Critical Perspectives on Accounting Essay Example for Free

Critical Perspectives on Accounting Essay In this article Marcus Milne provides critical overview and analysis of literature devoted to establishing evidence for positive accounting theory in regards of corporate social disclosure. The central argument of the paper is that positive accounting theorists are trying to colonize social and environmental accounting research. The present article is empirical research and the author employs qualitative and quantitative data to support the claim that positive accounting theory of social disclosure has failed in its endeavor. The author’s purpose is to challenge the perceptions of positive accounting theory and to illustrate why efforts of theorists to social and environmental accounting has failed. The author focuses on the original work of Watts and Zimmerman and tends to present their concern and ideas with the lobbying behavior observed in US oil companies. The companies were claimed to be monopolists and self-interested politicians that had pursued mainly wealth transfers in the form of taxes and other political costs. For them, social responsibility is passing remark. The article is useful to my research topic as Milne suggests that modern businesses and companies should be more concerned with social and environmental responsibility as our world’s resources are not unlimited. The main limitation of the article is that only one original work is incorporated – the article presents one viewpoint without presenting multiple views on the problem. The author indicates that literature on positive accounting theory has failed to provide arguments for self-interested managers’ wealth maximizes. The article will be useful supplementary information for my research on social and environmental responsibility.

Secularism And Its Effect On Society Religion Essay

Secularism And Its Effect On Society Religion Essay Secularism is the separation of state and religion. It is the exclusion or rejection of religion from political or civil affairs of the state. Being an ancient belief of some ancient Greek and Roman philosophers like Marcus Aurelius it has developed and expanded to reach different corners of the world. However, the term secularism is relatively new as it was first mentioned or coined by the British writer George Holyoake in 1851. In the 1700s different writers and philosophers of the Enlightenment Age had proposed its application in society. High Renaissance authors also gave rise to secularism and idealism in their works formed from Classicism, but it was mostly in historical rather than artistic and architectural works. Thus, secularism was formally born or started during the Renaissance but found a sure footing in the 18th century during the Age of Reason. The concept and its application grew stronger with the French revolution carrying until today. The most secular states in cont emporary times have more than doubled the number of non-secular states. However, some secular states do not apply it fully and still observe some religious idiosyncrasies like holidays. Some states, however, do not have a defined state religion because of different practices of a large number of its citizens. For example, Nigeria has Islam, Christianity and other Traditional religions but not as much as the first two- as the official religions of the nation. The entire nation observes both Islamic and Christian holidays and puts aside money in its budget for different purposes for this religion. Hence, secularism has had a boost in the last two to three centuries. Since its emergence, religion holds the role or status as the basis for law and all other legalities. It is the sole source of law and everyone is expected to obey its rules and regulations and failure to do so results in punishment of the guilty person or persons by religious decree. Therefore, the proper role of religion in every society is to lay down the rules or laws to be followed by every member. It also encompasses the entire life of a person, from his or her birth, daily activities and even to demise and further. Religion is absolute i.e. it is a divine decree from the Almighty. Europe was widely Roman Catholic Christians due to the Roman conquerors of the Dark and Middle Ages. Europe was a very religious continent. Hence, religion was the law putting the church over even the ruling Monarchs and nobles. However, this arrangement depended on the country and sometimes changed according to the ruler. For example, King Richard the Lion Heart of England was a strong catholic and a leader of the crusades therefore, had a good standing with the church while his brother John also known as John Lackland who became king after him did not. Pope Innocent II excommunicated him due to a dispute between them on who was to be the next Archbishop of Canterbury. Because the olden Norman and Angevin kings of England had had considerable influence with the church, he also assumed he could. However, the church triumphed and he kept on paying the church compensation money for some time. Thus, religious rules have been around for a long time due to religion and its willing followers. It can also be seen from the time of its emergence and evolution from animism to polytheism and finally monotheism, all religions allow for the belief in a power or deity that sets rules. These rules have been sometimes to the advantage of society and at other times to its detriment. For instance, in pre-Christian Rome, human sacrifice or bloodshed is said to be the bringer of the gods and goddesses mercy on the people of Rome. Human sacrifice brought