Stress of unmarried motherhood Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Stress of unmarried motherhood - Essay Example If stress is left untreated, this may lead to life altering health complications that may also affect the child, thus coping with the challenges of single-parenthood and social support are of core importance. To start with, it shall be emphasized that single mothers, in this study, refers to those women who were separated, divorced, widowed, or never been married living with at least one child (minor age). The number of single-parent families, majority of which is headed by women, grew substantially since the 1960’s as a result of increasing rates of divorce and separation (Avison, Aneshensel, Scheiman, and Wheaton 73). In the most recent census in the U.S., about 84% of 13.7 million single parents are single mothers (Grall 1; Wolf n. pag.); 45% are currently divorce or separated; 34.2% have never been married; 19% are married (usually remarried); and 1.7% are widowed (Wolf). Wolf added that 79% of single mothers are employed and those who work in full-time basis are much grea ter (71.7%) compared to part-time basis workers (18.4%). In relation to poverty, 27% of single mothers live in poverty and in terms of public assistance or support, 22% receive Medicaid, 23.5% receive food stamps, 12% receive public housing or rent subsidy, and 5% receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Wolf n. pag.). In connection to stress, it is important to understand what stress is all about. According to Dr. Stoppler (1), stress, in general, is related to external (physical environment, job, relationships with others, and all situations, challenges, difficulties, and expectations occurring everyday) and internal (body’s ability to respond) factors. When a stressor comes in, our body’s rapid and automatic defense would be a â€Å"fight-or-flight--a reaction called the stress response (Smith, Segal, R., and Segal, J. n. pag.). The three components of the body involved in response to stress are: (1) the brain that immediately responds to release epinephrin e and norepinephrine, (2) the hypothalamus and pituitary gland transmitting signal to the adrenal cortex to release cortisol and other hormones, and (3) the many neural (nerve) circuits involved in the behavioral response (Stoppler 4). Though a certain level of stress can motivate an individual to perform well under pressure (Smith, et al n. pag.), however, a stress-out lifestyle is more likely an unhealthy one because it can affect the person’s eating habit that may result either to weight loss (due to lack of time to prepare healthy foods) or weight gain (to fill an emotional need and partly due to the effect of high level of cortisol during stress that stimulates fat, carbohydrate, and insulin) (Stoppler 1). Focusing on stress among single mothers, Scott (n. pag.) said that most mothers, generally, feel stress in the following areas: (1) time demands, (2) finances, (3) relationship demands, (4) protective instincts, (5) self doubt, and (6) time alone. A single mother carri es all stress in these areas with no male partner to share with, thus parenting is more burdensome to them compared to two-parent family. Studies consistently found out that single mothers have high levels of psychological distress and high rates of major depression than married mothers (Avison, et al 73). More specifically, separated or divorced mothers have higher rates of depression, dysthymia (a mood disorder),

Strategic Options Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Strategic Options - Essay Example Indeed, in marketing theory, goals set are always the higher ambitions whiles the objectives are the specific activities to take to realize the goals. So in the case of Eurofreeze, it has clearly spelt out a goal of increasing its market share and profit margins but the surest way that the company seeks to achieve this is by giving much attention to products that the company considers to be of commercial value. The above summary could be briefed in SWOT analysis for Eurofreeze. As part of the strengths of the company, it would be identified that the company presently have a very rooted knowledge in freezer technology, which is a major requirement for survival in the industry. Again, the company has a buying function with which it purchases vegetables and fruits directly. Even more, the company has successfully developed a well known branded food product. Regardless of the strengths, a number of weaknesses mitigate against the company, including the fact that its market share is prese ntly far lower than its key competitor (Adams, 2011). Again, Eurofreeze has not been able to provide the one market-leading frozen brand that its consumers wanted. In the midst of the weaknesses, there is an opportunity in the recovering global economic recession, which gives opportunities for the company to undertake foreign direct investments in markets where its major competitor does not have commanding market share. Finally, the company is faced with a number of threats including the fact that the market leader, which is Refrigor offers is a low-cost leader. Again, refrigerator space in most supermarkets in markets in the United Kingdom and other places are giving space only to their own brand of products. Lastly, the marketing strategies and plans used by Eurofreeze is relatively the same as that of competitors (Haga and Marold, 2004). Development of Scoring Criteria Based on the SWOT Analysis performed earlier, a number of criteria can be developed for scoring each option avai lable to the company so that the best option can eventually be selected. These criteria are grouped under three major themes namely suitability, acceptability and feasibility. Scooping through the SWOT analysis, some of the major criteria that can be used include the following: The grouping of the criteria according to the three themes are thus given as follows: Suitability Criteria 1: Growth and Investment: This criterion is selected as a long term strategic plan for the company towards taking advantage of its opportunities and using them according to its advantage. Without growth and investment, the company cannot utilize its opportunities of a generally improving global economy that makes foreign direct investment a lucrative venture. Criteria 2: Brand equity: Brand equity will be established over a long term basis. It is therefore relevant in pushing up the company for its long term ambition of becoming a market leader. With a brand equity, publicity on all products and services of the company will be reduced because customers would have a lot to know about the company in advance. Feasibility Criteria 3: Value adding: This criterion has been selected to overcome the weakness of the company identified as having a very low market share. With value added service and product, it is hoped that