Oprah The Best Person - 959 Words

Oprah Winfrey Without a doubt Oprah Gail Winfrey is the best person in the world. She has been a great inspiration for many people in the world and still is. She has prospered in life greatly as she had gone through poverty and abuse as a child. Oprah Winfrey was born on January, 29th, 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi. She had earned a scholarship to the Tennessee State University, where she majored in Speech Communications and Performing Arts. Oprah graduated from the Tennessee State University as an honors student, as she was always very gifted in school. In January 1984, she came to Chicago to host WLS-TV s AM Chicago, a staggering local talk show. In less than a year, she turned AM Chicago into the hottest show in town. The show soon grew to one hour, and in September 1985 it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show. Where it went national on September 8, 1986, The Oprah Winfrey Show† surely became the number one talk show in national confederacy in less than a year. In June 1987, in its first y ear of being able to participate, The Oprah Winfrey Show received three Daytime Emmy Awards in the categories of Outstanding Host, Outstanding Talk/Service Program and Outstanding Direction. In June 1988, The Oprah Winfrey Show received its second consecutive Daytime Emmy Award as Outstanding Talk/Service Program, further more she herself received the International Radio and Television Society s Broadcaster of the Year Award. More than that according to the Harris poll ,Show MoreRelatedThe Life of Oprah Gail Winfrey Essay1076 Words   |  5 PagesLife of Oprah Gail Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey was born January 29, 1954 on the family farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi. Her dad, Vermon Winfrey, who was stationed as a solider at a local base; and her mother, Vernita Lee, were both young at the time of Oprahs birth. Her parents never married. Shortly after she was born her mother found a job, as a maid, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Oprah was left in the care of her grandmother, Hattie Mae Lee. As a child Oprah never wastedRead MoreEssay on The Influential Power of Oprah Winfrey1085 Words   |  5 Pages How can one person, whom most people have never met, influence the lives of people in the world today in such positive ways? Oprah Winfrey has been able to persuade and inspire many people around the world today because she has simply believed in herself and the good of the people. Oprah once said, â€Å"Create the highest, grandest vision possible for your life because you become what you believe† (Lowe 170). The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Angel Network, and Oprah’s Book Club have been some of the mostRead MoreOprah Winfrey Is Not Just A Woman1301 Words   |  6 Pages Oprah Winfrey is not just a woman, she is an institution. The multi-billion African-American woman is continuously ranked number one on the Forbes list of most powerful American celebrities. Why is she so extremely successful? The reasons why Oprah Winfrey is on top of Forbes list of most influential American celebrities are primarily her high profile and the many mentions in the press and social networks. Forbes states, â€Å"Unlike most Forbes lists, which are based on earnings or net worth, our annualRead MorePersonality Theory on Oprah Winfrey761 Words   |  3 PagesAny person experiences growth of different aspects of personality during various points of time. In fact, it is the day to day good and bad experiences that shape the personality of an individual. There are different theories of growth of personality of an individual. In this assignment, I will take up the case of well-known figure Oprah Winfrey. Based on different theories of personality, I will study the factors which contributed to the growth of personality of Oprah Winfrey. Experts have workedRead MoreROAD TO SUCCESS Role models are people who others imitate, emulate or look up to for guidance. A700 Words   |  3 PagesLike Lena Younger, Oprah Winfrey was a role model. Oprah Winfrey is best known for being a media queen; She host many television shows. Also, she is listed as one of the most charitable celebrity. She helps those in need for education and programs for women and children. Oprah Winfrey is a role model because she is courageous, positive and generous. Oprah Winfrey is a courageous woman. Oprah’s childhood experiences led her to become as courageous as she is up to now. Oprah grew up in a brokenRead MoreA Transformational Leadership Style Best Fits Oprah Winfrey1177 Words   |  5 Pagesthe worlds of business, politics and even entertainment. These are the ones everyone looks up to and they are the ones leading us bravely into the future. Oprah Winfrey comes from very humble beginnings and uses her story to inspire others to achieve their goals. From the readings in Gill, a Transformational Leadership style best fits Oprah Winfrey. A Transformational Leadership style requires one to look past self-interest for the common good. They must have strong values liberty, justiceRead MoreOprah1648 Words   |  7 Pages2013 Oprah Winfrey Erin Phillips ECO2123 2013 Oprah Winfrey Erin Phillips ECO2123 Oprah Winfrey is more than just a talk show host, a celebrity or a cultural figure. She is a genius entrepreneur. She has made some of the smartest decisions. Every now and then in history, we find a life story that is truly remarkable. Oprah Winfrey ventured forth from the agonizing childhood that was her world of common day to a region of supernatural wonder. Oprah’s road to successRead MoreHarpo Case Study868 Words   |  4 Pagescompany that encompasses many forms of communication to the masses through its owner and creator, Oprah Winfrey. Harpo’s campus headquarters are currently in Chicago, Illinois. In Chicago and throughout all the endeavors that Harpo attempts to influence Oprah is the head of the deciding factor. She is the top of the organizational hierarchy. Everything about the company is part of Oprah. So what happens if Oprah is no longer able to be the head of the organization? This case study looks at the problemsRead MoreBusiness Challenges for Oprah Winfrey1496 Words   |  6 PagesOprah Winfrey Business Challenges Oprah Winfrey grew up in a world of adversity, despite her early accomplishments as a gifted child. She began her career in 1976, when she moved to Baltimore to join WJZ-TV News. (Oprah Winfrey Biography, 2011) Her empathetic personality made her many friends, and she was invited to Chicago in 1984 to begin hosting a half-hour morning program. Within a year, she had turned the AM Chicago radio show into the most important radio show in town, and was soon expandedRead MoreLeadership : Oprah Winfrey s Work1391 Words   |  6 Pages Colleen Gribble Linfield College Leadership Exam 3 Leader: Oprah Winfrey May 12, 2017  Which theory of leadership is most applicable to the approach displayed in Oprah Winfrey’s work? Inspirational leaders come from the worlds of business, politics and even entertainment. Certainly, it seems these are the ones everyone looks up to and they are the ones leading us bravely into the future. Coming from very humble beginnings, Oprah Winfrey uses her story to inspire others to achieve their goals

The Importance Of Neoclassical Architecture In Europe

â€Å"The Renaissance is studded by the name of the artists and architects, with their creations recorded as great historical events† - Arthur Erickson, global architect and master planner. Throughout the rebirth of Europe, well-known artists and architects with their inventions, documented as great historical events, have benefit the lives we live today. During the Renaissance period in the late 14th century, many cultural and scientific advances were created to improve the development of Europe. This ensured that it could help the population with new and inventive resources, information and facilities. Many aspects of learning and teaching innovatively advanced to help the management of Europe. A cultural advance that was progressed†¦show more content†¦Proportion was the main element that differentiated the Medieval architecture style from the style of the Renaissance. Architects applied numerous humanist principles to their buildings and structures. Evidence of the architectural progress during the Renaissance is Filippo Brunelleschi’s famous dome at the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral in Florence, Italy. The eight-sided dome was an overall achieveme nt of engineering and took him over 16 years to complete. Filippo Brunelleschi’s interest in the Pantheon, a temple of Roman architecture commissioned by Marcus Agrippa, inspired Brunelleschi to study the engineering of it. This essential information, collected and learned by Brunelleschi, was used effectively when assembling the dome. The structure itself was approximately 44 metres across and it weighed 37 thousand tonnes. As well as the dome, Filippo Brunelleschi invented machines to help him during the building process, and he significantly designed the first reverse gear machine. Not only was this an incredible and well-known construction by Brunelleschi, but it is evident that he applied several elements and practices, including shapes, columns and specifically proportion, adapted from the classical Roman culture to his own structures. Emerging from the Medieval period, Europe became secular, meaning fewer of the population was controlled by the CatholicShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Gulliver s Travels By Jonathan Swift1365 Words   |  6 Pagesthe classical art and culture of Ancient Greece and Rome. Neoclassical means the revival of the ancients. The Neoclassical age coincided with the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century and lasted into the early nineteenth century, competing alongside Romanticism. Neoclassical architecture, however, lasted from the eighteenth century through the twenty-first century. Neoclassicism originated in Rome, but quickly spread throughout all of Europe when European art students returned home from the GrandRead MoreEssay on Renaissance vs Neoclassicism1295 Words   |  6 Pagescould two periods such as the Neoclassicism and the Renaissance be so successful and be focused on very different things? Neoclassicism and the Renaissance are two major periods in the history of art during whic h different forms of art including architecture, painting, music and visual arts, significantly advanced. It was during these periods, different artists became very famous as a result of the masterpieces reflecting how the ideologies and artistic philosophies advanced during that time. ThisRead MoreHow Was Political Grandeur And Dignity Articulated Through Early 19th Century Architecture?1286 Words   |  6 PagesHow was political grandeur and dignity articulated through early 19th century civic architecture in Paris? Use specific examples. In the wake of the French revolution and King Louis XVI of France’s execution in 1773, 19th century France was a time of immense political, economic and social uncertainty as new political parties competed for power and attempted to reform Frances governing systems. The civil architecture and forms that were built during this period reflect these upheavals, as commissionedRead MoreNeoclassical Art Versus Romanticism Art1164 Words   |  5 PagesThe Neoclassical era was known as â€Å"The Age of Reason† or â€Å"The Enlightenment†. This era started in the mid 1700’s. The neoclassical era was part of the Greek and Roman history. The neoclassical era started as a reaction to the former Rococo period. The Rococo art was whimsical and playful. . The artwork of the neoclassical era was morally uplifting and inspirational. The artwork depicted the seriousness of the time, order, reason, tradition, society, intellect and political events. Neoclassical artistsRead MoreNeoclassical Historical Art1198 Words   |  5 PagesNeoclassical Historical Art This artistic style was a central movement encountered in European art and architecture in the period, the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Neoclassical painters showed invaluable importance to depicting costumes, settings, and details of their classical subject matter with exceptional historical accuracy. A research reveals that this art was a revived interest in classical forms and ideas that filled the European and American intellectual thought. The painters illustratedRead MoreThe French Revolution And Neo Classical Era1585 Words   |  7 Pagesthat the stagnation of fashion and its evolutionary pace shifts from a gradual change to rapid progression (Payne, Winakor Farell-Beck, 1992). Our goal is to study more specifically the Neoclassical era, because this period in France gave a newly and creative sense of style in both the arts and architecture that was very similar to those in ancient Rome and Greece (Craske, 1997). During this conflict it caused people to recognize social status and freedom of dress. This revolt caused civiliansRead MoreEssay on Standards and Perceptions of Male Bearty Throughout History2078 Words   |  9 Pagessupernatural, biblical figures, and idealized bodies, to name a few. Some of the time periods that illustrate the importance of male beauty and image are the Baroque period, Neoclassical, Romanticism, Realism, the 20th century, and the present. The Baroque era began in Europe during the 17th century and was a time of religious conflict. This style in art was modified by different cultures in Europe to express the ideals and beliefs of each culture. Three styles emerged that became known as Florid BaroqueRead MoreThe Great Leaders Have Used The Power Of Architecture3601 Words   |  15 PagesThroughout history, great leaders have used the power of architecture to convey the fundamental ideas that formed the base of their societies. Immense amounts of money, power and time have been poured into monumental buildings over the centuries; testament to the importance humanity places on grand symbols. Classical architecture is some of the most timeless and long lasting architecture the world has ever seen. It has been the inspiration of thousands of buildings, long after the original creatorsRead MoreLudwig Mies Van Der Rohe3265 Words   |  14 PagesARCHITECTURAL  BOUNDARIES:   LUDWIG  MIES  VAN  DER  ROHE  AND   PHILIP  JOHNSON         Architecture  has  undergone  a  rapid  and  revolutionary  transformation  in  the   modern  era.  Ã‚  Through  the  work  of  Ludwig  Mies  van  der  Rohe,  this  essay   attempts  to  chart  the  transition  in  architecture  from  nineteenth  century   Romanticism  and  Neoclassicism  to  High  Modernism.  Mies  van  der  Rohe   redefined  architectural  boundaries  and  emphasised  the  beauty  of  simple  forms,   the  importance  of  functionality  and  the  versatility  of  new  materials  such  as  Read MoreLudwig Mies Van Der Rohe3277 Words   |  14 PagesARCHITECTURAL  BOUNDARIES:   LUDWIG  MIES  VAN  DER  ROHE  AND  PHILIP  JOHNSON         Architecture  has  undergone  a  rapid  and  revolutionary  transformation  in  the   modern  era.  Ã‚  Through  the  work  of  Ludwig  Mies  van  der  Rohe,  this  essay   attempts  to  chart  the  transition  in  architecture  from  nineteenth  century   Romanticism  and  Neoclassicism  to  High  Modernism.  Mies  van  der  Rohe   redefined  architectural  boundaries  and  emphasised  the  beauty  of  simple  forms,   the  importance  of  functionality  and  the  versatility  of  new  materials  such  as

