Influence of Organization Justice on OCBs

Influence of Organization Justice on OCBs 1. Introduction Questions regarding the organization justice and OCBs have received considerable attention by the researchers in the areas of industrial psychology, human resource management and organizational behavior during last few decades. Much more studies have been conducted to investigate the effects of organizational justice on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). Researchers have been emphasizing the relationship of organization justice with OCBs across the world through different moderating variables. The article which I have chosen for review is The Effects of Leader-Member Exchange on Organizational Justice and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Empirical Study written by Noormala Amir Ishak and Syed Shah Alam and published in European Journal of Social Sciences in 2009. As it is reflected in the topic, the author in this article analyzed the impact of three types of organizational justice on five dimensions of OCBs. The author also assesses the mediating role of Leader-Member Exchange in the relationship of organizational justice and OCBs. In the first part, the paper under discussion will to be summarized and in the second part, the relevance of the article to the Management will be discussed. In last part of critical review, first the article has been summarized and the critical remarks have been pen down. 2. Relevance to the Management Organizational Justice The issue of organizational justice and OCBs has attained ample attention of research community under the umbrella of organizational behaviors from last 4 decades. The work of Folger and Greenbergs (1985) is considered to be pioneering in this area of research, which received considerable attention in academic circles. It was followed by the study of Cropanzano, et al. (2001), whose primary focus was to explore the perception of justice and fair dealings among workers on work places. Later studies found organization justice to have a strong link with HR factors such as perceived organizational support, leadership behaviors and leaders-member exchange, empowerment, communication and socialization (H. Zhang, 2006; Jahangir, et. al, 2004) and employees attitudes such as job satisfaction, job commitment, turnover intentions, employee deviance, job stress (Zhang, 2006; Karriker and Williams, 2009; Aquino, et al., 1999). Researchers in the area of organizational justice classified these fa ctors into three dimensions: Distributive, Procedural and Interactional (Colquitt, 2001; Greenberg, 1993). These dimensions of justice have been reviewed in following sections. i) Distributive Justice: Distributive justice refers to the extent to which employees perceive the fairness of their work outcomes (Adam, 1965; Homans, 1968). Distributive justice is derived from equity theory provided by Adam (1963, 1965). The theory argues that people compare the ratios of their perceived input (e.g. contribution) and output (e.g. financial and non-financial rewards) with those of others at the workplace. If there is imbalance, the individuals whose ratio is greater than the other is perceived as underpaid whereas the individuals whose ratio is lesser is perceived as overpaid. Equal ratios are strongly associated with positive employees behaviors towards their jobs and organizations (Greenberg, 1990). Individuals who perceive themselves as comparatively low paid, attempt to reduce their distress by attempting to transform the inequitable situation to comfortable equitable position. These attempts may either be behavioral (e.g. altering job input and/or output) or psychological (e.g. alteri ng perception of work input/or ouput) (Walster, et al. 1978). Keeping in view the equity theory, later studies found that underpaid individuals decrease their contribution and individuals overpaid increase their contribution to achieve the organizational goals (Greenberg, 1982). ii) Procedural Justice: Thibaut and Walker conducted a series of study in early 1970s on the reaction to dispute-resolution process which further lead them to the development of procedural justice theory (Thibaut and Walkder, 1975). Procedural justice was conceived as extent to which individuals recognize the fairness of procedures and systems that govern the allocation of rewards (Leventhal, 1980; Lind and Tyler, 1988). Leventhal (1980) provided a variety of rules which allocation procedure must satisfy in order to be perceived as fair. These rules are consistency, bias-suppression, accuracy, correctability, representativeness and ethicality. Leventhal concluded that perception of procedural justice will be positive if these rules are sufficiently satisfied by the reward allocation procedure. Greenberg (1986) commented that individuals believe that reward resulting from unfair processes are themselves unfair but only when such outcomes are little beneficial. On the other hand, outcomes that provide more be nefits are perceived as fair irrespective of the fairness of outcome allocation procedure. When procedures are transparent and people are being informed about them, they recognize that they are being treated fairly (Beugre, 1998). iii) Interactional (Interpersonal and Informational) Justice Extending the previous theories of procedural justice, Bies and Moag (1986) differentiated between formal procedures (e.g. consistency, bias-suppression, accuracy) and the social aspects of fairness (e.g. treatment with courtesy) and introduced third dimension of organizational justice termed as interactional justice. According to the Bies and Moag (1986), interactional justice refers to the extent to which employees are treated with dignity and respect. Interpersonal treatment is found to have a significant impact on the employees perception of organizational justice as well. Employees perception is promoted when the justifications regarding the situation are clearly, truthfully and adequately explained and when employees are treated with courtesy, dignity and respect (Bies, Shapiro, Cumming, 1988). Organizational Citizenship Behaviors Employees Readiness to exert extra efforts beyond their formal job duties has long been identified as an essential predictor of organizational performance. It is noted in the work environment that the readiness of employees to exert cooperative efforts ultimately leads to the effective achievements of organizational goals. Exploring further this area, Katz and Kahn (1978) revealed that the rewards that motivate such unprompted, informal input are different from those that encourage task proficiency. Such theories provided an arena to the follower researchers; among them, Organ (1988) first introduced the concept of OCBs. Citizenship is a behavioral component that is believed to have a promise to improve organizational productivity by improving the attitudes of employees, creating harmony, cooperation and coordination among employees and minimizing disagreements (Bateman and Organ, 1983; Smith et al, 1983). OCB is defined as an optional and extra role, beyond the formal job, without e xpecting any reward that improves organizational functioning (Organ, 1988). Behavior such as helping an absent co-worker, willing to perform extra duties whenever required, playing vital role in the organization functions even without assigning the duty and resolving unconstructive interpersonal conflict (Organ, 1990). Organ (1988) introduced five dimensions OCBs i.e. Altruism (helping the specific others on the organizational tasks), Conscientiousness (efficient use of time, extra role with respect to the attendance, abiding by organizational rules, break time etc), Courtesy (get the update information and providing it to others to avoid work related problems), Sportsmanship (avoids complaining, Maximum use of time for organizational profitability), Civic Virtue (participating in committees and volunteer work for organizational functions). Followed study by Farh et. al., (1997) investigated two types of organizational behaviors i.e. positive contribution and preventing to engage in activities that are harmful to others. Leader-Member Exchange Leader-member exchange (LMX) theory suggests that quality of the exchange relationships that have been between employees and their leaders promise the highly productive attitudes of employees (Gerstner and Day, 1997; Graen and Uhl-Bien, 1995). LMX theory is unique among leadership theories in its focus on the dyadic exchange relationships between supervisors and each of their subordinates (Gerstner and Day, 1997). High-quality exchange relationships are based upon the mutual trust, respect, and obligation that generate coherence between an employee and his or her supervisor. Low-quality exchange relationship, on the other hand, are characterized by formal, role-defined interactions and predominantly contractual exchanges that result in hierarchy-based downward influence and distance between the parties. Social Exchange Theory Social exchange theory by Blau (1964) assumes that a reciprocal relationship between two humans or parties can be established. In other words, if one party renders its services or anything to the other, the receiving party would be obliged to perform the same or similar function for the former, in the days to come. If this sort of reciprocal relations are carried over the period, these would result in a social bond. This bond gives birth to trust, reliance and confidence between the parties. For instance, if an employer treats his employees with care and respect, the employees would behave, in return, in the same gentle and tender way. The treatment of employees may be in the form of better performance or undertaking their duties in an honest manner. Various studies on related topics such as organizational justice (Cropanzane et. al, 2001), leadership (Graen and Scandura, 1987), psychological contract (Rousseau, 1989, 1998), and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) (Organ, 1988 , 1990) conducted in different cultures have supported this theory empirically. Arguably, the reciprocal nature of human relations is more important in traditional cultures like Pakistan. The requiting norm of this theory reflects from the behaviors of Pakistani people. So, the social exchange theory provides a theoretical basis for conducting a study on behavioral aspect of relations between workers and owners, in context of Pakistan. In the light of above-mentioned theories, it is concluded that fair organizational practices promise the productive and favorable employees attitude. Under the social exchange theory there is reciprocal relation can be seen between firm and its employee when employees who are being treated fairly found to be involved more in some extra activities beyond their formal job duties to improve the firms effectiveness. Leader-Member exchange is one of the leadership theories which conclude that employees perform more if there is best dyadic relationship between leader and his follower. The article under discussion is found to be under the umbrella of study of organizational behaviors which is central theme of Human Resource Management. The study of organizational behaviors deals with behavioral issues of employees with the objective to improve the employees behaviors to accomplish the organizational goals efficiently. 