Reseach Paper is Analysis of the Banking Industry in Hong Kong

Strategy Analysis

This paper is an analysis of the Banking Industry in Hong Kong. It discusses the competitiveness of this industry and the critical issues affecting its operation both in the national and the international arena.

Introduction

The Banking Industry in Hong Kong is among the leading international financial centers in the Asia Pacific region and the world. It is a market friendly industry with a sound tax system and regulatory framework. The openness to foreign competition and international practices also contributes to the qualities of the industry. In fact, Hong Kong is ninth among the largest international banking centers in the world when it comes to external transactions. More than 100 international insurance companies prefer Hong Kong and seventy six of the world’s top 100 banks also selected the country as the best place to do business in Asia (Ramsay, 2002). Generally, the Banking Sector has remained to be attractive for the following factors:

• Full Convertibility of the Hong Kong dollar
• Relative Simplicity  and Less complexity of business acquisition in Hong Kong
• Minimum Regulatory Interference from the Government
• Soundness of the Tax System and Regulatory Framework
• The absence of competition legislation and the openness to international practices

 

Macro Analysis

Hong Kong’s Business Environment has been economically successful since the Second World War. The Gross Domestic Product has consistently grown and envied by most of the developed and developing systems. The rate of unemployment is at low level while the demand for employment is stable (Ash et al, 2002, p.14). The population has experienced a huge improvement in their standard of living which is often cited as a significant factor for the high level of social stability.

The civil service is considered to be the most efficient and non corrupt throughout Asia with the citizens being mostly law abiding. Various political parties support the wide capitalist ethic which dominates the country’s thinking. Trade unions are not very powerful forces and those that existed are mostly moderate and accommodating. The business elite are predominantly Hong Kong Chinese. They favor the tax system, minimal interference of the government and the system focused on making profit.

Furthermore, government policies implement a non interventionism policy which is favored by many businesses. The Basic Law in Hong Kong also supports a largely capitalist system. Much of the constitution for Hong Kong is based on guaranteeing its autonomy from the interference of China. It also states that profit, low taxes, low levels of government intervention and the freedom to trade with are guaranteed (Ash et al, 2002, p.15). 

Hong Kong was named by the Heritage Foundation as the “world’s freest economy” attributing its success from its willingness to transform and embrace the forces of globalization. However, its position as a one time center for diverse economic activities has been left only on the finance and service industries. In the wake of the Asian financial crisis, the country realized the difficulty of being a financial center. Like Malaysia, money-men in Hong Kong discovered the vulnerability of their currency reserves and capital investments ( 2002). Its claims to be a world class financial center were in serious threat.

Also, mainland China is fast becoming adept in many services which Hong Kong offers. Some analyst claims that Hong Kong will only have a lead time of 10 years before China can offer more attractive option. Primarily, the reduction in business prospects following the Asian financial crisis is due to the high operating costs. The living costs in Hong Kong are higher than anywhere in the United States. It is ranked as the fourth most expensive city in the world (2002).

In March 2001, a London-based Hong Kong bank shifted about 1,000 of its jobs to Guangzhou in China until the next three years. This brought shocks to the entire financial service sector (2002). The financial services though asserted that the two cities, Shanghai and Hong Kong are likely to complement each other rather than compete. While retaining its confidence in the financial sector, the city also continues to strive for high quality and potential for growth. In fact, there were efforts to improve the infrastructure of the financial sector through reform and increase in the depth and breadth of the market. There were also reviews undertaken on the debt issuing mechanisms and the simplification of the procedures. The industry undergone liberalization and reform with the final phases of the rate deregulation expected to be completed by 2014 (Ramsay, 2002).

Another critical problem of Hong Kong banking industry is the shortage of qualified and high skilled human resources. Despite its high tech image, Hong Kong lacks quality professionals to back it up. Sydney which has shown a promise in the financial sector has a clear advantage to Hong Kong in terms of its high skilled workforce Ramsay, 2002). The key strength that moves Australia is the strong supply of skilled workers. By the end of the day the up front cost is still embedded in the workforce despite the favorable tax system. Businesses are less likely to make a profit to be taxed on as long as this problem remains.

The industry must also consider the changing demands of the customers and the need to produce new products, better channels and more responsive services. The change in technology helps various financial institutions to introduce and manage new products and services. There is the growing trend towards information technology in the critical factors of the competition such as costs, service quality and price.

Information Technology is an aspect of the industry which is considered to be critical. It helps improve the quality and the value added to the products and services. However, the cause of IT systems is too huge to be afforded. Banks can share the costs associated with this through merging with other companies. The past decade has shown an increase in this kind of investment in Hong Kong and is expected that more overseas companies will invest in the country.

PESTLE Analysis

Political Factors

• Policy of Non Interventionism
• Autonomy from People’s Republic of China

Economic Factors

• Increased in the GDP
• Sound tax system
• Low unemployment rate and buoyant demand in employment
• High Operating Costs

Social Factors

• Entrepreneurial Drive of the people
• High Level of Social Stability
• Increase in the Standard of Living
• Shortage in Qualified Human Resources

Technological Factors

• High Technology Projects
• The use of Information Technology in various aspects of the industry 

Legal Factors

• Minimum government intervention
• Sound legal and regulatory framework
• Liberalization and reform in the financial infrastructure

 

 

Five Forces Analysis

            In any industry, the rules of competition are governed by five competitive forces. These forces determine the ability of the industry to become more attractive than others.

Potential Entrants

            Potential entrants enjoy the simple and less complex way of acquiring business in Hong Kong. The financial industry being a premier center has been a market friendly and open market for competitors. This is proven by the number of international financial services operating in the country

Competitive Rivalry

Towards the end of 1999, there are around 156 licensed banks and 288 financial institutions in the country making it the highest in the world. Seventy six of the 100 largest banks in the world operate in Hong Kong. More than 100 international insurance companies prefer Hong Kong and seventy six of the world’s top 100 banks also selected the country as the best place to do business in Asia.