Pat Tillman Essay Free Essays

Situation Analysis of Tillman Story Stephen Stone Black Sheep, Tillman’s platoon, had to make it to Mana on time. However, they had an inoperable vehicle with them that had to bring back to the FOB, forward operating base. Black Sheep could not abandon the vehicle. We will write a custom essay sample on Pat Tillman Essay or any similar topic only for you Order Now There only viable option was to bring it to a nearby paved highway for a wrecker to pick it up. Luckily, they came across a local who could tow it to the highway. However, they ran into an another problem. Whether to split the group or not; Either have the whole platoon escort the local to the highway, split the platoon and have one half escort the local while the other half continued on with the mission, or let the local tow it alone. Black Sheep’s leaders agreed that splitting the platoon would be inviting unnecessary danger and allowing the local to tow the vehicle alone was not even possible. However, the order came down from higher that the platoon would be split in order to stay on schedule. Black Sheep was split into two groups, Serial 1 and Serial 2. Serial 2 will escort the local while Serial 1 continues on with the mission. During this time, there were several miscommunications between headquarters and the platoon. Serial 2’s original path was a difficult and harsh terrain. The local offered an easier and quick path that Serial 2’s leader agreed upon. The local took the front of the convoy and led Serial 2 along the newly decided path. However, they came upon indirect fire, which was later, identify as mortar fire. The local stopped and took cover, which resulted in blocking the convoy on the narrow strip of pass. Serial 2’s members had to force the driver to drive in order to the convoy out of the danger zone. Serial 1 heard the firefight near Serial 2 and went towards it to provide fire. However, communications between Serial 1 and Serial 2 was never established during the incumbent firefight. As Serial 1’s members got into position, Serial 2 mistakenly Serial 1 as hostiles. During the firefight, Serial 1 was engaged with the PID, positive identification, of the enemy while calling out ceasefire towards Serial 2. While all along, Serial 2 was engaged with who they believed was the enemy. Attached to Serial 1 was a AMF, afghan military force, soldier, who wasn’t properly briefed upon to the platoon. Serial 2 mistaken the AMF soldier as an enemy and Serial 1 members near him as hostiles, even though, neither Serial 1 member or AMF soldier were wearing the traditional uniform of the enemy and wearing US Army uniform. Tillman’s group was fire upon and hit. Most of the platoon was deafen by the firefight. It took a few minute before Serial 2 recognized the ceasefire and the aftermath, in which they called for help. Black Sheep had two killed in action, KIA, and few injured from the firefight mainly due to the friendly fires. One of the contributing factors to the deaths in Black Sheep was the leaderships’ devotion to staying on schedule. Leadership continuously sacrifice ranger’s advantages in battle to make up lose time and get back on schedule. The leadership didn’t provide their men enough time to prepare for the mission or at least properly brief their squad. For example, the AMF soldier was supposed to be introduce to the platoon, so friendly fire would not fall upon him like it did. The one of rangers’ standards of operation, SOP, is to operate at night in order to provide them the advantage over the enemy. At night, ranger has a huge advantage over the enemy through technology means and night takes away most of the control from enemy with roadside bombs. However, during the daytime, the enemy has an easy observation of US armed forces and optimal control of their use of roadside bombs and improvises explosive devices, IEDs. I would have further delay the platoon to give the platoon time to brief. I would have stuck to the SOP and used the guises of night to move out. One of the main contributing factors for the outcome was communication. Communication between the platoon and headquarters, communication between squads, and communications inside the squads had several flaws. Headquarters didn’t establish properly with the platoon. Headquarters didn’t take any of the suggestion or opinions from the platoon leaders into account and stuck to their schedule. Also, headquarters didn’t clarify on certain items nor didn’t the platoon make sure the intention of commander with items such as the route to the highway. Communications between squads were made hasty or were never established. During the firefight, the radio was crowded with Serial 2 taking to understand the situation so communication between Serial 1 and 2 was never established. Due to the noise from the firefight and time of day, verbal and visual communication for ceasefire and signs of friendly was not established in time. Communication within squads was never properly established. If there was proper channels established, the radio might had been less crowded allowing room for Serial 1 to establish communication. Also, PIDs might have been properly established if communication was established with the squads. Due to the lack communication with Serial 2, there was no PID on the enemy, where Tillman was at, but Serial 2 continued to fire. I would’ve again allowed for more time to the platoon to establish and/or go over the protocols to use the radios, if the radio goes down, reminders of rules of engagement, to ask questions, and such. The lack time and hasty movement contribute to the breakdown of communication which enflame the disarray that surrounded the firefight. I would have sacrifice the time in order to not send my platoon into unnecessary danger. Army doesn’t want to engage an enemy if we don’t not have an overwhelm advantage. We do not want to set up ourselves for failure. However, when the leadership of Black Sheep didn’t provide enough time to platoon to prepare and took away various advantages of the rangers in order to stay on schedule. The leadership was setting up the rangers for failure. How to cite Pat Tillman Essay, Essay examples

Gullivers Travels (907 words) Essay Example For Students

Gullivers Travels (907 words) Essay Gullivers TravelsIn 1726, the Anglo-Irish satirist Jonathan Swift wrote Gullivers Travels. Gullivers Travels was originally intended as an attack on the hypocrisy of the establishment, including the government, the courts, and the clergy, but it was so well written that it immediately became a childrens favorite. Swift wrote Gullivers Travels at a time of political change and scientific invention, and many of the events he describes in the book can easily be linked to contemporary events in Europe. One of the reasons that the stories are deeply amusing is that, by combining real issues with entirely fantastic situations and characters, they suggest that the realities of 18th-century England were as fantastic as the situations in which Gulliver finds himself. Through basic analysis of history one learns that anybody who has made a substantial difference in society was originally misunderstood and unappreciated. For example, Galleleo Galilee was charged with heresy and imprisoned in his home for his ludicrous theory of the earth revolving around the sun. Emily Dickinson was considered insane and grossly unappreciated for her time. also, Edgar Alan Poe, discarded as an eccentric, was painfully understated as a writer. Society, in many cases, becomes so enthralled in being judgmental towards a person’s work that sometimes the truth of the situation is distorted. This is exactly the case for Jonathan Swift. Because of his renowned satire, Gulliver’s Travels, Swift was labeled as a misanthrope. This, however, is far from the truth. Jonathan Swift was a satirist. A satirist cannot be a misanthrope. Thus, deductive reasoning prevails; Jonathan Swift is a not a misanthrope. A satire is a piece of writing that exposes fault, may it be society or human nature, exposes fault none the less. Next, the satire mocks the fault. Lastly, it suggests a better way of doing something. a satirist, one who writes a satire, cannot be a misanthrope. This statement is true because he is making an effort to improve the condition of or relinquish the problem. A misanthrope, on the other hand, would make no attempt to better any condition because he simply hates man. thus, by definition, a satirist cannot be a misanthrope. Swift’s satirical masterpiece, Gulliver’s Travels, appeared in 1726. Written in four parts, it describes the travels of Lemuel Gulliver to Lilliput, a land inhabited by tiny people whose size renders all their pompous activities absurd; to Brogdinnags, a land of roaming giants who are amused when Gulliver tells them about the glories of England; to Laput and its neighbor Lagado, populated by quack philosophers and scientists; and to the land of Houhynhnms, where horses behave with reason and men, called Yahoos, act like uncivilized beasts (â€Å"Gulliver’s Travels†). This satire reveals many faults in society. first of all, Gulliver is symbolic of the citizens of England: gullible, eager to please, and proud. Another satire is England’s government in part I which is symbolized by the Lilliputians and all their flaws. Also, Swift takes another shot at England’s government in Part III where the floating island symbolizes how England never interact with people but instead deals out punishments and laws without considering the people. Swift also satirizes the complacency of Europe; that is, the idea that they are the greatest in the universe- the size of the Brogdinnags mirrors this perfectly. Lastly, the sub-cultures chosen by Swift satirized society’s way of always being drawn towards the extremes such as the Epicuriansim and savagery of the Yahoo’s and the painful stoicism and refinement of the Houhynhnms. Swift completes the satire with a suggestion of how society should be. The proverbial utopia is propped up in part II as the Brogdinnags enter the story. The ideal picture of this group is painted by the fact that they have no concept of war. â€Å"He asked what business we had out of our own islands, unless upon the score of trade or treaty, or to defend the coasts with our fleets. Above all, he was amazed to hear me talk of a mercenary standing army in the midst of peace, and among a free people.† (Swift, 146) Along side this, the Brobdinnags were also presented as a pacifist nation. One can make this assumption through the reaction of the king when he is informed about guns, tools of destruction. â€Å"The king was struck with horror at the description of those terrible engines, and the proposal I had made.† (Swift, 150) Another noteworthy aspect of the these people is the fact that their government isn’t infested with corruption. â€Å"He could not tell what I meant by the secrets of state, where an enemy or some trivial nation were not in the case.† (Swift, 151) Adjacent to this great virtue of their government, there is also the fact that they have concise laws. Laws that are explained in terms that which all citizens can understand and only be one interpretation. â€Å"No law of that country must exceed in words the number of letters in their alphabet, which consists only in two and twenty.† (Swift, 151)The audience, through a basic understanding of this piece, can accept the fact that Gulliver’s Travels is a satire. Swift, through exposing fault, mocking it and suggesting an alternative, is a satirist. Restating the fact that a misanthrope cannot be a satirist, Swift is not a misanthrope. .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .postImageUrl , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:hover , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:visited , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:active { border:0!important; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:active , .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ucf20551b9e915aa4e09dcf7005e3533f:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: E.e. Cummings EssayEnglish Essays