1. Summary of the Article Objectives of the Study The study focused on OCB and examined the influence of organizational justice on OCB. The study is expected to address these two issues: (1) to investigate the influence of organizational justice types on OCB; and (2) to examine the role of LMX as a mediator in the relationship between organizational justice types and OCB. Research Design Research Framework On the basis of literature review, the following research model has been established by the author to explore the relationship between organizational justice and OCB with the moderating role of LMX. Hypothesis for this study are as under: H1: Organizational justice types have significant positive relationships with OCB. The impact of interpersonal justice and informational justice are stronger on OCB than the impact of distributive justice and procedural justice. H2: Organizational justice types have significant positive relationships with LMX. H3: LMX mediates the relationship between organizational justice types and OCB in such a way that the impact of organizational justice on OCB will be smaller (partial mediation) or non-significant (full mediation) in the presence of LMX. Sampling: Data has been collected from non-supervisory employees, employed in the participating domestic commercial banks. A package containing two survey questionnaires: ?one questionnaire (Set A) was to be answered by the subordinate and another (Set B) to be answered by the supervisor in charge of the subordinate ?was distributed to participating banks. The subordinates were also given questionnaire items measuring organizational justice and LMX. The supervisors were given questionnaire items rating the subordinates OCB and in-role behavior. A total of 350 questionnaires were distributed to 80 branches. A total of 339 completed questionnaires were returned, yielding a response rate of 97%. Measurement: Citizenship behaviors of employees were measured by 24-item OCB scale developed by Podsakoff et al. (1990) was utilized to assess five dimensions of OCB. Organizational justice was measured using the 20-items adapted from Colquitt (2001). LMX was measured by the scale extracted by previous literature. Results: Table 1 reports the means, standard deviations, and zero-order correlations for all variables. Using Pearsons correlations it was found that procedural and distributive justice were significantly correlated with only one OCB dimension-altruism while Interactional justice and LMX were found to be significantly related to all OCB dimensions. Contrary to expectation, the results from Table 2 in which results are given of linear regression, it was found that only interactional justice has a significant relationship with OCB (altruism and consideration). Thus, hypothesis 1 was only partially supported. LMX was then regressed on organizational justice (Table 3). Distributive justice and interactional justice were found to have significant relationships with LMX. Hypothesis 2 was thus partially supported. OCB dimensions were then regressed on LMX. There had to be a significant relationship between the two in order to proceed to the next step of mediation testing. It was evidenced (Table 4) that LMX showed significant relationships with altruism and sportsmanship. Hypothesis 3 was also partially supported. Table 5 shows the results of the tests required for mediated regression analyses. The conditions for mediation were met for altruism but not for sportsmanship and consideration. Hypothesis 4 was thus partially supported. We found that the relationship between interactional justice and OCB which was significant in became insignificant once we included LMX as a mediator. We found that LMX fully mediated the relationship between interactional justice and altruism. Conclusions: Results shows that there is positive relationship between interactional justice and two dimensions of OCB i.e. altruism and consideration which is similar to the findings of Moorman (1991). Distributive and procedural dimensions of organizational justice have not been found as a predictor of citizenship behaviors of subordinate. When subordinates feel that they feel that there is interaction justice between them and their supervisor, they found to be involved more in citizenship behaviors. The findings also noted that this relationship strengthened when there the role of LMX is included in the model. These results are consistent with social exchange theory where it entails unspecified obligations, did not specify the exact nature of future return for contributions, is based on individuals trusting that the exchange parties will fairly discharge their obligations in the long run, and allows exchange parties reciprocate through discretionary, extrarole acts (Blau, 1964; Konovsky and Pu gh, 1994; Moorman, 1991; Niehoff and Moorman, 1993). The study provides some insight for managers that in order to develop the citizenship behaviors among employees, the role of supervisors should not be ignored. Supervisors should be emphasized more so that they may build mutual interest and good dyadic relations with their subordinates. Managers need to always be supportive towards their employees and listen to their concerns and ask for their input on decisions affecting them. Open interactions with the employees will enhance their motivation toward their work and will lead them to perform in their work as well as performing OCB. The study provides evidence that interactional justice has greatest impact on OCB through the presence of LMX. This is especially true when the subordinates see their superiors giving them support and encouragement to them at work. In an environment in which relationships are important, superiors emotional support and guidance appeared to assist subordinates in attaining higher levels of performance. In res ponse subordinates are likely to perform some extra role beyond to their job in order to benefit other employees and organization. The study reported here is not without its limitations. The results pertaining to organizational justice and OCB may be susceptible to common method variance. The study conducted was also cross-sectional, which does not allow for an assessment of causality. Thus our results are mute where issues of causality are concerned. Critical Review: As discussed earlier, the featured article addresses one of the theories of leadership and organizational behavior. Earlier studies have been investigated the relationship of organizational justice and citizenship behaviors directly and through different moderating variables. Recently a study conducted by Karriker and Williams (2009) found the relationship between organizational justice and OCBO through OMX as mediating variable and the relationship between organizational justice and OCBS through LMX as mediating variable. Another justification of featured study is review of OCB literature by Podaskoff et al (2000) that suggests cultural influences on OCB as a future research agenda. Exploratory findings of Organ and Ryan (1995) also suggested that OCB may be evaluated and interpreted differently in different cultures/nations. They identify individualism/collectivism and power distance as potentional source of variation in research findings obtained in US context. For example they su ggest initiative in workplace may be different in high power distance countries as employees may limit themselves to what they are told. They also mentioned the possible impact of cultural differences on measurement of OCB (Organ and Ryan, 1995). Organization justice and OCBs have received ample attentions by the researchers as it is found to be positively linked with individual and organizational productivity. Vital role of organizational justice in creating citizenship behaviors has been emphasized by researchers in different aspects (Farh et al., 1990; Konovsky and Pugh, 1994; Moorman, 1991; Moorman et al, 1993; Niehoff and Moorman, 1993). Employees perception regarding fairness of outcomes and procedures has been considered as a major motivational basis for developing citizenship behaviors among employees (Organ, 1990). A study conducted by Moorman et, al., (1998) found that there is positive relationship between procedural justice and perceived organizational support and between perceived organizational support and three of the five organizational citizenship behavior dimensions. However, by including the effects of POS as a mediating variable, we found stronger support for a fully mediated model of the effects of procedural justice on OCB. Findings of this study provided support to earlier studies by Organ and Ryan, (1995) which revealed that fairness at workplace play major role in creating citizenship behaviors among employees. Researchers have also been attempting to examine the relationship between organizational justice and OCB through mediating variables. In this respect, Konovsky and Pugh (1994) analyzed the mediating role of trust between justice and performance relationships using the supervisor as proxy for the organization, rather than directly addressing the individuals level of trust in the organization itself. The study examined the mediating role of trust in supervisor between the relationship of procedural justice and OCB and found full support for this relationship. Extending this framework, Aryee et al. (2002) investigated the mediating role of trust in the supervisor and trust in the organization and found support for mediating role of trust in the organization between organizational justice (distributive, procedural and interactional) with job satisfaction, turnover intent and organizational commitment while trust in supervisor found to have mediating relationship between interactional justice only with OCBO and OCBS. Moorman and Niehoff (1998) conducted a study to measure the relationship of procedural justice with OCBs through mediating role of perceived organizational support (POS) and found that POS fully mediate between the relationship of organizational justice and OCBs. Masterson et al (2000) found support for the mediating role of POS in the relationship of organizational justice and OCBO. Karriker, JH and ML Williams, (2009) conducted a study to find the relationship of organizational justice on OCBS (citizenship behaviors that benefit to supervisors) and OCBO (citizenship behaviors that benefit to the organization) and found full support between system-referenced justice outcomes and OCBO and mixed support for agent-referenced justice perception and OCBS. Specifically, system-referenced distributive and procedural justice were not found to have significant impact on OCBO, yet agent-referenced distributive justice had a significant direct relationship with OCBS, and agent-referenced distributive and procedural justice had significant indirect relationships with OCBS. In addition, interpersonal justice found to have direct impact on OCBO. Here, in this study the relations of interpersonal justice only have been measured with OCB rather than full model of interactional justice including interpersonal and informational justice perceptions. Impact of system-referenced dis tributive and procedural justice was not supported in this study while one dimension of interactional justice i.e. interpersonal justice was found to have direct relationship with OCBO. Trust between employees and their supervisors is found to be strong predictor of OCB in the context of work environment. Leadership behaviors and level of OCBs have also been under the discussion of researchers in the area of social sciences. In this regard, Pdosakeff et. al, (1998) examined the aggregate effects of the set of transformational leader behaviors on OCBs noted found the indirect relationship between leader behaviors and OCBs. The study suggests that to find the support between leader behaviors and OCBs, organizational trust and employees satisfaction have to be included in the model as transformational leader behaviors impact both trust and employees performance while on the other hand only trust is significantly related to the OCBs. In contrast, transactional leader behavior on OCBs found to be positively related to two dimensions i.e. altruism and sportsmanship while no effect has been found between transactional leader behavior and other three dimensions of OCB. Mast erson et al. (2000) explored that high-quality LMX relationships lead employees to engage in behaviors that are directly related to their supervisors, such as in-role behavior and organizational citizenship behaviors. They found that LMX mediated the relationships between interactional justice and both job satisfaction and supervisor-focused citizenship behaviors, OCBS. Extending the research on the said area, the authors attempted to shed light on organizational justice and OCB directly and through the mediating role of LMX. Findings of the study opened some new avenue for social sciences researchers. Karriker and Williams (2009) investigated the relationship of organizational justice with OCBO through the mediating variable of organization-member exchange (OMX) and relationship of organizational justice with OCBS with the mediating role of LMX. The authors applied the model with some valuable changes in Malaysian culture and provide useful insight for managers to improve the level of OCBs. Over all the study is very well organized, address an unattended area; but the study seems to be failed to discuss the literature on organizational justice due to which reader may face difficulties to build logical connection between organizational justice and OCB. Further the study could not properly differentiate between the dimensions of OCBs that benefit to the individual and that benefit to organization. The author made good attempt to collect the data from respondents and their supervisors but the problem in this scenario that there may some intergroup conflict that may bias the result. To improve the accuracy regarding OCB data, peer review should also be incorporated in the data. As for as statistical tools are concerned, Zero-order Correlations, Linear and Mediating Regression test have been applied to analyze the data. The data should also be analyzed through Structure Equation Model (SEM) that is commonly used for the model where mediating and moderating variables are included in the model.

