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Beauty Pageants
Beauty Pageants
Name
Institution
Date
Introduction
Traditionally, a beauty pageant was a contest whereby the most physically attractive will win. Over the past decades, a lot has changed, but beauty pageants continue to exist. Today, the judges will look at other aspects, such as the talents and attributes of society. We should be asking ourselves why many people are still encouraged to be involved in beauty pageants. Even though some people will discourage it, saying that it is sexist, the truth is that it still has many advantages.
Below are some of the advantages of beauty pageants:
a) Beauty pageants contestants get an excellent opportunity to enrich their lives
b) They are a source of entertainment.
c)The contestants contribute a lot to the development of the community.
d) Promote unity within a community.
a) Beauty pageants contestants have an excellent opportunity to enrich their lives
A beauty pageant is not only a showcase of one’s beauty but also talents and intellectual activities.
The many activities involved challenge one to grow to become the best.
One also gets to meet a lot of people who may contribute positively to their life.
b) Source of entertainment
Beauty pageants are usually very exciting and filled with a lot of fun.
People get to showcase how creative they are to people.
c)The contestants contribute to the growth of the community
The contestants are usually required to come up with at least one project that will benefit the community.
Some will even choose to be involved in tree building and even cleaning the environment. All these are supposed to make the environment a better place to live.
d)Promote unity within a community
It creates a sense of unity between those who are there to watch and even those participating.
Many people like to attend beauty pageants, do fun activities with other people, and even make new friends.
CONCLUSION
Beauty pageants still exist today.
They are different from the ones that existed before since they also look at other aspects such as talents and intellectual abilities
Beauty pageants allow the contestants to enrich their lives
They are a source of entertainment
They contribute to the development of the community where they occur
The aid in the promotion of unity in a community
More people should be encouraged to participate in beauty pageants
References
Jessica M.Kelly, Lance C.Garmon (2016) Perceptions of child beauty pageants and their impacts: What really lies behind the tiara? , 201- 215
King‐O’Riain, R. C. (2008). Making the perfect queen: The cultural production of identities in beauty pageants. Sociology Compass, 2(1), 74-83.ca C
Lifelong Learning
Lifelong Learning
Name
Course Number
Introduction
To gain effectiveness in the world of mechanical engineering, it is important for engineers to be abreast with the updates within this field. Currently, the mechanical engineering field is always evolving with new things frequently sprouting. As such, it is expected that the engineers should be consistent with these changes; otherwise, they may be misinformed or lack adequate details to deal with the new things. Lifelong learning is a means through which engineers and other professionals can enhance their knowledge and skills connected to their professions. This paper will elaborate the meaning of the term life long and its application in the world of engineering. Furthermore, the paper will exploit the importance of lifelong, its advantages, challenges faced in its application, in the world of mechanical engineering. It will further involve a detailed research involving specific mechanical engineering concepts.
Lifelong Learning Definition
Lifelong learning is a continuous process of building skills and knowledge throughout the professional life of an individual. In the engineering field, it is clear that competition and discovering of new things and concepts are the main influencers of lifelong learning. For instance, in countries such as the United States and Japan, engineers are continuously extending the technology that is already in existence as they discover new ones. Such spirit encourages the involved engineers in the continuous processes of fetching and adds knowledge for the overall benefit of companies and country at large (Bonilla, 2012).
Opportunities by Professional Societies
The National Academy of Engineering (2013) for engineers created an opportunity to examine up-to-date practices in their profession. The opportunity was named as Lifelong Learning Imperative in Engineering (National Academy of Engineering, 2013). It opened up a channel for the engineers to perceive the underlying strategies used to address unmet needs in the world of engineering. In 2009, the initiative organized a workshop meant to create a path for the engineers to follow in their quest of keeping up with the ever-changing technological details. Moreover, the workshop established a viable strategy for encouraging a competent workforce in engineering through lifelong learning (DiDomenico, 2010).
Frank von Flue Award is an initiative commenced in 2002, under the American Society for Mechanical Engineering, to encourage lifelong learning in the world of mechanical engineering (ASME Intl., 2013). The award is presented to people who have added recognizable value to the lifelong learning process. This is yet another vital opportunity that has paved the ways for engineers to seek more knowledge and skills that pertain to their fields of work. The award is an encouraging factor that boosts the zeal for the engineers to push towards acquiring new knowledge about a subject matter, come up with new inventions that change the world of engineering.
