Innovating Treatment of Addictive Behaviors free essay sample

Affinity to something is a normal human experience. Having favorites can be considered as a natural phenomenon. When the inclination on a particular something become excessive and has gone out of proportion, it is deemed as an addiction. â€Å"Addiction† is one of the most important and useful concepts in the field of behavioral and clinical psychology. A single definition of addiction cannot be considered as accurate and precise and consider other definition as incorrect. This is because the term addiction is an abstruse word, and definition may vary in different social groups due to its relative aspect, in which descriptions are based solely on opinions. It has no definite boundaries and sets the premise of its definition (West Hardy, 2006). The concept of addiction continually changes throughout time. Nowadays, it was linked to a kind of syndrome impairing the control system of behavior, as losing control over behavior may have noxious effects. We will write a custom essay sample on Innovating Treatment of Addictive Behaviors or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The afflicted control system leads to feelings of extreme urge to do a certain activity or takes great priority in a persons life. A person with addictive behavior experience lacks the ability to maintain abstinence (West Hardy, 2006). Addictive behaviors are one of the major causes of detrimental health problems in the medicine field. These behaviors are also the reason behind unreasonable spending of a great sum of money in health care, rehabilitation, legal, and educational aspect (Prochaska, 2004). Addictive behaviors are a major dilemma which encompasses different social and economic aspect of an individual. Developing an addictive behavior could be destructive and may hinder a person’s social and occupational well-being. The documented treatment for addictive behavior shows low success rates and numerous frustrations. Some of the frequent encountered problems are the inability to identify borderline patients suffering from addictive behavior and the unsatisfactory management and application of appropriate treatment (Nagel, 1989). Overeating, compulsive sexual behavior, and alcoholism are documented addictive behaviors which are discussed separately. The separate documentation for the addictive behavior manifested by these disorders largely contributes to the confusion on the field. There are few attempts wherein specialists try to integrate the different objects of addiction and try to formulate various theories that explain the psychological and behavioral phenomenon. However, these attempts failed to establish a concrete body of knowledge and literature encompassing the various aspects of addictive behavior (Nagel, 1989). It is predicted that efficient treatment on addictive behavior could be developed through the integration of the conventional treatment practices and research paradigms with the contemporary treatment practices. These practices include comprehensive and innovative paradigms (Prochaska, 2004). Prochaska (2004) presented different kinds of approaches that could be used in treating persons with addictive behavior. One of these is the patient and population paradigm. Psychotherapists who are advocates of this approach focus their attention on the statistical data on the efficacy of a certain treatment on the individual patient. They often neglect the percentage of the total population participating on the treatment process. This paradigm is concerned on the impact of the treatment which is calculated as efficacy multiplied by the percentage of the participants. The paradigm is trying to explain that the higher efficacy of a particular treatment does not connote greater impact (Prochaska, 2004). Another approach of treating addictive behaviors is the passive-reactive and proactive paradigms. In the past, therapists utilized the passive-reactive approach. This approach was employed for patients suffering from intense pain, illness, and distress. However, there was the undeniable presence of cases of chronic behaviors and most patients were not suffering pain and ailment. Therefore, they needed an approach that best fit their situation which was the proactive approach (Prochaska, 2004).

The Common Life

The Common Life After reading "The Common Life," and "The Uses of Sidewalks," it is easy to see that the main idea in both essays is security. The question that arises from reading the two essays is: What method is best to provide security in a community? In both essays, though used in different ways; the community is used as a means for security. The types of security provided by both essays are very natural. Though the police are preferred by most people as means of protection, the community looking out for each other is done rather naturally. Thoroughly analyzing both essays can show which security procedure is more efficient compared to the actual police department.Scott Russell Sanders, the author of "The Common Life," has very interesting ideas when it comes to adding better security to the community. Sanders wanted to take the more natural approach in obtaining security. With most people, having a gun, security throughout the home and the police department seem like natural approaches towards security.Sanders Preserve - Glenville, New YorkSanders does not think this is the way to achieve better security. His approach is to get to know the people in the community better. By doing this, as the individual gets to know the people in their neighborhood better, they start to look out for them and make sure they are o.k., without knowing they are doing it. This reflects more of a side-effect rather than the actual intention. It seems as though Sanders analyzed this idea in motion and noticed it was a building block for security. Sanders thought up this idea in hopes that it would spread from community to community, in order to increase security awareness. This was a safe environment could be established.The ideas of Scott Russell Sanders are very interesting yet his ideas have...

