Edgar Linton has more right Essay Example for Free

Edgar Linton has more right Essay The word hero conjures an image in one’s head of a valiant, courageous, strong individual; one who puts the needs of others before their own, a being who defies evil with their handsome charm and fearless nature. However, this stereotypical image does not accurately depict the full extent to which the term hero covers, as there are many different types of hero including the Byronic Hero, Classic Hero, Medieval Hero, and Romantic Hero. Classic Heroes are those in Greek and Roman literature; they are often of royal birth or even like the Titan Prometheus; half mortal, half god. Although Edgar Linton is not of royal descent, he is from a family of the highest social class throughout the country which allows him to fall loosely into this category of noble birth. Heathcliff on the other hand, is from a discernible background and is brought into the household at Wuthering Heights as a ‘gipsy brat’ after Mr. Earnshaw saw, ‘it starving, and houseless, and as good as dumb in the streets of Liverpool.’ Another characteristic of a Classic Hero is that they perform extraordinary feats. Throughout the novel Edgar Linton displays no obvious signs of having done anything extraordinary; he is a calm, weak natured individual who avoids conflict and allows himself to be easily overpowered both by Heathcliff and his wife allowing the latter to mock him, ‘I wish Heathcliff may flog you sick, for daring to think an evil thought of me!’ In contrast to this, Heathcliff performs many extraordinary deeds however, few of which are in any way admirable and for the benefit of anyone but himself for example, after being degraded for years at the abusive hands of Hindley, Heathcliff disappeared for three years and that space of time turned himself into an outwardly respectable and wealthy man. In addition to the former points, a classical hero must be a perfectly ideal individual but for one fatal flaw. One’s opinion of Edgar Linton can be altered to allow him to fit into this category as he is a well-mannered character who is obviously fully devoted to both his wife and his daughter; Nelly Dean observes, ‘I don’t believe he ever did speak a harsh word to her.’ However, his gentle, spoiled upbringing may be his flaw as it has made him subservient character that lacks the confidence and passion Heathcliff possesses and thus lacks the ability to keep hold of Catherine and make her happy. Heathcliff again, does not fit the mould of the Classic Hero as he fails to meet this criterion; he is an abusive, evil, sadistic individual who shows no hint of remorse or of possessing any admirable qualities. Although neither Edgar nor Heathcliff perfectly fit the mould of a Classic hero, Edgar has more right to be called a Classic Hero than Heathcliff does. However, Heathcliff does fully reserve the right to be classed as the Byronic Hero within the novel as he possesses all the characteristics of one of these heroes while Edgar has none of them. These heroes are manipulative, violent and unrepentant. Heathcliff shows his manipulative nature when he allows Isabella Linton to fall in love with him, he tells Nelly, ‘she abandoned them under a delusion’, showing he was fully aware of her feelings and used them to his advantage, employing them as a tool in which he could gain control and ownership over both properties; Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. His displays of violence are prominent throughout the novel, beginning as a young boy and developing into adulthood. As a young child he, ‘seized a tureen of apple sauce’ and threw it over Edgar Linton’s face. As an adult his violence worsens as, ‘he snatched a knife from the table and flung it at’ his wife, Isabella’s head. In addition to this, he comes close to murdering Hindley and even with Catherine, his true love he does not possess the capability to be gentle, ‘so inadequate was his stock of gentleness†¦ I saw four distinct impressions left blue in her colourless skin.’ Heathcliff’s unrepentant nature is evident via the lack of regard he holds toward his victims which stems from his arrogant personality. The height of his arrogance is seen when he tells Catherine in front of Edgar, ‘This lamb of yours threatens like a bull! It is in danger of splitting its skull against my knuckles. By God, Mr. Linton, Im’ mortally sorry that you are not worth knocking down.’ Arrogance is also a common trait of Byronic Heroes. Despite the fact that both men can be called heroes in their own right to a certain extent, it is because of his amiability and good nature Edgar Linton has the right to claim the title of the respectable hero within the novel. However, in saying this looking at all the characters within the novel, it may be argued that neither man deserve the title but a woman does as the women in the novel are strong, independent and highly feministic characters.