Police corruption free essay sample

Police corruption and citizen complaints relative to ethnicity. To begin, police corruption is a very complicated issue to deal with from all angles. From the perspective of most law enforcement agencies these ordeals are not easy to deal with. Corruption only has one side and that is internal with an external persuasion, meaning that there may be a top notch officer who believes in everything good and has exceptional morals but being around individuals who have the power to erasure you to do wrong doings tends to occurs a lot in law enforcement.Citizens have to remember that these men and women come from all walks of life whether its suburban or coming from the ghetto they are all human despite race, social background and gender. In certain areas of law enforcement you have sectors within the organization where peace officers have formed cliques, or even gangs within the agency. We will write a custom essay sample on Police corruption or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page To most this may be looked at as a conundrum because they have these gangs within an agency where they are sworn to protect against certain entities.Corruption is defined as something immoral or unethical or acting a specific way for personal gain; also officers indulge in activities in which they are supposed to prevent. To put it simply it means abuse of police authority whether it happens once or numerous times it is still unethical. A couple examples of police corruption are: Corruption of authority: when police officers receiving free something that they are not legal.Kickbacks: A kickback is a sum of money that is paid to someone illegally, or example money paid to an agent by a company because the agent can arrange for the company to be chosen to do an important Job. Shakedowns: agree to get bribes for not pursuing a criminal violation. Protection: where officers allow illegal activity to ensure profit and power. All of the above are definitely unethical and shouldnt be allowed in any agency whether its local , state , or federal.

Hydrogen Fuel How Hydrogen Can Be Used to Propel a Vehicle

Hydrogen Fuel How Hydrogen Can Be Used to Propel a Vehicle Abstract Hydrogen is the simplest element with only a single proton in each atom. Hydrogen also makes the most abundant gas in the universe and this makes its new use for propelling vehicles viable. It can be produced through steam reforming or electrolysis.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Hydrogen Fuel: How Hydrogen Can Be Used to Propel a Vehicle specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Steam reforming is cheap but releases green house gases, while electrolysis is expensive with no emissions. Hydrogen fuels can be used to make fuel cells, which convert chemical reactions into electrical energy. This energy can be stored and used to power electric motors and thus propel vehicles. Introduction Most vehicles that use our roads utilize fossil fuels, and with the likely changes due to climatic change and the gradual global warming, studies have shown that use of alternative fuel could propel our vehicles. Among the fuel tested in alternative energy is electricity and hydrogen, among others. The latter being an energy carrier as the former, which is secondary energy source. Hydrogen is useful as a source of compact energy in batteries and fuel cells. Several companies are making their way into hydrogen fuel and are continually trying out ways of efficiently exploiting its potentials. This paper will try to explore how hydrogen can be used to propel a vehicle (Fueleconomy, 2011, p. 1). Process Hydrogen refers to the simplest element with only a single proton for each atom. Hydrogen also makes the most abundant gas in the universe and this makes its new use viable. The sun is considered as a giant ball consisting of helium and hydrogen gases. A process called fusion is believed to occur at the sun’s core to give off radiant energy. Hydrogen, being an energy carrier is separated from gas molecules, biomass, or water by steam reforming as well as electrolysis. An example of hydrogen production process is as shown below (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). Advertising Looking for report on natural sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Source: Alternative Energy Steam reforming is the most cost effective method of producing hydrogen and is estimated to account for about 95% of hydrogen produced, in the U.S. It separates hydrogen from methane, although this results in green house gases, which is faulted for global warming. On the other hand, electrolysis does not create emissions, but is very expensive. New technologies such as nanotechnologies are currently being tested for efficiency and cost reduction (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). Machine Most hydrogen produced in the United States is usually used for refining metals, treating metals as well as in food processing. However, its use has shifted to energy fuel, beginning with NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). It has severally been utilize d in space programs to lift space shuttles. In addition, its fuel cells have been used to power electrical systems of the shuttles (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). Hydrogen fuel cells can be used to produce electricity, and these can power electric cars. Currently, there are over 300 hydrogen-powered vehicles in States, the majority of which are automobiles and buses powered through electric motors. They store and convert hydrogen liquid or gas into electricity for use as a fuel cell. In the process, no pollution is released to the atmosphere (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). Object To explore how hydrogen fuel can be used to power a vehicle and to determine its viability. Theory Hydrogen is the simplest atom with one proton, and forms the majority gas in space, it is very light and this accounts for its existence in compound. The sun is believed to consist of hydrogen and helium gases. Until recently, hydrogen has been tested as a fuel cell for Aviation in the United States, a nd produced for use as a refining, treating and processing agent.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Hydrogen Fuel: How Hydrogen Can Be Used to Propel a Vehicle specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Hydrogen is produced by either steam reforming method or electrolysis. The latter is very expensive but creates no pollution to the environment while, the former is cheap but pollutant. Over 95% of hydrogen produced in the United States is done through steam reforming, which separates hydrogen from hydrocarbons of methane. This results in the release of green house gases, which is faulted for global warming (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). The United States produces around nine million metric tons of hydrogen every year. Such amounts of hydrogen are capable of serving between twenty and thirty million vehicles. The States of California, Texas and Louisiana leads the pack in hydrogen production. Fuel cells made from hydrogen mix with oxygen, and the resulting product is electricity and water as well as heat. Electric cars can therefore be powered by these hydrogen fuel cells. The fuel cells are usually compared to batteries as they have the capability of converting chemical reaction energy into electricity. As long as hydrogen is supplied, fuel cells will keep producing electricity. These fuel cells are usable in propelling vehicles as they power electric motors (Alternative Energy, 2011, p. 1-3). Concept Hydrogen is mostly found in compound forms, and is readily abundant in the atmosphere. It is formed through the process of either steam reforming or in some cases, electrolysis. Once produced, it can be used to create electricity through fuel cells, which convert chemical reaction to electricity. The fuel cells can then power electric motors, thereby propelling electric vehicles (EnergyKids, 2011, p. 1). Technical explanation To propel an electric vehicle, the motors need to be powered. Moreover, to po wer the motors, we need mechanical energy, which can be created by electric energy. Electric energy is generated and stored in batteries, and since hydrogen fuel cells serves this purpose, Hydrogen fuel cells can be used to power electric motors, which in turn propel vehicles. In essence, hydrogen powered fuel cells provides the energy required to propel the vehicles. Since hydrogen can be produced without emissions, and the process of propelling a vehicle produces no emissions, hydrogen fuel is environment friendly (EnergyKids, 2011, p. 1).Advertising Looking for report on natural sciences? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Summary Hydrogen is the most abundant of gases in space. The sun is believed to compose mainly of hydrogen and helium gas. It is lighter than air and is found in compounds. Its formation can be done through the process of steam reforming or in some cases, electrolysis. The latter is expensive but produces no emissions while the former is cheap but releases green house gases. Hydrogen can be used to make fuel cells that store electric energy and are usable for powering electric motors, which propel vehicles. It is eco-friendly (Macrae Cooper, 2011, p. 1). Conclusion Hydrogen fuel can be used to propel vehicles; this is possible through hydrogen fuel cells, which are capable of powering electric motors that in turn propel the vehicles. Hydrogen fuel is a clean energy (Macrae Cooper, 2011, p. 1). Reference List Alternative Energy. 2011. Hydrogen Fuel: Energy from reacting hydrogen (H2) with oxygen. Alternative Energy News. Web. EnergyKids. 2011. EIA Energy Kids: Hydrogen. U.S. Energy information Administration. Web. Fueleconomy. 2011. Hydrogen Fuel. Fueleonomy.gov. Web. Macrae, F. Cooper, R., 2011. Relief at the pumps: Revolutionary hydrogen fuel could cost just 90p per GALLON (and it will run in existing cars). Mail Online. Web.

