities. Gender issues in the workplace arise from differences in the way men and women are treated. Women are not treated by the organizations the same way as men do, something that holds women back from advancing the managerial ladder. It is a fact that women are underrepresented in top managerial positions compared with women holding lower and mid-level management positions (Mihail 2006). *Corresponding author. Email: michailidis.m@unic.ac.cy ISSN 0958-5192 print/ISSN 1466-4399 online q 2012 Taylor & Francis http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2012.665071 http://www.tandfonline.com M.P. Michailidis et al. Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 Women face numerous obstacles for their career advancement and often, welleducated women, with many years of experience are not promoted at the same rate as their male co-workers of the same occupational level. Women have to work twice as hard as their male colleagues to achieve recognition (Wirth 2001). According to Eagly and Carli (2007), Hymowitz (2005), Wirth (2001), Rhode (2003), Duehr and Bono (2006), Hymowitz (2005) and Dimakis, Krambia-Kapardi and Savva (2006), some of the controversial issues that women face in the workplace are gender discrimination, glass ceiling, stereotypes, work– life balance, lack of mentoring, conï ¬â€šicting roles and pay inequality. These are considered barriers that prevent women from obtaining work equality and furthermore achieving top managerial positions. 1.1. Gender discrimination According to Wirth (2001), a large number of women enter the workforce at similar levels as their male counterparts; however, their careers progress more slowly than their male colleagues. Quite often they are more qualiï ¬ ed than their male counterparts but have to work harder and perform much better to obtain top positions. The discrimination acts toward women can take various forms; they are often treated unfairly at the recruiting and promotion processes and the remuneration policies. In addition, there is a general perception that women are not committed to work as they have or will have family and children (Hymowitz 2005). Furthermore, since this study took place in Cyprus it is worth mentioning that the Cyprus Government has always been interested in promoting equality among men and women and social and economic actions were implemented. The efforts began at the end of the 1970s, as part of the Strategic Development Plans, and aimed at the creation of legal framework that prevents gender discrimination, support work– family balance and enhance the socioeconomic life of women living and working in Cyprus. In an effort to harmonize with the European Union the Equal Treatment of Men and Women in Employment and Vocational Training Law, No. 205(I)/2002 was implemented by the Cyprus Democracy. 1.2. Stereotypes Stereotypes are based solely on perceptions and ‘gender stereotypes inï ¬â€šuence beliefs, behaviors and self-concepts at both conscious and unconscious levels’ (Rhode 2003, p. 7). Perceptions that women’s place is in the house taking care of her husband and children has been haunting women for many centuries. In recent years, companies are recruiting an increasing numbers of women but unfortunately most of them are not promoted as they should and are left at lower and middle level ranks (Ntermanakis, as cited by Mihail 2006). Schein, Mueller, Lituchy and Liu (1996) reported the existence of a psychological barrier for women’s advancement; the ‘think manager –think male’ perception. According to Nichols (1994), the belief is that managerial positions require masculine characteristics and so women are not cut out for this type of job. A research conducted in Cyprus regarding the perceptions of young people in Cyprus (Intercollege’s Research Center 2007) gives several positive outcomes related to relatively low levels of genders stereotypes. Of the people asked, 73.4% disagreed with the statement that women should stay at home while men should be the sole money providers. Another important point is that 58.9% believe that men and women can be equally good managers, and that women should receive the same rewards with their male counterparts (81.1%). A recent study by Duehr and Bono (2006) reported that ‘stereotypes about women may be changing’. Male The International Journal of Human Resource Management managers seem to be characterizing women as less passive and submissive and more conï ¬ dent, ambitious, analytical and assertive. Male managers have simply learned that they are expected to view men and women similarly at work. Women are also being stereotyped because they become mothers. Hymowitz (2005) mentioned that one of the reasons why women are not taken seriously in the workplace is because at some point in their career they will have children and they will not be as devoted to work as they should and they will not be willing to work those long hours needed. Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 1.3. Glass ceiling The number of women working at managerial positions is growing. Even though the number of women in lower and mid-level management positions is greater than ever, the percentage of women holding top managerial positions is disproportionably low (Atwater and van Fleet 1997). Women seem to be banned from executive positions due to the ‘glass ceiling’ effect, which describes the invisible artiï ¬ cial barriers, created by attitudinal and organizational prejudices, which block women from top executive positions (Wirth 2001). According to Wirth (2001), women, although they are well educated, are pushed into a narrow range of occupations, where there is less responsibility, lower pay and few opportunities for advancement. Some of them manage to climb the corporate ladder and achieve middle level positions but the invisible barriers prevent them from attaining top managerial jobs. Toussiant (2010) described the history of the glass ceiling in America. As it talks about how wom en were constantly facing discrimination from male-dominated society. This is accomplished by discussing how everything from various court cases to the ERA would have an impact upon these views. Krambia-Kapardi (2006) examined the existence of the ‘glass ceiling’ effect in Cyprus by looking at women’s participation in committees and the opportunities for being promoted in executive positions, the research states that although women participate in various committees, the percentage participating is limited and there has been no signiï ¬ cant improvement the past 6 years. To describe the current situation in Cyprus the writer states that ‘there is no glass ceiling in participating committees, but a concrete wall and it takes a lot of effort to break through that wall’. When it comes to the existence of glass ceiling in executive positions, women hold 12% of these positions in the private sector and 37% in the public sector. Researchers tried to identify the barriers that prevent women from advancing to higher managerial positions. Some of the barriers mentioned were lack of self-conï ¬ dence, avoiding risk taking because of fear of failure and setting low goals (Krambia-Kapardi 2006). Another term relevant to the glass ceiling is the ‘maternal wall’, which refers to the barriers that women face when they get pregnant as male co-workers and managers assume that once a woman has a baby she will not be committed to her career (Swiss 1996). 1.4. Balancing work and family Women today have multiple roles and are torn between demanding careers and intensive family lives. These conï ¬â€šicting roles require a great amount of time and energy, and quite often women do not know how to deal with this issue. ‘Work– life balance is a state where an individual manages real or potential conï ¬â€šict between different demands on his or her time and energy in a way that satisï ¬ es his or her needs for well-being and self-fulï ¬ llment’ (Clutterbuck 2003, p. 8). The elements that Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 M.P. Michailidis et al. inï ¬â€šuence this type of conï ¬â€šict, according to Parasuraman and Simmers (2001), is the employee’s gender, type of employment (self-employed or organizational employed), work role characteristics and pressures (such as how much autonomy is available in the workplace, time ï ¬â€šexibility, level of job involvement and time commitment to the work itself) and family role characteristics and pressures (such as parental demands, level of family involvement and time commitment to family). Gladen (2007) discussed how women have more challenges in being able to balance their work and personal life. Where, the majority of women will have: a sense of guilt, scheduling conï ¬â€šicts and adjusting to two different worlds. Moreover, to help working women, companies can implement various family-friendly policies, which can make it much easier for them to combine paid jobs with family work. This can be achieved by offering ï ¬â€šexible working hours (permanent or temporary), workin g from home and the creation of childcare facilities in work. Organizations also need to ensure that employees who seek temporary working accommodations do not pay a permanent price (Rhode 2003). 1.5. Mentoring/role models/networking The lack of mentoring, social networking and role models are making advancement of working women harder. Women very frequently are not given high visibility assignments or challenging tasks. Also, frequently they are excluded from marketing and social events that result in professional opportunities. Furthermore, they are not helped in their career progression, therefore they are far away from leadership positions (Nossel and Westfall, as citied by Rhode 2003). 1.5.1. Mentoring Mentoring programs aim at helping participants become successful in the workplace. A mentor gives advices for the unspoken company’s rules, provides information for company policies and decision making, give recommendations on how to avoid explosive situations, and information about who is aligned to whom. Furthermore, a mentor provides  ´  ´ career and psychosocial support to enhance mentee/protege’s-junior colleague, professional and personal development (Swiss 1996; Apospori et al. 2006). To be more effective, mentoring should be incorporated with training and development and succession planning. Thompson (2010) highlights how mentoring programs can help women to address the various issues of inequality in the workplace. The problem is that the majority of employers do not offer any kind of mentoring programs to female employees. As only 28% of women are reporting that their employers have some kind of mentoring program, out of this number 52% of women felt that their employers lacked transparency and understanding when addressing this issue (Thompson 2010). Furthermore, barriers women come across when searching for mentors are that male mentor’s are reluctance to take on the mentoring role, this might be due to fear that the relationship might be misinterpreted. Also, the scarcity of female mentors makes it more difï ¬ cult for women to have access to a mentor (Apospori et al. 2006). 