Substitutes

The customers’ transfer from small and medium sized banks to more reputable institutions such as the Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC), Citibank and Standard Chartered Bank.

Bargaining power of Buyers

Customers’ demands are changing and requiring the industry tom produce new products, better channels and more responsive services. The financial sector is compelled to follow the lead of other industries in improving their service standards.

Bargaining power of Suppliers

            Hong Kong is suffering from the shortage of qualified human resources. The gap is filled through imports from Mainland China.

Of the abovementioned forces, the degree of rivalry is the most obvious in the banking industry. The number of licensed banks and financial institutions operating in the country indicates the stiff competition in the financial sector. Also, the openness has resulted to fewer barriers for foreign investors and new entrants. In this case, the market becomes more accessible to new entrants which in turn increase the degree of rivalry. As a matter of fact more than 50% of the largest banks in the world already have their operations in the country. Banks compete rigorously in terms of prices, customer convenience and their reputation.

Evaluation of Findings

            The Banking Industry retains its position as the premier financial centers in the world. The characteristics of the market and the business environment are the primary reasons why this sector is attractive to foreign investors. However, it is susceptible to competition from countries such as China, Singapore and Sydney. China for one is catching up by providing the services which Hong Kong offers.

The relatively lower operating costs in China provide more alternatives for businesses. In addition to this, the shortage in the human resources is filled through imports from mainland China. The industry and the whole country in general lacks with qualified professionals. This weak area of Hong Kong is considered to be the key strength of Sydney, a promising financial center. These concerns affect the ability of the banking industry to maintain and strengthen its position in the international financial sector.

As time progresses, the environment in the financial services will get tougher particularly in the international arena. Hong Kong being the leading center has the most to lose. In order to maintain its position, the infrastructures of the financial sector must be reformed and increased in scope. The government must take the necessary measure to simplify the procedures relating to debt issuing mechanisms.

Lastly, the Asian economic crisis has changed the competitive landscape of the banking sector. Since 1997, the licensed banks are reduced by about 17 %. As the customers worry about the stability of financial institutions during the crisis, they have transferred to more reputable institutions such as the HSBC, Citibank and Standard Chartered Bank (Li et al, 2000). With this, small and medium sized banks find it hard to survive the competition. Even with the recovery of the economy, there remains to be a weak demand for domestic credits. As a result, banks need to write off bad loans, improve services and invest in the development of products, technology and skills to compete with more established banks. Generally, the banking industry has undergone rapid changes. Among the factors influencing competition are technology advancements, regulatory requirements, high skilled work force and quality products and services. This intense competition can be survived by the banks by improving the quality of their services.

Conclusion

Hong Kong’s openness to foreign competition and international practices has paved the way for greater opportunities particularly in the banking sector. Foreign investors favor the clarity of policies, financial reforms and liberalization in the industry. Even so banking industry must focus on its weak areas to maintain its position and remain competitive in the international scene.

Among the global competitors of Hong Kong are Singapore, China and Sydney. Though the Hong Kong banking industry has marked its position in the international scene, it must strengthen its weak point to remain attractive for investors. High skilled workers are clearly the disadvantage of Hong Kong from its foreign rivals.

Aside from this, there is also the high operating costs which reduces the business prospects. Ultimately, the ability to satisfy the needs of the customers will determine the competitiveness of the industry and every bank participating in it. The industry can move into a more competitive landscape by improving the quality of its services and adopting technological advancements. The reform and liberalization of the financial structures is also a viable option.

Recommendations

• The reduction of operating costs will help the industry to regain business prospects it has lost. In 2001, a London based bank shifted its jobs to China. This illustrates the tendency of financial investors to transfer their operation in countries with fewer costs
• The lack and shortage of highly skilled professional has been a critical problem. Other financial centers have taken advantage of this weak area such as Sydney. The government must  implement measures to improve the quality of education and produce qualified professionals
• The increase in competition also requires improvement in the service standards. Banks and financial institutions must continue to produce products, services and better channels to meet the changing demands of the customers. They must  focus on the particular area of ‘service quality’ and ‘customer care’
• Existing employees must be trained continuously to provide the services which the customers want. The industry must be attentive in providing the needs of the customers in order to attract and retain them. They can implement initiatives to improve the quality of performance among their employees.
• Technology advancements must be used to facilitate new products and services. Information technology must be utilized to change the significant aspects of competition which includes costs, price and quality of services.
• Banks can resort to Mergers for significant savings in adopting information technology. Financial institutions must compete in the changing environment through their IT systems. The integration of IT can be done though mergers

Strategic Management Process: Ocean Park Hong Kong

Strategic Management Process: Ocean Park Hong Kong

Introduction

Ocean Park is considered as a major attraction in Hong Kong, the luminous pearl of the Orient and known as the financial center of Southeast China. It is located on the south end of Hong Kong Island. The larger two sections are located on the headlands of Mount Nanlang, while the smaller section is located in the Huang Zhu Keng Valley lowlands. It is considered as one of the largest ocean in the world, having an area of 170 miles (2008).

Organizations change and organizations compete for the same resource, competencies as well as customers. It is the cruel reality that must not be neglected by any management, thus the strategy as well as strategic management must not be neglected as a vital integral part of what managers do (2002).

This paper will focus on the strategic management process of the Ocean Park of Hong Kong towards their foreigner or tourists customers. It will first tackle the details about the Ocean Park. Second, it will analyze the external environment such as the economic and culture aspect that can affect the relationship of the organization to their possible foreign customers or tourists. Furthermore, it will focus on the internal environment of the organization such as its core competency, together with its strengths and weaknesses.

