CONSULTANCY REPORT ON APPLE, INC (A Consultancy report on Apple inc. The consultation team is tasked with improving on the marketing strategies and creation of the affordable products targeting Africa and Middle-east market.)

1.0  Introduction

 

Apple Inc. is a company that specializes in the designing, development and marketing of the computer electronics, software internet services and also PCs.  The company was established in 1976 by Steve jobs, Steve wozniak and Ronald Wayne (Aljafari, 2016).  Initially, Apple was involved in the selling of the personal computer kit.  Apple I went on sale on the mid-1976 and was priced at $666.66. Apple II which was invented by Wozniak was also introduced in 1977 at the first coast computer Faire (Stanko, 2015).  As 1970s was coming to an end, Apple had hired human capital, specialized in the computer designing and production. Therefore, the company introduced Apple III in 1980s which was the plan to try and compete with IBM and Microsoft within the business and corporate computing market.

 In 1984, Steve Jobs was compelled to leave Apple after the company registers a net loss of 17%.  This is attributed to the fact that the company had in the previous year introduced the Macintosh (Mac) which was sleek and user friendly, nevertheless it recorded sales lagged. The estimated reason for the sales lagged was due to the brand slow processing speed and incompatible software.  These developments led to jobs being replaced by Jon Scully. Under John Scully management the focus was on the improvement of the Mac design to be a leading brand in the computer industry in desktop publishing and also the provision of a more user friendly and alternative to consumers of the IBM compatible machines.  In 1977 Steve jobs returned to Apple and arranged for the Microsoft to invest $150 million (Johnson et al., 2012).  His vision was to make the company’s product compatible with Microsoft office, a move that was in agreement with the majority.  Therefore, products such as the IMac were introduced and it allowed the users to “plug and play” devices compatible with window-based machines. The company become profitable and thrives under Steve jobs leadership. Precisely, he managed to change the image to “hip” alternatives to other products, a band that offers users the cutting edge and also a tightly integrated user experience.  In the turn of the new millennium, there was widespread of the digital convergence of computer and other user electronics and it made Job’s to be named the Fortune magazine‘s “CEO of the decade” (Stanko, 2015).  Nevertheless, for Apple to continue to trend for its innovative products in the market, the company needed to remain the leading brand I the demand curve by designing and also markets new products that will facilitate capturing of productivity, communication and entertainment prerequisite to satisfy its very loyal customer base.

1.1  Vision

 

 The vision of the company  is found in the Apple Inc website “Apple is
committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative
professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and
Internet offerings”(Apple, Inc., 2012).

1.2  Mission

 

 The mission of the Apple inc include the following:  Apple is deigning Macs to make it the best personal computers globally and also OS X, iLife and other products. Apple has striven to be a leader in the digital music revolution using its products such as ipods and iTunes online stores. Apple to prevent the mobile phones with its revolutionary products such as iPhones and Apple store and also to define the future of mobile media and computing devices (Apple, Inc., 2012).

 

 

1.3  Company values

 

Some of the Apple Inc. values include:-

1.      The company believes in simple not the complex

2.      The company strives to own and control the fundamental technologies in the production of its products

3.      The company is vibrant in the market that it can make significant contribution

 

 

1.4  Scope of the work

 

  The consultation team is tasked with improving on the marketing strategies and creation of the affordable products targeting these markets. Prior to this consulting project, there has been little effort made by the apple company to increase its market share in the emerging markets. Apple Inc. has not implemented tailored strategies that will balloon its presence in Africa and Asia smartphone market.  The company has failed to notice this opportunity where there has been substantial revenue growth which is the reflection of the economic and population growth in Asia and Africa.

 While   the Apple products are available globally, the company lacks presence both in the Africa and Asia market which are the emerging markets. Most of the Apple products are considered premium in these markets and only a small percentage of the population can afford.  In Africa the leading operating system is the android for the smartphones and windows for laptops and personal computers.  A report of the research published by the Statista Research department indicates by 2021, Samsung was the leading brand with Africa’s smartphone market share of 32%. It was followed by Huawei at 15% and Apple and Techno with 14.9% and 8.3% market share respectively (Statista, 2021).

 

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Figure 1 market share for phones vendor in Africa (Statista, 2021).

 

 The report by the StatCounter GlobalStats indicates that android is the leading operating system in Africa with 83.87% while iOS has 14.16% (Statcounte GlobalStats, 2021).