Benefits of stem cell research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Benefits of stem cell research - Essay Example There are three types of stem cells. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are derived from the embryo and are pluripotent: they have the potential to become all the different cell types of the body. Adult, or somatic, stem cells are found in organs or tissues, and are multipotent: they can differentiate to yield the specialized cell types comprising that particular organ or tissue and are important for maintenance and repair of the organ or tissue. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)  are adult cells that have been genetically reprogrammed to an embryonic stem cell–like state. The dual capacity of stem cells for self-renewal, and for differentiation into particular types of cells and tissues, offers great potential for regenerating failing body parts and curing diseases that have so far defied drug-based treatment (NIH, 2002). Advocates of stem cell research consider it to be mankind’s greatest hope of survival. At the other end of the spectrum are the detractors, who paint a doomsday scenario of â€Å"a  new world of â€Å"embryo farms† and â€Å"cloning mills† for the cultivation of human spare parts† (Weiss, n.d.). ... Bone marrow contains blood-forming stem cells (hematopoietic stem cells) that have been used for over four decades to treat blood cancers and other inherited blood disorders. Bone marrow transplants are able to permanently replace a patient’s diseased blood system and give the patient a new lease on life. Persons who have diseases of the bone marrow are injected with healthy hematopoietic stem cells that produce healthy blood cells, and replace the function of their own non-functioning bone marrow (NIH, 2002).   Umbilical cord blood, which is harvested from the umbilical cord of the baby after birth, is another source of hematopoietic stem cells that is being used in treatment. Cord blood is rich in a kind of stem cell that gives rise to oxygen-carrying red blood cells, disease-fighting white blood cells, and other parts of the blood and immune systems (Weiss, n.d.). The advantage of cord blood cells is that these stem cells can be frozen (‘cryopreserved’) in ce ll banks and later be used to treat children with cancerous blood disorders such as leukaemia, as well as genetic blood diseases like Fanconi anaemia. Another advantage of cord blood transplants is that they are less likely than conventional bone marrow transplants to be rejected by the immune system, or to result in a negative reaction such as  Graft versus Host Disease. (EuroStemCell, 2013). Unlike conventional blood transfusions, which provide only temporary volumes of cells which die in a few months and have to be replaced yet again, the stem cells found in bone marrow and cord blood can generate fresh blood and immune cells for a lifetime (Weiss, n.d.).More advanced techniques for collecting, or â€Å"harvesting,† hematopoietic stem cells are now used in order to treat leukemia, lymphoma,

Communication & leadership Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Communication & leadership - Research Paper Example In the process of sharing information between two or more people a common understanding about a situation or an object occurs (Bateman & Snell, 2012, Chapter 9). Mutual understanding between the sender and the receiver of a message is the most important factor in the process of communication. Actually, people are involved in communication, because they want to reach common goals or mutual understanding. There is a need to simplify this process and make atmosphere of communication friendlier and full of trust. Within every organization there are a lot of barriers and pitfalls of communication. A real leader should be able to deal with difficulties and challenges and create a communication bridge among employees, CEOs, senior managers and managers. A concept of leadership has been considered in different researches and studies and various models of leadership, strategies et cetera have been considered many times. Still, a challenging concept of relation between effective leadership and communication still exists. A leader in the organization is the responsible person, which can bridge a communication gap between senders and receivers and encourage trust and understanding. There is a great importance to inspire employees to share their ideas openly and exert no negative influence on people within the organizations. A way to open thinking and generation of innovative ideas is a way to success for any organization. The modern business world is distinguished by a clear differentiation between definitions of leadership and management. Prof. Joseph Ross claims that a leader in the organization is a more influential person in his relations with employees in comparison with a manager, whose relations with people are based on authority (Maccoby, 2000). Vision about the future of the company is developed by the leader and managers take control over practical

History 1311 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

History 1311 - Essay Example The French later came to the new world with the intention of tracing a new route to the pacific ocean but instead ended up colonizing territories such as Quebec where they planted a variety of crops such as wheat and sugar for the home market. However, other European nations most notably England also put a stake in the new world. Their interest, like the Spanish was also both economic and political but the settlers had a more comprehensive list of reasons for exploration. Many of them were escaping the collapsing feudal system that had resulted in rural-urban migration and consequently abject poverty. Others were escaping political instability and hoping to make a fresh start in the colonies. The British throne used the new world a place to dump their unwanted populations; it was common for criminals to be exiled to the new lands. However, with time as the mercantile culture spread in the British lord realized how important the new land could be as a colony where they could grow food for export back home and to their increasing territories around the world. They encouraged settlements and after a time they took over, eventually colonized, and occupied America until they were finally driven out in the 18th century when American seized her independence. In 1787, Delegates met in Philadelphia to write a new constitution, which was to replace the articles of the confederation; the delegates wanted to create a constitution that would provide both liberty and order for the chaotic government given the size and diversity of the United States. The new constitution was written with the objective of forging a strong union between the various states as well as create a structure of power that could be checked by the people. Their experience with the British government had taught them of the dangers or a tyrannical government and they ensured to put up checks and balances so that the executive, legislature and

