Branches of Philosophy

Branches of Philosophy Professor John Wise American Intercontinental University Thesis This essay project with answer different questions to the six branches of Philosophy. The branches are Metaphysics-is something real? Epistemology-How do we know? Ethics-What is right or wrong? Aesthetics- Is something beautiful? Political- What government is best? And Social- How should we act in in society. Six Branches of Philosophy There are six branches of philosophy. There is Metaphysics, Epistemology, Ethics, Aesthetics, Political, and Social. Each branch asks us all specific types of questions that we ask ourselves each and every day.Some of these questions we ask without even realizing that we have done so. Metaphysics is the first branch of Philosophy in this discussion. This asks the question of what is real. At an early age we are taught that there is a heaven and earth. At different times we ask ourselves is there really a heaven. Based on what we are taught I believe there is a heaven and that there will come a time in our life that we will be in the place created by God called heaven. According to the bible, God created man from the dust of the earth. We live in the physical world and the spiritual world depends on each person’s spiritual belief.I believe each one of us has a soul. I believe the soul stays around loved ones until the day of reckoning. I believe all people have free will but different circumstances determine what happens to us thru fate. The psychological world I believe consists of our mind and the world that we chose to create for ourselves to live in. The Epistemology branch asks us the question of how is anything known. Things that are known are taught to us from our parents and by teachers in school. We are taught different things thru text books and by experience.Thru different experiences we learn how to conduct ourselves around other people and we gain knowledge by studying the different works of scientists and scholars. There are not any limits to human understanding. Each person’s understanding depends on them. Some people understand things differently than others and each person’s limits differ from others. I don’t believe there is a relationship between faith and reason. Faith goes along with ethics and morals. I don’t fully understand what artificial intelligence is. The next branch of philosophy is the Ethics branch.We are taught from an early age the difference of right and wrong. Laws tell us what is or isn’t right and as humans if we break these laws we are punished. To me being a good person means to follow the golden rule â€Å"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you†. I believe that virtue does lead to happiness. If you do what is right by others then others will have the tendency to follow your lead. I believe society affects morality. This all depends on the circumstances in which you live. If you live in an area that has a lot of crime and ha tred then you have the tendency to follow others in that area.If you set high moral standards for yourself then no matter where you live or the types of people you are surrounded with won't affect you. I think that morality is more culture based. Each person has to choose how they apply the morals they are taught at an early age to their adult lives. Each person has different morals that they live by and have to decide how these will be applied. The next branch of philosophy we are going to discuss is the Aesthetics branch. This brings up the question of what is beautiful. In my opinion beauty is in the eye of the beholder and each culture has what they regard as to what is beautiful.Art depicts the creator’s feelings or ideas as to what they believe beauty is. Art can be successful and valuable to the creator and also to the person that enjoys different art forms. To one person a piece of art might have beauty to it and to another person it might be just horrendous. So there fore beauty in art may or may not matter to all people. The next topic is the political branch of philosophy. I believe the best type of government is the democratic government. This form of government, people do have a small voice in different matters.I think the government should have limited power and that the government should listen to the common people as to what the needs of the population are. I believe that if the common person had the ability to be more involved in the government of today then the needs of the common person would be made possible thru a vast majority voice. The last branch of discussion is the Social branch. I believe this branch is determined thru the ethics branch of philosophy. People shouldn’t have to give up rights just to live in a specific society. We should be able to live our lives the way we now and by the morals and ethics we have built for ourselves.I think some people act according to the surroundings they are in at different times. Wit h many different cultures of society today, I believe there is a large language barrier. With all the different cultures communications has become a big issue. Each culture believes that their language should be the language spoken. I believe that there needs to be one universal language spoken and then different societies of people wouldn’t feel as if they were being mistreated or neglected.Reference: Baird, F. E. , ;amp; Kaufmann, W. E. (2000). Ancient philosophy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. M. U. S. E. My Unique Student Expeience

Out Stealing Horses Imagery Essay

Imagery is often used to place a reader into an experience with the usage of words, it allows the reader to create their own picture in their mind, allowing them to experience the five senses such as sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste that lead to visual imagery, olfactory imagery, tactile imagery and gustatory imagery. Throughout Per Pettersons â€Å"Out stealing horses†, a great amount of water imagery is used in different forms such rivers, lakes, and rain. Water is often used to represent a turning point in a novel in literature, it is known to represent change and life. The flashbacks that Trond has in the novel are very descriptive; he remembers the little details about his past that indeed had a great influence towards him, especially the summer of 1948. As he recalls it, we learn about his personality being a man who is very reflective, an introvert that carefully observes the little details and had gone through tragedies since his childhood. He has now reached an old age, and settled in a peaceful rural area, starts to reminisce his past and try to gain a better understanding of it. At times, the imagery he uses foreshadows the events that follow up. For example, in chapter two of the novel, during his outing with Jon, before the strange events that follow, he states â€Å"I think I was unconscious for a few seconds, because I remember I opened my eyes as if to a new beginning†. This â€Å"new beginning† really does occur. Tronds personality is brought out by Per Pettersons use of careful use of imagery present in the book. For example, his dramatic and detailed descriptions show the sort of person Trond is. His perspective of the things he sees around him as he grows up brings out the way he is. A lot of the information about the characters is gained through their actions, not their dialogue. In fact, the book has a lot more imagery compared to dialogue. It can be seen that when dialogues are used, it is only when truly necessary. An example of when dialogues are used is when Tronds daughter asks him if she had preferred it if she hadn’t come and left him in peace instead. This particular conversation is important in showing the person Trond had become after all the circumstances that had taken place in his life. It shows where he has finally reached at that point. A lot of the imagery describes water elements. Perhaps the intensive imagery used to describe water bodies are due to the reason that they express a very important part of his childhood. Water has a variety of symbolic meanings. It is universally said to represent change and is often used in turning points of stories. Also, it might represent life and death. This can be proven by how it had been raining heavily, the current of the river very strong, during the turning point of the story when Odd had got shot unintentionally. Water also represents purity. The river is one of the main elements described in the book using a variety of imagery. We learn that Trond and Jon had to take a boat across a river to get across, away from the cottage and towards Barkald’s field where they would â€Å"steal horses†. These bodies of water may symbolize life and vitality. For example, the river will always flow, just as how time and life always goes on as well- regardless of circumstances. He uses the river as a place where he can think and analyse moments in his life, symbolizing peace or the need for it. A variety of types of imagery is used by Per Petterson to describe this, mostly though of auditory, visual and olfactory imagery. An example of a combination of auditory and visual imagery used is, â€Å"Behind him, the river rushed down the rapids, its tone unchanging as far as he could tell†¦ and even if its not possible to recognize the water from the way it flows.. â€Å" The river really does indeed play a significant role in his life. During the times when Trond feels happy the river is described in a good light, for example, in chapter 4, the following imagery was used. â€Å"The sun was right in the south and there was hardly a shadow in the valley, the river, sparkling, wound its way along, and we could hear it.. † Trond also describes the river when he is nervous and upset. One example of this could be during the night of that summer when he had noticed that his father was not in bed. During this night it had also been raining, symbolizing the frustration and turn of events that are going to come. The line is â€Å"The water flowed more swiftly now after the drenching rain, running higher up the boulders along the banks, and it swelled up†¦. the river running was the only sound I heard. † A river that flows fast may represent strength, this may be strength in a negative way. It may be considered as a foreshadowing to what was next to happen in the novel, Tronds father leaving him. Another symbol the river might hold is as a barrier. In one instance, Trond sees his dad kissing Jons mother. He did not seem to know what to think about it and had felt his â€Å"head almost bursting with emptiness†. It may show how Trond did not completely know his father, which is especially true with how he did not know the truth in what his fathers’ occupation was. He states â€Å"the river was the same, yet somehow altered, and that too, was how my father seemed to me when I thought of the stories Franz had told me about him†¦Ã¢â‚¬  This may also represent love and emotions. During the retirement time in Tronds life, he had reflected upon his life by sitting in front of swan lake. This is another element presented in the book. He had said â€Å"But now it is still dark, and I can sit here by Swan Lake thinking about whatever I choose. † This brings out the personality of Trond, especially his reflective nature. It can be compared to water itself, which also has the ability to reflect. The lake, being a relatively serene body of water represents peace. This may also show Tronds search for inner peace, especially since he is already of old age. The novel also holds a variety of different imagery contributing towards the events and feelings Trond went through. This ranges from imagery describing the sun, trees, sky, and overall, the whole surrounding. Per Petterson describes these using detailed explanations of auditory, olfactory, tactile and gustatory imagery. Feelings are shown through the imagery he uses. For example, the auditory imagery he uses when he went out stealing horses, the anxious and excited tone, is brought out through the following line, â€Å"the vibration in the tree grew stronger and the sound of the hooves filled my head†. Another example to prove this is that when he gets nervous and scared, he describes the sound to be very disturbing. This is shown in the instance when he got injured when he was out with Jon. The auditory imagery used is â€Å"I heard a whinny and the thundering sound of hooves and it all came back like a whirring boomerang†. The book revolves around a great use of imagery that stimulate the senses of the reader and allows the reader to end the book feeling like he/she may have already known Trond for all their life. The element of water especially, does play a great significance in the novel.

