I’m working on a business report and need a sample draft to help me understand better.
Write a 700- to 1050-word paper for your Leadership Styles Rationale . In your paper , complete the following: Restate the needed change within the organization.Analyze the various leadership styles you explored in Week 3 in the context of the organizational culture and proposed change.Justify which leadership style or approach would best support the organizational change.Discuss how this style will support sustainable organizational success. Discuss how this style integrates the organization’s mission and vision. Discuss how this style will increase value for stakeholders.
LDR 535 University of Phoenix Leadership Styles Rationale Question
Ecology of Public Administration
Ecology of Public Administration. Ecology in public administration was primarily introduced by Professor John M. Gaus, one of the early pioneers of public administration. In his introduced concepts, he emphasized that the public administration including its development as well as its activities were influenced by its setting or ecology. According to Gaus, the plans, programs, policies, and design of public administration is influenced by factors concerning the physical environment or ecology, and that any structure and living thing existing in a given area has an interrelationship with the surrounding environment. In practice, this concept means that when building a structure, an individual must plan all aspects of the construction, from the materials needed for the structure, the actual area where it will be constructed in relation to the people residing in the area and the physical environment existing. This concept also means understanding the impact of the structure to the social relationships of people in that area and what specific technologies are being used and how it influences and impacts the inhabitants of that environment. Ecology thus pertains to interrelationships of living organisms and their environment. Ecological approach to public administration thus includes elements of the environment – the place, the individuals, the physical and social technology as well as the relationships of these elements. It is essential to note that Gaus has translated ecology – the complex structure and connections with each other of living things that are in a specific area of the public administration project – into a lens by which to analyze the project’s impact. And the means by which he applied this is directed to raise awareness of ecological factors that permits administrators to respond more wisely and appropriately to the demands and challenges of the external environment of their organizations. Gaus also viewed the ecological concept in public administration as a means to devise a new and renewed institutional pattern for individuals. With such concepts, the ecological aspect of administration reflects a crucial role in understanding and directing the forceful change in public administration. A more sensitive and conscious approach to ecological factors allow the public administrators to provide a more appropriate response to challenges within and beyond their organization. If applied properly, this approach can serve as a diagnostic tool for the public administrator and can provide standards for evaluating impact on an organization. Ecology can aid the practitioner in visualizing the major elements in the administrative processes and provide a specific standard for measuring impact in an organization. For Gaus, merging public administration with the concept of ecology helps in establishing a more novel way of conducting things and is actually related to the concept of change. He looked to public administration to find some new sources of content and opportunity for public administrators to emphasize some influence on the situation in which they find themselves. He believed in applied social science, that through an ecological approach to public administration, the new and renewed institutional pattern could be devised for individuals living in an age of change. Ecology in public administration became a vital instrument for comprehending, directing, and modulating the forceful change in the public administration. Through this application, public administrator can be active in the wider ecological approach to make change in strategic management and planning of public serving organizations. This practice is clearly manifested in the management of ecosystems. The fragility of ecosystems that are threatened by construction of buildings and other public administration projects are now systematically addressed using the principles laid out by Gaus. One aspect of this situation is the dwindling of some species brought about by the disturbance of their natural habitat and ecosystems. Another aspect of this case also reflects the industries that are conceptualized and built by man and which have led to the threat of climate change. The gravity of the perceived threat of global warming has moved scientists and policymakers to recognize that sufficient measures to sustain ecosystems must be ensured by substituting the governmental jurisdiction as the major institutional level for implementation. Due to this developments, the politics as well as the policy of natural resources management are experiencing drastic transformation. The dominant aspect of resource management has been focused around property ownership, or jurisdictional domain which is mainly concepts that originated from the West. But now, resource management is also organized around the parts of the whole ecosystems such as individual resources, wildlife, or commodities (Elfin 2004, 304). Hence, there is now a more comprehensive view of managing resources in the context of building public administration projects or even structures in general. Another factor that influences public projects from the point of view of ecology is the question of sustainability. Discussing resource sustainability reflects the issue as among the most poorly understood within the ecosystem planning and management process. The ecosystem approach confronts the political process by asserting a participatory process in which all interested key players are able to participate to achieve an effective and integrated ecosystem management while recognizing the role of individuals as part of the ecosystem. (Loomis 1993, 447-48) Ecology of Public Administration
