Religious Ideologies And Practices Behind Buddhism

Throughout my time in school and growing up in a religiously diverse community in Queens, NY, I have been exposed to numerous belief systems. These experiences have allowed me to stay open-minded and interested to learn about other cultures and ways of life. One particular religion that I did not consider myself well versed with was Buddhism. From my previous encounters with this religion, I had learned that its teachings embody the idea of karma and rebirth. As means to broaden my knowledge and learn more about the religious ideologies and practices behind Buddhism, I spoke with Professor Ann Burlein of the Religion and Philosophy Department. I had originally planned to attend Professor Burlein’s Buddhism in America class, but due to time conflicts I resorted to meet with her outside of the classroom environment. At the beginning of our conversation, she first introduced me to some of the core fundamentals revolving Buddhism, which are acceptance of impermanence, suffering an d unseparated self. She explained that in Buddhism, one of the most powerful and practical means of reaching this acceptance was through mindful meditation. I personally could relate to her description about mediation because it is also heavily valued in Sikhism. As Buddhists use meditation to achieve a certain mental outlook, Sikhs also use it as means to control our thoughts and ultimately keep our mind from wandering. 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John Hume s Bundle View Of The Soul - 1241 Words

I grew up with a Catholic family and went to church every Sunday and I was taught everyone had a soul and it was the basis for every human being. The soul is what makes someone a person and it’s what separates us from non-living beings. As I grew up, I started to be less religious and started believing in science and factual based knowledge yet I still always believed in the soul. When you grow up your whole life being told a certain thing it’s hard to shake the idea of it not being true. It wasn’t until we started to talk about the different views of the self that I started to think maybe the soul isn’t what makes a person a person. It can’t be seen, it can’t be touched and we can’t tell if anyone even has a soul. There is no evidence†¦show more content†¦For one, that God created the Earth and all living things on Earth. I believe in facts and evidence and when I started to learn about the big bang theory, I questioned my Ca tholic upbringing. One thing I never really questioned or thought about being false was the soul topic. I did question if there was a heaven for our souls to travel to when we died but I never thought for once that the soul didn’t exist and that it wasn’t what made me a person. I thought my soul was my personality and my mind and it was what made me who I am. When we started to go over the different views of what the self was, for the first time I started to think that maybe I have been wrong all along and the soul isn’t what makes me or anyone else a person. For the first time I started to see flaws in the soul view. For one, you can’t see a soul, you can’t touch it, and you can’t feel, taste or smell it. A soul isn’t detected with the basic senses so how do we even know it’s there? I always answered this with my belief in the soul. People can’t do any of those things with God and they still believe in Him so just becau se there’s no way of knowing if the soul exists it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Then, however, we started talking about what if everyone’s soul is changing and every day you have a new soul. I actually never thought of this myself and I couldn’t come up with any reasonable response. At this point I started to wonder if my soul is changing every second then what makes me who I

Employment and Autonomy free essay sample

What seems the main source of conflict between supervisors and the HR department at Sands Corporation? Main source of conflict between supervisors and the HR department at Sands Corporation are: * HR department ranks applicant based on test scores or other criteria and because of that, often people do not get along well with supervisor and co-worker. * Excellent performers are leaving because of HR department do not pay the exceeding pay rises even though they able to perform well. * Take very long time to do paperwork on hiring new employees and cause the company loses good candidates. Training is just a waste of time and money because it doesn’t build anything. * Supervisors are afraid to be truthful in their performance rating for fear of being investigated by the HR department. * Attitude survey data are broken down by department. The HR department will scrutinizes department with low scores. * The HR department director rejects all of these accusations and does not paying attention to what of being said or what they see form employees. We will write a custom essay sample on Employment and Autonomy or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 2. Do you believe that managers should be given more autonomy to make personnel decisions such as hiring, appraising, and compensating subordinates? If so, what are some potential drawbacks to granting them this authority? Autonomy is the degree to which a job provides an employee with the discretion and independence to schedule their work and determine how it is to be done. Higher levels of autonomy on the job have been shown to increase job satisfaction, and in some cases, motivation to perform the job. In traditional organizations, only those employees at higher levels had autonomy. However, new organizational structures, such as flatter organizations, have resulted in increased autonomy at lower levels. Additionally, many companies now make use of autonomous work teams. Autonomy in the workplace can have benefits for employees, teams, managers, and the company as a whole, but it also may have drawbacks. Information regarding both the pros and cons of autonomy for these groups is discussed below. Managers tend to have increased autonomy in organizations that are more decentralized. In such organizations, managers have more freedom to make decisions regarding the work of employees and even personnel decisions. For example, managers with increased autonomy may be able to assign merit raises to the employees in their unit at their discretion. As with employee autonomy, this freedom can result in feelings of motivation and satisfaction for the manager, who may be in a better position to reward and motivate employees. However, as with employee autonomy, managers who have autonomy may not be equipped to handle it. If managers make poor decisions, this may be harmful to employees and the organization as a whole. Using the example of autonomy in deciding pay raises, a manager may give merit pay increases that are significantly higher than those in other work units, which may cause problems across the organization. 3. How should Sands’ top executives deal with the complaints expressed by supervisors? How should the director of the HR department deal with the situation? All types of dissatisfaction are important for the management to uncover and act upon. Companies that manage complaints effectively not only can boost employee morale and satisfaction, but also may benefit from the information gained through employee feedback. Being open to both positive and constructive feedback and providing employees with multiple options for sharing their concerns are best practices for managing complaints effectively. Welcoming Employee Complaints Employers and managers who view complaints as gifts can establish trusting relationships with employees that lead to loyalty and productivity. The complaints are there whether managers hear about them or not. Actively seeking feedbackeven constructive feedbackcan help get issues out in the open and lead to process improvements and other changes that can positively impact the workplace. Failing to Act Sometimes an employee will bring a complaint to a manager but they doesnt really want the manager to do anything about it. The managers job is to investigate, follow up and attempt to resolve employee complaints. Employees should know that if they raise an issue, it will be investigated. In addition, managers must be sure to thoroughly document the complaint, the investigation and the resolution. Supervisors Should Not be Only Choice Many organizations policy manuals or employee handbooks advise employees to go to their immediate supervisors with complaints. Supervisors should not be the only option for employees because the supervisor may be the problem. Employers should offer employees options when it comes to filing complaints. These can include the supervisor, the human resources department or others complaint channel. Document and Follow Up Managers should document employee complaints and any actions taken. In addition, they should schedule a follow-up discussion with the employee to assess progress. Companies that have HR departments can benefit from the involvement of HR professionals in these discussions. In addition, tracking the source and type of employee complaints received can provide indications of areas of opportunity for improvement that might include training for supervisors and managers or process improvements.

