Humanity In George Orwells 1984 - 1083 Words

Humanity in 1984 George Orwell’s 1984 is more than just a novel, it is a warning to a potential dystopian society of the future. Written in 1949, Orwell envisioned a totalitarian government under the figurehead Big Brother. In this totalitarian society, every thought and action is carefully examined for any sign of rebellion against the ruling party. Emotion has been abolished and love is nonexistent; an entire new language is being drafted to reduce human thought to the bare minimum. In a society such as the one portrayed in 1984, one is hardly human. In George Orwell’s 1984, the party uses fear, oppression, and propaganda to strip the people of their humanity. To determine how the party strips the citizens of Oceania of their humanity,†¦show more content†¦Thought Police could be anyone, they can follow someone for months and arrest them without trial. They drive people to think dramatically, as in the case when Winston believes he is being followed by Julia. â€Å"He could keep on her track until till they were in some quiet place, and then smash her skull in with a piece of cobblestone† (Orwell 101). This quote represents Winston’s fear of Julia, who he suspects is a member of the Thought Police. On the other hand, the seemingly overactive thought process of a suspect may seem completely justified in relation to the punishment they will receive if arrested. After being tortured for days or even weeks, a criminal may find themselves in the desolate â€Å"Room 101†. Simply the mention of Room 101 is enough to strike fear in the heart of any criminal, but being summoned to it is enough to make a man sacrifice his family to avoid his fate. â€Å"‘Do anything to me!’ he yelled. ‘You ve been starving me for weeks. Finish it off and let me die. Shoot me. Hang me. Sentence me to twenty-five years. Is there somebody else you want me to give away?’† (Orwell 237). Room 101 is individually tailored to every pe rson who crosses its threshold, using their greatest fear against them. In Winston’s case, he has a cage of rats placed on his head and is forced to betray Julia. He loses his ability to love and retain his own ideas, key aspects of what makes him a human. Not only do theShow MoreRelated1984 Metropolis Essay1293 Words   |  6 Pagespower† is heavily supported by George Orwell’s 1949 novel ‘1984’ and Fritz Lang’s 1927 film ‘Metropolis’ through their intertextual connections and shared perspectives. Both texts were composed around the context of pre and post World War 2 which is clearly evident through their settings, characterisation, themes and ideas. Through Orwell’s and Fritz’s use of dystopic societies, empowerment of women and detrimental dictatorship rule it is blatant that George Orwell’s quote â€Å"The object of power isRead MoreFrancess Kargbo. Mr. Bond-Theriault. 2Nd Period. 22 March1623 Words   |  7 PagesMarch 2017 1984 By: George Orwell From a new historicism , and psychoanalytic criticism view. â€Å"Big Brother is Watching You† As the future nears, most of humanity is starting to realize that â€Å"2+2=5†(. There is manipulation that occurs constructed by the government to control every aspect of reality, technology taking human jobs, those who control the present write history, social hierarchy, and wars that have no purpose. 1984 by Eric Arthur Blair is known by his pen name, George Orwell may notRead MoreRay Bradbury s Fahrenheit 451 And George Orwell1669 Words   |  7 PagesAs said by George Orwell, â€Å"It is not possible for any thinking person to live in such a society as our own without wanting to change it,† (Orwell). This idea, under the category of knowledge, is reflected through two novels—Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 and George Orwell’s 1984—as people who spend time thinking are caught rebelling against the government’s power and face severe consequences. The protagonists, Montag and Winston, are both desperately searching for answers that pi que their curiosityRead MoreLiterary Context Of Dystopian Literature1746 Words   |  7 PagesDystopian literature explores the many problems within our society and uses them to create a dark and nightmare world, in which squalor, poverty or oppression are present. It acts as a cautionary tale for readers and brings to light the many flaws in humanity, which makes it impossible for a perfect society to ever exist. The true horrors, which compose a fictitious dystopian world, are used as a literary tool by many authors in an attempt to magnify societies issues. Their texts serve as a moralisticRead MoreOppression and Dehumanization in George Orwells 1984 Essay1621 Words   |  7 Pages12 April 2012 Oppression and Dehumanization of Society in George Orwell’s 1984: The Manipulation of Technology, Language, Media and History George Orwell uses his novel 1984 to convey that human beings, as a species, are extremely susceptible to dehumanization and oppression in society. Orwell demonstrates how a government’s manipulation of technology, language, media, and history can oppress and degrade its citizens. In 1984 the political manipulation of technology oppresses the peopleRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Dystopia 881 Words   |  4 Pageswritten and published in 1949 by Secker and Warburg. Its name being â€Å"1984† by George Orwell. â€Å"Big brother is always watching,† the language the author utilizes drops subtle hints from time to time about what could possibly happen in the real world in near future. 1984 still remains one of the most intense and powerful warning signals about the peril of total government control. The time period 1984 was inspired in is crucial to its plot. It was inspired around WorldRead MoreGeorge Orwells 1984 Essay706 Words   |  3 PagesGeorge Orwells 1984 What look on humanity and human nature, if any, can be seen through this book, 1984? 1984 examines a future under the rule of a totalitarian society. One of the unique notes about Orwells 1984, is theRead More Orwell’s Totalitarian Government in 1984 Essay1562 Words   |  7 PagesGeorge Orwell’s key objective throughout his novel, 1984, was to convey to his readers the imminent threat of the severe danger that totalitarianism could mean for the world. Orwell takes great measures to display the horrifying effects that come along with complete and dominant control that actually comes along with totalitarian government. In Orwell’s novel, personal liberties and individual freedoms that are protected and granted to many Americans today, are taken away and ripped from the citizen’sRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s 19841377 Words   |  6 PagesIn humanity, there are leaders who feel that taking control over their nation can help to improve their society. However, citizens in those particular societies, have diverse opinions as to their la ws and regulations that they are required to follow. With this, every nation has its own particular government, or leader. A government’s role is to regulate and organize their nation, along with their citizens. There are various types of governments, such include democracy, oligarchy, and more specificallyRead MoreAnalysis Of George Orwell s Nineteen Eighty Four 1169 Words   |  5 PagesCourtney Trawick Mrs. Garner Senior English Honors 27 February 2016 Totalitarianism of George Orwell’s Oceania â€Å"War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, and Ignorance is Strength† (Orwell 4). This is the slogan the Party uses in George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four to represent the main philosophy the society of Oceania is expected to believe. In the early 1900’s, many totalitarian societies sprouted in Eastern Europe. These societies paved the way for many works of satire in Western literature

Report to World Music Ensemble Essay Example For Students