Criminal profiling and the types of crime Essay

Crime Murder is the unlawful taking of human life It is a behavioral act that terminates life in the context of power, personal gain, brutality, and sometimes sexuality. Murder is a subcategory of homicide, which also includes lawful taking of human life, such as, manslaughter, deaths resulting from criminal and non- criminal negligence, and unpremeditated vehicular deaths (Megargee, 1982) With murder there are murders who sometimes go on for months without being caught for the murders they have done. But eventually, the murder catches on to them through the behavior of the murder. Behavior reflects the personality, everything observed at a crime scene tells a story and reflects something about the unknown subject who committed the crime. (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Modus operandi and victimology are very important factors in an investigation. These terms could link a murder to different scenes of crime that they committed that they are not yet charged with.   Modus operandi is t he method of procedure or a method of operation that suggests the work of one crime to other crimes. Victimology is the study of victims of crime. The offender often leaves signatures (something repeated at each crime, like slashes in the throat and a bullet between the eyes) which can point a profiler at the offender’s personality. Criminal Profiling Do you ever wonder what criminal profilers do? Criminal filer is a job that is different from other jobs people have. â€Å"Criminal profiling is defined and described as a technique whereby the probable characteristics of a criminal offender or offenders are predicted based on the behaviors exhibited in the commission of a crime.† (Kocsis 2006, p. 1) Due to a various amount of crime shows and social media criminal profiling meaning is often misinterpreted and the job is mixed up. Criminal profiler often examines the work a murder does and figures out their personality through crime. There are many different kinds of murderers and types of murders ranging from mass homicide, rape, computer crimes, etc. Homicide. Homicide can be classified by the number of victims, style, and type of homicide. One person is defined as a signal homicide, two victims killed in the same location around the same time is a double homicide and lastly, a triple homicide is three victims killed in the same location around the same time. Unlike homicide mass murders have â€Å"two subcategories of mass murder: classic mass murder and family mass murder. A   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   classic mass murder involves one person operating in one location at one period of time,   Ã‚   which could be minutes or hours or even days†¦The second type of mass murder is family mass murder. If four or more family members are killed and the perpetrator takes his own life, it is classified as a mass murder-suicide. Without the suicide and with four or more victims, the murder is classified as a family mass murder.† (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   1988) Usually, someone that commits a mass murder is a men tally ill individual whos problems have increased to the point where they act to groups of people who are unrelated to the problems. A Spree murder is a single event with more than one location and no cooling off to think before another murder.   A Serial murder is three or more events in three or more separate locations with a cooling off time. Gang motivated murder is the murder of a group of three or more that sometimes ends in homicide. Arson and Bombing.   Arson is the crime of fire with the intent of harming someone or something. Arson is very hard to investigate due to all the debris, collapsed buildings, and ashes. But when investigating a fire scene you are to find where the fire originated from or started. If the fire does not seem to look like an accident it is a person. Crime scene investigators usually note from arsons that organized arsonist have electronic timing mechanisms, less evidence they were there, and have items to start fires with them. While disorganized crime has the materials with them on hand like cigarettes or lighter fluid, and they leave physical evidence. Aerial bombing is when one attacks a public place where there are to be a lot of people. Rape and Sexual Assault. Rape and sexual assault include criminal offenses in which victims are forced or coerced to participate in sexual activity. Physical violence may or may not be involved. (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Usually victims of rate are put into different categories depending on how old you are. Adults; at least eighteen years old and have the exception for mentally ill, brain impaired, or psychotic, adolescents; thirteen to seventeen years old who have reached puberty, children; twelve year of younger, lastly elders who are sixty or older. When someone reports a rape case the investigators are to see if it was a situational or preferential sexual motives. Examples of both situational and preferential sexual motives are described below: Situationally motivated sexual assaults are those committed to fulfill sexual and other   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   needs without the elements of the offense being necessary for arousal or gratification (such as raping a woman because she is available and vulnerable). Preferentially motivated sexual assaults are those committed to fulfill sexual and other needs with some elements of the offense being necessary for arousal or gratification (for example, raping a woman because the offender cannot feel aroused or gratified without an unwilling partner). (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Sexual rituals are patterns of behavior or rituals that are hard for the rapist to change. Both preferential and situational sex offenders may have an MO, but the preferential offender is more likely to have a sexual ritual. (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Nonlethal crimes. There are criminal acts that begin as, and sometimes remain, nonlethal crimes. In some of the crimes, such as burglary, threats, and stalking, there may be no physical contact, and the victim is not physically injured. But the victim may fear for their life or the life of loved ones, so it is suggested you report these crimes to police. Communication threats are to cause harm by a threat, terrorist threats are a good example of a communication threat. Direct threats are aimed at a certain person while indirect threats are told in a vague manner. There are also written, letter, and symbolic threats to where something is sent to you or placed on a desk or inside a mailbox. We often hear physical threats a lot, our parents may threaten us by telling us they will take our phones if we do not do good on the test. Stalking is often another form of nonlethal crime, stalking is a form of following. Robbery is taking something that is not there, The element of force differentiates robbery from embezzlement, larceny, and other types of theft. Armed robbery involves the use of a weapon. High- way robbery takes place outside and in a public place. Carjacking is the act of stealing a car from a victim, usually at gunpoint. Bank robbery is the robbing of banks and financial institutions. (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Computer and cybercrime. Not all crimes are going to be involved in person or through a threat some crimes are involved with cyber and computers. Computer crimes are when someone hacks into a computer system and puts malware that messes up and destroys the computers walls so that the person can take over the computer or destroy it. Virus are a good start to this computer crimes, virus are embedded in emails or music that we download illegally that damages the software or hardware on the computer. A worm is a code that damages computer files or slows the computer down, which comes from other programs like emails.   Trojan horses are programs placed on a computer to send and take information and send it to computer user who used the trojan. Cyberstalking is a use of following a target through social media which is typically like stalking. Money laundering is a crime used to make illegal funds appear to be legal. (Ressler, Burgess, & Douglas, 1988) Bank Fraud is when money is illegall y obtained from on bank account and put into a different bank account. Cybercrime is costing the world $110 billion every year. But according to McAfee Inc. the cost is actually approximately $1 trillion. With all this money being spend on cyber crimes we could be finding new way on how to get rid of cancer or to help stop global warming. Conclusion Crimes come in all different shapes and sizes. Not all crimes need to be homicide or murder they simply can be someone taking over your computer with a virus. Being aware of all these different kinds of crime come in handy. Just remember when committing a crime Modus operandi and victimology are important factors in an investigation and if they don’t find you now they will find you in the future.    References Burgess, A., Burgess, A., & Ressler, R. (1992). Crime Classification Manuel (Second ed.) (J. Douglas, Ed.). Jossey Bass A Wiley Imprint. Geberth, V.J. (1983). Practical homicide investigation: Tactics, procedures, and forensic techniques. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Hyman, P. (2013). Cybercrime: It’s Serious, But Exactly How Serious?. Communications Of The ACM, 56(3), 18-20. doi:10.1145/2428556.2428563 Kocsis, R. N. (2006). Criminal profiling. [electronic resource]: principles and practice. Totowa, N.J. : Humana Press, c2006. Pinizzotto, A. J., & Finkel, N. J. (1990). Criminal personality profiling: An outcome and process study. Law And Human Behavior, 14(3), 215-233. doi:10.1007/BF01352750

Coase Theorem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Coase Theorem - Essay Example Ronald Coase stipulated that transaction costs that are found in the real world are not sufficiently low to create room for efficient bargaining, and thus an indication that the theory cannot be applied to reveal economic reality. Nevertheless, Coase theorem is regarded as the basis for economic analysis, especially in the event of government regulation when externalities are present (Walter, 2001). Based on the essay The Nature of the Firm, Coase offered an explanation as to why an economy comprises of various firms as opposed to a large number of independent and self-employed individuals who undertake contracts with each other. Since it is possible to undertake a transaction without the presence of any organization, Coase was puzzled on the appropriate conditions that should be imposed to facilitate for the emergence of firms (Walter, 2001). Today, most firms emerge when an entrepreneur begins to employ people. In this perspective, Coase considers the appropriate conditions under which it would be sensible for an entrepreneur to pursue for the help of employees instead of contracting out to facilitate for the completion of a certain task. While using the market, there are various transaction costs involved because the cost of acquiring a good or service through the market is above the usual price. Other additional costs comprise of those involved while searching for information, bargaining, policing, enforcement, and in keeping secrets of trade (Coase, 1988). All these costs significantly raise the cost of acquiring something from a different party. This reveals that firms emerge in order to internalize the production process to facilitate for the delivery of a product, and hence avoid these costs. Coase notes that a natural limit prevails that provides a limit as to the extent to which a firm should produce internally (Buchanan, 2005). Also there are times when a manager to an organization may make