about rainfall, good harvest and abundant wealth. Thus, it brought about the birth of the gladiators and their legendary fights to please the deities. Another example would be the Indian sacrifice of a widow on her dead husbands funeral pyre or later times the end of her social life and she is considered a bad luck charm for anyone. Thus, religion compelled society to either kill these widows or cut them off from society and force them to l ive together without support, wearing only white and selling their bodies to feed themselves most of the time. Some religions even support and approve of incest especially brother-sister incest which can be seen in Egyptian, Japanese and Chinese royal families of the olden days. Hence, the proper role of religion in society is to arrange and bring order not chaos to religion. But for the most part, Europe engaged in wars between its countries due to religion sacrificing thousands of lives to its cause. For example, the Crusades that were undertaken three times by different countries that threw all of their money into them by heavily taxing their people to finance wars which were lost in the end. Some countries, like England and France never recovered fully from this economical sacrifice which can be said the evolutions in both these countries because of poor standard of living. State religion in France after the revolution gave way to state atheism which promoted the suppression of religion. It is paramount to understand that secularism promotes religious freedom while keeping it from influencing its laws while atheism does not support the practice of religion at all. In modern or contemporary times, secularism is more popular because it promotes equality of religions before the law and can quell accusation of favoritism towards one religion. However, in communist states state atheism is promoted. The modern world should not abandon or relegate religion to the side as it is being done in most modern states. It is a given that some states have more than one major religions to consider. This might a present a problem to most states when it comes to law making. However in Nigeria, the law makers have done a good job inculcating its major religions i.e. Islam and Christianity with great results. The country also recognizes other practices of the less populated traditional religions accepting some things like marriage, paternity and adoption without a need for a legal representative at the time. It can be said that religion threw Europe in to a state of war, but it cannot be refuted that it also brought about stability at the time of its emergence in Europe. However, most people especially the philosopà ©s like Denis Diderot rejected the idea of God making religion synonymous to societies sufferings. He wrote an essay about a dying blind professor, Lettre sur les aveugles, in which he promoted his ideology. It is believed Diderots sisters death in a convent where she was a nun contributed to his dislike of religion. Thus, it can be seen that sufferings of people of the poor at the hands of the church led to many Europeans acceptance of atheism. On the other hand, it most states that have a single religion as its state religion and being non-secular have a relatively calm and orderly society. For example, the Middle Eastern states that use Islam as their official religion use the Quran and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) as their law. Although there is crisis in the Middle East countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates enjoy a peaceful social and economical life which orderly and chaos-free. The separation of religion and state laws both has its advantages and disadvantages. It is still an ongoing debate on whether its benefits outweigh its shortcomings. If state is separated from religion, laws will have no direct religious influence. Man made religious rules saying is not the law. Tolerance of other religions will be developed. Nepotism and segregation or prejudice due to religious difference will greatly reduce. The state will not add religious expenses to its budget leaving it with more funds to pursue other state matters or problems. Atheist can also be tolerated and their views heard. Freedom of expression is greatly promoted in these societies. Democracy is also promoted. On the other hand, if state is not separate from religion it will incur extra expenses. There is less tolerance of other religions and their practice as can be seen in places like Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E, Yemen and Israel to a great extent towards Muslims. Religious sayings are considered as law. Atheism as well as bad mouthing the religion will be considered heresy and might even be punishable by death as seen during the churchs powerful hold in Europe. However, some of the advantages above can also turn into these disadvantages while some of the disadvantages turn into advantages. For example, tolerance of atheism can lead to its widespread and the decline in religion as evidenced in Europe with the advent of atheistic Enlightened philosophers. Although there was no tolerance in most countries, the Netherlands allowed these people to publish most of their works and in doing so helped the spread of atheism. Democracy can be said to be highly overrated because most states practicing it can also infringe on the rights of others and not tolerate their religious freedom. For example, the law that was passed in France by President Nicholas Sarkozy to prevent Muslim women from covering their head infringed on their freedom of religion and expression. So also were the punishments administered