Benefits of Leisure on the Individual

Benefits of Leisure on the Individual Introduction / Summary In previous contributions, there should have been wide discussions to draw the limits of leisure. I would like to get assistance one that you have read those chapters, in order to write some introductory paragraph that lets the reader know if my contribution is particularly related to some other one. In this contribution, I will analyze it by using the subjective well-being approach. I will use the leisure experience dimension (as described bellow), and I will study the determinants of subjective well-being. There will be plenty of conceptual discussion, some regularities will be reported, an empirical exercise will be performed results analyzed, and some insights for future research will be presented. In this paper, we will study leisure and its beneficial aspects over individual welfare by using a quite new approach: the subjective well-being or happiness approach to measure individual welfare. Along the discussion, we will present two main points. First, we will discuss on the dimensions of leisure in order to justify that by using subjective well-being procedures, we can get a comprehensive approximation to the, somehow difficult to measure, leisure concept. Second, to determine which are the personal and environmental factors that are needed so an individual can produce and consume enjoyable leisure experiences. In this chapter, we are not going to consider that leisure is just free time, i.e. time that is not dedicated to market work, nor to household maintenance activities. We are not even going to consider that leisure is discretionary time (Goodin, et al. 2005). What we state is that leisure is a universal human need that has to be fulfilled by the production in the household and the personal consumption of what we may call leisure experiences. Each experience is a commodity that enters directly in the individuals utility function. This means that leisure is one of the arguments of the utility function of the individual, one of the instances from which she will get welfare. By doing this, we will adopt from the beginning a beckerian approach (Becker, 1965, and 1990). Other arguments are (Gronau and Hamermesh, 2006). From that list of commodities, we can agree that leisure is the most time intensive one. Individuals have this particular basic need, leisure, to be fulfilled using the most suitable combination of personal resources. As always, we are living in a scarce world where every input has some alternative use, so people have to make allocation choices about the best way to fulfill this leisure need as well as others such as food, shelter, and so on. However, we will introduce into our analysis a basic feature of leisure: the presence of enjoyable others. Only recently has this aspect been introduced in the economic analysis of leisure (Osberg, 2009). In this paper, we address the question of how personal inputs are optimally combined to satisfy the leisure need in a social context. By means the analysis of the leisure domain satisfaction, we will be able to asses how personal free time transforms into leisure and how this outcome contributes to individual welfare. Each person would define the boundaries of leisure on the basis of her tastes, on different resource availability to fulfill her needs, and may value the final outcome in many different ways depending on the social norms, her personal aspirations, social interactions and past experiences. Since using a personal definition of leisure would make any analysis impossible, we will present the main three different constructions of leisure, as proposed by Kelly (1982). The first approach of leisure is the most basic one that defines leisure as quantifiable leisure time, either residual or discretional, based on the freedom to choose. The second one defines leisure as the activity that is chosen at a given time and place so that it is the quality of the activity which defines it as leisure. The third one defines leisure as a subjective condition on the grounds of a freely chosen experience based on intrinsic motivation. The integrative approach proposed by Kelly is the one that we follow in this research, where Leisure is an action that takes place at a given time, develops an identifiable activity and is perceived as a pleasant experience by the actor. In what follows, we would refer to this last integrative approach either as leisure or leisure experience. Actually, it fits very well with the following definition of leisure satisfaction by Beard and Ragheb (1980). For them, leisure satisfaction is the positive perceptions or feelings that an individual forms, elicits, or gains as a result of engaging in leisure activities and choices. It is the degree to which one is presently content or pleased with her general leisure experiences and situations. This positive feeling of pleasure results from the satisfaction of felt or unfelt needs of the individual. Traditional economic theory studies human behavior by means of individual’s observed choices. In such a spirit, observed time allocation can be an outcome of interest recorded on time-use surveys. Actually, as we will discuss in the concluding section, time-use registers are a very valuable source of information, and many of the questions that we are going to address could be complementarily studied by testing those hypotheses with that type of data. However, even if some authors consider that time is the ultimate source of utility, time by itself provides no utility to individuals, since the mere passing of time does not fulfill any human need (possibly except from sleeping time). Moreover, since we have no means of observing the final leisure output, we have to rely on the subjective assessment of how satisfied people feel with the leisure that they enjoy. At the end of the day, the main challenge is to determine how an unobservable, such as leisure, can contribute to individual welfare. In this case, we are considering a double black-box. First, not everyone defines leisure in the same way and not everyone produces leisure experiences by using the same technology or the same inputs. For some people, the presence of others will be much more needed that for some other people. Some people could be much more materialistic than others. Some people could be much more efficient in the production of pleasurable experiences because of their higher education. Second, as indicated before, we know that leisure contributed to enhance the quality of life of people, but the valuation of those experiences is determined by societal norms and arrangements and by personal aspirations, past experiences and comparison effects. Next section will present the happiness or subjective well-being approach. We will introduce a brief discussion of the rationale for using this approach for economic research and for leisure research. To do so, we will present the domain approach; in this setting, leisure satisfaction will be considered a mediator between individual leisure experience and overall satisfaction or happiness. In section 3, we will discuss the relationship between leisure time and well-being. Other crucial aspects will be discussed in section 4, where we review a series of social and economic factors that are said to influence leisure enjoyment, so leisure has a high quality and contributes to a better quality of life. Particularly, we will report previous findings on the social dimension of leisure, one of the attributes that determine high quality leisure experiences. In that same section, some determinants of overall satisfaction, or of particular domain satisfaction will be discussed. Last, sections 5 and 6 will present, respectively, some conclusions and a brief overview of needed research to better understand the contribution of leisure to a better quality of life. Subjective well-being approach Traditional research on quality of life relied heavily on objective and materialistic indicators of living conditions. Actually, Gross Domestic Product has been the â€Å"champion† indicator when studying the evolution of living standards and when comparing economies (Mankiw, 2007). Under the realm of objective indicators, nearly all non market activities and many aspects of human development, such as leisure, are neglected. New studies have highlighted the superiority of including the subjective approach to the investigation of quality of life in developed and developing societies, and happiness research has become quite of a fashionable and popular topic (Layard, 2006). There is a growing interest on using the subjective well-being approach to analyze living conditions and there has been an emerging literature on social sciences. Among other reasons for that flourishing, we can highlight the following: (i) this approach offers richer insight about the quality of life, and considers other indicators of development apart from the traditional indicators; (ii) nowadays there is more information available about living conditions, opinions and perceptions of people and societies, and; (iii) with this approach it is possible to identify the major needs and problems of the population, which is useful for governments and policy makers (Frey and Stutzer, JEL 2002). Economists and other social scientists broadly define `happiness and `life satisfaction as subjective well-being. Following Diener and Seligman (2004, pp. 4) life satisfaction is defined as a global judgment of well-being based on information the person believes is relevant, while well-being includes all of the evaluations, both cognitive and affective, that people make of their lives and components of their lives. While according to some authors, the terms happiness, subjective wellbeing, well-being, satisfaction and quality of life are somewhat different and each have their own specific meaning, responses in different surveys are highly correlated (Fordyce, 1988; Frey and Stutzer, 2002b), and many analyses use them indiscriminately. In this current study these terms are used with the understanding that they have a similar connotation. The present study will use a bottom-up approach to the analysis of subjective well-being. This approach considers that overall life satisfaction is determined by what is called domain satisfaction; the evaluation of own personal situation on different dimensions of life such as: financial situation, housing conditions, health, leisure, job or education, among other dimensions. Some authors signal the mediator role of those domain satisfactions to determine overall happiness (Cummins, 1996; van Praag et al., 2003; Easterlin and Sawangfa, 2007). In what follows, we will consider that leisure satisfaction has leisure experiences as the main input; higher leisure satisfaction will contribute, in turn, to higher overall satisfaction or happiness. In order to assess the size of different influences upon happiness and satisfaction with life in general, psychologists have been using surveys since long ago, while only recently economists have recognized that there is useful information in a subjective well-being answer as an empirical approximation for the theoretical concept of utility. With the exception of the seminal work of Easterlin (1974), most research has taken place during the last two decades. The existing state of research suggests that, for many purposes, happiness or reported subjective well-being is a satisfactory empirical proxy of individual utility. From the information about the determinants of individual happiness, different situations of economic and social policies inside a country or a region can be analyzed . Frey and Stutzer (2002b) give some important reasons for economists to consider happiness research. First, happiness research can help to evaluate net effects, in terms of individual utilities, for different economic policies. Understanding the determinants of subjective well-being can thus usefully inform economic policy decisions. Second, this research also has relevance to economists because of the effect of institutional conditions such as the quality of governance and the size of social capital on individual well-being. It may also help to solve empirical puzzles that conventional economic theories find difficult to explain. For instance, using this approach it is possible to understand why for several countries since World War ll although they have raised their real income drastically, the self-reported subjective well-being of the population has not increased or has even slightly fallen. Data about happiness are collected through direct questioning via interviews or self-administered questionnaires in which individuals self-rate their happiness on a single item or on a multi-item scale. These scales offer a list of options, which are ranked according to the levels of happiness . Most studies of subjective well-being are based on some variation on the question How satisfied (or happy) are you with your life? The range of possible responses is defined over a scale that varies between datasets (one to four, one to seven, or one to ten), the lowest grades indicating a poor level of life satisfaction. The main use of happiness measures is not to compare levels in an absolute sense but rather to seek to identify the determinants of happiness. The strategy is to use the answers that people give when asked questions about how happy they feel with life. Similar questions are posed with respect to job satisfaction, health satisfaction, housing satisfaction, satisfaction with marital relation, etc. †¦, and leisure satisfaction or satisfaction with leisure time. This study of the different aspects of life is called domain satisfaction. Although this approach could have limitations, as was said by Oswald (1997, p. 1816) if the aim is to learn about what makes people tick, listening to what they say seems likely to be a natural first step. The domains-of-life literature states that life can be approached as a general construct of many specific domains, and that life satisfaction can be understood as a result from satisfaction in these domains of life (Cummins, 1996; van Praag et.al, 2003; Easterlin and Sawangfa, 2007; Rojas, 2006a, 2006b). It is evident that different domains may be distinguished. In many studies, the domains to be analyzed are determined by data availability. For instance, in the British Household Panel Survey leisure satisfaction is split up into two sub-dimensions; namely, the amount of leisure and use of the leisure time (Van Praag and Ferrer-i-Carbonell, 2007); the European Community Household Panel considers only satisfaction with leisure time , and the Latinobarà ³metro only includes satisfaction with the amount of leisure (Rojas, XXXX). Rojas (2007) affirms that the enumeration and demarcation of the domains of life are arbitrary. In addition to this, there are many possible partitions of a human life, and the selected partition depends on the researchs objectives and the available information. For example, Cummins (1996) has argued for a seven-domain partition: material well-being, health, productivity intimacy, safety, community and emotional well-being; van Praag et al. (2003) study the relationship of satisfaction in different domains of life (health, financial situation, job, housing, leisure and environment) and satisfaction with life as a whole. Rojas (2006b and 2007), on the basis of factor analysis, identified seven domains of life: health, economic, job, family, friendship, personal and community. Using information from Mexico , he showed that satisfaction in the family domain is crucial for life satisfaction. Family satisfaction includes aspects of satisfaction with ones spouse, children and with the rest of the family. Rojas also showed that the satisfaction in the health, job and personal domains is also very important for a persons happiness. Satisfaction in areas such as housing and living conditions, financial solvency and income are relatively less important