Formal Instruction
An article by Sandra Courter (n.d.) and other authors recognizes the importance behind lifelong learning in engineering, which includes helping one recall a fact, theory or concept, also known as declarative knowledge. Lifelong learning in engineering also creates the knowledge used in various procedures and engineers familiarizes with the application concept. It is also necessary for engineers to know when to apply such crucial knowledge in the world of engineering. It is also crucial to keep up with the trend since things are always changing. The software world is one of the most rapidly changing fields; thus, it forces the engineers to keep updating their knowledge and skills lest they are termed as outdated. Engineers can seize the aforementioned opportunities to develop skills and up to date knowledge that is related to the evolving trends in engineering (Courter, Anderson, McGlamery, NathansKelly, and Nicometo, n.d.).
A book compiled by the International Labour Organization (2002) informs of how engineering schools introduced education systems that impart workplace skills that relate to the changing technological world. Many people graduate from such schools with the knowledge that the field they are working in is ever changing; thus, it is essential to keep in touch with such matters through lifelong learning. Several countries take it upon themselves to deliver skills in the school curriculum through hands-on training in current technical developments. In turn, students have self-awareness about matters relating to their evolving engineering world upon graduating from a course, but at least they are equipped with the latest knowledge and skills.
Informal Workplace
The American Society of Civil Engineering (2013) perceives the importance of lifelong learning in engineering, and it offers mentorship programs. Sequentially, after one completes the course, they can be mentored throughout their careers and it such an opportunity that one keeps up with the changing bits in the world of engineering. Professor Lisa A. Pruitt (n.d.), in her article, recognizes the importance of seeking mentorship while either in school or after completing the course. It is necessary for engineers to have a guide or a mentor, to feed them with the correct information concerning the new trends. It is also vital to direct them towards learning new skills and discovering products that are up-to-date with life.
Importance of Lifelong Learning
Lifelong learning has proven to be an essential part of the engineering world among other professions in various ways. The most common importance of executing lifelong learning is that one develops up-to-date knowledge and skills. Mechanical engineering is associated with technology development, which is always evolving in various ways, for example, creating improved and more complex products. Therefore, it is essential that engineers maintain the trend for the sake of being informed and focused. This learning process is a way that engineers keep the world of technology developing and producing aspects that can make the world a better place than it was (EE Times, 2012).
Conclusion
Lifelong learning is a continuous process encouraged among several professions, including engineering, where the professionals keep an update of their work throughout their lives. Indeed, the process is extensively helpful, but it comes with various challenges such as difficulty in keeping up with the changes, which is expected of all the engineers. This is a fast changing world and keeping up is proving to be tough, although it is necessary. However, utilizing the provided opportunities, mechanical engineers, for instance, keep in line with the changes. Lifelong learning has proven to be an inevitable process as long engineers embrace hard work because they have to move with the changes. Professional societies have recognized the need to step in and encourage lifelong learning through various processes, which include seminars and workshops. The engineers attain the necessary knowledge and skills to keep advancing their profession. Many are the organizations and schools that offer their members avenues to improve their skills and knowledge through lifelong learning.
References
Bowman, C. W. (1997). Lifelong learning for professional engineers. Engineering Issues, 6: 1-2.
American Society of Civil Engineers. (2013). Career development. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=15154
Pruitt, A. L. (n.d.). Summary of engineering education activities. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://me.berkeley.edu/new/students/diversity/PruittOutreach.pdf
National Academy of Engineering. (2013). Lifelong learning imperative in engineering. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.nae.edu/Projects/CASEE/26338/26533.aspx
Courter, S. Anderson, K., McGlamery, T., NathansKelly, T. and Nicometo, C. (n.d.). How people learn engineering. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.cirtl.net/files/Lifelong_Learning.pdf
ASME Intl. (2013). Frank von Flue Award. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from https://www.asme.org/about-asme/participate/honors-awards/achievement-awards/frank-von-flue-award
International Labour Organization. (2002). Lifelong learning in the mechanical and electrical engineering industries. Danvers, MA: International Labour Organization.