by most churches in early Europe which sometimes involved stoning or beheading depending on the magnitude of the sin in the churchs eyes. However, th ese rights later left the hands of the churches and transferred to the feudal lords who still took advices from their assigned priests. This however, seemed to lessen the punishment taking it away from women and children but mostly between men and their feudal lords. However, a more prominent example of non-separation problems can be seen with the popes of the Renaissance era in Italy. Their frivolous and sybaritic lifestyle damaged the image of religion and gave it no credence in the eyes of the believers. They didnt care for their people and mostly left them to suffer. Another example is the era of the Plantagenet Kings of England. All of these kings made England a very poor and unhappy country by taxing its people heavily and constant engagement in wars that were mostly petty and selfish. Further, Philip II launched a naval attack on England because of religion and without a thought to his people and their livelihood cut down Spains forests to build his ships led to the economic decline of Spain which was once had a robust economy. Thus, by separating or not separating religion and state, chaos occurs. Nonetheless, it is wiser to keep religion as a basis for law making. Divine messages if followed adamantly lead to peace not anarchy as can be seen in Saudi, U.A.E, Qatar, Brunei and others. Secularism in contemporary world has led to decline in before highly valued morals. Nowadays, sexual relationships are openly carried out i.e. a couple can move in together with the knowledge with both their parents and other people in society. On the other hand, non-secular and Old Europe frowned upon something like this. Fornication and adultery are seen as a sin from a religious point of view everywhere in the world. Although, the monarchs and aristocrats still indulged in the pleasures of the flesh and the priests and society look the other way as long as they are discreet for instance Henry VII with his six wives and countless mistresses. However, this example is unique to those societies that at the time were not very religious, frivolous and at times chaotic. For example, Italian renaissance that was characterized with frivolity and worldly pursuits because of they were not practicing religious sayings. This era can be identified with one of Europes most scandalous and licentious relationships and lots of unmarried mothers who suffered greatly. Synonymously, in the modern world, the Western world is highly secular and as such it also faces the problem of teenage pregnancy, unmarried single mothers living in poverty, high divorce rates, and numerous cases of infidelity and so on. However, after the wave of frivolity during the renaissance had been cleared by Paul III and hid successors, the enlightenment age brought with it a new wave of low moral standards. It can be seen from the 18th to the 19th century how extra-marital affairs became almost legalized. A wife was mainly the means to an heir. She was required to be faithful to her husband until she has given him an heir so that there will be no contest as to who the childs father was. S he can then have her affairs as long as she was discreet while the husband also has his own mistresses and affairs. Thus, bastard children belonging to the nobles and aristocrats were very high in number with a great many of the sons given titles while the daughters are at most times educated. All these eras though accepting of these low moral values make social pariahs out of its practitioners. Thus, secularism might promote or develop individuals to be independent but it does not protect them from the harsh realities of life. A religious and orderly society do not have such problems, although they do occur but not in such high numbers as in secular states. For example, the Puritans live their lives simply though of modern times, they do not believe in worldly pleasures. Moreover, the rate of suicide is seen to be much higher in secular states. There may be religious sacrifices as in the widow burning in Hinduism or stoning in Islam, it however, does not claim as many lives as suicide in the Western secular states. Furthermore, both of the aforementioned practices have falling into disuse while suicide is the most upcoming and pressing problem of deaths in secular societies. Having lived in a non-secular society where religion governs our day to day lives. I have witnessed how religious sayings from God can be turned and manipulated to suit the needs of men. In my opinion, secularism is a good idea but it also doesnt get to be practiced the way it is supposed to be. For example, recently the French government although calling itself secular passed a bill to stop women or specifically Islamic women from covering their faces. It is perfectly allowed to sanction those that refuse to show their faces for security reasons, but why persecute all on the basis of a notion or what a minority does? It goes to show that both secular and non-secular states need to work on where they stand in the modern world. Times have changed since people will take in stride what the state dictates. As it can be witnesses in France, although women are being sanctioned and charged, they still defiantly wear their head covering. To them, their veil is and identity of who they are an d what they represent as Muslim women. The French government will do well to learn from past mistakes of imposing sanctions on their people and its end results i.e. the revolution. I believe that religion plays a role in society