The Internal And External Validity And Reliability Psychology Essay

The Internal And External Validity And Reliability Psychology Essay This chapter contains a description of the research methodology proposed for this study, including a restatement of the purpose and research questions. The chapter is organized with categories pertaining to the instrumentation, data collection, research methodology, ethical concerns, and explanation of the statistical procedures used for a descriptive quantitative analysis. The purpose of this study is to examine the opinions and attitudes of the Colorado Mental Health Institutes clinical staff regarding the perceived value of the Crisis Prevention Institutes Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Program used to manage violence in the hospitals inpatient treatment settings. This will be accomplished through the use of a survey designed to assess the perceptions of those charged with providing direct care to the mentally ill population of the Institute regarding the effectiveness of the Crisis Prevention Institutes Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Program to prevent and manage violent behavior . Designing an attitudinal survey in order to quantify results can be a challenging task depending on what is being measured and selecting the appropriate assessment methodology. Most forms of assessment test large sample groups, with divergent sub-groups to contrast and compare in terms of scores (Thorndike Thorndike-Christ, 2009). The subject areas in the survey that will be used for this assessment are of a non-comparative nature, meaning that each item is scaled independently of the others as opposed to comparing them to each other. The numbers used in the scale will indicate the relative position of items, but not the magnitude of difference between them. With respect to these parameters and limitations, this study will present the survey scores of the participants, along with calculations as to their range and central tendency. In addition, inferences will be made as to factors that may have influenced the scoring choices made by the respondents. In the fields related to education and social science, research exploring the attitudes, feelings, and lived experiences of the respondents is often conducted through the use of a survey methodology. Research data gathered in this manner can be categorized into four types measuring scales containing different information that determines the method of statistical analysis (Stevens, 1946). Perhaps the simplest though least statistically descriptive measurement scale is termed a nominal scale, in which a name or number is assigned to the value of the data for identifying purposes. Numbers used in a nominal scale have no particular order, magnitude, or significance in value other than for the purpose of identification, and though this scale of measurement yields little in terms of detailed statistical information, there is less potential for error secondary to the simplicity its structure (Stevens, 1946). In contrast, an ordinal scale is a level of measurement that does provide a differentiation and value in the numerical assignment (Stevens, 1946). Values can be determined by the ranking the assigned numbers in either an increasing or decreasing fashion, dependent on the design and purpose of the research instrument. An example of this would be 5 point ordinal scale used for an assessment of pain utilizing an increasing design. The number 1 would indicate the least amount of pain experienced, with the number 5 ascribed to the highest level of pain experienced; and the numbers in between reflecting differences in experiential magnitude. Although in this example the level of pain would be indicated by the numerical assignment, the difference in the numbers in the ranking would not necessarily be equal or precise, and the differences between any two rating numbers would not indicate a specific interval. Thus, an ordinal scale may be considered to be a more sophisticated method for measu rement than a nominal scale, yet be less precise for in providing specific information in terms of magnitude than with other levels of measurement such as interval or ratio scales. Researchers seeking this type of information might use an interval scale, as there are equal spaces between any two values which will provide more specific data than with a nominal or ordinal scale. As the distance between any two positions on an interval scale is of a known size, this method allows for the use of arithmetic operations, and the scale might be used for measurements pertaining to temperature, dollars, out to for, nor anything in which there is a direct measurable quantity with equality in units (Stevens, 1946). As with temperature, zero does not represent the absolute lowest value, and therefore inferences regarding the ratios of data cannot be made as an interval scale does not have a true value of zero (Thorndike Thorndike-Christ, 2009). A level of measurement that does possess a true value of zero and has the property of ratios has some similarities to an interval scale, and is called a ratio scale. The corresponding ratios on the scale have the same meaning and th e value of zero absolute, as in a measurement of height and weight (Thorndike Thorndike-Christ, 2009). The ratio scale can provide more specific information than the other levels of measurement; however, its complexity can be a factor in terms of the potential for research error. All four of these levels of measurement can be used singly and at times conjunctively in the design of a rating scale instrument dependent on the type of research being conducted. Therefore, the selection of a particular level of measurement is a fundamental concern for the researcher, as the success or failure of a research endeavor may lie in making an appropriate choice, as the subsequent types statistical analyses for each are varied and differentiated. Likert and Likert-Type Rating Scales The level of measurement most appropriate for this quantitative statistical study is an ordinal scale. As the focus of this study is on staff members attitudes, trying to render subjective and what might be considered qualitative data into quantitative measurements requires a method for categorizing responses. At the same time, care must be given in considering whether a particular scale item can be measured in terms of the distances between any two numbers in the rating scale. In 1932 Rensis Likert created and developed a methodology often used to assess feelings, attitudes, and opinions by providing a rating scale structure that addressed this concern (Likert, 1932). This method has widely utilized and adapted in many venues including education, social science, marketing, and a variety of other applications with empirical research evidence that confirms its reliability and validity (Abdel-Khalek, 1998; Chow Winzer, 1992; Maurer Andrews, 2000). This evidence further suggests that r ating bias is reduced and the reliability of the rating is highest when a 5 or 7 point or higher rating scale is used (Stennet, 2002). As a result, a typical Likert scale typically has 5 to 7 categories with 3 or 4 point scales often considered too few, particularly when parametric statistical methods are applied (Garson, 2002). The categories in a 5-point Likert scale is often coded as 1- Strongly Disagree, 2 Disagree, 3 -Neutral, 4 Agree, and 5 Strongly Agree, with percentage and nonparametric statistics used for analysis. The simplest form of Likert scale is analyzed in a summative manner; with the mean value of a Likert-item found by adding the number of responses to a Likert-item and dividing it by the number of points used for the rating scale. Whether or not Likert scales can or should be analyzed using parametric versus nonparametric tests is a source of ongoing controversy within the statistical community (Acock Martin, 1974). Efforts to quantify responses using paramet ric tests have led to an adaptation in scale design from the classic Likert model, to what is termed a Likert-type scale (Clason Dormody, 1994). A Likert-type scale differs from a Likert scale in the statement questions being singular in the response alternatives, allowing for the data to be treated as interval scale data for parametric statistical analysis (Brown, 2000; Clason Dormody, 1994; Cliff, 1984; Hodgson, 2003). With this approach, the mean score of Likert-type data from each question or statement could be compared using a t -test, though factors related to data distribution, sample size, and number of rating choices would need to be considered (Clason Dormody, 1994). This translation of ordinal rating scale data into that of an interval scale for the use of parametric statistical methods underscores the controversy identified by Acock Martin, 1974). As previously described in the levels of measurement, ordinal scales are ranked with no specific measurable difference or distance between the numerical categories, and statistical calculations used to determine the mean, standard deviation, and patterns of correlatio n may result in inaccurate research findings (Harwell Gatti, 2001; Miller, 1998). In the classic Likert scale design numbers to provide order and ranking, but since the actual distance and origin between the numbers is unknown, then it cannot be scored in an additive manner save to indicate the central tendency and range of the responses (Dawes, 2008). This supports the contention that non-parametric test should be used for a quantitative analysis, though it could be argued there are methods that would be more statistically accurate and valid, such as ordinal regression techniques (McCullagh, 1980). Furthermore, the calculation of the mean scores for the ordinal data would need to be established in order to be statistically valid in a analysis using parametric tests (Trochim, 2006), whereas those arguing against this approach contend that the median but not the mean can serve as a measure of central tendency (Trochim, 2006). For this study, the calculations for will exclude the mea n, though the mode, median, and range of the score distribution will be presented. Data Analysis A descriptive quantitative research methodology will be used for this study through the use of a survey that was designed to collect data from the direct care providers at the Colorado Mental Health Institute. A survey methodology is often used for data collection from a specific population or from a sample of the population (Robson, 1993). Within the realm of psychology, surveys are used for gathering data about individuals, groups and organizations, and larger social networks (Rossi, Wright, and Anderson, 1983). Most Americans have participated in some form of survey in an either online or in a paper format whether in an educational, social science, political, or marketing research context. Many organizations have employees participate in satisfaction surveys, and surveys in general have become a sort of social barometer for monitoring the publics attitudes and opinions. Often surveys target a specific population, with a sample survey focusing on subgroups determined by a variety o f factors such as gender, race, geography, political beliefs etc. dependent on the nature and focus of the subject areas studied (Rossi, Wright and Anderson, 1983). The advantages and strengths of using a survey methodology for gathering information are that they can be of a qualitative or quantitative design, and be easily administered to gather information quickly and inexpensively (Leary , 1995). In the past, this was frequently accomplished through the use of paper and mailed surveys, with the latter method used particularly when large populations were being surveyed. With advances in communication and digital technology, surveys can be conduct via electronic formats as varied as those associated with phones and computers. Other frequently used research methodologies such as personal interviews can be more time and cost intensive than with the use of a survey instrument, and anonymity and confidentiality of the respondents can be more difficult to control. These factors strongly influenced the researchers choice of a descriptive research methodology utilizing a survey instrument to assess the Colorado Mental Health institutes clinical employ ees attitudes, feelings, and lived experiences related to the crisis intervention training program the organization has utilized for 25 years. Few attitudinal surveys have been conducted regarding this specific subject area, and a review of the literature did not reveal any studies concerning the long-term impact of this type of training on the culture of a mental health organization. The Colorado Mental Health Institutes 2008 Safety Survey Another key factor that sponsored this researchers interest in designing and administering an attitudinal survey was a review of a safety survey conducted at the Colorado Mental Health Institute in 2008. The Colorado Mental Health Institute currently uses a survey methodology for exit interviews with clients that are discharging from the facility, as well as surveys designed to gauge employees job satisfaction. The Institute has only conducted one survey that concerned the subject area of crisis intervention training being focused on in the proposed study for this dissertation. The purpose of the survey was stated thusly: In light of the high number of patient to staff assaults in fiscal year 07-08, the hospital focused the annual Failure Mode Effects and Analysis on the Management of Assaultive Patients, and assembled a workgroup to perform the analysis. The hospital director suggested a staff survey specific to perceptions of safety to be done as part of the work on reducing assaul ts (Colorado Mental Health Institute Safety Survey, 2008). Although the survey provided some interesting results, there was no data regarding the internal and validity of the survey instrument. Thus, the results are highly questionable in terms of these factors, and the survey cannot be considered quantitatively accurate, though it can provide useful information for developing a more scientifically accurate instrument by analyzing its improper design. It is important to note that in 2008 the Colorado Mental Health Institute had eight treatment units as opposed to the four that currently provide service for adults, with the closure of geriatric, adolescent, and children services in recent years. 2008 Survey Methodology There were approximately 240 surveys distributed to the direct care staff members, with 224 surveys submitted by participants indicating a 93% return rate. The survey focused on the aggregated responses of nurses, Mental Health Clinicians, and Public Safety Officers (security) as the providers with the most direct care contact. The survey used a 5 point Likert scale shown below: Table 1. 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree The safety survey was comprised of four questions: I feel safe working with patients on my unit. I feel safe when I float to another unit. Crisis management training is useful/helpful in preparing me to deal effectively with agitated and escalated patients. I feel adequately trained to deal with assaultive patients. There was one open-ended question, asking What further training do you feel would be beneficial to prepare you to work with the various patient populations at the Colorado Mental Health Institute and the assault risks they present? Table 2. Colorado Mental Health Institute Safety Survey, 2008. The survey presented tables illustrating findings specific to each treatment unit similar to the one above. They are not included in this study for the sake of brevity, however, it is important to note that there was some disparity between the different populations responding to this survey and a slight difference between the teams and disciplines. These differences were small enough to lend credence to the aggregate results. Overall, the highest scored variable was I feel adequately trained to deal with assaultive patients at 3.96. The lowest scored variable was I feel safe when I float to another unit, at 3.21. CMT