Report to World Music Ensemble Essay It was the first concert I had since I have been to Kent. This concert is called World Music Ensemble, which is include some Thai music, Chinese Gunning music, traditional Irish music, and music from Africa. I felt really excited because this concert include many types of music. There were two programs attract me deeply. First of all, Yanking Sandier with Chinese Gunning drew my attention. There are some reasons, maybe the biggest reasons is I can understand the lyric. The lyric is changed from an ancient poem of Wee Wang. As I know Wang, whose nickname was Poet Buddha, was a Tang Dynasty Chinese poet. This poem is talking about Wang send Off friend, who has been appointed envoy to the west lands. The early morning shower in Wee city has kept down dust, and the guesthouse looks trim and the willows fresh and green. Wang urged his friend to have one more drink for the road, because out west, beyond Fort Handgun, his friend has no one to turn to. Another reason is this program made me a little sad because I remember when I left China, I said goodbye to my parents and friends at the airport. The music is played by Gunning, Gunning is also known as an elegant instrument in China. The rhythm accord with the lyric, made me feel mommies. Another program attracted me a lot is the Palm Wine Guitar. I had a particular complex when I was a child. Every time when I heard the sound of guitar, I feel extreme peace and smooth in my emotion, for me, I call that magic sound. The deep voice of human, and the light sound of the guitar, made me feel unbelievable. Moreover, I also enjoyed the dance which was amazing and energetic. People whatever their nationalities were all can feel the passion. With the drum beat, we could not help our selves to move our bodies. The bright, swirling dresses add to the spectacle, and elicit cries of encouragement from the spectators. Then performers and audiences chorused, the lyric was founded in the programs guide, it was easy to sing and catch. The auditorium was full to overflowing. Perhaps the performers are not the most professional, but they showed the best to us, I learned a lot from this concert, it catcher my emotion. When I heart Thai music I felt familiar because I learned it; when I heard Gunning, I felt homesick; when I heart guitar, I felt relaxed; when I saw the dance, I felt full of passion; and when I listened the history of South Africa, I was touched. That is why I said this concert is unique. Report to World Music Ensemble By bodied

Desirability for Control in the Workplace

Introduction In the psychological studies concerned with the behaviour of human beings and their reactions to different situations, there is one character present in human beings that is of great interest to scholars and researchers. This is the degree to which the way different individuals believe in themselves and seek to control the things that happen around them.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Desirability for Control in the Workplace specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More There are two main categories of people in this aspect; people who believe that they can control what goes on around them and those who believe that things happen by chance and hence only let things happen and allow themselves to flow with them (Hammond Horswill, 2001). This character of controlling things around us may be measured in order to determine the degree of the difference in different individuals pertaining to a given phenomenon. This character is called desirability of control and is measurable using different scales. This study seeks to undertake a research into the desire for control in the workplace and specifically to understand why most people are willing to take greater risks when they are at the position of control or leadership rather than when they are not (Langer, 1975). Aim of the Study The study sought to formulate a scale that would have been efficient for measurement of desirability of control for the workplace. The results of the study would then be used to test the hypothesis that most people prefer to take greater risks while they are in control rather than when they are just ordinary, subordinate employees (Smith, Wallston, Forsberg King, 1984). The personality trait of desirability for control is related to other personality traits especially the ones in the five factor model such as conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness to experience. However, this measure may be very important in the understanding of the human behaviour that pressures many to wish to be the ones in control in the workplace and in other scenarios. It is important to understand this trait in the workplace since it may have an association to other traits that are characteristic of employees. For example, someone may wish to be a leader so as to overcome fear, frustration, anxiety or simply due to such personalities as greed or meanness at the workplace (Svenson, 1981).Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Desirability of Control and Workplace Anxiety There seems to be a great relationship between desirability for control and workplace anxiety. Since the workplace involves taking of risks, most people do not feel safe as subordinates when the company is taking great risks. They always feel that their interests may be at stake if things turned against their expectations. However, research has shown that m ost people are comfortable taking great risks while they are at a decision-making position of control at their workplace (Taylor Brown, 1988). They usually feel that they would be able to more easily overcome any challenges that might arise from such a risk as well as getting a reduced workplace anxiety (Burger, 1991). Therefore, it is acceptable to make a general conclusion that there is a negative correlation between desirability for control and workplace anxiety such that an increase in control results to reduced anxiety and vice versa. Hence, those in decision-making positions are likely to provide better productivity than the subordinates due their low level of anxiety as well as their improved risk-taking propensity (Trimpop, Kerr Kirkcaldy, 1999). Why Measure Desirability of Control Desirability of control is a very important trait to understand especially for organizations that seek to increase worker productivity, performance and the overall output of the company. Since t he trait has a relationship with the effort that an employee puts in their work as well as their performance at work, it is important to take the trait into consideration as a function of performance. Therefore, there seems to be a close relationship between desirability for control and performance such that an increase in control results to more productivity by an individual worker and vice versa. On the other side, the trait may make the employees to work harder for their effort to be noted and rewarded through elevation from their position to a position of more control (Wolfgang, Zenker, Viscusi, 1984). Measures of Desirability for Control in the Past The desirability for control (DC) scale has been used by researchers in the past to understand the character of different people in relation to their desire to control things around them rather than to be a follower. This scale was designed to collect and analyze information about different aspects that are associated to desirabili ty for control and which were used as a test for the degree of this trait.