Digital Media Strategy and Implementation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Digital Media Strategy and Implementation - Essay Example Digital companies focus on being the first to provide news to the people. Their content is different, from business related to political, entertainment and financial; they seek to find the best areas where they can capture the most customers. Speed of browsing and the user friendliness of the sites is a strategy issue too. Of equal importance however, is the provision of the content in mobile phone devices for various customers, enabling people to access them from their mobile browsers. The digital media has engaged itself in a number of issues. Most particularly however, are the businesses and the issues that the business community is facing currently. Focusing on the issues facing Sony and Netflix companies, this paper seeks to address their challenges as highlighted by the blogs. Additionally, it will focus on measures that have been put into place to address the same issues. In the recent past, Sony has made headlines after the announcement of the lunch of the PlayStation 4 game with increased features that will allow online streaming of games. Following this announcement, a series of bulletins have been published focusing on Sony as a company and the PlayStation 4 game as a product. ... The company manufactures mobile phones, home appliances, electronics machines, games and Blu-ray discs. Not only are losses a part of the company’s challenges, the company is also faced with reduced sales of its products, loosing market to competitors like Samsung and the Apple. Samsung has taken over in the smartphone business and home appliances, while Apple has an upper hand in the smartphones and tablets markets. Both companies offer features of online streaming of games, which fiercely counters Sony’s console PlayStation series (Kovach n.p.). This has seen massive losses made by Sony with its PlayStation 3 version of the game. A number of mitigating measures have been put into place by Sony to get her into the top of the business. The CEO of the corporation has decided with other top 40 managers to forgo their annual allowances in a move that will save the company operating expenses in the current financial year, 2013 (Wakabayashi n.p.). Additionally, the company h as improved the features of its intended PlayStation 4, which will allow users to stream games online and thus offer its customers a variety of games. This move is expected to help the company counter games available online such as those offered by Apple and Samsung. The company is investing into the smartphones business, with improved versions of its Sony-experia mobile phones. The company’s revenues are expected to reach at $684.8 million in the fiscal year. Sony is not the only company to receive negative publicity in the digital media due to its challenged business. Netflix, an online movie lending store has too been a center of news headlines in the recent

Engineered Wood Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Engineered Wood - Research Paper Example This increases the durability of the products. Composition of engineered wood The aspects of manufacturing of engineered wood that help differentiate between the products made from it and also cause differences in the performance characteristics of different products include the quality of veneer used in engineered wood, the species and density of the timber used in it, the arrangement and thickness of veneers, and the type of bond between veneers (Austral Plywoods, 2012). The softwoods and hardwoods that are used to make lumber are also useful for making the products of engineered wood. Engineered wood that is made of fibers or wood particles are also made from wood waste or sawmill scraps. The oriented strand board is made from trees that belong to the poplar family that is a non-structural yet common species. Similar engineered cellulosic products are made from a variety of lignin-containing materials that include but are not limited to rice straw, wheat straw, sugar cane residue, kenaf stalks, and hemp stalks. Products made from these materials contain vegetable fibers instead of actual wood. â€Å"The best engineered wood floors  are built having 3-12 multiple ply layers†¦that are cross layered, glued and pressed together† (Hosking, 2012). ... cts can be categorized into a variety of types that include plywood, glued laminated timber, oriented strand board, laminated veneer lumber, and cross laminated timber. They are discussed as follows: Plywood Plywood is a kind of structural panel made in wood that is often referred to as the original product of engineered wood. Plywood is made from the cross-laminated veneer sheets that are bonded with one another with moisture-resistant and durable adhesives under specific conditions of pressure and heat. The stiffness and strength of panel in both directions are enhanced by changing the direction of grain of the veneers layer by layer. Other panels of structural wood include structural composite panels and oriented strand board. Glued laminated timber Glued laminated timber is made up of numerous layers of dimensional timber that are bonded with one another with the help of adhesives that are resistant to moisture. These adhesives help create large structural members of great streng th which can be used in buildings as horizontal beams or vertical columns. Glued laminated timber provides extensive design flexibility when it is manufactured in the curved shape. Oriented strand board Oriented strand board is a structural panel made from rectangular strands of engineered wood which are first oriented longitudinally and then organized in layers that are tied together with adhesives that are cured with heat and are resistant to moisture. Individual layers of the oriented strand board are cross-oriented that helps them develop stiffness along with strength in the panel. Oriented strand board is manufactured in the form of large continuous mats. The quality of oriented strand board is consistent throughout and there are no gaps, voids, or laps in it. Laminated veneer lumber

Revisiting the role of miscue analysis in effective teaching Article

Revisiting the role of miscue analysis in effective teaching - Article Example Goodman initially came up with a Taxonomy which featured 28 various kinds of miscues (Goodman, 1969). Developed originally for research reasons, its unwieldiness plus a need to enlarge its utilization inspired Carolyn Burke, Yetta Goodman in 1972 to establish a smaller edition made up of 9 questions to be queried about every miscue-which was a straightforward system that they reasoned would become a more manageable and helpful tool especially for teachers and clinics in the school system. Thus the authors were not so much interested in conventional quantitative measures like reading rate or reading accuracy and figured out that their qualitative method gave more fine-grained and appropriate information as compared to other methods of reading assessment. This therefore implies that using Reading Miscue Inventory (RMI)a learner’s incorrect answer ,in comparison to the printed word, may portray a variation in dialect, a shift in intonation, sound similarity, graphic similarity, syntactic acceptability, grammatical similarity, semantic acceptability, self-correction having semant ic acceptability and meaning change. It is clear that McKenna and her colleagues do not understand much about the analysis of miscue. Analysis of miscue continues to be accepted by teachers since it assists them comprehend how their students make sense of the written word. It is widely used in programs for educating teachers as a way of making teachers revalue the process of reading. Miscue also continues to be utilized in research since it gives a depth profile of the process of reading in use. There is no single publication of critique analysis which has proved its invalidity. McKenna and Picard and her colleagues only cite one unfunded study carried out by Goodman over 4 decades ago, which was at the very start of examination of oral

Discuss an issue in the news that has local, national or international Essay

Discuss an issue in the news that has local, national or international importance, and has importance to you - Essay Example Climate change is an issue that must be addressed sooner than soon. This paper is presented in support of all actions taken to curb climate change especially in the context of global warming. Elements of global warming and climate change dictate levels of sustainable development, agricultural production, economic growth and development as well current environmental welfare. These four factors are interrelated in the international context, thereby influencing the general welfare of the world. Sustainable development is entirely based on the environmental performance of any given country (Faucheux 17). It presents a scenario that accounts for the welfare of the current population as well as the generations to come. Sustainable development therefore links the present to the future. â€Å"The fundamental aspects of sustainable development cannot be refuted† (Faucheux 229). Meeting the current needs of the society has been challenged by the direction that environmental welfare has taken. On the same note, environmental degradation seems to exacerbate by the count of time. This process has given rise to the current trend of global warming, the main contributing element to climate change. The media through reporting and discussion of this issue has emphasized on the need to keep vigil about climate change trends in the world. Many forums have been held across the world in a bid to deliberate on the matters of climate change. This activity is not only aimed at making the national and internationals comfortable, knowing that climate change has been managed. Such purposes are pursued in the light of achieving some other set goals and objectives which are greatly influenced by these facts. Sustainable development is diverse and dynamic in the context of its analysis. It integrates social, political and economic factors in determining just how much it has been achieved. It therefore goes beyond the thought that

Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 4

Philosophy - Essay Example This is due to change in the human behavior that has taken place. Crime is mostly committed by the youth. Youth is now very conscious of the different types of crimes that can be conducted and the way it can be executed. This information is easily accessible due to the technology that has advanced at a very fast pace. Thus to combat crimes and have a society where people can live without fear, where they can live with dignity, education has become important. Education refers to formal system that teaches them how to conduct their lives in a decent manner; how to interact and react with others in the society. It is found that youth has been deprived of formal education as there are numerous barriers. It is also recognized that education alone can bring about a harmonious society, a community that would think of the welfare of others before their own self. Thus it is essential to understand what these barriers are and how they can be overcome so that the youth is not deprived of educat ion. Youth is the period of transition from childhood to adulthood and they are tossed from one state to another either because of the compulsion to abide by the norms of the society or because they undergo a mental turmoil themselves. Youth has been defined by UNESCO (2004) as persons between the age of 15 and 25. They are consistently unstable and are undergoing the period of evolution. This is precisely the age when they need the right guidance and direction how to conduct their lives. They are full of vigor and energy but they reel under the agony of indecision. Youth is a period when they have to acquire new tools to become part of the workforce and assume responsibilities in the world (Soares, 2000). The transition into adult life is a process of complex socialization with multiple influences and transfers (Pais, 2000). Accrued experience of the past assist in transition to adulthood added to which are the aspirations and plans for the future. The youth’s

Comparison Between Parse Theory & Watson Theory Essay

Comparison Between Parse Theory & Watson Theory - Essay Example The human becoming theory gives a clear view of a person's will to achieve goal through the nursing practice. Rosemarie Rizzo Parse had initially published the theory in 1981 as the "Man-living-health" theory, but later in 1992, the name was officially changed to "the human becoming theory" to eradicate the term "man" from the theory, after the alteration in the dictionary definition of the word from its previous meaning of "humankind". The human becoming theory was presented as a human science nursing theory in the practice of Heidegger, Dilthey, Merleau-Ponty, Gadamer and Sartre. Many of the European philosophers such as Heidegger, Sartre, and Merleau-Ponty, along with works by the pioneer American nurse theorist, Martha Rogers, synthesized the assumptions supporting the theory. The theory itself is structured around three unshakable matters or themes, those are meaning, rhythmicity, and transcendence. The first theme, which is meaning, has been mentioned in the first principle of the theory, which states "Structuring meaning multidimensionally is cocreating reality through the languaging of valuing and imaging". The principle means that people take interest in creating what is real for them through self-expression in living their values in a predetermined way. For instance a person who has to be an actor acts at many occasions, this happens because the actor's only concern is with acting and in order to make people realize about his ability, the actor keeps on acting at most of the public places. This means that there is a hope in that person's life, which makes him to act. The second theme is rhythmicity, which has been expressed in the second principle of the theory, which states, "Co-creating rhythmical patterns of relating is living the paradoxical unity of revealing-concealing and enabling-limiting while connecting-separating". This principle means that the unity of life includes noticeable opposites in regular patterns of relating. It means that in living life continuously and in small parts one shows and does not show self as opportunities and boundaries appear in moving with and apart from others. For instance, at times we look for opportunities in life and give sacrifices to avail it, at times according to the situation we lie to others about few matters and hide our things that if known to others can make us ashamed, although every lie is unintentional but we have to lie as not doing so can cause many other problems, it is not something we are in favor of doing always, yet we get bounded to do so. The third theme is transcendence, which is discussed in the third principle of the theory, which states "Cotranscending with the possibles is powering unique ways of originating in the process of transforming". This principle means that moving away from the present moment is like making a unique personal path for oneself, which creates a lot of confusion and also keeps on changing. A good example in everyday life is that all of us keep on dreaming about various things, even when it comes to take decision of our lives, we keep on changing them time after time as we do not keep in mind one goal. The point to be made is that, we all should keep on living life as it has come to us, all

International Accounting and Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International Accounting and Finance - Essay Example Notwithstanding the concerns and prejudices, there has been noted an increasing trend towards adoption of international accounting standards as a preferred financial reporting framework. Among the concerns stated by the stakeholders to adopting international accounting standards, many are related to the impact of adopting them on capital markets operations and efficiency and on the users of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards are different from the national standards developed by countries for financial reporting within their respective jurisdictions. These differences result in significant shifts in their financial reporting practices for business entities, when they decide on their own or due to mandatory requirements to adopt International Financial Reporting Standards as their financial reporting framework. Due to the differences in the respective requirements of different financial reporting frameworks, there are varying impacts of each on capit al markets and users of financial information. ... Impact of Adopting International Accounting Standards on Capital Markets The impact of adopting international accounting standards as a financial reporting framework can be determined by understanding the impact of adopting the international accounting standards on the efficiency of capital markets. Keeping in view the significant difference in reporting requirements under International Financial Reporting Standards and other national accounting standards, such as U.S. GAAP or other accounting frameworks, a general expectation can be developed that with the adopting of International Financial Reporting Standards, there will be a significant impact on the efficiency of capital markets. Researchers have investigated whether the impact caused by adopting International Financial Reporting Standards on efficiency in capital markets is positive or negative. Some researchers have noted that the impact of adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards on market can be measured throu gh variations in the market liquidity and the cost of capital for business entities. In this regard, Daske et al (2008) have noted that with the adoption of international accounting standards, market liquidity is influenced positively, that is it increases. Similarly, another major finding of their research work is that by adopting international accounting standards the cost of capital for firms are decreased, whereas the value of their equity increases (Daske et al., 2008). Daske et al. (2011) have also noted that those firms which are committed to provide highly transparent financial reporting and thus adopt International Financial Reporting Standards as their financial reporting framework, such firms experience a significant improvement in their respective