that can be at most positive and sometimes negative. However, both sides can be argued according to ones own point of view. For an academic (western education), socialist or scientific point of view religion has more negative than positive sides. For example, gender inequality, female education and sacrificial roles to make someone give up his/her life. On the other hand, theologians or religious scholars will give credit to the positive side of religion for bringing about peace, tranquility and fairness. For instance, Islam in Arabia pulled the people out of ignorance or Jahiliyyah as the period is known to a blissful time of peace and love for all. Further, in the Christian and Islamic books i.e. the Bible and Quran respectively, stories showcased the way religion brought the people peace and escape from harsh and ruthless rulers as in the stories of Moses, Abraham and Jesus. Hence, the amalgamation of these two views still proves to be futile. To my understanding, until these two opposing point of views are united, secularism cannot and will not be practiced to everyones satisfaction. Democracy cannot be practiced fully without any partisan influence from religious groups either. The 9/11 attacks claimed by the Taliban are now being seen as attacks orchestrated by Jews and some say by the American government itself. President George Bush, the former president was said to be a member of a religious groups that rule America between themselves thus, eliminating any trace that all past democratic rulings were fair. Current president Barack Obama also hit a brick wall during his campaign for the post. Because of his Muslim-like name and his roots, he was considered a Muslim posing as a Christian to get Islam to rule America. This influenced so many people not to vote him fairly based on a judgment of his character. By separating religion and state, the deed has only fueled the widening gap between the two most dominant religions in the world ergo in America too. Schools do not teach their pupils much about religion; hence, they come out with a jaundiced view created by the media. Most politicians also do not hide their distaste for other religions as can be seen by Sarah Palin and her anti-Islamic sentiments. European history in its course from the ancient Greeks to the Romans to the Celts and the Vikings to Feudal systems and absolutist Monarchies and finally to the arrival of constitutional monarchy and democracy has shaped the world to what it is today. The West is the way it is thanks to these people who lived hundreds of years ago. But sadly, the world is yet to open their eyes and learn from past mistakes. European history in its course has shown us how absolutism or dictatorships can crumble in mere days when the people revolt. But the lure of power is too much for most leaders that they forget the past and only indulge in the present and paint and plan a happy future. This can be witnessed in the recent wave of unrest passing through some of the North African and Middle Eastern countries. The leaders of these countries had been there since kingdom come but are not ready to lose that power they hold so in their grip. It took a revolution for most of these rulers to surrender and st ep aside; however, some refuse like Libyan and Yemenis presidents. In my opinion, it all comes down to greed and the lust for power. The characteristics of these people can be witnessed from other historical figures like Napoleon I of France, John I of England, Charles V Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, Philip II of Spain and others. Most of these leaders thirst and lust for power led to their ultimate downfall most especially Napoleon and his quest to create an empire for himself all over Europe. In conclusion, I believe secularism is only applicable to some states while in others it can never be well implemented. To my understanding, African countries like Nigeria cannot function well under secular rule because of the various religious groups in the country. Other places that witness Islam as the dominant religion can never use secularism to govern a state. Islam itself brings an entire system of the way a state under Islamic rule is supposed to function. It can be seen that most of these Middle Eastern states have flourished under this system. For Christianity, I believe the Vatican is a typical example of a religious state being ruled by a religious system that works pretty darned good. The Pope as its head and the people under him are leaving in a peaceful and non-hectic environment. However, the Christian world (West) has learned another lesson from European history of Christian wars and its rules. Therefore, it is wary of going back for seconds after breaking away and f orming other views that do not conform to the Catholic Church. As the saying goes once bitten twice shy so also do most Christians feel they cannot go back under influence and rule by the Church. But most of all European history, especially the Enlightenment age has left its mark on history by advocating atheism. As some figures and statistics show, the world religions are declining in number as more and more people stop believing in God. Atheism has spread its wings to touch every corner of the world not only the west but Asia and Africa, two of the most religious continents in the world. Hence, most people believe the growing rate of atheism should be synonymous with secularism so as to create a balance between the believers and the non-believers. However, I believe only time will tell what is the right path for us to follow and bring peace and harmony to our otherwise chaotic world.

