Author: Andre Coleman

The paper examines the social structured context and implications of widowhood in Southeastern Nigeria. It argues that in spite of the efforts by formal and informal agencies to alleviate the burdens of widowhood, the gender informed discriminatory practice of mourning which exacts a heavy toll on women persists. In this case, widows are exposed to harsh and often cruel mourning practices which are especially tasking for elderly women who have to contend with frail physical health, loss of partners and the mental, psychological and physical stress of widowhood. Therefore, while these practices are norm oriented they expose the elderly widows to psychological and social coping challenges. However, these elderly widows are also often led into activities and social strategies perceived as capable of alleviating the burdens of widowhood. Equally interesting is the finding that widows who are actively engaged and enjoy social support cope better with the challenges of widowhood than others. In view of the above, the paper argues for a more active role by social workers in informing care provisioning and policies for lessening the burdens of widowhood on elderly women.

INTRODUCTION

The plight of widows has been a recurrent theme in the efforts to address perceived or real gender imbalance in African societies even in contemporary times. In spite of this the traditional conception of mourning which places a higher burden on women has obviously defied reform efforts. Hence the focus on widows actually derives from the traditional and patriarchal nature of African societies in which women are often regarded as the silent role players. In such a situation a woman who loses her partner may confront culturally structured scenarios different from the case of a man in the same situation. Therefore, the imaginings of widowhood in African societies are socio-culturally structured and reinforced and generate significant gender imbalance.

Widowhood, meaning loss of one’s spouse whether early or later in life entails a lot of things, mostly problems for the bereaved. Its effects may even be worse when the bereaved is an elderly person. Her self identity also changes in the sense that it brings on an era of identity crisis. This is because the widows feel that the real essence of their being married has been lost by the death of spouses. Coping with this identity crisis depends to a large extent on the individual’s capacity and will. For traditionally oriented women, the role of wife is central to their lives, structuring their lives not only in their house holds but also on the job and in answering the question ‘who am I’ and these women often put ‘wife of’ at the top of their lists (Atchley, 1996).

Social recognition and acceptance also pose a problem to widows because often times, widowhood in African societies goes with the erosion of social recognition. Widows often face problems of declining social recognition and acceptance after the death of their spouses and this can be linked to their losing their central roles of ‘wife’. In dealing with the societal attitude, these women get involved in other activities that they think will help them get recognition from the public and this can be seen in their active involvement in politics.

The elderly people in the society are often stereotyped as lazy, wicked, hard to please disgusting, sickly and sometimes even diabolical (Korieh, 2005). This can be explained by the fact that they are viewed as burdens and distractions from one’s immediate family and responsibilities. This stereotype is wrong because in the society, old people who are kind, peaceful and God fearing can still be found and this shows that one being evil or nice has nothing to do with age but the person’s character and dispositions in life. According to Hazelrigg (1977), age by itself is not the cause of anything and it gets meaning only from how we use it to sort people. Thus, although age is used systematically to distinguish and categorize people, age in itself explains very little or nothing at all.

The loss of a spouse can be a very traumatic experience particularly for many older women who devoted most of their lives to their marriages, husbands and children. Widowhood has thus been called the exemplar of a stressful life event and perhaps requiring more adjustment than any other life transition. (Hatch, 2000; Gallagtor et al, 1983).

In addition to this, isolation and exclusion from the social environment sets in all in the name of widowhood practices and rituals and the woman is not expected traditionally to look after herself or freshen-up. This is often defined crudely as not bathing or combing her hair (See Basden, 1966). He aptly captured this practice in traditional Igbo society. According to him the woman mourning:

Moves from her deceased husband’s house to a small but in another part of the compound. While dwelling in this hut, she wears no clothes unless perhaps a rag; she must sit on a block or wood and nowhere else. Instead of a sleeping mat, a banana leaf must suffice (Basden, 1966; 278).

A prominent theoretical orientation in gerontology, the activity theory of aging argues that normal aging involves maintaining as long as possible the activities and attitudes of middle age (See, Havighurst, 1963; Brehm, 1968). The basic assertion of this theory is that individuals should be just as active and involved in a variety of different roles and responsibilities in their later years as they were in their middle years. Judging by the loneliness and feeling of ‘aloneness’ these widows experience after living for decades with their spouses and losing them when their companionship is most needed- at retirement one would agree that the activity theory to a large extent captures the situation of these widow (See Atchley1996).

Thus, according to Brehm (1968), except for the biological and health changes older people have essentially the same psychological and social needs as middle aged people. From our study, it was discovered that this activity theory is of very great significance as a reasonable number of elderly widows used in the study agreed that active involvement in occupation helped them deal with widowhood and its related stress. For them, it helped them overcome loneliness, provide them with resources and kept time moving. This is in live with the contention of Kunkel (1979), that working class widows adjust better during bereavement than those sick, jobless or incapacitated.

Based on both the likely erosion of social recognition and insurmountable loss which widowhood occasions, widows have often had to face socio-psychological challenges. These challenges result from both the societal attitude to widows and more crucially the psychological and even physical health of widows. As the above discussion shows, the case of elderly women may be worse given the unexamined stereotype about their attitudes and behaviour (See Korieh, 2005).

Therefore this study sought to ascertain the socio-psychological impact of widowhood on elderly women in a typical traditional setting in Nigeria. Such an exercise has undoubted policy and research implications since discrimination against widows form part of the much decried harmful traditional practices against women. Hence the outcome of this study may be instrumental in informing social policies for protection of women as well as pinpointing empirical and theoretical social work response to the problems of widowhood.

The study was conducted in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigeria. Three quarters in the local government area viz Nkpunano, Nru and Ihe-owere were purposively chosen for the study. A total of 500 respondents were chosen through purposive sampling in the above three quarters. All the respondents were identified elderly widows above fifty years of age in these communities. The multi-stage sampling technique was used in actually selecting the above respondents while the questionnaire and interviews were used as instruments of data collection. The findings of the study reported below was based on a total number of 448 elderly women who fully responded to the study instruments.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MENTAL/EMOTIONAL STRESS AND
WIDOWHOOD IN ELDERLY WOMEN IN NIGERIA.

One glaring socio-psychological impact of widowhood identified in the study sample is mental/emotional stress. In the case, quite a good number of the respondents reported experiencing this type of psychological imbalance. As the table below indicates, the enormity of responsibilities widowhood lays on them triggers off mental/emotional stress in addition to physical stress.

Table i: Distribution of Respondents by Nature of Health Stress.
Stress
Respondents
Percentage

Mental Stress

7

1.6

Physical Stress

280

62.5

None

161

35.9

Total
448
100

From the table above, apart from the 161 widows (35.9%) who declared they had no stress at all, 280 (62.5%) suffered from physical stress while 7 (1.6%) suffered from mental stress. This was as a result of the weight of responsibilities handed down to them after the death of their spouses. As has been indicated in the literature (See Basden, 1966), the isolation of the widow and the shabby treatment meted out to her in the name of culture in Igboland can generate and heighten emotional and mental stress. In fact as one of our respondents stated, “most of the times I fall sick, it is because I think of how to care for my family and I don’t seem to come up with any solution”. Therefore in the Igbo area of Nigeria generally, as our study reveals, widows are confronted by social practices and observances such as disinheritance, and isolation which have adverse effects on their mental and psychological balance.

Mental/emotional stress is a situation in one’s mental well being or emotional state occasioned by tragedy (See Atchley, 1996). According to Atchley this stress can be manifested in the form of extreme anxiety, worries, frequent head-ache, high blood pressure, insomnia, heartache and regular hospital visits precipitated by mainly by worry.

In patriarchal societies, especially where the widows are suspected of killing their husbands widows are left entirely without social support (see Korieh, 1995). This is usually worse for the women who do not have adequate educational background or who were prevented from obtaining further education. According to one of our respondents, a close relative of her deceased husband tried justifying the treatment meted out to her by asking her “how come it was our brother who died?”

Therefore, the death of a woman’s spouse in Igboland is usually a great psychological and physical challenge to the widow and her children. The woman who is bereaved is usually expected to be the chief mourner, assisted by relatives and friends, the wailing, weeping and hysteria are expected to go on for days before the man’s burial and even afterwards (Afigbo,1989). As has been reported in the literature such wailings and bitter lamentations are culturally expected (Basden, 1966; Meek 1937 cf Afigbo, 1989). This practice of prolonged wailing and anguish enforced by culture may often affect the psychological and mental balance of the woman (See Afigbo, 1989). In addition to this, widowhood may also occasion psychological and mental imbalance in some women especially older women whose mental faculties and emotions have been weakened by the challenges of living.

Another key practice of widowhood in Africa which affects a woman’s psychological balance is the compulsory period of seclusion and isolation (Nwoga, 1989). In this case, the woman is isolated from the community for a specified period. According to this scholar, the isolation is combined with a regime of total neglect of the hygiene and body needs of the woman and incidentally, the practice of widowhood known as Igba-nkpe’ has also been noticed among Islamic communities. According to Trimmingham (1959), this period is known as ‘iddat’ or ‘idda’ among the Moslems and covers an average period of four months and ten days but in Igboland, the period lasts full 12 calendar months though radical Christianity has reduced it in some cases nowadays to six months.

Due to their ages also, there are more reports of depression, poor health or new or heightened illnesses among these widows than there is among non-bereaved elderly widows and some of them do not live longer than one year after the deaths of their spouses (Gallagher and Thompson, 2001). This is because depression sets in at the loss of a spouse and most of them tell themselves that there is nothing to live for anymore. At some other times, married women friends see these widows as threats to their own still existing marriages and as a result terminate their relationships with these widows at the death of their spouses.

ACTIVE INVOLVEMENT IN OCCUPATION AND COPING WITH WIDOWHOOD AMONG ELDERLY WOMEN

Women across the globe have shown enviable courage, resourcefulness and residence in carrying on despite the trauma caused by widowhood, the isolation imposed on them by widowhood and the difficult tasks of earning a living and protecting themselves and their dependent family members. These women work outside the home as the breadwinners, make decisions, head their households and sometimes organize other women in areas of public life (ICRC, 1999). The above is no less the case with elderly widows in Southeastern Nigeria whose burden may have been doubled by the reality of aging. However, the women as our findings indicate see maintaining a sense of balance through engagement in occupation or meaningful economic activity as critical to surviving the coping challenges of widowhood in old age. Therefore, as can be noted from the table below, most of the widows were actively involved in one form of occupation or the other in order to earn a living for their families, and maintain some level of socio-economic functioning considered necessary to coping with widowhood:

Table ii: Distribution of Respondents by Perceived influence of Active Involvement in
Occupation on Coping:

Active Involvement

Respondents

Percentage

Yes

399

89.1

No

49

10.9

Total
448
100%

It can be noted that 399 respondents (89.1%) stated that active involvement in occupation helped them deal with the stress of widowhood. This is in agreement with the literature which asserts that active involvement in occupation assists widows to deal with widowhood (See Kunkel, 1979). These widows when further questioned expressed different reasons for their involvement in active occupation but given that finance usually is a big problem to widows, 126 (31.6%) and 154 (38.6%) respondents respectively believe in active involvement because it provides money for the upkeep of the family and prevents too much thinking for the widows:

Table iii: Distribution of Respondents by Importance of Active Involvement in
Occupation.

Importance of Active Involvement

Respondents

Percentage

Prevents loneliness

56

14

Prevents thinking

154

38.6

Provides money resources

126

31.6

Keeps time moving

63

15.8

Total
399
100

Apart from involvement in occupation, these widows engaged themselves in some sort of social activities. These they did most times to get their minds off their problems especially at those periods the pains of loss of a love one and maltreatment by in-laws were very intense. The table below goes to show that a reasonable number of widows get themselves occupied socially in one thing or the other as a way of avoiding being engrossed in the throes of pain or endless contemplation of life without one’s partner:

Table iv: Distribution of Respondents by Social Strategies Adopted by Elderly Widows:

Social Strategy

Respondents

%

Active involvement in meetings

77

17.2

Stepped up interaction with family

42

9.4

Move involvement in religion

259

57.8

Introversion

14

3.1

Just keeping busy

56

12.5

Total
448
100

Given that most of the respondents were Christians, it was not out of place to discover that majority of them adopted or resorted to prayers as a social strategy to cope with widowhood. In the interviews as well, it was observed that a good number of them adopted church activities as a solace from the loneliness and difficulties associated with widowhood. Apparently, the widows as the interviews revealed held strongly to the popular notion that when all things fail, God never fails. One of them said in vernacular, “Ekpere bu ikem”. ‘Chukwu bu onye nkwado m’. This simply means in English, “Prayer is my strength”, God is my provider”.

From the foregoing therefore, the study revealed that most of the elderly widows at one point or another adopted economic strategies to help them cope the hardship associated with widowhood. Such strategies ranged from petty trading down to taking up additional jobs. On the other hand, they also adopted social strategies to assist them in their daily affairs as widows. These women’s involvement in occupations and church activities as means of coping or overcoming widowhood are largely in agreement with the views of some scholars who have written on widowhood (see, Kunkel, 1979; Atchley, 1997).

SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE AND THE ALLEVIATION OF PROBLEMS OF WIDOWS IN NIGERIA.

As the study revealed, widowhood in Southeastern Nigeria poses a variety of problems to women ranging from low social prestige, disinheritance, and forceful remarriage amongst others. Widows in Southeastern Nigeria often encounter the most severe forms of these discriminations in spite of the increasing modernity of all spheres of the society.

One dimension of this gender discrimination is that once the man dies, the widow faces the incidence of disinheritance by in-laws. In western societies, a woman is entitled to all she ever had or shared with her deceased husband but as this study found out in Southeastern Nigeria widows, though preferring to continue to work on the lands owned by their late husbands cannot do so because land inheritance is impossible for them as a result of cultural norms which forbid this (Korieh, 2005). According to Oluwa (2005), though in paper the statutory and customary laws indicate that widows should inherit or be sole beneficiaries of their dead husband’s properties (especially where children exist), this does not apply in practice. Rather in some cases where the woman is desperate for these lands and property, she is forced to conform to the tradition of widow inheritance. In this case, the woman is treated as part of the properties of the dead men and is also available for inheritance. She becomes the legal wife of her inheritor and the children inherited and those born by the inheritor are considered to belong to the new husband (Evans – Pritchard, 1951).

The study also discovered that for fear of ostracism and related punishments, widows suffer in silence, especially when they are denied traditional sources of support. This usually causes economic hardships and deprivation. They lose their honour and respect as soon as they lose their husbands. Their husbands being traditionally their main sources of honour and respect, once dead gives room for them to be treated with disregard as humans especially by in-laws (ICRC, 1999). This can be explained by the popular Igbo adage which says that “Di bu ugwu nwanyi”, (a husband is a woman’s honour).

It was further discovered that widowhood in Igboland is usually a great psychological and physical challenge to the elderly widow. The wailing, weeping and hysteria are expected to go on for days, before the man’s burial and even after wards; as is obvious in the literature, such wailings and bitter lamentations are cultural expected (Basden, 1966, Meek, 1937 of Afigbo, 1989) and this prolonged wailing and anguish enforced by culture may often affect the psychological and mental balance of the woman.

The list of problems is almost in exhaustible and these call for the intervention of social work services to help alleviate if not eradicate them entirely. From the study it was noticed that those widows who involved themselves in occupation cope better than those who did not. Social workers should therefore take cognizance of the need to sensitize the idle widows to get busy in order to overcome both the financial and emotional hazards of widowhood rather than wallowing in self pity. In this case social workers can go the extra mile of linking widows with systems or organizations where these jobs no matter how small can be found.

They can also act as advocates for these widows on the issue of in-laws maltreatment. This role of advocacy should be extended to the policy makers bringing to their notice the ills suffered by the widows especially the elderly ones so that ways of enforcing already existing policies will be found and new ones established. These policies should cover areas such as Medicare for widows, living arrangements (this can be achieved by building low cost houses), changing or eradication of harmful widowhood practices etc.

Perhaps beyond the above public policy responses is the critical need for a widow oriented social work practice which while cognizant of the socio-cultural and psychological burdens of widowhood in Southeast Nigeria sees the elderly widows as a special group. Basically, aging and its resultant physical infirmities and socio-psychological withdrawal makes the elderly widow particularly vulnerable to widow induced stress. Hence, social workers acting in their capacities to function as enhancers of coping capacity, linking agents and promoters of effective humane operation of social systems (see, Ekpe & Mamah, 1997 on the functions of social work) can do a lot to improve the situation of elderly widows in a male dominated society like the Igbo Southeastern Nigeria.

The re-examination of the main findings of this study indicates that the situation of elderly widows can be explained along the lines of the popular continuity theory in social work. According to this theory the individual in the course of growing older is predisposed towards maintaining stability in the habits, associations, preferences and lifestyle that he/she developed over the years (Peterson, 1976; McCrae and Costa, 1984). According to these Scholars, people’s habits, preferences, associations, states of health and experiences will in large part determine their ability to maintain their lifestyle while retiring from full time employment and perhaps adjust to the death of a loved one.

Therefore in accordance with our findings in the study, it can be inferred that activity at old age helps the elderly overcome loss of their loved ones especially their spouses and this activity if possible should be in the areas preferred and chosen by the individual with which he/she had been accustomed to over time.