Psychological Skills Training Programme

Psychological Skills Training Programme Psychology is the scientific study of cognitive thoughts, feelings and behaviours. The aim of sports psychology is to understand the contribution that psychological components have on exercise performance, but also the effects that participation in physical exercise has on psychological development. Sports psychologists often talk about the significance of being in the zone and of creating an intimidating presence for your opponent on the field of play, but waiting until you are in competition to apply the principles of sports psychology, without previous training will not allow for an enhanced performance. So, before this you need to apply a winning attitude and the ability to apply it to your training, which is one of the most vital and difficult areas to apply it. Psychological skills training (PST) refers to the systematic and consistent practice of mental or psychological skills for enhanced performance. It helps give an edge the athletes performance, especially between athletes that are closely matched in physical and technical ability; this usually results in the overall winner being the athlete with the better prepared mental skills. PST can often be neglected by athletes or coaches because they have a lack of knowledge in the subject area or misunderstandings of how to use it. It can also be ignored because of a lack of allocated time throughout the training process; this is more often than not a consequence of higher priorities during training. PST must be tailored to each individual athlete and varies for every sport, so must be conducted by the coach or a sports psychologist. It should be practiced over a period of time, similarly to the physical or technical nature of most sports, and should use a combination of different techniques. Sport psychology helps provide coaches with the information they need to help their athletes build mental strength and achieve enhanced performance in sport, as well as in life. As a coach, to gain a complete mental perspective of an athlete, you have to analyse how the athlete acts and feels when competing within a sport. Through the use of psychological training programmes and mental tools, which will be discussed later in more detail, athletes can build and develop their mental strength for competitive situations. For coaches, the application of this type of training programme is beneficial for optimising the complete performance of an athlete. These can be beneficial for building team cohesion, effective communication, teaching sports skills, as well as motivating and preparing athletes for competition. Although, there are a number of reasons why athletes or sports coaches do not include PST in training for their sport. It may stem from lack of sport knowledge, where either coach or athlete has an insufficient grasp on the mental skills needed to perform at the highest level in that sport, or it may simply be that their coaching methods have become outdated and are in need of further qualified education. Other common problems that come in implementing a PST programme are that of time, conviction and follow up. Some athletes simply do not have the time to spend on the required techniques used to improve the psychological skills. This is usually because of their hard working and time consuming physical training programme. Funding also plays a part in most athletes missing out on psychological assistance, as it can be relatively expensive for individual athletes to hire a sport psychologist, especially when compared to that of a professional football player, as many elite clubs now employ their own sports psychologists. Psychological Skills In this training programme the support work which will be described is for use involving a junior golfer named James. It is primarily to help deal with his low confidence and anxieties throughout the game. James is 14 years old, a promising county level golfer with a handicap of 5, and plays for South Ayrshire Junior Golf Club. I have got to know James by playing recreationally at the same club, and he happened to mention certain aspects of his game he was struggling with, so I offered my support. James told me his reason for asking for help was that he felt he was not as confident as he should be on the field and he wanted to start enjoying his game again. Secondly, he explained that he has had trouble with feeling very anxious before each shot in a competition environment, opposed to practice where he felt more comfortable. This study represents my work with James over a six week period in which we covered most of the psychological aspects of the game of golf, concentrating on over coming the main problems James was having. In the game of golf, concentration, anxiety, confidence and motivation are key variables in effective golfing performance (Finn, 2008). According to Arther (2006) Jack Nickulaus once said that The game of golf is 90% mental and 10% swing. This implies that the psychological skills involved in golf are more important to playing the game than the physiological demands. The physical demands of golf comprise of; aerobic endurance, local muscular endurance, power and motor skills. These days almost all of the top professionals in golf use psychological tools to enhance their performance. For example Tiger Woods, one of the worlds elite golfers, started using sport psychology techniques at a very young age and continues to use them to this day. He used a number of psychological techniques for relaxation, visualization and concentration (Sietz, 2000). Self confidence In sport, self-confidence is a well-known factor that may enhance or improve an athletes skills performance. It has been found that a psychological component like self-confidence is one that athletes and coaches consider as relevant for optimum performance. As golfers are constantly measuring their own performance, it becomes very easy for them to lose confidence in their ability to perform specific golf skills such as putting or hitting fairway irons onto the green. An individuals judgement on their ability to successfully perform specific skills is termed self-efficacy (Bandura, 1986). Self efficacy is our trust in our ability to succeed within specific situations. Your sense of self efficacy can play a key role in how you approach challenges, tasks and goals. Motivational mastery self-talk can help with focus and self-confidence. Golf-specific examples of motivational mastery self-talk might be come on concentrate, there are only three holes to play with help for focusing, or you can do this, you have made this shot before for self-confidence. Thoughts precede moods so if you think unhappy thoughts you will feel unhappy. Self talk is the thoughts you have in response to a certain situation. If you tell yourself you can succeed then you have a much improved chance of succeeding. According to psychologist Bandura (1977), an athletes confidence, or self efficacy, is based on four primary sources of information, shown in (Appendix 1). These primary sources include past performance accomplishments, vicarious performance, verbal persuasion and emotional arousal. Past performance accomplishments give the athlete confidence through achievements made in competitions or goals reached during training, they can also create expectation for the athlete in a good or bad way. Vicarious performance allows the athlete to see the actions that they should be performing through a model performer; this is usually taken from an athlete in the same field/competition or of a previou sly successful athlete. Verbal persuasion can be given to the athlete via the coach, parents or supporters; it gives the athlete a sense of encouragement to perform. Emotional arousal is when the athlete is in the right mood to perform, it is also known as when they are up for it and at their peak. If this level is too high or too low then the performance of the athlete can suffer, as shown in (Appendix 2). Developing self confidence will be discussed in more detail further in the programme. Anxiety and arousal Anxiety is a natural reaction within the body that responds to threats in the environment; it is part of the preparation for the fight or flight response. Lazarus (2000a) defines anxiety as facing an uncertain, existential threat. Performance anxiety develops when there is too much perceived stress, specifically this state of mind is created and moulded by your thoughts and feelings. The way you think about an event or competition is the source of the stress, not the actual event itself. One way to begin to tackle performance anxiety is to try to understand what your fears about the competition are, in