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Desirability for Control in the Workplace specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More A scale of 1-7 was established from which the mean of all the questions considered for the study was calculated and then used to determine the degree of the trait. This scale has been effective in the past especially due to the fact that it was comprehensive in collection of information used for testing the trait. The measure used before would need to be upgraded due to the fact that there have been tremendous changes and improvements in technology and livelihood in general. Hence, there is a need for the measure to be updated so as to ensure it incorporates the modern society in order for it to be able to collect unbiased and comprehensive information for the current society. The Proposed Scale This study will seek to understand the reliability and effectiveness of a scale that has been proposed though research. The scale, if approved, would be more reliable since it would incorporate changes that may occur in the near future and hence would be easier to understand. It will also be easier to use especially for long-term projects and researches. Reliability and Validity The reliability of the scale will be determined by considering the number of subjects that portray a higher degree of desire for control. If this number is larger than the one portraying a low degree, then the scale would be ready for valid (McBride, 2009). The validity of the scale was determined through calculation of the correlation coefficient and then determining the significance of this scale (Zechmeister, Shaughnessy, 2011). Hypothesis to be Tested The hypotheses that were being tested in the study were: H1: Desirability for control would be negatively correlated with social Anxiety, such that people with high desirability for control wi ll score low in Social Anxiety.Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More H2: It also been Predicted that people who have high desirability for control and low in social anxiety end to perform better in workplace. H3: It hypothesized that Desirability for control might be able to predict successfulness of an individual in workplace. Validating the Scale The new scale to be used for measurement of the desirability for control trait would be validated through pretesting it on real data so as to determine if it would produce the expected results. This would be done through the process of the test of hypothesis (Goodwin, 2009). Conclusion Since the new scale for desirability for control in the workplace is an important factor to consider in understanding of the business employees, it is important to adopt the method since it is easier to use and more reliable. Also, its variables will be fewer and easier to calculate. References Burger, J. (1991). The Effects of Desire for Control in Situations with Chance-Determined Outcomes: Gambling Behavior in Lotto and B ingo Players. Journal of Research in Personality, 25, 196-204. Goodwin, C. (2009). Research In Psychology: Methods and Design. London: Willey. Hammond, T. and Horswill, S. (2001). The influence of desire for control on drivers’ risk-taking behavior. London: Pergamon. Langer, E. (1975). The illusion of control. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 32, 311-328. McBride, D. (2009). The Process of Research in Psychology. London: Pearson. Smith, A., Wallston, B., Wallston, K., Forsberg, R., and King, J. (1984). Measuring desire for control of health care processes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 47(2), 415–426. Svenson, O. (1981). Are we all less risky and more skillful than our fellow drivers. Acta Psychologica, 47, 143–148. Taylor, E. and Brown, J. (1988). Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 103(2), 193–210. Trimpop, R., Kerr, H., Kirkcaldy, B. (1999). Comparing person ality constructs of risk-taking behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 26, 237–254. Wolfgang, A., Zenker, S. and Viscusi, T. (1984). Control motivation and the illusion of control in betting on dice. Journal of Psychology, 116, 67-72. Zechmeister, J. and Shaughnessy, J. (2011). Research Methods In Psychology. New York; AMC. This essay on Desirability for Control in the Workplace was written and submitted by user Jakobe Bowen 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.

Top Pointers For Writing Proper Diagnostic Essays

Top Pointers For Writing Proper Diagnostic Essays Diagnostic Essay: Pointers for a Successful Essay A diagnostic essay aims at enlightening the strengths and weaknesses of the student to the teachers so that they can be assisted accordingly, and shape the curriculum altogether. They are mostly administered at the beginning of a term or a semester. For a diagnostic essay, the students are not expected to excel, but rather express the skills and knowledge they have currently, and how they can use them accordingly. This test follows the standard five-paragraph essay format; the introduction, three body paragraphs, and the conclusion.   All the students are given the same topic to write about, although at given instances, you are provided with two or three topics to choose from. Since diagnostic essays are time-bound, you are required to have a well-thought plan in your mind regarding what you are about to tackle. This involved awarding enough time to brainstorm your topic, think it over, write the essay to your best knowledge, and finally proofread your work before submitting it. Writing the introduction The introduction is an integral part of your essay as it highlights ideas that the reader expects as he or she reads through your work from the start to the end. You should begin working on your introduction, only if you have completely understood your topic of discussion, brainstormed it, and you have substantial ideas that are to be presented in your main body paragraphs. In simple terms, make an effort of being conversant with what you are introducing. It is a creative approach to first paraphrase the topic of discussion given to write about. After this, you need to come up with three essential points that will be expounded on and supported with relevant information in your body paragraphs. You are to introduce them in your introductory paragraph briefly. For instance, if you were to write about the hardest encounters you have had in your life, do not place your focus on only one decision. You can present three variables and accord them a scope. So, each paragraph of your main body will be associated with each alternative you have come up with. The end of your introduction should be made of the thesis statement, which is the main idea of your diagnostic essay. Writing the main body As mentioned earlier, the main body of your diagnostic essay should be made up of three paragraphs. Each paragraph should represent one of the three key ideas you mentioned in the introductory paragraph. At this stage, you are to expound on them and back each with its related information to give it credibility. The first body paragraph should be the sturdiest of them all.   For example, using the topic on the hardest encounter of your life, the first paragraph should talk about which was your hardest encounter, as per your point of view. Use the elements that support your point of consideration from your thesis statement to give the reader reason as to why you consider that particular encounter as the hardest. The second body paragraph should talk about the second hardest encounter of your life.   Use the information that supports your point of consideration from your thesis statement, to give the reader your reason for considering this particular encounter as your second hardest. The third paragraph is the least hard of the three encounters. You should convince the reader why you still considered this encounter as one of your hardest, bearing in mind it is the third on your list. As required, apply the information that supports your point of consideration from your thesis statement, and explain to the reader your reason for putting that particular encounter as your third hardest encounter. Writing the conclusion A good essay requires a well-articulated conclusion. You should, however, remember that your essay is under limited time and you need to end your essay with a captivating overview. This is the reason why a diagnostic essay should be brief.   