The Collapse Of North Korean State Essay - 1285 Words

Assess the possibility of the collapse of the North Korean state in the next 5-7 years by examining the influence and impact of relevant geopolitical factors/conditions. As one of the most antagonizing countries, North Korea seems to find the wrath of the United Nations more frequently than any other sovereign nation. The country’s human rights abuses and violations of international law have led the international community to impose heavy trade sanctions with North Korea (cite). While the country attempts to be largely self-sufficient, malnutrition is a growing problem for the people of North Korea (worldhunger). Based on its geographic location and violation of international law in regards to nuclear capabilities and human rights abuses, North Korea is in a perilous situation in the next seven years. Its increasing globalization and fervent nationalism suggest, however, that while the country may evolve and become more globalized, it will survive as the contentious nation-state it is today. The physical geography of North Korea does little to stabilize the 5 to 7 year outlook for the country. Despite being bordered by two amicable countries to the North, China and Russia, North Korea’s southern border makes its physical geography a potentially destabilizing factor. The Northern border is largely shared with China, stretching along the Yalu River (Yu). This border is where the majority of imports come into North Korea, as China is North Korea’s largest trading partnerShow MoreRelatedThe Unification Of The Korean Peninsula834 Words   |  4 PagesThe Unification of the Korean peninsula could come in two distinct forms, the first, unification under Communist North Korean rule, which would be preferable to China, and the North Korean regime. The second, naturally favored by the United States is unification under ROK control. Echoing the sentiment of Zhe Feng, A professor at the Peking University, who asserted that the â€Å"1961 mutual assistance treaty between China and North Korea had become irrelevant—a dead letter—with the end of the Cold WarRead MoreNorth Korea Will Meet Its End Is On Th e Minds Of Many East Asian Policy1145 Words   |  5 PagesHow North Korea will meet its end is on the minds of many East Asian policy makers, analysts, experts, and military minds. Why is North Korea worth the attention? North Korea is one of the most heavily armed nations on earth. North Korea possesses a large conventional force of 1.2 million soldiers (Scobell 2007, 8), making her a threat to neighboring South Korea. In addition, North Korea maintains a large Special Operations Force to operate behind the lines in a major confrontation with SouthRead MoreThe Korean Conflict of the Twentieth Century1692 Words   |  7 Pagesthe US controlled one half while the Soviet Union controlled the other. Germany, after over forty years and the collapse of the Soviet Union, eventually reunified and now has the largest economy in Europe. Korea, in contrast, remains divided and the collapse of the Soviet Union has severely crippled North Korea while the U.S.-backed South Korea has flour ished. Formally still at war, North Korea and South Korea seem destined to remain separated at the 38th parallel. After nearly seventy years of separationRead MoreNorth Korea Foreign Policy1689 Words   |  7 Pageson North Korea’s foreign policy and isolation: North Korea is, as stated by Bruce Cummings in North Korea – Another Country, â€Å"The Author of most of its own troubles†. The country is close to entirely isolated from the rest of the world maintaining only small contact with certain nations. Since the ceasefire of the Korean War, North Korea has become increasingly detached from the majority of the world; however what factors have led to this increased isolation? The heavy bombing of the North duringRead MoreEssay On America First Policy1018 Words   |  5 PagesAlternatively, his serial provocations could incite a South Korean or US military response that creates an unstoppable escalation spiral. The logic of Trump’s ‘America First’ policy contains the rationale for preventing North Korea from acquiring the capacity to strike the US mainland, regardless of the scale and gravity of the harm inflicted on South Koreans, Japanese and others in the region. The Kim dynasty has outwitted the United States with more tenacity, resourcefulness and single-minded determinationRead MoreEffective Measures For Foreign And Security Policy1615 Words   |  7 Pageseasily even with great length of time, specified plans, much power, or money. Gill states in his report, â€Å"Despite differences on tactics and approach, the primary strategic goal on which nearly all parties in China agree is stability, both at home and in China’s foreign relations, particularly within the country’s near-abroad,† demonstrating how significant the matter of stability is to the Chinese. In the case of North Korea, China’s attitude is rather calm, trying to avoid any direct conflict andRead MoreThe United States Government ( Usg ) And Department Of Defense934 Words   |  4 PagesUnited States, our allies, and partners. The United States Government (USG) and Department of Defense (DoD) continues to work closely with its allies and partners to build relationships and capacity