The purpose of this project is to provide an overview of the sex tourism industry in Thailand. Moreover, discuss what it is as well as consider the motivations behind it. This paper will also focus on the benefits and disadvantages, particularly the domestic social consequences of sex tourism within Thailand.

The accessibility problem of the tourism industry has caused prostitution to grow steadily throughout many parts of the world and includes men (Garrick, 2005), women and children. Furthermore, the sex tourism is a major source of abuse that goes beyond professional ethics and legality. Although prostitution is legal in some countries, it thrives regardless with children, women and men involved in this ubiquitous profession – legally or illegally. Nowadays, sex tourism is one of leading commercial industries that lurk in almost every business.

Good or Bad? This research will show how the negative effects of sex tourism far outweigh the benefits. Many organizations, both public and private collaborations, are against sex tourism, even though Thailand’s revenue comes from sex tourism more than other business (Rao, 1999; Sharpley & Stone, 2009). However, there are many supporters such as restaurants, hotels, resorts and tour agencies that could lose a lot of money from this veiled industry if the resisters decide to eliminate prostitution, but such actions can possibly decrease the rate of abuse and diseases, especially AIDS(Prideaux, et al., 2004).

Keywords: tourism, sex tourism, child sex tourism, sex tourist, push and pull factor, Thailand, prostitution, AIDS

INTRODUCTION

The international tourism industry is blooming. Tourism is the world’s most important industry which is growing rapidly and increasing every year. In the year 1972 to 1976, Thailand is one of the countries that have experienced tourism growth since the first Thai tourism plan was set up in 1976 at the end of third National Economic and Social Development Plan (NESDP) (Chaisawat, 2005). Thailand has become one of the best known, and most sought after, international tourist destinations.

Thailand is a country with long history and it is also a beautiful city, the attraction of the scenery in Thailand where not less than the other country (Nations Online, 2010).A Moreover, Thailand is probably one of the most well-known spots for the perfect beach paradise. Its natural beauty makes it perfect for people seeking a little hideaway (Beachden, 2010). Thailand has become the most popular tourist destination in South East Asia.

Tourism has become Thailand’s leading source of foreign exchange, and thus plays an unquestionably important role in the Thai economy. At the same time, Th ailand is suffering from many of the negative aspects of tourism, including prostitution, drug addiction, AIDS, erosion of traditional values, increases in the cost of living, unequal income distribution, rapid increases in land prices in some locations, pollution, and environmental degradation (Prideaux, et al., 2004).

According to Crompton (1979, pp.408-424) states that ‘the push factors for a vacation are socio-psychological motives, for instant people go to aboard that because political crisis in Thailand, it also include terrorism in three province of Sothern’s border. The pull factors are motives aroused by the destination rather than emerging exclusively from within the traveller himself, such as visitor come to Thailand for sex trade ‘. People travel for many reasons. In addition, sex is not the main reason, but it is a relative factor for motivating people of all ages and nationalities to turn more towards traveling (Sangpikul, 2008). Anyway, no one can deny that sex is not a motivating factor (Hall, 1996).The number of international tourist arrivals to Thailand are more male than female tourist. According to UNWTO reported that in the year 2008, the number of international tourist arrivals in the year 2006 to 2008 was increased (UNWTO, 2009). Several tourists have the same objectives that are encouraged for have a sexual intercourse.

However, Thailand has been involved with a kind of tourism called the international sex tourism (Pettman, 1997).The relationship between tourism and sex can be described as “the seeking of romance as perhaps a precursor to sexual activities play as motivators for travel; the nature of the encounter and the role played by tourism as facilitators of romantic and sexual encounter.

The purpose of this report is concern of the sex tourism in Thailand. Beside, this essay would like to describe and to discuss in the advantages and disadvantages of sex tourism to tourism industry in Thailand.

WHAT IS SEX TOURISM?

Sex tourism is a very lucrative industry that spans the globe. Of course, the burgeoning sex industry has its dark sides (Rao, 1999). But as sex is a human need and prostitution is here to stay, we should think about a pro-active and realistic approach to deal with the situation.

Although, sex tourism is the part of dark side but the earning is come from sex tourism more than other tourism (Sharpley & Stone, 2009). The statistics cannot be shown how much of the percentage constitutes tourists who come for sexual services. Nevertheless, it the high male sex ratio is associated with sex tourism, and then the trend is increasing rather than decreasing. Sex tourism, present throughout the world, is particular prevalent in Southeast Asia, where the connected problems of human trafficking, AIDS, and poverty, continue to flourish and claim lives at unprecedented rates( Croughs et al, 2005).

According to Jeffrey (2003, pp.224) is defined ‘sex tourism has generally been applied to behavior of tourists whose purpose is to engage in commercial sex with local women in tourist destinations, it can have a wider application’. Moreover, sex tourism asA travel undertaken primarily or exclusively by men from developed countries, usually to third world countries, for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity, often of an extreme, forbidden, or illegal nature (Travel Industry Dictionary, 2010).In other word, sex tourism as consisting of people from economically developed nations travelling to underdeveloped countries’ specifically to purchase the sexual services of local women [and men], it embraces a far broader range of people, activities and location (Enloe,1990). For others, however, it means purchasing sexual services from a woman, man, or even a child, and imagining themselves as Love Gods. It cannot be denied that the sex tourism industry has diversified beyond the traditional conceptualizations that label it as a predominantly patriarchal form of exploitation and leisure (Garrick, 2005).

Sex tourism includes domestic sex tourism, which is travel within the same country, or international sex tourism which involves travel across national borders. It is a multibillion dollar industry that supports an international workforce estimated to number in the millions (Revista, 2002). It has been argued by some people that sex tourism benefits not only the sex industry but also the airline, taxi, restaurant and hotel industries (Jones, 1946-2006). Human Rights organizations warn that sex tourism contributes to human trafficking and child prostitution (Guzder, 2009).

Seriously, child sex tourism is involved to the sex tourism. Even though,A ECPAT (End Child Prostitution and Trafficking) as the international organizations that care about child prostitution.A And children illegally brought into the profession to see that, in third world countries are tourism promotion mainly to do with the sun, sea and sex that intended for tourists to have sex (ECPAT International, 2010). Mostly from developed countries such as Australia, New Zealand, English, French.A As well as some of the developing countries like China, Malaysia, Singapore, tourists are concentrated in large areas such as Pattaya, Manila, Phnom Penh as a tourist destination with heavy clubs and bars, as well as other entertainment venues.

Who is a sex tourist? According to Rao (1999, pp.96) ‘it is a man who is going through a mid-life crisis, who has been disenchanted with his enjoyment of life due to feminism and woman’s liberation rhetoric; a man who is tired of taking a politically correct position on his sexual preferences because of social pressure sex tourist can be a worker, professional, or manager, but all of them want to feel like real men’. Moreover, a good definition, those who travel to a country for the sole purpose of having sex, see it as an opportunity, or even an entitlement, to have sex available for less money than they would pay at home.

Sex tourists trend not to differentiate between buying groceries, and going to the brothel to buy sex-both provide someone with economic sustenance. They perceive that those involved in the industry are making a choice to sell their service.

Sex tourism in Thailand in the past found thatA tourism is related to the sex, activities or services by prostitutes. In the past, sex tourism in Thailand that often seen in cities or large cities such as Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai.

Presently, the sex tour was hidden to the general tourism such as festival; Full Moon party at Kho Phangan is located on southern of Thailand. Thailand and the Philippines, sex shows are presented with the primary purpose of gaining pleasure simply from watching (Latza quoted in Opperman, 1999). From this Opperman subvert the original definition by asking what the criteria are for definition sex tourism. Would oral sex, hand jobs, or watching a sex show be enough to qualify a tourist as a sex tourist?

BENEFITS ARISING FROM SEX TOURISM

Ryan and Kinder (1996, pp.516) argued that ‘to regards sex tourism as some form of deviance, as something that foreign to the intrinsic nature of tourism, is mistake’. However, it is important to note that prostitutes are the key ingredient in the sex tourism industry (Bird&Donaldson, 2009).

The prostitution is one occupation that has the longest and ancient history in the world. It was recovered that after shuffle goods system or origins money goes up by give a woman engages in sexual intercourse with the other(except her spouse) for religion reason, for show arrive at having mind generousness to welcome visitor, show arrive at the worth of bring governor of a province

(Taylor, 2006).

Prostitution in Third World and emerging Nations, disregarding the subsistence economy (economical method which – except for exchange of goods – embarks the purpose to cover the personal requirements) and the development of the rural areas by falling row material prices on the world market and the subsidization individual exporting business sectors leads to a growing depletion of the rural population. As in many of these countries tourism makes big part of the cross national product more importance is attached to the development of mass tourism rather than on other essential measures to counteract the depletion of big parts of the population (Taylor, 2006).

Thus the number of women and men prostituting themselves in emerging countries grows in parallel in the same measure as tourism increases. In most of these countries, same as in Thailand, prostitution is forbidden. However the “service providing” women and men are the ones suffering from these restrictions (Taylor, 2006). As the device bringing foreigners must not be scared off long term suitors only have to reckon with penalties rarely.

Due to this poorness in these countries a growing migration into cities can be observed. Many countrymen flee into the cities as there the chances for economical “success” and covering the family is bigger than in the infrastructural neglected rural areas where they derive from. Poorness, missing education, lack of jobs, no alternatives in career, low wages and missing social coverage are the main reasons for the growing number of prostitutes.

Prostitution for foreign visitors developed into a major industry, although official Thailand shrouds its economic and social significance in misinformation and variety of interesting hypocrisies. Prostitutes come mainly from poor northern Thailand; however, there are now some educated prostitutes coming from the cities, as well as prostitutes from all neighboring countries and even Eastern Europe. No one can deny a lot of earning is come from sex tourism more than other industry. Although, the prostitute is rapid growth same as sex tourism but it a quite good signal that it also mean many tourist come to Thailand and high exchange rate within Thailand.

Concisely, Sex tourism has become a major source of income in some countries, particularly those with poor and underprivileged sectors, to the point that some countries have even tried to promote the business (Nuttavuthisit, 2007). In addition to the sex tourism related with hospitality industry, they are get the revenue and more people are employed from sex tourism, such as restaurant, bar, hotel, massage etc.A

The one reason is sex worker and sex tourist will negotiation in those place then they can get money from all service which they sold their product. For instant, the prostitute and sex tourist are communicate by website or web board on internet, after that they have appointment in some restaurant. While they made negotiation in their business that they have to order something to eat or drink. That is why everybody can get income when the sex tourists come to Thailand for sex trade.

DISADVANTAGE OF SEX TOURISM IN THAILAND

Internet has provided a convenient marketing way that is accounting for the recent rise in sex tourism. Websites provide potential sex seekers with pornographic accounts written by other sex tourists. Here can be found details of sexual exploits with information on sex establishments and prices in various destinations and how to specifically procure prostitutes. Sex tour travel agents even publish brochures and guides on the Internet (Chow-White, 2006). Governments in need of income from the sex tourism turn a blind eye to the sexual exploitation.

Moreover, sex tourism on the internet is at the confluence of issues of race, gender, sexuality, technology and globalization (Chow-White, 2006). Increasingly, information and communication technologies(ICTs), such as the internet, are playing a particularly significant role not only in the promotion and packaging of sex tourism but a new type of global surveillance of bodies, race and desire(Gabriel,1998;Ware & Back, 2002).

In contrast, prostitution tourism has been promoted by the Government in the Philippines because of its profitability. Income generated from visitor arrivals in 1992 was US$1.67 billion and in 1993 was US$2.12 billion (Jeffreys, 1999), but sex tourism in Thailand is illegal in some business so the Thailand tourism authority (TAT) cannot promote same as Philippines. Moreover, Thailand is the root of Buddhism. The sex trade is wrong ethic.

In other word, to the common opinion prostitution in Thailand is due to the informal handling of sexuality or has its roots in Buddhism, prostitution was imported by Chinese guest-workers. At the beginning with Chinese women which were in the course of time more and more replaced by locals. The degree of prostitution as it can be observed in Thailand today is a direct consequence of the Vietnam War.

Many of them are forced to become what is known as, “A Bangkok Tour GirlsA “.This form of exploitation is not only limited to local prostitution but has paved way for sex tourism, earning Thailand the notorious distinction of ‘Brothel of the World’.

The sex tourism statistics of Thailand invite worldwide criticisms. Among these, one third fraction is minors. There are absolutely no records indicating the number of Thai women and children being trafficked to various other countries in Asia, US, Australia and Europe.

The sex industry in Thailand generates fantasies. There are the fantasies of pliant girls which draw the western sex tourists, and then there are the fantasies of lurid exploitation which draw the western sex tourists, and then there are the fantasies of lurid exploitation which draw the western moralizers and NGOs. But what is the actual scale of prostitution in Thailand? And how serious is the trafficking problem?

Many organizations, both public and private collaborations, are against sex tourism, even though the revenue comes from sex tourism ore than other tourism. However, there are many supporters such as restaurants, hotels, resorts and tour agencies that could lose a lot of money from this veiled industry if the resisters decide to eliminate prostitution, but such actions can possibly decrease the rate of abuse and diseases, especially AIDS.

Thailand undeniably has serious problems regarding the sex trade, as do many other countries. There is, however, a perception that the problem is much worse in Thailand because many people think that the country provides easy access to these types of services. Thailand’s sex industry has become a tourist attraction in itself, with red light districts being recommended in several reputable guidebooks (Kusy, 1991). Estimates of the number of prostitutes in Thailand vary widely and are subject to controversial debate.

Although, sex tourism in Thailand is make the money more that other business but TAT still against this business that because a lot of victim of trafficking from child (TATnews, 2010).

The rapid spread of AIDS in Thailand has had a decided impact on the tourism industry in that the country’s reputation for having a high incidence of AIDs discourages desirable tourists from visiting it. Likewise the tourism industry has had considerable impact on the spread of AIDS in Thailand ( McCamish, et al.,2002).

Thailand has long been promoted as the “sex capital” of the world; encouraging tourists to come to Thailand specifically for this reason obviously brings a higher transmission of the disease from sources both inside and outside the country. It should be noted that there are other important factors contributing to the high incidence of AIDS and HIV-positive cases in Thailand which have nothing to do with the tourism industry, one major one being Thai males’ penchant for frequenting prostitutes both before and after marriage. Initially, the Thai government did not take prompt and appropriate action to deal with the AIDS crisis. It did not try to curtail the sex industry, believing that it would naturally fade as the economy prospered and job opportunities increased. Later, as the government began to realize the severity of the situation, it tackled the problem only by promoting the use of condoms, rather than by using a multi-pronged approach, which would have included the attenuation of the sex industry.

CONCLUSION

Thailand is a country with long history. There are also many interesting attractions. Contrast,A travelers visit to Thailand for sexual intercourse. Although, quite revenues are come from sex tourism, but it also has many disadvantages thatA because of the rapidly growing in sex tourism same as the prostitution is the one of immoral.

Otherwise, Thailand is a Buddhist country, it made the prostitution is wrong ethic. On the other word, the prostitution is increasing due to revenues beautiful.A Moreover, It is easy to do and easy to get more money.A The people who play in the prostitution are alwaysA forgotten Safety, such as forgot the condom that they can get easily AIDS and world widely expand.A

Sex tourism is a significant part of Thailand’s economy. If governments and related agencies are collaborate in the development of sex tourism and prostitute to be legal, maybe the image of Thailand’s tourism will be change in the good way (Taylor, 2006). Moreover, people who work in sex trade does not have to go to abroad for done their job.

The Basseri community is one of the traditional ethnic groups in Iran who inhabits the Fars province. This tribe is illustrated as Persian and Arab and nomadic within a delineated territory. The Basseri community is one of the pastoral nomads who usually wander along the plains and hills near the Shiraz town. In the area where they migrate it is said to be best for agricultural activities as well as it is also the habitat of a wide variety of birds and animals to hunt. Actually, the place is referred to as the “land of nomadic tribes”. As stated above, the Basseri communities are pastoralist, (Ronald, 2006). Therefore, in this essay I will be analyzing how the pastoralist mode of life has impacted the social, political, and economic organization. To be more precise, I will be analyzing the economic, social and political organization of the Basseri community.

It is argued that the Basseri is a delineated group who can be defined not by ethnic or geographical but rather political criteria. The exact number of the population in this community is the recent time is not known as research has not been carried out to establish this. But in 1950s, they were estimated the entire community was estimated to be about 16,000. The vernacular language of the Basseri is Farsi, although a remarkable number of them do speak Arabic or Turkish

Economic organization.

It is important to note that just like in any other pastoralist community, pastures are seen as being the most crucial part of the Basseri community. However, the pastures are not enough to support the large flocks of animals of the community. This explains why this community wanders along the plains efficiently and according to a set schedule. In most cases, there is no official division of labor when setting, ready to make a move, (Thomas, 2009). Although this community is on the move from one place to another throughout the year, it is argued that agriculture is the most crucial part of the community. The tribe has developed a way of life that enables them to maximize the use of seasonal pastures.