Read and Understand Measurements in House Plans

Read and Understand Measurements in House Plans Its easy to purchase house plans from a website or house plan catalog, but they hardly ever come with directions for reading floor plans. What are you buying? Will the completed house measure up to your expectations? The following hints come from an architect who designs luxury house plans and custom homes. He wants you to know about measuring. - ed. Key Facts About Measuring area: measured in square feet (or square meters), the rectangular length times the width; the area of a triangle is one-half the base times the heightvolume: the length times the width times the heightarea of a composite: for an irregularly shaped room, divide the room into regular shapes (rectangles and triangles) and sum the areasgross area: measured from the exterior wall foundation, so the area includes wall thicknessnet area: measured from interior walls; area of the living spacearchitect scale: a three-sided measuring device with six measuring edges (described as prism-shaped), similar to a ruler, but used to interpret the true size of a line drawn to scale on a floor plan or blueprint Size Up Your House Plan When you compare house plans, one of the more important characteristics you’ll consider is the area of the floor plan - the size of the plan - measured in square feet or square meters. Heres a little secret. Square feet and square meters are not measured the same on every house plan. Any two house plans that appear to be of equal area may not really be. Does this make much difference when you’re choosing a plan? You bet it does! On a 3,000 square foot plan, a difference of only 10 percent might unexpectedly cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Question the Measurements Builders, architects, real estate professionals, bankers, auditors, and appraisers often report room sizes differently to better suit their particular needs. House plan services also vary in their area-calculation protocols. In order to compare floor plan areas accurately, you’ve got to be sure that the areas are counted the same. Generally, builders and real estate professionals want to show that a house is as big as possible. Their goal is to quote a lower cost per square foot or square meter so that the house will appear more valuable. In contrast, appraisers, assessors, and county auditors usually measure the perimeter of the house - a typically very rough way to calculate area - and call it a day. Architects break the size down into components: first floor, second floor, porches, finished lower level, etc. To arrive at an apples-to-apples comparison of house areas you’ve got to know what’s included in the totals. Does the area include only heated and cooled spaces? Does it include everything under roof? Even garages? What about closets? Or do the measurements include only living space? Ask How Rooms Are Measured But even when you’ve discovered exactly what spaces are included in the area calculation youll need to know how volume is counted, and whether the total reflects the net or the gross square footage (or square meters). Gross area is the total of everything within the outer edge of the perimeter of the house. Net area is that same total - less the thicknesses of walls. In other words, net square footage is the part of the floor that you can walk on. Gross includes the parts you can’t walk on. The difference between net and gross can be as much as 10 percent - depending on the type of floor plan design. A traditional plan (with more distinct rooms and therefore more walls) might have 10 percent net-to-gross ratio, while a contemporary plan may have only six or seven percent. Likewise, larger homes tend to have more walls - because larger homes generally have more rooms, rather than simply larger rooms. Youll probably never see the volume of a house plan listed on a house plan website, but the number representing the area of a floor plan often depends on how the volume is counted. Typically, the upper area of two-story rooms (foyers, family rooms) isnt counted as part of the floor plan. Likewise, stairs are only counted once. But not always. Check how volume is counted to be sure you know how big the plan really is. Plan services that design their own plans will have a consistent policy on area (and volume), but services that sell plans on consignment probably dont. How does the designer or plan service calculate the size of the plan? Sometimes that information is found on the services website or book, and sometimes you have to call to find out. But you should most definitely find out. Knowing how area and volume are measured can make a very big difference in the cost of the house you ultimately build. Conclusions Leave the Building to Builders. Damian Gillie/Construction Photography/Avalon/Getty Images The guest writer, Richard Taylor of RTA Studio, is an Ohio-based residential architect who creates luxury house plans and designs custom homes and interiors. Taylor spent eight years designing and renovating homes in German Village, an historic district in Columbus, Ohio. He has also designed custom homes in North Carolina, Virginia, and Arizona. He holds a B.Arch. (1983) from Miami University and is an active blog writer on social media. Taylor says: I believe that above all, a home should create a quality living experience as unique as the people that live in it, shaped by the owners heart, and by his image of home - thats the essence of custom design. Construction designs can get complicated, so let your building crew decipher the symbols the way they are trained to do. A couple of things for the homeowner to keep an eye on include the orientation of the building on the lot (where is south and the sun? where are the doors and windows?), the HVAC symbols (where is the ductwork?), and for future reference its good to know where your load-bearing walls will be located. And how big will your new house measure out to be? According to the U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Construction, the average new single-family American house was 2,392 square feet in 2010 and in 1973 it was 1,660 square feet. A small home is considered 1,000 to 1,500 square feet. And tiny homes? Could you live in less than 500 square feet? Thats the plan!