for life satisfaction. Rojas (2007) found that income is an explanatory variable of relevancy for economic and labor satisfaction, but not for family satisfaction or leisure satisfaction. For that reason, it is possible to find situations where a person is satisfied with his/her life while he/she is unsatisfied economically, or where a person is unsatisfied wit h his/her life and, at the same time, his/her economic satisfaction is high (Rojas, 2008b). Empirical research has focused on different factors associated with subjective well-being and satisfaction. In agreement with psychological and sociological studies (Argyle, 1999), economic research has identified a set of personal and social characteristics associated with life satisfaction. Most studies using data from North America and European countries have found the level of reported life satisfaction to be high among those who are married (Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004b; Easterlin, 2003; Carroll, 2007; Clark et al., 2005; Ferrer-i-Carbonell and Frijters, 2004), women (Oswald, 1997; Clark, 1997), whites (Oswald, 1997; Alesina et al., 2004), the well-educated (Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004a; Frey and Stutzer, 2003; Borooah, 2005), the self-employed (Blanchflower, 2000; Blanchflower, 2004; Frey and Benz, 2003; Alesina et al., 2004), the retired (Di Tella et al., 2003), and those occupied with home duties (Di Tella et al., 2003; Borooah, 2005). The relation between an individuals age and happiness seems to be a bit more complex. Many people believe that the quality of life deteriorates with age and that old people should be unhappier than young people since the old tend to have a worse health, less income, and few are married. Nevertheless, many studies have surprisingly thought that old people report levels of happiness comparatively higher than young people, though this effect tends to be small. Frey and Stutzer (2001) have indicated four reasons that can explain this positive relationship between age and happiness: (i) the old have lower expectations and aspirations. For example, an elderly person waits to remain without work and possibly widower, so the effects of the loss will be lower on the old than on the young. (ii) They have little disparity between goals and achievements, since the eldelrlys goals are fixed closer to what reasonably they can reach. (iii) Older individuals have had more time to adjust to their life conditions, and (iv) old people have learned how to reduce the negative events of the life and how to regulate the negative affects. Besides, economists have identified a U-shape in the relationship between age and happiness (e.g. Oswald, 1997; Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004a). This implies a convex shape in the relationship of life satisfaction with age. Life satisfaction decreases with age until it reaches a minimum, increasing afterwards. For North America and European countries this minimum typically occurs in the forties (43 in Frey and Stutzer (2001) and Ferrer-i-Carbonell (2005); 46 in Peiro (2007)). Aspirations and comparisons effects also are important in relation with income and other factors affecting subjective well-being. The individuals reported subjective well-being in the present is based on a norm of what is `bad, `sufficient or `good. Such norms not only depend on the present situation, but also on what the individual has experienced in the past, on what he/she expects to experience in the future and on what other people think and do (van Praag and Ferrer-i-Carbonell, 2004). In relation with income, individual well-being does not only depend on income in absolute terms but also on the subjective perception of whether ones income is adequate to satisfy ones needs. In addition, individual income perception is subject to the individuals own situation, past and present, as well as to the income of other people. The latter reflects the importance of the relative position of individuals in society for their satisfaction with life. This is often referred to as the comparison income or relative utility effect. It is often argued that individuals adapt to new situations by changing their expectations (Easterlin, 2005; Clark et al., 2008). This implies that higher incomes are accompanied by rising expectations that lead to what is known as the hedonic treadmill (Brickman and Campbell, 1971) or hedonic adaptation (Frederick and Loewenstein, 1999). Thus, individuals strive for high incomes even if these lead only to a temporary or small increase in well-being. This ability to adapt would appear to be a ubiquitous feature of the human condition, some recent examples of adaptation in nonmonetary spheres are Lucas et al. (2003) and Lucas (2005) with respect to marriage and divorce, Wu (2001) and Oswald and Powdthavee (2006) for adaptation to illness or disability, and Lucas et al. (2004) regarding unemployment. The comparisons with different social reference groups are also an important factor that has been widely present in the analysis of two dimensions; namely, the analysis of the effect of relative income on financial satisfaction and/or satisfaction with life as a whole (McBride, 2001; Stutzer, 2004; Luttmer, 2005; Clark, Frijters and Shields, 2008) and the influence of unemployment on subjective well-being. A standard result in happiness literature is that the unemployed report significantly lower levels of subjective well-being than other labor force groups (Winkelman and Winkelman, 1998; Frey and Stutzer, 2002). Indeed, the pecuniary and the non-pecuniary costs of the unemployment are that high that adaptation is non-existent (Lucas et al., 2004) or only very moderate (Clark, 2002). Clark (2003) uses seven waves of the British Household Panel Survey to test for social norms in labor market status. In his analysis, he found that the well-being of the unemployed is the higher, the hig her the unemployment rate in a reference group (at the regional, partner, or household level). It seems that, the more unemployment becomes the norm, the less individuals are affected by it (Winkelman, 2006). Lalive and Stutzer (2004), using a different strategy, obtain the same results for information from Sweden. Social interactions could be either a negative or a positive factor. As previously mentioned, an individuals happiness depends on that individuals own relative (or positional) situation or status, and comparison with others, what would expose that individual to negative externalities in terms of peer-effects (Luttmer, 2005) in utility and/or consumption. Alpizar, Carlsson and Johansson-Stenman (2005) show that positionality matters far more for commodities as houses and cars than for vacation and insurance, but also that both absolute and relative consumption matter for each category, these are positional goods. The positive influence of social interactions may come from social relationships and other relational goods or social capital factors. For instance, Rojas (2007), Winkelman (2006), Argyle (1999), among other social scientists have found that social relationships are a major source of well-being. Although marriage is the relationship that has the most influence on happiness, there are other relationships that affect happiness, as well as health and mental health, by providing social support. Argyle (1999 p. 361) refers some studies where it was found that if all kinds of social support are combined, a social support factor is found to have a strong correlation of 0.50 with happiness. Social scientists in many countries have observed that social support or social networks (and the associated norms of reciprocity and trust (Helliwell and Putnam, 2004)) have powerful effects on the level and efficiency of production and well-being, broadly defined, and they have used the term social capital to refer to these effects (Coleman, 1988; Putnam, 2000; Woolcock and Narayan, 2000). Lately, some cross-sectional studies from both sociology and economics have shown the importance of key aspects of social capital such as trust, social contacts and membership in voluntary associations over individual well-being (Inglehart 1999; Putnam 2000; Helliwell 2003 and 2006b; Powdthavee, 2008). In Bowling Alone, Putnam (2000) suggested that people prosper in neighborhoods and societies where social capital is high, that is, where people trust one another and are mutually helpful. Putnam reviewed evidence showing that communities with high rates of volunteer activity, club membership, church membership, and social entertaining (all thought to be indirect manifestations of social capital) all had higher well-being than communities that were impoverish these characteristics. Many studies that use cross-sectional data have shown that individuals with rich networks of active social relationships, that do not include people living in the same household, tend to be happier with th eir lives (Phillips 1967; Burt 1987). Helliwell (2003) reported that well-being is high and suicide rates are low where trust in others is high, and he also found that well-being is high where memberships in organizations outside of work are at high levels. Thus, there is evidence that individuals are more likely to experience high well-being when they live in nations with high social capital than when they live in nations with low social capital, a finding that dovetails with the results of studies on individuals social interactions. Helliwell and Putnam (2004) and Powdthavee (2008) are comprehensive reviews about the importance of social capital factor over subjective well-being. Health status is a factor that can be expected to be an important determinant of life satisfaction. In the 1950s the use of concepts such as welfare, adjustment and mental health had much in common with the traditional concept about happiness (Argyle, 1991). Research on the health-related quality of life was developed in the mid 1970s by health scientists and psychologists in order to track peoples perception of their health status (Gough et al., 2007). This was mainly in response to the need for more sensitive measures to compare treatments for chronic illness and to identify the most cost-effective treatments . Good health is considered an important factor included in the capabilities and the necessary functionalities in order for an individual to face life (Deaton, 2007; Sen, 1999). Since the 1980s the state of health has been identified as an important determinant of life satisfaction, as happy people are healthier, both physically and mentally (Veenhoven, 1991; Argyle, 1999). Co nsequently, poor health, which limits an individuals ability to carry out their daily activities, reduces overall satisfaction. The literature about subjective well-being in Latin American countries is few and very recent. Graham and Pettinato (2001) were some of the first to analyze Latin American countries. Using the Latinobarà ³metro 2000, they found that Latin America is not all that different from the advanced industrial economies in relation to some of the determinants of happiness. Similar to the OECD countries, happiness has a quadratic relationship with age, initially decreasing and then increasing monotonically after 49 years of age. As in the industrial countries, being married had positive and significant effects. In contrast to the advanced economies, a significant gender effect was no found in Latin America. Also, as in the industrial countries, the coefficients for level of wealth were strong, positive, and significant in happiness. When wealth was included in the regressions, the coefficient for education level became insignificant or weakly significant, depending on the regression used. Bein g self-employed or unemployed both had significant and negative effects on happiness. When they included country-fixed effects, the coefficient on self-employment became insignificant. While being unemployed also has negative effects on happiness in the advanced industrial economies, being self-employed has positive effects. The most credible explanation is intuitive and it was given by the authors: most self-employed people in the latter are self-employed by choice, while in developing economies, many are self-employed due to the absence of more secure employment opportunities and live a precarious existence in the informal sector. Other analyses by countries have been conducted in Latin America. Among the most important, Rojas (2006b and 2007), using the domains-of-life approach in Mexico, found that people are on average, more satisfied in the family domain, while they are less satisfied in the consumption, personal and job domains. Rojas (2007) found that income is an explanatory variable of relevancy for the economic and labor satisfaction, but not for either family or leisure satisfaction. Due to that, he found a weak relationship between income and life satisfaction Gerstenbluth et al. (2007) studied the relationship between happiness and health in Argentina and Uruguay using the Latinobarà ³metro 2004. Cruz and Torres (2006), using the Encuesta de Calidad de Vida 2003, tested various happiness hypotheses among Colombians and Cid et al. (2008), using the survey called Salud, Bienestar y Envejecimiento en Amà ©rica Latina y el Caribe (SABE), explored the correlation between happiness and income in the el derly in Uruguay. To our knowledge, the previous studies conducted about Latin America have not included the effect of social capital on subjective well-being, and they have analyzed the self-employment as a homogeneous labor market status. However, when considering the specificity of the leisure domain, we should take into account that while satisfaction with other realms of life may lie upon the valuation of objective situations (such as one’s financial situation, health or housing conditions), satisfaction with leisure brings in an additional challenge as individual’s boundaries of leisure are defined by her perception of what is pleasant (Ateca-Amestoy et al., 2008). Conceptual discussion on the nature of leisure time in contemporary societies Time allocation decisions within the family: economic approaches and models. We will attach to the economic approach to human behavior by Becker (moreover, bring arguments such as those contained in a theory of social interactions). Temporal autonomy is a matter of having discretionary control over your time. Discretionary Time. A New Measure of Freedom (Goodin et al., 2005) Other approaches: we have found these relevant arguments: Veblens theory The omnivore Bourdieus distinction Putnams social capital 3.1. What is Social Capital? There is a traditional consensus that there exists three distincs traditions that conceptualize and analyze social capital. All three would be relevant for our reasoning. Pierre Bourdieu bourdieu2: who conceptualised social capital as the `actual or potential resources that an individual has at his/her disposal as a result of `a durable network of more or less institutionalised relationships of mutual acquaintance and recognition, i.e. membership in a group. Some authors point out that this definition must be viewed as part of his broader concern with developing the different types of capital in order to explain the means by which the social stratification system is preserved and the dominant class-reproduction strategy is legitimised. J.S. Coleman coleman defines it as the set of resources that inhere in family relations and in community social organisations and that are useful for the cognitive or social development of a child or young person. Social relations were viewed by Coleman to make up important `capital resources for individuals by means of processes such as setting `obligations, expectations and trustworthiness, creating channels for information, and setting norms backed by efficient sanctions. These resources may be influenced by factors such as generalised trustworthiness which ensures that obligations are met, the extent to which