The Role Of Security Management Essay Example for Free

The Role Of Security Management Essay ABSTRACT Personal information security is usually considered a technical discipline with much attention being focused on topics such as encryption, hacking, break-ins, and credit card theft. Security products such as anti-virus programs and personal firewall software, are now available for end-users to install on their computers to protect against threats endemic to networked computers. The behavioral aspects related to maintaining enterprise security have received little attention from researchers and practitioners. Using Q-sort analysis, this thesis used students as end-users in a graduate business management security course to investigate issues affecting selection of personal firewall software in organizations. Based on the Q-sort analysis of end-users in relation to seven variables identified from review of the information security literature, three distinct group characteristics emerged. Similarities and differences between groups are investigated and implications of these results to IT managers, vendors of security software and researchers in information security area are discussed. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my supervisor Professor ____________ for his great supervision and guidance throughout the duration of my thesis project. I would also like to thank all colleagues for their help and support. Finally, I wish to thank my family for their continued support throughout the thesis. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.3 TABLE OF CONTENTS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..4 LIST OF ACRONYMS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.5 CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦6 †¢ Statement of the Problem†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 †¢ Research Question†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦8 †¢ Significance of the Research†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦9 †¢ Design and Methodology†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.10 Q-Sort Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.12 †¢ Organization of the Study†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 CHAPTER 2- LITERATURE REVIEW†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦14 CHAPTER 3 – RESEARCH QUESTION FINDINGS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.18 Data Analysis†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..18 -Analysis of Results†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦26 -Limitations of the Study†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..29 Chapter 4- SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS Summary†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦30 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.31 Recommendation†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..33 REFERENCES†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..34 LIST OF ACRONYMS Operational definition of these variables as it relates to the study are provided: Performance [PERF] : Refers to how well the software operates under various conditions (such as high traffic, types of data, port scans, etc.) Ease-of-use [EOU]: Refers to usability of the product (such as screen design and layout, access to features using tabs, buttons, etc.) Updates [UPDTS]: Refers to product updates at regular intervals after product has been installed and used Features [FEATR] : Refers to the number of program options and features available in software Reports [RPORT]: Refers to Intrusion Reports and log files generated by the firewall software Cost [COST]: Refers to price paid for the product (either as shrink wrapped package or as a download) Configuration [CONFIG]: Refers to setup and configuration after product has been installed Support [SUPPRT]: Refers to availability of online help and technical support either by phone or e-mail Installation [INSTLL]: Refers to initial installation of the product. Chapter 1 – INTRODUCTION Security describes a process of protection from any harm. It also describes the countermeasures put in place by that process. Harm may indicate a loss of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Security management focuses on preventing harm resulting from both random acts of nature and intentional strategic actions (Schechter, 2004). Security is considered to be a very important issue while developing complex personal information systems (Mouratidis et al., 2002). Security is a major concern in todays digital era. The Internet offers a low cost, but insecure means of reaching people. Owing to the ubiquity of the Internet, it is difficult to control and trace intrusions or attacks by unauthorized people, hackers, etc. Electronic commerce applications need secure mechanisms for accurate user identification, accessing sensitive database, storing and transmitting sensitive information, etc. Personal identification numbers (PINs), passwords, smart cards and digital certificates are some of the means normally used for this purpose. However, these means do not really identify a person, but only knowledge of some data or belonging of some determined object (Sanchez-Reillo et al., 1999), e.g. public key infrastructure (PKI) cannot assure identity of the maker of a transaction, it can only identify the makers computer. An imposter can easily masquerade as a legitimate user and defraud the system. Information must be readily available in organizations for making decisions to support the organizational mission. Murphy, Boren, and Schlarman (2000) state that due to increased connectivity and the urgency to exchange information and data among partners, suppliers, and customers on a real time basis, the need to protect and secure computer resources is greater than ever. As a result, this has created the possibility of exposing sensitive corporate information to competitors as well as hackers who can now access organizational computer resources from remote sites. Statement of the Problem The potential loss of such information to an organization goes beyond financial losses and includes the possibility of corrupted data, denial of services to suppliers, business partners and customers, loss of customer confidence, and lost sales. Security in business processes (i.e., maintaining proper authentication, authorization, non-repudiation, and privacy) is critical to successful e-business operations. Enabling business functions over the Internet has been recognized as a major component for the success of businesses and, by mitigating risks in a cost-effective manner, security is now being viewed as a component of business operations (Deise, Nowikow, King, Wright, 2000). Decisions about information systems made by managers are vital to the success, and even survival, of a firm (Enns, Huff, Golden, 2003). Despite increased security threats, organizations have traditionally allocated very little of the total IT budget to information security. Forrester Research estimates that in Fortune 500 companies, the average amount of money as a percent of revenue that is spent on IT security is 0.0025 percent or slightly less than what they spend on coffee (Clarke, 2002). Organizations must evaluate and prioritize the optimum mix of products and services to be deployed for protecting confidentiality (maintaining privacy of information), integrity (maintaining information is not altered in transit), and availability (maintaining access to information and resources) of corporate assets. The decision to deploy certain technology is based on variables such as the organizational business model, level of risk, vulnerability, cost, and return on investment (Highland, 1993). There are several ways in which information can be protected. One method to safeguard information is by using controls. The concept of controls can be applied to financial auditing as well as technical computer security. General controls include personnel, physical and organizational controls as well as technical security services and mechanisms (Summers, 1997). Computer security controls can be hardware or software-based and may include biometric devices, anti-virus software, smart cards, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems that can be used to build the enterprise security infrastructure. Additionally, these controls may be preventive, detective, or corrective. Research Question This paper will focus on one such computer security control Personal Firewalls. Firewalls intercept traffic and make routing and redirection decisions based on policies. Some firewalls can also inspect packets and make transformation and security decisions; therefore, they are critical components in maintaining security in organizations. There are different types of firewalls, such as hardware, software, enterprise, and personal firewalls. Personal firewalls are client-based solutions that are installed on desktop/laptop computers and may be administered individually from a central location. Successful selection and adoption of firewalls (enterprise as well as personal) is based on various factors, some of which are technical while others may be behavioral. This exploratory study looks at the new genre of personal firewalls and, based on the review of the literature, attempts to answer the following research questions: 1) What are the factors that could result in successful selection of personal firewalls in organizations? 2) What are the empirical evidence to support deployment of firewall software? Significance of the Research The study hopes to shed light on behavioral aspects of information security, which may be tied to perceptions of end-users who may influence technology selection in their organization. This will provide empirical evidence to an area that has been identified as lacking in research (Dhillon Blackhouse, 2001 Troutt, 2002) and provide directions and guidance for future studies. Another significance of this study is to look at end-user perception is that it may affect how well the user does his or her part in staying vigilant to combat threats posted by hackers to organizational assets. The end-user may be a conduit to organizational data being compromised. Proper software selection as well as positive user attitude and motivation for using the software are therefore important to ensure ongoing use of personal firewall software. Kettinger and Lee (2002) address the fact that the proliferation of personal computing and individualized software, and popularity of the Internet in organizations have resulted in users playing an important role in driving IT implementation. Their study found that for users selecting their own IT applications (such as desktop software programs), there is greater user satisfaction after implementation. Grantham and Vaske (1985) also state that positive user attitudes are important predictors in continued system use. This is especially important for personal firewall use because computers are at risk at all times when connected to the Internet. In reference to software selection, Chiasson and Lovato (2001) emphasize: Understanding of how users form perceptions of software innovation would help software designers, implementers and users in their evaluation, selection, implementation and ongoing use of software. However, with the exception of some recent work, there is little research examining how a user forms his or her perceptions of innovation overtime (p. 16). The area of information security as it relates to maintaining confidentiality and integrity of data stored on personal computers can benefit from identification of factors that would make it possible to safeguard corporate assets that are at risk as a result of remote data access by employees. Software selection for deployment on company computers cuts across different user levels in terms of knowledge and level of expertise of the user. Selection of software therefore must be done to accommodate all types of users ranging from novices to experts. The latter category of users may have higher tacit knowledge of tasks to be able to compensate for the interface without realizing it (Gery, 1997). Organization of Study The purpose of this paper is to investigate self-referent perceptions of end-users, and use Q-Sort analysis to investigate factors affecting deployment of security firewall software in organizations. The paper is organized as follows: review of research on information security is presented to the reader along with extraction of variables from the literature that may determine firewall deployment in organizations; The Q-Sort Factor Analysis method used for the study is explained and the research design is provided; Along with data