Creating a Democratic School Essay

The current educational set up is based on a curriculum that is centered on adults and their feelings towards educating their young’s or the younger generation. Most often, their sentiments, aspirations and aims do not coincide with what the younger generation wants or feels like doing by creating or providing a curriculum which, though sometimes child centered, muzzle with the individual freedom of the young learners. There is a need to change the present set up of the school in order to effectively respond to the demands of globalization by giving back to the learners and to their parents the needed voice regarding the things they want to learn or do in school. Deborah Meier (2005) opined that the changes in school structures should be pursued by a convinced and involved faculty who believes that there is a need to change the system although being involved is not an easy task but a very taxing one. The Herculean task involves changing an embedded lifetime habit on the way schools should be run and the way parents and students expect education to be delivered. This task should be performed by all the participants in a climate of self-governance. According to Garrison (2003) John Dewey defined education in a technical sense as the â€Å"reconstruction or reorganization of experience which adds to the meaning of experience and which increases the ability to direct the course of subsequent experience† (p. 527) This paper will examine how to create a democratic school and the factors involved in it as well as the modalities of its existence. Components of a Democratic School Democracy As the central tenet of social and political relations, democracy is American’s basis of self governance (Beane & Apple, 2002). As a tool of measuring wisdom and the worth of social policies as well as any shift in the current paradigm, democracy is the ethical anchor that holds the system of government in place. According to Beane and Apple (2002) it is through â€Å"democracy† that Americans measure their political progress and trade status with the other countries. People were taught that democracy is working in various ways of political governance’s social dimensions involving the consent of the people and the equal opportunities given to them. Beane and Apple (2002, p 6-7) added that â€Å"[l]ess explicitly taught were the conditions on which a democracy depends, the foundations of democratic way of life. The stated conditions and extensions even extend to education, to wit: [t]he open flow of ideas, regardless of their popularity, that enable people to be as fully informed as possible; [f]aith in the individual and collective capacity of people to create possibilities for resolving problems; [t]he use of critical reflection and analysis to evaluate ideas, problems, and policies; [c]oncern for the welfare of others and â€Å"the common good;† [c]oncern for the dignity and rights of individuals and minorities; [a]n understanding that democracy is not so much an ‘ideal† to be pursued as an â€Å"idealized† set of values that we must live and must guide our life as a people; and [t]he organization of social institutions to promote and extend the democratic way of life. † In Citing Dewey’s works, Beane and Apple (2002) theorizes that in order for the people to maintain its security and the blessing of democracy in their daily lives, they should be gi ven an opportunity of knowing the real meaning of life and how or where it might led to. Though with objections, followers of democratic ways in school firmly believed that the democratic way of life hinges on the learning opportunities and its dimensions on how to lead it. For them the school has the moral obligation to educate the students and allow them to experience and taste the true meaning of democracy because it is not solely for the benefit of the adults but for the young generation as well. The democratic system’s leaders fully consider the consequences of their visions. Having a democratic school is not purely actively involving the young but extend to the establishment of a democratic place where democratic ideals flourishes to the various adult’s roles played in schools. Thus, various educational partners and stakeholders such as teachers, school leaders, parents, community activist, and other citizens should be fully informed about their critical role and participation in enacting school policies and guidelines as well as programs for maximum utilization of the young people. There are painful contradictions and tensions in establishing a democratic school. These factors revealed that enjoying the fruits of democracy in life is always a privilege but coupled with a struggle. But above and beyond these struggles, creating a democratic school is a hope for a possibility for professional educators and citizens to work together in creating a sound and flexible but enjoyable democratic schools which will cater to the ideals of the common good of the whole community (Beane & Apple, 2002). The Democratic School’s Structure A democratic school’s structure provides a venue for an active participation of all stakeholders especially those who are directly involved in the school management, including young people, have the right to participate in the decision making process, including professional educators, young people, their parents, and other school community members. The democratic planning at the school and classroom level is a genuine attempt to honor the people’s right to participate in the decision making process affecting their lives as it adheres to the democratic values (Beane & Apple, 2002). The right of the participants to be heard is coupled with responsibility as it opens a door on how the opposing views will fit into the delicate equation of balancing special personal interest with a larger common good of the democratic community (Beane & Apple, 2002). The learning activities in a democratic school are characterized by cooperation and collaboration rather than competition among the young people as it emphasizes structural equity of the young people’s right of access to all programs in the school as well as the outcomes of its school values. This structural equity assures the public and the entire stakeholders that the school has no institutional barriers against the young people by doing away with the school’s eliminating tracking, biased testing, and providing equal opportunities to everyone regardless of race, gender, and socioeconomic status. Likewise, the school structure adheres to the improvement of school climate and enhances student self-esteem as well as reducing social inequities resulting to the total overhauling the immediate environment that affects them. What distinguished democratic schools from the other kinds of progressive schools—humanistic or child centered school even if in both or many ways shared the same visions with the democratic school’s visions, it extends beyond by improving the school climate or enhancing student’s self-esteem. Democratic educators seek not simply to lessen the harshness of social inequities in school, but to improve the environment and the living conditions that affects them. Democratic Curriculum The curriculum of the democratic school allows its participants’ views to be heard as an educator in this system has the moral responsibility to help young people develop their ideas by actually voicing them for the benefit and critic of the others. The curriculum moves beyond selective norm of the dominant culture’s endorsed knowledge and meaning to a wider range of views and voices as it considers not just adults perception but also the youth’s question about themselves and their worlds by inviting young people to assume the active role in the search of meaning to their world rather than just being mere spectators only(Beane & Apple, 2002, p 13). The democratic way of life is seeking dynamic paths by which the values of democracy extend and expands. The curriculum developed both the intelligent and reflective component of a child or leaner in solving problems, events, and issues that crop up in the course of their collective lives. For Beane and Apple (2002), the curriculum is a discipline of knowledge and not simply categories of educated children to absorb and accumulate but a source of insight and information that will serve as living lenses through which to look at those issues that confront society. Thus, a democratic curriculum is â€Å"helping the students become knowledgeable and skilled in many ways, including those required by gatekeepers of socio-economic access. â€Å"Simply, democratic educators live with constant tension of seeking a more significant education for young people while still attending to the knowledge and skills expected by powerful educational forces whose interest are anything but democratic† (Beane and Apple, 2002, p 16-17). Finally, as a mover of change, a teacher in a democratic community has the right to have their voices be counted in curriculum planning and development. This is in line with the idea that since they are the one’s who interact with the child, they should be heard the most for they are more knowledgeable of the child’s nature. Beane and Apple (2002) revealed that the current set up in a non democratic school is that all curriculum planning and design is located at or centralized in the state or district offices of education. Tensions Inherent In the Concept There are factors that need to be resolved and look into in order to have a fuller understanding of the open tensions inherent in any democratic school. Community is a number one area and source of tensions undermining this system’s success. In order for any school system to be successful, complete overhaul of the community should be given a paramount importance and preferential attention in order to act as a democratic school’s partner in creating a democratic youth’s institution (Furman & Starrat, 2002). Furman and Starratt’s (2002, p. 106) give the following â€Å"nature or character of a democratic community. This concept was derived from Dewey’s progressivism. The following: [d]emocratic community is based on open inquiry, the full and free interplay of ideas as suggested by Dewey; [d]emocratic community members work for the common good; [i]n a democratic community, the rights of all, including the less powerful, are respected; and [c]reating democratic community in schools is a systemic challenge, involving structures, process and curriculum. † Problematizing Community Furman & Starrat’s study revealed the two â€Å"prevailing attitudes for better understanding the community in education. These are: the understanding of the anachronistic attitudes of community in education in assuming that social conditions underpinning earlier theories of community can be recreated in contemporary schools and societies; and that the rendition of community in education tend to create an impression of the school as an isolated, â€Å"stand alone† community, in which heroic educators strive for cohesion amidst a sea of chaotic outside forces that threaten the school’s educational; values† (2002, p. 108-109). First, exercising difference and otherness concept in community building provides a matrix that accepts differences with respect to justice and appreciation and peaceful cooperation with differences. Second, the prevailing attitudes provide for a sense of interconnectedness and cultural capital exchange between community and schools needs to be recognized and nurtured (Furman & Starrat, 2002). Above and beyond these two issues is the fact that for a democratic school to succeed â€Å"community† needs to be redefined and this redefinition will then form part of the idea of a democratic community. For Furman & Starratt, the community’s new understanding â€Å"must be based on acceptance and celebration of difference rather than a futile and nostalgic striving for sameness and homogeneity which will focus on the integral linkages between the school, the surrounding community, and the larger global community rather on the isolated community within the school walls. The key to answer this novel undertaking is to understand that community works on interdependence and the common good† (2002, p. 110-111). Finally, the diversified school population of a democratic community in school, provides for an interdependent relationship in order to achieve the common good of the school; â€Å"that the school and surrounding community are also interdependent—culturally and economically—with the school being a key contributor to the community’s cultural capital and common good; and that ultimately, all people, and the school communities to which that belong are interdependent and interconnected in contributing to the common good of human kind† (Furman & Starratt, 2002, p. 110-111). Problematizing Democracy As in the case of the community, the school’s democratic practices have two dimensional issues needed for a democratic school system’s consideration. The first issue is