is useful/helpful in preparing meà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ registered at a middle value at 3.21. All of the scores ranged between neutral and agree, and appear to have been derived using a summative method. The following tables further illustrate these findings (Colorado Mental Health Institute Safety Survey, 2008): Table 3. Table 4. There were only twenty responses to the open-ended question, What further training do you feel would be beneficial to prepare you to work with the various patient populations at the Colorado Mental Health Institute and the assault risks they present? Some of the responses did not specifically address training, for instance; several respondents said they needed more staff. Other respondents asked for training specific to patient populations, age group, and diagnoses. Several respondents stated that there should be an orientation to any units before floating (i.e. working on unfamiliar units). In addition, some respondents felt that they just needed more training, or more practice. Analysis of the 2008 Safety Survey Considering that this survey uses a 5 point scale the variable indicating 3.21 when employees float might have to do with the reaction of working in a different treatment setting with patients, staff, and conditions with which the employee is unfamiliar. The 3.96 rating ascribed to feeling adequately trained is relatively high, though there is a disparity when contrasted with the 3.21 rating of the perception of crisis management training being useful. The fact that all the readings are neutral or higher would support the contention found in the literature review that some form of crisis management training is more beneficial and preferable to having none at all. The middle score for crisis management training and the tenor of some of the individual comments suggest a performance gap with regards to the training process. This may have had to do with the crisis management training approach, the amount of practice and experience an employee has with using the techniques, or the assessm ent methods utilized to evaluate employee competency. However, these inferences are merely based on conjecture as the reliability and validity of the research instrument was not established. In addition, using only four Likert-items the survey design seems too limited in scope to gather a comprehensive overview of the employees attitudes and opinions. Therefore, the results are subject to interpretation, lacking in specificity and clarity, and cannot be considered as valid and reliable empirical evidence. Data Analysis Methods for the Proposed Survey The data analysis for the proposed survey for this study will begin by examining the surveys for correctness and completeness, and then numerically coding the responses into a database in the PASW-18 software (Predictive Analysis Software) and performing an analysis of descriptive responses. Surveys that are incomplete will be were discarded from the analysis, and the frequency tables and descriptive statistics will display the results relevant to answering the research questions. As described previously, the calculations will exclude the mean, though the mode, median, and range of the score distribution will be presented. A Chi-square test will conducted to determine if a relationship exists between frequencies, although it will not indicate the strength or positive/negative direction of the relationship. This is consistent with standard statistics guidelines for using the non-parametric tests that will be used in this study as opposed to parametric tests; for as Jamieson (2004) adv ises, the appropriate inferential statistics for ordinal data are those employing non-parametric tests, such as chi-squared, Spearmans Rho, or the Mann-Whitney U-test1 because parametric tests require data of interval or ratio level (p. 2113). As the numbers in the survey that will be assigned to Likert-items fall into the ordinal measurement scale, the descriptive statistics will include a mode or median for central tendency and frequencies for variability, and the inferential non-parametric tests will follow Jameisons (2004) recommendations, including Spearman s Rho to detect linear relationships and Kendalls tau-b for any increasing or decreasing relationship between the Likert scale questions. Data Collection Crisis intervention training is mandated for those staff members at the Colorado Mental Health Institute that provide direct care for clients residing in inpatient settings. In addition, those members in the Institutes administration that oversee this care are also involved in biannual trainings. Therefore, the sample population will consist of 210 clinical staff members, with the surveys distributed in the upcoming training review for the clinical staff members at the Institute. Although attendance for this training is mandated for employees, it will be made clear that participation in the survey is voluntary, with the anonymity of the participants made clear to addressing the issues regarding confidentiality. The respondents will be assured that the survey is anonymous and confidential, though they will be given the opportunity to provide information regarding their respective disciplines, years of service, level of education, and gender. Once the data has been collected, the resul ts will be recorded and statistically analyzed using PASW-18 software. Prior to the distribution of the surveys during training review, the purpose and importance of the study will be announced in each of the treatment units team meetings, and posted for all clinical staff members via the Institutes intranet e-mail service. Research Questions/Hypotheses _____ Describes specific research questions and hypotheses (where appropriate) that _____ Are clear and succinct _____ Are congruent with the Statement of Problem _____ Are answerable/testable _____ Correspond to the number of variables of interest _____ Have hypotheses that correspond to research questions _____ Are clearly stated _____ Are open-ended (not yes/no questions) Population and Sample The sampling frame for the survey consists of 210 members of the Institutes direct care staff, whose treatment teams multidisciplinary structure are comprised of management staff, nurses, social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, therapeutic recreation specialists, occupational therapists and mental health clinicians. Although these disciplines function within a team context, there are differences in terms of power and status, as well as their amount of direct client care. Examples of these differences in station are the administrators, psychologists, and psychiatrists that comprise the upper echelon within the teams, with middle managers functioning as liaisons between the lower ranking team members and those higher up in the organization. The social workers on the team have a middling status with regards to power and prestige; with nurses and mental health clinicians representing the lowest status with the greatest amount of patient contact, though having the least contact with the hospital administration. Although this last factor is interesting from an organizational point of view, it is even more relevant in terms of the study as those staff members having the most direct contact with clients are the most likely to encounter and intervene in violent situations occurring on the inpatient units. Ethical Concerns There are ethical concerns inherent in any form of research study, particularly those involving the use of human subjects. To address these, procedures for protecting confidential and anonymity in data collection, analysis, reporting, and storage need to be developed and described. The researcher must be competent to perform the research procedures in order to reduce the risk of causing harm to human subjects, and the reputation of the sponsoring organization as well as the organization were the study is being conducted (Welman et al., 2005:182). For this proposed study, the researcher has completed the coursework for the Doctoral Program