Jamess case it was the fear of not performing to his expected level. When the demands of competition or training exceed an athletes apparent capability, anxiety is the unavoidable outcome (Valiante and Stachura, 2005). As well as providing incentive and challenge, sport also provides substantial uncertainty. While this kind of stress might motivate some athletes, it can encourage anxie ty in others. There are distinct factors that can amplify athletes anxiety levels. For example, important competitions can give an athlete greater stress, therefore they are likely to be prone to anxiety. Spectators can also play a huge part in how an athlete feels. Participants in individual sports, such as golf, have been known in general to suffer more from anxiety before, during and after games than participants in team sports because they dont receive the same support throughout the game from team mates. Another factor that can cause anxiety is the expectation of success, in Jamess case, his supporters expect him to be winning most tournaments in his category, so he is exposed to a lot more pressure than most players at his young age. Another notion to acknowledge is that the level of mental arousal can influence an athletes performance. When arousal levels are too high it can lead to an increase in muscle tension, also poor decision making, reduced concentration levels and a d isruption in co ordination. Identifying and controlling arousal level is important to maximize athletic accomplishment. Some of the skills useful to control arousal levels up or down are; visualization, centring, progressive muscular relaxation, and positive self talk. In addition to using these skills for regulating arousal, these skills have a number of other benefits for confidence and concentration. Preparing athletes for competition involves more than firing them up, it involves finding the optimum level of arousal for each athlete (Cox, 2002). Motivation Reduced confidence will ultimately impact on a performers motivation levels, their willingness to take risks and their ability to develop. There are two kinds of motivation that allows athletes to achieve a particular goal or task. The first type is extrinsic motivation, which in sport comes from external influences or people. People are extrinsically motivated to earn rewards, social recognition, or benefits. The second kind is intrinsic motivation, and it is someones inner drive to accomplish a goal or objective. Intrinsically motivated people focus on a task for their own sake. They have a sense of self-determination, and look at themselves as being able to meet the demands of a particular task. Research shows in Vallerand and Losier (1999) that athletes who participate in sport for intrinsic reasons experience a more positive and less negative outcome; they have greater determination, and show higher levels of sportsmanship. As golf is mostly an individual sport, motivating yours elf to practice and to keep going when your confidence is low can be difficult. Setting goals in practice and competition is an effective way to enhance motivation. When using goal setting, you should make them specific and measurable. Identify the areas you will need to work on in order to achieve your set goals as well as making them realistic. You should record the progress you are making towards goals and set a time limit on specific goals to evaluate progress. Golfers can set long term and short term goals. Long-term goals generally focus on the ultimate outcome such as winning a tournament or reducing your handicap. Short-term goals act as the stepping stones to achieving your long-term goals. Setting short-term goals also allows reflection on current performance and can help in assessing the viability of long-term goals. This area is also covered later in the programme with reference to self confidence. Concentration Focus is crucial in order to concentrate, by learning to focus on the right things at the right time. Concentration is the ability to hold focus for a required time, and use the appropriate mental effort so not to focus on any distractions. By concentrating your thoughts on the competition, it can help you to plan how you will play the course and allow you to contemplate the possible situations that may arise. In a study by McCaffrey and Orlick (1989), they used a series of open questions to discover psychological and situational factors linked to excellence in golf. They found considerable differences between touring golf professionals and local club professionals. The highly skilled tour players were entirely dedicated to golf, particularly during periods of optimum performance. They set clear goals, and they were more organized in planning practice sessions and tournament strategies, as well as in self evaluation after each game. Both groups developed plans for focusing attention during a round, but the touring professionals were more successful in keeping focus over an extended period of time resulting in greater concentration levels. Both groups acknowledged the effect of distractions on the course, but the touring professionals were better able to cope with these distractions and regain a task focus. On the golf course, distractions come in varying forms and can divert your focus. External focus can be thrown by; the target, your equipment, the wind, an opponents shot or score. Internal focus can be side tracked by things like; how you feel, where you want the ball to go, how hard you want to hit the ball, how the club feels in your hands and your practice swings. These are just some of the distractions involved in the game of golf. McCaffrey and Orlick (1989) concluded that maintaining commitment, focusing, and refocusing were the skills most needed for achieving excellence in golf. As a coach you need to get athletes to think during activity, not just u se their behaviours and actions, as there is constant problem solving within the sport. If you know whats going to happen you can plan and control it. After learning all these psychological skills, the challenge is to implement them into your game. A pre-competition mental routine, developed between the coach and athlete, helps the athletes get their mind in the proper place to perform well. Concentration, anxiety, confidence and motivation are key variables in effective golfing performance (Finn, 2008). Psychological Skills Training The psychological priorities of golf incorporate a lot of self confidence and the need to control anxiety and arousal throughout the whole game. In a feature written by Fields (1995), he talks of a meeting between Dr Rob Rotella and Nick Price; whose form had been lagging after some recent wins and was looking for some answers. Price went to see sports psychologist Rotella to see if he could help him with his game, after two days, Rotella explained to Price how to simplify and direct his thinking toward a specific target, by consciously playing only one shot at a time. With this narrow internal way of thinking; Price was able to concentrate solely on the task in front of him without any distractions. This is how I intend to develop my athletes focus and confidence, as well as decreasing his anxiety during game play. Self Confidence Training Developing self confidence through self talk is an effective technique to control thoughts and to influence feelings. Thoughts and feelings can influence self confidence as well as performance. The coach or athlete must carefully select the actual words or phrase used during self talk so that they provide maximum effectiveness. Self talk can be in the form of words actually spoken out loud, or in the form of thoughts that come into the athletes mind; these thoughts can be either negative or positive. As a psychological method for enhancing and improving self confidence in athletes, self talk must be positive and lead to constructive feelings about an athletes ability. Self talk is a strategy used by athletes at all levels and in almost all sports. According to Rotella (2004), a top psychologist, the true meaning of confidence in sport is achieved by playing with your eyes. Confident athletes can focus completely on the objective allowing the body and brain to react instinctively. In other words, the athlete should turn his focus to what is in front of him and not what he already knows. For example, a golf swing for a professional golfer is already calibrated into his mind, so worrying about his swing on the course only serves to distract him from the ultimate goal of making the shot, the swing should be automatic so he can concentrate solely on the shot. Goal setting is a powerful motivational strategy. Research has shown that goal setting enhances performance across