Ocean Park Hong Kong

            Ocean Park Hong Kong is considered as one of the most important amusement park in Hong Kong, and even in the world. Opened in January 1977 as the country’s unique local park with the heritage of delivering family, fun and fond memories, it was chosen by the citizens of the country as their number 1 favorite scenic spot in the country in 2005 ( 2007). It was also ranked by  on June 1, 2006 as the 7th among the top ten most popular amusement parks in the world ( 2007).

Ocean Park combines the elements of entertainment, education and conservation in their services. It is consists of six main areas which are: Lowland Gardens, Kid’s World, Marine Land, Headland Rides, Adventure Land and Bird Paradise (    2007). Furthermore, provides all of its guests with memorable education, while inspiring life long learning and conservation involvement. It also focuses on maintaining a healthy financial status, while offering the guests a diverse range of activities at competitive prices. It exists for the benefits of the public and strives in order to deliver the highest standard of safety, animal care, products as well as guest service ( 2008).

            The Ocean Park of Hong Kong is part of the growing global industry of amusement and theme park in the world, as well as part of the tourism industry. The organization is focuses in global market, and taking advantage of the improving tourism industry of the country, targeting their tourists, regardless of their age. The main goal of Hong Kong Ocean Park is to be the world leader in providing excellent guest experiences in a theme park environment that connects people with the nature ( 2008).

The park is currently undergoing a massive expansion to be finished in 2010. However, there will no rides to be closed during the said period (2008).

 

 

External Environments of Ocean Park

 

PEST Analysis

 

 

 

Industry Analysis

 

Competitor Analysis

 

 

 

 

A Literature Review on Accounting Treatment on Employee Stock Option

Accounting Treatment on Employee Stock Option

 

This tract provides a concise assessment of the employee stock options and the significance of the accounting treatment including its procedures and latest alterations.  It overtly deem the vesting period, the possibility of employees leaving the company during the life of the option, the inability of employees to trade their options, and dilution issues based on the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).  This paper will also establish the pros and cons in having stock options as employees’ incentives as well as suggested methods in calculating the value of stock options.

 

1.0       Employee Stock Options

A stock option is offered by corporations to its employees as incentives giving them a privilege to an employee to purchase a stock of the company at a specified duration of time and at a specified price (Short, 2002). 

            To easily comprehend the subject and for the sake of certainty, the term options pertains to the options issued by the company on its own stock.  There is a vesting period of during which the options cannot be exercised.  Fundamental rules apply that when an employee leave their jobs (voluntarily or involuntarily) during the vesting period, they automatically forfeit their unvested options, however, if the employee leaves after the vesting period, they forfeit options that are out of the money and they have to exercise vested options that are in the money immediately.  Employees are prohibited to sell their employee stock options.  They must exercise the options and sell the underlying shares in order to realize a cash benefit or diversify their portfolios. And as for the company, once options are exercised, they will be required to issue a new and reformed Treasury Stock (Hull & White, 2003).

 

2.0       Accounting Treatment

One issue in expensing stock options concerns the timing of the recognition of the expense.  Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Section 123 favors recognizing the expense on the grant date. The company can choose to make an estimate of the options that will not vest and reduce the amount of the expense accordingly. Alternatively, it can calculate the expense on the assumption that all options will vest and later reverse the expense for those that do not.

In ED 2 the International Accounting Standards Board proposes that the value of the options be calculated on the grant date. If there is no vesting period, the expense is recognized immediately. If there is a vesting period, the expense is recognized year by year during the vesting period as the employees provide service for the company. FASB 123 regards employee stock options as akin to compensation that is almost certain to be received by the employee. IASB's ED 2 regards them as payment for services performed for the company by the employee during the vesting period.

FASB 123's interpretation of the nature of employee stock options is closer to reality. The grant date is the point in time when the company creates a contingent claim against its assets. Few employees regard employee stock options as payment for services provided during the vesting period. It also worth noting that, although the company usually has the option of changing an employee's regular compensation during the vesting period, it does not have the option of adjusting the terms of employee stock options during this period. In our view the vesting period in employee stock options is like the lockout period that is a feature of many over-the-counter derivatives contracts. The vesting period can be viewed as providing another dimension to the contingency in an employee stock option. The employee's ultimate payoff is contingent on how well the stock performs and on remaining employed. The same principles should be used in dealing with all contingencies.

Many of the debates concerning executive stock options center on whether they are liabilities of the company or equity claims against the company. The reality is that they are neither. Traditionally accountants have classified claims against a company as debt or equity. With the advent of derivatives markets the nature of the claims that can been outstanding against a company have become considerably more complex.

 

3.0       Use of Stock Options in Canada

Following an initiative decided during the 2001 annual meeting of OECD National Accounts Expert, Canada, being one of the non-European members implements the new accounting treatment for stock options for employees. The value of stock options in Canada, when exercised has been included up to taxation year 1999, as taxable benefits in the tax statement, called T4, which is submitted by employers to employees.  The individual was also taxed on the capital gains, if any, upon the later disposition of the shares.  The budget as of February 28, 2000 introduced an amendment to the Income Act to modify the way in which stock option are taxed.  This proposal allows employees to defer unrealized gains from exercising stock options for publicly listed shares until the disposition of the shares.  However, there is an annual limit of $100,000 subject to deferral.  At present, under the Canadian business accounting principles, companies are not obliged to account for the value of equity remuneration in profit; thus, their reported profits are overstated.  Following the budget change of 2000, the employer will calculate a benefit as was done in the past but now divided into two parts, one called stock option benefit the other deferred stock benefit.   The deferred stock option benefit is not taxed until the disposition of the shares but the stock option benefit is taxable in the year it is reported (Lequiler, 2002).