that the school’s democratic practice is minimal as the freedom of choice and expressions are seldom experienced in schools; and that a democratic tenets emphasizes the individual freedom to pursue its self-interest, â€Å"with citizen participation in government reduced to electing representatives who will promote policies that serve the pursuit of that self-interest† (Furman & Starratt, 2002, p. 110-111). The present issue led to democracy’s reconceptualization as there is a pressing need for cross-cultural, cross-national dialogue and understanding of common good in school. Thus, â€Å"democracy needs to incorporate the values of post modern liberalism, or civic republicanism, or deep democracy and civic participation. These values are: [t]he worth and dignity of individuals and the value of their participation; [r]everence for free and open inquiry and critique; [t]he responsibility of individuals to participate in open inquiry, collective choices and actions in the interest of the common good; and [t]he recognition that post modern democratic participation transcends understanding of democratic principles associated with specific nation-states. † (Furman & Starratt, 2002, p. 111-112). Democratic Minimalism in Schools Furham and Starratt (2002) cited Maxcy’s 1995 study which revealed that â€Å"American public education has been dominated by democratic ‘minimalism’ both within the school and in regard to local control and governance because the scope of democratic decisions making and freedom of choice and expression has been extremely narrow. † Minimalism is prevalent in American public school due to educator’s fear that democratic practices carries with it some risk like chaos and loss of control once democracy is released to the classrooms. Thus, there is a need to conform with the hierarchical structure in place regarding decision making on the various aspects of learning (p. 112). Finally, as a community of differences, democratic community’s difference is recognizing the interdependence and the common good, as the local and global glue. Also, the democratic community is â€Å"informed by a deep or thick version of democratic participation in which all citizens have a respected voice, and communal action is determined through high levels participation in free and open inquiry† (p. 112-113). Democratic Participation’s Process In a democratic school the structures and procedures allow all school’s members to participate and have a respected voice in decision making and policies affecting them. Though recognizing school’s interdependence, surrounding community, and the assets that any community offers, these structures and procedures includes community members and is open to community-initiated participation (Furman & Starratt, 2002, p. 117-118). There is a collaborative planning by the student and teachers in reaching decision that respond to their concerns, aspirations, and interests. In Brodhagen’s (2002) article entitled â€Å"The situation made us special† wrote that at the start of her class they made a written constitution (p. 87) that will serve as their guide. This constituent embodies the pledge of every participant and signatories that they will observe respect for individual differences in opinions and individuality as well as enjoined themselves into formation of collaborative learning experiences, listening to others and resolving conflicts which may divide them in the future. Also in the same study, Brodhagen’ students were involved in curriculum planning (p. 87-89) as they try to unravel the mysteries of their individual differences and their unique world they live in. In the case Rosenstock & Steinberg’s (2002) paper entitled â€Å"Beyond the shop: Reinventing vocational education† revealed that in her case they have a common planning time wherein the teachers and counselor who signed for the program sits together and plan, review revise, and proposed curriculum activities and most especially to get to know each other as well as they explore collaborative work (p. 49). For Furham and Starratt (2002) the student and teacher’s activities planning are guided by a four-stage â€Å"process of democratic deliberations: information sharing; reaction; ideas and strategy developments; and debriefing. † The meeting held is not confined only with the â€Å"instructional/curricular decision but also to varied subject matters that concerns the participants. † The above process may be used by the teachers in their meeting with their fellow educators. â€Å"Significance parent involvement and broad based community participation also need to be nurture[d] through creative ideas in regard to shared governance, communication and meeting structures that are equitable and inviting and promot[ing] understanding across groups and individuals who might clash in their values. Democratic participation requires more than forums. It requires the ability to listen, understand, empathize, negotiate, speak, debate and resolve conflicts in a spirit of interdependence and working for the common good† (p. 118). The Morality of the System There is also a moral dimension that is a ground for conflict in a democratic school. Furham & Starratt (2002) provided a moral dimension of a democratic community. The following: â€Å"[a] social morality that values sociality itself, that is, that values coming together in the communicative spaces under which dialogue can occur in the interest of the common good; [a] reverence for open inquiry and critique within these common space, in pursuit of the common good; [a] respect for individuals and for the assets they bring to communities, with a view toward celebrating difference; and [a] sense of responsibility that acknowledges the interdependence of all in achieving the common good† (p. 120). School educators in a democratic community promotes the above mentioned values through modeling and discussions pertaining to behaviors such as respect, sociality, empathy, compassion, acceptance of difference, forgiveness, generosity, and teamwork. The older student could be a great model for their younger school mates helping them to develop the basic habits of caring for fellow members of the school community. The interdependence will be the mor al foundation of the school as a community (Furham & Starratt, 2002, p. 121). Curriculum and Instruction The processual and moral dimension of a democratic school is the basis of democratic school’s curriculum which is characterized by openness to multiple ideas and sources of information and to critique this information. â€Å"A democratic curriculum would be based on interdependence as a theme. History, science, and government’s presentation in a democratic school, the curriculum would help students understand the fundamental ecological interconnectedness of human life across culture and nature† (Furham & Starratt, 2002, p. 120-121). The fundamental approach in a democratic community is the process of democratic deliberation. In a democratic community, classroom management had prior discussion among class members and consensus about appropriate behavior and sanction for violations. Furham & Starratt’s (2002) study is consistent with the Brodhagen (2002) and Rosenstock & Steinberg’s (2002) paper whish espoused collaborative learning atmosphere in creating curriculum and design. For Furham & Starratt’s (2002) ‘peer teaching and coaching would become more common. Classroom debates of differing perspectives would teach respect for different points of view as well as provide for learning how to conduct such debates in public following rules of civility and respect, as well as logic and evidence gathering [which the ] systemic nature and challenges of enacting democratic community in schools† (p. 122-123). Leadership Processes Leadership in Democratic community in Schools After establishing a dynamic and democratic curriculum based on the fundamental tenets of democratic practices in the community, leadership is needed to fill the void that will implement the curriculum and run the democratic community in school In Furham & Starratt’s erudition of a democratic school entitled â€Å"Leadership for Democratic Community in School† describes the role of leadership in a democratic community with emphasis on school. Furham & Starratt describes the leadership as being democratic and communal and is not reposed on any specific administrative function â€Å"but on a communal responsibility shared by all participants at a particular school grounds. † As processual, democratic community’s leadership practices attends to the creation and maintenance of democratic process and structures that nurtures thinking aloud together; thus, the leadership practice is both intentional and opportunistic. All decisions and issues affecting the school community and its members is open to democratic deliberations. Thus, leaders need to attend with sensitivity in mind to the continuous flow of concerns and `the opportunity for decisions in the school life as well as the surrounding community affecting it. The leadership in this regard does invite democratic deliberation on all issues and concerns brought before it as well as the decision making process and making it clear that participation is open, welcome and appreciated. They need to work to institutionalize structures, forums, and communication process that promote participation and act as a model by providing continuous training in deliberative process such as dialogue (p. 123). In a democratic community in school, leaders should possess the moral resolve to â€Å"promote democracy, empowerment, and social justice;† thus, should work on what he can contribute to the system rather than promote his self interest alone. Consistent with critical-humanist perspective of being a leader, and working in a democratic community in school, the leadership should commit in transforming society to its prominence in order to minimize, if not overthrow, the existing structures, process and power relationship that tend to minimize democratic practices (Furham & Starratt, 2002, p. 126). According to Furham & Starratt (2002), the constructivist leadership’s perspective work for the manifestation of the leadership practices within the relationship of a community and from the set up emerges to being real and vulnerable for each other thus engaging the participants into a real conversation. Finally, leadership in a democratic community in school is an art which the leaders engage in aesthetic and experimental behavior in designing a new school order. The conglomeration of these four leadership concepts—moral, critical-humanist, constructionist, and artistic—are the essence leadership behavior and roles in a democratic community in school. But above and beyond the four concepts, it is the art that â€Å"facilitates the construction of meaning within diversity aimed at the moral purpose of transforming schools into democratic communities† (p. 126-127). Finally, Furham and Starratt while considering democratic community as the center for educational leadership, gave the following claims: â€Å"[d]emocratic community is not a marginalizing center for the field because it is based on acceptance and appreciation of differences; [d]emocratic community recultures the profession by focusing on what leadership is for—serving the common good in multicultural society and world; and [d]emocratic community is the most appropriate focus for school leadership in the postmodern world of diversity, fragmentation and cross-nationalism† (p. 129). Societal and Community Barriers There are societal barriers and personal characteristics of leaders affecting the creation of a democratic community in school. The societal barriers and personal factors are hindrances that block a free exercise of the freedoms of choice and expression in the school set up leading to minimalist tendencies of democratic practices. The most apparent and strong force that hinder the democratic community in school’s effectiveness is the rules of business interest. Even if society’s concept of democracy does emphasize cooperation among its people, a lot of school has created an atmosphere of competition from grades, status, resources, programs, etc. Thus, even if these democratic educational institutions commit itself to credo more often than not they are aligned in a position of conflict with the dominant traditions of schooling. The democratic community in school’s ideas and efforts are resisted by institutions that benefit school’s inequities and those who are more interested in efficiency and hierarchical power than in the difficult work of transforming schools from the bottom up (Beane & Apple, 2002). The Realpolitik The revelation revealed by Furham and Starratt (2002) send a chill in the spine. According to them, the practice of democracy in schools and society â€Å"is governed by the rules of business interest† resulting to the shaping of school politics and curriculum leading to difficulty in enacting a â€Å"school that adheres to a democratic practice for to