The main idea here is to give the reader an impression the whole topic has been fully addressed. If your question was from a prompt, make sure that you have answered the provided question.   Keep in mind that you are not allowed to introduce new information in your conclusion paragraph. Your conclusion should consist of your restated thesis statement, and an outline of the main points that you have provided an argument for in your body paragraph. For instance; relating to our example, list your three hardest encounters, list the supporting reasons describing why you think some encounters are harder than the others and conclude a statement that describes why a particular encounter was the hardest. The outline for a diagnostic essay To summarize what we have learned, below is a brief outline for a diagnostic essay: Introduction Restated topic or prompt The main points Thesis statement The most important point of discussion The second most important point of discussion The third most important point of discussion Conclusion: a list of the main points discussed and the solution to the prompt provided. Proofread your essay With the limit in time for writing the essay, you will probably write your work hastily. This will make your work vulnerable to mistakes such as those in grammar, punctuation, and spellings. Even though your diagnostic essay will not be graded, you still need to ensure that your work can be read and interpreted as you intended. For this reason, ensure that you spare some time to go through your essay and do the necessary corrections before submitting it. Be sure to follow the structural outline required or provided to ensure your work has a logical flow of ideas. Also, avoid padding your work (filling it up with unnecessary words).

Poverty Impacts on People's Health and Well-Being in Britain Today Essay

Poverty Impacts on People's Health and Well-Being in Britain Today - Essay Example This paper is aimed at providing a detailed analysis of the impact of poverty on people’s health and well being in Britain and the role of nursing intervention in their treatment. Different effects of poverty on health of Britain: Economic inequality is said to be closely associated with the level of social and healthy inequalities in different countries across the globe. In the developing countries existence of income inequality is expected to form the greatest level of negative effects on the development of health status of people living in the country. However, in the developed countries of the world, such as Britain, income inequalities in the form of poverty are negatively influencing the health conditions of people. Following the prevalence of the global crisis due to early period of 1970s, the process of restoration of class power has been set in the developed part of the world. This restoration has created the existence of significant amount of negative association bet ween the prevalence of poverty and the decline in the health status of people in the country (Smith, 2001, pp. 348-350). ... The purpose of this report has been to persuade monitoring, to allow comparison, and also to encourage the discussion as well as the development of different policies in the process of improving children’s lives. The report has represented the fact that an important progress on previous reports on the topic has revealed the fact that income and poverty are used as proxy in measuring the overall level of well-being of children and young people in the country. Particularly, the paper tries to measure as well as compare the level of well-being of children and young people under the six wide ranges of dimensions. These dimensions include material well-being of these people, the health and safety status, the level of education, â€Å"peer and family relationships, behaviours and risks, and young people’s own subjective sense of well-being†. These aspects are considered as very important ones in the development of the health status of the people living in the country ( Child poverty in perspective: An overview of child well-being in rich countries, 2007, p.43). The level of poverty in the country is negatively affecting the number of people having employment opportunities. This fact is again affecting the purchasing power of these people across the country. One of the most important associations between the level of poverty and the choice and purchasing power of the people in the country suggests, the lower their level of income, the lower is amount of health services they can demand. Those people in the country who are badly suffering from poverty and unemployment are getting mentally affected. This mental effect arises from the fact that these people are not only being deprived of possessing several effective health

CONTEMPORARY PRACTICES AND DEBATES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

CONTEMPORARY PRACTICES AND DEBATES - Essay Example The book has been adopted and translated into many forms of media productions, these include; screen, audio, stage, and many others (Lerner, L. J. 2004, 3). A journalistic view of the book reveals so much about the contemporary life and the human behavior towards other people, those who they consider close acquaintances, and those perceived to be enemies (Johnson, K. A. 2012, 76). The little prince, George is a character from a different planet, in search of adventure, and because of boredom, he leaves his planet to explore the outside world. This shows how human beings are mobile and tend to travel a lot in search of the values they consider deer to them, in Antoine’s real life scenario, he left his country. France, and went to the United States to convince the country to join the in the anti-Nazi war (Shirer, W. L. 2011, 197). This is his driving force, he moved from his own home to a foreign place to satisfy his urge of wanting to help his country from a different perspecti ve. The same applies to the little Prince George, he left his own planet due to a driving force, the urge to find out more and move out of his free cocoon. This, he eventually achieves, he grabs the first opportunity that comes around, the bird migration, he uses the birds to move to other planets. Here we learn about the nature of humans to take advantage of things that come around to satisfy their own needs. People trend to have a strong pull towards achieving their goals such that they do anything possible to achieve it; they are opportunistic in nature, using something that they did not expect to come around to their advantage. Antoine creates a mental picture of a man clinging to the wings of numerous birds flying from one planet to another (Normington, K. 2007, 347). Thinking of it, it looks like a big risk to take, but the little prince takes it anyway. He has an opportunity that he knows might not come around again. The manner in which Antoine brings out all these is quite r emarkable. The scene has been translated into a graphical form by the media, a picture of a young boy waiting to cling to some flying birds; he stands on a small planet, which he considers to be home. What catches the eye is the fact that, the prince seems to be sad. This is probably because he is leaving his little rose behind. This, as we can see, is the only thing that he is emotionally attached to, he is sad to leave it behind, though they have had their differences. We are told how the little Prince George was so emotionally attached to the rose flower, all the things he did to prevent it from harm. How he uprooted all the weeds that prevented it from growing to maturity (Saint-Exupery, A.D. 2004, 35). At some point, they even quarreled and this is what prompted him to leave in the first place, he thought that the rose was taking advantage of him. However, they get through it and become friends again. This alludes to the human nature of having emotional attachments to other peo ple or things; these can be even pets or other gadgets, these are the things that people hold closest to the heart and are so deer to them, in most cases, these are persons of the opposite sex. the flower represented spouses, how relationships work, people get emotionally attached, they go through so much together trying to protect themselves, at some point they differ in opinions and fall apart, but sooner or later they mend things and come back together. The aspect of sacrifice also