1.5.2. Role models ‘Role models are often said to be key to the successful development of young aspiring managers’ (Singh, Vinnicombe and James 2006, p. 67). According to Shapiro et al. (as citied by Singh et al. 2006), role models are individuals whose style, action and traits are The International Journal of Human Resource Management imitated by others. It is also believed that role models are important for all female employees regardless level and age, but special attention must be given to newly employed females (Swiss 1996). Unfortunately, the small number of women holding executive position limits the number of role models for young female employees. Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 1.5.3. Networking Networking is viewed by Vinnicombe and Colwill (1995) as citied by Singh et al. (2006) as the ‘banding together’ of individuals who think alike, for satisfying their contact, friendship and support needs. Furthermore, Forret and Dougherty (2004) elaborated on the issue of networking and stated that these are attempts made by people to develop relationships with individuals who have the potential to assist them work- or careerwise. Furthermore, Allison (2007) and Singh et al. (2006) refer to networking in terms of the differences of the approaches men and women use. Men are on a ‘mission’ when attending a business networking event, trying to meet people who will help them for professional advancement, whereas women believe that this approach is ‘pushy’ and prefer attending workshops or conferences where they can share ideas and use networking for social support. 1.6. Pay gap Gender pay inequality is consistently and widely observed. Various social and economic causes contribute to the long-established gender pay gap, and much effort has been made to explain the reasons for the discriminatory wage disparities. The article titled, Its Time for Working Women to Earn Equal Pay (2007), talks about the vast disparities that are occurring as far as pay and compensation are concerned. Where, women will earn signiï ¬ cantly less in comparison with their male counterparts for the same amount of work. According to a study that was conducted by the WAGE Now Project, they found that the vast disparities in pay equality are between $750 thousand and $2 million over the course of lifetime (Its Time for Working Women to Earn Equal Pay 2007). Wallace (2010) discusses the issues that women will face in the workplace from: the glass ceiling to overall issues of discrimination. In most industries, this means that women are earning $.80 cents for every dollar that is made by men. This information is important, because it can be used to corroborate other sources about issues of the glass ceiling and equal pay in the workplace. Wage discrimination as Joshi and Paci (1998) explained means that one group is paid systematically less than others with ‘equal productivity-related characteristics’. The remuneration disparities between the two sexes have been ascribed to the narrow number of women holding top managerial levels of organizations, which means they are rewarded with higher pay rates (Alkadry and Tower 2006). The article that was written by Childress (2010) talks about: how various legislation has been created to deal with the issue of inequality in the workplace (the Glass Ceiling Commission). As they were created as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1991 and was designed to deal with the issue of discrimination in the workplace. However, the commission was never successful, because there was not any kind of agreement among members about how to effectively tackle this issue. This is important because it highlights the underlying challenges that are constantly being faced when trying to establish some kind of procedures for addressing gender inequality. As a result, the information from this source is useful, because it is showing how various regulatory failures have contributed to situations of inequality existing. M.P. Michailidis et al. The Cyprus government enforced The Equal Remuneration of Men and Women in Employment and Vocational Training Law, No. 177(I)/2002 to ensure the equal remuneration of both sexes for work of equal value. The Equal Remuneration of Men and Women in Employment states that men and women employees receive the same level of ï ¬ nancial or non-ï ¬ nancial rewards, for the same type of work or for work of equal value. Polachek and Xiang (2006) analyzed data from 40 countries, including Cyprus, between the years 1970 and 2002 on how the gender wage gap varies in relation to the fertility rate, the age gap between the husband and wife, and the female educational achievements. The information collected indicated that the fact the women have the main responsibility for the household and the children, as a result female employees have less job experience and training. On the other hand, men are the main money winners of the family and thus working for more years, with no career breaks and thus more experience and opportunities for vocational training. All these lead to gender pay gap. Despite the fact that various efforts are being made by governments to achieve wage equality, gender pay gap still exist since women are paid less than men for comparable positions (Rhode 1997; Sallop and Kirby 2007). Even though women have equivalent skills to men, nevertheless they are not paid with the same pay rate. Researches believe that perhaps the choice of career might be a reason for the gender pay gap. Alkadry and Tower (2006) reported that even though women have started overcoming some of the barriers for advancing to higher positions, wage disparities still persist and as a result women are rewarded with less money in comparison to their male colleagues. 2. 