do so one has to overcome the rational/technical/instrumental assumption about schooling and learning shaped by business interest† over the last decades. They gave business assumptions about schooling, in the following: [t]he purpose of schools is instrumental—that is to serve national economic interest by preparing student for the work force; [t]he success of school in achieving this instrumental purpose can be rationally determined by measurable student achievement; [t]he individual’s motivation for learning in schools is instrumental—to succeed on individual measures of student achievement, in competition with other students, to secure financial prosperity; and [t]eaching is a technical problem and teachers/schools can be held accountable for measurable student achievement. As a result of the prevailing assumptions â€Å"about schooling, coupled with hierarchical, authoritarian traditions of school leadership, leadership for democratic community in schools requires opportunistic action at the local level as well as intentional and proactive leadership on the part of state and national leaders to affect policy directions† (p. 128) In the case of Brodhagen (2002), the challenge of creating a democratic community in school comes from her peers and from the prevalent system that operates in various schools. Her colleagues were the source of stress due to their lack of support and complete understanding to the visions and goals of having a democratic community in school. Opposition was centered on the fact that students were given freedom to choose their curriculum as well as the freedom of expression. Her colleagues were cautious in giving children these fundamental freedoms because they believe that only adults could exercise them; otherwise, it will lead to chaos and abuses. Though not setting up â€Å"roadblocks,† the leadership showed little support for the system by not inviting others to join. Finally, due to lack of textbooks and established curriculum, the initial curriculum planning was a â€Å"messy process† (p. 99) Ethical Rationale for Democratic School Leadership As a process, democratic leadership is a professional necessity for effective school governance due to a high diversified cultural communities and a new world order as a result of new technology and the forces of globalization. The professionalizing school’s democratic leadership should be made within the school leadership role’s nature, communities’ social context and the ideological social mandate. Begley & Johansson (2005) admits of the difficulty in many communities of achieving a democratic consensus on educational issues among even traditional educational stakeholders. The present social confusion along with diverse character stakeholders in the communities led to a perplexed attitude that in developing a prescriptive guide to ethical or value-added leadership there should be a list of standard norms for a school administrator to adopt without question. This quick fix method is not enough to respond to the demand needed in school leadership. A school leader must practice reflection and become an authentic in their leadership practices and the first step towards achieving this step is, predictably enough, to engage in personal reflection. The values perspective of school leadership is a tool that facilitate the reflection process as it transform a vague advice into a concrete thing for the school administrator to act upon. The process does not stop in reflection alone. Once the leader attained the required degree of improved self-knowledge via personal reflection, he must work towards an authentic leadership. That is, the leader must strive in developing his sensitivity to the values orientation of others (Begley & Johansson, 2005). The school leader’s ideas translated through his skills in transferring new pedagogical ideas and educational reforms to the teacher, teams of teachers and other key personnel among the staff. This transformation can be done through an organizational and leadership dialogue creating an understanding about the different reforms that will improve children’s learning on democratic society as well as the subject knowledge. An authentic professional leader shows active participatory dialogue with other school personnel including the school improvement agenda (Begley & Johansson, 2005). Begley & Johansson’s (2005) study listed down the different democratic and ethical vision of school leaders they need. The following: â€Å"a democratic and ethical leader sees a clear connection between work assignments, the national and local political goals, and the school’s operational philosophy. † In this area, the leader effectively communicates school goals and operational philosophy and â€Å"exercises leadership by translating operational philosophy into practical education tasks and by motivating the personnel and students to work towards the completion of these tasks. A democratic and ethical leaders also develops a value-informed sophistication in their practices to move beyond what Greenfield (1999) describes as the rhetoric of moral leadership. The new reality of school leadership is responding to value conflicts. This has become the defining characteristic of school leadership much like instructional leadership which was the dominant metaphor of school leadership during the 1980s. A number of implications are implied, including: understanding the problem of value articulation versus actual value commitment by individuals; the tendency towards ritual rationality in administration; the cultural isomorphs that are apparent in leadership practices; and finally the critical role dialogue plays in deepening an individual’s understanding of value position and motivational intentions, as well as ensuring genuinely democratic practice. At the very least, dialogical interactions have the potential to promote the thoughtful critique of current practices and better support the equitable and ethical resolution of value conflicts in education† (p. 16). After having listed the different visions and ethical dimensions of a leader, it is proper for us to review and examine the responsibilities attached to a leader in educational sector. In Starrat’s (2005) essay on â€Å"Responsible Leadership† advanced the concept that after having explored the wide terrain of ethical dimension of educational leaders â€Å"various domains of ethical responsibility are found. The term â€Å"domain† is used to refer to a constructed cluster of ethical concerns around common th

The Effect Of Product Placement In Movies - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 19 Words: 5819 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Statistics Essay Did you like this example? CHAPTER II: Literature Review Product placement Product placement in movies is no new phenomenon as Lehu (2007), describes product placement as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the location or more accurately the integration of a product or a brand into a film or televised series.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? This form of advertising has been around for sometime although its not traditional advertising it speaks to an audience in a different form of communication which is either in your face or subliminal messages. Product placement comes in a number of different forms including visual, audio and a combination of the two combined. Visual product placement Is a visual representation of a brand in a movie, This includes strategically positioning a brand in the background or being used by the actor of a scene, displaying a billboard or some other form of visual advertisement in a scene, and any other visual representation of a brand-name product à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“without any relevant message or sounds on the audio track which draw attention to the productà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? ( Gupta Lord, 1998). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Effect Of Product Placement In Movies" essay for you Create order An example of this is Daniel Craig using a Sony Vaio in the movie Casino Royal (2006). See Appendix A. Audio representation of a brand can be the mention of the product in script but not necessarily shown on screen for example the movie Wall Street (1987) where Martin Sheenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s character says to a server, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Get this kid a Molson Lightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Gupta Lord, 1998). In combining these two formats Gupta and Lord (1998) defines audio-visual placement as the visual appearance of a brand with a verbal mention of the brand name or a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“brand- relevant messageà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? for example à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas is seen and talked about in the movie Oceans elevenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (2001) (Lehu 2007). Product placement, as a marketing tool, has many advantages due to its captive audience, the social nature that it is being viewed in and the lack of clutter, such as other advertisements (Dunnett Hoek, 1996). This form of communication is described as being an effective technique as Jhonson (2009) explains à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“For subliminal suggestion to be effective an individual must be relaxed and open to suggestion. The subconscious mind is more open to suggestion when a person is relaxed.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? This practice has not gone without controversy, however, as its use is often debated by moviegoers and media experts. While some moviegoers feel that the use of product placement enhances a film by adding to its realism (Govani 1999). Others see the practice as an invasive one that sews itself a new seam in the blanket of brands that covers a strong consumer-based society (Phillips Purdie 1993). Some supporters of the practice argue that product placement allows them to relate to the characters (DeLorme, Reid, Zimmer, 1999) Product placement strategy Strategy Dates back a few decades, in an example where Joan Crawford is drinking Jack Daniels whisky in the 1945 production Mildred pierce (Wasko 1995). Back in these earlier times product placement was a casual affair, property masters would contact a local Jack Daniels distributer asking for the product to be used in the film. Today the product placement is more deliberate and sophisticated, Divisions dedicated to paying to have their goods inserted strategically into movies are of the norm for large corporations this is to gain access to what is seen as a glamorous medium with a relatively captive audience. Coca-Cola and Pepsi are amongst a number of companies who have formed in house divisions dedicated directly to product placement or Hollywood advertising (Wasko 1995). The belief of companies associated with product placement is that if a movie grosses $50 million, the advertiser has reached an audience of 13.7 million in theatre viewers, assuming this the movie will likely sell in DVDà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢Sà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢/Videos adding additional impressions per placement along with celebrity credibility bought by the use of the product. (Wasko 1995). Kardes (2008) adds to the argument by stating that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“When a brand is shown in a movie it is definitely seen but a broadcast commercial can be skipped via the fast forward button on a DVR.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? However narrative coherence can be disrupted by strategies used to market products. Music videos related to films is used as an example The promotion of some features is helped by the use of videos featuring music from the film, examples include Flashdance (1983) , Footloose (1984), Purple Rain (1984), staying alive (1983) and The Bodyguard (1992) (King 2002). In these films the excess creat ed by the conjunction of music and image creates a module separate from the narrative, working against the sequential structuring of the film. Product placement within the Hollywood film industry Product placement increased dramatically since the appearance of Reeseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Pieces in the 1982 Movie E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial caused the sales of the product to increase by 68%. (Balasubramanian et al 2006). Today product placement in movies is highly noticeable. In the film Minority Report (2002) at least 15 brands where placed, including Nokia, Pepsi and Lexus. In Die Another Day (2002) there were cameos from Jaguar, Aston Martin and Thunderbird, which are all owned by the Ford motor group (Jobber 2004). However alongside soft drinks one of the most common products placed in movies are cars. BMW invested  £20 million on the placement of its Z3 roadster within the movie Goldeneye (1995) and the use of other advertising media to support the placement and create awareness (Fill 2005) Gupta and lord (1998) focus on studies concerning recall of brands placed within movies that have been undertaken; they found that prominent placements achieved higher levels of recall. Morton and Friedman (2002) mention that any contact with a brand in a film will help influence purchasing decisions. It is argued by Joachimsthaler and Aker (1997) that visibility of brands are underestimated as it signals leadership, quality and success, people like to know brands even if they have never used them. This appears to indicate that the primary benefit of placement in movies is the increase of brand recognition. Consumer behaviour à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Consumer behaviour is the study of individuals, groups or organisations and the process they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services, experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the consumer and society.