3.1       For the compensational treatment, the recording in the Canadian System of National Accounts is driven by available data, based on T4 information.  Gains from stock option are exercised and the value is calculated as the difference between market value and exercise price.  The new system introduced in February 2000 did not changed Statistics Canada estimation method:  both stock option benefit and deferred stock option benefit are included in labor compensation, even though the entire amount is not taxed.  Sources for labor compensation are the T4 returns for the annual benchmarks.  Monthly and quarterly estimates are built from the monthly establishments Survey of Earnings, Payroll, Hours (SEPH), which do not contain information on stock options.  On the other hand, quarterly series are projected from the latest annual benchmarks of labor compensation and the corporations keep an eye on media reports to get hints of any major developments on stock options.

3.2       With regards to treatment on profits, the entire amount is expensed in the national accounts against the income.  Profits are estimated from quarterly corporations survey and annual corporations returns to Canada Customs and Revenue Agency.  These estimates are further benchmarked to the estimates of operating surplus derived from annual Input-Output tables.

           

4.0       Calculation of the Employee Stock Options Value Employers today are focusing increasing attention on the issue of how to value the options they grant to employees. Many simply want to know the value of what they are offering the employees. In addition, employers are moving more than ever toward expensing of the options they grant for earnings purposes – a practice that requires the employer to determine an accurate value of the granted options. Companies also need accurate option values to comply with FASB rules even if they do not expense the fair value but merely mention the values in footnotes (Olagues, 2002) Employees, too, want to know the value of their stock options, whether it is for purposes of evaluating an employment offer, understanding the significance of a new option award, or simply to value their options for investment management purposes. For employers and employees alike, then, the question would be about what method should be used to determine the value of employee stock options.

4.1     Black Scholes

Black Scholes, created in 1973 by Myron Scholes and Fischer Black, are mathematical models that give theoretical prices for a particular listed exchange-traded option at any particular time. These models incorporate such variables as the stock price, the exercise price, the expiration date of the option, the expected volatility, any dividends and the interest rate to produce theoretical values for listed stock options.   These methods however are not guaranteed of 100% accuracy for some traders believe that like other methods, it has its own share of faults in valuation of listed-long term options as well as listed options on highly volatile stocks.

GUIDE TO ESSAY WRITING AND REFERENCING

 

 GUIDE TO ESSAY WRITING AND REFERENCING*

 

 

 

* These notes apply to essay writing in the course 1001IBA  Students should always consult with their convenors for other courses as different academic disciplines may have different essay writing and referencing requirements.

 

TOPIC INDEX

 

1:         WHY DOES THE UNIVERSITY REQUIRE STUDENTS TO WRITE ESSAYS

 

2:         SOME COMMON FAULTS IN ACADEMIC ESSAYS

 

3:         CHOOSING THE ESSAY TOPIC

 

4:         RESEARCHING THE TOPIC

 

·         What sources should I consult

·         Can I use web-based materials

·         Can I use lecture/tutorial notes

·         Are encyclopaedias acceptable sources for academic work

·         Can I use “hear-say” and “common knowledge”

 

5:         UNPACKING THE QUESTION

               

·         What Is the question asking me to do

 

6:         WRITING THE ESSAY

 

·         The first draft

 

7:         STRUCTURING THE ESSAY

 

·         Introduction

·         Main body of essay

·         Conclusion

 

8:            COMMON TERMS USED IN ESSAY QUESTIONS

 

·         Critical

·         Analysis

·         Description

 

9:            GRAMMAR

 

 

10:        REFERENCING

 

·         Why are references necessary

·         When do I reference my sources

·         Referencing internet sources

11:          PLAGIARISM

 

12:          WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE ESSAY HAS BEEN RETURNED

 

               

·         Reviewing the marker’s comments

·         Learning from feedback

 

13:        ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR ESSAY WRITING:

 

 

 

1:         WHY DOES THE UNIVERSITY REQUIRE STUDENTS TO WRITE ESSAYS

 

 

The ability to set down your ideas and arguments in a coherent, intelligent and logical way, is a skill that is essential to your future career regardless of which field you ultimately gain employment in.  Similarly, the ability to assess, evaluate and critically analyse the ideas, theories and arguments of other authors is essential to your ability to successfully complete a university education, and to your future career.

 

Essay writing is therefore an important element in your academic learning as it helps develop skills in many areas, for example:

 

·         Academic writing

·         Structuring an internally consistent and coherent argument

·         Evaluating evidence; particularly the ideas and theories of other authors

·         Developing independent ideas

 

However, essay writing is an art, and for most people the necessary skills have to be learned. The more essays you write, the more these skills will develop.

 

 

2: SOME COMMON FAULTS IN UNDER-GRADUATE ACADEMIC ESSAYS

 

 

• Failure to answer the question

• Lack of clear introduction, well structured body and/or appropriate conclusion

• Essay reads like a list of unconnected pieces of information with little argument tying them together

• Direct quotes used inappropriately and/or too often

• Wishy-washy style: In order to answer the question it seems to me it might be necessary to first …

• Plagiarism

• Poor, insufficient references

• Superficial argument: too much description not enough argument or analysis

• Poor proofreading

·         Inappropriate choice of vocabulary

• Poor syntax, grammar, punctuation and/or spelling

• Inadequate or “padded” bibliography

• Poor presentation

• Lack of title page

• Lack of page numbers

• Lack of adequate margins

• Single-line spacing rather than double-line spacing

 

 

 

3:         CHOOSING THE ESSAY TOPIC

 

           

Where you are given a choice, you should select a topic of interest to you.  In those cases where you are given the opportunity to construct your own question, it is imperative to ensure that there is adequate resource material available to allow you to satisfactorily research the topic. Do NOT make the mistake of choosing a question on the basis of how “easy” it may look compared to other questions.  In academic work you will always find that even the most simply worded questions end up being complex.