2.1. Methodology Purpose of the study This study aimed at: (1) identifying the factors that working women in Cyprus are faced with which lead to experience discrimination; (2) examining possible barriers that affect women’s advancement; and (3) identifying organizational practices that assist them in achieving work– life balance. 2.2. The questionnaire The data were collected by the distribution of a six-page questionnaire, which was on a voluntary, anonymous and conï ¬ dential basis and targeted four occupational levels: below ï ¬ rst line, ï ¬ rst line, middle and high-level management women, employees of organizations in Cyprus. The questionnaire was prepared by the researchers and was divided into two sections. Section A coved the demographic data of women participating in the research and in Section B the questions referred to women’s personal experiences, opinions or thoughts related to the workplace. 2.2.1. Section A: biographical information In this section, the participants’ had to respond to questions related to: age, marital status, number of children, educational level, work position, employment sector, type of organization, job title and number of years in the current job. 2.2.2. Section B was composed of ï ¬ ve parts, which are described below: Part I had eight ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions, here, the participants had to respond to questions related to experiencing any form of work discrimination, gender discrimination, Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 The International Journal of Human Resource Management discrimination during hiring, promotion or career advancement opportunities, and discrimination related to ï ¬ nancial and non-ï ¬ nancial rewards between men and women. Part II had four questions; here, the respondents were asked whether gender is a factor that can limit promotions, compensations, access to clients and access to training. The replies were based on a Likert-type scale of 1 –3 (I do not know, Not much and Very much). Part III had ï ¬ ve questions asking women’s opinion on several statements regarding the way women and men are treated in their organizations, such as equal treatment among men and women, equal opportunities for advancement, childbearing and career commitment. The participants had the option of choosing one of the following Likerttype scale responses: I strongly agree, I tend to agree, Undecided, I tend to disagree and I strongly disagree. Part IV had a set of 21 statements, which asked the participants to rate on a Likert-type scale from 1 to 5 various possible barriers that prevent women’s career advancement. In addition, there was one question asking the participants to add any other factors that were not mentioned in the previous statements but were considered as a barrier for women’s advancement. The 21st question was an open-ended question on other organizational practices that were not mentioned in the 20 statements. Part V had nine questions asking women to rate the importance of various organizational practices that can help women’s career advancement and development. For rating the ï ¬ rst eight questions in this part, the Likert-type scale was used with the following scale: Not helpful, Slightly helpful, Quite helpful and Very helpful. One question asked the participants to add other organizational practices that could be useful to women’s career advancement and development. 2.3. Statistical analysis The statistical analysis was prepared with the use of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The statistical tabulations included descriptive statistics and crosstabs aimed at examining the statistical signiï ¬ cance of a comparison between women’s occupational level and (a) questions related to equal treatment (Part III) and also (b) questions related to organizational practices which would assist the participants in developing and advancing women’s careers (Part IV). 2.4. Sample The questionnaires were distributed randomly to 250 women working in various private, public and semi-public companies. The distribution and collection of the questionnaires was done either through the Human Resources/Personnel Departments. A total of 154 questionnaires were used for the study, giving a response rate of 62%. 3. Results and discussion 3.1. Biographical data 3.1.1. Section A This research concentrated on 154 women respondents, ages 22– 57. From the sample 61.7% of the participants were married and 59.1% had children. Regarding the educational level of the participants 22.7% were high school graduates; 20.1% had a college diploma; 24.7% had a Bachelor’s degree; 30.5% had a Master’s M.P. Michailidis et al. Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 degree; and only 1.9% had a Doctoral degree. Of the sample, 47.4% stated that their position at work was in the ï ¬ rst line managerial level and 15.6% belonged to the middle management level; 5.2% held top management positions, while the rest 31.8% held positions below ï ¬ rst line management. The results showed that the majority of women are trapped between the ï ¬ rst and middle line managerial levels. Only 8 out of 154 women who participated in the research had top management positions, a number which is not very positive for the career advancement opportunities of women. 