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Sharma, A. 2006). The study of consumer behaviour helps organisations improve their marketing strategies by understanding the psychology behind consumer thoughts, feelings and by understanding his or her environment all which have an effect on the action towards a brand or product. Tyagi and Kumar (2004) state that there is a relationship between consumer behaviour and his attitudes, communication with him and how to motivate him. Family, social and cultural dimensions of consumer behaviour have a role to play. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Product placement isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t about sales ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s about brand awareness claims expert Samuel Turcotte.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Galician 2004). Whilst awareness may be generated attitudes and perception also start to form towards the brand. Attitude formation can be on the bases of cognitive responses to stimuli or information of other sources; cognitive thoughts are responses we have to a communication. Positive thoughts will generally have a positive affect on attitudes whereas negative thoughts will have negative attitude formation (Hoyer Macinnis, 2008). Age has another implication on attitudes and perceptions of product placement. In their 1999 study, DeLorme, Reid, and Zimmer interviewed younger audiences (aged 18-21) and older audiences (aged 35-48) in a bid to compare different views on product placement. A number of focus groups resulted in the finding of distinct and diverse perspectives among many of the study samples. According to their research, (DeLorme, Reid, and Zimmer 1999) found that older audiences generally perceive product placements as implications of a changing society and the current use of product placement was an indication of a major cultural shift, according to the study older moviegoers à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“associated brand props with feelings of insecurity, frustration, and fear of changeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (DeLorme, Reid, Zimmer, 1999, p.24) various examples of such feelings were provided. On the other hand younger moviegoers perceive product placement as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Associated with an invitation to cultural belon ging and feelings of emotional security.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (DeLorme, Reid, Zimmer, 1999, p. 28) The younger generation grew up in a consumer-based society that is bombarded with advertisements and other promotional items, the younger generation does not generally place a heavy emphasis on product placements. However viewers are generally positive about the placement of product in movies. GÃÆ' ¼nnemann (2008) explains that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“product placement for the automobile industry can positively affect consumerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s perception of certain automobile brands image as a purchasing factor.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? He also looked at preference of product placement over advertising for automobiles, which showed European consumers have greater preference of product placement than their American and Asian counterparts where as American consumers on the other hand are the strongest proponents of product placement being more authentic than advertising, whilst Asian consumers have the lowest value in both categories. A study by Nebenzahl, Secunda (1993) on the attitude of film audiences showed that the majority of those interviewed preferred product placement over other forms of promotions because it was unobtrusively integrated into the film. The small minority who object are on ethical grounds. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“They perceive product placement as a clandestine approach which deludes the consumer and they believe this practice should be forbidden.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Pattyn, 2000). Brand Association: Contexts and Celebrities Williams (2004) shows that placements are contextually integrated and therefore are non-invasive, placement are therefore seen as an experience rather than an advertisement. Contextual integration can be achieved by product placement through character development and plot advancement in films, and product placement can also offer the chance of celebrity endorsement. Nelson and McLeod (2005) show that the credibility of an advertisement depends on the sources credibility; differing views on differing sources can alter the way in which a brand is perceived. The use of celebrities has the ability to influence the source credibility of a brand (Sawyer 2006). This can be achieved by tapping into the celebrityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"equityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (Zyman 2002). Such use of celebrities or actors enables their personality to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"rub offà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ on the product. (Rust and Varki 1996). This will have the effect of enhancing the brand personality. The us e of a highly credible and recognised person can therefore influence levels of expertise and trust worthiness. Ohanian (1991) found that the perceived expertise of celebrityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s actually increased purchase intentions, even though the celebrity may have no actual knowledge of the product. It appears here that the product placement allows the attractiveness of a brand to be increased through association with a particular individual, even if that individual would have little actual knowledge or expertise in relation to the product or brand. Ethicality behind product placement Gupta and Gould (1997) define ethically-charged products (or à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“emotionally charged productsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?) as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“products which especially arouse ethical concern and differences across consumers regarding their marketing and consumptionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? the practice of product placement is sometimes referred to as unethical since audiences are rarely informed that they are watching paid advertising when they presume they are watching creative programming à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“playing on peoples susceptibilityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Plaisance 2009). The common ethical concern in many articles is the notion that product placement constitutes a form of subliminal advertising, since products are integrated into films, but no disclaimer is present that warns the viewer of any form of advertising in the film (Gupta Gould, 1997; Snyder, 1992; Nebenzahl Secunda,1993). The practice of product placement could be described as misleading as advertiserà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s interest and intention to influence the viewer may be concealed behind something else, in the case of movies, the context of the story. Among the most controversial subjects, however, is the use of ethically-charged products in film. The most common discussed are the use of cigarettes, alcohol, and guns, this due to the potentially harmful implications their exposure can have on someone. A 1997 study shows some individualsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ impressions of such placements in films. The study measures undergraduate college studentsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ views regarding the acceptability of placing cigarettes, alcohol, and guns in movies. Results indicate that the acceptability of cigarettes, alcohol, and guns are 41.3%, 60.3%, and 38.7%, respectively (Gupta Gould, 1997). There is much concern over cigarette brandsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ being placed in movies, a common argument cites a mandate made and enforced by the United States Surgeon General. It requires that all cigarette ads feature a health warning, making known the productsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ potential hazards to the viewer. Surgeon General health warnings, however, are not found on films that feature these placements (Basil, 1997). Another common concern is that the use of these products will encourage the movieà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s viewers to adopt smoking as a habit. (Basil 1997) and Everett, Schnuth, and Tribble (1998) cite Social Cognitive Theory in their respective articles. This states that through observation we learn a lot. Since moviegoers are actors smoking cigarettes (and in some cases adopting specific brands), and since this is usually portrayed in movies as glamorous the moviegoers may possibly be drawn to the habit (Basil,1997; Everett, Schnuth, Tribble, 1998). Research objectives Investigate attitudes, perceptions and beliefs of viewers towards products and brands after exposure to product placement in movies. Analyse viewers opinions on the ethical issues of product placement in movies. Examine the role of products in movies as a strategic marketing tool. CHAPTER III: Methodology This chapter refines and justifies the methodology deployed in this study. The process for gathering data focused more on that of a qualitative strategy however a quantitative means was also implemented, with the focus on consumer research and understanding consumer thoughts and feelings. The research identified issues such as why consumers have the attitude or perception towards a product or brand which they have experienced through viewing product placement in movies, underlining issues such as acknowledgement, deciphering the message, and even perceptions and attitudes that are based on emotional and cultural feelings à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“sometimes we have a favourable attitude toward an offering simply because it feels good or seems rightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Hoyer Macinnis 2008). The quantitative approach was in the form of a questionnaire distributed to 18-25 year olds, the questionnaires allowed data from the focus groups to be tested and extended by from input from a wider range of participents, results are discussed in chapter 4. Qualitative approach à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Focus groups Focus groups are a form of group interviewing that allows data to be generated through the benefit of communication between research participants (Pope Mays). The qualitative approach was incorporated because of its ability to capitalise on group interaction that provided distinctive types of data. This study is based on consumer attitude and perceptions towards products placement and arising ethical issues, therefore it is only suited that this approach was used as it allows for deeper discussion to take place with point of views coming across from different backgrounds and cultural values and group norms are emphasised. using a qualitative focus groups would produce a greater depth of information rather than just relying on the questionaire with pre-determined responses The two focus groups were used to achieve the following: Investigate attitudes, perceptions and beliefs of viewers towards products and brands after exposure to product placement in movies. Analyse viewers opinions on the ethical issues of product placement in movies. Participants Two focus groups were conducted in an attempt to gather data on consumer attitudes and perceptions and the other on a discussion around ethics. Both focus groups followed the same procedure however groups were split into two, Group A and Group B. This was done to ensure that every subject got the chance to participate and wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t overshadowed by the over enthusiastic; small groups offer more of an opportunity for people to talk and are more practical to set up and manage (Litosseliti 2003). 