vital to advancing U.S. national interests of security, prosperity, international order, and the promotion of universal values. The most profound and alarming trend within the East Asia region over the past several years is the increasing belligerence and defiance of the Kim Jung-un regime of North KoreaRead MoreEssay Conflict Between North and South Korea 1016 Words   |  5 Pagessinking of a South Korean ship reached to a serious conflict between South Korean and North Korea. South Korean is accusing North Korean for firing the torpedo on purpose which resulted in 46 sailors deaths. According to Yonhap news, North Korean military official accused the South of intruding into North Korean waters in the Yellow Sea. North Korea sends a warning message to South Korea by firing torpedo to warn South Korea to not intrude in to their waters in Yellow Sea. North Korea doesn’t wantRead MoreThe Issue Of The Unification Of Korea918 Words   |  4 Pagesaccept. With the help and agree o f the United States, the ROK stressed their goal for reunification in 2009 by issuing a â€Å"Joint Vision Statement† with the United States, stressing out their central goal of obtaining a peaceful unification on the principles of a free democracy and a market economy for the well- being of Koreans . To the DPRK, this commitment of the Republic of Korea was nothing more than demonstrating their attempt of absorbing North Korea. One of the strategic goals of the DPRK wasRead MoreNorth Kore A Free Trade Zone Between The North And The South936 Words   |  4 Pagesprovided food aid until 2009, North Korea was back on track to bettering its economy. â€Å"In 2002, the government introduced measures to adjust wages and prices, open commercial markets selling food and other items, and alter agricultural and enterprise policies. These created severe inflation and the government backtracked on these changes† (New Zealand MFAT, 2014). Conversely, inter-Korean interactions ha ve resulted in the creation of a free-trade zone between the North and the South. The Kaesong Industrial

Censorship in America free essay sample

This paper discusses the role of censorship in American society. This paper discusses the role of censorship in American society. Special emphasis is placed on commonly known literary texts and historical works. The paper debates the interpretations of censorship and the effect it plays in our everyday lives. The First amendment to the United States Constitution reads, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. The American Library Bill of Rights states, Intellectual freedom is the right over every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without any restriction. It provides for free access to all expressions of ideas through which any and all sides of a question, cause or movement may be explored. We will write a custom essay sample on Censorship in America or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Intellectual freedom encompasses the freedom to hold, receive and disseminate ideas (Censor 34).

Maggi noodles free essay sample

Case AnalysisSachin UdasRoll No: 07153The Maggi Brand in IndiaBrand Extension and RepositioningCase Background Nestle India Limited is the market leader in Indian Noodle Market with it’s MaggiBrand of Noodles which was pioneer brand launched in 1983 in the packaged foodmarket of India. It took the challenge and established Maggi in Indian marketconsidered to be conservative and typical about food consumption. It appropriaterealization of target segment, effective positioning and effective promotion and salesmade Maggi to Noodles in India as Xerox it to photocopier. NIL had introducedsauces, ketchups and soups under Maggi brand to reap benefit of brand popularity andimage and contribute to financial gains by 1990. Maggi also became successful insauces, ketchups and soups Market in India. Though NIL tried to extend to other ready to eat products like pickles, cooking aids and paste, It was unsuccessful sodumped those products. Maggi Brand of products sustained recession in 2000 and2001 in India by introducing economy packets. We will write a custom essay sample on Maggi noodles or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page To fulfill novelty needs of customers and revitalize Maggi Noodles Brand NIL madedifferent attempts by introducing new formulation to new taste but customers resistedchange and Maggi had to reintroduce Maggi Noodles in same taste. Maggi Noodlehad till 2005 five product line on noodles with four variant in Maggi 2 Minutes Noodle. In 2006 in compliance with NIL target to be â€Å"health and Wellness Company†Maggi repositioned it as health and taste food products. NIL has also introduced withtaste and product line in Sauces and Soup Market under Maggi to catch new segment,revitalize brand, compete with other producers and fulfill expectation of customers. In 2005 Maggi brand worth was 3. 7 billion from 1. 7 billion market worth in 1. 7 billion in 2003. Maggi Noodle is Market leader with around 80% market share in Noodles/Pasta and Maggi Sauce is market leader with almost 37% of market share in2005 in 1. 8 billion market of India. Knorr has taken over Maggi in Soup marketrecently. In 2005 Maggi was the highest spender in the Promotion and Sales in the IndianMarket in the Noodles Category.