Factors Affecting Labour Turnover Commerce Essay

Factors Affecting Labour Turnover Commerce Essay This proposal is on the factors that affect labour turnover of Life insurance Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell and service its Life insurance products to enable it make profit from the Life policy. The exit of an Agent affects the servicing of the policies sold with negative impact on Companys profitability and investable fund for the nations economic development. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify the factors, find out how and to what extent they affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. It will also seek to find solution to the problem and make recommendations. This study will benefit the management and Agency Managers of the company, other Life Insurance companies, current and potential investors in Life insurance companies as well as government and its Agencies. The study will make use of descriptive research design which will involve field survey of targeted respondents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. The target population will be the regional managers, sales managers and the Agents at its branches in Nairobi numbering about 200. A sample of 15% will be taken using simple random sampling technique. The data will be collected by the use of questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics which will include tables, charts, diagrams and frequency distribution measurements such as mean, mode and median. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS Life Insurance Life Assurance is an aspect of Financial Planning which provides for the payment of a capital sum to the dependants of a policy owner on his death or to the policy owner on survival to policy expiration, in consideration of the payment of a smaller, often regular, amount to the Life office Life Insurance Sales Agent Life insurance agents specialize in selling policies that pay beneficiaries when a policyholder dies. They also sell other varieties of Life insurance products such as annuities that promise a retirement income, Health insurance and short-term and long-term-disability insurance policies. Agents may specialize in any one of these products, or function as generalists, providing multiple products to a single customer. They earn commission and other benefits for their effort. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS LIMRA Life Insurance Marketing and Research Association AKI Association of Kenya Insurers IIAA- Independent insurance Agents of America COP Certificate of Proficiency OMLAC Old Mutual Life Assurance Company CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION This chapter will focus on background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, the hypothesis or research questions, significance, scope and limitation of the study. 1.1 Background to the study Life Insurance is an aspect of Personal Financial Planning which enables somebody to provide for his future financial needs at old age and that of his or her dependants in the event of unforeseen circumstances. Such unforeseen circumstances are premature death, Total Permanent disability resulting from Accident or Critical illnesses which may reduce or terminate a persons income earning capacity. The risk of premature death is one of the major personal risks faced by most individuals. The financial consequences resulting from the death of a breadwinner before adequate resources have been established for dependents can be severe. Life insurance is a major source of financial protection against premature death. There are three main sources of life insurance protection which are individually purchased, Employer-sponsored and Government sponsored life insurance coverage. The dependable source is the individually purchased Life insurance protection because the other two may not be available to an individual. Life Assurance is a service premised on a promise to pay a certain amount of money in future in the event of the occurrence of a stated contingency which usually depends on the duration of human Life. Hence, the best form of selling this service is one on one personal selling through a Sales Person traditionally called an Agent. One major problem facing Life insurance Companies in selling their products and hence, profitability is the high rate of labour turnover of their Agents. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell its Life insurance products. These products are usually long tern going for a minimum of five years in duration. The profitability of a policy to the Life insurance Company depends on the consistent servicing of that policy by the Agent. When an Agent leaves an insurance Company when the policies he sold are still in their early years, such policies will no longer be serviced. Hence, the Company will lose in terms of future in-flow of investible funds, lost of commission that has been paid in advance to the Agent and payment of surrender values arising from lapsed policies. This situation threatens the survival of Life insurance companies and it has attracted the attention of some writers and researchers. According to Leverett et al (1977), the death of the independent Agency system as it exists today has been predicted for several years. Increased competition from newer sources, such as the entrance of Life insurance companies into the property-liability field, as well as traditional competition from the direct writers of insurance, tends to reinforce the foundation for such a prophesy. The attraction and retention of new agents into the independent agency system is vital to the continued successful existence of that system. A number of studies have indicated that the retention rate for agents recruited into the Life insurance industry is very low. According to one study, the two year and five year retention rates for 13 large life insurers in the United States were 39 and 13 percent respectively. Furthermore, the retention rate for smaller life insurers was found to be even less than for their larger counterparts. These figures are not totally unexpected given the lack or inadequacy of training and educational programs offered to new life insurance recruits. LIMRA (2009) points out that, it has been of great concern to many managers, the fact that only 5% of sales representatives who join the industry remain in the industry and become successful sales representatives. Out of the 5% only 2% become high achievers in the industry. Despite the fact that those on commissions earn more than majority of the salaried people, it has remained a very challenging field especially for the young people from college and university who would wish to earn good money easily and fast. Burand (2010) notes that over time, agents retention in the life insurance industry remains a perennial challenge for companies operating within the traditional career agency system. According to LIMRA (2010), 68% of agents leave companies within their first two years. Many managers presuppose that retention rates correspond with a companys effectiveness in building its sales and Organization in general. Company bottom lines would benefit substantially from increased retention rates. 