6 individuals were selected for each group, Participants from Both Group A and B were selected on the bases of being from different cultural backgrounds and being socially connected. This is because it is important to understand that cultural backgrounds can have an effect on opinions, and it maximises the possibility of exploring the subject from different perspectives (Kitzinger 1995 cited in Litosseliti 2003 P4). It was important for participants to be socially connected to ensu re good group dynamics, this helped the participants be more comfortable and open towards discussion. The selection criteria was18-25 male and females, Gupta and Gould (1997) noted that many products à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“possess gender identificationsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (p.39). The researchers hypothesized that males generate more favourable responses to products that are depicted as possessing masculine qualities. Therefore the ratio of male to female will be 50:50. This will allow data to be gathered and discussed from both point of views. The advantages of focus groups as shown by Patton (1990) are the checking that takes place within the group that eliminates false views and it is easy to establish consistent views. Group A focused on discussion and questions targeted towards viewers attitudes and perceptions whilst Group B was a discussion on ethical issues. Both groups were shown two movies in one sitting this was time efficient as opposed to showing both movies twice. The movies shown were Iron Man 2 (2010) and Transformers (2007), the movies were chosen for the large amount of products placed with over 45 placements in each movie. The movies were shown in whole as opposed to clips containing products placed, this was to show the product placements in the context of the movie rather than showing clips where the products were dominant. Showing clips of the movie where products were dominant would have emphasised on the product this could have misrepresent the findings as the goal was to evaluate them within the who le movie experience. At the end of both movies the discussion commenced on consumer attitudes and perceptions with Group A, followed by the discussion with Group B on ethical issues. Participents were encouraged to use product placement in other movies as well as the two shown as examples for discussion if they could recall them and the discussion was not based entirely on the movies shown. This allowed participents to discuss product placement that may have been potryaed in a different fashion for example: the use of different actors, characters or setting. It was taken into consideration that the time difference between conducted Group A and B could have an impact on the level of debate given that Group B had to wait, however all participants were University students on the same campus and the study was conducted on University grounds giving the other group time to go elsewhere and continue with other activities whilst they waited. There were a set number of questions used for each focus group and Each individual was required to participate and provide some input to increase the depth of discussion. A simple format of question then discussion was used, questions that arose from discussion would keep the conversation flowing. Conversation flowed freely in order to discover what the subjects found to be interesting and to explore wider attitudes but conversation was re-directed by the moderator when it was felt to be unproductive or pointless (Bryman 2004). It was made clear to participants prior to the discussion that there was no right or wrong answer in an effort to remove social desirability, what the respondent thinks they should say rather than feel (Black 1999). Both discussions were recorded using a CD recorder and were later analysed with key points noted for each discussion. A full play by play transcription was not practical due to the large amount of dialogue and it is felt that a full transcript woul d have broken up narrative flow, however a shorter version of the transcript highlighting key points and questions asked is available in the appendix (())))) by noting key points only it is felt that analysing content is much easier, Bryman (2001) claims that transcribing and coding leads to a loss of context. Quantitative research Questionnaires Questionnaires allow the participant to respond to a set number of questions, questions can be open ended or closed ended, and for the purpose of this particular research aspect closed ended questions were used. A closed ended question is amicable when the dimensions of a variable have been diagnosed. Closed ended questions expose participants to the same response categories and allow standardized quantitative statistical analysis (Johnson Christensen 2010). The purpose of the questionnaire was to expand further on the data that was concluded from the focus groups (this will be discussed further in chapter 4). The questionaires focused on getting participant responses for the purpose of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"conformatory researchà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (Johnson Christensen 2010) in which specific data from the focus groups was tested. This gave the results more creadability and the questionnaire would allow the study to benefit from areas of investigation that the focus groups may have failed to answer or provide enough information on. 100 questionnaires were distributed around university campuses as this was the most convienent location to find participents that meet the 18-25 demographic, however it was guaranteed that that all participents would be of the age 15 questions were composed and pre, the questionnaire can be viewed in the appendix (p)))) One to one interviews Interviews will aim to meet objective The research method that will be used here is one to one interviews with either product placement agencies or companies such as Sony. These interviews will be telephone based as availability to meet face to face with businesses is a little tricky given the time frame. Given the tendency for businesses to turn down students the agency or business that is to be selected will depend on the rate at which each representative replies. The Interviews will allow these companies to convey product placement from a strategic point of view and explain the practice from their own situation, perspective and in their own words. The interviews are based on not only conversation of product placement but with an aim to generate responses from the interviewee on intended consumer behaviour. The procedure will be to follow a script for the interview investigation which can be outlined by characterising a methodological awareness of questions, a focus on the dynamics of interaction between interviewer and interviewee, and also critical attention to what is said. CHAPTER IV: Results, analysis and discussion Introduction This chapter will focus on presenting and discussing the findings from the research conducted. Due to the large amount of field work that was employed for the purpose of the study, results from both the focus groups and the questionnaires will be compared and contrasted leading to the denouement of the findings. Analysis will be based on the most pertinent data that was found. qualitative researchers needs to communicate the findings in an honest and systematic manner, disseminating the richness of the findings and hence the experience of the researchers. (Easterby-Smith et al. 2002). Discussion has been categorised in three sections, each section will address the research objectives of this study and how the findings have helped in achieving those objectives. Attitudes and perceptions towards product placement will be analysed and discussed first highlighting the points that were extracted from both quantitative and qualitative research, followed by the discussion on ethical issues towards product placement practice. Finally the interview with the industry specialist will be discussed, analysing the role of product placement in moves as a strategic marketing tool. The data that formed this discussion can be viewed in the appendix ( ) Consumer attitudes and perceptions The first area of study was the attitudes and perceptions of viewers between the ages of 18-25 towards product placement in Hollywood movies and the products or brands that are being placed. Brand recall The first focus group identified that it was hard to recall a lot of the products that were placed within the movies. It was felt that this is because of the large amount of placements in the movies to begin with. participants claimed that they could only recall the placements that were dominant and showed a stronger on screen presence than other brands or products. Amongst the placements that were most effective were car brands, it was made clear that cars were amongst the top to be noticed because its repetition in the movies made it a strong focus of the overall viewing experience. The most noticeable examples were Audi in Iron Man 2 and Cadillac in Transformers. brands in other movies were also identified as being memorable such as Toyota In fast and furious and Aston Martin in Die Another Day. Brands that somehow were incorporated into the story of the movie had greater recognition; this is because they stood out more. As mentioned in chapter 2, prominent placements achieve high er levels of recall in movies (Gupta and lord 1998). Other placements that were regarded as being effective in terms of prominence were those that had audio presence as well as physical, Oracle and Vanity Affair from Iron Man 2 where amongst the ones that were recalled. Participants revealed that the audio presence and physical presence (placement being used) generated more attention as opposed to having a brand name in the foreground. A combined 66%percent of the respondents to the questionnaire that was carried out following the focus group agreed that products stand out more when a character uses or mentions the product/brand (see table.1). Whilst the recall of a brand is an important factor in how effective the placement is, the pace or complexity of the movie can cause a distraction from the placements. The focus group suggested that some of the placements were lost due to the pace of the movies shown. One participant commented that placements in the background of slower paced movies were more effective than those placed in action movies or those with a faster pace. It was later commented that products placed within faster paced movies needed to be emphasised on more to be noticed. It therefore appears that the genre of the movie will have an effect on the product placement with in it. The research suggests that viewers will have difficulty to recall brands/products that are placed in the background or foreground of a fast past movie. However if a product is used or mentioned by a character then this increases the chances of the viewer recall. On the other hand placements within slower paced movies are easier to recal l increasing brand awareness. This indicates that positioning of the product is a valuable consideration when the goal is to increase awareness Attitude product placement The overall suggestion from this study in regards to attitudes towards product placement within the movie is that the group members strongly appreciated the presence of products within movies. The research suggests that viewers acceptability of product placement within movies is on the basis that it enhances the realism of the movie by combining products that are seen on a daily bases. One example of this found in the Movie Iron Man 2 with the insertion of CNN and Larry King, the focus group agreed that these placements gave them the feeling that the event of the movie was taking place in our world as appose to a fantasy setting. They felt that these types of placements amplified the movies realism. The group compared the differences between having placements in movie to not having any. The findings suggested that having no product placement or having fictitious products in a movie reflected on the setting of the movie, it would create a fantasy world for viewers which was fine if it was a movie in the category of Lord of the Rings or Avatar. Williams (2004) suggested that product placements are contextually integrated into movies. Therefore It is important to note that placements are deemed to be acceptable by viewers because of the reflection these products have on real life. In the survey questionnaire that was carried out, a combined 63 out of 100 respondents agreed and strongly agreed that placements add to the realism of the movie (see table.2). TABLE 2: Viewers opinion on products adding