Evaluating practice through theories and models Essay - 1

Evaluating practice through theories and models - Essay Example He was being taken care of by his wife, who was elderly too. The patient had a history of heart failure, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. His condition was worsened by the fact that he had a low self-esteem, to a point that he wished himself death to unburden his family. He had difficulty in breathing caused by increased ultra filtration. He also had limited water intake because of his renal treatment. In addition to this, he had failed in maintaining his regular food and water balance because he refused to eat and drink. Renal failure also caused him to have difficulty in passing urine (OSU 2013). Mr. Lim depended on his wife and nurses to help him with his activity of daily living (ADL). Mr. Lim and his wife both lacked the critical knowledge of maintaining his condition. These include lack of the will to follow his regimen and dietary adjustments (NKF 2013). Also captured were the psychological effects of the disease on him, and his family’s lack of motivation characterized by depression of both of them. Mr. Lim was negatively affected by these circumstances, and his condition, as a result. Introduction of Orem’s self-deficit theory seemed the best option to get the patient and his family to cope with management of the patient’s condition. Both the patient and his wife were to be subjected to Orem’s self-deficit theory to enable them gain the appropriate knowledge that will benefit all of them. This is because their lack of knowledge of self-care management and supportive education that was essential in Mr. Lim’s management of his chronic condition (Curtin et. al. 2005). Orem’s self-deficit theory was applied, in this case, to improve the condition of Mr. Lim and the psychological well being of his wife. The program took about three months, and the results were encouraging. Mr. Lim was able to portray a positive aura, which was the most essential step in the road to his recovery. This

Marketing Communications on The Smartphone Market Essay - 1

Marketing Communications on The Smartphone Market - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that integrated marketing communications refer to systems used to plan communications in such a way as to benefit a business by disseminating its marketing campaigns more effectively and thereby lessening its marketing expenses. By integrating marketing structures such as social media avenues, advertising, telemarketing, and direct sales, one can bring more consistency and clarity into the message that is aimed at consumers. Mobile phone companies are constantly seeking an edge in the hyper-competitive mobile phone market by either increasing access speeds or introducing ever more robust application systems into their products. Naturally, these changes inspire marketing executives of mobile phone companies to come up with tactical and strategic marketing plans that allow them to be able to engage potential consumers through the different mobile platforms that are created. Google Inc. created an operating system, Android, that immediately ga ve it an edge in the Smartphone market. Its marketing scheme has played a great role in sustaining its competitiveness. Product- Google Inc. uses different marketing concepts to market the Android-iOS in different regions of the world. Since Google launched the first Android system in 2008, the product has remained in high public demand due to the regular addition of aspects such as features and apps (applications) which are frequently updated and enable customers to use them. For instance, customers with a preference for touch screens or ‘qwerty’ screens can use Android as it has both applications. In addition, customers who wish for widescreen displays can also use the android system. Price - In regards to price, Google’s customers are able to change their budgets to suit customized android systems with their preferred features. The vast majority of android retailers sell the system for less than 100$ with all its features and benefits included. This is far che aper than what the systems created by Apple and Nokia retail for. Promotion - The android is a well-known and highly esteemed brand. These characteristics differentiate it from other competitors. Furthermore, Google has invested in promotional campaigns that include using the print media, television advertising, and the internet to reach mobile phone users.