 

 

 

 

4:         RESEARCHING THE TOPIC

 

                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                    

4.1  WHAT AND HOW MUCH SHOULD I READ:

                                                                                                                                    

·         You should begin by reading broadly on the topic and then narrowing down your reading to focus on material that is directly relevant to your argument.

 

·         “How much should I read? Students often ask this question. They are likely to get two kinds of answer: As much as is necessary, or as much as you want to read.  Both seem unhelpful, but they do reflect two different approaches.  When you are working to a deadline and an essay of a certain type and length must be produced, you have to be focused.  A certain amount of time should be spent skimming and browsing, and then you should get down to business….One way of deciding whether you have read enough for a particular essay is to ask yourself if you now understand the question and the concepts it is drawing on.  If you feel you can talk about the concepts and ideas involved with reasonable confidence, you probably have read enough to write your first draft.

 

But often students have a different goal in mind when they ask about reading. The subject they are studying intrigues them. They want to master it not just to get good marks, but so they can feel that they have fully entered into a new area of knowledge. They want to be able to understand how their world works more comprehensively than they did before. When you ask the question with this goal in mind you get the answer: As much as you want to read, but you must want with some passion”.

 

Source: Betts, K. and Seitz, A., 1994, Writing Essays and Research Reports in the Social Sciences (2nd Ed.), Nelson, Melbourne, p. 18

 

You must READ WITH A PURPOSE.  Asking yourself the following questions will help focus your reading:

 

 

·         “what is this author’s argument (theory, theme, point of view)?

·         Am I convinced by it?

·         If yes, why? (Or if no, why not?)” (Ibid, p. 37)

 

In order to be able to readily reference your sources, you should also get into the habit of making the following notes when reading:

 

·         Author’s full name

·         Title of book/journal article

·         Publisher

·         Year of publication

·         City of publication

·         If it is a journal article, the volume and number of the journal

·         If it is a journal article, the pages covered by the article (eg pp. 6-40)

·         Is it an edited text?

·         Is it a second, third……edition?

 

When noting ideas, quotes etc. from texts in the course of your research, BE SURE TO WRITE DOWN THE ACTUAL PAGE NUMBER/S THE IDEA/QUOTE APPEARED ON AS YOU WILL NEED TO REFERENCE THAT IN THE ESSAY

 

·         Web-based materials can be used, but judiciously.  Be careful of bias or journalistic sensationalism in web-based material.  It is NOT permissible to submit an essay that has been researched solely, or even primarily, via web-based sources.

 

·         Lecture/tutorial/web notes are not regarded as academic sources and should not be used for the purpose of essay writing.

 

·         Encyclopaedias are useful sources for gaining a background understanding of issues, terms, concepts etc., but should not be used for the purpose of essay writing.

 

·         Arguments in academic essays require supporting evidence.  Therefore, “hear-say” which, by definition, is not supported by evidence, should not be used in essay writing.  On the other hand, “common sense” and “common knowledge” is acceptable, but be sure that what you are saying IS “common sense” or “common knowledge”.

 

 

 

5:         UNPACKING THE QUESTION

 

 

One of the greatest failures of beginning students is that they waste a lot of research time concentrating on issues not central to the main question. Below is a set of questions that will help you focus on exactly what the assignment topic is asking you to do:

 

Stage A:

·         What is the directive word precisely asking you to do?

·         What assumptions are made by the question?

·         What are the key concepts and which need to be defined?

·         What limits should I place on the scope of my inquiry?

·         What exactly is the question asking me to focus on?

·         What should be the major focus of the essay?

·         What should I take care not to focus on?

·         What approach should I take?

 

 

Stage B:

 

·         What do I know about the topic already?

·         What is my next step?

 

 

EXAMPLE QUESTION

 

 

What in your opinion are the principal causes of War in international relations?

 

 

·         What assumptions are made by the Question? (i.e., that something causes war and that “something” can be identified)

·         What are the key concepts used in the question and do any need to be defined? (i.e., war, international relations, principal causes)

·         What limits should I place on the scope of my inquiry? (i.e., you would not, for example, look at the causes of civil wars or at peripheral causes of international wars)

·         What is the question asking me to focus on? (i.e., principal causes of international war)

·         What approach should I take? (i.e., what disciplinary approach will I take, e.g., economic, sociological, environmental, political etc.) (i.e., as this is a Political Science course, you would focus on information derived from that discipline. However, it may well be that the insights on other disciplines will also provide useful information)

 

Stage C: Moving to the next phase of writing the essay

 

·         What do I know about the subject already?

·         What is my first step now? (Engaging in further research on the topic area)

 

 

6.       WRITING THE ESSAY

 

 

6.1         The First Draft

 

The first draft is a generally rough work in which you set out the main ideas/theories of the authors you have consulted, and your own preliminary arguments. Do you agree with all of the authors you have consulted, with some of them?  Why? Do you disagree. Why? On completion of the first draft, you will need to review your argument and begin

to refine both the argument and the structure of the essay.

 

 

 

7.         STRUCTURING AN ACADEMIC ESSAY

 

           

 

An academic essay has three main parts:

           

1:         INTRODUCTION 2:         BODY

3:         CONCLUSION

 

Part 1: THE INTRODUCTION

 

            The introduction should contain:

 

·         Necessary background

·         Outline of problem/question

·         Outline of thesis statement

·         Key issues in literature

·         Structure of essay to follow

·         Important evidence

·         Necessary definitions

 

Another way of saying this is to state that the Introduction will include (Using the example question above)

 

1:   Outline of Problem: Restatement of question in your own words to highlight the specific problem you are attempting to answer

2:   Thesis statement: The principal causes of war are a, b, c, and d and why…

3:   Necessary definitions: define war

4:   Issues in literature

5:   Significance of the problem: War is an important phenomenon to study because….