Figure 2 mobile operating system market share ((Statcounte GlobalStats, 2021).

 

  On the other hand, the report by the StatCounter GlobalStats indicates that Samsung is the leading market vendor in Asia with 25.23%, followed by Xiomi 18.06% and Apple phones comes at distance third with 15.89% (Statcounte GlobalStats, 2022)..

Figure 3 Mobile vendor market share in Asia (Statcounte GlobalStats, 2022).

 

The report further indicates android operating system with a market share of 83.58% while iOS has 15.89% of the total Asia market (Statcounter GlobalStats (2021).

 

The expected outcomes include the following: the team to suggest the best marketing strategies, suggestion to improve on the marketing budget and creation of affordable products or subsidy of the available products in the market.

 The consultation team consists of four members is expected to conduct its research and submit a report within a period of 1 month. The period runs from 1^st December to 31^st December in 2022.

2.0  Consulting team

 

 The team is consist of the following members

To begin with it is the marketing consultant. The work of the marketing consulting is to create and implement the marketing strategies. Precisely, the consultant is expected to create a detailed marketing plan, determine apple’s marketing message in the target market and the identification of the appropriate marketing mix in order to get the message out of the emerging markets. The individual is also expected to be the part of the team that will help in implementation of the marketing strategies.   They should monitor results of the marketing strategies and also twist the campaigns as they are leaving to ensure that Apple gets the best results from the marketing efforts.

 The second team member is the financial consultant.  They are expected to develop the financial plan to help Apple to achieve both their short-term and long-term financial goals. Further, they should advice the team on the financial markets and economic conditions through monitoring. They should advice on the suitability of the investment opportunities and reach out to the new clients to consolidate on their new partnership.   Finally, the financial consultant is responsible for analyzing how the situation changes and financial status changes effects the potential consumer’s financial plan and adjust such plans accordingly.

 Third team member is the IT consultant.  The personnel is expected to communicate with the technical instructions in the understandable business terms and come up with produce technical user manuals that may require exceptional interpersonal and communicative  ability.  Since, the project targets to create affordable products, the IT consultant should able to understand the Apple’s needs provide the advice on the technology best practices.  Finally, the IT consultant is expected to monitor the success of the IT solutions and produce detailed reports of the efficacy of the technology.

 3.0 Analysis and discoveries

3.1 Balance scoreboard

 

 Fundamentally, the performance financial-focused models of the performance management have been considered to be inadequate.  This is because they report on the past performances without provision of the recommendations that gives direction regarding future improvements.  Therefore, the balanced scoreboard is imperative since it operates as organizational focal points for its efforts. Furthermore, it defines the proprieties of the management, employees, financial supporters and the customers. The technique approach focuses on the four key aspects: financial, customers, internal process and people” (Chavan, 2009). It can be noted that, evidence suggests that organizational employing balance scoreboard on their operations have a higher performance compared to the organizations with no strategies.

 Apple, Inc. has made itself one of the most profitable technology companies that focus on the designing and the sale of the customer electronics and software products by using the balance scorecard to innovate and elevate the overall performance of the company to new heights.  Apple to ensure high penetration in the Asia and Africa market will focus on these key factors under the balance scorecard: customer satisfaction, employee commitment and alignment and the market share.

 Initially, Apple was not focusing on the customer satisfaction instead; their focus is on the products improvements to have the unique product in the market. However, due to the dynamics of Africa and Asia markets, it is vital Apple to change their tact.  The embrace of the customer satisfaction approach ensures that the company can address needs and the requirements of these markets to the satisfaction. To provide the best customers experience, Apple need to create affordable that cater for these markets economic status.   Through the Apple metric for customer satisfaction using the Net promoter score (NPS), Apple should able to understand what the customer in these markets requires and what changes is needed to improve on the customer experience.  Precisely, Through Apple applying on the NPS questions, surveys and open-ended follow-up questionnaires to ask the customers on their experiences on the products and the possibility of referral insights prerequisite to make improvements.

The second aspect under the balance scoreboard is the employee commitment and alignment.  The Apple’s administrators have employed detailed workforce survey in each of the departments that runs within a specific time. The polls are conducted regularly with randomly selected employees. The survey  questions are imperative in understanding how well workers have master the philosophy of the organization and whether or not they have been requested to deliver the outcomes under the approach. The survey results are classified in terms of the actual level of worker responses and also the average response pattern.  Therefore, it will be vital to use these responses to instruct workers to align themselves with the new strategies and also to ascertain the performance of these strategies.