Proficient Key Tree Structure for Secure Dynamic Groups

Proficient Key Tree Structure for Secure Dynamic Groups Secure Group Communication ensures forward secrecy and backward secrecy of the data. It is the responsibility of the Group Center (GC) to disallow new members to have access to previous data called backward secrecy and existing members who have left the group to have further access to data called forward secrecy. Forward and backward secrecy can be ensured by updating the keys whenever a join/leave request is handled. This process is called as re-keying. The tree structure is appropriate for maintaining keys. Most of the schemes use binary tree structure for maintaining keys. The Key tree structure uses three kinds of keys such as Traffic Encryption Key (TEK), Key Encryption Key (KEK) and Individual Key (IK). TEK is the top level key called Group key, KEKs are the intermediate level keys called subgroup keys and IKs are the leaf level keys. Figure 3.1 shows the binary tree with 3-levels, which keeps keys at all levels. Based on the number of levels in the binary tree, the height of the tree (H) is calculated. Therefore the height H is 3 since there are three levels in the binary tree. Multicast group members are inserted into the tree only at leaf level. The number of nodes is 2n+1-1 and group members are 2n where ‘n’ is the number of levels in the tree. Here, there are eight members in the multicast group and are represented by M1 to M8. The top level key K0 is the TEK, K1 to K6 are KEKs and IK1 to IK8 are the member’s private keys. Figure 3.1 3-level Binary Tree In the key tree based group key management, the Key Centre (KC) delivers new keys to the group members by encrypting them with older keys. Then, the group members have to decrypt the encrypted keys with their old keys. All these encryption and decryption computations amplify the load on KC, resulting in delay to espouse the group key. It also increases power consumption to acquire the new group key. All keys must be stored in the memory of communication devices and group members have to accumulate the group keys in a secure memory like Universal Subscriber Identity module (USIM) to safeguard from various kinds of attacks and intrusions. Also, each program requires memory to reserve their secure keys. Since the memory space is limited, the number of keys to be stored must also be minimised. Keeping these constraints in sight, this work suggests the proficient key tree structure, considering the efficiencies of computation and storage costs. 3.1 PROFICIENT KEY TREE STRUCTURE (PKS) The proficient key tree structure consists of two parts in which the lower part constitutes of binary trees to minimise the communication cost and the upper part consists of flat trees up to 2 levels to alleviate the key computation and key storage costs. The TEK is directly connected to the KEKs on the top part of the tree so that it is a subset of the level homogeneous tree. Figure 3.2 Proficient Key Tree Structure with 1 flat level Figure 3.2 shows the proficient key tree with 1flat level and 1 binary level. A Flat tree is used for reducing the computation and storage costs. From the binary key tree, one TEK, 6 KEKs and 8 IKs are stored for 8 members at three levels. Compared to the 3-level binary key tree, l-flat level PKS maintains all 8 members at 2 levels and it requires 1 TEK, 4 KEKs and 8IKs. The number of KEK is reduced if flat tree is used. This reduces key storage and key computation costs. In case of 2 flat levels and 1 binary level, 1 KEK, 16 KEKs and 32 IKs are maintained for 32 members at 3 levels. Figure 3.3 shows the proficient key tree with 2 flat and 1 binary level. Joining and Leaving are two important operations in a multicast group. Figure 3.3 Proficient Key Tree Structure with 2 flat levels and 1 binary level If the member M24 wants to leave the group, some key updates are required for maintaining confidentiality and integrity of data. The keys K0, K3 and K16 should be updated as a part of re-keying process. The Key Centre selects a key for encryption of the new key and this new key must be kept secret from the leaving member. This ensures the property of forward secrecy. 3.1.1 Batch Re-keying When multiple members want to leave from the multicast group, the key updates are done as a batch called batch re-keying (Li et al 2001). In batch re-keying, the interval for which key server waits, is termed as re-key interval. The entire join and leave requests are collected during this re-key interval to generate new keys. Moreover, it also constructs a re-key message and multicasts it. Batch re-keying improves efficiency because the number of re-key messages to be signed is reduced. One message is signed for a batch of requests unlike one for each. Batch re-keying takes advantage of the possible overlap of new keys for multiple re-key requests. 