in Organizational Psychology at the University of the Rockies. This course of study has been grounded in the orientation and practice of conducting research, utilizing different kinds of research methodologies, undergoing training relative to conducting legal, ethical, and appropriate research procedures, and applying qualitative and quantitative an alysis in a variety of projects under the tutelage of qualified instructors at the doctoral level of education. There are a number of safeguards implemented by the University the Rockies to ensure that ethical concerns are addressed in an appropriate manner, including a requirement that the student completes two courses related exclusively to proper conduct and methodology in the research process, as well as the ethical research guidelines that need to be understood and followed. Throughout this training, the importance of the researchers work needing to be authentic and built upon his or hers own ideas have been emphasized, citing the use of other peoples ideas and data to avoid plagiarism. In addition, it has been made clear that providing data that is falsified or misleading is inappropriate and unethical. To ensure appropriate ethical standards are followed, student researchers at the University the Rockies are supervised by a committee of three psychologists, one serving as the committee chairman who works closely with the student. Finally, if the committee supports and approves the research proposal, it is reviewed by the Universitys Research Review Board and Institutional Review Board to ensure that the proposed study is original, contributes to the body of work in the field of psychology, and is held to the highest ethical standards. Factors related to the fairness of the proposed survey pose some ethical considerations. It is important that respondents understand the language used in the survey, and efforts have been made to make sure that each item is clear and easily understood. The specificity and clarity of the survey items was tested in the pilot study to assess if the respondents knowledgeable in the subject area interpreted each item in the intended way, and that this intention is made clear. The survey items are of a relatively simple construction reviewing concepts revisited frequently throughout the training process. Efforts have been made to design a survey that meets the validity and reliability standards discussed The possibility of ethical concerns arising for the respondents in this proposed study are reduced secondary to the anonymous and confidential nature of the survey; and that the previously, and the survey will be conducted with the same time parameters and conditions for all participants. voluntary participants being surveyed are employees as opposed to the Institutes clientele. Nevertheless, individuals participating in the survey may question the viability of keeping this information confidential, and worry that an honest and full disclosure of their views and feelings regarding the subject area may negatively impact their status within the organization. Efforts will be made to neutralize this factor by giving the respondents an accurate description of the study, and pointing out the potential benefits for the organization by improving the welfare and safety the Colorado Mental Health Institutes clients, as well as those charged with the responsibility of providing their care. The results of the study will be made available to all members of the Colorado Mental Health Institute, including any results that are associated with researcher error. Instrumentation The survey proposed for this study was designed to gather data based on the proposed research questions, and provide information to make appropriate conclusions and inferences based on empirical data. The instrument was designed to measure each respondents opinions, attitudes, lived experiences regarding the perceived value and effectiveness of the Crisis Prevention Institutes Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Program to manage violence. The attitudinal scale that will be used in the study will be based on a Likert scale, which is often used as a form of summative scale. The design is formatted using a variety of Likert scales with statements that the respondent evaluates by expressing their general level of agreement or disagreement. The scales proposed for this study to assess respondents perceptions of the Crisis Prevention Institutes Nonviolent Crisis Intervention Program effectiveness will use a 5-point Likert design. The survey is anonymous and voluntary with no identifying inform ation, though clarifying information such as gender, years of service, occupation, and years of education will be requested. The Likert-items for the survey targeted three general areas: 1) training objectives and content, 2) method and training context, and 3) usefulness and knowledge transfer. In the first category, 8 Likert-items refer to specific aspects and components in the training process. The second category contains 7 Likert-items that concerns applications of the training outside of the training event, as well as how it integrates with other training initiatives sponsored by the Colorado Mental Health Institute. The third and final category contains 6 Likert-items that are designed to explore employee attitudes regarding the training in terms of its relevance and utilization in real-life situations. Table 4. shows the rating scale that is used consistently throughout the survey, and for each of the three described categories. Table 4. Rating Scale. 1 2 3 4 5 Strongly Agree Agree Neither Agree or Disagree Disagree Strongly Disagree The survey has been reviewed by a panel of experts (committee members), who offered recommendations to make the Likert-items more specific and measurable, and then was administered to a screening sample of five people comprised of subjects similar to those who will eventually participate in the survey for this study. The inclusion of the neutral Neither Agree or Disagree category was included to avoid forcing the respondents to choose a response. The numbers of choices on a 5-point scale will present an odd number of choices, allowing respondents to remain neutral. The decision on whether or not to include a neutral category in a survey has been debated, with a decision either way potentially impacting the assessment results (Mogey, 1999). The participants in the screening/pilot sample will be excluded from the final pool of respondents for the survey, which was designed to be completed no more than 10 minutes of time. Some of the considerations in constructing the survey include res pondents possibly being influenced by the way they have answered previous questions, in terms of establishing a pattern that they feel the need to break. In addition, some members may desire to take extreme options but instead temper their responses with more moderate ones. This can be sometimes a challenge in terms of testing in a psychologically oriented environment, where participants are adept at finding and arguing dichotomous and often opposing viewpoints. Internal and External Validity Establishing the reliability and validity of the survey instrument proposed for this research study is fundamental as it is created as opposed to a published instrument. Suskie (1996) describes a questionnaire or survey as reliable when it elicits consistent responses from the participants, and this can be accomplished by providin

Automated Monitoring Attendance System Essay