analysis, results of the study are then explained, which is followed by discussion and applications to practice. Due to the nature of research design used in this study, limitations are also explained. Research Design and Methodology Subjects in this exploratory research study were 31MBA students enrolled in a security and Control of Information Systems course. The students came from different backgrounds, such as finance, liberal arts, nursing, and computer science. From a business perspective, the course examined implications of information security risks faced by organizations. Although technical issues of security, such as authentication, authorization, and encryption that make electronic commerce sites successful in processing business transactions securely were also explored in the course, the primary focus in the course was from a business perspective. There was no structured lab work during class, but to gain a better understanding of security issues, students were expected to complete hands-on exercises outside class. During initial weeks, topics covered included the PWC model, TCP/IP vs. OSI models, network, e-mail, database security, digital certificates and signatures, risk assessment, and privacy issues. Also, during Week 5, students had been previously tested on the topics using short-answer type questions to determine learning competency of factual information and applications related to information security in organizations. The test score counted towards 15% of overall course grade. With coverage of the aforementioned topics, it was safe to assume that students had knowledge of current security issues facing organizations in todays economy. Because there is no consensus on the common body of knowledge acceptable for all security professionals, and since this was an exploratory study, the study was conducted in a controlled environment with ahomogenous population of students to minimize confounding by extraneous variables. Using MBA students as surrogates for professionals or executives in reference to use and evaluation of technology has also been found to be acceptable (Briggs, Balthazard, Dennis, 1996). The hands-on firewall assignment in this course covered installation, configuration, and use of one standard personal firewall software (ZoneAlarm). After students had a chance to use the software, they were asked to participate in the study. No class discussion was conducted on results of the firewall tests in case it affected students perceptions about the software, which could have influenced their response. Therefore, the data reflected individual student perception without class discussions. Students were given instructions to visit a Web site that explained the nature of the study and provided information on how the Q-sort statements should be sorted. This was important since students are more used to completing questionnaires in a survey format that use Likert scale, open-ended, or closeended questions (such as those used during end of term class evaluation of instruction), but may not be familiar with the peculiarities of the Q-sort procedure. To reduce data errors and extract usable data, instructions were presented in detail before the respondents were shown the statements for the study. Q-Sort Analysis Q-sort analysis uses a technique for studying human subjectivity (Stephenson, 1953; Brown, 1980; McKeown Thomas, 1988). It is useful in exploratory research and a well-developed theoretical literature guides and supports its users (Thomas Watson, 2002). Q-sort methodology is suited for small samples and relies on theories in the domain area being researched to develop items for analysis. A disadvantage of the Q-sort methodology is that it is not suitable for large samples, and it forces subjects to conform to certain expectations (such as fitting responses within a normal distribution). Brown (1986) suggests that 30 to 50 subjects are sufficient for studies investigating public opinion. Q-sort uses an ipsative (self-referenced) technique of sorting participants statements about subjective conditions. It is a variation of factor analysis technique that uses Q-methodology theory to analyze correlation measure (Brown, 1980). Respondents to Q-sort studies are required to sort statements into predefined normal distribution type scale in which a fixed number of items fall under each category. The rankings provide clusters of perceptions of individuals consensus and conflict, which can be used to place individuals with similar characteristics into groups for further study, hi the past, the Q-sort technique used index cards for sorting, but now Web-based data collection programs (such as WebQ) are common. Initially the statements are presented to respondents in random order, and each respondent organizes statements into predefined categories. To view entered data, the respondent also can update statement rankings to see where the statements fall under each category. One advantage of using the WebQ method is that data submission errors are reduced since the program verifies that the statements are sorted according to predefined requirements. Figure 1. WebQ questionnaire Adapted from: Brown, 1980. In this personal firewall study, the statements were to be classified by respondents as Most Important (+2), Important (+1), Neutral (O), Less Important (-1), and Least Important (-2). To provide a forced distribution that is expected in the Q-Sort methodology, respondents were given instructions to identify one statement as Most Important, two statements each as Important and Less Important, and three statements as Neutral. The instrument used is shown in Figure 1 Chapter 2-LITERATURE REVIEW In the area of information security, research has often lagged practice. Dhillon Blackhouse (2001) have stressed the need for more empirical research to develop key principles for the prevention of negative events and therefore to help in the management of security. Despite known vulnerabilities in applications and operating systems, companies continue to deploy software to stay competitive, and steps taken to secure products and services are knee-jerk reactions to media stories that are more reactive than proactive in nature. Most IT managers lack a coherent framework and concrete methodology for achieving enterprise security. A security plan that includes technology, personnel, and policies would be a much better approach to developing an enterprise security strategy. One such model is the Enterprise security Framework Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) model. The PWC model is comprehensive because it addresses the entire enterprise of security architecture. The model emphasizes information security strategies within the organization using a holistic rather than apiecemeal approach. The framework is based on four pillars: security vision and strategy, senior management commitment, information security management structure, and training and awareness. Within the pillars are decision drivers, development, and implementation phases. Firewalls are placed in the development phase since they are used to provide interpretation of corporate standards at the technical level. For a detailed discussion of the PWC model, the reader is referred to Murphy, Boren, and Schlarman (2000). Firewalls can be considered a last line of defense in protecting and securing information systems. Wood (1988) provided a context for information security systems planning and proposed that reactive and incremental improvement approaches to address security are harbingers of a more serious problem. Other factors identified in Woods model are the lack of top management support, information overload, insufficient staffing, and limited resources. Straub and Welke (1998) advocate using deterrence, prevention, detection, and recovery security action cycle to mitigate systems risk and use prioritized security controls. Data on computer crimes is often under-reported because companies are not willing to risk public embarrassment and bad publicity. Most companies choose to handle these incidents internally without keeping documentation or reporting to local, state or federal authorities (Saita, 2001). There is a need for unbiased empirical studies in the information security area that will provide insight into problems affecting todays technology dependent corporations and industries. With a strong need to collect and analyze computer security data, the CSI/FBI Computer Crime and security Survey is published yearly (see http:// www.gocsi.com). This study provides descriptive statistics but does not attempt to identify relationship between variables, as is expected in analytical surveys. Also, results reported in this annual survey have been identified by the publishers themselves to be potentially misleading due to the limited number of respondents and their accuracy as a result of anonymous nature of the surveys. These results have also been called into question because of lack of statistical or scholarly rigor and self-serving interest (Heiser, 2002). Despite these limitations, the CSI/FBI survey provides a useful role in comparison of yearly data for similar parameters. The area of human computer interface provides a link between the user and software applications. User satisfaction is a function of features, user interface, response time, reliability, installability, information, maintainability, and other factors.†If a products user interface catches a users attention and is simple to learn and use, and has the right price and features, then the product may gain competitive advantage (Torres, 2002, p. 15). The theory of user interface design and user involvement in completing task-based actions related to Internet and security software has been substantiated by two studies in which user interaction with peer-to-peer software (Good Kerkelberg, 2002), and PGP software (Whitten Tygar, 1999) were examined. Good and Krekelberg (peer-to-peer study) found that applications connecting to the Internet need better usability and software design to maintain integrity of information stored on a users computer. In this study, individuals assumed responsibility of keeping firewalls operational at all times. This contributed in large part to maintaining effective enterprise security. Whitten and Tygar (PGP study) found that user errors are a significant portion of computer security failures, and further concluded that user interfaces for security programs require a usability standard much different from other consumer software. (Although this study is not directly concerned with user satisfaction, but is more focused on factors that affect deployment rather than development of end-user software in a specific area, some factors may be directly tied to user satisfaction as will be shown by correlational analysis). Due to increasing mobile and off-site access by employees using cable modems, DSL connections, and wireless devices to access corporate resources, personal firewalls are a necessary component to maintain overall enterprise security in an organization. Because of the nature and availability of personal firewall software, most companies choose to acquire it rather than develop it in-house. Software acquisition that results in productivity gains and strategic advantage is of critical concern to organizations, and factors that relate to these benefits must be correctly identified and understood for software acquisition decisions (Nelson, Richmond, Seidmann, 1996). Purchase of commercial software includes identifying requirements, evaluating packages from different vendors, configuring, installing, and evaluating it either as server or client-based solution. This may further involve requirements acquisition that leads to product selection (Maiden, Ncube, Moore, 1997). As a method of selection, professionals in charge of evaluating personal firewall software could draft a feature requirements document, and evaluate vendor products by comparing available features as well as using demonstration versions of software. This would be followed by user experience with the software. As mentioned earlier, the need for user involvement in information systems has been considered an important mechanism for improving system quality and ensuring successful system implementation. It is further believed that the users satisfaction with a system leads to greater system usage (Baroudi, Olson, Ives, 1986). The requirements for software though must be as measurable as possible to enable product selection and may also use repertory grids in which stakeholders are asked for attributes applicable to a set of entities and values for cells in an entity-attribute matrix. This would produce representation of requirements in