realism to movies This confirms the findings from the focus group; however there are a large number of respondents that validate that they disagree with the statement. It is mentioned in the literature that some see product placement practice as an invasive one that sews itself a new seam in the blanket of brands that covers a strong consumer-based society (Phillips Purdie 1993). This is one suggestion as to why respondents to the survey questions may have disagreed. It could be argued that some viewers find placements invasive. however the findings from the focus group indicates that whilst placements add realism, the ones that appear without contributing to the story line or are emphasised in a way that seems to be out of context in regards to the movie can be described as annoying or blatant advertising. The views of the group were not that this was invasive but more or on the line of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"annoyingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Examples that were noticeable were the Panasonic placement in Transform ers. In a scene that was devoted to show a Branded memory chip, the character tilts the product towards the camera revealing the brand name. It was suggested that this had no association to the story line nor was it placed to emphasis realism; one participant described it as being à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"an obvious plugà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. The common theme was the emphasis on the annoyance of pushy advertising, this research commends Balsubramanian et al (2006) who suggested that blatant placements have the ability to irritate. Therefore if product placement is to appear, the product needs to contribute to the content of the movie in order to generate positive attitudes and acceptability from the viewers. But it is important to distinguish between attitudes towards product placement practice (discussed here) and attitudes towards the brands being placed. This leads us to the next area of this study. Attitudes and perception towards brands In the previous paragraph we discussed the attitudes towards product placement; we will now discuss viewer attitudes and perceptions towards the product/brands that are placed. A common theme that was identified from the focus group discussion was that viewers did not generate a positive or negative attitude towards a product or brand because of the way it was placed in the movie. The findings from this study suggest that whilst awareness was created there was little change in attitudes towards the brands that were placed. one viewer generated a positive attitude towards the use of the Everlast in Iron Man 2 in a scene where Robert Downey Jr is boxing whilst exhibiting the branded clothing. The viewer associated with the brand being an athlete herself, she revealed that the character slightly altered her perceptions of the brand because they shared similar interests. This can relate back to the discussion on placements aiding realism. By placing products in the context of the story it would appear that product placement can be targeted to specific audiences as a means of creating brand awareness. Another example was the recall of The Dodge Charger in fast a nd furious one participant claimed that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"Vin Dieselà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s character made the car look coolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Whilst it was made clear that this wouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t directly affect purchase behaviour, it did alter the perception towards the brand. It would appear that different attitudes and perception were on the basis of personal experience, preference and interest towards a brand or character and not to the consistency or the way the product is placed. This is an important factor to consider in effective product placement, considering that the primary objective is to increase awareness. careful thinking is required in creating placements that viewers have a personal preference towards, however this is a difficult task given that each individuals thinking process is different. Results from the survey questionnaire confirm this statement, respondents exhibited mixed opinions when prompted with the following two statements The character or actor using the product has a positive effect on my perceptions of that product. If I have a bad experience with a product I will generally have a negative attitude towards the product regardless of how it is placed in a movie. The research indicates that there was a clash of opinions with a combined. A consideration to the different cultures and social backgrounds must be taken into account and whilst the focus group was cultraly diverse, opinions were still based on a small number of participents compared to the large number covered by the survey questionaire. The findings indicate that the magnitude of this type of study is extremely large. the psycology of the consumer in regards to brand attitudes and perceptions will differ and will depend on the different experiences of the individuals as explained earlier. It is apparent that although placements witin movies do create awarenss attitudes are shaped by personal desires and preferences rather than the placements themselves. Therefore it can be said that advertising messages outside of those appearing in films and affects the ability of product placements to influence brand attitudes and perceptions Ethicality issues This area of the study aims to discuss the ethicality issues that 18-25 year olds have concerning product placement in movies. This is categorised in two sections, first is the acceptance of subliminal messages that product placement in movies brings and the second is the ethically charged products. Subliminal theory is described by ( ) as the perception of messages through your subconscious or unconscious mind. It is the goal of marketers to target consumers through the subconscious mind, and this is incorporated into movies to alter viewer perceptions. However as discussed in section ( )) the viewer is very conscious to the placements in the movies and therefore is not affected subconsciously by product placements. However one participant from the focus group stated that many of the brands may not have been recalled had it not been for this study. However it must also be taken into to consideration that majority of the group was educated towards the practice of product placement. The group identified that they understood that the placements are paid messages designed to target consumers within the movie experience. Participants didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t really classify the placements as subliminal messages, as it was earlier discussed that viewersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ acceptability of the placements was on the basis of them adding realism. It was clear to participants that this was advertising and therefore was deemed to be considered on par with other commercials in everyday life. Participants declared that if product placements in movies were subliminal messages than they would not be aware of the principles that were involved which would lead to an attitude or behavioural change. However it was distinguished in section (()) that there was little changes in attitudes and behaviour and any change that were present was due to traits and preferences. This then debates the statement made by ( ) that subliminal stimuli allows advertisers to penetrate the viewerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s defence without their awareness. the survey questionnaire would add further creadability to this research as seen in Table 5 Do you think Product placement in movies is unethical because we are being shown commercials within the context of the movie? Table 5: opinions on product placement as a commercial in movies. It is clear that respondants agreed with the focus group, it is suggested that this is because younger veiwers are more open to media the viewing of product placement fits more into the category of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"experiential consumptionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ rather than à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"entertainment marketingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ (Hackley and Tiwsakul 2006). Viewers experience the brands as part of the movie and therefore would fit into this category.

Leaders of Womens Suffrage - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 693 Downloads: 10 Date added: 2019/08/12 Category Law Essay Level High school Tags: Women's Suffrage Essay Did you like this example? The womens suffrage movement was from 1848 to 1920 when women fought and spoke out for equality and political rights. Women had no power to own land, to vote, no voice in their marriages, and were limited on what they could do. This caused women to unite and fight for their freedom such as creating womens groups, take part in the anti-slavery and temperance movements, and give speeches for over seventy years until the nineteenth amendment passed and were legally allowed to vote. It all started when 100 men and women decided to gather at Seneca Falls, New York, for a womens rights convention to confront the problem of womens suffrage.(Jeydel 41) At this convention, women began to create their roles such as, setting up charitable societies speaking out against intemperance and slavery, organizing against their employers, and demanding expanded property rights, education, and employment opportunities for women. (Cogan Ginzberg 427) People didnt think that what the women would do would ever bring change, and saw it as impossible. There was a demand for a social, political, educational, economical, moral, and legal voice and seat for all women. (Jenkins 133) Women believed for equality and for the same power that men had, as well as the same opportunities, jobs, and titles. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Leaders of Womens Suffrage" essay for you Create order Womens groups began forming, as leaders would rise, take charge and guide them. One of the leaders was a woman known by Susan B. Anthony, who was an activist that participated in the anti-slavery movement and the temperance movements. (Jeydel 40) She had given a speech at one of the Daughters of Temperance meetings, which was where people would be educated about the prob lems of alcohol, and pushed for the New York legislature to forbid production and sales. (Jeydel 40) Elizabeth Stanton was another woman who was a leader in the suffrage movement. Elizabeth and another woman named Lucretia Mott had planned the womens rights meeting at Seneca Falls. (Jeydel 41) Anthony and Stanton one day met at a anti-slavery meeting at the Seneca Falls and become close friends who became about of the Daughters of the Temperance group. When the two friends found out about the Sons of Temperance group, they decided to attend the meetings, only to be silenced and told that they were to listen and learn and werent allowed to speak there. (Jeydel 41) They had later created the Womens National Loyal League that was composed of loyal women of the North whose stated aim was to educate the nation into the true idea of a Christian Republic.(Jeydel 41) Because of this womens group, it supported for the petition for the emancipation of slaves. These two women both saw an issue that needed to be changed, so they came together and created groups that would encourage other women to join the movement and push to end slavery. Another women who was considered a great leader during this time was Elizabeth Boynton Harbert, who was an important womens suffrage leader in Illinois. She was one of the most known Illinois leaders to encourage women in the middle-class to reform work. (Buechler 79) Harbert began to write and publish a weekly new articles and known as Womans Kingdom and kept up with it for up to seven years. She had written a play later that was about conventional patterns of child rearing artificially restricted women to the narrow realm called womans sphere, and the contributions women might have made to society had they not been restricted. (Buechler 81) She wanted people to see how women were limited on what they could do, and how if they were permitted to do as they want, how they could have helped in society in greater ways. Harbert had encourage women to push for the equality for work and family for both genders. Women had wanted people to think that by giving them rights, it wouldnt change womens expectations in society. (Buechler 82) Harbert believed that women had a mission to fulfill on the earth. The mission of woman on earth? To uplift, purify, and confirm, by her own gracious gift, the world. (Buechler 82) She wanted women to feel that the world needed them and that they were more important than they thought they were.