Queen Anne Architecture - Victorian Houses in the US

Queen Anne Architecture - Victorian Houses in the US Of all the Victorian house styles, Queen Anne is the most elaborate and the most eccentric. The style is often called romantic and feminine, yet it is the product of a most unromantic era the machine age. The Queen Anne style became fashionable in the 1880s and 1890s, when the industrial revolution was building up steam in the United States. North America was caught up in the excitement of new technologies. Factory-made, pre-cut architectural parts were shuttled across the country on a rapidly expanding train network. Prefabricated cast iron became the showy, ornate facade of urban merchants and bankers. The well-to-do wanted the same manufactured elegance for their homes as they had for their businesses, so exuberant architects and builders combined architectural details to create innovative, and sometimes excessive, homes. Victorian Status Symbol Widely-published pattern books touted spindles and towers and other flourishes we associate with Queen Anne architecture. Country folk yearned for fancy city trappings. Wealthy industrialists pulled out all stops as they built lavish castles using Queen Anne ideas. Even Frank Lloyd Wright, who later championed his Prairie Style houses, began his career building Queen Anne style houses. Most notably, Wrights houses for Walter Gale, Thomas H. Gale, and Robert P. Parker are well-known Queen Annes in the Chicago, Illinois area. The Queen Anne Look Although easy to spot, Americas Queen Anne style is difficult to define. Some Queen Anne houses are lavished with gingerbread, but some are made of brick or stone. Many have turrets, but this crowning touch is not necessary to make a house a queen. So, what is Queen Anne? Virginia and Lee McAlester, authors of A Field Guide to American Houses, identify four types of detailing found on Queen Anne homes. 1. Spindled Queen Anne (See photo)This is the style we most frequently think of when we hear the term Queen Anne. These are gingerbread houses with delicate turned porch posts and lacy, ornamental spindles. This type of decoration is often called Eastlake because it resembles the work of the famous English furniture designer, Charles Eastlake. 2. Free Classic Queen Anne (See photo)Instead of delicate turned spindles, these homes have classical columns, often raised on brick or stone piers. Like the Colonial Revival houses that would soon become fashionable, Free Classic Queen Anne homes may have Palladian windows and dentil moldings. 3. Half-Timbered Queen AnneLike the early Tudor style houses, these Queen Anne houses have decorative half-timbering in the gables. Porch posts are often thick. 4. Patterned Masonry Queen Anne (See photo)Most frequently found in the city, these Queen Anne houses have brick, stone, or terra-cotta walls. The masonry may be beautifully patterned, but there are few decorative details in wood. Mixed-Up Queens A list of Queen Anne features can be deceptive. Queen Anne architecture does not adhere to an orderly list of characteristics- the Queen refuses to be easily classified. Bay windows, balconies, stained glass, turrets, porches, brackets, and an abundance of decorative details may combine in unexpected ways. Also, Queen Anne details can be found on less pretentious houses. In American cities, smaller working-class homes were given patterned shingles, spindle work, extensive porches, and bay windows. Many turn-of-the-century houses are in fact hybrids, combining Queen Anne motifs with features from earlier and later fashions. About the name Queen Anne Queen Anne architecture in North America is very different from the slightly earlier versions of the style found throughout the United Kingdom. Moreover, in both the USA and England, Victorian Queen Anne architecture has little do with the British Queen Anne who ruled during the 1700s. So, why are some Victorian houses called Queen Anne? Anne Stuart became the Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland in the early 1700s. Art and science flourished during her reign. One hundred and fifty years later, Scottish architect Richard Norman Shaw and his followers used the term Queen Anne to describe their work. Their buildings didnt resemble the formal architecture of the Queen Anne period, but the name stuck. In the USA, builders began constructing homes with half-timbering and patterned masonry. These houses may have been inspired by the work of Richard Norman Shaw. Like Shaws buildings, they were called Queen Anne. As builders added spindle work and other flourishes, Americas Queen Anne houses grew increasingly elaborate. So it happened that the Queen Anne style in the United States became entirely different from the British Queen Anne style, and both styles were nothing like the formal, symmetrical architecture found during the time of Queen Annes reign. Endangered Queens Ironically, the