1.1.1 Background to the Scope of Study Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya belongs to an International long-term savings, protection and investment Group. The Group provides life assurance, asset management, banking and general insurance in 33 countries (Africa, Europe, the Americas and Asia). It has over 15 million customers and approximately 55 000 employees. The vision of the group is to be their customers most trusted partner passionate about helping them achieve their lifetime financial goals. The group was founded in 1845 and has expanded from their origins in South Africa in the last decade through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. It is listed in the UK, South Africa and three other African exchanges. Old Mutual Kenya (OMK) started doing business in Kenya in the late 1920s. The vision of the company is the same as its parent company but limited to East Africa. The mission statement of the company is as follows through understanding and meeting our customers needs, we will profitably expand our market for wealth accumulation and protection in Kenya. 1.1.2 Background to the Population Area and organizational Chart Old Mutual has 16 retail marketing outlets throughout Kenya including 4 in Nairobi. The retail marketing arm is under the jurisdiction of the Head of Sales who is at the head office. The head of sales is part of the executive management who reports on the activities of the sales force. The head of sales is assisted by head of channels who oversees the activities of the Branch managers in different locations. Under the Branch Manger are Sales managers who manage the Agents. 1.2 Problem Statement The Insurance industry has suffered astronomical losses resulting from high rate of labour turnover among Agents especially the new agents. The new agents are the sales representatives who have been with the company for less than four years. Annual report published by LIMRA international in 2004 pointed out that four year agents retention has not been able to move above 13 percents. This translates to 87 percent of the new agents in the insurance industry leaving their respective companies within the first four years of signing the contract. An agent in the insurance industry especially life insurance starts becoming profitable only after the third year of their contract in the company. This is because the initial years are characterized by huge training cost, initial allowances which are not tied to production and forward-earning commission system. This results in high expenses for the firm in the early years of recruiting an Agent with the hope of recouping the cost gradually from the future earnings of the Agent. This implies that most of the insurance companies have been incurring huge losses because of consistently poor retention rate of the new agents. Insurance agents retention has become a matter of concern as the Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI) highlighted in the 2011 report concerning developments of the tied agents in the insurance industry in Kenya. AKI report (2010) observed that lack of personal development of many Agents who join insurance industry is an issue that requires attention by the industry if the industry is to remain relevant in the country. Lack of personal development among the agents has been cited as an important factor that affects agents retention in the industry. A Life insurance company relies on a stable Agency force to sell its Life insurance products. These products are usually long tern going for a minimum of five years in duration. Agents are paid commission for any policy sold. The commission is structured in such a way that a substantial percentage up to 50% of the premium is paid in the first year and between 10% to 40% is paid in subsequent years up to the fifth year or sometimes end of the policy term. The profitability of a policy to the Life insurance Company depends on the consistent servicing of that policy by the Agent. If an Agent leaves an insurance Company when the policies he sold are still in their early years, such policies will no longer be serviced. Hence, the Company will lose in terms of future in-flow of investable funds, loss of commission paid in advance for future services of the Agent and an early lapse of such orphan policies. The economy also suffers because it will be starved of investable funds which aid the economic development of the nation. Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya has experienced a drop in its number of Agents in the past years. While it had 500 Agents in 2010, they currently have about 200. This has also reflected in the revenue of the company from the individual life Insurance segment of the company. The premium income generated by the Agents for the past four years is represented in the following table. Table 1. Premium Income of Agents in Old Mutual Life Ass. Co. Kenya (2008 2011) Year Premium Income (Kshs 000) Difference Percentage Difference 2008 386,367 2009 378,056 (8,311) (2%) 2010 376,496 (1,560) (0.41%) 2011 349,429 (27,067) (7.18%) Source: OMLAC (2012) The graphical representation of the above situation is shown below. Figure 1. Premium Income of Agents in Old Mutual Life Ass. Co. Kenya (2008 2011) Source: OMLAC (2012) Life insurance premium from the sales Agent should increase in geometrical progression with positive cumulative effect on the revenue of the company. If the premium from new policies sold is added to the premium of existing policy holders, it should lead to increase in premium income from year to year. However, the reverse is the case in Old Mutual where premium income from Life insurance Agents has declined from Kshs 386 million in 2008 to Kshs 349 million in 2011. This represents a drop of 9.56% in premium income in 2011 compared to 2008. It is against this premises that this study will focus on factors affecting labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents in Old mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. 1.3 Objectives of the study The objective of the study will include the following: 1.3.1 General Objective To investigate the factors that affect labour turnover of Life insurance Agents in the Life insurance industry in Kenya. 1.3.2 Specific Objectives To find out how remuneration affects the turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To determine the effects of training on the turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To investigate how physical work environment affect labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To establish to what extent job satisfaction affects labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. To determine to what extent level of education affects labour turnover of Life Insurance Agents of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. 1.4 The Research Questions The study will seek information to answer the following research questions: To what extend does remuneration affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? To what extent does training affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? How does physical work environment affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? How does job satisfaction affect turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? To what extent does level of education affect labour turnover of Agents in Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited? The Significance of the Study The findings from this study will benefit the organization and its stakeholders, the life insurance industry, government and other researchers in this field. The top management of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Limited consisting of the Managing Director, the head of sales and head of channels who are likely to use the findings to understand the reasons behind labour turnover of Agents in the company. It will also help the Regional and Sales managers of Old Mutual Life Assurance Kenya to improve on their management techniques towards reducing labour turnover of Agents in their region and sales unit. The Sales Agents will also benefit from the study by using the recommendations to improve on their sales performance and create the personal willingness to stay with the company The findings of the study will also be of immense benefit to the government, especially the ministry of finance, and the commissioner of insurance who will use it to formulate policies that will improve retention of Agents in the Insurance industry. The stakeholders of Old Mutual Life Assurance Limited which include customers, investors and the public will also benefit from the study by understanding the factors that affect labour turnover of Agents in the company. Lastly, it will also benefit other researchers in this field who may use this report for further studies. 