Factors Affecting Balance of Payment
assignment helper ‘An important factor which influences the Balance of Payments of a country is the exchange rate of its currency vis-a- vis other major currencies.’ Briefly explain this statement. The balance of payments (BOP) is defined by the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) as follows “The balance of payments is a record of a country’s international transactions with the rest of the world. This is equivalent to the transactions between residents of a country and non-residents. The balance of payments is divided up into the current account and investment and other capital transactions. These transactions, which are recorded by a double- entry system of book-keeping, involve goods, services, transfers, loans granted or received, market securities, foreign exchange etc. International trade in services is shown in the current account balance of payments statistics and forms part of what is known as “invisibles”. The current account balance constitutes the sole source of comparable data on international cross-border statistics on services.” (Reference: OECD, http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=150) In essence the BOP sheet is a record of all economic transactions between a country and the rest of the world. Sources of incoming funds such as exports are noted as positive and out flow of funds such as imports are recorded as negative on the sheet. The BOP consists of three components: a) Current account – This portrays the flow of goods and services (exports and imports), income and current transfers b) Capital account – This account shows the volume of capital transfers such as foreign direct investment, loans and grants, and acquisition/disposal of non-produced, non- financial assets. c) Official reserve assets – This account is a balancing item in the BOP equation which ensures the current account and capital account transactions sum up to zero. These comprise of assets held by the country’s national bank such as gold stock and convertible foreign currencies. Funds are used from this account when the total outflow of funds exceeds the total inflow of funds in the current and capital accounts. Thus if the balance in current and capital accounts is negative, its considered a deficit and if the balance is positive, it is considered as surplus. The BOP is extremely importance in today’s world as it acts as an indicator of a country’s economic position in relation to other countries. For example in developing countries, the BOP showcases the dependence of the countries on external aid from developed nations. The historical trending of the BOP acts as a valuable tool to evaluate a country’s economic prospects and also the appropriate exchange rate of its currency. Exchange Rate is “the price of one country’s currency in relation to another” (Reference: http://stats.oecd.org/glossary/detail.asp?ID=877) Exchange rates are affected the market forces of supply and demand and reflects the overall international competiveness of the country. Drivers such as inflation, economic policies, government budget surpluses/deficits, economic productivity and growth and overall foreign exchange based transactions also impact the exchange rate of a country. Among the many forces internal to a country, its perceived purchasing power is one of the main factors that contribute to flux in its exchange rate. Factors such as unemployment, inflation levels, retail sales are a few among others that affect purchasing power and thus the foreign exchange rate. Off the many forces that affect exchange rates, the most influential ones are tracked fiscally through a country’s BOP status – such as import and exports, capital flows in the form of foreign direct investments and foreign assistance/debt. The prevalent exchange rate of a country’s currency influences the exchange demand (paying for imports) and exchange offer (received for exports) which in turn impacts the external demand of exports and internal demand for imports and thus affects the Balance of Payments which consists of the trade and capital balance. For example, India received significant foreign investment between 1993-4 which ideally should have helped the Rupee appreciate but the Rupee was devalued by 24 percent and exchange rate was frozen to avoid reducing exports and keep imports at a low, in a bid to continue attracting foreign investment. Whenever a currency appreciates, it becomes more expensive for the external buyer to purchase exports and thus reduces their appetite to purchase at the time. Also internal buying power increases and domestic consumers will have an increased appetite to import. Both these export and import effects if materialized will hurt the economy if uncontrolled. This in turn affects the trade balance and hence the BOP. Foreign exchange reserves are amassed by central banks such as the Reserve Bank of India and enhances the buying power of the country which in turn affects the BOP. By controlling the exchange rate, we can enhance export and reduce imports, improving the BOP surplus which in turn assists in amassing more foreign exchange and the cycle continues. All in all we can see the foreign exchange rate of a country against other major currencies plays an important factor in influencing the Balance of Payments of a country.