a person is in Benefits of Leisure on the Individual Benefits of Leisure on the Individual Introduction / Summary In previous contributions, there should have been wide discussions to draw the limits of leisure. I would like to get assistance one that you have read those chapters, in order to write some introductory paragraph that lets the reader know if my contribution is particularly related to some other one. In this contribution, I will analyze it by using the subjective well-being approach. I will use the leisure experience dimension (as described bellow), and I will study the determinants of subjective well-being. There will be plenty of conceptual discussion, some regularities will be reported, an empirical exercise will be performed results analyzed, and some insights for future research will be presented. In this paper, we will study leisure and its beneficial aspects over individual welfare by using a quite new approach: the subjective well-being or happiness approach to measure individual welfare. Along the discussion, we will present two main points. First, we will discuss on the dimensions of leisure in order to justify that by using subjective well-being procedures, we can get a comprehensive approximation to the, somehow difficult to measure, leisure concept. Second, to determine which are the personal and environmental factors that are needed so an individual can produce and consume enjoyable leisure experiences. In this chapter, we are not going to consider that leisure is just free time, i.e. time that is not dedicated to market work, nor to household maintenance activities. We are not even going to consider that leisure is discretionary time (Goodin, et al. 2005). What we state is that leisure is a universal human need that has to be fulfilled by the production in the household and the personal consumption of what we may call leisure experiences. Each experience is a commodity that enters directly in the individuals utility function. This means that leisure is one of the arguments of the utility function of the individual, one of the instances from which she will get welfare. By doing this, we will adopt from the beginning a beckerian approach (Becker, 1965, and 1990). Other arguments are (Gronau and Hamermesh, 2006). From that list of commodities, we can agree that leisure is the most time intensive one. Individuals have this particular basic need, leisure, to be fulfilled using the most suitable combination of personal resources. As always, we are living in a scarce world where every input has some alternative use, so people have to make allocation choices about the best way to fulfill this leisure need as well as others such as food, shelter, and so on. However, we will introduce into our analysis a basic feature of leisure: the presence of enjoyable others. Only recently has this aspect been introduced in the economic analysis of leisure (Osberg, 2009). In this paper, we address the question of how personal inputs are optimally combined to satisfy the leisure need in a social context. By means the analysis of the leisure domain satisfaction, we will be able to asses how personal free time transforms into leisure and how this outcome contributes to individual welfare. Each person would define the boundaries of leisure on the basis of her tastes, on different resource availability to fulfill her needs, and may value the final outcome in many different ways depending on the social norms, her personal aspirations, social interactions and past experiences. Since using a personal definition of leisure would make any analysis impossible, we will present the main three different constructions of leisure, as proposed by Kelly (1982). The first approach of leisure is the most basic one that defines leisure as quantifiable leisure time, either residual or discretional, based on the freedom to choose. The second one defines leisure as the activity that is chosen at a given time and place so that it is the quality of the activity which defines it as leisure. The third one defines leisure as a subjective condition on the grounds of a freely chosen experience based on intrinsic motivation. The integrative approach proposed by Kelly is the one that we follow in this research, where Leisure is an action that takes place at a given time, develops an identifiable activity and is perceived as a pleasant experience by the actor. In what follows, we would refer to this last integrative approach either as leisure or leisure experience. Actually, it fits very well with the following definition of leisure satisfaction by Beard and Ragheb (1980). For them, leisure satisfaction is the positive perceptions or feelings that an individual forms, elicits, or gains as a result of engaging in leisure activities and choices. It is the degree to which one is presently content or pleased with her general leisure experiences and situations. This positive feeling of pleasure results from the satisfaction of felt or unfelt needs of the individual. Traditional economic theory studies human behavior by means of individual’s observed choices. In such a spirit, observed time allocation can be an outcome of interest recorded on time-use surveys. Actually, as we will discuss in the concluding section, time-use registers are a very valuable source of information, and many of the questions that we are going to address could be complementarily studied by testing those hypotheses with that type of data. However, even if some authors consider that time is the ultimate source of utility, time by itself provides no utility to individuals, since the mere passing of time does not fulfill any human need (possibly except from sleeping time). Moreover, since we have no means of observing the final leisure output, we have to rely on the subjective assessment of how satisfied people feel with the leisure that they enjoy. At the end of the day, the main challenge is to determine how an unobservable, such as leisure, can contribute to individual welfare. In this case, we are considering a double black-box. First, not everyone defines leisure in the same way and not everyone produces leisure experiences by using the same technology or the same inputs. For some people, the presence of others will be much more needed that for some other people. Some people could be much more materialistic than others. Some people could be much more efficient in the production of pleasurable experiences because of their higher education. Second, as indicated before, we know that leisure contributed to enhance the quality of life of people, but the valuation of those experiences is determined by societal norms and arrangements and by personal aspirations, past experiences and comparison effects. Next section will present the happiness or subjective well-being approach. We will introduce a brief discussion of the rationale for using this approach for economic research and for leisure research. To do so, we will present the domain approach; in this setting, leisure satisfaction will be considered a mediator between individual leisure experience and overall satisfaction or happiness. In section 3, we will discuss the relationship between leisure time and well-being. Other crucial aspects will be discussed in section 4, where we review a series of social and economic factors that are said to influence leisure enjoyment, so leisure has a high quality and contributes to a better quality of life. Particularly, we will report previous findings on the social dimension of leisure, one of the attributes that determine high quality leisure experiences. In that same section, some determinants of overall satisfaction, or of particular domain satisfaction will be discussed. Last, sections 5 and 6 will present, respectively, some conclusions and a brief overview of needed research to better understand the contribution of leisure to a better quality of life. Subjective well-being approach Traditional research on quality of life relied heavily on objective and materialistic indicators of living conditions. Actually, Gross Domestic Product has been the â€Å"champion† indicator when studying the evolution of living standards and when comparing economies (Mankiw, 2007). Under the realm of objective indicators, nearly all non market activities and many aspects of human development, such as leisure, are neglected. New studies have highlighted the superiority of including the subjective approach to the investigation of quality of life in developed and developing societies, and happiness research has become quite of a fashionable and popular topic (Layard, 2006). There is a growing interest on using the subjective well-being approach to analyze living conditions and there has been an emerging literature on social sciences. Among other reasons for that flourishing, we can highlight the following: (i) this approach offers richer insight about the quality of life, and considers other indicators of development apart from the traditional indicators; (ii) nowadays there is more information available about living conditions, opinions and perceptions of people and societies, and; (iii) with this approach it is possible to identify the major needs and problems of the population, which is useful for governments and policy makers (Frey and Stutzer, JEL 2002). Economists and other social scientists broadly define `happiness and `life satisfaction as subjective well-being. Following Diener and Seligman (2004, pp. 4) life satisfaction is defined as a global judgment of well-being based on information the person believes is relevant, while well-being includes all of the evaluations, both cognitive and affective, that people make of their lives and components of their lives. While according to some authors, the terms happiness, subjective wellbeing, well-being, satisfaction and quality of life are somewhat different and each have their own specific meaning, responses in different surveys are highly correlated (Fordyce, 1988; Frey and Stutzer, 2002b), and many analyses use them indiscriminately. In this current study these terms are used with the understanding that they have a similar connotation. The present study will use a bottom-up approach to the analysis of subjective well-being. This approach considers that overall life satisfaction is determined by what is called domain satisfaction; the evaluation of own personal situation on different dimensions of life such as: financial situation, housing conditions, health, leisure, job or education, among other dimensions. Some authors signal the mediator role of those domain satisfactions to determine overall happiness (Cummins, 1996; van Praag et al., 2003; Easterlin and Sawangfa, 2007). In what follows, we will consider that leisure satisfaction has leisure experiences as the main input; higher leisure satisfaction will contribute, in turn, to higher overall satisfaction or happiness. In order to assess the size of different influences upon happiness and satisfaction with life in general, psychologists have been using surveys since long ago, while only recently economists have recognized that there is useful information in a subjective well-being answer as an empirical approximation for the theoretical concept of utility. With the exception of the seminal work of Easterlin (1974), most research has taken place during the last two decades. The existing state of research suggests that, for many purposes, happiness or reported subjective well-being is a satisfactory empirical proxy of individual utility. From the information about the determinants of individual happiness, different situations of economic and social policies inside a country or a region can be analyzed . Frey and Stutzer (2002b) give some important reasons for economists to consider happiness research. First, happiness research can help to evaluate net effects, in terms of individual utilities, for different economic policies. Understanding the determinants of subjective well-being can thus usefully inform economic policy decisions. Second, this research also has relevance to economists because of the effect of institutional conditions such as the quality of governance and the size of social capital on individual well-being. It may also help to solve empirical puzzles that conventional economic theories find difficult to explain. For instance, using this approach it is possible to understand why for several countries since World War ll although they have raised their real income drastically, the self-reported subjective well-being of the population has not increased or has even slightly fallen. Data about happiness are collected through direct questioning via interviews or self-administered questionnaires in which individuals self-rate their happiness on a single item or on a multi-item scale. These scales offer a list of options, which are ranked according to the levels of happiness . Most studies of subjective well-being are based on some variation on the question How satisfied (or happy) are you with your life? The range of possible responses is defined over a scale that varies between datasets (one to four, one to seven, or one to ten), the lowest grades indicating a poor level of life satisfaction. The main use of happiness measures is not to compare levels in an absolute sense but rather to seek to identify the determinants of happiness. The strategy is to use the answers that people give when asked questions about how happy they feel with life. Similar questions are posed with respect to job satisfaction, health satisfaction, housing satisfaction, satisfaction with marital relation, etc. †¦, and leisure satisfaction or satisfaction with leisure time. This study of the different aspects of life is called domain satisfaction. Although this approach could have limitations, as was said by Oswald (1997, p. 1816) if the aim is to learn about what makes people tick, listening to what they say seems likely to be a natural first step. The domains-of-life literature states that life can be approached as a general construct of many specific domains, and that life satisfaction can be understood as a result from satisfaction in these domains of life (Cummins, 1996; van Praag et.al, 2003; Easterlin and Sawangfa, 2007; Rojas, 2006a, 2006b). It is evident that different domains may be distinguished. In many studies, the domains to be analyzed are determined by data availability. For instance, in the British Household Panel Survey leisure satisfaction is split up into two sub-dimensions; namely, the amount of leisure and use of the leisure time (Van Praag and Ferrer-i-Carbonell, 2007); the European Community Household Panel considers only satisfaction with leisure time , and the Latinobarà ³metro only includes satisfaction with the amount of leisure (Rojas, XXXX). Rojas (2007) affirms that the enumeration and demarcation of the domains of life are arbitrary. In addition to this, there are many possible partitions of a human life, and the selected partition depends on the researchs objectives and the available information. For example, Cummins (1996) has argued for a seven-domain partition: material well-being, health, productivity intimacy, safety, community and emotional well-being; van Praag et al. (2003) study the relationship of satisfaction in different domains of life (health, financial situation, job, housing, leisure and environment) and satisfaction with life as a whole. Rojas (2006b and 2007), on the basis of factor analysis, identified seven domains of life: health, economic, job, family, friendship, personal and community. Using information from Mexico , he showed that satisfaction in the family domain is crucial for life satisfaction. Family satisfaction includes aspects of satisfaction with ones spouse, children and with the rest of the family. Rojas also showed that the satisfaction in the health, job and personal domains is also very important for a persons happiness. Satisfaction in areas such as housing and living conditions, financial solvency and income are relatively