very qualities that made Queen Anne architecture so regal also made it fragile. These expansive and expressive buildings proved expensive and difficult to maintain. By the turn of the twentieth century, the Queen Anne style had fallen out of favor. In the early 1900s, American builders favored homes with less ornamentation. The terms Edwardian and Princess Anne are names sometimes used for simplified, scaled down versions of the Queen Anne style. While many Queen Anne houses have been preserved as private homes, others have been converted into apartment houses, offices, and inns. The Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle, Washington is named for its architecture. In San Francisco, flamboyant homeowners have painted their Queen Anne houses a rainbow of psychedelic colors. Purists protest that bright colors are not historically authentic. But the owners of these Painted Ladies claim that Victorian architects would be pleased. Queen Anne designers did, after all, relish decorative excesses. Learn More The Queen Anne Style Queen Anne House Pictures Dozens of photographs from around the United States let you see the variety of Queen Anne styles. References Baker, John Milnes. American House Styles: A Concise Guide. Hardcover, Second edition edition, Countryman Press, July 3, 2018. McAlester, Virginia Savage. A Field Guide to American Houses (Revised): The Definitive Guide to Identifying and Understanding Americas Domestic Architecture. Paperback, Expanded, Revised edition, Knopf, November 10, 2015. Walker, Lester R. American Shelter: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Home. Hardcover, Overlook, 1700. COPYRIGHT:The articles you see on the architecture pages at About.com are copyrighted. You may link to them, but do not copy them onto a web page or a print publication.

Community -oriented plan of care Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Community -oriented plan of care - Assignment Example Interventions- 1. The community will try an aspirin regimen for the prevention of cardiovascular disease. 2. The community will try Behavioral Counseling in primary care to learn how to promote a healthy diet. 3. The community will screen for high blood pressure in adults. 4. The community will also screen for Lipid disorders in the adults. Community Interventions- 1. The community will attend and participate in Behavioral and Social Approaches to increase physical activity. 2. The community members will try to adapt the methods learned to meet their individual health behavior. 3. The community will attend and participate in various Social Supportive Interventions in community settings. 4. The community will learn how to build and organize campaigns and informational approaches to increasing physical activity to decrease heart disease in their neighborhoods. Activities that community members will learn in Behavioral Counseling 1. The community will learn to talk with others about how they can change their lifestyles. 2. The community will learn how to shop for food in a healthy manner. 3. The community will learn that drinking alcoholic beverages in moderation will decrease heart disease. 4. ... 8. The community will learn about various exercise programs and to find one that works for them. 9. The community will learn how to encourage each other in losing the unwanted weight, 10. The community will learn how to lower sodium in their diets through lectures and practice. 11. The community will learn how to read and understand what is on a food label. 12. The community will also learn how reduce stroke. 13. The community will learn how to keep men interested in their health status. Worksite Programs In the communities’ workplaces they will learn how to increase their knowledge about healthy diet and physical exercise through lectures, written materials either print or online. There will also be educational software available. The workplace can also offer Behavioral and Social Strategies to promote awareness and self-efficacy. They can also offer individual and group counseling to teach these skills and to learn about cue control, rewards, and other reinforcement. They ca n also learn to include all the coworkers and to involve the family members to help build support systems. The worksite can also learn to change Policy and Environmental approaches to making proper healthy choices for their employees and their families. In this part they will learn how to change food choices in the cafeteria and/or in the vending machines. They can also learn how to initiate on-site exercise facilities. Cost-effectiveness Estimates were from three studies One showed two had weight loss One showed that a physical fitness program was started One showed that money varied in what it could cost per person-($1.44 to $4.16 per pound of loss in body weight. Assessment in learning about Heart Disease and how to improve healthy living In learning anything one must have the