3.1.2. Section B 3.1.2.1. Part I. Here, the participants responded to questions related to work discrimination. In the question whether they experienced any form of discrimination in the workplace because they were female, 87.7% replied that they had not experienced any form of discrimination; 89.6% replied that they had not felt that they had missed a promotion or their promotion had been delayed because of their gender; 81.8% stated that male co-workers of similar duties did not receive higher salary than them; and 86.4% replied that they had not experienced differential treatment in the recruiting process because of their gender. Interestingly though, one of the comments made for this question was that at a job interview a participant was asked whether she was engaged to be married or was planning to get engaged soon. Her answer was negative and after she was hired she learned that women with children were rejected as they would not be as ‘committed’ as they should be. Furthermore, 80.5% stated that they had not experienced any differential treatment in career prospects; 90.3% replied that male and female employees of the same managerial level receive the same monetary rewards. Continuing on, 87.7% of the participants do not think that women receive less non-ï ¬ nancial rewards that their male colleagues. Lastly, 81.2% of the participants do not believe that at some point of their career they were not appointed for a job because of their gender. Some discrimination acts that women had experienced and were mentioned in the open-ended questions are ‘Women receive lower pay than men’. ‘Males are treated with more respect’. ‘Another man took my position because I was a woman’. ‘Negative attitudes by male colleagues toward women’. ‘I was not assigned on an important project because of my gender’. ‘I was told that having a baby would affect my job and I was not hired’. 3.1.2.2. Part II. Here, the participants responded to questions related to their gender as a limiting factor in workplace. As regards promotions, 69.5% responded that gender does limit (but at the not much level) promotions. Furthermore, regarding compensation, 67.5% replied that their gender does limit the compensation (but at the not much level). In addition, as far as access to clients is concerned, 71.4% believe that gender does limit access to clients (but at the not much level). Lastly, in examining access to training and development programs, once again the majority, 73.4% feels that gender is an element that limits access to training (but at the not much level). 3.1.2.3. Part III. In this part, the participants were asked to rate their degree of agreement on several statements. In the statement whether women in managerial positions are as Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 The International Journal of Human Resource Management capable as men at similar positions, the majority of the participants (97.4%, 150 women) think that women managers are as capable as male managers. Furthermore, when asked whether women and men are treated equally in their organization, 79.9% of the participants have not felt that they were treated differently at the workplace due to their gender. In addition, when asked whether at the company where they work, women and men are given equal opportunities for advancement to higher positions, 77.3% believed that women receive the same opportunities for advancement in the organization they work for. Furthermore, in the statement on whether women have to perform better than their male colleagues to be promoted to the same position, 42.2% feel that for a woman to be promoted she must work twice as hard as a man would. Lastly, when looking at childbearing, on the statement ‘once a woman has a child, she is considered to be less co mmitted to her career’, half of the respondents (50.7%) agree that there is a perception that working mothers are not committed to their careers as they should be. 3.1.2.4. Part IV. This part the participants had to rate on a Likert-type scale from 1 to 5 various possible barriers that prevent women’s career advancement. The questions measuring the extent to which ‘women’s low level of self-conï ¬ dence’ is a barrier to their career advancement, 69.5% of the participants agreed with the statement that the low level of self-conï ¬ dence women have is a barrier to their career advancement. When questioned about the extent of ‘working hours facilitate parenting’ and if they are considered a barrier to women’s career advancement, the replies received indicated that women would want to have ï ¬â€šexible working hours that will assist them with their childcare obligations, speciï ¬ cally, 68.2% think that working hours do not facilitate parenting. Moreover, when examining the extent of ‘absence of equal career development opportunities for women’, and whether it is considered a barrier to women’s career advancement, 55.2% consider the absence of equal career development opportunities for women as a barrier for their advancement in the workplace. In addition, the statement ‘to what extent insufï ¬ cient women role models in higher organizational levels, is a barrier to women’s career advancement’, 56.5% of the participants stated that having female role models in higher organizational levels would help them develop; therefore, the non-existence of those role models is a barrier for their career development. To the statement ‘to what extent, a non-supportive spouse, is a barrier to women’s career advancement’ appears that having a supporting spouse is a factor that can be very helpful for working women as 68.2% of the participants feel that not having assistance at ho me from their partner would be a barrier for their career. When asked about ‘company’s lack of commitment to gender advancement’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 57.8% of the respondents believe that the failure of an organization to be committed to gender advancement is a barrier for their career development. Further on, when asked about the extent to which ‘male domination in senior organizational positions’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 