less important for life satisfaction. Rojas (2007) found that income is an explanatory variable of relevancy for economic and labor satisfaction, but not for family satisfaction or leisure satisfaction. For that reason, it is possible to find situations where a person is satisfied with his/her life while he/she is unsatisfied economically, or where a person is unsatisfied wit h his/her life and, at the same time, his/her economic satisfaction is high (Rojas, 2008b). Empirical research has focused on different factors associated with subjective well-being and satisfaction. In agreement with psychological and sociological studies (Argyle, 1999), economic research has identified a set of personal and social characteristics associated with life satisfaction. Most studies using data from North America and European countries have found the level of reported life satisfaction to be high among those who are married (Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004b; Easterlin, 2003; Carroll, 2007; Clark et al., 2005; Ferrer-i-Carbonell and Frijters, 2004), women (Oswald, 1997; Clark, 1997), whites (Oswald, 1997; Alesina et al., 2004), the well-educated (Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004a; Frey and Stutzer, 2003; Borooah, 2005), the self-employed (Blanchflower, 2000; Blanchflower, 2004; Frey and Benz, 2003; Alesina et al., 2004), the retired (Di Tella et al., 2003), and those occupied with home duties (Di Tella et al., 2003; Borooah, 2005). The relation between an individuals age and happiness seems to be a bit more complex. Many people believe that the quality of life deteriorates with age and that old people should be unhappier than young people since the old tend to have a worse health, less income, and few are married. Nevertheless, many studies have surprisingly thought that old people report levels of happiness comparatively higher than young people, though this effect tends to be small. Frey and Stutzer (2001) have indicated four reasons that can explain this positive relationship between age and happiness: (i) the old have lower expectations and aspirations. For example, an elderly person waits to remain without work and possibly widower, so the effects of the loss will be lower on the old than on the young. (ii) They have little disparity between goals and achievements, since the eldelrlys goals are fixed closer to what reasonably they can reach. (iii) Older individuals have had more time to adjust to their life conditions, and (iv) old people have learned how to reduce the negative events of the life and how to regulate the negative affects. Besides, economists have identified a U-shape in the relationship between age and happiness (e.g. Oswald, 1997; Blanchflower and Oswald, 2004a). This implies a convex shape in the relationship of life satisfaction with age. Life satisfaction decreases with age until it reaches a minimum, increasing afterwards. For North America and European countries this minimum typically occurs in the forties (43 in Frey and Stutzer (2001) and Ferrer-i-Carbonell (2005); 46 in Peiro (2007)). Aspirations and comparisons effects also are important in relation with income and other factors affecting subjective well-being. The individuals reported subjective well-being in the present is based on a norm of what is `bad, `sufficient or `good. Such norms not only depend on the present situation, but also on what the individual has experienced in the past, on what he/she expects to experience in the future and on what other people think and do (van Praag and Ferrer-i-Carbonell, 2004). In relation with income, individual well-being does not only depend on income in absolute terms but also on the subjective perception of whether ones income is adequate to satisfy ones needs. In addition, individual income perception is subject to the individuals own situation, past and present, as well as to the income of other people. The latter reflects the importance of the relative position of individuals in society for their satisfaction with life. This is often referred to as the comparison income or relative utility effect. It is often argued that individuals adapt to new situations by changing their expectations (Easterlin, 2005; Clark et al., 2008). This implies that higher incomes are accompanied by rising expectations that lead to what is known as the hedonic treadmill (Brickman and Campbell, 1971) or hedonic adaptation (Frederick and Loewenstein, 1999). Thus, individuals strive for high incomes even if these lead only to a temporary or small increase in well-being. This ability to adapt would appear to be a ubiquitous feature of the human condition, some recent examples of adaptation in nonmonetary spheres are Lucas et al. (2003) and Lucas (2005) with respect to marriage and divorce, Wu (2001) and Oswald and Powdthavee (2006) for adaptation to illness or disability, and Lucas et al. (2004) regarding unemployment. The comparisons with different social reference groups are also an important factor that has been widely present in the analysis of two dimensions; namely, the analysis of the effect of relative income on financial satisfaction and/or satisfaction with life as a whole (McBride, 2001; Stutzer, 2004; Luttmer, 2005; Clark, Frijters and Shields, 2008) and the influence of unemployment on subjective well-being. A standard result in happiness literature is that the unemployed report significantly lower levels of subjective well-being than other labor force groups (Winkelman and Winkelman, 1998; Frey and Stutzer, 2002). Indeed, the pecuniary and the non-pecuniary costs of the unemployment are that high that adaptation is non-existent (Lucas et al., 2004) or only very moderate (Clark, 2002). Clark (2003) uses seven waves of the British Household Panel Survey to test for social norms in labor market status. In his analysis, he found that the well-being of the unemployed is the higher, the hig her the unemployment rate in a reference group (at the regional, partner, or household level). It seems that, the more unemployment becomes the norm, the less individuals are affected by it (Winkelman, 2006). Lalive and Stutzer (2004), using a different strategy, obtain the same results for information from Sweden. Social interactions could be either a negative or a positive factor. As previously mentioned, an individuals happiness depends on that individuals own relative (or positional) situation or status, and comparison with others, what would expose that individual to negative externalities in terms of peer-effects (Luttmer, 2005) in utility and/or consumption. Alpizar, Carlsson and Johansson-Stenman (2005) show that positionality matters far more for commodities as houses and cars than for vacation and insurance, but also that both absolute and relative consumption matter for each category, these are positional goods. The positive influence of social interactions may come from social relationships and other relational goods or social capital factors. For instance, Rojas (2007), Winkelman (2006), Argyle (1999), among other social scientists have found that social relationships are a major source of well-being. Although marriage is the relationship that has the most influence on happiness, there are other relationships that affect happiness, as well as health and mental health, by providing social support. Argyle (1999 p. 361) refers some studies where it was found that if all kinds of social support are combined, a social support factor is found to have a strong correlation of 0.50 with happiness. Social scientists in many countries have observed that social support or social networks (and the associated norms of reciprocity and trust (Helliwell and Putnam, 2004)) have powerful effects on the level and efficiency of production and well-being, broadly defined, and they have used the term social capital to refer to these effects (Coleman, 1988; Putnam, 2000; Woolcock and Narayan, 2000). Lately, some cross-sectional studies from both sociology and economics have shown the importance of key aspects of social capital such as trust, social contacts and membership in voluntary associations over individual well-being (Inglehart 1999; Putnam 2000; Helliwell 2003 and 2006b; Powdthavee, 2008). In Bowling Alone, Putnam (2000) suggested that people prosper in neighborhoods and societies where social capital is high, that is, where people trust one another and are mutually helpful. Putnam reviewed evidence showing that communities with high rates of volunteer activity, club membership, church membership, and social entertaining (all thought to be indirect manifestations of social capital) all had higher well-being than communities that were impoverish these characteristics. Many studies that use cross-sectional data have shown that individuals with rich networks of active social relationships, that do not include people living in the same household, tend to be happier with th eir lives (Phillips 1967; Burt 1987). Helliwell (2003) reported that well-being is high and suicide rates are low where trust in others is high, and he also found that well-being is high where memberships in organizations outside of work are at high levels. Thus, there is evidence that individuals are more likely to experience high well-being when they live in nations with high social capital than when they live in nations with low social capital, a finding that dovetails with the results of studies on individuals social interactions. Helliwell and Putnam (2004) and Powdthavee (2008) are comprehensive reviews about the importance of social capital factor over subjective well-being. Health status is a factor that can be expected to be an important determinant of life satisfaction. In the 1950s the use of concepts such as welfare, adjustment and mental health had much in common with the traditional concept about happiness (Argyle, 1991). Research on the health-related quality of life was developed in the mid 1970s by health scientists and psychologists in order to track peoples perception of their health status (Gough et al., 2007). This was mainly in response to the need for more sensitive measures to compare treatments for chronic illness and to identify the most cost-effective treatments . Good health is considered an important factor included in the capabilities and the necessary functionalities in order for an individual to face life (Deaton, 2007; Sen, 1999). Since the 1980s the state of health has been identified as an important determinant of life satisfaction, as happy people are healthier, both physically and mentally (Veenhoven, 1991; Argyle, 1999). Co nsequently, poor health, which limits an individuals ability to carry out their daily activities, reduces overall satisfaction. The literature about subjective well-being in Latin American countries is few and very recent. Graham and Pettinato (2001) were some of the first to analyze Latin American countries. Using the Latinobarà ³metro 2000, they found that Latin America is not all that different from the advanced industrial economies in relation to some of the determinants of happiness. Similar to the OECD countries, happiness has a quadratic relationship with age, initially decreasing and then increasing monotonically after 49 years of age. As in the industrial countries, being married had positive and significant effects. In contrast to the advanced economies, a significant gender effect was no found in Latin America. Also, as in the industrial countries, the coefficients for level of wealth were strong, positive, and significant in happiness. When wealth was included in the regressions, the coefficient for education level became insignificant or weakly significant, depending on the regression used. Bein g self-employed or unemployed both had significant and negative effects on happiness. When they included country-fixed effects, the coefficient on self-employment became insignificant. While being unemployed also has negative effects on happiness in the advanced industrial economies, being self-employed has positive effects. The most credible explanation is intuitive and it was given by the authors: most self-employed people in the latter are self-employed by choice, while in developing economies, many are self-employed due to the absence of more secure employment opportunities and live a precarious existence in the informal sector. Other analyses by countries have been conducted in Latin America. Among the most important, Rojas (2006b and 2007), using the domains-of-life approach in Mexico, found that people are on average, more satisfied in the family domain, while they are less satisfied in the consumption, personal and job domains. Rojas (2007) found that income is an explanatory variable of relevancy for the economic and labor satisfaction, but not for either family or leisure satisfaction. Due to that, he found a weak relationship between income and life satisfaction Gerstenbluth et al. (2007) studied the relationship between happiness and health in Argentina and Uruguay using the Latinobarà ³metro 2004. Cruz and Torres (2006), using the Encuesta de Calidad de Vida 2003, tested various happiness hypotheses among Colombians and Cid et al. (2008), using the survey called Salud, Bienestar y Envejecimiento en Amà ©rica Latina y el Caribe (SABE), explored the correlation between happiness and income in the el derly in Uruguay. To our knowledge, the previous studies conducted about Latin America have not included the effect of social capital on subjective well-being, and they have analyzed the self-employment as a homogeneous labor market status. However, when considering the specificity of the leisure domain, we should take into account that while satisfaction with other realms of life may lie upon the valuation of objective situations (such as one’s financial situation, health or housing conditions), satisfaction with leisure brings in an additional challenge as individual’s boundaries of leisure are defined by her perception of what is pleasant (Ateca-Amestoy et al., 2008). Conceptual discussion on the nature of leisure time in contemporary societies Time allocation decisions within the family: economic approaches and models. We will attach to the economic approach to human behavior by Becker (moreover, bring arguments such as those contained in a theory of social interactions). Temporal autonomy is a matter of having discretionary control over your time. Discretionary Time. A New Measure of Freedom (Goodin et al., 2005) Other approaches: we have found these relevant arguments: Veblens theory The omnivore Bourdieus distinction Putnams social capital 3.1. What is Social Capital? There is a traditional consensus that there exists three distincs traditions that conceptualize and analyze social capital. All three would be relevant for our reasoning. Pierre Bourdieu bourdieu2: who conceptualised social capital as the `actual or potential resources that an individual has at his/her disposal as a result of `a durable network of more or less institutionalised relationships of mutual acquaintance and recognition, i.e. membership in a group. Some authors point out that this definition must be viewed as part of his broader concern with developing the different types of capital in order to explain the means by which the social stratification system is preserved and the dominant class-reproduction strategy is legitimised. J.S. Coleman coleman defines it as the set of resources that inhere in family relations and in community social organisations and that are useful for the cognitive or social development of a child or young person. Social relations were viewed by Coleman to make up important `capital resources for individuals by means of processes such as setting `obligations, expectations and trustworthiness, creating channels for information, and setting norms backed by efficient sanctions. These resources may be influenced by factors such as generalised trustworthiness which ensures that obligations are met, the extent to which a person is in