a variety of situations. Goal setting gives the coach a sense of control over what the athlete does in training and allows us to move beyond beliefs or fears that may be preventing us from realizing our peak performance. The process of setting goals helps the athlete and the coach choose what you want to aim for. By knowing exactly what you want to accomplish, you know where to focus your efforts. You will also be able to quickly spot distractions that could otherwise tempt you from your course. On top of this, properly set goals can be extremely motivating, and as you get into a habit of setting and achieving your goals, you find that self confidence builds faster. By setting sharp, clearly defined goals, you can measure and take pride in these goals. You can see forward progress in what might previously have seemed a long pointless grind. By setting goals, you will rai se your self confidence, as you recognise your ability and competence in achieving the goals that you have set. There distinct advantages to setting goals, some of these benefits for sport include; clarified expectations, improved performance, enhanced quality of practice, pride, higher intrinsic motivation, satisfaction, decreased anxiety, increased self confidence, improved concentration and time management. It has been established that successful athletes display higher self-confidence than unsuccessful athletes (Treasure et al. 1996). This study noted that athletes who have higher self confidence during competitions are more likely to be successful. With imagery, you replace actual experience with scenes from your within your imagination. The body reacts to these images almost as if they were real, so as to relive the experience. This is a technique used very commonly used by elite athletes, they learn good performance habits by repetitively rehearsing performances in their imagination. You can use mental imagery to; visualise success, motivate yourself, familiarise yourself or perfect skills. Many golfers see themselves achieving their goals their goals on a regular basis, seeing desired performance outcomes and performing skills at a high level. It can remind you objective and increase focus during practice and rounds. Many of the best golfers in the world see and feel themselves performing perfect shots, skills and routines before they actually do so. A good explanation of how imagery works is given by Grezes and Decety (2001) showing that when we make a movement, such as hitting a golf ball, specific areas of our brain are a ctivated. Research evidence suggests that when we imagine making a movement, very similar areas of our brain are also activated as when we actually make a movement. Retired professional golfer, Jack Nicklaus, one of the first sportsman to promote mental imagery once wrote that, I never hit a shot, not even in practice, without having a very sharp, in-focus picture of it in my head. First I see the ball where I want it to finish, nice and white and sitting up high on the bright green grass. Then the scene quickly changes, and I see the ball going there: its path, trajectory, and shape, even its behaviour on landing. Then there is a sort of fade-out, and the next scene shows me making the kind of swing that will turn the previous images into reality. (Frontera, 2007). Some studies found that many people and athletes use imagery to increase exercise and physical fitness as the imagery helps the success of their exercise (Hall 2001). An athletes enactment of performance imagery is the normal procedure in training programs. This method is used more heavily by elite athletes with higher self-confidence than non-athletes. Studies suggest that imagery may help athletes to build more self-confidence in relation to performance. Kendall et al (1990) demonstrated that imagery, in combination with relaxation and self talk, increases the utilization of specific defensive skills. Mahoney (1979) reported the effect of mental imagery practice based on high jumper Dick Fosbury and skier Jean-Claude, who have both used mental practice in competition and went on to receive gold medals in those competitions. This study provides evidence that imagery practice can successfully influence athletic performance. Motivational videos help inspire, motivate, and pump you up. Athletes use them to focus their motivation in a particular direction or toward a set goal of achievement. As well as videos, athletes can also use mental pictures for motivation, such as them lift a cup or receiving a medal. Anxiety and Arousal Training Worrying about how you are going to perform leads to anxiety about performance. Anxiety manifests in both physical and mental ways. According to Vanthuyne (1999) we dont worry just in our heads, our entire body worries resulting in a body reaction as well as a mental reaction, this fact is critical regarding athletic performance. Due to its objective nature, golf can often be a frustrating and stressful sport. Golfers may therefore experience increased levels of anxiety, which can ultimately lead to a decline in golfing performance (Hardy, 1996). In order to combat increased anxiety levels, golfers can practice mental skills and strategies to help them relax on and off the field. Using relaxation strategies can help control anxiety and is important in enhancing golfing performance. Centring is a relaxation technique used by rugby player Jonny Wilkinson in his kicking routine (Wilkinson, 2006), he also admits to listening to a mental rehearsal CD before each game he plays to help him relax and focus. Similarly, you can use relaxation techniques in your pre shot routine to help you relax in golf. Centring is a skill which allows the athlete to release unwanted muscular tension, control anxiety and become more body aware. To practice the process of centring, athletes focus on slowing down their breathing, and inhale air in through the nose. Use the diaphragm and not the chest to expand your lungs. As you breathe out through the mouth, let your body relax. Repeat this technique several times until the required state of relaxation is achieved. Imagery and self-talk can also be used to facilitate relaxation on the golf course. By using self-talk such as loose and relax you can imagine tension in the neck and shoulder muscles disappearing. Centring is one example in an abundance of relaxation techniques which can be employed by golfers. When choosing how to deal with increased levels of anxiety, it is important to match anxiety symptoms with an appropriate relaxation technique. Motivational arousal self-talk can be used to control arousal levels. To reduce arousal levels, golfers may use self-talk such as it is ok, just breath nice and easily and relax your shoulders. An example of self-talk to increase arousal levels might be come on, you need to get yourself up for this. Visualization is a technique used where the athlete imagines themselves performing a task. It deals not only with how the athlete sees the task but also how they feel when performing it. For example, a sprinter might experience and imagine an efficient, smooth stride while running round a track. A golfer might rehearse a sequence of steps, in his mind, that are required for a good long drive. The imagery experience should be viewed by the athlete in first person perspective, not what they would see watching from a spectator standpoint. Positive self talk is the practice of eliminating negative thoughts and promoting constructive thoughts. Instead of focusing on the negatives of a bad situation, the athlete focuses on positives. For example, I cant play well against them, is replaced by, I have trained hard and I am prepared. I can do this. Progressive muscular relaxation is a technique that involves alternatively relaxing and contracting various muscle groups. It is best performed ly ing down, and going through the muscles groups in a sequence of agonist and antagonist, quads and hamstrings for example. By doing this, the mind is focused on each specific body part and the athlete comes into a relaxation state with increased feeling of the body. Needs analysis The needs analysis is a crucial part of developing a psychological training programme as it allows the athlete and coach to work together and discover the needs of that particular athlete. The needs analysis should consist of an evaluation of the individual, the sport, and the movements within that sport. The evaluation of the sport is used to determine the physiological components most needed to perform in that sport. An evaluation of the movements within that sport is need to recognise the physiological and psychological processes used during the sport. As individual psychological needs for each