Bonilla, L. E. (2012). Lifelong learning imperative in engineering. NASA. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.nasa.gov/offices/oce/appel/ask-academy/issues/volume3/AA_3-4_F_lifelong.html
EE Times. (2012). Lifelong learning yields success in workforce. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=69&doc_id=1286422
DiDomenico, F. C. (2010). Lifelong learning, engineering and the community college. Retrieved on 10 December 2013 from http://www.indiana.edu/~ciec/Proceedings_2010/Papers/ETD/ETD443_DiDomenico.pdf
Marketing Research Objectives and Rationale
Question 1
Background
Blackpink is a South Korea all-girl group formed and managed by the YG Entertainment group. It is currently among the highest rated and most popular all-girl group in the world. For the pop music genre, their popularity has risen globally to include performances in the US for famous platforms such as Coachella and on YouTube where they have the largest following in their category. The group is doing well as influencers and brand ambassadors. Each of the group’s four members has a product they are currently endorsing. As individuals, they have pushed popular luxurious brands such as Moonshot, Dior cosmetics, and Louis Vuitton. A majority of their following comes from younger female audiences aged below 25 years. The said consumer group is referred to as Blinks. Reports indicate that the consumer group spends money and time collecting souvenirs that represent their favorite pop stars. The case study indicates that a report by Korean Bizwire found that the consumer group has a new fascination that incudes desire to “smell” like their favorite pop star. Blackpink has an official online store that helps in the distribution of their merchandise including t-shirts, hair accessories, bags, and jewelry. However, the store does not stock perfume. With their large following on social media and the new interest from UK fans, it is important for the group to consider expansion abroad in order to expand their reach and diversify their consumers.
Marketing Research Objectives and Rationale
The following marketing research objectives are geared towards showing whether Blackpink, through YG Entertainment Inc., can benefit from the UK Blinks. The popularity and success that the group has enjoyed over the last four years has been primarily because of the domestic South Korean market. Therefore, the research objectives include the following:
To find out the type of merchandise that the UK Blinks would be interested in buying
To identify the reasoning behind the UK Blinks in terms of preferences regarding the K-Pop stars
To establish whether the merchandise should be branded for each of the Group’s members or for the group itself or indeed for Blinks
These objectives are directly related to the reason behind the expansion of the group into the UK music scene. The latest statistics have shown that the UK market has shown a lot of interest for Blackpink, creating a gap that needs to be filled. In terms of marketing and branding, the marketing objectives above are meant to dive into the UK’s under 25 female consumers as a possible target market for the group’s merchandise.
Methodology
The research will use an online survey to collect data. In this approach, a set of survey questions will be sent to a target sample for responses to be sent via different internet platforms. Specifically, the methodology will use various media including social media and email to send and receive survey questions and responses respectively. YG Entertainment will implement an online survey via the internet to gain insight and feedback on the objectives mentioned above. An online survey is chosen for its appropriateness as a qualitative research tool. The intention is to have the respondents provide rich potential of qualitative information. The proposed methodology will utilize open-ended questions to yield long-form typed answers from respondents. The questions are purposed to reveal experiences, accounts, narratives, opinions, and other personal reflections of the study theme and objectives. The online survey will identify issues and themes that will then be explored further for the purpose of answering the study questions. In the qualitative questions provided, some quantitative questions will be added for purposes of establishing research parameters such as gender, nationality, and age.
For the online survey, open-ended questions will be presented to the research participants in a written format via social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and via Instagram. The reason behind choosing social media as a proposed avenue is because of how it has gained popularity among young females below the age of 25. The group is comprised of heavy social media usage and activity on the three main platforms mentioned. Email will also be used for purposes of communication and clarification of issues as the study continues. Alongside the qualitative online survey questions, close-ended quantitative survey questions will be sent on the same topic for purposes of establishing context. In the proposed study, the research will provide contextualizing information and key definitions to assist in framing how participants perceive the qualitative survey questions. The format will also include a section asking participants to respond to questions in detail so as to explain the perspective presented or to further explain their experience in the context of the research questions. The advantage of this is that it will lead to diversity in responses. Another important consideration made before choosing the online survey method is that the researcher will not be in a position to clarify or probe the responses provided which may lead to cryptic and vague data. Such information is likely to yield inaccuracies in interpretation and analysis. Therefore, the researcher will insist on the information provided being brief and detailed to reduce room for error. Another advantage includes an ability of online surveys to collect more responses in a given period of time compared to any other approach. Therefore, even with the less detailed data, there is more of it as a compensation. Additionally, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic requires less interaction and social distancing. This makes the online survey approach the most suitable for collecting data. It will also reduce the need to travel long distances to collect information because online platforms are able to target people anywhere and at any time.
The strengths of a qualitative survey include the fact that it will help the study in identifying issues, needs, and experiences that will be explored in the analysis section. It is also worth noting that online surveys have the advantage of being easy to amend or re-run based on the responses. This will provide an evolving or responsive methodology of research. Also, online surveys will get typed responses decreasing translation needs by the researcher. Lastly, online surveys will be delivered broadly on a wide population on social media with asynchronous responses and delivery.
Sampling
For the current study, a probability-based sampling (also called random sampling) is preferred. In this method, the respondents are selected using some sort of probabilistic approach. The likelihood with which a member of the frame population is selected into the sample is known. In this survey, the cluster sampling approach will be used. In this methodology, a natural sampling unit is used in a group or cluster of individual units. Specifically, in the online survey proposed, it will be both useful and convenient to sample by discussion groups on a given platform like Facebook or Instagram, and then to sample users in the said groups and domains. The advantage of using this approach is that it requires fewer resources, is more feasible, and will achieve the research objectives. Because cluster sampling select only certain groups from the entire population, the method requires fewer resources for the sampling process. It becomes cheaper as the approach requires fewer administrative or travel expenses. Additionally, the division of an entire population into a homogenous group will increase the feasibility of the sampling.
Data Analysis
In the proposed qualitative study, the data will be subjective, will be rich, and will also consist of in-depth information because it will be presented in word form. Analyzing qualitative data will entail reading the large amounts of transcripts and then looking for themes by way of establishing similarities and differences. Subsequently, the report will find themes and develop categories for purposes of answering the research questions. Qualitative research will yield unstructured text-based information. The textual data will include the interview transcripts from the online surveys and responses. For the special categories of people living with disabilities, qualitative data will include audio responses to the survey questions.
Data analysis in the proposed qualitative research will be defined as a process of systematically arranging and searching the interview responses and other non-textual material accumulated by the researcher to increase an understanding of the issue under study. In the study, YG Entertainment will aim to look for patterns that show a trend among the blinks group of consumers. The process of analyzing qualitative data will involve categorizing the data. Basically it will involve making sense of the huge data amounts by reducing their volume in raw format, then followed by an identification of significant patterns, and lastly drawing meanings from the data and ultimately building logical chains of evidence.
Reporting
The research will employ a descriptive research approach. The goal of the descriptive research used in this report is to describe the different phenomena and their characteristics. The research will be more concerned with the what rather than the how and why. The intention is to know what is happening in the UK market and what the Blinks market is looking to consume in terms of its affiliation with K-pop stars. Therefore, the online survey tool will be utilized to gather data and then a descriptive approach taken to report the findings. In the descriptive approach, the research will use qualitative means to gather data but employ quantitative approaches to analyze. For example, frequencies, patterns, percentages, trends, averages, and other statistical analyses will be used to show and interpret relationships. All factors considered, qualitative research is more holistic and will involve a rich collection of information from various social media sources to gather a deeper understanding of the individual participants/respondents, including the opinions, different perspectives, and/or attitudes. Qualitative research is preferred because it collects information or data qualitatively, thus gaining more information and the method of analysis will be quantitative to show relationships. The reporting will involve an inductive exploration of data in an effort to identify recurrent themes, pattern, or concept and then describe and interpret these different categories. In the qualitative research approach, the data collected using qualitative means will then be analyzed quantitatively and statistically. This is preferred in the research because the researcher will first examine the qualitative data in a thorough manner to establish relevant themes and concepts and then convert them into statistical or numerical data for comparison and evaluation.
Timing and General Costing
It is estimated that the research will be conducted in three months. a budget of $5,000 will be needed to facilitate the online surveys and to hire a statistical tool for data analysis as presented above.
Question 2
What is the first item you would consider buying from your favorite celebrity? Explain
How often do you shop online and do you enjoy the experience? Explain
Would you consider shopping only from your favorite online store or do you look for the best offers?
What type of merchandise would you be interested in buying online?
Do you know any pop stars local and international? What are some of your favorites?
How interested would you be in using foreign products from South Korea?
Do you have a favorite perfume brand and how often do you change it?
Explain the story behind your favorite perfume or the lack thereof?
How would you describe your need for a new perfume brand?
Do you think celebrity-endorsed products are genuine? Why or why not?
Would you want a product specially branded for you?
Do you buy products that are trending or are you a believer in having an individual taste?
Based on information that you will have a product signed by your favorite pop star, what price are you willing to pay for a perfume brand?
Would you prefer your merchandise to be branded you or should it retain the original branding?
Would you view a perfume brand differently if you found out it is your favorite star’s choice? Explain