The Methods of Measuring Intelligence and Its Theories

The articles that have been chosen are related to various aspects of intelligence testing. In particular, they can be used to discuss different theoretical assumptions that underlie the methods of measuring intelligence. It is possible to identify several theories that still remain rather influential. First of all, one can speak about Charles Spearman’s theory of general intelligence.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Methods of Measuring Intelligence and Its Theories specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This framework is based on the premise that there is a strong relation between various cognitive skills (Harrison and Brand, 2003, p. 9). Moreover, this model implies that it is possible to assess the general intelligence of an individual by using the methods of statistical analysis (Harrison and Brand, 2003, p. 9). In this case, one should pay attention to the so-called g factor that can throw light on the cognitive skills of a person (Harrison and Brand, 2003, p. 9). It is possible to say that Charles Spearman’s theory contributed to the development of various intelligence tests that are often used by educators (Harrison and Brand, 2003). To a great extent, it still remains influential. Nevertheless, there are some researchers who critique the validity of this concept because modern methods of intelligence testing are limited since they are oriented towards the quantitative aspects of cognitive skills. In other cases, this theory cannot be effectively applied. Yet, it is also possible to speak about the theory of multiple intelligences which was introduced by Howard Gardner. This framework implies that psychologists should not focus only on those aspects of intelligence that can be easily quantified (Eisner, 2004). In this case, one can speak primarily about the tests measure the ability of a person to solve abstract problems. This is one of the limitations that can be conside red. In turn, such an approach can give only a very narrow idea of what intelligence is (Eisner, 2004). In contrast, according to the approach developed by Howard Gardner, that intelligence includes various modalities or domains that are relatively independent of one another (Eisner, 2004, p.33). For example, one can speak about the so-called bodily-kinesthetic intelligence which is related to a person’s ability to control the movement of one’s body. This ability is critical if one speaks about athletes. However, it is not identified in any of the existing IQ tests. Overall, the importance of this theory is recognized by psychologists since they understand the limitations of existing intelligence tests. Nevertheless, this approach also has significant limitations. In particular, it is difficult to falsify it or find examples that can prove or disprove this model. This is another detail that should be taken into consideration by psychologists. Nonetheless, Howard Gardne r’s model is useful since it helps psychologists to re-evaluate the methods that they use. Moreover, it has changed the way in which educators perceive the very notion of intelligence.Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More To a great extent, these articles can throw light on the efficiency of intelligence testing. In particular, researchers acknowledge that existing methods still require elaboration (Sparrow\ Davis, 2000). It is necessary to design task that help psychologists objective assess different cognitive skills. Nevertheless, one can say that that this form of measurement is a good predictor of how the student can perform in various professional or academic areas. For instance, it is possible to speak about the ability of an individual to solve mathematical problems. There are numerous IQ tests that can be used by various professionals such as educators or HR professionals. Moreover, these techniques can helpful for identifying possible developmental problems at an early stage. This is why it is not permissible to dismiss the techniques of measuring intelligence. These are some of the main points that can be made. Nevertheless, it is also important to remember that there are some important elements of intelligence that cannot be accurately measured. For instance, one can speak about such an aspect as emotional and interpersonal intelligence. They are related to the ability of a person to empathize with other people and understand their feelings. Currently, there are no tests that enable psychologists to evaluate these aspects of intelligence in a quantitative way. However, these skills are essential for the development of a person. Additionally, the validity of such tests depends on the clarity of instructions. Furthermore, psychologists should make allowances for a person’s linguistic capacity. If these requirements are not met, the accuracy o f these methods can be questioned. This is one of the major shortcomings that should be considered by researchers. On the whole, this discussion shows that intelligence testing is critical for psychologists and educators. There are certain cognitive abilities that can be accurately evaluated in a quantitative way. Nevertheless, one should not suppose that modern methods of intelligence testing can accurately assess every component that can be related to intelligence. More importantly, one should not overlook the cultural and linguistic background of a person who takes an IQ test; otherwise, the results of the assessment may not be accurate. These are the main arguments that can be put forward. Reference List Eisner, E. (2004). Multiple Intelligences: Its Tensions and Possibilities. Teachers  College Record 106(1), 31-39.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Methods of Measuring Intelligence and Its Theories specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/p age Learn More Harrison, K. Brand, C. The importance of Spearman’s g as a psychometric concept. The Occidental Quarterly, 3 (1), 7-30. Sparrow, S., Davis, S. (2000). Recent Advances in the Assessment of Intelligence and Cognition. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 41 (1), 117-131. This essay on The Methods of Measuring Intelligence and Its Theories was written and submitted by user Kyr0n to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.