sport and athlete differ, the coach must evaluate the athletes strengths and weaknesses to provide a suitable program, as well as allowing the athlete to set short term goals. The individuals needs then dictate which psychological skills are needed and which to prioritize in the training program. In this case for James, a young golfer, we discovered that through the use of a survey of athle tic experiences (Appendix 3), he was severely lacking in self confidence. I also discovered, through the use of an anxiety questionnaire (Appendix 4), that Jamess performance suffered dramatically when under increasing pressure, for example when in a tournament situation. It has been suggested that there are three key phases to implementing an effective mental skills programme (Weinberg and Gould, 2007). First, an education phase in which the athlete should be informed about the nature of mental skills and how these skills can enhance their performance. Second, an acquisition phase should focus on assisting the athlete to learn the appropriate mental techniques. Third, a practice phase with the aim of applying mental skills into competitive situations. I used an athletic experience questionnaire (Appendix 3) to help discover which parts of Jamess game was lacking psychologically, it enabled us to identify and analysis specific psychological skills and also which ones we could work on. It showed that James was low in self confidence because he was playing with so much expectation. It also told me that without the use of short term goals, his aims and targets were not clearly lined out for him. This may be due to a coaching error but could also be a reason for his low self confidence, as meeting short term goals gives the athlete a sense of achievement and shows gradual improvement. I used an anxiety questionnaire (Appendix 4) to determine some of the stresses James was under and when he was experiencing them. This allowed me to see that his anxiety levels were greatest during competition, and that it was mostly down to the weight of expectation on him, although there were other contributing factors. This included; what others thought of his performances and when playing against more experienced players, also when using new equipment and various distractions from the crowds. To combat some of these stresses, I recommended that James learn some relaxation techniques that he could use on the training field but also during stressful competitions. Some of these relaxation techniques have been previously discussed in detail. For James, a wider knowledge of relaxation techniques and specifically set out goals will ultimately aid him in producing his optimum performances on the field, as well as helping him to positively enjoy the game even more. Psychological skills are best developed in an athletes training environment and when incorporated with the technical and physical aspects of the game, this ensures that the athlete sees the program as an essential part of their development. These psychological skills should also be trained, just as you would for any physical aspects, over an extended period of time with sufficient tests to show improvement. Some specific mental skills training can take place almost anywhere, from the playing field to sitting at home, as long as you completely involve yourself within the training. In most sports there is a specific season of play, so this might dictate when the psychological skills training may be applied and what specific skills are trained. As mentioned before mental skills training should be an integral part of the training process. Performance profiling was also used to addresses the gap between current performance levels and the requirements necessary for where the athlete wants to be. It identifies the athletes strengths and weaknesses during play and in training. A performance profile was taken at the start of the program and at the end allowing the coach and athlete to see a steady improvement or decline in performance. Within the performance profiles, you should also obtain a comprehensive history of injury for the golfer. This will include all major previous injuries along with any current injury concerns; it can often be found that the golfer is currently playing with some kind of irritating injury problem which can have an effect on any physiological or psychological training programme. Evaluation Overall, this psychological skills training programme went extremely for James and myself. We both learned a lot of new psychological skills and the techniques needed to dramatically improve our thought processes. I especially enjoyed identifying the specific skills effecting James performances with the use of various psychological tests. Through the use of performance profiles, I was able to see the progression in Jamess play from the start of the programme to the end; this showed the program does work if it is implemented properly with correct knowledge and understanding. My program did make a difference to James game, and this has been shown in his current performances, he is now a lot more confident in his ability to perform on a bigger stage as well as being more capable of controlling his anxieties on the field. You can now see how positive thinking has changed his game; he is making a conscious effort to think in a way that benefits his performance. It is not one hundred perce nt accurate to say that Jamess performances have been better solely because of this program, they may be in fact some other contributing factors, but to the best of my knowledge he has undertaken any severe changes in training or supplementation. I am sure that there are ways in which this programme could have been changed to make it run more efficiently and with more effectiveness, but from the feedback received from James it was sufficient to meet his needs. From this I can take great confidence in my ability to prepare and enforce a good psychological training pro

Market Failures and the White River National Forest :: Economics Environment Research

Market Failures and the White River National Forest The two and one quarter acre White River National Forest is located in the heart of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, approximately two to four hours west of Denver on I-70. The scenic beauty of the area, along with ample developed and undeveloped recreation opportunities in the forest, accounts for the fact that the White River consistently ranks as one of the top Forests nation wide for total recreation use. The Forest provides for an excellent variety of recreation opportunities in all seasons with eleven ski areas, eight designated wildernesses, several national trails, approximately 70 forest service administered developed sites (campgrounds, picnic grounds), and over one and one half million acres for general motorized and non-motorized backcountry enjoyment. Popular recreation activities in the Forest include downhill and cross-country skiing, developed and dispersed camping, four-wheel driving, sightseeing, photography, hunting, fishing, hiking, boating, snowmobiling, picnicking, bicycling, horseback riding and backpacking. The elevation of the Forest ranges from 5,000 to 14,000 feet. Warm days and cool to freezing nights can be expected in the mountains during the summer. July and August are usually the warmest months, and afternoon thunderstorms are common. Fall in the Forest is brief but spectacular, as changing aspens cloak the mountains in gold. Peak color time is normally the last part of September. Crisp, sunny days mingle with early snowstorms in what many consider the premier season of the year. Winter brings the abundant powder snowfall that Colorado is famous for. Most winter recreation, including skiing and snowmobiling, occurs between Thanksgiving and Easter, but high elevation sites offer good snow much later into the spring. The park itself is obviously a source of great enjoyment to all and offers a plethora of opportunities for recreation. Unfortunately though, the park, as well as the surrounding environment, has become the victim of an increased population in the area, a growth in the number of annual tourists to the region, and an economic expansion which has utilized natural resources found within the park boundaries for the purpose of producing goods and services. Because White River National Forest is a national treasure, measures have been introduced to protect the environment in accordance with pollution limits, resource consumption, and economic efficiency. In the past few decades, forestry officials have implemented strategic plans for the preservation of the wilderness and resources with White River and update those plans every fifteen years or so.