3.1.2 Join Operation When a new member (Ui) wishes to join the group, the member has to send a request. In addition to the information of existing group members, the Key Distribution Center requires the new level K’ to insert the member into the tree (Figure 3.4). If the performance of the joining member is worst, then the new level K’ should be smaller than the level of present key tree structure (K). The following steps are followed to join the member in the multicast group. Step 1: Receive join request from the new member to the multicast group Step 2: Determine the level of the current tree, K and new level required K’ Step 3: If K’ is greater than or equal to K, check whether the tree is complete Step 4: If the tree is a complete tree, broadcast the remove key message that are on the same level K Step 5: If K’ is less than K, set K as K’ and check whether the tree is complete. Step 6: If the tree is complete, broadcast remove key messages that are on a higher level than or same level as K’ else broadcast that are on a higher level than K’. Figure 3.4 Key tree updates when user joins From the first part of the Figure 3.4, eight members are on the leaf level and the height of the lower part of the tree K is 2. If the member U9 joins into the tree, it is inserted at the leaf level. It requires one more level since the tree is complete. Therefore, the new level K’ is 3. In order to make the tree into a PKS tree, it needs to maintain the same level and the flat level is to be introduced. Therefore, the existing key tree structure is to be updated and it looks like the second part of the Figure 3.4. K1 and K2 are removed and the top level node is directly connected to K3, K4, K5 and K6 nodes after adding the new member at the leaf level. Figure 3.5 Join Operation in the PKS tree If K’ is greater than or equal to K, the KC need not to change the key tree level, excluding the case when the present key tree is a complete K-level PKS. In case of complete PKS, the key tree structure needs one more level to accommodate new members and to do so, KC should broadcast the remove key message to exterminate the KEKs in level K as in Figure 3.5. If K’ is less than K, it indicates that the height of PKS needs to be lowered from K+1 to K’+1 in order to support the new member. As lowering the height increases the communication cost depends on KC whether to accept the new join request or not. If such addition increases the communication cost, then Key Centre can reject the request. If the tree is complete PKS, KC has to broadcast the remove key message for removing the KEKs on same or higher level than K’. 3.1.3 Leave Operation If a group member wants to leave, it has to send a ‘Leave Request’ to the Key Centre. After receiving the request from the member(s), KC has to update the subgroup keys to maintain confidentiality and secrecy of communication. After updating the group keys, it may be a case that the height of the tree is changed due to the empty positions created as a result of leaving members. In such scenarios, height is recalculated for the tree structure’s lower part i.e. K†. In addition to this, if a group member leaves the group then the height of the tree is updated. Thus, a newly required level K’ is determined by considering the memory space and computation power of the remaining members. The following steps are followed to leave the member into the multicast group. Step 1: Receive a leave request from the member Step 2: Update new KEKs Step 3: Recalculate the height of the changed tree, K’’ Step 4: Determine a new required level K’ Step 5: If both K’’ and K’ are not equal and heightening the level of the tree, create levels from K’’+1 to K’. Figure 3.6 Key tree updates when a user leaves From the Figure 3.6, the member U9 wants to leave the multicast group. K is 2 and the height of the lower part of the changed key tree K† is 1. If K† is smaller than K, the KC decides to heighten the height of the tree. If it so, it generates new KEKs on level two. If K† is equal to K’ then the height of the changed key tree is same as the height of key tree which is required for communication. In this scenario, no changes will be done in the height of the key tree structure. If K† Figure 3.7 Leave operation in the PKS tree 3.2 PERFORMANCE METRICS The performance of the PKS tree structure is evaluated in different aspects of costs such as Key computation, Key storage. 3.2.1 Key Computation Cost In a key tree structure, three keys are considered. They are group key (TEK), subgroup key (KEK) and Individual Keys (IK). As the level in a key tree structure increases, the number of keys for the group or member also increases. The depth of a binary tree equals to the integer part of log2n, where‘n’denotes the number of nodes on the balanced tree. The PKS tree maintains two types of levels. They are the flat levels (fl) and binary levels (bl). The height (H) of the tree is the number of flat and binary levels, i.e., H=fl+bl. Each member has one key on each level. Therefore, the number of key computations is same as the height of the key tree. 3.2.2 Key Storage Cost Key storage cost is defined as the number of keys stored by each member in the multicast group and KC. Each member has to store one key on each level. Therefore, it is the height of the tree ‘fl+bl’ for the PKS tree and ‘bl’ for the binary tree. 3.3 SUMMARY Proficient tree based re-keying algorithm is proposed so that it reduces the number of re-keying operations per join/leave request. The Proficient Key Tree Structure has two parts in which the lower part constitutes of binary trees to minimise the communication cost and the upper part consists of flat trees to alleviate the key computation and key storage costs. The time efficiency of all key tree structures is based on the height of the trees. The height is the number of binary levels of the binary tree and the height of the PKS tree is based on the number of flat and binary levels. It is concluded that the time efficiency of the PKS tree is less than the binary tree since the height of PKS is lesser than the binary key tree for the specified number of members in the multicast group. Thus, the proficient key tree structure for re-keying is proposed in this chapter. It gives the complete picture about joining and leaving of users in the multicast group and the key computations during re-keying operations. Multilevel encryption and decryption using graceful codes are discussed in the following chapter.