Arguably, the nature of the climate that is found in the area they inhabit dictates that they perform artificial irrigation so as to support their agricultural activities during the dry season. It has been observed that the most common economic activities that are carried by the community are domestic work, animal raring, and daily cycles of migration. In this community, the principle of division of labor is well appreciated as it makes work easier. Division of labor is usually applies as work is distributed according to sex as well as age although circumstances may sometimes dictates that work be allocated to one sex or age, (Ronald, 2006). The animals that are kept by this community includes; horses which are used for riding more especially by men, donkeys which are used for simple transportation especially by kids and women, camels which are used for heavy transportation during migration, and dogs for guarding their herds during the night.

Despite the fact that the community keeps a number of domestic animals, those of the greatest importance are the goats and sheep. Besides, the community also keeps poultry not for their eggs but specifically as source of meat. As mentioned above, the goats and sheep are highly valued by the Basseri more than any other animal specifically because of the milk, wool, meat and hides that they supply. It should be noted that in most cases, the animal products are consumed as soon as they are produced; although some may be preserved for future use, or as trade commodities. It is estimated that each and every household in the community owns about 120 goats and sheep and more than 8 donkeys.

To some extent, trading can be considered as being one of the economic activities of the Basseri community. It is true that the community cannot produce all they need for themselves as they wander from place to place. Therefore, exchanging what they have for what they do not have is inevitable. Mostly, they trade with villagers and other communities who they encounter with on their way as they move from one place to another. Some of the goods which they trade in include; cash crops such as the dates and cotton, and other animal products, (Ronald, 2006). Moreover, they sometimes undertake animal hiring business in that they hire out their animals for transport. In exchange, they get from the villagers such goods as cereals for instance, barley which is one of their stable food. Other which they trade in includes craftsmanship products such as tent fixtures and some other household items. It should also be noted that when drought persisted for a long period, the Basseri are forced to rent land from the villagers for grazing and water rights during migration period.

Social Organization.

Socially, this community is organized into small groups. The basic unit of social organization among the Basseri is known as the “tent”. Notably, a tent is a unit that is occupied mainly by a nuclear family. The tents in turn form the camp groups. Moreover, each and every tent represents a production as well as a consumption unit headed by a male individual. The occupants of tents act as political units which have rights over property within the community units, (Ronald, 2006). The combination of units to form a small herding groups whose combination depends on usefulness rather than kinship principles, is a common feature among the Basseri community. In the winter periods, a group of 3-6 tents of herding units form up small camps that are about 3-4 kilometers apart. Most of the historians assert that in the real sense, these camps form up the principal communities of the Basseri nomadic society.

Kinship

Among the Basseri, marriage is considered as being a very important social event that constitutes the entire household. It is a common thing that the authority to make marriage contracts lies on the hands of the head of the household or tent, (Khanam, 2008). Many a times, marriage takes between the ages of about seventeen and twenty for the female case but in males, it might happen at an older age. It is an obligation of the father to furnish his daughter with various items usually household items during the ceremony. To some extent, the father may also offer some animals such as goats and sheep to his son-in-law as an economic support to start his family.

The obligation of the mothers of the couple is mainly to prepare a new home for the couple by entwining a new tent where the couple will be living after the marriage. Although the authority to make marriage contracts is within the powers of the head of a tent, the contract is in most cases presided over by a nontribal ritual specialist, or holy man, (Ronald, 2006). This contract is concluded by the bride-payments for the girl on top of the domestic tools she is expected to bring to her in-laws. According to this community, the newly married couples have equal rights as far as decision making is concerned. The two individuals sit down together and discuss on family issues and how they should raise their family in order to fit in the community.

Beliefs and Values

The Basseri are one of the Shia Muslims who adheres to the teachings of the Islam religion. However, some of them are not very much aware of the beliefs of Muslims, ceremonies and customs. This is so because they tend to differ from other Muslim over the events and divisions of the Muslim year, although sometimes they are influenced by other villagers who they encounter while in movement from one region to another, (Khanam, 2008). It has also been noted that they are not strict in observing some Islamic customs even though they are aware of them. For instance, this community rarely celebrates Islamic feasts. In fact, even the most common feasts of Ramadan and Moharram are observed by not many Basseri. When it comes to rituals, they are usually associated with the life cycle of the people more than the Islamic teachings, that is, from birth to death

Gender relations

As stated earlier, although the distribution of authority is fairly equal, men are considered as the head of their families once they start their families. A female can only be considered to be the head of her family if only she is a window, (Khanam, 2008). Work is also distributed in terms of sex. Female and children undertake domestic chore while men take care of the animals and provide security for their families. It is as well, the work of men to provide water and wood for the family.

Sickness and Healing

It is very rare for a Basseri to fall sick majorly because of the kind food they eat. Because of the kind of life they live, these people mostly take natural plants and animal products which help to boost their immunity system. However, the community has medicine-men who are specialists in treating the sick. In most cases these specialists uses natural medicine which they obtain from natural herbs.

Social Change

There are some remarkable changes that have been occurred among the Basseri community over time. This may be majorly due to the different people with different modes of cultures who they encounter in their migrations. Therefore, there are some things that they have copied from these communities and they have also influenced these communities in one way or another. For example, from the very beginning the community was known to be purely pastoralists who their needs were met from their animals, (Thomas, 2009). However, with time they have learnt to also plant some crops to supplement their diet and also as a source of food for their animals during the dry season. It is also argued that trading was never one of the economic activities among the Basseri people. They have only learnt this activity from other communities more especially the villagers who sometimes offer their pastures for the Basseri animals in exchange for animal products such as hides and milk.

Unlike most of the nomadic communities more especially in the East Africa who were independent and autonomous, the Basseri formed the Khamseh Tribal Confederation which was also a part of the elite urban merchants. With time, this community have come to be independent in one way or another because of the decisions which they make which are generally based on the circumstances and also the needs that they have as per that time and not according to the requirements of the confederation.

Arguably, there have been a lot of changes in the social structure of this community over time. It is important to note that inter-marriages in the community were never prohibited. As a result, a number of the Basseri community members have been assimilated by other communities majorly due to intermarriage, (Khanam, 2008). This has also led to the changing roles between the males and females. In the current times, it is normal for a woman to undertake what is considered as a man’s job and vice versa.

Political organization

In this community, a centralized type of government is used in administration. A chief is the single leader of the Basseri who has supreme authority over the entire community, (Khanam, 2008). The functions of the chief includes; collection and storage of goods in the community, planning and directing how the community should take its production activities, and ensuring that the behavior of the people is as per the norms and beliefs of the community. The Basseri are grouped into smaller units called tribes or chiefdoms. The smaller groups are usually headed by a leader who is usually recognized by the chief. These tribes or chiefdoms forms the formal institutions that are used to unify the dispersed groups. According to this community, leadership depends on the lineage clans. This means that one becomes a leader if only his parents or clan comes from the leadership background.

The chief draws his powers from the headmen (Katkhoda) who he sometimes, gives precious goods as gifts. The headmen are very influential people than any ordinary man because they are privileged to deal directly with the chief, (Thomas, 2009). These headmen come from the various political units (Tents). As mentioned early, leadership among the Basseri is hereditary. This explains why the son of the Basseri is always considered to be a Basseri even if his mother may be from a different tribe. As such, there is some kind of stratification of the society according to the different levels of power and prestige.

In many nomadic communities, raiding is a very common phenomenon because they belief that all the animals belongs to them. However, among the Basseri community this is not the case. They prefer co-existing peacefully with their neighbors who they encounter as they wander from place to place. This explains why they prefer an arbitration mode of conflict resolution whenever there is a misunderstanding between either the community members or the community and another community. There are different modes of dealing with those who are found to have broken the code of behavior that is accepted in the community, (Khanam, 2008). This will include imposition of fines whereby the offender is supposed to pay a certain amount of agricultural products, and to the extreme one may be disowned by the community members, a decision which is made by the Chief who is the supreme authority in this community.

Conclusion

The Basseri community can be described from various viewpoints that are common in almost all the nomadic communities. For instance, almost all these communities have a similar form of political and social organization. However, due to the surrounding communities and the environment the community has come to change their life-styles in one way or another. This explains the various changes that have been observed in the Basseri community in the recent times.

This paper presents the impact of government policies on women empowerment. This paper firstly defines women empowerment and then list out the government policies on women empowerment in the various Five year plans. Then on the basis of the data collected, I compared the degree of empowerment in the rural and urban women. The degree of empowerment was measured on four indices which were:- women’s mobility and social interaction; women’s labour patterns; women’s access to and control over resources; and women’s control over decision-making.

Introduction

The past three decades have witnessed a steadily increasing awareness of the need to empower women through measures to increase social, economic and political equity, and broader access to fundamental human rights, improvements in nutrition, basic health and education. The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only grants equality to women, but also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive discrimination in favor of women.

Defining Women’s Empowerment

Empowerment is a continuous process for realizing the ideals of equality, human liberation and freedom for all. Women’s Empowerment, thus, implies equality of opportunity and equity between the genders, ethnic groups, social classes and age groups, strengthening of life chances, collective participation in different spheres of life–cultural, social, political, economic, development process, decision making etc.

Naila Kabeer defines women’s empowerment as the process by which those who have been denied the ability to make strategic life choices acquire such ability. This ability to exercise choices incorporates three inter-related dimensions: resources which include access to and future claims to both material and social resources; agency which includes the process of decision-making, negotiation, deception and manipulation; and achievements that are the well-being outcomes.

Smt Renuka Chowdhury(Minister of State for Women and Child Development ) says that, “Empowerment to me means self esteem – self reliance – self confidence. Sometimes one thinks if this was there, if that was there, this could have been done. But you don’t need any of that – if a woman is aware of her rights, of herself, if her self esteem is high, then she is empowered”

Governments’ Policies on women’s empowerment

The need for Women’s empowerment was felt in India long back. Mahatma Gandhi had announced at the Second Round Table Conference(1932) that his aim was to establish a political society in India in which there would be no distinction between people of high and low classes and in which women would enjoy the same rights as men and the teeming millions of India would be ensured dignity and justice- social, economic and political. The country’s concern in safeguarding the rights and privileges of women found its best expression in the Constitution of India, covering fundamental rights and the directive principles of state policy. Articles 14, 15, 15(3), 16, 39, 42, 51 (A) (e) contain various types of provisions for equal rights and opportunities for women and eliminate discrimination against women in different spheres of life.

From the Fifth Five Year Plan (1974-78) onwards there has been a marked shift

in the approach to women’s issues from welfare to development. In recent years, the empowerment of women has been recognized as the central issue in determining

the status of women.

The Eighth Plan (1992-97), with human development as its major focus, renewed

the emphasis on development of women. It sought to ensure that benefits of

development from different sectors do not by-pass women. It aimed at implementing

special programmes to complement the general development programmes and ensure

the flow of benefits to women from other development sectors to enable women to function as equal partners and participants in the development process.

The Ninth Plan (1997-2002) made two significant changes in the conceptual strategy of planning for women. First, ‘Empowerment of Women’ became one of nine primary objectives of the Ninth Plan. Second, the Plan attempted ‘convergence of existing services’ available in both women-specific and women-related sectors.

The Tenth plan continued with the major strategies of ‘Empowering Women’ as agent of social change and development. It adopted a sector specific 3-fold strategy for empowering women viz. Social empowerment, Economic empowerment and Gender justice. ‘Inclusive and integrated economic, social and political empowerment with gender justice’ is how the Eleventh Plan envisions empowerment of women.

New laws such as the Employment Equity Act, the Labour Relations Act and the policy of affirmative action, mean that employers (in the public and private sector) must introduce programmes, which ensure the representation of women in all professions and job grades, at equal pay and guarantees maternity rights. Government is also working to ensure that gender issues are mainstreamed in all its programmes and structures, and has created a gender machinery to monitor and advise government. This consists of the Offices on the Status of Women in the Presidency, Premiers and Mayoral offices, the Commission for Gender Equality, gender desks in departments and gender committees in Parliament and Legislatures.

Measuring the Impact of Government Policies on Women’s Empowerment
Given the complexity of defining women’s empowerment, I identified the following four indices that could lead to women’s empowerment
Women’s mobility and social interaction;
Women’s labour patterns;
Women’s access to and control over resources; and
Women’s control over decision-making.

Thereafter, I conducted a survey among the Rural and Urban houses of Allahabad and Varanasi to find out the impact of government policies on women’s empowerment.

Results and Findings

I compared the data of the two areas and the results are as follows-:

Women’s mobility and interaction. The survey found that urban women are more mobile and begun to have new interactions with a range of officials. In all, the survey found that:

50% of urban women surveyed had visited new places and traveled longer distances; In comparison to this only 5% of rural women surveyed had visited new places and traveled longer distances.

94% of urban women surveyed had experienced new interactions with staff of institutions such as banks, district and block development organizations and NGOs . In comparison to this only 2% of rural women surveyed had experienced new interactions with staff of institutions such as banks, district and block development organizations and NGOs.

Women’s labour patterns. The survey finds major difference in gender division of labour.

71% of the urban houses surveyed men helped the women and only in 3% of the rural houses surveyed men helped the women. The extent to which men helped was related to

The health of the woman (men helped more if women were sick)

The type of household (men helped more in a nuclear household)

The gender and age of the children (men helped less if girl children were present to help).

There was a comparatively greater difference reported in non-domestic productive tasks.

40% of urban women who had taken bank loans reported a marked change in gender roles, and only 6% of rural women reported a small change. However, the income-generating activities of the majority of women (both Urban and Rural) in male-headed households (for which loans had been taken) continued to be managed by men (presumably, the women’s husbands).

Therefore, the changes in women’s labour patterns were mixed, and not as positive as along other dimensions. There was little indication that women’s control over their labour had undergone a marked change, and the survey noted that many women(both Urban and Rural) may simply have gone from undertaking paid work outside the home to becoming unpaid family labourers (in male-managed enterprises).

Women’s access to and control over resources. The survey also looked into women’s access to non-loan-related resources and benefits, and particularly to common resources. In all the survey found that

70% of urban women had accessed to non-loan-related resources and benefits. Only 10% of rural women had accessed to non-loan-related resources and benefits.

It seems that a number of the women undertook activities that would give their communities better infrastructure or services, for instance in water supply, child-care facilities, health care services and improved roads. In this sense, they played a key role in promoting changes in collective access to resources.

Women’s control in intra-household decision-making. The survey found that

83% of urban women play a significant role in intra-household decision making. Whereas only 5% of rural women play a significant role in intra-household decision making.

There seemed to be a slight improvement in women’s involvement in household decision-making in male-headed households, on such issues as credit, the disposal of household assets, children’s education, and family health care. However, the traditional gender-based divisions persist in intra-household decision-making. Women basically decide on food preparation, and men make the financial decisions.

CONCLUSION

It was found that the government policies on women empowerment are far more affective in urban areas than in rural areas. This is the reason why urban women are more empowered than the rural women .However, the empowerment of Rural Women is crucial for the development of the Rural Bharat. The remedy for empowerment lies in a strong will power and a gender just reform in the whole system covering the major interrelated issues of Economic welfare, Social justice and Education. It requires every segment of society, women as well as men; government, laws, judiciary, political parties and media.

What is social mobility? Drawing on different perspectives, assess the impact of the education system on opportunities and life chances on the basis of social class. What implications does this have for the work of helping agencies?

Social mobility simply describes how people move along the social ladder. For this to happen there must necessarily be some form of social class in place. Social class occurs everywhere, even in the poorest communities. Take a typical village in Ghana for example, you will find that probably the village palm wine tapper or renowned farmer may be at the top of the social ladder; by village standards, they are the rich guys; these in addition could also serve as money lenders or movers and shakers. In the middle of the social ladder in the said village you might find the middle class who constitutes probably the majority of villagers with average incomes making just about enough from their farming or other vocations to make ends meet. Of course, at the bottom of this ladder will be the lower classes that have no jobs or qualifications and are at the mercy of the rich palm wine tapper.

Social mobility describes how the classes move from their level of class upwards or downwards. This movement could involve the acquisition of new skills or education in the bid to get better jobs and hence get more income. Sometimes movement is caused by for example winning the lottery, an inheritance from parents or relatives or any procedure either deliberate or accidental which moves a person from one class to another.

“Social mobility – or ‘intergenerational mobility’as economists prefer to call it – measures the degree to which people’s social status changes between generations. It is seen by many as a measure of the equality of life opportunities, reflecting the extent to which parents influence the success of their children in later life or, on the flipside, the extent to which individuals can make it by virtue of their own talents, motivation and luck.” (Blanden J et al 2005)

The Sociology guide has described Social mobility as a “vital part of social stratification and an inseparable part of social stratification system because the nature, form, range and degree of social mobility depending on the very nature of the stratification system. Stratification system means the process of placing individuals in different layers or strata.”

(http://www.sociologyguide.com)

In a social mobility paper Stephen Aldridge describes social mobility as a

“movement or opportunities for movement between different social groups and the advantages that go with this in terms of income, security of employment, opportunities for advancement etc.” (Aldridge, 2001)

There are types of social mobility. Intra-generation is when there has been a change in a person’s social position. A typical example will be clerical assistant who works his/her way up in an organisation. However, if a person’s social position changes over a generation it is called inter-generation mobility. An example is Margaret Thatcher and many others. She became prime minister as a grocer’s daughter.