 Finally, to penetrate the emerging markets balance scorecard advocates for market share approach. The organization senior management needs to reach a vital market share threshold in the emerging markets not only for the apparent increase in the turnover and revenues but also to attract and keep the talented human force especially the software developers within its platform.

3.2 Ansoff Matrix

 

The matrix was created in 1957, as the decision tools it is prerequisite for the in-depth analysis of the company’s strategic decision with an objective of ballooning its profitability and growth. For the Apple Company, it helps the organization to determine its product and market strategy. The four strategy illustrated are the market penetration, product development, market development and diversification. The growth of the Apple’s market share in Asia and Africa depends on both the existing products and the new products.  Also, it depends on the existing markets and new market.

For the market penetration in Africa and Asia, in order for Apple to increase its market share it’s lowering its price ranges of the certain products with the aim of attracting new customers and create a larger customer base. The Company encourages customers to buy certain accessories   such as iPhone which is their star product to increase sales. Furthermore, there is lots of customization on its star products to attract more customers and increase its market share.  Therefore, Apple engages in market penetration strategy through effective application of the marketing strategy. An effective marketing strategy not only reaches out to the wider audience but also right audience.

 Product development encompasses development of the new products to sell in the existing market.  New product development constantly is amongst the core growth strategies persued by Apple.  Precisely, new products are introduced each year aiming replace those that gradually becoming obsolete. The product development is geared towards innovations that help in customization of the products that best serve the target market.

 Apple market development is associated with finding new markets for its existing products. This agenda is aligned with exploiting Asia and Africa that ha untapped potential. Precisely, Apple is focusing on these emerging economies as attractive markets for long term perspectives. The company appeals to the local culture and sentiment when developing marketing strategies for these emerging markets. Therefore, to develop its market in Africa and Asia, Apple is trying to sell its product to professionals and individuals.

 Diversification strategy involves the development of the new products to sell to a new market.  It is the riskiest marketing strategy with a higher failure rate. The company is identifying the products that do not meet the customer’s needs and bank on new products and services. 

4.0  Recommendations

 

 The consultation team recommends the following: -

 The company should employ pricing strategy as its marketing strategy to increase its market share in the proposed market. Also, to effectively, execute these marketing approach Apple should partner with a local company in the respective companies and provide the best customer’s experiences.  From the Ansoff matrix, it is clearly, iPhone are the company’s stars.  The local companies will facilitate sell of both the customized and non-customized Apple products relatively cheaper compared to the original price product.  This is because the partner company will import the products directly from the Apple manufacturers in their local markets and distribute them to the local outlets to easily reach the consumers.  Furthermore, the partner company should able to manufacture customized iPhones products. Notably, the customization is one of the salient customers attracting feature (Bang et al., 2015). It will allow the customers to easy access and use their mobile phones for various purposes such as mobile banking and internet in their preferred language of choice.  Notably, in the electronic markets an important factor to success is innovative (Cooper et al., 2011).  Therefore, it is vital for the local customers to access products that meet their market demand. Apple’s ability to increase its market share in the proposed markets depends on the new products, the technology development and the quality and tailored-made designs. Also, the employee commitment and alignment under the balance scorecard will help to shape the focus for the employees. The Company should use this approach to make a priority of all the employees to ensure it has realize its objective of increasing the market share in Africa and Asia markets.  Furthermore, for the Apple products to remain competitive and increase its loyalist customer base, it is essential for the company to improve on the existing product and invest heavily in the R&D to expand on range of its offerings.

Secondly, the consultation team recommends that Apple use the local media channels such as radios, Tvs and even customer referrals.  The growing population and economies of the Asian and the Africans should give Apple medium and long-term growth path.  In the recent times, the economies of these continents have been growing strongly. In this context, their middle class are growing and becoming richer. These factors indicate a clear path to substantial revenue growth for the company.  Using a promotion media that reaches wider audience ensures the market share continues to growth.  However, in the more developed countries such as China and Japan more high-tech products have been released such as the South Korea’s Samsung (Chen et al., 2021). Therefore, for example, in South Korea on the TVs programs such as family shows advertising the local product using local celebrates will give upper hand to local high-tech products.  With the media influence the local market can choose other items instead of Apple products, and this may hinder the company from expanding its market share within these markets.  Therefore, Apple need to create a promotion strategy that reaches wider audience in the local market to compete with local rivals.  Based on the balance scorecard analysis, top software products to develop the best products in the market will make local people to choose Apple instead of the domestic manufactured products.