 

Your introduction will:

 

·         Introduce topic and response

·         Provide some general background to the topic area

·         Provide a thesis statement (i.e., a statement of what your argument will be. NEVER begin an essay with a thesis statement. The thesis statement generally comes in the last section of the introduction after you have broadly introduced the topic)

·         Indicate overall plan of the essay to follow

·         Arouse interest of the reader

 

 

 

EXAMPLE INTRODUCTION:

 

Question:      What in your opinion are the principal causes of war in

international relations?

 

 

 

 

            EXAMPLE No. 1 (THE WRONG WAY TO INTRODUCE A TOPIC)

 

The main cause of war is human nature.  Human nature is inherently greedy. That means that the leaders of states are also greedy and want more power for their state, and they therefore go to war with other states and make sure that they keep their power.  Some people say there are other causes of war too, but I am only going to analyse human nature in this essay because I believe it is the main reason why war happens.

 

           

            EXAMPLE NO. 2 (A BETTER WAY TO INTRODUCE A TOPIC)

 

War has been a constant companion of humankind throughout its recorded history.  While war has sometimes been necessary to prevent a greater evil occurring, it is more often the case that war has led to unnecessary death and destruction.  In light of that consequence, alongside the reality of war in human history has been an attempt on the part of scholars to understand the causes of war and thereby help to control, if not eliminate its presence in future human history.  The purpose of this essay is to identify a number of factors that have been said to be causes of war and to evaluate which, if any of those causes, can be said to be the 'principal' reason why wars occur.  In the discussion to follow, human nature, power asymmetries, and domestic ideology as causes of war will be analysed, and it will be concluded that no single cause can be assumed to be the 'principal' cause of war.  Instead it will be argued that all wars emerge for complex reasons that may or may not include the three factors discussed.

 

Part 2:  BODY OF THE ESSAY

 

            The main body of the essay aims to:

 

·         Put flesh on the bones on the argument identified in the Introduction Flesh out your argument.

·         Provide evidence/example/reasoning for your argument stated in your introduction

 

Common faults:

 

·         Lack of logic and coherent links between sections

·         Writing too much

·         Drifting off the topic

·         Not continually relating the evidence back to the thesis statement

·         Too descriptive

·         Unbalanced, i.e., too much attention given to one aspect of the argument to the relative neglect of other aspects. As a general rule, if there are three parts to the question, then you should allocate approximately one third of the main body of the essay to each of those parts.

·         Too many quotations from other authors

 

Part 3:  THE CONCLUSION

 

·         Summary of argument

·         Summary of most important evidence/rationale

·         Suggestions for further study

·         You should never begin discussion issues in your conclusion that were not mentioned in the main body of the essay.

·         Be sure that the conclusions you arrive at are supported by the argument and evidence provided in the main body of the essay

·         Your conclusion should be brief

 

EXAMPLE CONCLUSION

 

            Example No. 1 – (A very poor conclusion)

 

War isn't caused by any one reason.  I have proved that human nature is certainly not the main reason why war happens, and I have also proved that ideology is not a reason either. But, if I were to write a longer essay, it would be possible to show that other reasons, apart from the ones I have discussed, might be the principal causes of war.  Some of those reasons might be the anarchical nature of the state system or misperception.  The anarchical nature of the state system means that there is no world government, so states have to look after themselves and that means that they will fight if they think they have to in order to protect themselves.  Misperception just means that states go to war because they misunderstand other states. In conclusion, I think that international anarchy is probably the major cause of war, and the way to end war therefore is to have a world government.

 

 

            Example No. 2 (A much better conclusion)

 

This essay has evaluated human nature, power asymmetries and domestic ideologies as potential 'principal' causes of war.  The evidence provided in the analysis clearly demonstrates that while all three factors can be identified as causes of wars, none can be said to be the 'principal' cause of war.  On the contrary, it has been shown that each and every war is unique, both in terms of its causes and its nature. Hence, while the three factors investigated in this essay may be present to a greater or lesser degree in some wars, they are not necessarily factors in any particular war.

 

 

 

8. COMMON TERMS USED IN ESSAY QUESTIONS

 

 

Essay questions will often ask you to critically assess, critically evaluate or critically analyse some particular issue. 

 

1)     Critical assessment, evaluation etc., requires you to think critically about what you are reading and about what you are writing.  To do that you will need to:

 

·         Ask questions about what you read

 

1:         What evidence does the author provide for their viewpoint?

2:         What assumptions does the author make?

3:         What alternative viewpoints exist?

3:         What is the relative strength of conflicting or contending viewpoints?

 

·         Never take what you read for granted.  Always question the validity of authors' arguments and viewpoints.

·         After engaging in critical thinking and analysis, you then come to your own conclusions and provide evidence to support that viewpoint.

 

 

2)    Many students make the mistake of presenting descriptive rather than analytical essays. While most essay topics will require the provision of some descriptive material, essays must ALWAYS be analytical.

Description is telling the reader what happened. Analysis (i.e., critical analysis) is telling the reader why it happened. 

 

For example (using the essay question example provided above), a very poor essay (and one that would almost certainly be failed) would merely describe what other authors have said about the causes of international war. 

 

On the other hand a critical analysis would review the academic literature and state what the general views are, but it would then evaluate the validity and relevance of those viewpoints and arrive at a conclusion based both on the work conducted by other authors and, importantly, on the individual thinking (supported by evidence) of the student authoring the essay.

 

 

9.         GRAMMAR

 

 

It is essential that all essays be grammatically correct. That means adhering to the proper rules of writing, including the proper use of punctuation. 

 

If you are unsure of correct grammar or punctuation, you should consult any one of the numerous reference texts concerning essay writing that are available in the library.

 

Note: It’s means “it is”.  If you are referring (for instance) to a state’s territory you would not say it’s territory (i.e., it is territory), but its territory.