“There appears to be significant intergenerational mobility in the United States, although perhaps less than is sometimes believed. Origins significantly affect destinations. Specifically, adult sons and daughters are more likely to look like their parents – in terms of occupation or income – than one would predict on the basis of chance. Still, there is considerable mobility. Indeed, even when occupations or income categories are broadly defined, a majority of adult offspring occupy a different occupational or income category than their parents.”(Daniel P et al 1997)

Horizontal mobility is another type of social mobility where a person changes their job-related position but does not change social class. An example is where a clerical assistant moves from Wellingborough to London and becomes an administrative officer. Vertical mobility on the hand takes the stage where people change their job-related position and change their social class as well. An example of vertical mobility will be for example a street cleaner becoming a solicitor or an army officer becoming a cleaner. They have fundamentally changed their socio-economic position.

There are types of vertical social mobility. If someone moves down the social ladder it becomes downward mobility. When they move up on the social ladder it becomes upward mobility. For example if an Army officer is promoted in rank it becomes an upward mobility. The magazine Business Week in 2007 wrote an article about how mobile phones in Africa are creating high standards of living and boosting upward mobility.

“Only a few years ago, places like Muruguru didn’t even register in the plans of handset makers and service providers. What would a Kenyan farmer want with a mobile phone? Plenty, as it turns out. To the astonishment of the industry, people living on a few dollars a day have proven avid phone users, and in many parts of the world cellular airtime has become a de facto currency. The reason is simple: A mobile phone can dramatically improve living standards by saving wasted trips, providing information about crop prices, summoning medical help, and even serving as a conduit to banking services.” (Business Week, 2007)

Another recent example of downward mobility is in this article in the telegraph.

“Though she is married to a builder, the 27-year-old housewife has rickety wooden planks for walls and covers her roof with plastic sheeting to keep out the rain in Harare’s Hatcliffe suburb – far from the neighbourhood where she used to live. “Right now I don’t have a housing lot, but we are paying money to local co-operatives (to save for a down payment) so we may get lots to build houses,” Chama said. And she is far from alone. According to official estimates, around two million Zimbabweans in this country of 12.2 million need accommodation.” (Reagan Mashavave, 2009)

Another type of social mobility is structural mobility which involves vertical mobility but its movement is brought about by a major disorder. It can also be brought on by changes in society that brings improvement to a large number of people. Typical examples will be industrialisation, expansion of education and computerisation. These changes have all brought improvement to people in the UK and around the world. People have through it acquired higher social status and found higher paid jobs than their parents. There is also individual mobility which involves people being hindered from taking opportunities because of where they were live, their colour, gender, religion, their educational background, job, wellbeing and many others.

The impact of the education system on opportunities and life chances on the basis of social class is enormous and hasn’t changed much since education began. It is still difficult for working class children to access grammar and good comprehensive schools as the middle class and upper class have populated areas where these schools are placed.

“Children’s social class is still the most significant factor in determining their exam success in state schools, the Government’s head of teacher training acknowledges today. In an interview with The Independent, Graham Holley, the chief executive of the Training and Development Agency, said: “The performance of a school and a child in it is highly linked to social class. “If you turn the clock back on pupils in school today 15 years and predict their outcomes from where they were born, you can do it.” (Garner, 2008)

Working class families are tied to the low paid jobs and often live in areas where schools are failing. Jobs are hard to find in these areas and its inhabitants are usually heavily dependant on benefits. Their lives are occupied with how to manage everyday living and not on reading to their children and giving them music and language lessons.

“The poorest children still have little chance of becoming lawyers, doctors, senior civil servants and financiers, a report published by the Liberal Democrats today shows. The Social Mobility Commission, set up by the party, said billions of pounds spent on improving social mobility over the past decade has helped middle-class rather than working-class children. Last year only 35% of pupils eligible for free school meals obtained five or more A* to C GCSE grades, compared with 63% of pupils from wealthier backgrounds.”(Shepherd J, 2009)

Disadvantaged children have little chance of watching educational programmes on television nor do they have the chance of reading the broad sheets. They are simply not patronised in their households. Libraries are rarely used and mobile libraries are not highly participated in working class areas. Areas in London for instance have seen various housing developments but they are not in the reach of the low paid. Overcrowding has many implications for the already struggling families as there is often no where to do homework. After school clubs charge for their services leaving low paid families out in the cold. Therefore chances of disadvantaged children reaching high levels of achievement in school are slightly dim.

“Young people in manual social classes remain under-represented in higher education in Great Britain. Despite increasing from a participation rate of 11 per cent in 1991/92 to 19 per cent in 2001/02, participation remains well below that of the non-manual social classes. Participation rates for the non-manual social classes increased from 35 per cent to 50 per cent over the same period.” (http://www.statistics.gov.uk)

The consequences of the manual or low class remaining under-represented in higher education is unthinkable as children from these background will experience either downwardly mobile or not move on the social ladder at all as a result of them not entering higher education. Today’s job market is very competitive and even those with good qualifications are finding it difficult to hold onto their jobs. It means that most all white collar jobs will be held by the middle class and upper class families.

“All the independent evidence shows overall standards to be rising. But the bad news is that when it comes to the link between educational achievement and social class, Britain is at the bottom of the league for industrialised countries. Today, three-quarters of young people born into the top social class get five or more good GCSEs, but the figure for those born at the bottom is less than one-third. We have one of the highest university entry rates in the developed world, but also one of the highest drop-out rates at 16.”(Independent, 8 September 2003)

Anthony Giddens writes in Sociology and Social Mobility that education is not necessarily a means to an end. Education would have to work with other factors to foster social mobility.

” Education shouldn’t be seen as a panacea for all society’s problems. It has a significant role to play, but we can’t hold schools and Universities solely responsible for promoting social mobility. It’s important not to think of the education system as if it works in a vacuum – factors like changes in employment and the economy, and the social determinants of children’s educational attainment, are critical in determining patterns of mobility.”(Giddens, 2007)

However, education definitely has opportunities for people to progress along the social ladder by providing relevant new skills, information, courses and therefore creating opportunities in life for them. A few years back a hair dresser did not need know too much about what she/he did as a hair dresser but in today environment he/she would have to know all the science there is to cutting, dressing and managing the business. Technology and other factors have raised the standard of work so high that without continuous professional development opportunities are not stretch far.

“In this new labour market, the value of college degrees overall is greater than ever before. Between 1984 and 2000, employment in jobs requiring a college degree grew by 20 million in the US, accounting for two-thirds of total job growth. Over the same period, wages for college graduates increased. In contrast, high school graduates in America who did not continue with education saw their wages fall below middle class levels for the first time. As a consequence, the opportunities for Americans with terminal high school diplomas are less than a generation ago.”(Social Mobility Foundation, 2008)

Although a small percentage of poor families are accessing higher education there is evidence that the UK government for instance is working frantically to improve the chances of the less privileged through innovations like Every Child Matters. This innovation is to give every child the chance of accessing education and other services in the community to give them better outcomes in life. Hence the establishment of Surestart Centres which is a one stop service for early education, childcare, health and family support.

“This Government has invested heavily in policies designed to give all children the chance to succeed. There have already been significant improvements in educational achievement, and reductions in teenage pregnancy, re-offending and children living in low income households. Today’s children and young people experience wider opportunities and benefit from rising prosperity, better health and education than those in previous generations.”

(http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/about/background/backgroun)10)

The implications on the work of helping agencies are many. Helping agencies like Children’s Centres pick up the brunt of any inequalities that lay in society. We bid or vie for large sums of money to run various courses and projects that underpin social mobility. In the bid of helping families read we have set up ‘borrow a chattersack’ in our children’s centre. This is to encourage parents who might otherwise not access libraries or buy books for their children. The books and toys are expensive but we charge a very minimal fee for them.

Often people bring to us various problems like divorce, debt and housing issues which we do our best to refer to other agencies for further assistance. We hold classes with Citizen Advice Bureau to advise people on budgets and other financial incapability. Many of our clients are lone parents or young families struggling on low incomes. They are often in debt and or have little financial knowledge. They often live on large council estates where aspirations are not that great. The recent recession has hit these areas hard and some people are experiencing downwardly mobility. This comes with various demands like counselling, retraining and financial loss.

“Equality of opportunity is a sine qua non for any modern society and, in Britain, is a principle supported by all mainstream political opinion. Despite this, household income remains the biggest single predictor of a child’s future success, and a recent report by the Sutton Trust found that, all too frequently, young people from financially disadvantaged backgrounds end up in a “cul de sac of opportunity”.” (Social Mobility Foundation, 2008)

Below is an example of some the types of work some helping agencies do. They use government funds to bridge the gap between rich and poor by organising trips to parks, educational establishment to boost confidence and increase knowledge.

“Nearly 175,000 bright children on free school meals will be given a chance at the age of 11 to visit a university as part of a drive to lift the aspirations of working-class people and increase stalled social mobility in Britain. Young people in the top 20% of ability based on test results, and who are eligible for free school meals, are about half as likely to go to university as those who are not eligible for free meals. They will now be offered two chances to visit universities.” (Wintour, 2007)

We organise sporting activities that will encourage the less privileged to put their feet in door of expensive sporting activities. We work with other agencies to bring information and understanding to parents who in effect calve their children’s place on the social ladder.

“A new report by the British think-tank Demos has hit the headlines, with its claim that ‘Parents are the principal architects of a fairer society’. Based on research from the Millennium Cohort Study, the report argues that how children are parented has a more significant impact upon their future life chances than just about anything else, including poverty and the social class into which they are born”. (Bristow J, 2009)

Helping agencies are faced with many demands for services they can and cannot provide. At our centre for instance there is the demand for certain services like computer classes, some sort of back to work training, cooking classes but we haven’t got the facilities and the man power to run such courses. We are therefore forced to send clients to other children’s centre’s in that losing their business. If we do manage to run any of the courses that put pressure on our facilities then we have to limit the numbers which in turn causes us to run the courses several times to fit everyone in. There is also a steady demand for information on sensitive family matters like finance.

Education seems to be one the important factors manipulating social mobility. In today’s society, education is becoming increasingly important as it used to ascertain the jobs people will end up in. Education is also used to determine people’s social class position. The recent government for instance has introduced many initiatives. Free child care for two year olds was trialed for sometime and is going to be offered to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Back to work incentive of ?500 and the investment into early years, FE schools and workplace training are all initiatives which research has suggested that has not boosted social mobility.

“In 1999 Tony Blair told the Labour Conference: “If we are in politics for one thing, it is to make sure that all children are given the best chance in life.” A decade on, the Government has had to admit that billions of pounds of investment in nurseries and schools and on training has failed to bridge the class divide, and that social mobility in Britain has stalled.” (Bennett and Bahra 2007)

As mentioned before there are many factors contributing to this fact. One such fact is the advantage that middle class families have over poorer families when it comes to education.

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION & LITERATURE REVIEWStatement of the problem

Most of the countries experienced significant increases in car ownership over the past two decades, resulting in rapid increases in total travel on the roads, and declining absolute market shares for public transport. Bonsall (2000) notes that, in the UK, car ownership rose from 30% of households in 1960 to 70% in 1995. In the US, by 2000, car ownership had exceeded an average of one car per licensed driver in many urban areas. Similar patterns are evident in many other countries around the world. With this burgeoning of car ownership has come the obvious consequence-escalating road congestion. As a result, policy makers have become increasingly focused on the idea of reducing congestion (Stradling, 2000). The mechanisms for reducing congestion are several. Included among these are increasing ride sharing (a mainstay of Transportation Demand Management policies in the US, for example), increasing the use of public transport, providing high occupancy vehicle lanes on various roadways, etc. Initially, Singapore, and then several cities in Norway experimented with introducing congestion charges for central cities. Most recently, London has introduced congestion charging for the central area, in an effort to reduce central London’s congestion levels. Following on the heels of that, many other cities around the world are now seriously considering similar congestion.

Therefore, Muscat as the capital of Sultanate of Oman, the increasing of car ownership is one of the higher growths per household. In 1999 the passenger cars estimated 174 per 1000 people by comparing Muscat with wealthy Asian cities car ownership 123 per 1000 people (Nicholas Low and Brendan Gleeson,2003).

42 percent more than Asian wealthy cities, in the same time the population of Muscat is much lower than any of Asian cities. Therefore, Muscat is one of the cities, which suffering from congestion in this world.

Current traffic situation
Past trends
Many factors influence the travel behaviour and cause disturbances through unexpected external effects, such as oil prices, economic recession etc. (Known as explanatory variables). Thus if one understands these factors, one can forecast future behaviour on the basis of projections of these variables. However, it is conventional to base travel forecasts on past trends described by time series data over a period of years. In Muscat, the principal weakness is a lack of reliable traffic flow data to identify trends in past growth.
It is reasonable to assume therefore, that increases in population and economic activity will result in increased road traffic and land use development. Land use development relates to the need to house population increases and to new employment opportunities created by economic growth.
Analysis of available data from 1980 to the present showed that:
The population of Oman has increased at an average rate of about 10 per cent per annum.
The national economy has grown at rates varying between -3 and + 17 per cent per annum.
The national vehicle stock has increased at an average rate of 12 per cent per annum (the national car stock has grown even faster, at an average rate of 15 per cent per annum).
Current conditions and characteristics
Local conditions need to be thoroughly examined before any remedial measures can be taken. The study has observed and identified many problems and characteristics concerning the traffic and road network conditions. It has been estimated that the total AM’ peak. hour flow over the whole of the network is about 35000 vehicles, out of which 8000 vehicles on Sultan Qaboos street alone (two way flow) which constitute 23% of the total network flow. Comparing this with the car ownership (estimated to be 11 0 per 1000 population) implies that there is significant travel. demand on the network.
The Stage I identified the following characteristics and problems, all of which will be exacerbated by future traffic growth:
The road network in Muscat modern but depends, to a great extend, on the satisfactory operation of a single main road: Sultan Qaboos Street.
The demonstrably high (but unqualified) traffic growth rates of recent years mean that this “spine” route is reaching its operational limits at times of peak demand. Peak period delays are occurring at important junctions (Such as Al Khuwair, Al Ghubra Roundabout etc..) and on the highway. There are no alternative routes at present, until express way open, which be expecting in the end of 2010.
Traffic signal equipment in the important commercial centre of Ruwi is not exploiting the full potential of the existing road system.
All parking is free of charge and demand in the CBD is reaching levels that are creating supply problems. The operation of the road system is adversely affected by on-street (verge) parking in a number of locations.
Public transport services (buses) are provided by the Oman National Transport Company. It is understood that the scheduled ONTC services are subsidised by profitable charter services. The overall financial performance of ONTC, which is a state owned company, is just profitable. This performance is forcing modernisation of the bus fleet not to take place hence, reducing its appeal to potential customers. The average age of the bus fleet is increasing thus reducing the attraction of public transport.
Bus services are supplemented by minibus and taxi services. Public transport is rarely used in preference to a private car. This applies particularly to scheduled bus services. The future role, ownership and organisation of ONTC were supposed to be the subject of a separate study.
Coordination between the development of land use and transport policies at a local level is limited and could be improved.
Operational road safety and traffic control are the responsibility of ROP. Traffic control is to an acceptable standard although the manual control of some important signalised junctions in Ruwi should be reviewed. As in all countries, there is scope for improved standards of road safety through established driver education programmes.

The economic cost to the community of road accidents is not systematically quantified in Oman. In countries where such costs are quantified, they are found to be large and are used to justify traffic and safety management investment programmes often concerned with junction improvements to reduce accident risk.

Purpose of the study

In scientific research the purpose statement indicates ‘why you want to do the study and what you intend to accomplish’ (Locke, Spirduso, and Silverman, 2000). According to this;

The purpose of this sequential, mixed methods study is to first explore the impact of congestion growth in Muscat city as well as determining the percentage growth over the last ten year. Then based on the experiences and needs defined, the second phase will be to develop a solution that suits and match the requirement of transport provision needs based on the previous information as well as information collected in this phase; namely observation of both modern and professional ways of improving traffic demand management

Potential significance

This research study are important to different sectors. Because, the congestion is not only effecting the road users, but also society, economic, environment, and human. However, it’s important to consider externalities from congestion by implementing traffic demand management and improve public transport as one of the holistic solution in Muscat city.

Statements and rationale for mixing methods

This research is intended to follow a mixed methods research design. According to this, the aim of this section is to define and give a rationale for using this specific research design for this specific study.

Mixed methods research design is defined as ‘the collection or analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data in a single study in which the data are collected concurrently or sequentially, are given a priority, and involve integration of the data at one or more stages in the process of the research’ (Creswell, 2003).

Historically mixed research method is relatively not a new idea. It probably originated in 1959, when Campbell and Fiske used multiple methods to study validity of psychological traits. Their encouragement to others to use their ‘multimethod matrix’ prompted others to examine using mixed methods in their enquiry (Creswell, 2003). Recognizing that all research methods have limitations, researchers felt that biases inherent in any single method could neutralizes or cancel the biases of other methods another advantage of using mixed research methods design is that it allows researchers to simultaneously generalize results from a sample to a population and to gain deeper understanding of the phenomenon of interest (Hanson, Creswell, Creswell, Plano Clark, & Petska 2005).