Behaviors related to microeconomics concepts

Most of us have always wondered why this always happen when they visit a barber. This is just because of the economic concept. The cost of operations in shaving the beards is even more because more care is needed while shaving and different customers have different styles on how they it to be shaved. This wastes time and energy and to pay for this, the price has really to be high. The expenses that are incurred when perfuming this service is the same with that one that you will apply when performing other services and hence there is no reason whatsoever for its price being low.Another factor is the skill factor in that while shaving the beards, more skill is required and this is reflected in price. As much as in shaving the head any other barber can do it the beard shaving requires potential and qualified barbers and it is this that makes the prices improve upwards. (Perloff, M. J 1999) Why does it cost higher for a woman delivering in a private hospital than that one delivering in a government hospital? Most of the women who go in private hospitals are considered as working class.Although the services rendered may be the same as those in public hospital most of them will prefer going I n private hospitals because of their status. most of the consumers do consider social class as a factor while purchasing products or services in the market like if a dress is sold in the market at $8, and the same dress of the same quality from the same company is sold in a beauty mall at a price of $ 15, a consumer who considers herself as from high class will rather go for that dress in a shopping mall than that one in the market because she tends to think that her status does not allow her to purchase in markets.In fact producers take this as opportunities that they think should be utilized and increase prices in high class shops and reduce in low class shops to just increase the total sales in their organization. The doctors on the other hand, will want to serve more clients within a short time to increase their portfolio income but affect the customers by attending more in less time. The real money in a consumer’s portfolio is the one that will determine where he should seek his service. It is actually this factor that determine where and what a consumer should purchase depending on his capability to pay for the services rendered.That is why high qualified doctors can decide to open their own clinic that will cater for another class of people thus serving the needs of most of the consumers in the market. In today’s market, the key point is actually identifying the need of the customer and fulfilling it. (Mas-Colell. A. et al 1995). Why are veils quite expensive in US than in Saudi Arabia? If there are so many customers in Saudi Arabia who need to purchase this commodity, then how come it is still cheap there yet the demand is also high! The prices should have actually gone up to cut down on the demand .This is not the case because of thi s culture factor that most organizations need to consider. Most of the people in Saudi Arabia are Muslims and thus most of them need veil as a requirement because of their faiths. This is unlike the customers us who may be assumed as just those who want it for luxury. The way the veil is taken as a cloth required during the worship is not the way it will be taken in the US market hence the prices will probably go high. Culture being important in the consumer behavior has a real impact in any organization.If a customer perceives that a certain commodity is the best however much it may tend to be expensive, a customer will sacrifice and ay the premium price for this commodity than purchasing another commodity that he has no confidence with it. (Pindyck, R. et al, 2004) Bibliography Mas-Colell. A. et al (1995), Microeconomics Theory, Oxford University Press Perloff, M. J (1999), Microeconomics: Incentives in an Imperfect World, Addison-Wesley Longman. Pindyck, R. et al, (2004), Microec onomics, Pearson Prentice hall