 

 

 

10:        REFERENCING

 

 

One of the distinguishing marks of academic and scholarly writing is that it acknowledges the source of information and ideas.  Such acknowledgment is a part of academic honesty; it also enables later researchers to follow ideas and information from their original sources.

 

This process of acknowledgment is known as citation and can be done by means of footnotes or textnotes.  Briefly, a footnote is a number in the text of an essay that refers to an extended comment at the foot of the page on which it occurs.  A textnote is a brief reference in the text that refers to a bibliography at the end of the essay.  Both systems are equally valid, but each has its advantages and disadvantages, which you should weigh up in your decision on which one to use.  You should seek advice from the faculty staff on which system is more appropriate for any particular essay.  Remember, however, that you must be consistent: the two systems should not be mixed in the same essay.

 

 

There are two circumstances under which you must use citations:

 

1.         To refer to the source of a quotation used in the text of your essay;

 

2.         To refer to the source of interpretations, information or ideas in your essay but not actually quoted.  It is not easy to give exact guidelines on what information and ideas should be provided with citations and what can be assumed to be general knowledge.

 

In general, statistical information and detailed descriptions of events, situations or peoples’ opinions should be given a citation.  So should points of argument which appear to you to be novel or particularly perceptive.  One citation per paragraph is not excessive.  One per sentence generally is.

 

You may also use footnotes (but not textnotes) to provide an elaboration of your argument, extra information, a discussion of sources, or any other material, which does not fit conveniently into the text.  Although footnotes and textnotes should not be mixed when making citations in the same essay, it is permissible to use such substantive footnotes in conjunction with textnotes.

 

TEXTNOTES

 

There are a number of valid conventions for the presentation of the textnote. While there are a variety of acceptable styles it is necessary that you are consistent throughout your assignment. We suggest here though that you use the Faculty preferred style: Author’s surname/s, year published: page number.

 

Below is a brief summary of possible styles for textnotes using the preferred Faculty style:

 

·      (1992: 88)  — single author

 

·      ( 1992: 88) — two authors

 

·      (1992: 88) — more than two authors

 

·       (1992: 88-9) —info. over two pages

 

·       (1992a: 88) — when you are using more than one article from the same author published in the same year

 

·       ( 1962: 1973: 16) — using a quote used by another author in their own text)

 

·       (1868) — where a general idea that you are referencing pervades a book eg evolution.

 

·       (2000:25) – when referencing from an author who has authored a chapter in a book edited by another author.

 

·        When there is no clear author (eg. newspaper or government institution) you should use the name of the institution as the author.

 

• ( 24 Jan., 1987: 19); 1990a: 46); ( 1982: 19)

 

 

 

The particular referencing method you adopt will also influence the bibliographical citation method to be used.

 

When you use the textnote referencing system, your bibliography style should be as follows

 

 

(1992) Unlocking Australia's Language Potential, AGPO, Canberra.

 

(1962) "Pacific Signposts 2: How to live in the East and West", Meanjin, vol. 27, no. 2.

 

 (1968) "Living in Context", in Little, B. and Proud, E., (eds) Cross Cultural Living, Penguin, Melbourne.

 

 (1984) “Preface to a Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy” in Bottomore, T., and Rubel, P. (eds) Karl Marx: Selected Readings in Sociology and Philosophy, Penguin, London.

 

 

Footnotes

 

Like textnotes there are a variety of formats that are acceptable for the presentations of footnotes. Below are the basic requirements for the footnote in an academic essay.

 

Surname, initial, Book Title, Publisher, where published, year published, page.

 

Unlocking Australia's Language Potential, AGPO, Canberra, 1992, pp.54-5.

 

 "Pacific Signposts 2: How to live in the East and West", Meanjin, winter 1962, vol. 27, no. 2, pp.78-9.

 

 (1984) “Preface to a Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy” (hereafter The Preface) in Bottomore, T., and Rubel (eds) Karl Marx: Selected Readings in Sociology and Philosophy, Penguin, London p.68.

 

The Preface, p.64.

 

 

When you use footnotes your bibliography style should be as follows:

 

Unlocking Australia's Language Potential, AGPO, Canberra, 1992.

 

, "Pacific Signposts 2: How to live in the East and West", 1962, vol. 27, no. 2, pp.242-76.

 

 "Living in Context", in Little, B. and Proud, E., (eds) Cross Cultural Living Penguin, Melbourne, 1968.

 

(1984) “Preface to a Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy” in  (eds) Karl Marx: Selected Readings in Sociology and Philosophy, Penguin, London.

 

Bibliographies

 

An academic essay is not complete until the sources cited are collated into a bibliography. The important issues here are that:

 

• the references are presented alphabetically

• the style is consistent (important)

• for essays presented in 1001AIS, students must include all books, journals, newspapers, etc. consulted in the course of your research for the essay, whether or not you have actually referenced those sources in the body of your essay.

 

 

(1984). Study Abroad: A Manual for Asian Students. Longman, Kuala Lumpur.

 

(1988). The Practice of Everyday Life. University of California Press, Berkeley.

 (1985). The Schooling of China. Longman, Melbourne.

 

(1962). A concept of critical thinking. In Harvard Educational Review 23(11), pp. 81–111.

 

 (1991). Scripture, Canon and Commentary. Princeton University Press, New Jersey.

 

 (1992). Problems and methods in research — a course for the beginning researcher in the social sciences. In O. Zuber-Skerritt (ed.), Starting Research — Supervision and Training. TEDI, University of Queensland, Brisbane.

(1996). A History of Reading. Harper Collins, London.

(1990) Teaching Critical Thinking. Routledge, New York.

 (1969). On teaching to be critical. In Richard Peters (ed.), The Concept of Education. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London.

 

(1979). Education in Modern China. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London.