In this respect, this study will mix different research methods, for the purpose of being able to generalize research results that will be obtained, from a representative sample, but at the same time give insights and understanding of issues tackled through quantitative techniques. This will ultimately be achieved through the use and integration of data in the various research stages namely; data collection, data analysis and discussion and reporting of findings.

One rationale is that, in order to generalize weather road congestion in Muscat city have implications to the road users and public transport, a quantitative tool need to be used and applied. At the same time, the in depth of such suffering needs to be qualitatively addressed. As well as describing the processes of managing congestion by local authority. Another rationale for using mixed methods research is to ‘convey the needs of supportive bus services and thus this research is intending to explore their issues, which are related to road congestion

Although there are many challenges in using mixed methods research design, such as; the researcher should be familiar with both quantitative and qualitative research methods, also the need for extensive data collection (Creswell, 2003). But the growth and the developments of using this method proved the successful and the advantages of using this specific design, as stated earlier. In conclusion, for the purpose of this study a mixed methods research design will be used in order to achieve its stated purpose.

Research questions

This research will attempt to answer the following questions:

What are the challenges faced by road authority in Muscat?
What coping strategies for congestion growth?
Is there any improvement in public transport in regard to coping congestion?
What type of traffic demand management and technique used in Muscat?
Is there a clear vision of improving public transport?
Literature review
Sustainable transport systems

A sustainable transport system is “one in which fuel consumption, vehicle emissions, safety, congestion and local and economics access are of such levels that they can be sustained into the indefinite future without causing great or irreparable harm to future generation of people around the world” Richardson(1999). To achieve sustainable transport system, it should balance socio-economic and environmental consideration in recognition of the following:

Economic: A sustainable transport system is one that is affordable, operates fairly and efficiently, offers a choice of transport mode, supports a competitive economy, as well as balanced regional development;
Environmental: A sustainable transport system limits emissions and waste within the planet’s ability to absorb them, uses renewable resources at or below the rates of generation, and uses non-renewable resources at or below the of development of renewable substitutes, while minimizing the impact on the use of land and the generation of noise; and
Social: A sustainable transport system allows the basic access and development needs of individuals, companies, and society to be met safety and in a manner consistent with human and ecosystem health, promotes equity within between successive generations. Transportation facilities and activities can have significant
Environmental issues

Surface transport accounts for approximately 25% of all C02 emissions globally, and transport is the only sector where emissions are increasing. While there are significant advances being made in reducing C02 emissions from other sectors such as industry and construction, technology has so far failed to find a solution for transport.

Any technological advances in reducing C02 emissions have been more or less cancelled out by the increasing number of trips we are making. There is a fairly simple correlation between increasing GDP and higher trip levels.

At the same time, developing countries are fast adopting the private car as their preferred mode’ of choice, and this is impacting on global C02 levels. This is set to increase with the introduction of the ultra low cost cars, such as the Nano car from Tata Motors in India, which has a price of about $3800.

In addition to C02 issues, there are also issues related to noise and air pollution. Increasing traffic levels lead to increased visual intrusion, noise, and polluted air. Monitoring stations are already set up in many world cities to measure the impact of traffic on noise and air. However, these issues are not solely related to the private car. There are also significant environmental issues related to freight, whether this is by road or by sea.

Traffic alone is responsible for breaching air quality standards in Muscat City
The hot climate is very important influence of travel behaviour
Key sensitive environmental areas are in close proximity to Muscat City (wetlands)

Globally, there have been several important decision making meetings set to resolve global warming, which have included discussions on the role of-transport. The Kyoto Protocol was’ agreed in December 1997, and was in operation by February 2005. The Protocol requires industrialised countries to reduce their total emissions of greenhouse gases by about five per cent compared to 1990 levels by 2012. Each country that signed the protocol agreed to their own specific target. Developing countries were not required to meet quantitative emission goals. The world is now working towards a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol, but one that can be agreed by all countries.

Economic issues

In Europe time wasted while delayed on traffic congested roads costs close to 1 % of the European Union’s GDP. This high cost explains the desire to improve European transport networks, and reduce reliance on road based vehicles. The Middle East is increasingly experiencing similar. issues to Europe in terms of traffic congestion, and this is expected to result in a similar impact on GDP. With the rapidly growing economies of the Middle East, China, India, and Russia, there is an ever increasing demand for transport, and much of this is being planned for by road.

However, for these counties and regions to realise their full potential, there is a need for fast and reliable transport links that are not subject to congestion or delay. These links are required between their raw material suppliers and manufacturers, and ultimately to their customers, i.e. a national, regional, and worldwide network.

An efficient transport system will be vital to achieving Plan 2020 economic goals
Need to effectively involve private and public sector provision

Governments and developers understand the importance of transport as a catalyst for regeneration, improving productivity, and creating profit, but are reluctant to invest the high infrastructure costs, particularly when delivery of this is likely to be in the long term. Roads are often seen as a lower cost solution, but this is only related to construction and maintenance. The cost to the environment and to the social well being of the people is rarely included.

New economic solutions to investing in new schemes are also being devised, particularly for high cost infrastructure schemes such as new rail lines. These are developed to maximise the success of implementing a new scheme. One solution gaining favour is a property transport levy, whereby affected businesses, residents, and developers pay a lump sum for new transport infrastructure on the basis that property values and rents will increase as a result of the new transport scheme. An example of this is the Crossrail scheme in London, which is partly funded by contributions from private businesses in the financial districts.

Social Issues

We have already noted that on a global scale, car use is increasing, while public transport, walking, and cycling are in decline. It is becoming common place for children to be driven to school rather than walk, cycle or use public transport. Workers are increasingly using the private car for their commuting trip, and short leisure and shopping trips are driven rather than walked. For example, in suburban London it has been recorded that 32% of car trips are less than one mile.

There is also strong evidence of worsening global health in the form of increasing levels of obesity, childhood diabetes, and heart disease. If healthier options for travelling were introduced globally, and people were encouraged out of their cars, this could provide a strong boost to health worldwide. Walking 20 minutes a day is one way to incorporate exercise into a daily routine to maintain a minimum level of fitness, but if there is no infrastructure to allow this, then’ car use will be preferred, even for the shortest trips.

Road traffic accident rates in Muscat amongst the highest in the world
Pedestrian accidents (at 40% of total) are a particular concern
Muscat’s city road network leads to major severance issues
Road network is very pedestrian and cycle unfriendly
Unique social mix makes provision of public transport more challenging

For a country to maximise its economic performance, it is important that its citizens have access to jobs, services, and goods. For a fully functioning global world class economy, this access should not be restricted to only those who are able to afford access to a car. Access for all is promoted in many countries around the world, with the provision of public transport. infrastructure, and walking and cycling routes. Countries without this level of access tend to find they have disconnected communities, with reduced opportunities to break the cycle of poverty.

The other movement issue related to transport is the severance effect of building new transport corridors, whether these are road or rail based. Given their longitudinal nature, they tend to split and divide communities, where only selected crossing points are provided for pedestrians and cyclists.

Linked to the risk of overcoming transport barriers is the connection between vehicular movements and road traffic accidents. These are either vehicle – vehicle accidents or vehicle ­pedestrian I cyclist accidents.

One of the reasons for road traffic accidents is the provision of corridors which encourage speeding, through the creation of what is known as a ‘canyon’ effect. This is when drivers feel separated from their environment, through the incorporation of pedestrian barriers and banning of the other users. This lead driver to have little regard for other more vulnerable users. In contrast, the safest streets tend to be those which either have limited or no access to private car.

Effects of congestion

The current literature is very limited especially with respect to Arab countries. Therefore, I will use literature from Europe and state as well as some of the experience of development countries.

The first problem with congested traffic conditions is that these conditions are inherently unstable. That is, vehicles may flow quite well at speeds that are only modestly reduced from free-flow speeds, but flow may also easily break down, with the formation of queues, stop-and-go conditions, and average speeds that are very low. This instability produces one of the negatives of congestion- travel time unreliability. A second negative of congestion, is that extra time is required under these conditions, time that may be considered to be non-productive time. For those who are caught in congested conditions and who are driving outside normal working hours, it is questionable as to whether the time losses from congested conditions have an economic impact. Redmond and Mokhtarian, (2001) show that many commuters do not perceive congestion as necessarily an evil of their daily commute. Based on their study, Nasser (2002) notes that, in these modern times, many people can find complete privacy in only two places-the car or the toilet. For many, there is actually “…peace and relaxation commuting alone. For many, it’s the only time they have to read (by listening to books on tape), enjoy music they like, catch up on the news, smoke without being chastised or make personal phone calls in total privacy” (Nasser, 2002). Such attitudes do not bode well for carpooling, which is often seen as one of the alternatives to reduce congestion.

New road to reduce congestion

Anthony Downs (1992), argues that building our way out of existing traffic congestion problems doesn’t work because of “triple convergence.”; When a road is widened to reduce traffic congestion, three responses occur over time to reduce the benefit of increased capacity. First, drivers who previously used alternate routes will switch to the newly expanded facility. Second, drivers who previously traveled on the congested facility during off-peak hours will switch to the peak period. Third, many people who car pooled or used public transit to avoid the hassle of stop-and-go traffic during the peak period will choose the convenience of driving alone on the newly uncongested link in the transportation system. The cumulative effect of the three types of individual behavioral responses to increased capacity ends up forcing equilibrium traffic flow on the expanded facility back toward its initial congested state.

This scenario exactly happening in Muscat, government continuously focusing to improve road infrastructure to solve a congestion problem, but within certain of time traffic volume build up by moving road users from congested routes to the new road and encouraging people to use their own private transport.

Recent studies show that building or widening highways induces more traffic, called induced travel. Shortly after the lanes or road is opened traffic will increase to 10 to 50% of the new roadway capacity as public transit or carpool riders switch to driving, or motorists decide to take more or longer trips or switch routes. This is short-term induced travel. In the longer term (three years or more), as the new roadway capacity stimulates more sprawl and motorists move farther from work and shopping, the total induced travel rises to 50 to 100% of the roadway?s new capacity. This extra traffic clogs local streets at both ends of the highway travel. The following table summarizes these studies.

Accessibility and mobility

Accessibility can be defined as the ease of reaching destinations (Levine and Garb, 2002), whereas mobility may be defined as the ease of movement. While these two concepts are clearly related, they are not the same thing. If a person lives in an area where there are many possible destinations close by, accessibility may be very high, even though mobility might be constrained, as in a CBD. On the other hand, if a person lives in a relatively remote area, accessibility may be poor because considerable travel time and cost is required to reach any destination, although mobility may be high. In 1960, world inhabitants travelled an average of 1820 km by car, bus, railway or aircraft. Three decades later, the annual distance travelled had increased to 4390 km. In light of a 75% world population growth, absolute motorised mobility rose by a factor greater than four( Schafer, 1998).

As Levine and Garb (2002) point out, mobility and accessibility are measured in different ways. Mobility is measured as a generalised cost of travel (time plus money) per kilometre; accessibility is measured as the generalized cost of travel per destination. Generally, mobility is closely related to the level of service provided on the transport system. Higher levels of service represent lower costs per kilometre of travel. Thus, increases in capacity of the system will almost always lead to an increase in mobility, at least in the short term. Accessibility, however, is related to destinations, and therefore, requires attention both to land use patterns and to the quality of destinations. Miller, (1999).

Increasing congestion is likely to produce decreases in both mobility and accessibility. Longer travel times and increased monetary costs of travel, as a result of congestion, obviously increase the travel cost per kilometre. At the same time, these increased travel times may also result in reduced accessibility, by making potential destinations more expensive to reach. However, different methods for tackling congestion will be likely to have quite different effects on each of mobility and accessibility, as is discussed subsequently in this paper

Increasing public transport use

Public transport has an important role to play within most urban areas. There still remain significant groups of the population who either cannot afford to own and operate a car, or who make a conscious choice to avoid the car. There are also specific movements within the urban area to which public transport is better suited than the car, under virtually any circumstances. This is particularly the case for work trips going to the central business districts of many cities. It is also an important means of travel for the elderly who can no longer drive or no longer wish to, and for young people who are not yet old enough to hold a drivers license, or who cannot yet afford a car.

In modern history, and perhaps in all of transport history, there has never been success in shifting people into public transport at the rate that is called for in many contemporaneous policy statements. This alone, however, does not mean to say that such shifts into public transport are not possible. It may just be that no one has come up with the appropriate policy mix (carrots and sticks) to produce these sorts of market shifts. It is also possible that there has not existed previously the political courage to implement what must be done if such large shifts in public transport markets are to occur. It is, however, important to look at the magnitude of what is required.

Demand Management Toolbox

Demand management is playing important factor to solve traffic growth. There is a broad range of TDM measures, including:

Transportation Management Associations: leverage public and private funds to increase the use of ridesharing and other commuting options that reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality
Including or improving pedestrian-oriented design elements, such as short pedestrian crossings, wide sidewalks and street trees.
Requiring users of parking to pay the costs directly, as opposed to sharing the costs indirectly with others through increased rents and tax subsidies.
Including and improving public transportation infrastructure, such as subway entrances, bus stops and routes.
Subsidizing transit costs for employees or residents.
Bicycle-friendly facilities and environments, including secure bike storage areas and showers. See Bicycle transportation engineering
Providing active transportation (AT) facilities including bike lanes and multi-use trails.
Flex-time work schedules with employers to reduce congestion at peak times
Congestion pricing tolls during peak hours.
Road space rationing by restricting travel based on license plate number, at certain times and places.
Workplace travel plans
Road space reallocation, aiming to re-balance provision between private cars which often predominate due to high spatial allocations for roadside parking, and for sustainable modes.
Time, Distance and Place (TDP) Road Pricing, where road users are charged based on when, where and how much they drive. Some transportation experts believe TDP pricing is an integral part of the next generation in transportation demand management
Sustainable Mobility

“The common strategy of sustainable mobility should contain the impact on the environment, while allowing transport to continue to fulfill its economic and social function, particularly in the context of the single market, and thus ensure the long term development of transport in the community. It should also contribute to social and economic cohesion in the community and to the new opportunities for the peripheral regions “(Banister,2000)

Our sustainable strategy in Muscat focusing on economic issues only. However, we will end up by heavily a congestion road, and we can’t be coping with the economic growth. Unless we prepare green transport strategy, which provide better integration of land use and transport, and taking serious consideration of social and environment as well as economic concern.

The Intuitional Issues
Urban Policies and Development
The institutional issue refers to how the country, society and private agencies define and implement transport -related public policies. Several public policies influence socio-spatial organization, including urban development, land use, housing, transport and traffic. For my research topic three main areas are relevant:
Urban planning;
Transport planning; and
Traffic management

These are associated with three objectives: land, circulation of structure and means, and circulation patterns. The urban planning and transport planning are considered to be most important public action. Traffic management is often considered to be secondary importance, related more technical, simple objectives that should be dealt with engineers. While urban planning is mainly concerned with land use provision of public services, transport planning involves of definition of circulation infrastructure and means.

Urban planning

The Higher Committee for Town Planning government body responsible for implementing plans of economic and social development in the Sultanate in the fields of physical and spatial, and through the preparation of detailed plans at the regional and urban areas. Has been formally established by Royal Decree No. 27/85, dated the twenty-fourth of February 1985, was rebuilt more than once on the requirements of the public interest.

The main tasks of the Commission: policy-making of urban planning at all levels of in accordance with economic considerations, social and environmental development strategy of urban development so as to achieve overall development goals and sustainable development in all provinces and regions of the Sultanate approvals planning the allocation of land for various purposes in establishing controls and propose the necessary legislation to regulate and direct the work of the establishment of the Urban Planning an integrated system for geographic information includes databases and maps for

American dream is a fantasy to a lot of people however in both readings it is depicted as an unfulfilled dream which is constantly sought after by both local and non-local Americans. To portray all possible dimensions of this fascinating subject I would like to quote two readings in my analysis which are “Let America be America again”[1] by Langston Hughes and “American Dreamer”[2] by Bharti Mukherji. “Let America Be America Again,” (Verse 1) claims for atonement of the Dream that never was. It talks about the flexibility and correspondence which America brags, yet never had. It anticipates a day when “Liberty is crowned with no false patriotic wreath” (Verse 11-12) and America is “that great strong land of love” (Verse 7). Author is not restricting his request to the discouraged Negro; he also incorporates the foreigner, the poor white, laborer, the Indian, agriculturist, “the people” (Verse 32) impart the Dream that has not been. The Dream still signals. In Freedom’s Plow he brings up that “America is a dream” (Verse 76) and the result of the seed of opportunity is for all Americans as well as for all the world. The American Dream of fraternity, opportunity, and majority rules system must go to all people groups and all races of the world, he demands. The American Dream has showed up as a worn out, uneven, splotched, and frequently unattainable objective which regularly turned into a bad dream, yet there is dependably any desire for the satisfied dream even in the darkest minutes. All through the ballad, Hughes contrasts his trusts for America with the truth of life for those outside of the socially and monetarily predominant racial, religious, and social gatherings. He inspires the intense longs for the individuals who went to the United States on the grounds that they saw it as a paradise where they could be sheltered from the mistreatment they persisted in their countries however those fantasies of America have never materialized. Same is the situation with second reading perusing by Bharati Mukherjee who discusses her perspectives as a worker. Originating from India and her town Faridpur, Mukherjee advising Americans and foreigners to look to the new American society and don’t be impeded by old traditions. Mukherjee discusses being friendless and separated from her establishes while in Canada where the populace is not as with the exception of. In her words they “resists culture fusion” I concur with her announcements on Canada and think the U.S. while it is known for racial and social tolerance is underrated on the world stage. Having all criticism, authors are hopeful for better prospects as a result of endeavored struggle in upcoming future.

The sonnet “Let America be America again” starts with Hughes longing for America to be the America it once was; on the other hand, he remarks harshly, this picture of America is patently false. The most punctual Americans honed subjugation and persecution, efficiently pulverizing the land’s local people groups to assemble their settlements. The perfect of “America” exists just in dreams, Hughes clarifies. Notwithstanding, he asks, “Let America be the dream that dreamers dreamed- / Let it be that great strong land of love / Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme.” (Verse 6-8) For destitute, Native Americans, slaves, and workers, American has just ever been a “dog eat dog” world where the frail are “crushed.” The “humble, hungry, mean” residents don’t get to drink from the mug of bounty; in spite of diligent work and aspiration, they will dependably stay outside the edges of achievement and solace.

The speaker steps back almost instantly and recognizes that numerous visionaries came to America with the trust of cutting out an equivalent bit of riches and acknowledgement. The challenging were compelling, Hughes shouts, and he commends the visionaries who “dreamt a dream so strong, so brave, so true.” (Verse 39) The outcasts from Ireland, Poland, England, and significantly all the more along these Verses, the African slaves, landed in America on the grounds that they had no other decision. Then again, considerably in the wake of building the establishment of this “homeland of the free,” its wealth stay beyond their control.

The speaker shouts out that the “Negros,” workers, and destitute must ascend and reclassify American equity as it was constantly intended to be. He states decidedly, “We must take back our land again, / America!” (Verse 70) Even if America is currently presently tormented by separation and voracity, the speaker (and Hughes) accept that it can be made strides. Consequently, the ballad closes on a hopeful, effective note of determination toward oneself and diligence.

In “American Dreamer”, Mukherjee felt that the switch between an outside understudy and U.S. national was a huge change. She likewise says that she considers being an American resident important. I imagine that there is a noteworthy contrast in points of view toward citizenship between individuals who worker here and individuals who’s families have known only the Americas. Like Mukherjee says, “I became a citizen by choice, not by simple accident of birth.” (American Dreamer, Mukherjee) She looks down on individuals who were given American citizenship (by conception) and don’t admire it or grasp it.

She adds to the multiculturalism that is so fundamental in the accomplishment of the United States. “II chose to describe myself on my own terms, as an American, rather than as an Asian-American. Why is it that hyphenation is imposed only on nonwhite Americans? Rejecting hyphenation is my refusal to categorize the cultural landscape into a center and its peripheries; it is to demand that the American nation deliver the promises of its dream and its Constitution to all its citizens equally.” (American Dreamer, Mukherjee) In this section Mukherjee truly demonstrates her imperviousness to the average foreigners who may call themselves Asian-American rather than simply an American. Mukherjee rejects this hyphenation. She accepts she is equivalent to all other American residents whether she was conceived in American or not. Mukherjee has an intense tone in this section. She is deciding to portray herself “on her own terms” (American Dreamer, Mukherjee). She decides to call herself an American and is extremely pleased to do this. She realizes that she merits all the rights and benefits that a local American merits.

Later Mukherjee communicates her fervor about as a country we have not just the opportunity to hold those qualities we prize from our unique societies additionally the opportunity to recognize that the external types of those qualities are liable to change. Folks express fury or depression to a few parts of Indian society. Mukherjee might want to ask those folks this, “What is it we have lost if our children are acculturating into the culture in which we are living? Is it so terrible that our children are discovering or are inventing homelands for themselves?” (American Dreamer, Mukherjee) She is recognizing that America has changed her. She says that it doesn’t end until she demonstrates that she alongside the countless workers like her are moment by moment changing America. This change is a two-way transform that influences both the individual and the country social personality.

Both of the above mentioned readings portray that American dream of millions has changed their identity as well. Their old identities had been lost somewhere on the way to their American dream. The only thing they left now is just their American identity. Both authors are hopeful and courageous regarding prosperous future of immigrants who endeavor to move to America for the sake of their American dream and American identities.

Zoe Stux
“Critically evaluate the claim that occupational segregation in the British workforce leads to lower pay, lower status and increased insecurity among women employees”

Occupational segregation finds it roots in the social behaviour of society, by definition this means a separation within job roles by gender. Feminist movements paved the way for women to have equal life styles and occupational choices for women in Britain. Legislation currently in place would lead to the assumption that inequality is not possible in today’s organisations given that there are anti discrimination and equal pay laws to protect the workforce without having to rely on the trade unions. Yet, when considering the effects of direct and indirect discrimination it becomes apparent how an organisation may apply a condition of employment to all employees which can be weighted to affect a large proportion of one gender over another if it is so designed. It is necessary here to demonstrate that current legislation allows some discrimination, for example, a disabled woman requiring a carer to help with personal duties is allowed to state only women can apply. Despite the ability to discriminate there is evidence to suggest that equalities within the genders are lessening and women are becoming more present in senior roles, the assumption is that the equality will pass from the top down the chain to affect the gender segregation on a larger scale lessening the increasing levels of discrimination over time.

In contrast it could be the divide is not diminishing, and in fact current occupational segregation retains a level of inequality between the genders with regards pay, status and increasing insecurity. Cockburn recently (1991 p123) states “it will remain a fact of life that women are severely disadvantaged compared to men in their career opportunities”.

This evaluation will assess the suggestions that women’s inferior place within the workforce leads to lower levels of pay for the same roles, lower status in general placed on their roles and the increasing insecurity of the roles performed by women whilst critically debating the various viewpoints to look at how the relationship between the employer and employee is introduced and subsequently managed. Whilst considering the view that women are disadvantaged through social constraints, biological constraints and personal choice allowing for the impact in Britain for future generations.

As recently as 2004 it is suggested work status is far from equal with most management structures showing primary male domination. However, whilst many companies continue to operate within these male confines there have been an increasing number of women in management roles within recent years breaking the inequality traditions in status. However in line with feminist theories these areas are under represented within the professions and senior management. For those that achieve success on equal grounding it is often the case that women will be required to fit the male value system already established within the organisation, thus suggesting that women may achieve levels of perceived power but the opportunity to make decisions affecting the power will be biased towards the male institutionalised practices already in place. This can translate to a new mind set and change in belief system which for some this can be difficult to adapt to.

For those that do not achieve a level of seniority occupations tend to be limited to clerical or secretarial roles and are primarily held as part time (Rose, E (2004) p557). Rose successfully illustrates for a small percentage of the workforce success is possible however for the masses lower status roles are the norm, assuming that these levels of employment are lower down the organisational chain the level of reward will be suitable to the roles therefore less than the male managers. However according to the equal opportunities commission (hereby referred to as EOC) in 2005 there was an average twenty percent difference between the genders in each employment section with regards wages earned on an average hourly rate. Although banking was a much higher rate at forty percent and not included in the average. It could be argued as Rose states above most female roles are primarily part time which would lead to less remuneration and increased insecurity. Although the same study shows differentials between high profile roles which are assumed to be full time with the bias favouring males within these roles.

Historically a biological viewpoint was used to control the workforce, and all collective bargaining would have been pursued by the trade unions led by men bargaining for men. Trade unions and workers alike were concerned with controlling wage levels and entry into trade ensuring the skills required by industry were sought after therefore controlling the flow of work and the financial demands that could be made, if women had been able to contribute to these tasks the reward level would have decreased as women were deemed cheap labour. Whilst this would be beneficial to employers who would decrease outgoings and protect profit margin it would be detrimental to the male workforce and unions, illustrating an impact of male trade unionist methods to drive towards male domination in the workplace. Biological theory was used to manipulate society to believe women were not capable of carrying out physical labour as men were; this served the purpose of providing a reason to prevent female presence in physical industry and at the same time set a cultural way of thinking. Biological theory argues that men are naturally stronger than women due to the way the body is constructed and this permits men to carry out certain tasks woman can not. Social acceptance of this granted the woman’s place was at home given the childbearing and nurturing ties to the female. In contrast biologically men’s behavior is seen as predatory and aggressive.

However, there is the suggestion that roles are culturally determined as opposed to biologically, and the parental relationship cements social development. Children are manipulated by social norms at a young age to reinforce gender differences, for example a girl wears pink and a boy wears blue, a girl is given a doll or a tea set and a boy receives a car or a football. As the child gets older media influence will be introduced through adverts, popular television or movies to reinforce the socially acceptable roles for the genders (Oakley 2005). In support for this idea the functionality of the two genders is underpinned by analysis from several societies which concluded that there were no tasks with the exception of child birth that could be completed by only one of the two genders (Rose 2004). Biological attributes do not restrict women from roles; this was further supported through evidence observed during the Second World War where women were forced to take on men’s roles because of the shortage of people available. Based on this assumption it could be suggested that the divides seen in today’s workplace are intentional on the part of the female workforce who chose not to be equal and accept the pay differences secure in the knowledge that their income is secondary and whilst potentially insecure in the employment world it is not important to the family world and therefore of little consequence.

Despite the Second World War the biological view would continue after the war had finished. This swift change in attitude back to the old social norm would prove to be difficult for some women to cope with. The myth that biologically women were incapable was squashed, however the value system that had created social structure before the war was still present with the men who returned therefore the social constraints were restored. However, the awareness of women being physically capable was a reality for society to develop and accept it was social and cultural beliefs that stopped women from working. There became an understanding that a reserve army of labour could be called on when required by policy makers and employers alike to achieve common goals, exploiting women into the workplace when it suited those in control. Male perception did not change and work was seen as a secondary focus to family, this created a vacuum where women were manipulated by others to conform to social rules. It would appear modern society has not moved on that much, according to the equal opportunities commission in 2006, sixty seven percent of the female population of working age were in employment verses seventy eight percent of men under the same criteria, this would fit within social assumptions today where to a certain degree women remain primary family carers. Interestingly this research quantifies that forty three percent of women working were in part time employment whilst only eight percent of the men fulfilled part time roles, this would support the assumption that men remain the primary breadwinners in mass society. Purcell (2000) explains that from the 1980s changes have been seen within British society, until the 1980s women were active in the workplace until the birth of their first child, when they would remain inactive until school age or another child was born and the cycle would repeat. However by the end of the 1980s two thirds of mothers were active within the workplace and approximately half of these returned to work within nine months utilising family and childcare options. Therefore gender changes and opinions within society have been demonstrated resulting in the counter argument for the gender nurturing social arguments demonstrated earlier. In contrast there is also the view that Britain’s economic climate has dictated these levels of work as increasingly families need to draw two wages in order to cover the high cost of living which is not relative to the rises seen in salaries.

Supporting the view of exploitation further is the investigation of the reserve army of labour which proves to be beneficial to industries. The foundation of this idea is in Marxist explanations, suggesting that capitalism required a secondary outlay of potential recruits who could be relied on in times of both economic recession and boom to provide a flow of supply and demand in terms of workforce. This is essentially a flexible workforce with few rights and therefore the inability to make demands on the employer, whilst the employer has the right to reduce wages and increase the rate and extent of the worker exploitation at will. This is extreme and in today’s society would be tapered to meet legislation and social standards, although this does not necessarily mean the exploitation has ended, it has simply taken a different guise. In their book Women in Britain today (1986) Beechey and Whitelegg conclude that women would be less able to resist redundancy due to lack of trade union representation and their lower financial value within the workplace which makes them a high risk to increasing insecurity. However this study is dated and whilst in some areas trade union representation is valid this is not the case across mass private industry.

Beechey and Whitelegg go on to suggest women are more likely to accept work at a lower rate than a male counterpart given they will not be aggressive and negotiate, and from a political viewpoint unemployed women are less likely to register unemployed as with primary incomes from their husbands they would not be eligible for benefits, thus supporting the claim that the segregation between the two genders within the workplace leads to insecurity for women. However in contrast to the insecurity being suggested this theory would imply when Britain went through a recession in the 20^th Century the part time and flexible lower paid workforce would have been the first to suffer, yet this was not the case. The answer to this would be, for the same reason the reserve army of labour was considered a good idea, when in recession the primary function is to save long term financial plans, therefore making commercial sense to retain the cheaper labour on the workforce inadvertently providing increased security during times of recession and economic crisis.

There is mass evidence to support the perception that management and trade unions perceive female workers to have a lower commitment to paid work. It is largely these ideals which populate within the labour markets of today, showing women to be secondary to their male counterparts, exploited at will, to control the labour markets and placed in insecure roles because they are not valued (Purcell 2000 p133).This is also supported by Homans (1987 cited in Rose 2004) where interview techniques were questioned when direct discrimination was uncovered and the reasons provided illustrated the view that women will project a lack of commitment to the role, either requiring time off to have a family or caring for an existing family. In contrast Rose (2004) establishes that although the majority of organizations have been traditionally dominated by men, there are a percentage of female senior managers pulling through to powerful positions and this appears to be increasing. In 1991 nine percent of the total women surveyed represented a small number of executive managers and directors. However in 1998 this increased to eighteen percent and four percent of these were director level. On the other hand in 2001 the number dropped to nine percent, although this figure did not include executive directors, therefore there is no like for like comparison making analysis difficult to draw conclusions from. It may be the changing social climates of the late 20^th and early 21^st Centuries have led to this change in female presence.

With a change in social attitudes it is possible to see both genders have been suppressed with women missing the workplace opportunities and men increasingly missing family life. A movement in social acceptance can now see men remain at home while the woman goes out to work reversing the traditional roles. However whilst changes to social thinking are beginning there is the suggestion that the perception of women in power is a false one, despite the movements into senior roles the movements come from organisational restructure, changing job titles and removing levels of management to make opportunities less. Therefore the reality does not translate to total equality as power would be cascaded back up the chain towards the men.

It would appear the opportunities for development and progression become stifled and the female workforce are only able to reach a particular point in the structure before they hit the ‘glass ceiling’ and their progression is halted. The lack of development in many cases appears to be attributed to women taking time off to have families, the assumption then is that by the time they return to work priorities have changed and long unsociable hours are a problem, leading to static working practices and fewer women successfully climbing the ladder.

It appears industry is asking women to make a choice between motherhood and career but not working to aid the two in working side by side. Kirton and Greene (2001 p46) appear to agree, women have to make a choice, they place women at a disadvantage in the workplace due to less experience, lack of training and education compared to male counterparts. However they go on to suggest there are two counter points that can have a positive effect on a woman’s career; by working uninterrupted without family breaks it demonstrates commitment combined with the ability to project a long term ambition through working steadily and when required including late nights. Given that not all women will want to start a family these restrictions will not apply to all, however the statistics seem to indicate these are the minority of women or in exceptional cases women will have both and make sacrifices within the family to return to work with the aid of a non work support network of family and friends or childcare.

Although the EOC statistics show a high percentage of female workers in part time employment it remains that over half the employed women surveyed were working in full time roles. Sly et al (1998) relate education and occupational qualifications as key to the success of women with the workplace. In 1997 eighty six percent of women qualified from A Level or above were economically active whereas fifty two percent of those with no formal qualifications were inactive. On the other hand both full and part time roles primarily fall within the clerical, secretarial, service and sales areas of the employment sphere as a total out of this collective group over sixty percent of the workforce were women. For the same exercise with the male workforce related to roles such as managers, administrators, craft, plant and machine operators, the statistics accounted for sixty percent of the male working population reinforcing the gender prejudice. Although there will always be a gender differential between traditional industries such as construction, manufacturing, education and public health despite drives to change these dynamics, it is worth noting the most recent study in 2006 states that women’s employment has increased seventy percent since 1975, yet in contrast fifty seven percent of women use either part time, flexible working time or home working in order to meet family commitments as well as complete the economic requirements of a day job supporting the theory that gender segregation leads to lower status and increased insecurity for women.

Discrimination with the workplace would appear to be subtle and careful. By definition organizational segregation is the separation of the two genders within the workplace environment. However within this concept there are two styles to be considered. Horizontal segregation, where the workforce is primarily one specific gender, for example, within the construction industry men make up ninety percent of the entire workforce as detailed on the labour force survey for 2006 October to December, this can be attributed to the strong male social values within the industry. In comparison the same survey shows public admin, education and health is primarily a female sector role with women accounting for seventy percent of the total. However what are not evident are the levels employed by women and how the senior managers are gender split.

Alternatively, there is also vertical segregation, where the opportunity for career progression is tapered to a particular gender. The implication with vertical segregation is that women would be affected given that it is women who are less likely to fulfil roles within management or senior executive posts. Liff ((1995) p476) suggests that the reason women fail to make the career progression which causes vertical segregation can be found in the division of labour within social confines.

A manager is expected to work long hours and within this principle lays the issue, as British women whether working or not are still expected to carry out the same level of domestic duties for the family resulting in the inability to work late often which is suggested makes women unsuitable for progression to management and senior executive levels therefore reducing them to flexible part time roles with low pay and less security than management positions.