MARKETING SUSTAINABILITY Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MARKETING SUSTAINABILITY - Case Study Example Since tourists visit to see nature, such as wildlife and visit exotic places, tourist host destinations preserve nature to attract them. Additionally, the revenue paid by the tourists when they visit such places generates funds for maintaining and upgrading such areas. On the negative aspect, tourism may lead to exploitation of the environment such as overuse of beaches or trespassing in sensitive areas such as coral reefs (Bhatia 2002, p.36). Tourism facilities such as hotels may cause pollution to the seas, and motor vehicles pollute the air from the fumes. Consumption behaviour defines the study of individuals or groups with relation to their process of preferring products or services in order to identify the effects which they have on the society and the consumers (Sarah & Claire 2013, p.11-28). In the case of Costa Rica, the government should be the one responsible for this aspect of marketing. This means that the government should seek to identify which resources are most needed by tourists so that they can devise the best means of satisfying their demands. In so doing, the consumers (tourists) would be satisfied and comfortable with Costa Rica and this would have a guaranteed positive impact on society. These impacts include development, sustenance of resources, and better reputation. The reason why the government should be the responsible party for this tool is that it has the ability to influence the players in the tourism industry to align with what will be highlighted as factors promoting better tourism behaviour. Ecotourism in Costa Rica can be enhanced by segmenting it into two partitions; leisure ecotourism, and educative ecotourism. By understanding the two segments deeply, it is easier to provide the conditions and/or demands that each market requires for enhancement. The leisure ecotourist has different experiences and benefits from the educational ecotourist. This tourist displays lesser concern

Arguments For and Against Personality Predictors

Arguments For and Against Personality Predictors Arguments in favour Anyone seeking to measure personality has an abundance of useful psychometric instruments at their disposal, include the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) (e.g. Archer, 2005), the Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) (Watkins et al, 1997), the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) (Myers McCauley, 1985; McCrae Costa, 1989), and the, NEO Personality Inventory (revised) (Costa McCrae, 1992), and the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) (Cramer, 1996), just to mention a few. Thus it should be simple matter to generate a reliable and valid set of scores, which can then be used to make various predictions about future behaviour. Studies have shown that the more established personality tests have acceptable levels of reliability (i.e. they measure personality consistently, both in terms of stability over time/across situations, and internally), and validity (they seem to measure personality, rather than some other psychological feature) (e.g. Costa McCrae, 1992; Wa tkins et al, 1997). Indeed, use of some of these measures is so widespread that they have become a standard part of psychological assessments in health care and recruitment, marriage counselling, and other fields (Davey, 2004; Myers, 2007). The data obtained can for example be used to make a prediction about the success of a marriage, professional abilities of a candidate for a job, or medical outcomes. For example, the MMPI is regularly used to make determinations about future behavioural problems in psychiatric patients (Arbisi et al, 2002). The NEO Personality Inventory and Myers Briggs Type Indicator have been fund to be particularly useful at predicting future behaviour. For example Moutafi et al (2003) asked 900 people to complete various psychological tests as part of an exercise conducted by a business consulting company. These tests included the MBTI and the revised version of the NEO Personality Inventory. Multiple regression analysis showed that various personality scales contained in both personality inventories reliably predict multiple dimensions of intelligence, at the 5% level of significance (Howitt Cramer, 2005). Clearly, the availability of tried and tested measurement tools suggests that it personality can be measured reasonably accurately, and hence used as the basis for making predictions. Another argument concerns the dispositional nature of personality traits. Personality has long been conceptualised as a stable and enduring feature that once developed does not change much during a person’s lifetime (Allport, 1937; Ryckman, 2004). This stability means it is possible to formulate a clear idea about the nature of a person’s personality (e.g. using a personality test) (Myers, 2007). This idea, once formed, can then be used to make predictions. To better appreciate this argument consider more volatile psychological characteristic like stress or coping (Janis, 1986). A persons stress levels can fluctuate widely over any given period of time. For example, an individual may experience high stress levels when the go to work during the day, but then feel relaxed once they return home. Similarly an individual may become highly agitated when flying in an aircraft and then subsequently experience little or no stress once they are back on the ground. Given the volat ility of stress levels it may be rather difficult for a researcher to conduct an overall and accurate assessment of a person’s anxiety. By contrast, personality shows sufficient continuity to enable a researcher develop a reliable personality profile (Engler, 2006) for any one individual. The accuracy of personality measurement is facilitated by the availability of suitable statistical tools, notably factor analysis (Tabachnick Fidell, 1996; Field, 2000). Factor analysis is a statistical method that allows one to condense a large amount of data into a small number of more manageable dimensions. In particular, a persons’ responses to a large number of items in an inventory can be reduced to a small number of basic dimensions that encapsulate the individuals’ personality. This is important given that personality is a multidimensional construct that can be described with thousands of words, phrases, and sentences, in the English language (Livesley Jackson, 1986). Consequently, personality theorists have routinely used this test to identify the basic dimensions of personality, such Goldberg’s (1993) ‘Big Five’ personality themes – agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, extraversion, and openness to experience. It is well known that renowned psychologist Hans Eysenck (Haggbloom, 2002) was one of those to first grasp the utility of factor analysis for developing accurate measures of personality. He subjected a large number of personality items to factor analyses, over several decades, yielding several dimensions: a proclivity to experience negative feelings, which he called neuroticism; an interest in social activity, labelled extraversion; and later a susceptibility to mental illness (e.g. schizophrenia), named psychoticism. These dimensions have been used to make predictions about a wide variety of behaviours, in many different situations (e.g. see review by Riggio Riggio, 2002). Furthermore, a person’s personality is a significant determinant of their behaviour in many different situations (Ryckman, 2004; Myers, 2007). This is a scientific fact, as demonstrated by the large number of studies that have used personality measures as the basis for determining various aspects of human behaviour under disparate conditions (McCrae Costa, 1990). For example, studies have shown how a defensive, unreceptive, or evasive personality can lead audiences to reject health warnings issued on a variety of topics and in a multiplicity of situations (see review by Eagly Chaiken, 1993). Empirical studies show that personality scores predict a significant amount of the variance in various behavioural scores, with the influence of chance factors falling below the five percent level (e.g. Moutafi et al, 2003). For this reason psychologists have spent a considerable amount of time and effort studying this construct. Once an accurate measurement of a persons personality have been obtained it should be fairly simple to make a significant prediction about their current or future behaviour in any given situation, using analytic procedures such as multiple regression analysis. Arguments against Psychologists cannot agree on the proper definition of personality, let alone measure it accurately and make reliable predictions. Open any relevant psychology textbook and one is confronted with several different theoretical accounts of precisely what personality means (e.g. Davey, 2004; Myers, 2007). For example, the legendary Sigmund Freud conceptualises personality as a multidimensional construct (incorporating the id, ego, and superego) that transcends the conscious, preconscious, and subconscious, and is driven by unconscious emotional problems. By contrast behaviourists, such as Burrhus Skinner, view personality as learned behaviours shaped by reinforcement and conditioning. Trait theorists like Gordon Allport conceptualise personality as stable behavioural characteristics that manifest across different situations. Thus, psychologists are far from reaching a consensus. Therefore, the idea that personality can be measured accurately is nonsensical. How can one measure a phenome non that isn’t clearly defined? Until psychologists can agree on a universal definition of personality, accurate measurement will remain an unattainable dream. At the beginning