5.0  Conclusions

 

The report acknowledge that Apple have been increasing its market share in the Asian and Africa market but with a slow pace. Notably, Apple, Inc. is amongst the biggest electronics and Software Company globally in terms of the size of revenues. This has been attributed to unique and high-tech products. However, the company since it focuses on the provision of the premium products have concentrated in the America and Europe market since there is high purchasing power. However, other markets of the world have in the recent times indicates the potential of enhancing their purchasing power. Also, these markets unlike in Europe and America are also experiencing high population growth. Therefore, the consultation team proposes that it is essential for Apple, Inc. to acknowledge this investment opportunity and try to capitalize on it.

The consultation team report indicates that IPhone are the stars product of Apple, therefore, they should be a strategy of partnership with local companies to create relatively cheaper and customized products targeting different regions.  This strategy will be complimented with employment of the promotion marketing strategy that reaches wider products.  In a nutshell, Asian and the African Markets should define the future of the Apple’s market share and help the company to become more profitable and competitive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

 

 

Aljafari, A., 2016. Apple Inc. industry analysis business policy and strategy. International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, 7(3), pp.406-441.

Bang, H. and Wojdynski, B.W., 2016. Tracking users' visual attention and responses to personalized advertising based on task cognitive demand. Computers in Human Behavior, 55, pp.867-876.

 

Chavan, M., 2009. The balanced scorecard: a new challenge. Journal of management development, 28(5), pp.393-406.

Chen, X., Liu, Y. and Gong, H., 2021, December. Apple Inc. Strategic Marketing Analysis and Evaluation. In 2021 3rd International Conference on Economic Management and Cultural Industry (ICEMCI 2021) (pp. 3053-3061). Atlantis Press.

 

Cooper, R.G. and Kleinschmidt, E.J., 2011. New products: The key factors in success. Marketing Classics Press.

Hambrick, D.C., MacMillan, I.C. and Day, D.L., 1982. Strategic attributes and performance in the BCG matrix—A PIMS-based analysis of industrial product businesses. Academy of Management Journal, 25(3), pp.510-531.

 

 

Stanko, A., 2015. The history of Apple company. Збірник тез Ⅷ всеукраїнської студентської науково-технічної конференції „Природничі та гуманітарні науки. Актуальні питання “, 1, pp.97-98.

 

statcounte GlobalStats (2022). Mobile Vendor Market Share Asia. [online] StatCounter Global Stats. Available at: https://gs.statcounter.com/vendor-market-share/mobile/asia

Statcounter GlobalStats (2021). Mobile Operating System Market Share Africa | StatCounter Global Stats. [online] StatCounter Global Stats. Available at: https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/mobile/africa.

Statista. (n.d.). Africa: market share of mobile device vendors 2021. [online] Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1167088/market-share-of-mobile-device-vendors-in-africa/.

 

 

           

 

 

 

Exploring Clinical Psychology: A Personal Journey Through Mental Health Work Experience

 Discover the hands-on experience of a clinical psychology intern in a psychiatric hospital. From diagnosing schizophrenia to observing cognitive behavioral therapy, this journey sheds light on the challenges and rewards of working in mental health. Learn how this experience shaped career motivations and insights into human behavior.

Work experience

Clinical psychology

My work experience entails working in a neighborhood hospital as an internee. The decision was casted on the urge to gain a better understanding of the career’s dynamics. I was attached in the low-secure psychiatric that had majority of patients being forensic patients. The invaluable gained experience was prerequisite to encounter mental disorders, learned previously from classroom and also have primary observation on its manifestation. Notably, the common diagnose in that department include but not limited to schizophrenia, depression and anxiety disorders. Furthermore, I observed that the common psychological treatment at the department was cognitive behavioral therapy. The chance to watch the proceedings of each treatment session made the experience even better.  However, the experience also indicated to me that the clinical psychology is very demanding, in that it requires extensive and intensive job research.

 

Course motivations

 Psychology course motivations

The course in psychology is imperative human behavior and mental processes that is prerequisite to a better understanding of how an individual think and act. In other words, the course is vital to understanding the people around and oneself. I reckon the insights I will gain about the people’s motivations, perceptions and behavior will impact in defining my perceptive on the manner individuals react in the ways they do and understand them a little better.