a standardized, quantifiable format amenable even to statistical analyses (Maiden, Ncube, Moore, 1997). In relation to the security area, Goodhue and Straub (1991) found company actions and individual awareness to be statistically significant in a study of perceptions of managers regarding controls installed in organizations. Chapter 3 – RESEARCH QUESTION FINDINGS Data Analysis Q-Sort analysis is a type of inverse factor analysis in which the cases (subjects) rather than statement variables (features) are clustered. As recommended by Brown (1980), a procedure that arranged statements based on responses of a single individual was used for data analysis. The responses involved statements of opinion (also called Q-sample) that individuals rank-ordered based on the feature requirements in personal firewall software. The arrayed items (Q-sort) from the respondents were correlated and factor-analyzed. The factors indicated clusters of subjects who had ranked the statement in the same fashion. Explanation of factors was then advanced in terms of commonly shared attitudes or perspectives. A review of security literature (Hazari, 2000; Northcutt, McLachlan, Novak, 2000; Scambray, McClure, Kurtz, 2001; Strassberg, Rollie, Gondek, 2002; Zwicky, Cooper, Chapman, Russell, 2000) was used to extract the following statement variables relating to requirements in persona l firewall software: performance, ease-of-use, updates, features, reports, cost, configuration, and support. Table 1. Participant ranked scores Variable Mean SD PERF 4.45 0.77 EOU 3.39 1.08 UPDTS 3.23 0.88 FEATR 3.03 0.93 RPORT 3.00 1.03 COST 2.97 1.20 CONFIG 2.55 0.85 SUPPRT 2.35 0.98 INSTLL 2.00 0.89 Prior to conducting the Q-sort analysis, ranked scores of all participants (before identifying factor groups) on each statement variable were calculated for preliminary descriptive statistics. These are shown in Table 1, where a mean score of 5 = Most Important and 0 = Least Important). Correlation between the nine feature variables shows a low level of correlation between statements. This indicates there is a high degree of independence between the statement categories as used in the analysis. This finding is important since it supports the assertion that the statements represent relatively independent factors obtained from the review of the literature. In the correlation matrix shown, Table 2 shows significant correlation (p 0.05) between cost and updates, cost and reports, ease-of-use and performance, ease-of-use and updates, and installation and support. Table 2. Correlation matrix between variables COST FEATR EOU PERF INSTLL UPDTS RPORT CONFIG SUPPRT COST 1.00 -0.21 0.27 0.18 -0.13 -0.43 -0.49 -0.08 -0.10 FEATR 1.00 -.29 0.35 -0.16 0.06 -0.17 -0.13 -0.25 EOU 1.00 0.44 0.00 -0.37 -0.27 -0.20 -0.04 PERF 1.00 -0.10 -0.11 -0.13 0.13 -0.14 INSTLL 1.00 -0.13 -0.04 0.18 -0.53 UPDTS 1.00 0.26 -0.15 0.17 RPORT 1.00 1.00 0.03 CONFIG -0.24 SUPPRT 1.00 As mentioned earlier, in Q-factor analysis, the correlation between subjects rather than variables are factored. The factors represent grouping of people with similar patterns of response during sorting (Brown, 1980; Thomas Watson, 2002). Following guidelines for Q-factor analysis, eight factors were initially identified with eigenvalues 1 (an eigenvalue is the amount of variance in the original variable associated with the factor). These factors and their percentage of variance are shown in Table 3. Table 3. Eigenvalues of unrelated factors Eigenvalues % Cumul.% 1 11.56 37.28 37.28 2 6.03 19.45 56.73 3 3.91 12.61 69.34 4 2.98 9.61 78.95 5 2.14 6.92 85.87 6 1.93 6.23 92.10 7 1.43 4.61 96.71 8 1.02 3.29 100.00 Factors selected were rotated to maximize the loading of each variable on one of the extracted factors while minimizing loading on all other factors. Factors selected for rotation are usually identified by taking those with eigenvalue greater than one (Kline, 1994). However, in this study, the more rigorous Kaiser rule of selecting factors whose eigenvalue is at or above the mean eigenvalue (in this case 3.85) was used. Factors 1,2, and 3, which represented almost 70% of total variance in data, were then subjected to principal component analysis with varimax rotation. Following rotation, a Factor Matrix indicating defining sort (i.e., respondents in agreement) identified three factor groups with similar pattern of responses. The correlation of individual respondents with factors is shown in Table 4 below. Table 4. Factor matrix of respondents (* indicates defining sort) Q-Sort 1 2 3 1 02386 -0.0398 0.8988 2 0.0227 0.1971 0.8158* 3 0.4975 -0.3790 0.5458 4 0.8575* -0.2912 0.0811 5 -0.2639 0.0196 0.7993* 6 -0.0614 0.7524* -0.2289 7 0.4014 -0.1587 0.4678* 8 0.1367 0.0728 0.9054* 9 0.5351 0.1183 0.6886* 10 0.5065 0.3263 01754 11 0.5351 0.3357 0.6886 12 0.8192* 0.7321* 0.1035 13 -0.6495* 0.3450 -0.0844 14 -0.0464 0.8598* 0.5845 15 0.6535 0.0127 0.3053 16 0.2052 0.2324 0.2452 17 -0.1340 0.4049 0.9512 18 0.7553* 0.5865 0.2987 19 0.2431 0.4049 0.6946 20 0.5983* 0.5865 -0.0334 21 0.4660 0.6533* 0.4573 22 0.5672* 0.1057 -0.3342 23 0.3501 -0.1001 0.8195 24 0.1008 0.9240* 0.0038 25 0.3329 0.0999 0.7194 26 0.2254 0.6545* 0.1329 27 0.7660* 0.1246 0.5677 28 -0.1210 -0.3611* 0.2308 29 0.3850 0.7032* 0.0144 30 0.4656 0.5605 -0.3196 31 -0.1987 0.8988* 0.2470 % explained variance 21 22 26 From Table 4 it can be observed that for Factor 1, respondents 4, 12, 13, 15, 18,20,22, and 27 were in agreement and are highly loaded on this factor. Similarly, respondents 6, 10, 14, 16, 21, 24, 26, 29, and 30 were in agreement in Factor 2, and respondents 5,7,8,9,11,17,19, and 23 were in agreement in Factor 3. The statements in which these three factor groups were ranked are shown in Table 5. Table 5. Ranked statement totals with each factor No. Statement Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3 1 COST 0.31 5 0.91 2 -1.45 9 2 FEATR -0.45 7 0.10 5 0.70 2 3 EOU 0.91 2 0.63 3 -0.55 6 4 PERF 1.26 1 1.72 1 1.80 1 5 INSTLL -1.92 9 -0.31 6 -0.63 7 6 UPDTS 0.52 3 -0.54 7 0.61 3 7 RPORTS 0.03 6 -1.28 8 0.55 4 8 CONFIG -1.07 8 0.12 4 -0.17 5 9 SUPPRT 0.41 4 -1.34 9 -0.87 8 Table 6 shows correlation between the factors. Similar to the findings earlier about variable independence, the factor groups also show a high degree of independence. Table 6. Correlation between factors Factor 1 2 3 1 1.0000 0.3218 0.2970 2 0.3218 1.0000 0.2298 3 0.2970 0.2298 1.0000 The normalized factor scores for each factor were examined next. This provided ameasure of relative strength of importance attached by a factor to each statement on the scale used during sorting. Tables 7(a), 7(b), and 7(c) show these scores. Table 7(a). Normalized Factor 1 score No. Statement z-score 4 PERF 1.258 3 EOU 0.910 6 UPDTS 0.542 9 SUPPRT 0.409 1 COST 0.314 7 RPORT 0.032 2 FEATR -0.454 8 CONFIG -1.071 5I INSTLL -1.922 Table 7(b). Normalized Factor 2 score No. Statement z-score 4 PERF 1.717 1 COST 0.905 3 EOU 0.626 8 CONFIG 0.116 2 FEATR 0.102 5 INSTLL -0.313 6 UPDTS -0.535 7 RPORT -1.276 9I SUPPRT -1.343 Table 7(c). Normalized Factor 3 score No. Statement z-score 4 PERF 1.805 2 FEATR 0.702 6 UPDTS 0.606 7 RPORT 0.553 8 CONFIG -0.170 3 EOU -0.547 5 INSTLL -0.632 9 SUPPRT -0.872 1I COST -1.446 From the Table 7(a) it can be seen that adherents of Factor 1 feel strongly in favor of statement 4 (Performance) and oppose statements 8 and 5. This indicates for Factor 1 group, performance is preferred over initial installation, setup and configuration of the product. The results of Factor 2 group are consistent with Factor 1; that is, performance of the product is the highest rated criterion. Ease-of-use also rated highly in Factors 1 and 2. Perceived ease-of-use in an information systems product has been shown to play a critical role in predicting and determining a users decision to use the product (Hackbarth, Grover, Yi, 2003). The largest dissension between Factor 1 and 2 groups involved statements 9 (Availability of Online Help), 7 (Intrusion Reports generated), and 6 (Regular Product Updates). The results of Factor 3 are consistent with Factors 1 and 2 with Performance criteria once again being highly rated. The most dissension between Factors 2 and 3 involved statements 1 (Cost) and 3 (Ease-of-use). The most dissension between Factors 1 and 3 involved statements 1 (Cost), 3 (Ease-of-use), and 9 (Availability of Online Help). Analysis of Results The Q-sort analysis classified subjects into three groups. Eight subjects were classified under Factor 1, and 10 subjects each were included in Factors 2 and 3. There were three subjects in the study that were not distinguished in any group. These subjects were excluded from further analysis. The classification into factors gave a better idea of group characteristics. Since Factors 1 and 2 were similar and shown to include subjects who considered Performance, ease-of-use, and Availability of Online Help as the most important characteristics, this group can be considered to be comprised of non-technical users who place more emphasis on the product performing as expected in achieving goals for security. Factor 3 subjects emphasized technical characteristics and were more interested in number of features in the product, updates to the product on a regular basis, intrusion reports generated by personal firewalls, and setup/configuration of the product after installation. This group had c haracteristics of technical users. The normalized factor scores provided a measure of relative strength of importance attached by factors to each statement on the scale used during sorting. As mentioned earlier, adherents in Factor 1 felt strongly in favor of statement 4 (Performance) and opposed statements 8 (Setup/configuration) and 5 (Installation). The results of Factor 2 are consistent with Factor 1, that is, Performance of the product is the highest rated criterion. ease-of-use also rated highly in Factors 1 and 2. The largest dissension between Factor 1 and 2 groups involved statements 9 (Availability of Online Help), 7 (Intrusion Reports generated), and 6 (Regular Product Updates). The most dissension between Factors 2 and 3 involved Statements 1 (Cost) and 3 (Ease-of-use). Results of Factor 3 were consistent with Factors 1 and 2, with Performance criteria once again being highly rated. The largest dissension between Factors 1 and 3 involved statements 1 (Cost), 3 (Ease-of-use), and 9 (Availability of Online Help). Extreme differences between all factors appeared in Cost, Intrusion Reports generated, and Availability of Online Help. There was only one statement, Performance of the product, that showed consensus among all factors; that is, it did not distinguish between any pair of factors, which indicates Performance of the desktop firewall software is an agreed upon criterion irrespective of group characteristics. The managerial implications of this study can be assessed at the level of selecting appropriate software for use on computers in organizations to maintain security. There is evidence of user satisfaction being a useful measure of system success (Mahmood et al., 2000). While the end-user may not purchase individually preferred software for installation on company owned computers, the user can influence decisions for selection by making known to IS managers the features that would contribute to regular use of security software such as personal firewalls. Given access of these machines to corporate resources, appropriate and regular use of software would contribute to maintaining enterprise security. For technical professionals (e.g., programmers) who install firewalls on their desktop, programs could emphasize the statements that are defining characteristics shown in Factor 3. For an industry that has non-technical professionals (such as Factor 1 and 2), other non-technical characteristics of the product could be emphasized thus achieving maximum effectiveness in program deployment. Increased awareness should minimize user related faults, nullify these in theory, and maximize the efficiency of security techniques and procedures from the users point of view (Siponen, 2000). The results of this study could also benefit vendors who develop software for end-users. In this study it was found that performance of the software is the most important factor that affects selection of software, irrespective of group characteristics. Due to project deadlines and market competition, software is often shipped without being fully tested as secure, and standard industry practice is to release incremental service packs that address security issues in the product. In a case of security software, this may adversely affect the reputation of a vendor once its products have been shown to have high vulnerability to being compromised. The