1.1 The problem and its scope In this paper we propose a system that automates the whole process of taking attendance and maintaining its records in an academic institute. Managing people is a difficult task for most of the organizations, and maintaining the attendance record is an important factor in people management. When considering academic institutes, taking the attendance of students on daily basis and maintain the records is a major task. Manually taking the attendance and maintaining it for a long time adds to the difficulty of this task as well as waste a lot of time. For this reason an efficient system is designed. This system takes attendance electronically with the help of a fingerprint sensor and all the records are saved on a computer server. Fingerprint sensors and LCD screens are placed at the entrance of each room. In order to mark the attendance, student has to place his/her thumb on the fingerprint sensor. On identification student’s attendance record is updated in the database and he/she is notified through LCD screen. No need of all the stationary material and special personal for keeping the records. Furthermore an automated system replaces the manual system. 1.2 Introduction Nowadays, industry is experiencing many technological advancement and changes in methods of learning. With the rise of globalization, it is becoming essential to find an easier and more effective system to help an organization or company. In spite of this matter, there are still business establishments and schools that use the old-fashioned way. In a certain way, one thing that is still in manual process is the recording of attendance. After having these issues in mind we develop an Automated Monitoring Attendance System, which automates the whole process of taking attendance and maintaining it, plus it holds an accurate records. Biometric systems have been widely used for the purpose of recognition. These recognition methods refer to automatic recognition of people based on the some specific physiological or behavioral features [1]. There are many biometrics that can be utilized for some specific systems but the key structure of a biometric system is always same [2]. Biometric systems are basically used for one of the two objectives identification [3] or verification [4]. Identification means to find a match between the query biometric sample and the one that is already been stored in database [5]. For example to pass through a restricted area you may have to scan your finger through a biometric device. A new template will be generated that will be then compared with the previously stored templates in database. If match found, then the person will be allowed to pass through that area. On the other hand verification means the process of checking whether a query biometric sample belongs to the claimed identity or not [6]. Some of the most commonly used biometric systems are (i) Iris recognition, (ii) Facial recognition,(iii)Fingerprint identification, (iv) Voice identification, (v) DNA identification, (vi) Hand geometry recognition and (viii)Signature Verification [5].Previously the biometrics techniques were used in many areas such as building security, ATM, credit cards, criminal investigations and passport control [4]. The proposed system uses fingerprint recognition technique [1] for obtaining student’s attendance. Human beings have been using fingerprints for recognition purposes for a very long time [7], because of the simplicity and accuracy of fingerprints. Finger print identification is based on two factors: (i) Persistence: the basic characteristics and features do not change with the time. (ii) Individuality: fingerprint of every person in this world is unique [8]. Modern fingerprint matching techniques were initiated in the late 16th century [9] and have added most in 20th century. Fingerprints are considered one of the most mature biometric technologies and have been widely used in forensic laboratories and identification units [10]. Our proposed system uses fingerprint verification technique to automate the attendance system. It has been proved over the years that fingerprints of each every person are unique [8]. So it helps to uniquely identify the students. 1.3 Theoretical Background For over 100 years, fingerprint has been used to identify people. As one of the biometric identification, fingerprint is the quite the most popular one. Besides getting the print for fingerprint is easy, it doesn’t need a special sophisticated hardware and software to do the identification. In the old times and even until now, fingerprints are usually taken using merely inks and papers (could be one print, ten prints, or latent print). Finger print is unique. There is no case where two fingerprints are found to be exactly identical. During the fingerprint matching process, the ridges of the two fingerprints will be compared. Besides using ridges, some of the identification techniques also use minutiae. In brief, minutiae can be described as point of interest in fingerprints. Many types of minutiae have been defined, such as pore, delta, island, ridge ending, bifurcation, spurs, bridges, crossover, etc, but commonly only two minutiae are used for their stability and robustness (4), which are ridge ending and bifurcation. To help in fingerprint identification, fingerprint classification method is implemented. There are some classification theories applicable in the real world such as The NCIC System (National Crime Information Center) Still used even until now, the NCIC system classifies fingers according to the combination of patterns, ridge counts, whorl tracing. NCIC determines .Fingerprint Classification (FPC) field codes to represent the fingerprint characteristics. The following are the field codes tables: Using NCIC system FPC Field Codes eliminates the need of the fingerprint image and, thus, is very helpful for the need of fingerprint identification for those who do not have access to an AFIS. Instead of relying to the image, NCIC relies more on the finger image information. The Henry and American Classification Systems Henry and American classification systems, although has a lot in common, are actually two different systems developed by two different people. The Henry Classification System (5) was developed by Sir Edward Henry in 1800s; used to record criminals’ fingerprints during Civil War. Henry System used all ten fingerprints with the right thumb denoted number 1, right little left finger denoted number 5, left thumb denoted number 6, and lastly the left little finger denoted number 10. According to Henry System, there were two classifications; the primary and the secondary. In the primary classification, it was a whorl that gives the finger a value. While even numbered fingers were treated as the nominator, odd numbered fingers were treated as denominator. Each finger’s value was equal to the value of the whorl plus one. In the secondary classification, each hand’s index finger would be assigned a special capital letter taken from the pattern types (radial loop (R), tented loop (T), ulnar loop (U), and arch (A)). For other fingers except those two index fingers, they were all assigned with small letter which was also known as small letter group. Furthermore, a sub secondary classification existed; it was the grouping of loops and whorls, which coded the ridge of the loops and ridge tracings of whorls in the index, middle, and ring fingers. The following is the table of Henry System. The American Classification System was developed by Captain James Parke. The difference lies in assigning the primary values, the paper used to file the fingerprint, and the primary values calculation. Filing Systems In this system, all of the fingerprints are stored in cabinets. Each cabinet contains one different classification and, thus, the fingerprint cards are stored accordingly. The existence of AFIS system greatly helps the classification process. There is no need to even store the physical fingerprint cards. AFIS does not need to count the primary values of all those fingers and does not have to be as complicated as NCIC System. With the power of image recognition and classification algorithm, fingerprint identification can be done automatically by comparing the source digital image to the target database containing all saved digital images. Another important issue to know is the fingerprint classification patterns. These patterns are growing with each generation of AFIS and differ from one too to another, searching time and reduced computational complexity. The first known study of fingerprint classification was proposed by in 1823 by Purkinje, which