Dishonesty And Stretching The Truth Sociology Essay
Tad William once said “We tell lies when we are afraid… afraid of what we don’t know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be found out about us. But every time we tell a lie, the thing that we fear grows stronger.” In relationships and marriages, dishonesty is a love buster. But sometimes honesty is worse, like the article dishonesty it says: “When a wife first learns that her husband has been unfaithful, the pain is often so great that she wishes she had been left ignorant. When a husband discovers his wife’s affair, it’s like a knife in his heart — and he wonders if it would have better not known. In fact, many marriage counselors advise clients to avoid telling spouses about past infidelity, saying that it’s too painful for people to handle. Besides, if it’s over and done with, why dredge up the sewage of the past?” (Harley, 1976) They look at it as just a mistake and want to be forgiven. People are dishonest because they believe that the others can’t handle the truth, which for most cases its true because the truth most of the time is bitter. But i think that no matter how hard the truth is you should just be straight up and honest. Mark Twain once said “If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything.” Just like Dishonesty article says: “It’s this sort of confusion that leads some of the most well-intentioned husbands and wives to lie to each other, or at least give each other false impressions. They feel that dishonesty will help them protect each other’s feelings. But what kind of a relationship is that? The lie is a wall that comes between the two partners, something hidden, a secret that cannot be mentioned, yet is right under the surface of every conversation.” (Harley, 1976) If you think about it you’re going to have to take a lie and keep adding on to it more and more and you can’t even remember what you said in the beginning so even though telling the truth is difficult it’s the easiest. With a lie you’re always going to get caught up. Just like karma- what goes around comes around. And depending on the lie you can be holding all this unnecessary weight on your shoulders and be stressing about it. A Russian proverb states “With lies you may get ahead in the world – but you can never go back.” Just like the article Dishonesty states: Dishonesty strangles compatibility. To create and sustain compatibility, you must lay your cards on the table. You must be honest about your thoughts, feelings, habits, likes, dislikes, personal history, daily activities and plans for the future. When misinformation is part of the mix, you have little hope of making successful adjustments to each other. Dishonesty not only makes solutions hard to find, but it often leaves couples ignorant of the problems themselves.” (Harley, 1976) So along with lying not only would you be feeling guilty and stress, you may even regret what you have lied about which makes it even more difficult to confess what you have lied about. A lie can take care of the present and solve what you are going through momentarily, but it does not have a good future. Bill Copeland once said: “When you stretch the truth, watch out for the snapback.” Once you have become a liar, people cannot believe you no matter how hard you try. They will immediately develop an instinct to question the words that are coming out of your mouth. For instance, we have all heard of the tale “The boy who cried wolf.” The little boy would entertain himself by tricking villagers that a wolf is attacking his flock of sheep. When they came to help him, they found out that it was a false alarm and he just wasted their time. They thought he was just a little boy that was playing around. However, when the boy was actually confronted by the wolf and cried wolf, none of the villagers believed him. In other words, the moral of the story was even when liars tell the truth, they are never believed. Some people even lie because they feel desperate, like they steal because they are desperate and in need of money. They do not know where to turn to so they see this as their only way of getting away. Also another example is academic dishonesty. Some students feel really desperate to cheat or plagiarize because they want to pass or earn a decent grade. Other People basically lie sometimes just so they can get straight to what they want, like in the movie sisters keeper, the girl who had Leukemia told her 11 year old sister to lie to her mom saying that she didn’t want to donate her kidney to her, but really it was because the girl with the Leukemia didn’t want everyone to suffer with her. So it was a lie because the daughter didn’t want to hurt her mother. Kids start learning to lie from their parents, especially when the kid is afraid of the parent. On Feb 10 2008, Po Bronson wrote an article in the New York Magazine it was a study that A doctor in a University made, this is what the article said: “For a study to assess the extent of teenage dissembling, Dr. Nancy Darling, then at Penn State University, recruited a special research team of a dozen undergraduate students, all under the age of 21. Using gift certificates for free CDs as bait, Darling’s Mod Squad persuaded high-school students to spend a few hours with them in the local pizzeria. Each student was handed a deck of 36 cards, and each card in this deck listed a topic teens