of this essay I provided a list of measurement tools for assessing personality, for example the MMPI, MBTI, and NEO personality inventory. While these instruments do appear to have some accuracy, their psychometric properties are continually the subject of doubt and criticism (e.g. McCrae Costa, 1989; Watkins et al, 1997). Reliability coefficients, while good, aren’t often high enough, and validity tests are rarely conclusive (Arbisi et al, 2002). Given these problems in the measurement of personality, accurate prediction of behaviour is bound to be impaired. For example, it is known fact that measurement error, resulting from the use unreliable and invalid measurement tools, can obscure significant relations between variables, resulting in a type II error (Baron Kenny, 1986; Howitt Cramer, 2 005). The idea that personality could be used to predict behaviour across situations rests on an important assumption – that how people respond in any given situation is necessarily predictable. The truth is that a person’s behaviour may sometimes be random with no apparent cause. This idea is echoes chaos theory (Gleick, 1987), a scientific school of thought that proposes that an event may be unpredictable due to various complexities or errors in its antecedent conditions. For example, long-term weather forecasting is often difficult because so many unstable climatic factors interact in such a complex fashion that minor changes in the nature of these interactions, and the elements which interact, could produce random, unpredictable, and escalating weather patterns. Chaos theory is applicable to the social sciences (Kiel Elliot, 1997). Different personality characteristics may interact (Howitt Cramer, 2005) in extremely complex fashions that any slight changes in the nature of these interactions or the variables involved can produce statistical and computational problems that reduce predictive power (Field, 2000). For example, any error in measurement of personality will be magnified to such an extent that it would obscure significant relationships between personality and behaviour. Baron and Kenny (1986) document this magnification in measurement error resulting from interactions between multiple variables. It means that behaviours produced by overly complex interactions between personality characteristics may to all intents and purposes be mathematically unpredictable, and hence appear random and sporadic, irrespective of the situation (Gleick, 1987). This is especially likely when trying to predict fleeting or eccentric behaviours (e.g. deliberate self-harm) often resulting from the complicated interplay between not just personality traits, but also other psychological phenomena, not to mention situational factors. There are others concerns. Psychologists can’t agree on whether personality traits are best conceptualised as stable entities that persist across situations or variable characteristics that change from one situation to the next (Davey, 2004). Which is it? Whatever view one subscribes to has measurement implications. Stable personality dispositions are generally more difficult to measure accurately, for various reasons (Leventhal et al, 1993). For example, people are less accurate at describing how they ‘generally’ behave, showing a memory bias towards positive rather than negative characteristics: in which case it would be more difficult to predict behaviour in any given situation, due to reliability and validity constraints. Finally, there is what social psychologists call the fundamental attribution error (Aronson, 1995). This refers to the tendency to overestimate the effect of personality on behaviour and underestimate the impact of the situation. Consider for example a person who has a fear of flying. They become highly stressed, agitated, and sometimes even panic stricken once a plane reaches cruising altitude. However, their anxiety disappears once the plane is back on the ground. The primary determinant of this individual’s emotional stress is situational – flying in a plane. Although personality may be important – for example, he/she may have a neurotic personality, making them more prone to stress (Riggio Riggio, 2002) – it would be a mistake to underestimate the effect of the situation (Janis, 1986; Engler, 2006). The essence of the fundamental attribution error here is thus: even if personality could be measured accurately, it may still fail to predict behaviour effectively to the extent that the behaviour in question is primarily a function of the situation rather than personality characteristics. Conclusion Can we predict a person’s response in any given situation if personality could be measured accurately? This essay presents arguments for and against. Regarding the former, psychometrically useful measures of personality abound, yielding reasonably reliable and valid personality scores that can be used for making behavioural