63.7% of the participants consider that senior organizational positions are dominated by male employees something that prevents women from advancing to higher positions. In addition, when asked about the extent ‘company’s lack of ability to implement and enforce anti-discriminatory and equality legislation’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 62.3% of the respondents feel that companies do not implement anti-discriminatory legislation and this is a barrier for their career advancement. Also, when aske d about the ‘tendency for organizations to assign male employees on high visibility projects’ and whether this is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 120 of the participants (a percentage of 78%) Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 M.P. Michailidis et al. believe that male employees are assigned on high visibility projects leaving female employees behind and such a practice sets barriers for women’s advancement. The statement looking at the extent to which ‘perceptions that women may eventually leave work once they have a family’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 61.7% agreed that the perception that women may eventually leave work once they have a family is a barrier for their career as this affects the way women are treated in the workplace and reduce the opportunities given to them. Continuing on, looking at the statement examining the extent to which ‘women’s conï ¬â€šicting roles between work and family’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement? It appears that the conï ¬â€šicting roles between work and family are considered by the majority of the participants (62.3%) as a barrier for their career advancement. When asked to rate the extent to which ‘women’s responsibilities for childcare’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 66.2% agreed that since women have the sole responsibility of childcare, this is a barrier for their career advancement. Also, when asked to rate the extent to which ‘career breaks for childbearing, child raising and other family obligations’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 66.9% believed that career breaks for childbearing and child raising are a barrier for women’s advancement. Furthermore, when measuring the extent to which ‘perceptions that men make better managers than women’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 63.7% of the participants stated agreed. In the question asking women to state whether they believe at the existence of the glass ceiling, 54.6% stated that they did experience these invisible banners which are a barrier for their advancement, 16.2% do not believ e at the existence of those barriers, whilst 29.2% were undecided. And when asked to state to what extent ‘stereotypes regarding women’s roles in society’ is a barrier to women’s career advancement, 53.9% believe that stereotypes about women is a barrier for them as often women are considered weak, sensitive and that they should not be working. Other barriers that prevent women’s advancement in the workplace and were not mentioned in the questions above were the following: ‘Women are judged by their appearance’. ‘Face and body is what they look at’. ‘Lack of acquaintances in comparison to male acquaintances’. 3.1.2.5. Part V. In this part, there were several questions asking women to rate how important various organizational practices were considered in helping women in their career advancement and development. One was on ‘mentorship programs’, 70.8% stated that it would be helpful for their advancement if they received mentoring. Further on, the question related to ‘managerial programs which identify and develop women’s potential’, 86.3% of the participants reported ï ¬ nding managerial programs that would identify and develop women’s potential as helpful. As far as ‘programs that would help women balance their work and family lives’, 93.5% believe that they would be helped by programs that provide assistance to women on how to balance work and family lives. These results show that women feel that they cannot balance work and family obligations and perhaps they need some assistance on how to achieve it. The question related to ‘on-site childcare facilities’, participants replied almost unanimously (93.5%) that it would be very helpful to them if their children could attend an on-site childcare facility. In addition, as far as ‘refresher courses when re-entering the workforce’, the majority of the participants (78.6%) agreed that it would be very helpful if women received refreshing courses when Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 The International Journal of Human Resource Management re-entering the workforce after a career break. The question ‘offering ï ¬â€šexible working hours’ is considered as an important factor for the advancement and development of women as 93.5% agreed that it would be helpful if they could arrange the hours they would be working according to the obligations they have at home. Continuing on as far as the question on ‘women role models in the highest levels of the organization’, 85.1% agreed that having women role models in the highest levels of the organization would be very helpful for the careers. Lastly, 100% of the respondents showed agreement on the statement, ‘helping women to broaden their professional experiences’. This unanimity indicates that women do not feel that they receive help from the companies they are working and consider it to be a huge barrier for their career development. The participants were asked to add any other organizational practices that were not mentioned but are consi dered important for working women. The comments made were the following: ‘Educating and always giving upgraded information to young women through organized seminars and events’. ‘Allowing work to be done at home, this will give work opportunities to women with families’. 