Within the two types of segregation the workforce is split further, two sections primary and secondary, otherwise termed dual labour markets. The primary labour market is attributed to high pay, excellent working conditions, favourable promotional prospects and job security, secondary sector workers are disposable and easily replaced and transferring between the two markets is difficult either within the same or different organisations. Rose (2004), states that women are the primary of the two genders to appear in the secondary category, due to their low status in society and tendency to not belong to a trade union. However in contrast to the dual labour theory there are limitations not considered, workers within the textile industry where the job roles are similar whether primary or secondary still see a pay discrimination due to gender, the theory also fails to take into account the moving social scales of today’s society which sees many women in primary roles but in areas where women see a high percentage of employment, for example, public health care and education.

The 2006 EOC study for 2005 illustrates within the high paid jobs category, the gender gaps on four areas have a close to equal split however the other six areas show large discrepancies suggesting primarily male management. What is difficult to ascertain from the research on the areas of wide discrepancy gender split are the number of women who have chosen to work within limited roles with limited responsibilities due to family commitments verses the number of women forced into these roles because of the male constructed value system dictating they are inferior to the role of management. From the 1970s work ethics changed to reflect an increasingly flexible work pattern. Consumer society expected faster and quicker trends to be available to them resulting in the change of work ethic hence seen.

The 1970’s saw a requirement for flexible low income workers to manage the production lines based on the changes from Fordism production. The reserve army of labour would become ideally suited for this and naturally this comprised of women. Loveridge and Mok (1996 cited in Mullins p165) confirm that women encompass an ‘out-group’ which makes the basis of an industrial reserve pool providing additional labour when required by society. However there is the suggestion that in the 1970s this was not a forced choice for women but one entered into willingly, although the family remained the primary concern there was also increasing financial pressures as social movements changed. Hakim (1998) supports this and suggests that there are three types of women who choose their preferences about home and work. There is a home centred attitude which prefers a home life to a work environment, a work centred view which for some are childless but have a strong commitment to their work and finally the adaptive who want a little of both but do not want to commit to a career.

Hakim also suggested that with regards to a woman’s qualification there was a correlation between them marrying men with a higher qualification than their own thus leading to the assumption that they would rely on this as a primary income therefore resulting in family becoming the primary focus. This would indicate that it is not viable to apply the same theory to all women as there are differing personal choices within these statistics which can not be quantified.

In contrast to Hakim, Crompton et al (1999) argue that it is the structure of the labour market which moulds the individuals career, suggesting men will turn to traditional male jobs whilst women will opt for traditional female roles reinforcing male roles as aggressive and physical whilst female roles are caring and nurturing, strengthening the structures that produce the gender differences which in turn make it difficult for those within the confines to pursue a career not stereotypically for their own gender. Thus, supporting the suggestion that women continue to be subjected to discrimination, which provides them with disadvantages within the employment relationship including, lower pay, lower status and power and greater insecurity.

Employment relationships have undoubtly changed over recent years along with social belief systems and the relationship between the two is intensely fused. There is no denying that women have more freedom within the workplace in today’s society, although there are still constraints to this freedom it is progress none the less. However it would appear these freedoms come with painful choices to be made; in the cold light of day reality will push to suggest it is not possible to have it all. Women with children will require a degree of flexibility in order to enjoy their families, however this does not have to mean choosing lower status, part time, insecure employment at the expense of high profile full time management roles however the support needed from colleagues and family is greater than those who do chose to not work full time, although the balance is possible to obtain.

It has taken nearly three decades to make the small improvements seen since the 1970s, if this is followed through to the natural conclusion those with the power now can influence others performing up the ranks within the labour market and as such in another thirty years there should be considerable improvements on where we are today. Attitudes and beliefs take time to change and as it would appear to be the social constraints of attitude that find us in a gender segregation of the workforce it stands to reason that these differences will lessen as attitudes change. There is always the risk that as we see poor political decisions made affecting social policy there will be a reversal of attitudes. However with the economy balancing precariously it is necessary in many cases for both men and women to work full time and aspire to be the best of their field and maximise their potential in order to provide for themselves and their families providing a stable economic background.

With regards the claim that occupational segregation leads to lower pay there is some truth to this – what is difficult to assess is the level those are accepted by women and the level they are forced. It is not quantified how many women within the workforce challenged their wage to be equal to that of men. Although lower status compared to male counterparts is at present unfortunate as social policies change and those women there now cascade down to others there is the opportunity to improve these rates and become level within the management and decision making roles. Increased insecurity is difficult to define as by its nature it implies that the insecurity is becoming worse. However in order to understand this it is necessary to understand how the workforce feels about this. The assumption that women’s roles are secondary to that of their husbands would indicate there is no insecurity as his salary would form the main income. However this does not take into account women who are the sole breadwinner and in some cases have a family to bring up. Where it could be argued that the inequality in pay and status is in fact advantageous as should cut backs be necessary the lower incomes will survive over the higher levels which make a bigger financial impact on the profit and loss accounts.

In general it would appear there remains discrimination and prejudice towards women in the labour market which manifests through lower salaries and status however progress has been made and will continue to be made in order to abolish these unjust differences. There is a requirement needed to understand the assumptions on gender differences by senior managers of today. When designing policy it is becoming ever more important to offer individualism and flexibility as opposed to static terms and conditions. By understanding the diversity within the workforce there will derive an understanding of how to motive the team and therefore produce exceptional results which of course is the aim of all good Chief Executives.

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A mental illness is a health problem that significantly affects how a person feels, thinks, behaves, and interacts with other people, the term mental disorder is also used to refer to these health problems.

Mental health problems also interfere with how a person thinks, feels, and behaves, but to a lesser extent than mental illness. Mental health problems are more common and include the mental ill health that can be experienced temporarily as a reaction to the stresses of life.

Mental health problems are less severe than mental illnesses, but may develop into a mental illness if they are not effectively dealt with.

This study examines the impact mental illness has on family members. When people first knew about mental illness they thought it was demon possession, but today research has shown the effects that psychology has on treatment and recovery.

This qualitative research was done in the area of La Brea, with questionnaires being randomly given out to 25 families. Before they answered the questionnaire they will be questioned on mental illness and given some information about the different types. After filling out the questionnaire they are going to have a choice to drop it into my mail box or personally hand it in.

The results show that many people are affected by mental illness especially young adults which can have many effects on the family, like financial stress, emotional and feelings of guilt. Mental illness can affect any one at all ages, gender, cultures, educational and income levels. What is important is the support the individual and family gets, therefore by supporting the family members it becomes easier for them to care for the sick person.

Mental health awareness should be done in communities to increase peoples understanding towards a greater mental health society so there can be less stigmatization.

Introduction
Background of the Problem

Mental illness has its earliest history of the healing arts; there has been an evolution of theories regarding the root causes of mental illness. Early writings from such ancient civilizations as those of Greece, Rome, India, and Egypt focused on demonic possession as the cause; this concept eventually disappeared only to resurface again in the Middle Ages in Europe, along with inadequate treatment of the mentally ill. Demons or “foul spirits” were believed to attach themselves to individuals and make them depressed (“poor-spirited”) or “mad.” The word mad became an early synonym for psychosis. Unfortunately, the “possessed” included people with seizure disorders as well as others were suffering from what are now known to be medical disorders. Few genuinely helpful treatments were available to relieve the suffering of the mentally ill.

By the eighteenth century they began to look at mental illness differently. It was during this time period that “madness” began to be seen as an illness beyond the control of the person rather than the act of a demon, and due to this, thousands of people were confined to dungeons of daily torture and were released to asylums where medical forms of treatment began to be investigated.

Toward the end of the nineteenth century, several European neurologists began actively investigating the causes of mental illness. Chief among them, and destined to change forever the understanding of mental illness, was Sigmund Freud. Although psychology and psychiatry have advanced considerably since Freud, his explorations were revolutionary. Freud introduced the concepts of the unconscious and the ego to modern thought, and reintroduced the ancient art of dream interpretation, but from a psychological standpoint. Freud also regarded human psychological states as an energy system in which blockages in the flow of thought would result in disease or illness, expressed as mental or emotional loss of balance. He introduced the notion of a “talking cure”; through the use of talk therapy alone, and this showed many improvements to patients.

Today, the medical model continues to be a driving force in the diagnosing and treatment of mental illness, although research has shown the powerful effects that psychology has on a person’s recovery.

Statement of the Problem

What is the impact that mental health of individuals has on the lives of family members?

Purpose of the Study

The intent of this study is to understand how families cope with a member which suffers with mental illness. This study also seeks to explore how mental illness affects them and the person as they interact with other in society.

Scope of the Study

This study will assist me the student in my studies to gain an understanding and knowledge about mental illness. The result of this study will encourage people to know that mental illness is not a life sentence and that people who suffer from mental illness can recover where they can live normal lives.

Definition of Terms

Mental Illness- mental illness is a health problem that significantly affects how a person feels, thinks, behaves, and interacts with other people, the term mental disorder is also used to refer to these health problems.

Diminished – to make smaller or less or to cause to appear so.

Depression – may be described as feeling sad, blue, unhappy, miserable, or down in the dumps. True clinical depression is a mood disorder in which feelings of sadness, loss, anger, or frustration interfere with everyday life for weeks or longer.

Schizophrenia – schizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it hard to, tell the difference between what is real and not real, think clearly, have normal emotional responses and act normal in social situations.

Bipolar Disorder – bipolar disorder is a condition in which people go back and forth between periods of a very good or irritable mood and depression. The “mood swings” between mania and depression can be very quick.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) – obsessive-compulsive disorder is an anxiety disorder in which people have unwanted and repeated thoughts, feelings, ideas, sensations (obsessions), or behaviours that make them feel driven to do something (compulsions).

Panic Disorder – panic disorder is a type of anxiety disorder in which you have repeated attacks of intense fear that something bad will happen.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) – post-traumatic stress disorder is a type of anxiety disorder. It can occur after you’ve seen or experienced a traumatic event that involved the threat of injury or death.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy – cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is a type of psychotherapeutic treatment that helps patients understand the thoughts and feelings that influence behaviours. CBT is commonly used to treat a wide range of disorders, including phobias, addiction, depression and anxiety.

Interpersonal Therapy – Interpersonal therapy focuses on the interpersonal relationships of the depressed person. The idea of interpersonal therapy is that depression can be treated by improving the communication patterns and how people relate to others.

Psychosis – psychosis is a loss of contact with reality that usually includes: false beliefs about what is taking place or who one is (delusions) and seeing or hearing things that aren’t there (hallucinations).

Stigmatization – stigma is a perceived negative attribute that causes someone to devalue or think less of the whole person. People tend to distance themselves from individuals in stigmatized groups, to blame individuals in these groups for the perceived negative attributes, and to discriminate against and diminish the stigmatized individuals.

LITERATURE REVEW

What is the impact of mental health of individuals on the lives of family members?

Mental illness has been an area under discussion and was bounded with mystery and fear, but at present, there have been remarkable improvement in our understanding and, especially in our ability to offer effective treatments. However, questions about mental illness often go unanswered and stand in the way of people receiving help.

Mental illnesses are medical conditions that disrupt a person’s thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning, mental illnesses are medical conditions that often result in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life.

Mental health refers to our cognitive, and/or emotional wellbeing – it is all about how we think, feel and behave. Mental health, if somebody has it, can also mean an absence of a mental disorder. Approximately 25% of people in the UK have a mental health problem during their lives. The USA is said to have the highest incidence of people diagnosed with mental health problems in the developed world. Your mental health can affect your daily life, relationships and even your physical health. Mental health also includes a person’s ability to enjoy life – to attain a balance between life activities and efforts to achieve psychological resilience.

Serious mental illnesses include major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder; post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with mental illness recovery is possible. Mental illnesses affect people of any age, race, religion, or income. Mental illnesses are not the result of personal weakness, lack of character or poor upbringing. Most people diagnosed with a serious mental illness can experience relief from their symptoms by actively participating in an individual treatment plan.

Mental illness can be treated with the use of psychosocial treatment such as cognitive behavioural therapy, interpersonal therapy, peer support groups and other community services can also be components of a treatment plan and that assist with recovery. It cannot be overcome through “will power” and are not related to a person’s “character” or intelligence.

Mental illness usually strike individuals in the prime of their lives, often during adolescence and young adulthood. All ages are susceptible, but the young and the old are especially vulnerable. Without treatment the consequences of mental illness for the individual and society are staggering: unnecessary disability, unemployment, substance abuse, homelessness, inappropriate incarceration, suicide and wasted lives.

It is very critical and of vital importance that mental illness is identified for effective recovery to be accelerated and the further harm related to the course of illness is minimized.

The exact causes of mental disorders are unknown, but an explosive growth of research has brought us closer to the answers. We can say that certain inherited dispositions interact with triggering environmental factors. Poverty and stress are well-known to be bad for your health-this is true for mental health and physical health. In fact, the distinction between “mental” illness and “physical” illness can be misleading. Like physical illnesses, mental disorders can have a biological nature. Many physical illnesses can also have a strong emotional component.

According to WHO (World Health Organization), mental health is “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”. WHO stresses that mental health “is not just the absence of mental disorder”.

The NIMH (National Institute of Mental Health, USA) mental disorders are “common in the USA and internationally”. Approximately 57.7 million Americans suffer from a mental disorder in a given year that is approximately 26.2% of adults. However, the main burden of illness is concentrated in about 1 in 17 people (6%) who suffer from a serious mental illness. Approximately half of all people who suffer from a mental disorder probably suffer from another mental disorder at the same time, experts say.

Scientists, psychiatrists, and other health care professionals know that the brain is made up in large part of essential fatty acids, water and other nutrients. The evidence is growing and becoming more compelling that diet can play a significant role in the care and treatment of people with mental health problems, including depression, ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) to name but a few.

According to a Swedish study, half of the family members have had to give up their own recreational pursuits. The burdens of caring for a patient at home are considerable. They often affect the caring relative’s social and leisure activities, and financial problems arise frequently. Relatives have difficulties in understanding and coming to terms with illness-related behaviour. ‘Negative’ symptoms are often a particular problem. Despite their burden, relatives do not complain much, although they receive little support, advice or information from the professionals engaged in treating the patient; much is now known about the difficulties relatives face, but we still need to know how they can best be helped.

Today’s model of psychiatric care recognizes the importance of families as part of the treatment team. Enlightened interventions which help families struggling with child abuse and neglect, domestic and community violence, substance abuse, or school failure increasingly integrate psychiatric consultation into their programs. Any or all of these interventions may be used in tailoring a treatment plan for patients.

Methodology

Mental illness affects many individuals in society, some known and others unknown. People who is affected by mental illness needs the support from family members in the process of their recovery, therefore it is extremely important that they have this which will make a major difference to their well being.

This study is a qualitative research and will be done with the use of questionnaires which will be given out to 25 families in the area of La Brea. They are going to be informed that a study is being done, in the highest of confidence and it is part of my course of study. The respondents will just have to fill out the questionnaire without their names or addresses, after it is filled out they can drop it into my mail box or they can personally hand it in.

The results of these questionnaires are going to be organized by tallying each question to understand how many people said what, and it will be presented through the use of either charts, tables and graphs.

This study on mental illness aims at investigating, How many people suffer from mental illness within their family? What did they do to assist? How they felt when their family member got sick? Were they hospitalized or they got private treatment? What support factors were there? Was there any stigmatization from anyone?

This study is going to have some unavoidable limitations, which can be the time limit of eight weeks, this research is being conducted in one limited area and the group chosen may not represent the majority suffering from mental illness.

Data Sample

The participants for this research were selected based on their availability, their willingness to participate due to the understanding that this is just for research purposes and their knowledge that mental illness is a matter people work with everyday. A selection of 25 participants will take part in the study in the area of La Brea.

In terms of ethnic background (20) 75% African and (5) 25%East Indian background, with about 20 female and 5 male ranging from the ages 15 to 65. The participants focused on in this study have had or have family members with mental health issues.

Results
Figure 1

Figure one shows that in the district of La Brea, 60% of the homes are of African descent, 20% are of East Indian, there is no Spanish, 12%are of Mixed Ethnicity and 8% are of another descent.

Figure 2

Figure two shows that in La Brea, there are 40% of nuclear families, 40% of extended families and 20% of single parent families.

Figure 3

Figure 3 shows that 80% said yes that their family suffered from mental illness are 80% and 20% said no.

Figure 4

Mentally ill people are of different ages therefore; figure 4 shows that the highest age range is persons in the age group twenty years at 32% which indicates that younger people suffer from mental illness, then thirty five years at 28%, twenty five years at 16%, thirty eight years at 12%, and eighteen years at 4%.

Figure 5

Figure 5 shows that more males than females suffer from mental illness as 60% of males and 40% of females has at some time in their life suffered from this sickness.

Figure 6

Treatment can range be medication, counselling, change of diet or other which is a combination of two or all three. Medication was the highest being 60%, counselling and other had 20% each.

Figure 7

Mental illness can have many effects on family members as 40% were stressed, 20% each became scared and confused while 12% were sad as too the fact that their family is suffering from this and 8% were helpless because they did not know how to deal with it.

Discussion

This study looked at the impact of mental illness of individuals on the lives of family members which can be described as a painful and sometimes traumatic experience.