Self-Presentation Essay -- Sociology, Social Evaluation

Self-Presentation by definition is â€Å"the process by which people monitor and control the impressions others form of them in social situations (Leary & Kowalski, 1990). In essence, this is impression management in which we are able to omit, or present aspects of self in order to make a desired impression. Self-presentation through research has shown that it affects athletes in many forms. Research of sources of stress during competition showed that the most frequent source of stress was significant others, competitive anxiety, and social-evaluation and self-presentation. (James, & Collins 1997) The largest stressor reported was stress from a significant other where ninety percent of participants reported that at least one individual caused stress. Another source of stress, self-presentation, was found to be an underlying factor. That many athletes feel the need to meet others expectations, prove their worth, or fear being criticized due to socially determined goals. Stress was shown to either increase the perceived self-presentational importance of the competition, or that the fear of failure or personal performance lowered self-presentational efficacy. Prior research has also shown that athletes may participate in self-presentational process which relate to health-damaging behaviors. These behaviors may contain drug abuse, not wearing proper safety equipment, and failing to seek medical attention when needed. Only limited research has been completed with regard to desired impression and health risk behaviors. Undependable evidence does support that there is such a relationship between risking ones health in order to promote a desired self-impression. Research has also found that athletes find a favorable image with regard to pl... ...r to prevent them. Self-presentation in these interviews has a connection with a singular influence. Both individuals’ behaviors are highly connected with one person, and if this is the case with more people then providing education for coaches, and parents could facilitate healthier self-presentational views. Having the person of influence stress health instead pushing through injuries, and showing the ability to care about the person and not just the performance may take some off the anxiety, and stress off of the athlete. Self-Presentational concerns may also be used in a positive fashion such as stressing the idea being in shape in order to perform to the best of your ability for themselves, teammates, and the coaches. However, it must also be made aware that when injury occurs that practicing through it without making others aware is a negative situation.

Sexism: Modern Day Society Essay example -- Gender Studies

The horror movie clichà © has a vast amount of stereotypical archetypes such as the dumb jock, the promiscuous female, the geek, and the innocent virgin. There are plenty of more archetypes that are on the protagonist side and as well as the antagonist side of the story. Of course in horror movies the antagonist archetype is the slow-walking, super-human and/or creature-like monster that usually wins a running race against their prey except is killed ultimately by the innocent virgin. There are movies in the past, present and likely future that will always contain these archetype characters because we have them in every aspect of life. On a daily basis, fictional horror movie killers wearing masks, like Jason Vorhees and Michael Meyers, will not be roaming around at home and/or work, every day or ever, but we will always have some type of stereotypical situation happen in one fashion or another. Female archetypes, or stereotypes, that plague movies of all genres are still present i n modern day Hollywood. This is just one example of how sexism is still a hot-topic. In the office, hospital, department store or any other place of business or pleasure are examples of common possible locations that can spurt a lot of sexist occurrences. Depending on an individual’s background (age, sex, race, etc.) there will always be a philosophical issue among gender roles and what is deemed socially correct. Human resources are a group of people that is present in all places of business. They are the people that run a company, business or in a global-scale, the economy. A portion of that same group of working people is human resource management that oversees the organization. This is one example parallelism to how the world works in certain places... ....† Retrieved from http://www.gendercide.org/case_infanticide.html Jones, A. (2004). Gendercide and genocide. (pp. 12-20). Ohio University, OH: Ohio University Press. Joyce, K., Sharlet, J. (2007). â€Å"Hillary’s prayer: Hillary clinton’s religion and politics†. Mother Jones. Retrieved from http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/09/hillarys-prayer-hillary-clintons-religion-and-politics Lerner, G. (1994). The creation of patriarchy. (1 ed., Vol. 1). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Nelson, V. S. (1978). Infanticide and the value of life. (pp. 100-105). Buffalo, NY: Wiley Subscription Services. Silvestre, J. (2000). The rise of women leaders in philippines: A study of corazon aquino and gloria macapagal-arroyo. The Rise of Women Leaders, 165-177. Wellington, S. W. (1996). Women in corporate leadership: Progress and prospects. What's Holding Women Back, 36-43.