The Coming Of Age Essay -- essays research papers

The Coming of Age   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Childhood is a time where children learn about the world around themselves. They see and experience many factors that influence their everyday lives, which help them grow stronger when they become adults. In 'Girl'; by Jamaica Kincaid and 'The Lesson'; by Toni Cade Bambara the characters within the stories learn valuable lesson with help them grow to become better individuals. In 'The Lesson'; the character of Sugar undergoes a realization that society does not treat everyone equally, that not every individual has the same opportunity and equality that they should have. In 'Girl'; the main character learns that she must be perceived as a woman and not as a slut, her mother brings to her attention of how the world is and what she must to do in order to survive in it. Lessons that children learn all help them grow to become better individuals, in 'Girl'; and 'The Lesson'; the lessons that the characters learn both help them grow to become better and stronger individ uals.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 'The Lesson'; the character, Sugar undergoes a realization of the world around her, through her teacher Miss Moore, Sugar notices that there is a better way of living in the world besides, her own little world with her friends. Sugar says, 'You know, Miss Moore, I don't think that all of us here put together eat in a year what that sailboat costs,'; (Bambara 452). Miss Moore is an African American woman who has broken through the expectation that society has placed on her class and on her color. Bambara presents Miss Moore as a very educated and intelligent woman, who has a college degree. With her knowledge Miss Moore sets out to educate the deprived and lower classed children and teach them of the world around them. She sets out to open their eyes, as well as their knowledge of the world around them. Miss Moore says, 'Imagine for a minute what kind of society it is in which some people can spend on a toy what it would cost to feed a family of six or seven. Wh at do you think?,'; (Bambara 452).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sugar's realization of the world outside of her own, opens her mind to many questions that she never imagined before. She realizes that there is a better standard of living in the world and that society is not equal, as it should be, 'I think, . . . that this is not much of a democracy if y... ...woman and not be viewed as a slut. The daughter in 'Girl'; wants to rebel against her mother and not be viewed as a slut to society, therefore hoping that society will not look down upon her, if she does not do everything that the mother has taught her that she must do. In the stories of the 'Girl'; and 'The Lesson'; different lessons are learned, but the common realization of the world around them is learned by the characters and how each of the characters must learn to rebel against societies views. This realization helps them grow smarter and stronger as they grow older and come of age, from childhood to adulthood. Society has set standards for individuals to live by, but it is up to those individuals to break away, or live by the standards and views of society. 'It is not much of a democracy if you ask me. Equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough,'; (Bambara 452). In reality, society has set standards for everyone to live by. Those who break away from it are look down upon if they fail, but if they succeed they are praised by, this may be the only way to change societies views of gender, class, and race; it is by succeeding in everything that you do.

Ethical Considerations in Customer Relationship Management Essay

Abstract Due to issues such as managed care contracting, and the financial impact of indigent care, healthcare providers find themselves in competition for patients with adequate health insurance, or the ability to pay cash for services provided to try to maintain fiscal solvency. E-health applications serve not only to advertise the services of a facility, but also to help the health care provider identify potential patients for the services they offer. In this paper I will explore the ethical considerations of Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) applications and services, which are increasingly being utilized to help target potential consumers for health care providers. When inquiring about a health condition on the internet, do internet users give up their expectations for privacy regarding their healthcare information? Although consumers may not expect the information they provide to get into the database of marketing firms, this is often exactly what happens. Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) software firms or service providers are a growing industry. The purpose of CRM software in the healthcare field, is to assist providers in identifying potential customers for a service based on information they have supplied. This information can be provided in a number of ways. In some cases, the consumer has knowingly supplied the information to the actual provider via an inquiry sent from the provider's website. In other cases the provider determines a marketing target based upon mining information in their own database by linking relationships which may help identify a potential need. Yet in another scenario, identification of a potential consu mer is based on information they provided at another website, which was ... ... an Innovative CRM Solution for Health Care Organizations. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from DM Review Web site: http://www.dmreview.com/editorial/newsletter_article.cfm?nl=dmdirect&articleId=1066948&issue=20423 CPM-Solutions. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from CRM Health Portal Web site: http://www.cpm.com/providers/solutions/emarketing.cfm Poulsen, Kevin (2007, May 14). Attorneys General demand that MySpace give up sex offenders. Wired, Retrieved July 29, 2007, from http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/05/attorneys_gener.html Richards, Johnathan (2007, July 25). Sex offenders can use social sites say police. Times Online, Retrieved July 29, 2007, from http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article2137973.ece WebMD Privacy Policy. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from WebMD.com Web site: http://www.webmd.com/policies/about-privacy-policy#part7c Ethical Considerations in Customer Relationship Management Essay Abstract Due to issues such as managed care contracting, and the financial impact of indigent care, healthcare providers find themselves in competition for patients with adequate health insurance, or the ability to pay cash for services provided to try to maintain fiscal solvency. E-health applications serve not only to advertise the services of a facility, but also to help the health care provider identify potential patients for the services they offer. In this paper I will explore the ethical considerations of Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) applications and services, which are increasingly being utilized to help target potential consumers for health care providers. When inquiring about a health condition on the internet, do internet users give up their expectations for privacy regarding their healthcare information? Although consumers may not expect the information they provide to get into the database of marketing firms, this is often exactly what happens. Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) software firms or service providers are a growing industry. The purpose of CRM software in the healthcare field, is to assist providers in identifying potential customers for a service based on information they have supplied. This information can be provided in a number of ways. In some cases, the consumer has knowingly supplied the information to the actual provider via an inquiry sent from the provider's website. In other cases the provider determines a marketing target based upon mining information in their own database by linking relationships which may help identify a potential need. Yet in another scenario, identification of a potential consu mer is based on information they provided at another website, which was ... ... an Innovative CRM Solution for Health Care Organizations. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from DM Review Web site: http://www.dmreview.com/editorial/newsletter_article.cfm?nl=dmdirect&articleId=1066948&issue=20423 CPM-Solutions. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from CRM Health Portal Web site: http://www.cpm.com/providers/solutions/emarketing.cfm Poulsen, Kevin (2007, May 14). Attorneys General demand that MySpace give up sex offenders. Wired, Retrieved July 29, 2007, from http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2007/05/attorneys_gener.html Richards, Johnathan (2007, July 25). Sex offenders can use social sites say police. Times Online, Retrieved July 29, 2007, from http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article2137973.ece WebMD Privacy Policy. Retrieved July 29, 2007, from WebMD.com Web site: http://www.webmd.com/policies/about-privacy-policy#part7c

An It Proposal for Network Management of the College of Computing and Information Sciences(Makerere University, Uganda)

AN IT PROPOSAL FOR NETWORK MANAGEMENT OF THE COLLEGE OF COMPUTING AND INFORMATION SCIENCES(MAKERERE UNIVERSITY,UGANDA) Introduction The College of Computing and Information Sciences (COCIS) Makerere University in Uganda was established on 13th December 2010. It is made up of the School of Computing and Informatics Technology (CIT) and the East African School of Library and Information Science (EASLIS). COCIS is one of the largest computing and ICT training, information science, research and consultancy colleges in Africa.It cuts across as a world class College and has maintained its place as an icon of excellence on the continent. It is committed to delivering excellent services in the area of Computing, Library, Records and Information Sciences and attracts both local and international students. COCIS boasts of the state of the art infrastructure including lecture theaters, giant computer laboratories, specialized computer laboratories and a college library.The established academic staff strength of the College is about 300 teaching staff including 30 visiting and local professors. Over twenty of these staff members hold doctorate, with many others in advanced stages of completing their PhD studies. This merger has seen a pool of resources and facilities like computer laboratories, specialized laboratories, book libraries, journals, cameras, and personnel both administrative and academic staff.To maximize productivity and efficiency, the college of computing and informatics technology(CoCIS) routinely relies on the network to support its operations ranging from E-learning activities on the E-Learning environment(Muele) to support services offered to students and staff ,services like access to wireless internet, access to the internet through the Domain(CoCIS domain) The network topology used by the college is an extended star LAN that is used with network devices that filter frames or packets, like switches, and routers.This topology significantly reduces the traffic on the wires by sending packets only to the wires of the destination. This network is managed by only four people or staff. This network is also being managed using tools like Nagios and solar winds for monitoring devices. Problems identified affecting the network Insufficient resources Under this there is limited human resources which include support staff and network administrators . there are only four network administrators for the whole college of which some of the are incompetent or not always available.Limited number of Computers, most of the computers in the labs at the college are dwindling in numbers due to technical problems, a few switches and insufficient number of Ethernet cables of which some don’t work, one of the servers at Block A has issues and It has really disrupted the network mainly during the access to the domain by the students. Low bandwidth The bandwidth that is provided for the college by the service providers (UTL) is not enough to cater f or the students and staff that are the end users of the network.Delayed Service delivery and network instability There is slow network connectivity in the labs and other areas of work in the college for example these days lecturers rarely access Muele(Makerere E-Learning environment) to upload Notes for students due to this problem. Network intrusion / unauthorized usage There is increased network access by unauthorized users on the Wireless network that increases the network traffic and hence slowing down of the network which deprives the rightful users who are the students of the college from fully utilizing this resource.Security issues The College faces security problems which include theft of network devices like cables, mouse, keyboards et cetera. Also to note that much as there are measures for security like cameras in some labs and strategic areas of the buildings, security men for the two blocks; they are not enough Proposed Solutions to the above mentioned Problems at CoCI S Network management being a complex and broad component in networking, it can be achieved through a number of networking frameworks.So we recommend that if this college can use the following approaches, its network management can be eased and improved tremendously. Fault management The college network administrator should be able to identify all the network faults like no connection or slow connection , locate where the fault is ,restore the service ,identify the root cause of the fault and then find a resolution for the problem. This can be done proactively or reactively. Hence the network downtime is minimized highly. Configuration managementThe network administrators of the college should be able to capture network and system configuration information of all network elements. (local, remote, automated and manual) ,Map the network topology, Set up configuration parameters in management agents ,track and document what changes are made to the network, where they are made and why th ey are made , Identify where upgrades need to be made so as to manage the network efficiently as they curb problems of delayed Service delivery and network instability (physical and logical configuration).Accounting management Since there are limited resources like computers, human resources that is to say administrators of the network ,distribution of these resources can be done optimally and fairly on the college so as the network is managed well . This makes the most effective use of the systems available, minimizing the cost of operation. Security Management Security measures should be adopted so that the network is protected against unauthorized users, and physical or electronic sabotage hence mitigating issues of network intrusion.The security systems should also allow network administrators to control what each authorized student or staff can and cannot do with the system. Other security measure to adopt can be: -Physical security This can be done by providing enough security cameras in all the labs and other areas in the buildings of Block A and Block B, locking the computer labs and mounting servers on cabinets or racks that have locks.Proposal to the top administrators to purchase enough Bandwidth to suit the growing numbers of users at the college. If there’s enough bandwidth provided, it will cater for the slow connections on the network as earlier indicated. Purchase of needed network equipments like extended servers, routers, better tools for monitoring the network should also be done to stabilize the network infrastructure. CONCLUSIONThe college of computing and information sciences needs to aim at putting the above mentioned measures into consideration and practice where possible so as to enable full utilization of resources which minimizes redundant resources, gives higher chance to students and staff to access resources on the network without inconveniences, quick service delivery for the students and staff will be guaranteed reducing on the downtime experienced on a slower network and also curbing time delays in all the network operations.References CIS. (n. d) Retrieved from Cis. mak. ac. ug:http://cis. mak. ac. ug/about-cocis/history-a-facts/the-college. html Makerere E-learning Environment (n. d) Retrieved from Muele: http://muele. mak. ac. ug/