sometimes lie about to their parents. Over a slice and a Coke, the teen and two researchers worked through the deck, learning what things the kid was lying to his parents about, and why. “They began the interviews saying that parents give you everything and yes, you should tell them everything,” Darling observes. By the end of the interview, the kids saw for the first time how much they were lying and how many of the family’s rules they had broken. Darling says 98 percent of the teens reported lying to their parents. Out of the 36 topics, the average teen was lying to his parents about twelve of them. The teens lied about what they spent their allowances on, and whether they’d started dating, and what clothes they put on away from the house. They lied about what movie they went to, and whom they went with. They lied about alcohol and drug use, and they lied about whether they were hanging out with friends their parents disapproved of. They lied about how they spent their afternoons while their parents were at work. They lied about whether chaperones were in attendance at a party or whether they rode in cars driven by drunken teens. Most parents hear their child lie and assume he’s too young to understand what lies are or that lying’s wrong. They presume their child will stop when he gets older and learns those distinctions. Talwar has found the opposite to be true-kids who grasp early the nuances between lies and truth use this knowledge to their advantage, making them more prone to lie when given the chance. Although we think of truthfulness as a young child’s paramount virtue, it turns out that lying is the more advanced skill. A child who is going to lie must recognize the truth, intellectually conceive of an alternate reality, and be able to convincingly sell that new reality to someone else. Therefore, lying demands both advanced cognitive development and social skills that honesty simply doesn’t require. “It’s a developmental milestone,” Talwar has concluded.” (Bronson, 2008) Basically kids learn how to lie from fear. One lie that we will never stop having is, lying to ourselves. Lying to yourself maybe to build some confidence, or even maybe to understand something. The article The Human Thing to Do: Lying to Yourself by Vanessa Gilbert says: As humans, we perform a lot of acts we wish we had never done, and we spend a lot of our time on earth regretting what has already been done, something we can’t change. Whether it was that bad breakup, or smoking for twenty years, or even wishing we would have gone out and exercised on those Sunday mornings, we all worry about them and we all lie to ourselves to pretend that it wasn’t our fault, and that we couldn’t have prevented it anymore than what we did. In fact, it seems we lie to ourselves so much we can’t piece the truth apart from the false things we have told ourselves for months on end. If there is one fact I have learned in my thirteen years of life, it is that everything in this world is corrupt in one way or another. That certain aspect, religion, club, organization, or mindset didn’t even start out pure because it was most likely made by humans, who are dirty, selfish, and continually seeking the solace they find in having a solution for everything. I guess you could say that lying to yourself has always been something we have done. You can’t blame this one on popular culture, teenagers, or the failing economy. Humans have lived this way for thousands and thousands of years, and we’ve made it this far thinking the same exact way. Is it okay to be delusional and far from the truth? Is it worth knowing the truth just because it is the truth? Furthermore, would we be better off if we were up front with each other and ourselves? It may hurt to face the truth in the beginning, but in the long run, you are guaranteed to be happy. You will be happy with yourself, with the people you love, and with the cold, hard truth, and nothing else. In the process of opening your eyes, you see a lot more than just what’s around you. You see what you missed, what is real, and what is to look forward to. Not everything that is true is harsh. If we do not come to realize what is real, we will continue to be let down, and we will always make the same mistakes. All our energy will all be put into something that is not helping us any. We will neither advance nor go backward. Instead of staying stagnate, why not move forward?” (Gilbert, 2009) In conclusion, dishonesty isn’t the best thing, and also sometimes it isn’t the worse thing. Society is filled with liars and dishonest people. But there are also people that had only told a few lies. Baltasar Gracian once said “A single lie destroys a whole reputation for integrity”. A single lie might just ruin one’s whole life. So one must watch out and think before talking or doing, so no one can get into lies. Resources: Harley, Dr. “Dishonesty.” Marriage Builders ® – Successful Marriage Advice. 1 Jan. 1976. Web. 30 July 2010. . Bronson, Po. “Are Kids Copying Their Parents When They Lie? — New York Magazine.” New York Magazine — NYC Guide to Restaurants, Fashion, Nightlife, Shopping, Politics, Movies. 10 Feb. 2008. Web. 31 July 2010. . Gilbert, Vanessa. “The Human Thing to Do: Lying to Yourself – DivineCaroline.” DivineCaroline: Relationships, Health, Home, Style, Parenting, and Community for Women – DivineCaroline. 07 June 2009. Web. 30 July 2010. .