The majority of persons said that they had a family member who suffered from mental illness which became a bit difficult for them to go through, as some felt isolated while others needed help and support for themselves. Some family members also felt guilty and shame because they thought that they were to blame for the illness and not knowing how to handle this type of crisis.

Referring to the literature today’s model of psychiatric care recognizes the importance of families as part of the treatment process. Scientists and psychiatrists clames that diet can play a significant role in the care and treatment process.

It also states that more males than females suffer from mental illness and people between the ages of 20-35 years are highly vulnerable to this illness. Therefore, this study indicates that mental illness is real, it is treatable by medication, therapy and other modalities, as psychiatrists help patients to understand their illness.

My recommendations after doing this research on mental illness many people were not aware that there are different types and help is available. I would recommend that lectures, flyers and having activities where the community can interact with each other to increase awareness on mental illness.

Conclusion

Mental illness can have a devastating effect on an individual, his or her family, friends, and on the community in many ways. How it affects the individual is obvious, reduced ability to care for themselves, strong negative emotions, distorted thoughts, inappropriate behaviour, and reduced ability to maintain a relationship are only a few possible outcomes. On friends and family, it can be a major responsibility to care for someone suffering from a mental illness, the emotional and behavioural components of some illnesses can be very difficult at times to understand and to deal with. Mental illness also affects the community due to the high incidence of homelessness and unemployment in some serious disorders such as schizophrenia.

We as a society are starting to see that depression doesn’t mean weakness, that anxiety doesn’t mean fear, and that schizophrenia doesn’t mean violence. We finally understand that needing help for mental or emotional reasons does not represent a character flaw.

We’ve got a long way to go, but compared to the time when this was seen as demonic possession, and even compared to a few years ago, we’ve already come a great distance.

References

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Top of Form

Explore the ‘local’ consequences of globalization in relation to social identity, social conflict and social policy.

Globalization is more than a term or a word describing a certain condition with regard to the international community of countries, it is an active living thing that is consistently changing, mostly for the better, each day. It is the expansive interaction between a widening sphere of countries not only regarding the conduct of business, but the day-to-day business of living as well. Globalization is a conglomeration of commerce, different clothes, vehicles, pharmaceutical products, foods, travel, the Internet, movies, television, music, languages, customs, laws, and McDonald’s. It represents how differing countries are increasing affecting and being affected by other countries as a result of technology and commerce. Least we forget technology is not just business related, it represents the developments such as the giant sized Airbus A380^[1] which can carry a record 840 passengers^[2] to its destination, and McDonald’s whose golden arches can been seen in 122 countries^[3]. These are prime examples of how globalization is in direct touch with individuals, therefore it (globalization) cannot be defined in strictly business or people terms, it is synonymous with both.

The preceding then defines globalization as a blend of commerce and the public interacting as needs and circumstances arise to conduct their affairs. This can range from the need to arrive in Paris for business, or obtain service on one’s Mercedes in Los Angeles. The preceding calls for items and/or people to cross borders and thus the differing customs, cultures, politics and identities of these interacting countries comes into play. From this perspective it can logically be said that forms of globalization have been a part of the human race for basically as long as our tenure here. Alexander the Great’s invasion of Persia with just 40,000 men^[4], and Marco Polo’s contact with China are limited scale examples globalization in its infancy.

As man’s ability to negotiate the seas then air, as well as communicate via telegraph wire, telephone and the Internet all decreased the time it took for people and goods to reach their destination, the intensity of globalization increased. The cultural, social, legal and other nuances that accompany contact between differing countries on whatever scale it takes, be it an invasion, a bank transfer, or a new automotive plant the parties on both sides must make adjustments. And it is these adjustments that mark ‘globalization’, as cultures that developed separately are now engaged in some form of interaction. It is from this context that the subject matter “…the ‘local’ consequences of globalization in relation to social identity, social conflict and social policy shall be explored.

The meeting of differing cultures, regardless of the plane of contact (commerce, war, language, the Internet), specially in today’s terms, is the actualization of globalization. From this perspective one can see the linage of this reality to the dawn of human time. The context of separately developing cultures coming into contact represents a change, no matter how great the initial impact (war), or benign (a letter) and it causes an accommodation by both sides. Thus, depending upon the degree of influence with respect to said action(s), areas such as social identity, conflict and policy are impacted. It must be remembered that not necessarily all three aspects are present in each instance(s). As the scale, meaning number of people, increases this affects the manner in which said impact acts upon the three main categories, ‘social identity – conflict – policy’.

These areas are not obscure concepts, they are integral parts of a country’s culture, language, customs, and traditions as well as laws and sociological composition. And there are times, based either on circumstances, such as war, or the natural progression of activity in a particular sphere, such as the acceptance of a product, goods or services, where the growth of such activity begins to change a country’s innate characteristics. The preceding refers to the context of ‘social’ identity, conflict and policy, whereby the impact of said outside influence tends to exert changes in how the present and future generations will see things in terms of a change in perspective from preceding generations. The impact of the first Model T in America is such an example. It allowed an ever increasing segment of the population to travel further from their original locale that ever before. Today the interstate highway system as well as those roads that traverse bordering countries permits people to make these journeys without so much as a thought with regards to globalization. While the foregoing does represent a sweeping statement, it does convey the idea which can thus be applied to other instances (hamburgers, television shows dubbed in languages, oil tankers, etc.). The preceding view is postulated by Agdal (2004)^[5] in his discussion of pre and post colonialism where he stated that the European city model from its earliest days has been transmitted throughout the world as a result of exploration and conquest. He continues that the historical, social and cultural circumstances vary, but the foundations of the political and socio-economic constructs basically is the same through the world.

Escobar (2000)^[6] draws a correlation between the rise of globalization and the demise of “…real socialism…”^[7] citing that the equation arises from the state control of socialism, versus the fluidity of the free market system. As the majority of the world’s nations are engaged in a free market economy they are able to expand their markets and thus derive increased revenues which spur growth. The foundation of a free market system is communication and negotiation, thus the socialist model which constrained these essentials was doomed to a self imposed isolationism in a static sized market (meaning number of countries under control). In contrast, the free market countries could constantly enter new areas, thereby increasing commerce. This occurrence is a direct illustration of how interaction with other countries, cultures, traditions, social systems and legal systems forces consistently ongoing accommodations. In a socialist system the view is that provided by the state. However this view can not be imposed in trade, tariff and other international commerce regulations where the interactions with people and their cultural, traditional and other views come into play, no matter how slightly. These outside influences slowly eat away at the established socialist fabric causing change. The introduction of McDonald’s in Russia provides such an example. Citizens at the local level experienced the menu and as the familiarity as well as number of outlets increased, so did the impact of this outside influence. The following will explore this phenomenon concerning globalization’s impact on social identity – conflict and policy.

The Big and Small Picture

Given the extensive nature of the scope of globalization’s reach as well as the multitude of influencing forces as work, understanding its consequences at a local level concerning social identity, conflict and policy requires understanding that the local aspect was /is initiated within the broader context. Without utilizing any specific examples in exploring the foregoing it should suffice to say while certain analogies might not be germane to certain conditions (meaning countries) the broader idea of the commonality of human interests, needs, wants and desires is relevant across all borders, abet in differing degrees of development based upon same. This refers to examples such as France and Myanmar. Formerly known as Burma the demographic profile of the populace proves a classical example of how at one level a country’s society can be used to and enjoy a vehicle, internet access, travel and other items as their daily necessities, while another segment might have to devote almost all of their daily attention on ensuring that they will have enough to eat.

The difference in interests, needs, wants and desires would be extremely similar if the entire country lived at the same standard. One group might see themselves in terms of social identity, as comfortable with the way things are progressing which would bear a similarity to their demographic counterparts in France. This could entail the industrialization of a region or zone as part of a national plan to generate more hydro electric power or industrial capacity, as well as what, how and why they feel the way they do about varied social issues (conflict and policy). Whereas another social group might see the construction of said power station or plants as intrusions on their way of life as a result of the removal of either forest, farming, grazing or land they have come to accept as their way of live, such as the Amazon Indians. This example has no peer group in France, however the lack of same does not mean that their views would not similar if such a group did exist. The tendency to compartmentalize countries, and thus their inhabitants ignores the fact that depending upon the demographic, educational and other factors involved, peoples needs, wants, desires and interests remain relatively constant when things are basically the same.

Social Identity

In examining the levels of impact that globalization has on various aspects of society, which includes commerce, it must be remembered that as it is with all things, the core revolves around individuals. Therefore the following examinations of ‘identity, conflict and policy’ will be rooted in this understanding. The theory of ‘social identity’ was understood by Henri Tajfel and John Turner (1979)^[8] who conceptualized that it consists of three ideas. Referred to as the “CIC Theory” it consists of:

Categorization

The almost overwhelming complexity of today’s world basically forces us as individuals to cluster things, ideas and other areas into manageable groups (categories) in order to understand them.^[9] And this also applies to the fact that we tend to and do categorize people with such words such as policeman, Spaniard, race driver, Protestant, and teacher as it helps us as well as others when communicating to understand. And this of course applies to areas outside of one’s profession, religion, nationality and avocation. And whilst we are categorizing others we, by our preferences, ideas, beliefs and other facets are categorizing ourselves as well. In some quarters individuals define what they consider to be the norms of behavior they prefer in terms of associates, friends, acquaintances and thus the group(s) we ourselves belong to.

The intense movement of ideas, products as well as people across national borders that is globalization brings into peoples lives various degrees of external impact that subtly changes the way they perceive things as well as ourselves. The era of globalization is quickly stripping certain levels of society of their historical identity in favor of a much broader context. Demographic groups staring at the upper middle class of almost all societies represent groups that are exposed on a consistent basis with the blending effects of this phenomenon. Blending, in the sense that the customs, traditions and cultural nuances that define differing countries, has become blurred within this group^[10].

The degree of impact (in this instance blurring) many vary within these groups say between the United Kingdom and Russia, but it does occur. Thinking in terms of a foreign vehicle as being more preferable than one made domestically, or the selection of attire, appliances and other purchases, selections or preferences demonstrates this. The tremendous success of Coca Cola, McDonald’s and Disney in Russia are examples of how globalization impacts upon social identity at the local level. The consequences of such success by foreign companies, as well as ideas, is that they slowly erode traditional forms of drink, eating habits and customs as a result of the exposure. This distances segments of the population from certain aspects of their tradition, culture, customs and other unique aspects that define their heritage.

Identification

It is this preceding self-awareness of whom and what we believe we are that leads to our identification of the groups that we ourselves believe we belong to. Within this concept reside two important components, ‘social identity’ and ‘personal identity’. Our historical perceptions as well as our acquired preferences, social circle, peers, family and friends help to define the “… in-groups…”^[11] we identify with and helps to clarify the “…out groups…”^[12] which we do not identify with. These differences are present in every society and have been so since the dawn of civilization. Outbreaks between tribes are the first examples of identification and the we versus them, I versus he (or them). Globalization has and does intrude upon as well as influence and shape social identity by virtue of the fact that the commerce, communications and movement of people brings cultures into increasing contact with each other. The degree or intensity of these instances is not really important as the fact is whatever the degree and or intensity is, it is sure to increase with the passage of time.

The influence and impact of globalization on social identity increases as the age of the subject group decreases. This is primarily due to older adults having established and set views, principles, beliefs and value system that were honed over the years. And while elements of globalization are present within these areas, its influence is based upon the degrees of exposure that were considerably reduced in comparison to present levels of activity. The outside influence exerted upon successive younger generations is multiplied by the globalization influences on prior generations. This compound effect serves to erode established customs, traditions, and modify legal, as well as social systems.

Comparison

Our views, opinions and interactions with other individuals begin from the amalgam of our traditions, culture, upbringing and personal experiences. These aid in the formation of values and belief systems as well as other important physiological aspects.^[13] In a healthy connotation the preceding enables us to feel good about ourselves and thus be able to “…deal effectively with the world…”^[14] This “…self esteem…”^[15] helps to underpin:

Positive and Negative Distinctiveness

In the positive context people view their own group as better than similar groups that they see as slightly, or more inferior. The other side of the coin is when we minimize differences of other groups so that the group we identify with is perceived favorably.

Social Creativity

This concept within ‘comparison’ is where those groups that see themselves as having high status based upon “…particular dimensions…”^[16] utilize these aspects as their comparative base. Individuals from a lower status rationalize their group by placing emphasis on those values they see or believe are superior as justification for their way(s) of seeing and believing in what they think.^[17]

The aforementioned examination of ‘Social Identity’ serves to provide an understanding of individual perceptions as well as interpretations which globalization influences and impacts upon. The preceding is extremely important in that it impacts individuals on many personal belief levels both subtly as well as dramatically, influencing and impacting upon them personally (at a local level).

Social Conflict

This basic human condition has its roots in the first individuals living in caves. They banded together as a result of family and social bonds forming a protective group for survival and physiological comfort. As these groups grew in numbers, they tested their ways of living and thinking (identification), with other groups and where the differences (in language communication, territory, hunting, etc.) were sufficient, conflict erupted. This forms the basis for this concept in that those groups as well as individuals with control and power over various “…materials as well as non-material resources…^[18]” tend to exploit those with the lesser of these components. The preceding is actualized either through the utilization of “…brute force…”^[19] and/or economics. Karl Marx (1848)^[20] stated that the process of social revolution is a result of class conflict with the powerful and rich exploiting the weak and poor. And this, when applied to globalization, explains how the influence and impact of more successful societies (in terms of commerce, social systems, philosophies, etc.) is stronger and thus changes those societies. The reverse of this process, meaning the weak and poor influence and impact upon the powerful and rich has less impact, therefore change at the lower level is in their favor.

Social Policy

A society needs order in which to operate and this is manifested by rules of acceptable behavior enacted into laws. These laws are control agents that can be either “…fair or unfair…”^[21] as well as “…good or bad…” and are consistently under scrutiny by members of society to have them changed or amended to fit the interest of their group identification thereby providing them with more power. And globalization adds to this as the net effects of commerce serve to enrich those in power who influence and enact the laws through their views to the public. The more progressive the society, the more the public helps to mold and shape the rules (laws) as the system under which the government operates has been molded to respond to public influences. This principle underscores advanced democratic societies. The clamor for public recognition has been provided by scores of internal revolutions. Fidel Castro’s accent to power was a result of public dissatisfaction with the old regime. And history has shown that in this instance that the lack of sufficient outside contact (globalization), has caused the populace economic repercussions. And the effects of globalization upon those who have left the borders of Cuba has been and is providing impetus to the population still there as these former citizens have seen and experienced a broader concept of life.

And while this example does not provide much in terms of their ability to change or modify existing rules, Fidel Castro does make mild concessions in the understanding that holding onto power does require giving some (in this case small amounts and grudgingly) back. Globalization influences social policy in both directions as the powerful and rich, with their advantages of information access as well as involvement in commerce and the upper echelons of society are able to have their views and ideas reviewed as possible amendments to the law. And those at the lower rungs also seek the enactment of laws that benefit them. The effects of globalization influence both instances in that it impacts upon the way individuals see things as a result of new ideas, products, information and communication.

As occupants on a sphere hurdling around a sun at 1,000 miles per hour the perception of countries, in terms of the human species, is an arcane concept. And globalization is proving this to be true. It is responsible for the demise of the former Soviet Union as that closed society had limited commerce options and this hampered their ability to complete with the financial resources of the free market system in financing its military debt. The slow build up of this debt financing pressure caused food lines and product shortages which the system (Soviet), in and of itself could not supply to its populace in sufficient quantities.

And, it was the affects of globalization which contributed to the preceding. The education and exposure of the populace of a country means that the systems which govern that populace must also progress, change and modify itself in order to be representative of the human beings under its auspices. Failure to adhere to this basic tenet was the cause of the failure of Alexander’s conquests, as his succeeding generals where not able to effectively control what had been won. And this also spelled the end of the Roman Empire, Genghis Chan, as well as colonialism. The factor in all these equations is people and if their needs, wants and desires are not being met, they will eventually seek ways in which to acquire them, be it through a democratic process, or conflict. As governments have found that the unrest created by internal as well as external conflict usually weakens their hold on power, they have, or are coming to understand that they must accept change as an inevitable part of the process and either be responsive to it, or precede it.

The broad scale of the preceding analysis does in fact apply to the localization of the consequences of globalization upon social identity, conflict and policy as governments preside over people and as history has shown, when the citizenry changes, so must the system which is supposed to be there to reflect their needs, wants and desires.

Bibliography

Agdal, Mohammed. 2004. Globalization, Identity Politics, and Social Conflict: Contemporary Texts and Discourses. Mohammed V University, Rabat.

Escobar, Arturo. 2005. Notes on Networks and Anti-Globalization Social Movements. Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina.

howstuffworks.com.2005. How the Airbus A380 Works. http://travel.howstuffworks.com/a380.htm/printable

Khaleej Times Online.2005. Giant Airbus among planes on display at Paris Air Show. http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/theworld/2005/June/theworld_June254.xml&section=theworld

The Australian National University.2005. Social Identity. http://www.anu.edu.au/psychology/groups/categorisation/socialidentity.php

Wikipedia.com. 2005. Alexander the Great. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_the_Great

Wikipedia.com. 2005. McDonald’s Corporation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonald’s

Wikipedia.com. 2005. Social Identity. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_identity

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