Poetry Essay

Poetry is a form of literary art and uses particular forms and conventions to suggest alternative meaning in the words and to evoke some emotional responses. There are sound patterns in poetry which create further meaning, such as assonance, alliteration and onomatopoeia. These sound effects have a particular function in a poem. Poems often make heavy use of imagery and word association to quickly convey emotions. [1] Poetry is distinguished from prose because are used some techniques such as rhyme, meter and repetition. The same sounds can convey different meanings and it depends on the context of a poem. Sound patterns can be also discovered in some advertising slogans. In advertisement we have the freedom to change the natural order of the language. It depends on the product and the target group of consumers. The advertising text has to capture the reader’s or listener’s attention. Therefore the natural order of the language is modified, shaped and stylized. One of the most frequently used devices in slogans, catchphrases and article titles is alliteration: Don’t Live a Little, Live a Lotto! 2] The advertising slogans are the most effective means of drawing attention to one or more aspects of the product. In this text we can spot an example of foregrounding. ‘Deviation, which is a linguistic phenomenon, has an important psychological effect on readers (and hearers). If a part of a poem is deviant, it becomes especially noticeable, or perceptually prominent. We call this psychological effect foregrounding’. [3] Most of the writers use the sound of words in such a way that the readers’ attention is immediately engaged. The most common mean which is involved by the writers is repetition. Our attention is captivated and we start analysing the reasons why the writers use it. We can recognise play of sounds : little/lotto. There is also alliteration- the repetition of ‘l’ and ‘t’ sounds. Alliteration refers to tbe repetition of the same or similar consonants. /t/ is a voiceless, alveolar, plosive sound. It is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords, by obstructing the airflow in the vocal tract. /l/ is a voiced, bilateral, retroflex and approximant sound. The vocal cords are vibrating during the articulation and the airstream flows over the both sides of the tongue. When poets construct a poem they carefully choose words for their meanings, connotation and sounds. According to Paul Simpson ‘we make connections between, on the one hand, the physical properties of the sound represented within a text and, on the other, the non- linguistic phenomena situated outside a text to which these sounds relate’[4]. The sound effects of the poetic text are basic to the interpretation of poetry. When a relationship between sound and meaning is obvious, then it can reinforce the significance of a word for speaker and hearer. ‘The way people ‘sound’ their language can, certainly, be an indication of their individual or cultural personalities†¦ Speakers of a different language, from a different culture, might associate different implications with such sounds’. [5] The most critics are interested in the form of the poem and its meaning, and the poet’s message. According to Paul Fussell ‘Poetic forms are like that: they tend to say things even if words are not at the moment fitted to their patterns. As Louis MacNeice has said, â€Å"In any poet’s poem the shape is half the meaning. †Ã¢â‚¬â„¢. [6] Poetic forms refer to different sets of rules followed by poems. The rules describe such ascpects as the meter or rhythm of the poem, the rhyme scheme or the use of alliteration. One of the basic ways in which poetry can be distinguished from prose is the possession of metre. Some critics maintain the idea that the rhythm and metre are the same thing. The difference between both is in the way in which they relate to the whole. The metre is ‘an extra layer of rhythmic structuring’. 7] The rhythm is ‘the apprehension of a series of events as a regularly repeated pulse of energy, an experience which has a muscular as well as a mental dimension’. [8] The following lines aim to discuss the relationship between sound patterns, their function and their contribution towards the meaning a certain poem generates. Attention will be paid to the poem ‘My Last Duchess’, written by Robert Browning. He was an English poet and playwright whose verses of dramatic monologues made him one of the most renowned Victorian poets today. The poem is anthologised as an example of the dramatic monologue, ‘in which an identified character, or person, is the sole speaker: that is, the voice in the poem is ‘playing’ a role as in drama’. [9] The structure and the style of this poem play a significant role. It contains three formal elements – an occasion, a speaker, and a hearer. The words in dramatic monologues not only convey setting and action but also reveal the speaker’s character. The comments which he makes reveal information about his personality and psyche, knowingly or unknowingly. The main focus of a dramatic monologue is the personal information, not the topic which the speaker happens to be discussing. ‘We can see the personality of both poet and speaker in dramatic monologue, and can be aware of them operating as a reflex in the elements of action which is constant picture and vice versa’. [10] Browning defined the poem as a dramatic lyric. It is dramatic because there is an actor in it and performs a scene. However, at the same time it can’t be said that it is a typical lyric poem. The poem appears as one half of a conversation. He is not speaking his thoughts aloud to himself while he is alone. In general poems are written with the ‘full body’ of words and have their own meaning. ‘Meaning is something the reader intuits through the distorting influence of ‘form’, something the writer may choose, but does not necessarily control. ’[11] The goal of Browning is to illustrate a scene. There is a relation between sounds and meanings, the reality which language may represent. In his piece of work Robert Browning uses many techniques – enjambment, a simple rhyme scheme and caesura to convey various characteristics and qualities about the speaker and the situation. Mick Short claims that ‘The basic idea was that poems should enact what they described: ‘the sound must seem an echo to the sense’ (Alexander Pope, ‘An Essay on Criticism’, line 365). Musicality revolves around phonetic and rhythmic effects in particular, and it is thus necessary to be able to do metrical analysis in order to be able to explain important effects in many poems’. [12] ‘My last Duchess’ is written in iambic pentameter in order to imitate natural speech so that the poet is not confused with the persona. Browning’s intention is to imitate natural speech could be to distance himself from the Duke, who is the speaker in the poem.