resulted in fingerprint classification down into 9 categories: transverse curve, central longitudinal strain, oblique stripe, oblique loop, almond whorl, spiral whorl, ellipse, circle, and double whorl. Later on, more in depth study was conducted by Francis Galton in 1892, resulted in fingerprint classification down into 3 major classes: arch, loop, and whorl. Ten years later, Edward Henry refined Galton’s experiment, which was later used by many law enforcement agencies worldwide. Many variations of Henry Galton’s classification schemes exists, however there are 5 most common patterns: arch, tented arch, left loop, right loop, and whorl. The following are types of fingerprint classification patterns: Since IDAFIS is another extended form of AFIS, we do not need to implement all other classification systems. What we need to do is to see what kind of classification pattern the algorithm can distinguish. Fingerprint Matching In general, fingerprint matching can be categorized down into three categories: ï‚ · Correlation-based matching: the matching process begins by superimposing (lying over) two fingerprints, and calculating the correlation between both by taking displacement (e.g. translation, rotation) into account. ï‚ · Minutiae – based matching: Minutiae are first extracted from each fingerprint, aligned, and then calculated for their match. ï‚ · Ridge feature – based matching: Ridge patterns are extracted from each fingerprint and compared one with another. The difference with minutiae – based is that instead of extracting minutiae (which is very difficult to do to low – quality fingerprint image); ridge pattern such as local orientation and frequency, ridge shape, and texture information is used. Chapter Two Most of the attendance systems use paper based methods for taking and calculating attendance and this manual method requires paper sheets and a lot of stationery material. Previously a very few work has been done relating to the academic attendance monitoring problem. Some software’s have been designed previously to keep track of attendance [11].But they require manual entry of data by the staff workers. So the problem remains unsolved. Furthermore idea of attendance tracking systems using facial recognition techniques have also been proposed but it requires expensive apparatus still not getting the required accuracy [12]. Automated Monitoring Attendance System is divided into three parts: Hardware/Software Design, Rules for marking attendance and Online Attendance Report. Each of these is explained below. 2 System Description 2 .1 Hardware Required hardware used should be easy to maintain, implement and easily available. Proposed hardware consists following parts: (1) Fingerprint Scanner (2) LCD Screen (3) Computer Fingerprint scanner will be used to input fingerprint of teachers/students into the computer software. LCD display will be displaying rolls of those whose attendance is marked. Computer Software will be interfacing fingerprint scanner and LCD and will be connected to the network. It will input fingerprint, will process it and extract features for matching. After matching, it will update the database attendance records of the students. A fingerprint sensor device along with an LCD screen is placed at the entrance of each classroom. The fingerprint sensor is used to capture the fingerprints of students while LCD screen notifies the student that his/her attendance has been marked. 2 .2 Rules for marking attendance This part explains how students and teacher will use this attendance management system. Following points will make sure that attendance is marked correctly, without any problem: (1) All the hardware will be outside of the classroom. (2) When teacher enters the classroom, the attendance marking will start. Computer software will start the process after inputting fingerprint of the teacher. It will find the Subject ID and current semester using the ID of the teacher or could be set manually on the software. If the teacher doesn’t enter the classroom, attendance marking will not start. (3) After some time, say 15 minutes of this process. The student who login after this time span will be marked as late on the attendance. This time period can be increased or decreased per requirements. 2 .3 Online Attendance Report Database for attendance would be a table having following fields as a combination for primary field: (1) Day, (2) Roll, (3) Subject and following non-primary fields: (1) Attendance, (2) Semester. Using this table, all the attendance can be managed for a student. For online report, a simple website will be made for it. Which will access this table for showing attendance of students .The sq queries will be used for report generation? Following query will give total numbers of classes held in a certain subject. Now the attendance percent can easily be calculated: 2.4 Using wireless network instead of LAN We are using LAN for communication among servers and hard wares in the classroom. We can instead use wireless LAN with portable devices. Portable device will have an embedded fingerprint scanner, wireless connection, a microprocessor loaded with software, memory and a display terminal. Source/References: [1] D. Maltoni, D. Maio, A. K. Jain, S. Prabhaker, â€Å"Handbook of Fingerprint Recognition†, Springer, New York, 2003. [2] A.C. Weaver, â€Å"Biometric authentication†, Computer, 39(2), pp 96 – 97 (2006). [3] J. Ortega – Garcia, J. Bigun, D. Reynolds and J.Gonzalez – Rodriguez, â€Å"Authentication gets personal with biometrics†, Signal Processing Magazine, IEEE, 21(2), pp 50 – 62 (2004). [4] Anil K. Jain, Arun Ross and Salil Prabhakar,† An introduction to biometric recognition† , Circuits and Systems for Video Technology, IEEE Transactions on Volume 14, Issue 1, Jan. 2004 Page(s):4 – 20. [5] Fakhreddine Karray, Jamil Abou Saleh, Mo Nours Arab and Milad Alemzadeh, Multi Modal Biometric Systems: A State of the Art Survey † , Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence Laboratory, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada. [6] Abdulmotaleb El Saddik, Mauricio Orozco, Yednek Asfaw, Shervin Shirmohammadi and Andy Adler â€Å"A Novel Biometric System for Identification and Verification of Haptic Users † , Multimedia Communications Research Laboratory (MCRLab) School of Information Technology and Engineering University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada . [7] H. C. Lee and R. E. Gaensslen, â€Å" Advances in Fingerprint Technology † , Elsevier, New York . [8] Sharath Pankanti, Salil Prabhakar, Anil K. Jain, â€Å" On the Individuality of Fingerprints † , IEEE transaction on pattern analysis and machine intelligence, vol.24, no.8, August 2002. [9] Federal Bureau of Investigation, â€Å" The Science of Fingerprints: Classification and Uses † , U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C., 1984. [10] H. C. Lee and R. E. Gaensslen (eds.), â€Å" Advances in Fingerprint Technology † , Second Edition, CRC Press, New York, 2001. [11] K.G.M.S.K. Jayawardana, T.N. Kadurugamuwa, R .G. Rage and S. Radhakrishnan † , Timesheet: An Attendance Tracking System †, Proceedings of the Peradeniya University Research Sessions, Sri Lanka, Vol.13, Part II, 18th December 2008 . [12] Yohei KAWAGUCHI, Tetsuo SHOJI , Weijane LIN ,Koh KAKUSHO , Michihiko MINOH ,â€Å" Face Recognition – based Lecture Attendance System† , Department of Intelligence Science and Technology, Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University. Academic Center for Computing and Media Studies, Kyoto University. [13] Digital Persona, Inc. t720 Bay road Redwood City, CA 94063 USA 5, http://www.digitalpersona.com Table of Contents Chapter One 1.1 The problem and its scope 1.2 Introduction 1.3 Theoretical Background Chapter Two 2.1 Hardware and Software 2.2 Rule for marking attendance 2.3 Online Attendance Report 2.4 Using Wireless network instead of LAN Chapter Three †¦. †¦ Chapter Four 4.1 Summary 4.2 Conclusion and Recommendation 4.3 Bibliography Source/References:

Critically Examine the Geopolitics of Humanitarian Aid Within the 21st Century.