3.1.2.6. Part VI. An analysis of the test of signiï ¬ cance – Crosstabs was also performed. This tried to examine the differences between the following: Current position at work: (1) just below ï ¬ rst line management, (2) ï ¬ rst line management, (3) middle management and (4) top management and: Part (A), ï ¬ ve questions, which referred to the degree of agreement on a ï ¬ ve-point Likert-type scale, as far as the: work capability of women compared with men; equal treatment of men and women in the workplace; equal opportunities for advancement; women’s performance and promotions; and family commitment once women have children and Part (B), eight questions, which referred to the degree of helpfulness of several organizational practices which contribute to their career advancement, looking at: mentorship programs; managerial programs that help women identify and develop their potential; programs that would help them balance work and family; the on-site childcare facilities; refreshers courses for the comeback; ï ¬â€šexible working hours; women role models in the highest levels of organizations; and programs helping women to broaden their professional experience. Concerning Part (A) there were signiï ¬ cant differences when examining Chi-square at the 0.01 level of signiï ¬ cance with the following three questions: The question, ‘I believe that women in managerial positions are as capable as men at similar positions’, indicated signiï ¬ cant differences between the categories below ï ¬ rst line management, ï ¬ rst line management, middle management and top management. Women belonging to below ï ¬ rst line management category, ï ¬ rst line management and middle management tend to agree or strongly agree with the statement (97.7%, 98.6% and 100%, respectively). On the other hand, the percentage of women holding top managerial positions and agreeing with the statement is 75%, while 12.5% is undecided and 12.5% tend to disagree. In general 2.5% of all categories are either undecided or they disagree, and 97.4% agreeing. On the question, which stated ‘Women and men are treated equally in the organization’, s howed signiï ¬ cant differences at the 0.10 levels among the categories below ï ¬ rst line Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 management, ï ¬ rst line management, middle management and top management. It appears that women in top management and below ï ¬ rst line management positions (75% and 44.9%) strongly agree with the statement. However, the percentage of women in middle management strongly agreeing is very low only 20.8%, but a higher percentage agreeing (45.8%) however, with a total of 33.3% disagreeing and strongly disagreeing, or undecided with the statement and 12.2% of the below ï ¬ rst line management are undecided. Overall 20.1% of all categories are either undecided or they disagree, and 79.9% agreeing. Next question requested the opinion of the respondents on the statement ‘At the company where I work women and men are given equal opportunities for advancement to higher positions’. Women holding top managerial positions believe that the company they are working for is giving both sexes equal opportunities for career advancement since 62.5% strongly agree and 37.5% tend to agree. This picture is not the same for the other managerial levels. Women in below ï ¬ rst line managerial level agreeing is 81.6% while the remaining 16.4% is undecided. The ï ¬ rst line managers have somehow similar percentages with 75.3% agreeing with the statement, and 13.7% were undecided. For the middle management respondents the results were the following: 56.7% agreed, 4.2% are undecided while 29.2% do not believe that there is equal treatment between men and women in the organization they are working. In Part B of the questionnaire, there were signiï ¬ cant differences when examining Chisquare at the 0.10 levels of signiï ¬ cance, the question concerning the programs which identify and develop women’s potential, here a total of 87.7% of below ï ¬ rst line management, 90.4% of ï ¬ rst line management, 70.8% of middle management and 87.5% of top management reported that such programs are useful. However, a very small percentage of 8.3% of below ï ¬ rst line management, 42.9% of ï ¬ rst line management, 38.5% of middle management 55.6% reported that programs which identify and develop women’s potential are quite helpful. Two open-ended questions allowed the participants to express themselves on other barriers that women face in their development and advancement in the workplace and also other organizational practices not addressed in the questionnaires. It is true that the majority of the sample did not answer those two questions; only 10% of the participants ï ¬ lled in those questions. Looking for other barriers that women face in their work life, the ï ¬ rst barrier mentioned by several participants was that women are stereotyped and are judged only by their looks, appearance and body. Other comments were that women do not belong in social networks, sports clubs like men do, and this affects their careers. In addition, when looking at other organizational practices that might be helpful for women’s career advancement, there were suggestions like work from home which needs to be encouraged, and courses that help young women increase their self-conï ¬ dence, assertiveness training and how to promote and protect their