Macbeth Character Analysis Essay -- essays research papers

Character Analysis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the tragedy Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, many character traits are portrayed through the various characters throughout the play. Macbeth was one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies. It was completed in 1606 and was most likely first performed before King James I and his royal family at Hampton Court. King James I is believed to be a direct descendent of the character Banquo. Probably the most potent character trait expressed in Macbeth would be integrity or the lack there of. Integrity could be defined as doing the right thing at all costs no matter what the consequences or what would be in the persons best interest. In this play the person that displays the most of this character trait would be Macbeth himself. Macbeth shows his lack of integrity in many ways throughout the entire play through his actions towards the other characters, this trait helps to personify what kind of person Macbeth was and what kind of person he was becoming.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the beginning of the play Macbeth is portrayed as an upstanding citizen to Scotland and a man with unending courage. He could do no wrong in the eyes of the king and because of this was presented with many honors. As with any person when they are recognized for what they have done Macbeth became somewhat greedy in his newly found fame and this greed also spread to his wife, Lady Macbeth. With this greed, as you can expect, came a want...

Play work principles Essay

The drive for children to play is inbuilt in our genetic makeup, almost an instinct or an impulse. Children learn through play their world around them. As the Play work principle No1 states: ‘’ All children and young people need to play. The impulse to play is innate. Play is a biological, psychological and social necessity, and is fundamental to the healthy development and well-being of individuals and communities.’’ A child will choose over anything else to ‘play’ weather they are out shopping, eating a meal, and learning at school. Children have the ability to turn anything or object into a fun and exciting adventure. Play is a necessary if not vital part of a child’s development. Children naturally learn through play their selves about their world or environment around them and skills which they will develop for life. Through play they will develop: Social skills: many games are played with friends, siblings and neighbours and the child will interact and learn to get along with a group. Listening, debating, reasoning, sharing are all developed through games like dressing up, the home corner, dens or making up new games. Also moral values are encountered as there is a need for children to apply fairness, inclusion and kindness to others. Physical development: Being active is very important to a child’s development, as the need to widen their fine and gross motor skills as well as keeping good health. Lots of games need balance, concentration, and coordination like ball games, riding scooters or climbing trees. Intellectual: The ability to think for their selves and learn a greater understanding consepts and ideas. When they are playing construction games or building things, they are designing, problem solving, thinking ahead and been resourceful. Creative: Children have an ability to open their mind and think of things completely different to adults. Through role play or adventure they can be whomever they choose. When they use visual arts they can use things in different ways and that are non-conventional. They come up with new and exciting ideas and creations. Cultural: Our world is diverse and children learn through playing games like dressing up, role play, cooking recipes, and having parties about different cultures and beliefs. Emotional: A child can through play express lots of different kinds of emotion. In role play anger, love and empathy can be displayed. They will push boundaries and explore risk by playing more adventurous games. Self-esteem and confidence will be heightened by them having accomplished new skills whilst playing, such as building a den the biggest or the best they have ever done before. Children play to discover about the world the live in, they need to feel the water and play in the mud so they will grow up to appreciate their place in the world. 1.3 Play is a fundamental part of a child’s development for their health and well-being. Studies have shown that children that are deprived of play experiences maybe under developed in either a physical or mental ability. That is why the Playprinciple No 1 states; ‘’All children and young people need to play. The impulse to play is innate. Play is a biological, psychological and social necessity, and is fundamental to the healthy development and well-being of individuals and communities.’’ As it is a necessity. Biological: The child’s physical development, whether it is their body physically fit or their minds well stimulated. Psychological: This is the child’s overall wellbeing. Sociological: This is a child’s social skills and to be able to get along with other, and mix with a diverse group of children or adults. Frazer Brown states: ‘This is not a simple interaction but a complex process wherein, flexibility in the play environment leads to increased flexibility in the child. That child is then better able to make use of the flexible environment and so on. There is massive child development potential in a play setting.’