London Clubbers Youth
London Clubbers: A definitive subculture of modern youth There has been some controversy among subculture theorists that the group of individuals known as “ravers” or “clubbers” are not distinct enough in their identity both as a group of people and as individuals to warrant subculture interest. However unlike studies in the United States of America, Canada and some European urban centres, research on British clubbers indicate that there is a very real and defined cultural group that exists among clubbers, that because it is not found in any other group or mainstream societal youth, can be considered a subculture by process of elimination rather than any other critical discourse. This paper will look at what is considered a theoretical basis for current youth culture, analysing in particular the work of Sarah Thornton among others, to determine if the data for this study, secured through a single interview with an established clubber, can provide evidence that the clubbers do exist as a youth subculture. After an extensive discussion of Thornton’s theories in particular the conclusion of this research will show that London Clubbers do form a distinct subculture within the larger “youth” dynamic and Londoners overall. Literature Review Sarah Thornton (1995) described “club culture” as a subculture that involved youths who frequented raves and dance clubs from the late 1980s to the mid 1990s. She noted in her work that the previous two decades has seen the evolution of a number of youth subcultures, arising from a rebellion against the political and social framework of a capitalist nation. Some of these more evident subcultures included the mods, skinheads, and punk-rockers (punks). The dominating identifying marks of these subcultures included the way the members dressed, acted, their taste in music and their drug preferences. Social theorists of the day claimed that the youths were showing a resistance against capitalism itself rather than more social factors such as parental control, educational hierarchy and authority and the law. Thornton (1995) wrote in her study that during the 1980s and 1990s it became more difficult to identify individual subcultures among young people. There were a number of new and different trends that impacted clothing, socialising and drug usage for the youth during this time, making any clear ideation of a dominant sub culture virtually impossible. Thornton felt that these uprisings were more influenced by music and fashion trends rather than any political ideology. Wilson (2002) based his Canadian study on the club culture model that came out of Britain. At the time of his research there was very little empirical research conducted on what was known as the “rave sub-culture” in Canada. Wilson identified this group of young Canadians as “a middle class culture of youth renowned for amphetamine drug use; an interest in computer generated music known as ‘Techno’ and attendance at all night rave dance parties” (Wilson, 2002, 373). The evidence of the Canadian version of the club subculture was identified initially by media reports on the exploits of youths who seemed determined to shorten their life span by fuelling their all night dance parties with speed and similar drugs (Blanchfield, 1996). The original model for this particular subculture was based on previous research conducted in the American cities of New York, Chicago and Detroit in the 1970s and in Britain among the nightclub venues of London, Birmingham and Liverpool during the same time period (Brake, 1985). The British clubbers have been the subject of some notable studies that distinguished them more as a subculture rather than a passing teenage trend. Redhead (1997) and Reynolds (1997) both viewed the subgroup as “late century – pro technology, pleasure seeking, subtly resistant and/or non-oppositional” but as this differed from traditional definitions as indicated by Thornton (1995) above there was some dispute as to whether or not the club culture as such was categorically different enough from other groups identified through clothes and music tastes alone. The main issue within the definition was centralised around the concept of “resistance” and the fact that many other quasi sub-cultural youth groups such as the punks and skinheads operated more on the fringe of mainstream society in contrast to clubbers, which were more “mainstream” in many ways. For example many of the clubbers were slightly older than in other groups; they were often gainfully employed and they functioned enough as individuals to party in public clubs and venues rather than private or hidden venues (for more details see Hall and Jefferson, 1976 compared with Tanner, 1996). The two key schools of thought of the rave subculture in Britain stem from McRobbie (1987) and Redhead (1997). McRobbie’s (1987) views are considered optimistic about the youth in the 1990s; those individuals who are seeking simple pleasures as a “symbolic escape from the social tensions of their times” (Wilson, 2002, 375). McRobbie wrote later that if “we deconstruct the notion of resistance by removing its metapolitical status…and reinsert it at a more mundane micrological level of everyday practices…then it becomes possible to see the sustaining, publicizing and extending of the subcultural enterprise” (1994, 162). Redhead (1997) on the other hand was a lot more pessimistic. He claimed that the youth culture itself was characterized by a “loss of meaning” that was caused in part by the lack of shock value unusual clothing and behaviour tastes seemed to garner from mainstream “oldies”. In fact in 1990 Redhead claimed that “because shock is now mundane, redundant and unoriginal and nostalgia was permeating the current youth of the time” that the very end