1.6 Scope of the Research Study The scope of this study will be found in the Life Insurance industry of Kenya. However, due to time and limited resources, the focus will be on Old Mutual Life Assurance Company Kenya. Since this study is on factors affecting labour turnover of Agents, the research will concentrate on the Agency force of the company which has about 200 Agents nationwide. For the same reasons above, the study will concentrate on the Agency force in Nairobi which is about 100 in number. The researcher will take sample from the research population. The period of study will be up to 30th September 2012. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter will critically analyze literature related to the study. This will include the issue of labor turnover in general and its effect, special attributes of Agents engage in selling services and Agent turnover in Life insurance industry. 2.2 Labor Turnover Labor turnover is the ratio of the number of employees that leave a company through attrition, dismissal, or resignation during a period to the number of employees on payroll during the same period. One of the 14 principles developed by Henri Fayol is stable labor turnover. He postulated that there should be stability of tenure of personnel in an organization. This is because a high labor turnover is harmful to the organization. Employee turnover refers to the rate at which employees leave jobs in a company and are replaced by new hires. A high employee turnover rate implies that a companys employees leave their jobs at a relatively high rate. Employee turnover rates can increase for a variety of reasons, and turnover includes both employees who quit their jobs and those who are asked to leave. Average employee turnover rates differ among industries; for example, in 2006, average turnover rates in the United States varied between around 15 percent annually for durable goods manufactu ring employees to as high as 56 percent for the restaurant and hospitality industry, according to Nobscot Corporation. According to a freelance writer, Shelley Frost, Employee turnover is a natural part of business in any industry. Excessive labour turnover decreases the overall efficiency of the company and comes with a high price tag. Understanding the effects of losing a high number of employees serves as a motivator to work toward reducing the labour turnover rate for higher profits and a more appealing work environment. The writer identified some cost associated with labour turnover as follows. Each employee who resigns costs the company money. All of the money invested into that employee through training, education and licensing walks out the door with the employee. When you hire a replacement, the company spends money on those same areas to prepare the new hire for the position. The company also pays to advertise the vacancy and may incur costs for drug testing, physicals and moving expenses. The company could pay 1/3 of the yearly salary of the new employee in costs. Labour turnover rates cost the company time in addition to money. Managers or human resources staffs spend time conducting exit interviews, advertising the job, recruiting candidates and interviewing. Supervisors and colleagues are often left to cover until a new employee is hired and begin working. The new employee may take several months to fully learn the job and achieve competency in the position. When the staff changes frequently, the employees who stay have a difficult time building a positive team dynamic. A group of employees learns to work well together, only to have one or more members leave. This leaves the staff in limbo until a new employee starts. The personality and work ethic of the new employee may vary significantly from the previous employee. Labour turnover can hurt overall morale of employees. The overall productivity of the workplace tends to decrease with high turnover. Since a new employee has a period of adjustment, he wont complete tasks as quickly as the person he replaces. Group projects that rely on the new team member may slow down, which affects experienced employees productivity levels. The loss of momentum when an employee resigns may also affect morale. A high turnover rate affects the continuity of service to clients and other employees. This is particularly difficult in an industry that relies heavily on relationships with clients. For example, a client who purchases products from a company on a regular basis may grow tired of getting a new salesperson or customer service contact every few months. Consistent relationships with clients help build a stronger loyalty to the company. The company is also better able to provide consistent, high-quality service with well-trained staff that doesnt change often. 2.2.3 Life Insurance Agent According to Independent insurance Agents of America (IIAA) (2009) an agent is a person who performs services for another person or an organization under an express or implied agreement and who is subject to the others control or right to control the manner and means of performing the services. The other person is called a principal. Rosenberg (2004) expresses the same opinion in different words by saying that, Insurance agents are sometimes referred to as insurance sales agents whose main obligation is to help clients choose insurance policies that suite their needs. There are two types of agents as classified by LIMRA (2007), some agents are captive or tied agents who mainly work for an insurance company and only sell that companies products, the other category of agents called independent or free lance Agents, are those who work for various insurance companies and sell insurance products of many insurance companies. The independent or free lance Agents are usually registered and licensed companies popularly referred to as brokers. 2.2.4 Qualification for becoming an Insurance agent Frankas (2010) says that, for Insurance sales agents job, most companies and independent agencies prefer to hire college graduates-especially those who have majored in business or economics, high school graduates are occasionally hired if they have proven sales ability or have been successful in other type of work. In fact, many entrants to insurance sales agent jobs transfer from other occupations. According to LIMRA (2007), College training may help agents grasp the technical aspects of insurance policies and fundamentals and procedures of selling insurance. As per the recommendation of AKI (Association of Kenya Insurers) regulations, every insurance agent must have done C.O.P (Certificate of proficiency in insurance) which is a proficiency certificate to transact insurance business in Kenya. Various employers are also placing greater emphasis on continuing professional education as the diversity of financial products sold by insurance agents increases. (Holt, 2010). An Insurance sales agent who shows ability and leadership may become a sales manager in a local office. As noted by U.S Bureau of Labor statistics (2010) a few advance to agency manager. However, many agents who have built up good clientele prefer to remain a sales agent. Some particularly in the property and casually field-establish their own independent agencies or brokerage firms. 