 

 

REFERENCING WEB-BASED MATERIAL

 

There is no universal method for referencing web-based material.  The following is recommended:

 

1:     Referencing in the text of the essay

 

1.1          The textnote method

 

If you know the name of the author and the date or year of publication:

 

            (.)

 

If the information has come from an organisational site with no specific author:

 

(World Health Organisation, (date accessed, e.g., 24.5.2003), http://www.who.org/………   Be sure to provide the full web address)

 

1.2          The footnote method

 

Essentially the same as for the textnote method.

 

 

1.3          Bibliography

 

If you have the author’s name, place the reference in alphabetical order repeating the information provided in the textnote/footnote BUT ALSO INCLUDING THE NAME OF THE ARTICLE (in those cases where a title is provided).

 

For example, you may have referenced as (20.3.2001, http://www.warviews.com.) in the main body of the essay, but in the bibliography you would be required to reference:

 

 20.3.2001, “ The Causes of War in the 20th Century,” http://www.warviews.com

 

THE IMPORTANT POINT IS TO BE CONSISTENT AND PROVIDE SUFFICIENT INFORMATION SO THAT THE READER CAN READILY ACCESS THE SITE.

 

BE ABSOLUTELY SURE TO PROVIDE THE CORRECT WEB ADDRESS

 

 

 

11.       PLAGIARISM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remember: To use another's words or ideas without proper attribution is plagiarism and is one of the gravest sins a student can commit in the

university community.

 

 

Plagiarism

 

 

Plagiarism is the name given to describe the practise of using another writer’s work without giving sufficient (or any!) acknowledgement. When you rely on an original source for information to use in an essay, you must acknowledge the source. Not to do so constitutes plagiarism and it is considered a serious academic offence. As the above quote suggests you will be rewarded for the effective use of other people’s work — in fact in most cases this is exactly what you are supposed to do — it just has to be acknowledged in the appropriate manner.

 

As a student, you must document a source when you:

 

·         incorporate a direct quotation in an essay

·         paraphrase the original material (you re-produce the material in your own words)

·         copy any tables, charts, diagrams from a source

·         take any specific idea/s from other authors

·         take any data taken from another source is used to construct tables,

·         graphs or diagrams

·         take any statistics, examples or information from a source to provide evidence for any claims you make in your essay

 

The following examples demonstrate what plagiarism is and how to avoid it

 

Original version

 

“Deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions affect an individual’s behaviour when ill.” (Roper et al., 1990:46)

 

Version A presented by student:

 

Deep-rooted cultural beliefs or traditions affect the individual’s behaviour during illness.

 

This is plagiarism in its worst form. The student does not indicate in the text or in a footnote that the words and ideas belong to Roper et al (1990:46), and so asks the readers to believe that the words and ideas are his or her own. The words and ideas appear on page 46 of the 1990 publication by Roper and other co-authors (et al is Latin for ‘ et alii’, meaning ‘ and others’). By hiding the borrowing by changing or omitting an occasional word, the student has committed plagiarism.

 

Version B presented by student

 

Roper et al (1990:46) claim that deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions affect an individual’s behaviour when ill.

 

This is also plagiarism, even though the student acknowledges the source in his or her text. Obviously, the original has been copied almost word for word, yet the student has supplied no quotation marks to indicate the extent of the borrowing.

 

Version C presented by student

 

Roper et al (1990:46) have noted the importance of identifying and taking into account the “deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions” which typically underlie the behaviour of individuals who are ill.

 

Version D presented by student

 

Roper et al (1990:46) suggest that, during illness, the behaviour of an individual is affected by “deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions”.

 

Version E presented by student

 

Our own research supports Roper’s argument (Roper et al, 1990:46) that, when an individual is ill, “deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions affect... behaviour”.

 

Version F presented by student

 

Many environmental and experiential factors influence our behaviour when we are ill. Roper et al. (1990:46) emphasise the particular influence of “deep-rooted cultural beliefs and traditions” on our behaviour during illness.

 

These last four versions show some of the ways a student may use the source material correctly – notice the different emphasis that the student has created in each of the four different versions. Yet, in all four versions, the student has clearly identified the precise source of the ideas and the words that have been used. The student has paraphrased some of Roper’s words and quoted others, making it perfectly clear to the reader which words are the student’s and which belong to Roper (ie., the words within quotation marks “……….”).

 

 

NOTE: Ideas etc. which are common knowledge do not have to be referenced in academic work.  For instance, if your essay includes reference to the fact that Koffi Annan is Secretary General of the United Nations, or that the Second World War began in 1939, you do not need to reference the source of that information.

 

 

 

 

12.       WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE MARKER RETURNS MY ESSAY

 

 

 

When your essay is returned, you should take time to carefully read the marker’s comments.  Comments are written in order to alert you to ways in which your essay might have been improved.  This is an important means of improving your essay writing skills. The tutors in this course are always willing to meet with you personally to discuss your essay result should you so wish.

 

REMEMBER: There is no provision to re-write and re-submit an

essay in 1001IBA, so be sure that your essay complies with the

                           requirements set out above and in the 1001IBA course outline         

 

 

IF YOU ARE NOT CLEAR ABOUT WHAT IS EXPECTED OF YOU, ALWAYS ASK YOUR TUTOR OR THE COURSE CONVENOR BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR ESSAY.

 

 

 

 

 

13:                        ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR ESSAY WRITING

 

 

 

1991, Essay Writing for Students : a practical guide,

(2nd Ed.), Longman Cheshire, Melbourne

 

1997, The Student Guide for Writing and Studying Effectively at University: the world of ideas and the world of text, QUT, Faculty of Arts, Brisbane.

 

 1994, Writing Essays and Research Reports in the Social Sciences (2nd Ed.), Nelson, Melbourne