work rights. The last one is very important because many women do not have equal access to their rights because some of these rights are based on ‘male breadwinner model’ and do not consider the fact that females mostly carry the burden of having to bring together family and professional life. 4. Discussion During the past few years, there has been a global effort to eliminate gender discrimination; but we still have a long way to go and a lot of perceptions need to change along the way (Bartram 2005). Women around the globe are being discriminated against in the workplace, they are not rewarded on equal terms as men and do not receive the necessary aids for career advancement. Thus, the purpose of this study was to identify the factors that Downloaded by [La Trobe University] at 02:53 19 September 2013 The International Journal of Human Resource Management working women in Cyprus are faced with which lead them to experience discrimination; also to examine possible barriers that affect women’s advancement; and ï ¬ nally identify organizational practices that assist them in achieving work – life balance. The ï ¬ ndings conï ¬ rm that women enter a company in large numbers, as supporting staff, a minority of them reaches the middle-level management, while a very small number of female managers achieves an executive position (Wirth 2001). Only 8 out of 154 women who participated in the research had top management positions, a number which is not very positive for career advancement opportunities of women. A conclusion that could be drawn, with caution though, is that perhaps women in Cyprus do face a glass ceiling while climbing the corporate ladder, which does not allow them to advance to top management. These ï ¬ ndings agree with the EMPATHY-EDGE research, carried out in 2003– 2006 by the European Union, which reported that 104 out of 156 women had never directly experienced workplace discrimination, even though the majority of those women had experienced some kind of career advancement barrier. Nevertheless, gender discrimination is a global phenomenon and it was not expected to receive such a large percentage of women disagreeing with its existence in Cyprus. The results indicated that for the majority of the Cypriot women, marriage and children did not appear as a big obstacle for developing their careers. Similar to these ï ¬ ndings were the results of a research for female Greek entrepreneurs by Sarri and Trihopoulou (2005), reporting that the majority of the participants were married and had children. The writers continued by saying that women had achieved in ï ¬ nding a way to ‘develop abilities, skills and competencies’ that help them balance their careers and family obligations. However, in this study it has been demonstrated that women have some difï ¬ culty in balancing work and family obligations. In addition, lack of company programs that help women balance work and family obligations 93.5% of the respondents stated that organizational programs would greatly help women balance work and family obligations. Perhaps, the reason why women are gathered in lower organizational hierarchy levels is their low level of self-conï ¬ dence that prevents them from advancing. ‘Company’s lack of commitment to gender advancement’ and ‘lack of ability to implement and enforce antidiscriminatory and equality legislation’ received high agreement ratings. Companies should implement regulations that help the minorities receive the opportunities they deserve. If a company fails to do so then the minorities are not treated equally. Once again these factors have an effect on the reason why women are not represented equally at the executive positions of a company. The results were impressive as a large number of women would want to be assisted by organizational programs. In particular, ‘mentoring programs’, ‘managerial programs which identify and develop women’s potential’, ‘programs that would help women balance their work and family lives’, ‘on-site childcare facilities’, ‘refresher courses when re-entering the workforce’, ‘offering ï ¬â€šexible working hours’, ‘women role models in the highest levels of the organization’, ‘helping women to broaden their professional experiences’ received high ratings and are considered as important for them and their advancement. The lack of women role models, the lack of mentoring and the commitment women have toward their families were identiï ¬ ed by Catalyst and the Conference of Board Europe (Catalyst 2002) as important barriers for women’s career, globally. The eclipse of these barriers by offering programs assisting working women is an important step for the development and advancement of women in Cyprus. From the responses of the above study, it could be concluded that modern Cypriot women do wish to purse a career and have a family at the same time. Since most women M.P. Michailidis et al. still have primary responsibility for childcare and dependents, it is logical that they identify issues related to family and the home as issues, which affect their career development. Furthermore, gender attitudes have been changing throughout history, however, women all over the world are still being rejected during the hiring process, not promoted in higher positions, continue getting unequal pay and frequently faced with invisible barriers which block them from reaching top organizational positions. The roots of this inequality have been proven to be deep and appear to be very difï ¬ cult to prove and even harder to remedy. Achieving equal rights for equal positions is huge, enormous step efforts and a global concern. 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