of youth culture was in evident because of the lack of resistance he felt existed between the club subculture and mainstream society and youth (Redhead, 1990). Another researcher, Muggleton, (2000) went even further and claimed that the club subculture could not be defined as a subculture because the philosophy of the individuals involved had dissolved the distinctions between mainstream society and prominent Marxist theories that underlined many of the youth subcultures of the 1970s and 1980s. Given this apparent discord among theorists the main focus of this study will be as to whether or not the London Clubbing scene and the people that frequent it can be considered resistant to mainstream society, thereby cementing the definition of sub cultures as it pertains to the clubbing youths. Methodology To study this issue of resistance an interview was taken with a well-known “Clubber” who agreed to talk to me provided his identity was kept confidential. Charlie* had been a member of the London clubber scene for more than five years and he was the first to admit that he was considered an “oldie” among many of the core group of clubbers that moved around London. In his early 20’s Charlie said that it was harder now for him to “party the way I used to”. I asked whether or not this might have been because of the drug use that pervades the clubbing scene. Charlie admitted to using amphetamines and Ecstasy – “how else could I stay awake all night and still get to work by ten am the next day” he laughed. He did note in passing that his drug use now was heavier than it had been when he first entered the clubbing scene, but “that’s because I got heavier and the drugs have less effect than they did.” Given that Charlie was of slim stature I considered this statement more of an excuse rather than a valid reason for drug taking. When I asked Charlie “why” clubbers act the way they do, his first response was to say “why not?” When he understood that I wasn’t trying to belittle him in any way but was genuinely curious he thought about it a bit more. “You know” he said, “how many other places can you go where virtually everyone around you is your friend; drugs are plentiful, the music is so loud you can’t hear yourself think and you don’t have to think about anything at all? Can you imagine a better form of escapism?” I then asked Charlie about the concept of “resistance” and again I had made him laugh. “Who is there to be resistant too? The police or noise control? Oldies? If we were making a statement as a group then the only thing we would be saying is ‘what is wrong with a little party’”? But what about political resistance? After explaining to Charlie what I meant about a form of political resistance he had trouble answering the query. From Charlie’s comments there was an immediate element of resistance to mainstream society in that the members of the group, when in party mode, were reluctant to stop, but political resistance in the sense described by Thornton where new ideas for society were created and implemented was not as evident. Charlie mentioned that, whether it was openly acknowledged or not participation in the club culture was limited and finite. Sooner or later the young people grew up – they had families and careers and they left the club culture behind. A few participants died through drug overdoses, but this was not as common as the media made out, but as a rule the timelessness and escapism evident among the culture faithful was perhaps more vehement because time eventually made membership in this subculture impossible. Discussion Thornton’s (1995) work perhaps provides at first glance the most effective subcultural model to use when discussing the London clubbers. She describes a subculture as a group that is based on shared interests or tastes, most commonly in clothes or music. She claims that there is a slim difference between subcultural groups and artistic or pop groups, but that the main problem with current subcultures like clubbing was not that they were resistant to the mainstream, but that they wanted to remain distinctly different in an environment where individuality was accepted. She claims that the one thing a subculture had to avoid was to work in conjunction with the media, but if this relationship was established the subculture ceased to exist. Her later discussion noted about clubbers in particular that “…[they] are fundamentally about fantasy, where play and work do not intersect…” and went on to say “It is rude to puncture the bubble of an institution where fantasies of identity are a key pleasure” (Thornton, 1995, 91). Thornton (1995) outlined three main classifications that are traditionally used to consider mainstream versus alternative groups in traditional subculture theory: Dominant culture, bourgeois ideology vs. subculture, deviant guard Mass culture and commercial ideology vs. student culture, educated vanguard, and Dominant culture, bourgeois ideology vs. student culture, educated vanguard. While these classifications seem self evident Thornton (1995) disputes their effectiveness when considering a group like the London clubbers. She believes that clubbers are more of a mainstream group that have been nurtured by the media into a ‘quasi subculture” that is typified more by the drugs the youths use and the venues they use rather than any philosophy of resistance or rebelling against the norm. Thornton (1995) believes that youth subcultures do not become a subculture until the media portrays them as such, and that this generally only happens when one aspect of the youth behaviour appears against the mainstream. She cites drug usage as the most popular media tool that is used to identify subcultures that before this particular recognition did not exist with any political sense. She