Critically examine the geopolitics of humanitarian aid within the 21st century. How have responses to famine changed over time and what are the key challenges to famine prevention today? Geopolitics have played a huge role in humanitarian aid in the current century. Because humanitarian aid is largely sponsored by western countries it poses a huge problem in the form of a â€Å"parochial form of theorizing†1 that supports the interests of the richest countries of the world. For the purpose of this essay I will begin by examining the problems that have arisen in the most recent years of humanitarian aid assistance.This arises from conditional aid, whereby donor countries or organizations impose conditions in order for recipient countries to receive this aid. Followed by this is the secularization and polarization of the aid industry where organizations are constantly in competition for finite resources. Lastly the 21st century has seen foreign militaries carry out humanitarian aid missions which jeopardizes the neutrality and impartiality which is so essential in carrying out aid to anyone who is in need. Secondly this essay will look at how humanitarian aid has changed over time.For the purpose of this short essay I will look at the 1998 famine in North Korea whereby humanitarian aid was given, only under political concessions. Disguised as aid, the humanitarian assistance given to North Korea was used as a political tool that undermines the fundamental ideas of humanitarian aid. The basic theorizations of humanitarianism put a deep emphasis on adherence to principles of impartiality and neutrality and assistance based solely on need. Adherence to these principles has been the biggest problems of humanitarian aid over its history, but never more so than in the 21st century.Aid in recent years has been based on conditionality which essentially means that in order for nations to receive aid, these nations have to adopt conditions that that the donor nation imposes. This means that aid is not offered on the basis of those who need it, but is based on policy that supports the donors giving aid. Therefore critics see these policies, although framed as humanitarian in principle, as very far removed from humanitarian. In essence it is foreign policy that is advantageous to the donor. Some such policies that come from conditionality are trade liberalization, that can ruin domestic economies and increase unemployment, and capital account liberalization that would open less developed economies to investments from multi-national corporations. Such investments have little impact on the majority of people in these countries and generally only benefit the corporations themselves and a small group of elites in the recipient countries. This supply of aid, especially in the events of crisis is in complete contrast to the fundamental principles of humanitarian aid. One of the most problematic concerns of aid in the last ten years has been the politi cization and secularization of the aid industry. Over the last twenty five years humanitarian aid has become heavily institutionalized. This has led to more effective logistics and delivery systems. However it has also created institutions that are perhaps not so concerned with providing aid to those in need, but acting in the interests of governments or big businesses that are the donors of the resources. Humanitarian organizations such as NGO’s and now foreign military forces are often in competition with local organizations which has led to valuable resources being wasted because of constant competition for aid . 5Because of this, NGO’s neutrality (one of the most fundamental principles of humanitarian aid) is severely compromised because the boundaries between relief and development, war and peace and political objectives are not easily defined.Thus, NGO’s in these most recent years have struggled to adhere to the basic humanitarian principles of providing t o those most in need because their ideals are compromised by the secularization and politicization of aid organizations. 6 Perhaps one of the most fundamental problems of humanitarian aid in the 21st century is the fact that it is often no longer carried out by NGO’s, but is in fact coordinated by foreign military forces. In cases such as Iraq and Afghanistan the United States military assumed a huge role for the distribution of disaster and humanitarian assistance alongside their military objectives.If foreign militaries are carrying out humanitarian aid alongside military objectives, then there is no way that aid can be supplied to whoever is in need in ways that are impartial, neutral and independent. This new system whereby foreign militaries are responsible for supplying aid has created huge security problems for not only the military, but for the people who are receiving aid. Opposing factions to foreign military time and time again in Afghanistan and Iraq have targeted civilians receiving aid to further their own agenda. These are the problems that exist in the humanitarian aid industry today, but these problems have developed over a course of many years and responses to famine and humanitarian disasters have evolved over time. Thirty years ago disaster relief and humanitarian aid were not considered to be of huge significance on a geopolitical scale. During the 70’s and 80’s although humanitarian crisis existed, the geopolitics was more focused on the cold war and respecting the sovereignty of nation states.Although crisis in Africa, East Pakistan and Guatemala (to name a few) were made aware to the international community , they were sidelined by the real political concerns defined by the cold war. Throughout the 1970’s, 1980’s and even the 1990’s international opinion and more importantly international law, respected the fact that governments, even of highly prone man-made and natural disasters had the respon sibility, will, interest and ability to protect their own citizens.Any humanitarian aid that was given in these years was seen as assistance to these governments to look after their own citizens. Essentially 25 years ago, the concept of ‘humanitarian intervention’ without the concurrence of the affected state would not have been considered and certainly would not have been sanctioned by the United Nations or the International Community. 8 Since the 1980’s humanitarian aid and responses to famine have changed not only in thought, but institutionally.In the mid 1980’s there were approximately 280 governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental aid organizations. Today that number is over 1000. As well as this huge expansion of organizations there has been a dramatic increase in aid expenditure. In the last two decades humanitarian assistance has tripled from approximately two billion to six billion dollars. 