The Lives of Children and the Conscience of a Nation

They are amazing, they are unique and innocent. However, because of the devastating demoralization happening in the society today, they are the ones becoming the victims of the situation of the society today. Certainly, children are the ones who are becoming the main victims of the social changes occurring today. It is undeniable that the situation plaguing the young ones today is indeed alarming, thus requiring attention from the authorities involved in the process of facing the said changes. The youth are the hope of today’s society.This line has long been recognized by many industrialized as well as developing countries worldwide. This is the primary reason why it is evident that government organizations are trying to invest their best possible available assets to the development of the young generation. However, not all of the members of the young generation actually get to have an access on the said programs. Most of them, who belong to the minority groups of the society, are the ones who are in need of these programs. Yet, they are the ones who have lesser access on the said governmental set-ups.As a result, young people who get charged with juvenile delinquency cases are increasing every year. The fact that they have nothing better to do than to simply stay at home or wander around in the stets, they become the target of numerous gangs that are encouraging youths to join them in their unlawful acts If not, many of these youths bring forth several chaotic movements that particularly disturb the entire community. These youths certainly need help. However, one tragic problem is being confronted by the present generation of children and youths.The personal development in general aspect of humanity is being hindered by the challenges of juvenile delinquency. Most of the youths are being misled by outside and detrimental influences such as vices manifesting in gambling, illegal drugs, and bad companies. Most of the youths nowadays are falling into the p itfalls of becoming addictive to drug intoxication, alcoholism, and smoking. Others are sacrificing their educational pursuit for personal development to influences of bad companies such as gangs and groupies resulting to violence and social aggression.In addition, most parts of the generations of youths and children nowadays are falling as victims of social violence such as bullying, gang aggression, rape, harassment, and other abuses. Thus, the children and youths of the present generations are being misled to the adversities of the juvenile delinquency. In a relative context of story-narration entitled Amazing Grace, as written by Jonathan Kozov, the situation of the society today that addresses the problems with the youth and the ways by which they are involved in the different issues of social downfall of morale.The story of Kozol, he portrayed the situation in a more actual picture that related the present problems with the problems of the children on one particular community that he visited for observation. Through this story, the author made it clear that even though children are innocent, it is undeniable that with the considerable influences that they receive from the society that they live in at present affects the behavior that they have towards the life that they are facing in the future.The worse case to consider is that most of the children who are negatively influenced by the social systems are becoming juvenile delinquents; true, with regards this factor of the truth, the rate of those individuals becoming involved in juvenile delinquency issues continue to increase every year. Nevertheless, society has already started moving to address this alarming social problem of juvenile delinquency with the youths and children.Concerned citizens and community groups have already established non-profit organization to aid recovering victims and ex-delinquent in the search for the proper way of developing themselves. These organizations have helped many y ouths and children of this present generation in the recuperation from the horror and adversities of the former delinquent life in the aim of realizing the full potential as significant and relevant individuals within the society aiming for their personal and humanities development in the future.Peer Pressure and the Youth Influences Seeing the sample narration that Jonathan Kozol presented through the context of the story on the â€Å"Amazing Grace†, it could be observed that he pointed out that there are several points of consideration needing attention with regards the capability of the entire society to influence the young minds of the younger generation trying to make the best out of their future does yet. (Kozol, 13) THE researchers felt that they had it all figured out. They had intently examined 200 children from their infancy through adolescence.They analyzed the parents, the home environment and the disposition of each child. Then they predicted which of these child ren would become happy adults. It seemed simple—a happy childhood under a pleasant family environment would produce a happy adult. After waiting till the children became 30 years of age, they re-interviewed them. Furthermore, as the children grow up, the young adults become more prone to different influences from the environment. The people that they deal with everyday become the source of the different values that they take in for themselves as they personally grow up.There are at least four major reasons why young people develop in the behavior that they grow up with. These four major dimensions of development could be noted as follows: †¢ The family and the parents: usually, the young children get the examples of acts from their parents which in turn they carry in themselves as they grow up. It is through this particular process that the young ones are able to comprehend with the impact that their parents are making on them as young adults.†¢ The Environment and the Society: As the young children grow older, the impact of the people living around them aside from their family members begins to leave an impact on their personality. True, the situation has been much more proved by the psychologists that the effect of the family and the society differ from each other. As for a fact, the percentage of effect that the society makes on the individual is far much higher than that of the effect of the family with development of the youngsters. †¢ The psychological need for acceptance: young ones aim to be accepted especially if they have the capacity of being recognized.This is the reason why they usually take sides on those who they seem are able to recognize their capabilities. †¢ The decision making system of the youngsters: They are usually deciding in different ways, most of the time, confusion gets in the way. This is the reason why it is very important that they are given fine attention as they are being assisted with the personal d evelopment difficulties that they are dealing with at present. To understand the four dimensions better, the diagram shall show the necessary illustration to explain better: