Law - legal systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Law - legal systems - Essay Example The expansion of the role of government in the lives of its citizens has brought with it an increasing number of controversies between citizen and state. There is a perception too that as a people we have become more litigious. All this has resulted in an increase in litigation, aggravating the problems within the current judicial structure, causing delays from the ensuing backlog of cases, higher costs to the parties and the taxpayer, the bureaucratization of dispute-processing systems and exaggeration of minor disputes as a result of regulations, delays and costs. Furthermore, both court congestion and high cost are used as bargaining tools to extract settlements which may otherwise be unacceptable. For many, however, the concern runs deeper. There is a growing awareness that the corner-stone of our judicial structure, the adversary system itself, is not the most appropriate for the effective resolution of all forms of disputes; it may not be capable of resolving a problem to both parties' satisfaction and may easily cause disputes to escalate to more serious levels. Moreover, even though the vast majority of disputes are 'resolved' outside the courtroom, they are still resolved 'under the shadow' of this adversary mentality; for instance, the threat of instituting court proceedings may be enough to exact an inappropriate settlement. It is often unfortunate that the adversary mentality permeates all resolution processes, polarizing the parties and exacerbating their disaffection. Still, negotiated or 'lumped' settlements far exceed in number those resolved through other means. On many occasions the 'threat' of suit is therapeutic where otherwise stubbornness might prevail. The basic philosophy of the adversary system is that it is the best means to find the truth through the testing of the various versions of the disputants by putting each to the proof of his or her claim. Correlatively the burden of establishing legal entitlement rests with the litigants. The system is based on individualistic premises: each party is presumed to be equally motivated and competent to investigate the facts and to present his or her case to a passive, neutral and independent court and each is presumed to have equal opportunity to pursue the claim. Implicitly the system presumes adequate resources in both time and money in order to do so. Each party confronts the other, as an adversary, before the court, each having an opportunity to present her or his story, to a judge, whose business is to decide the dispute under law. Eventually so the theory goes, the truth will emerge at least to the extent it can be discovered. However, it is generally accepted that the practice does not work nearly as well as the theory, despite an absence of empirical evidence either way. Each party will usually not have equal or even adequate time, money, motivation or ability to present his or her case properly. Furthermore, because the system is in part predicated on competitiveness, combativeness and confrontation, the emphasis is less on the best resolution of conflict but rather, oftentimes it seems, on 'winning at all costs'. It is little wonder that this system has been labeled 'the sporting theory of justice'. The end results include a lot of wasted time and money and a perceived lack of

Nursing concept of burn out Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nursing concept of burn out - Research Paper Example In addition, such an individual will experience depersonalization (Cordes & Dourherty, 1993). In all occupations, including nursing, individuals experience stress mainly because of the work they do. When individuals experience stress at work, they become tired and their productivity level at work drops significantly. Therefore, burnout generally results in absenteeism, high employee turnover, decreased productivity of employees, as well as increase in physical conditions in employees, including headaches, insomnia, among others (Cordes & Dougherty, 1993). If employees experience stress in their work, the management, together with the employees themselves should look for appropriate ways of getting rid of any work-related stress they are experiencing. If this is not addressed and is left to continue for a long time, it results in burnout, which is more lethal. Burnout extends its effects from the individual to their families and jobs. Different studies show that burnouts are prevalent in helping professions such as social work and healthcare professions, including nursing (Elder, Evans, & Lizette, 2012). This paper will review considerable literature on the concept of burnout, and compare and contrast studies conducted on this concept in different years. This will culminate in a reflection on the concept of burning as presented in the studies, in order to provide a framework for enhanced understanding of burnout in nursing. According to Poncet et al. (2006), the concept of burnout has existed since the 1970s. Different studies have been conducted on this concept over the years, to understand it well for increased chances of dealing with the situation in affected organizations. In 1999, Jansenn, Jonge, and Bakker, conducted a study among different nurses in order to establish the various determinants of work motivation, burnout, and turnover among nurses. Poncet et al. conducted another study in 2006, and this sought to establish the degree of burnout in the nurs ing staff that was concerned with critical care. Finally, most recently in 2012, Spooner-Lane and Patton conducted a study in which they aimed at debunking the determinants of burnout among the nurses that worked in public hospitals. In their definition of the concept of burnout, Spooner-Lane and Patton (2012) argued that burnout is not a symptom of work stress, but is what unmanaged work stress culminates into. They have used various definitions from different scholars to clarify more on the nature of burnout. Overall, from their definition, it remains that burnout is a result of extreme work-related stress. On the other hand, Poncet et al. (2006) have begun by highlighting a short history about the concept of burnout. They argue have defined the burnout syndrome a condition that results when employees fail to put up with the emotional stress they experience at their work place. They have alternatively defined burnout syndrome as the state in which an employee feels they have faile d, and are exhausted after they have used most of their energy in their job. Poncet et al (2006) have emphasized the detrimental effects of burnout syndrome on both the employee and the organization. Both Poncet et al. (2006) and Spooner-Lane and Patton (2012) have identified the epidemiological issues of burnout syndrome. Spooner-Lane and Patton (2012) have analyzed emotional exhaustion, while Poncet et al. (2006) have investigated headaches, exhaustion, insomnia, eating