9 Because of this huge increase in the funding of aid the competition between organizations can sometimes have disastrous consequences because the organizations are competing for finite resources.This is increased by for profit organizations that are competing for lucrative humanitarian and development contracts. Many donors of aid motives are not for the needs of the people that are in need of these resources but are aligned with domestic considerations or international interests that are a world apart from the specific needs of those people affected by disaster or emergency. 10 The famine of North Korea in 1998 is a perfect example of conditional humanitarian aid, and how it is driven not by humanitarian principle, but a clever tool for geopolitical gains.The North Korean famine shows how humanitarian aid today has changed to become an important political tool in contrast to two decades ago whereby any humanitarian crisis was sidelined because of the geopolitical context of the cold war. 9 In times of famine it is important t o emphasize that the likelihood of a starving nation to accept emergency aid under any condition means that conditional aid can be seen as a political tool to establish a diplomatic, political or even military presence under the disguise of humanitarian aid. 11 This was such the case in the North Korean famine.From 1995-1998 North Korea was hit by a series of national disasters that resulted in a large scale famine. Rough estimates say that by 1998 North Korea lacked about two million tones of grain needed to feed its people. According to the world food program the rate of moderate to severe malnutrition of children in North Korea was about sixty per cent by mid 1998. 12 By mid 1998 the United States and South Korea realized that it could use the famine in North Korea as a political tool to penetrate the isolated North and offer aid on terms that benefited themselves.The United States and South Korea offered food aid on terms that North Korea had to enter into reunification and peac e talks and not break out of the 1994 agreed framework designed to end the North’s nuclear program. If the North refused to adhere to these conditions, no food aid would be given. Another condition was that the shipments of aid would be covered with stickers and logos from the United States and South Korea. Although this may seem insignificant it was a huge propaganda tool for the donor powers.It could serve as an undermining of the North Korean regime that had told its people for decades that the South and the United States were undermining their nation. 13 The slow response to give aid put the US and South Korea in a strategically advantageous situation to further its political goals. If North Korea didn’t accept United States conditions the famine would continue and the possibility of an internal break down of the state increased. If the North accepted the terms on which the donors offered, the aid functioned as an important political tool.It meant North Korea had t o give concessions and that the people of North Korea could see the failure of its regime and the kindness of the western powers that they had been told for so long were there enemies. Thus, humanitarian aid was not offered to support those people starving, but was rather used as a political tool to further the donor states own political agendas under the guise of humanitarian aid. In actual fact, the aid was so far removed from what humanitarian aid in its purest sense really was. 4 So much was this aid seen as a political tool that in 1998 the South Korean government banned non governmental groups from fundraising to support those starving in the North. 15 This is undeniable proof that political aims were the underlying focus of the ‘conditional aid’ rather than aid to help the starving North Korean population that was stricken by famine. The key challenges to famine prevention today are huge and include a combination of factors that are not easily unchanged.First of all, humanitarian aid is now such a lucrative industry that competition for contracts means that organizations are in constant competition for finite resources, the resources that are needed in times when famine strikes. Secondly, as long as foreign militaries carry out some humanitarian aid then the adherence to neutrality and impartiality that is so fundamental to the aid process is essentially undermined. Military goals will always be aligned alongside objectives that are not necessarily aligned with those of starving people.And finally, as long as conditional aid is used as a political tool, then humanitarian aid faces huge challenges. In a time when people need aid, if governments are focused on geopolitical goals and furthering their own agendas rather than helping those in times of famine then humanitarian aid is essentially a guise and is merely a political tool for donor governments to use to further their own agendas. 1 Robinson, J. (2003) ‘Postcolonising geography: tactics and pitfalls' Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography p273 2 When does aid conditionally work?Gabriella R Montinola. Studies in comparative international development, vol 45, 2010, pp 358-362 3 ibid (same ref as above) 4 International Human Crisis: two decades before and two decades beyond. Randolf C Kent. International Affairs Volume 80, issie 5, 2004 p 851-870 5 Aaltola, M. – Responding to emergencies and fostering development: the dilemmas of humanitarian aid Third world planning review. – Liverpool University Press. – 0142-7849   Vol. 22(1), 2000, p. 111-112 6 International Human Crisis: two decades before and two decades beyond. Randolf C Kent.International Affairs Volume 80, issie 5, 2004 pp 851-870 7International Human Crisis: two decades before and two decades beyond. Randolf C Kent. International Affairs Volume 80, issie 5, 2004 851-870 8 Reshaping humanitarian assistance in the twenty first century. Tim O’Dempsey and Barry Munslow. Pro gress in Development Studies 2009 9:1 pp 1-2 9 Randolf C Kent. Pp 851-870 10 Aaltola, M. – Responding to emergencies and fostering development: the dilemmas of humanitarian aid Third world planning review. – Liverpool University Press. – 0142-7849   Vol. 22(1), 2000, p. 111-112 11. G.M Guess. The Politics of United States Foreign Aid, London: Croom Helm, 1987, p3 12 Lischer, Sarah Kenyon. Dangerous Sanctuaries:  Refugee Camps, Civil War, And the Dilemmas of Humanitarian Aid. Cornwell University Press. 2006. Pp 3-9 13 Emergency Food Aid as a Means of Political Persuasion in the North Korean Famine Mika Aaltola Third World Quarterly  , Vol. 20, No. 2 (Apr. , 1999), p 374 14 Emergency Food Aid as a Means of Political Persuasion in the North Korean Famine Mika Aaltola Third World Quarterly  , Vol. 20, No. 2 (Apr. , 1999), pp 372- 386 15 Korean Herald, 13 May, 1997

Movie Review Video Games - 1292 Words

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