findings of this study could provide a better understanding of importance of personal firewall security software on organizational client computers. The decision to install an information system necessitates a choice of mechanisms to determine whether it is needed, and once implemented, whether it is functioning properly (Ives, Olson, Baroud i, 1983). More research needs to be done in the area of selection of software for implementation on users computers that are owned by corporations and given to employees for off-site work. This can include regular employees vs. contractors who may connect to employer and client networks from the same computer. If the findings are to have wider applicability, qualified industry professionals and security officers responsible for maintaining secure infrastructure in corporations should be included in the analysis. The study provides management and security professionals a basis for making decisions related to enterprise security. It provides personal firewall vendors an insight into feature requirements of the personal firewall market, and provides academic researchers interested in security, a more focused approach on various dimensions of security software from the behavioral perspective. Future studies could be industry and product specific in order to assess differences in selecting general- purpose software versus security specific products. In many cases, management has looked at the need for implementing information security programs and products as a necessary encumbrance, something akin to paying taxes or insurance premiums (Highland, 1993). But organizations are increasingly becoming aware of the potential for legal exposure via lawsuits, and are deploying countermeasures (such as personal firewalls) to reduce vulnerability and mitigate risk. The chief information security officer in todays organizations should have the responsibility of managing organizational risks by using empirical models and analysis to determine strategies for protecting corporate assets. Firewalls are the last line of defense in the corporate network and therefore play a critical role in information security. With personal firewalls being a new product genre, this study was conducted since there is no research available that specifically looks at determinants for selection of security software in a corporate environment to protect organizational assets. As the information security field evolves further, decisions for security software acquisitions need to be researched further. Selection and deployment of appropriate firewalls can make a significant difference in an organizations enterprise security strategy. It is therefore also important to understand the variables (as shown in this study) that may affect decisions to select and deploy personal firewall software in a corporate environment. Limitations of the Study Due to the exploratory nature of this study, there are several limitations. The sample used in the study comprised of all students enrolled in a security course at the same university, and was further limited to the firewall topic among a wide range of technical and behavioral information security topics. Students worked with only one type of firewall software and characteristics of this particular program may have heightened their awareness of certain strengths and weaknesses in the software. Since the purpose of information security implementation in an organization is to support business objectives of the organization, information security departments are sometimes placed under the chief financial officer recognizing the direct relationship between information assets and monetary assets. Software acquisition decisions may therefore be made by the finance department with limited input from the IT department. The purpose of this study was to explore an important topic for research on information security and determine operant subjectivity in a field where empirical research is severely lacking. The Q-sort technique itself is suitable for small sample populations (Thomas Watson, 2002), but the correlations obtained in smaller samples tend to have considerable standard errors (Kline, 1994). The exploratory nature of this study was not intended to prove some general proposition but to seek a better understanding of group characteristics that directly relate to maintaining a secure network environment (in this case by deploying personal firewalls to plug possible vulnerabilities that might exist in a network through use of computers by employees either on-site or at remote locations). The perceptions of end-users will therefore guide the selection and deployment of security technologies in an organization to provide a secure corporate environment. Chapter 4- SUMMARY and CONCLUSIONS Summary In the area of information security, research has often lagged practice. Dhillon Blackhouse (2001) have stressed the need for more empirical research to develop key principles for the prevention of negative events and therefore to help in the management of security. Despite known vulnerabilities in applications and operating systems, companies continue to deploy software to stay competitive, and steps taken to secure products and services are knee-jerk reactions to media stories that are more reactive than proactive in nature. Most IT managers lack a coherent framework and concrete methodology for achieving enterprise security. A security plan that includes technology, personnel, and policies would be a much better approach to developing an enterprise security strategy. One such model is the Enterprise security Framework Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC) model. The PWC model is comprehensive because it addresses the entire enterprise of security architecture. The model emphasizes information security strategies within the organization using a holistic rather than apiecemeal approach. The framework is based on four pillars: security vision and strategy, senior management commitment, information security management structure, and training and awareness. Within the pillars are decision drivers, development, and implementation phases. Firewalls are placed in the development phase since they are used to provide interpretation of corporate standards at the technical level. For a detailed discussion of the PWC model, the reader is referred to Murphy, Boren, and Schlarman (2000). So it is important reason to look at end-user perception as it may affect how well the user does his or her part in staying vigilant to combat threats posted by hackers to organizational assets. The end-user may be a conduit to organizational data being compromised. Proper software selection as well as positive user attitude and motivation for using the software are therefore important to ensure ongoing use of personal firewall software. Kettinger and Lee (2002) address the fact that the proliferation of personal computing and individualized software, and popularity of the Internet in organizations have resulted in users playing an important role in driving IT implementation. Their study found that for users selecting their own IT applications (such as desktop software programs), there is greater user satisfaction after implementation. Grantham and Vaske (1985) also state that positive user attitudes are important predictors in continued system use. This is especially important for personal firewall use because computers are at risk at all times when connected to the Internet. In reference to software selection, Chiasson and Lovato (2001) emphasize: Understanding of how users form perceptions of software innovation would help software designers, implementers and users in their evaluation, selection, implementation and ongoing use of software. However, with the exception of some recent work, there is little research examining how a user forms his or her perceptions of innovation overtime (p. 16). The area of information security as it relates to maintaining confidentiality and integrity of data stored on personal computers can benefit from identification of factors that would make it possible to safeguard corporate assets that are at risk as a result of remote data access by employees. Software selection for deployment on company computers cuts across different user levels in terms of knowledge and level of expertise of the user. Selection of software therefore must be done to accommodate all types of users ranging from novices to experts. The latter category of users may have higher tacit knowledge of tasks to be able to compensate for the interface without realizing it (Gery, 1997). Conclusions In this study, Q-methodology was used to define participant viewpoints and perceptions, empirically place participants in groups, provide sharper insight into participant preferred directions, identify criteria that are important to participants, explicitly outline areas of consensus and conflicts, and investigate a contemporary problem relating to desktop firewalls by quantifying subjectivity. Similar to other IT areas, security software selection and deployment in todays environment faces many challenges, such as staying current with new threats, project deadlines, implementation issues, and support costs. Quality drives customer satisfaction and adoption of software. Human factors are important in contributing to successful software deployment in organizations, especially when it relates to desktop software applications. Organizations are now viewing security and controls as business enablers and desktop firewall technology plays a critical role in safeguarding corporate assets. In a fast-paced area where the new generation of applications and services are growing more complex each day, it is critical to understand characteristics that affect selection of end-user security products in enterprises. This study addresses a small but important area of safeguarding enterprise information security by using personal firewalls. As has been previously noted, limited research exists beyond the current study that explores behavioral aspects of information security. This study holds importance for professionals tasked with evaluating and selecting security products for company wide deployment. As the area of information security gains increased importance due to the strategic role of technology in organizations, and current events impact areas such as disaster recovery and enterprise continuity planning, a study of end-users to determine their perceptions about selection of technology controls in organizations is critical for protecting organizational assets. More research needs to be done in the area of perception of users towards other security software (such as anti-virus, intrusion detection, virtual private network software, and encryption products), and, due to varying security needs in different industries, studies could also be industry and product specific. While the findings should be considered preliminary, the results raise interesting observations about issues uncovered regarding security perceptions of feature requirements in personal firewalls. Information security is a dynamic area and, in this environment, this exploratory study contributes to evolving research by identifying variables from theoretical literature and using an empirical technique to study issues that affect safeguarding vital assets of an organization from internal and external threats. Recommendation It is recommended that in order to provide better evidence of factors that affect deployment of technology tools that create awareness of security issues and produce better informed employees, research into behavioral factors also needs to be conducted to gain insight into programs and processes that will lead to the development of a robust enterprise security strategy. Information security awareness research has been mostly descriptive and has not explored the possibilities offered by motivation/behavioral theories, or the related theory of planned behavior and the technology acceptance model, specifically in the information security domain (Mathieson, 1991 ; Siponen, 2000; Legris, Ingham, Collerette, 2003). Since security has been deployed at the perimeter of electronic network and on servers by system administrators, the area of information security has ignored users of information systems since software developers are far removed from how the user will interact with security software. Human compliance with information security rules require an understanding of how people work and think (Highland, 1993). Lane (1985) considers the human factor to be the first and most important component of security and a critical part of the risk analysis process. 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