2.2.5 Resourcing strategies George (1990) has pointed out that before selecting an agent there has to be a great process than just interview. He asserts that pre-hire assessment like testing and call center simulations have become essential tool in the industry. Tett (2000) of employment Technologies Corporation says that, for the insurance industry to succeed in improving agents retention there has to be simulation centers where the applicants would be given the opportunity to experience what they expect to find in the field and how sales are like. According to Ashly (2000) it is good to control; the flow of less-interested candidates before they reach the interview stage. Sometimes the applicant knows better than the hiring specialist that he or she is not the right sampling the job. Tom (2009), and Peter (1999) agree that accepting agents without checking their interests in the initial selection stage leads to poor retention of the agents. Nevertheless Srivivas (2003) warns against relying too heavily on the simulation. He says that simulation can be very effective for providing people with some exposure to what the job is likely to be. On the same note Banks (2010) disputes the other authors by pointing out that simulation are too artificial such that good candidates get left behind because they do poor simulations Wright (1992) asserts that simulation is only good to give a job presentation. 2.2.6 Agents Remuneration According Armstrong, (2006) Remuneration is the compensation an employee receives in return for his or her contribution to the organization. Luthans (1992) asserts that Remuneration occupies an important place in the life of an employee, his or her standard of living and status in society. Groholdt (2001) points out that, Motivation, loyalty, and productivity depend upon the remuneration he or she receives. For the employer too, employee remuneration is significant because of its contribution to the cost of production, besides, many battles (in the form of strikes and lock outs) are fought between the employer and the employees on issues relating to wages or bonus. Life insurance sales professionals typically earn all or most of their income through commission, which means that they get a certain percentage of every sale they make as well as residual income when clients continue to make payments. For this reason, an agent has the potential to earn much more than he would at an average hourly job. As with any other commission-based job, if an agent fails to perform, he will not be able to earn anything. Even if he does sell a substantial amount of insurance one month, he may not be able to sustain these sales numbers from month to month, and this may result in an unstable level of income. Cravens, Ingram, Loforge and Youngs, (1993), explored the relationships between compensation/control systems and performance and retention. Their results indicate that the type of control system, that is management control versus commission control, is correlated to several measures of success and agents retentions. They found out that sales performed and agents retention was more affected by commission control than by management control. 2.2.7 Agent Training Employee development is something that most people imagine as intrusive all-day group training sessions. Unfortunately, this dreaded approach to employee development is just the opposite of how employee development should occur and feel to employees. Employee development can manifest itself in many forms of training, evaluations, educational programs, and even feedback. If executed correctly, the effects of training on agent performance can often encourage growth within the worker and the organization itself. One of the larger aspects of developing Agents skills and abilities is the actual organizational focus on the Agent to become better, either as a person or as a contributor to the organization. According to Organizational Behavior by Robert Kreitner and Angelo Kiniki, (2009) its been shown that employees that receive regular, scheduled feedback, including training, along with an increase in expectations, actually have a higher level of worker output. Kreitner and Kiniki refer to this as the Pygmalion Effect. The hope is that agents who receive training in line with their individual or organizational goals will become more efficient in what they do. Organizations should look at the positive effects of training on agent performance, and consider agent development as a targeted investment into making the front line worker stronger. More importantly, development plans that include train-the-trainer (training that trains agents to become trainers of a skill) can provide exponential benefits to the organization. This training can be anything from how agents can do their own jobs better to these agents being groomed to replace their supervisor. In addition, agents who are invested as a trainer might be further inclined to stay with the organization, and possibly reduce agent turnover. Along with supporting the organization, agents might recognize that most types of agent development provide them benefits. Agent development programs that range from certifications to education reimbursement, to even basic sales skills training, have a certain cost to the organization that can easily be considered a benefit to the agent. Such awareness on the part of the agent can also lead to greater loyalty to the organization as well as enhanced job satisfaction. Training and education that can be added to the agents resume are big ticket items in terms of compensation plans, and should be treated as such. Beyond agent training and certification courses, evaluations and counseling sessions are another form of agent development. They provide performance feedback and allow agents to be aware of changes to both their work goals and the overall objectives of the organization. Agents who do not receive feedback on a regular basis usually end up feeling as though they might be forgotten by their supervisor, and this pattern may even lead to feelings of dissent among the Agency force. Going back to the Pygmalion Effect, agents who have consistent knowledge of their levels of performance, and who feel that their supervisors are placing expectations on them, generally perform better on an individual basis. Agents are required to attend meetings, seminars and programs to learn about new products and services, learn new selling skills and receive technical assistance in developing new accounts. Churchill, Ford, Hartley, and Walker, (1998) explored role variable, skill, motivation, personal factors, aptitude, and organizational/environmental factors in the retention of agents. The study found that, on average, single predictors or sales performance accounted for less than 4% of the variation in salesperson performance. Aptitude accounted for less than 2% skill levels slightly more than 7%, motivation accounted for 6.6% role perceptions was by far the best predictor, accounting for as much as 14% of the variation in performance. Personal variables (age, height, and sex, completion, and dressing) accounted for 2.6% while organization and environmental factors accounted for about 1%. They concluded that personal characteristics, while important, are not as important as the influencing factor s such as, training, company policies, skill levels, and motivation. 2.2.8 Physical Work Environment The physical work environment can be identified as a place or location where somebody works. Performance experts agree that the physical work environment has a significant impact upon employee performance and productivity. By physical work environment we mean the building structures, office layout, tools, furniture, space, noise level and surrounding of