wrote, “While subcultural studies have tended to argue that youth subcultures are subversive until the very moment they are represented by the mass media…it is argued that these kinds of taste cultures (not to be confused with activist organizations) become politically relevant only when they are framed as such. In other words, derogatory media coverage is not the verdict but the essence of their resistance” (Thornton, 1995, 137). It would be very hard to distance media commentary with subcultural definition as most aspects of our lives, mainstream or alternative, are influenced by various forms of media. This would lead the researcher to suggest that any form of subculture, particularly among adolescents, could only be identified and defined by the media exposure they garner as they interact with mainstream society. Club culture is inexplicably linked with a drug culture, and particular tastes in music which would tend to support Thornton’s (1995) ideas that clubbers are more a “taste culture” than a subculture. Thinking back to my interview with Charlie this researcher did wonder whether Thornton was strictly accurate. Thornton’s (1995) ideas about club culture operating as a buffer against getting old, not in a chronological sense, but in a staid and socially acceptable sense, does make sense. Charlie’s comments about the sheer escapism of a night in a club would suggest that these people are not thinking, as they take their drugs and blow out their ears with loud music, of their jobs, or their need to conform to a socially acceptable model of existence. But Thornton’s ideas about mainstream society, totally relevant in the mid 1990s, may not have the same impact on our mainstream society today. As a society we are much more open to new ideas, non-conformity, alternative lifestyles. Our family units have changed in that the two adults and two point five children are no longer the norm – a mainstream family is just as likely to consist of a single parent with any number of children, two same sex parents with children, and even extended and blended family units. The business environment has changed and now many young graduates are changing jobs every couple of years so as to move faster up the managerial chain. There is an emphasis on fast lives; attainment of financial security, and seeing young people playing as hard as they work is not an unusual sight. But do these changes in the mainstream have any bearing on the concept of resistance against the norm? A subculture needs its own identity, but is that identity, as suggested by Thornton, devalued if it is framed in part by media interpretation of the groups’ activities. Can we as theorists totally discount the influence of the subcultural group on its members simply because they feature in the media, either positively or negatively, on a regular basis? This researchers’ discussion with Charlie suggested that there is a number of different individual factors that make up the clubber identity. Not only do these people like to visit the same places, dress in a similar fashion, enjoy the same loud music and take the same drugs, they have chosen this “club” for the want of a better word, because in a political or social sense it is a reflection of the needs of the individual. These needs are based on part on escapism, but there is also a sense of belonging that pervades the clubbers this researcher observed. It can be argued that having the need to belong is in itself a form of resistance against the norm because it implies by sheer existence that some people (in this case mainstreamers) do not belong. Simply because the sense of belonging in this particular subculture is not based on gender, socio-economic status, culture, ethnicity or religious belief, does not imply that a sense of belonging is no less necessary, and can be considered in itself a form of elitism equal to any other form of youth culture evident in history. So are our London clubbers a subculture, a taste culture, or simply a group of people out for a night on the town? The answer to that would lay in the perceptions of the reader. Thornton (1995) thinks that the clubbers are a taste culture rather than a subculture because of the groups’ rather inane (and almost ordinary) activities. Redhead (1997) and Muggleton (2000) don’t see clubbers as a subculture because they are not overtly politically or socially resistant to the mainstream. But after interviewing Charlie this researcher tends to disagree. The evidence presented in this paper shows that there are probably far more intangible elements that make up a subculture than has been considered in modern society. There is more to the London club scene that the needs of individuals to meet up, take drugs and party the night away. There is a sense of belonging that is as important to the youth of today, as in any other demographical grouping. And in this researchers opinion that it is this need to belong, and to escape life for just a short time, that does set the clubbers aside from their mainstream peers, to the point where they can be considered a subcultural group in London at least. It is just our definition of the term subculture itself could do with expanding to include the pervasion of media forms in context with the groups other activities. Bibliography Blanchfield, Mike. 1996 28 September. “Police Seize Potentially Fatal Drug – Versions of Ecstasy Found in Ottawa,” Ottawa Citizen, p. C1. Brake, Michael. 1985. Comparative Youth Cultures. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Hall, Stuart and Tony Jefferson, (editors). 1976. Resistance Through Rituals: Youth Sub-Cultures in Post-War Britain. London: Hutchison McRobbie, Angela. 1987. “Settling Accounts with Subcultures: A Feminist Critique.” In Bennett, T. Martin, G. Mercer, C.