predictions. Furthermore, analytic tools like factor analysis and the purportedly stable property of personality traits may both facilitate accurate measurement and further improve predictive power. Various empirical studies exist the support these arguments. However, there are several strong counterarguments that are difficult to refute. There is as yet in psychology no unanimous definition of personality. This raises serious questions about the psychometric attributes of any instrument that purports to measure personality. Indeed existing personality inventories are continually plagued by concerns about reliability and validity. Even without these psychom etric issues, a person’s behaviour is often heavily (if not entirely) determined by the prevailing situation, rather than their personality characteristics. Thus, even the most accurate personality measures will exhibit poor predictive power. In any case it is questionable whether human behaviour is always predictable. Certain responses may appear random, sporadic, and to all intents and purposes, unpredictable, due to analytic and methodological limits of existing science. In the midst of these constraining realities it is unlikely that personality traits could reliability predict behaviour across different situations References Allport, G. W. (1937). Personality: A Psychological Interpretation. New York: Holt,  Rinehart Winston. Arbisi, P., Ben-Porath Y. McNulty J (2002). A comparison of MMPI-2 validity in  African American and Caucasian psychiatric inpatients. Psychological  Assessment 14, pp.3-15. Archer, R.P. (2005). MMPI-A: Assessing Adolescent Psychopathology Lawrence  Erlbaum Associates Aronson, E. (1995) The Social Animal. New York: Freeman. Baron, R. M. Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in  social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical  considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51,  pp.1173‑1182. Costa, P.T., McCrae, R.R. (1992). Revised NEO personality inventory and NEO  five-factor inventory professional manual. Florida: Psychological Assessment  Resources, Inc. Cramer, P. (1996) Storytelling, Narrative, and the Thematic Apperception Test. New  York City: Guilford Press. Davey, G. (ed) (2004) Complete Psychology. London: Hodder Stoughton. Eagly, A. Chaiken, S (1993). The Psychology of Attitudes, Fort Worth, TX:  Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Engler, B. (2006). Personality Theories. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Field, A. (2000) Discovering Statistics using SPSS for Windows: Advanced  techniques for the Beginner. London: Sage. Goldberg, L. R. (1993). The structure of phenotypic personality traits. American  Psychologist, 48, pp.26-34. Haggbloom, S.J. (2002). The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century.  Review of General Psychology, 6, pp.139-152. Howitt, D. Cramer, D. (2005) Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology.  London: Pearson. Janis, I.L. (1986). Coping patterns among patients with life-threatening diseases.  Issues in Mental Health. Nursing, 7, pp.461–476. Kiel, L. D. Elliott, E.W. (eds) (1997). Chaos Theory in the Social Sciences:  Foundations Applications. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.. Livesley, W. J., Jackson, D. N. (1986). The internal consistency and factorial structure  of behaviors judged to be associated with DSM-III personality disorders.  American Journal of Psychiatry, 143, pp.1473-1474. Leventhal, E.A., Suls, J. Leventhal, H. (1993) Hierarchical analysis of coping:  Evidence from lifespan studies. In. H.W. Krohne (ed) Attention and Avoidance.  (pp.71-99) Seattle, Hogrefe and Huber Publishers. McCrae, R.R. Costa, P.T (1989) Reinterpreting the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator  From the Perspective of the Five-Factor Model of Personality. Journal of  Personality, 57, pp.17-40 Moutafi, J., Furnham, A., Crump, J. (2003). Demographic and personality  predictors of intelligence: A study using the Neo Personality Inventory and  Myers Briggs Type Indicator. European Journal of Personality, 17, pp.79–94. Myers, D. G. (2007). Psychology: Eighth edition in modules. New York: Worth  Publishers. Myers, I., McCauley, M.H. (1985), A Guide to the Development and Use of the  Myers Briggs Type Indicator, Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. Ryckman, R. (2004). Theories of Personality. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth. Riggio, H.R. Riggio, R.E. (2002) Emotional expressiveness, extraversion   neuroticism: a meta-analysis. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 26, pp.195-218. Tabachnick, B.G. Fidell, L.S. (1996). Using Multivariate Statistics. New York:  HarperCollins Watkins, M.W., Kush, J., Glutting, J.J. (1997). Discriminant and predictive validity  of the WISC-III ACID profile among children with learning disabilities.  Psychology in the Schools, 34, pp.309-319.