Clinical Psychology course motivations

The ability to discuss the each patient within the clinical psychology area acts as a motivating factor.  The realm allows the practitioners to discuss each patient they have seen, give thoughts on them and provide more insights on the treatment session.

 

Course themes and topics

In the nutshell, some of the interesting themes include but not limited to mental health and intervention; social and development studies and brain disorder.  The themes are imperative to address narrowed down issues and topics such as bodies and body image, sexuality and individual general well-being.

Breaking Language Barriers: Translanguaging in a Trilingual Basque School (Explore how a trilingual school in the Basque Country uses translanguaging to challenge minority language isolation, fostering a more inclusive and multilingual learning environment for students. Discover the benefits and challenges of this innovative approach)

 1.1 Introduction: reason and salient of research

The article by Oinana leonet et al. (2017) “Challenging Minority Language Isolation: Translanguaging in a Trilingual School in the Basque Country” is about the isolation challenges the minority languages are facing.  Therefore, the nexus of the article is to investigate translanguaging acting as the pedagogical tool. In the other words, the Basque language is used as the main language of instruction but it is considered as the minority language within the chosen society. To further develop the research aim, the research reports the attributes of pedagogical intervention on the ground of translanguaging consequently aiming to develop language awareness, communication and academic prowess   and metalinguistic awareness. Therefore, the research topic is whether the pedagogical strategies casted on the translanguaging capable to maintain and revitalize Basque language?

 The research is important since it second language learning especially in learning institutions is important across Europe due to globalization.  Even though a language may be used as main language in some context, it may be considered minority language in the society. Furthermore, languages are always isolated from each other.  Therefore, the introduction of the pedagogical translanguaging intervention aims to address the isolation problem by ensuring it is compatible with the maintenance as well as developing of the minority language.

1.2 What the research did

 1.2.1 Sampling

 The sample population consists of 63 participants.   The participants composition include the following Spanish (51.9%), Basque (21.2%) or both Spanish and Basque (26.9%).  The participants were selected from the grade 5^th and 6^th grade of primary school of a public school located in an industrial region and having over 600 pupils and 60 teachers cutting across pre-primary and primary education.

1.2.2 Data collection methods

 Data was collected through interview and the focus group.  The focus group data collection was administered through students being shown the pictures of the linguistic landscape and also their own picture; then discuss the language  found in the language sign within their region as well the language they use among themselves in various oral and written group undertakings. Therefore, in order to develop metalingustic awareness, the focus group was required to analyze various shops and make their comparison in three different languages.  The three individual interview with each of the teachers lasted between 32 minutes and 46 minute. The focus-group discussion lasted 65 minutes.

 1.2.3 Ethical issues

 The participants were required to sign informed consent form stipulating the protocol of the research.

1.3 findings

1.3.1 Analysis

 Teacher’s feedback indicates concerns on the weakening of the Basque. Also, they were individual differences among the teachers on the potential risk of translanguaging. Although, the feedback further indicates that translanguaging pedagogies are a rich experience for the development of the metalingustic awareness, the concern is that it should be reinforced more than other languages.

Furthermore, findings indicate that high value of language awareness undertakings on Basque and other languages were paramount for the Basque language.  Therefore, the act of according the Basque language the same status as other language amounted to positive.

1.4 Things to consider

It is evident that the implementation of the translanguanging pedagogies needs to be narrowed down to fit a particular context to improve on the multingual competences. By giving the full support of the minority language, it makes the translanguaging pedagogies to be compatible. Finally, there is need to introduce gradually translanguanging pedagogies. Also, it should be adapted to the school pedagogies and their learning results should be assessed.

The research delimit is that it was carried out in one school and findings were limited to teacher’s feedback.

 

2.0 Critical analysis

2.1 Introduction

 It is fair to say that according same status to minority language potentially makes translanguanging pedagogies to maintain and revitalize that language. The article by Oinana leonet et al. (2017) “Challenging Minority Language Isolation: Translanguaging in a Trilingual School in the Basque Country” discuss the Basque as the minority language and how translanguaging pedagogies can be used to maintain and revitalize it. The authors make the strong case by developing a research question that is tailored made to address the research objective extensively. There are also strong and excellent evidence to support the research claim throughout the article by including citations where it is needed and prerequisite.

2.2 Literature theoretical analysis

 

As mentioned earlier, the article evaluates Basque as the minority language and how translanguaging pedagogies can be used to maintain and revitalize it. An assessment of some of the strengths presented by the article is an indication that the article is convenient for the target audience. For instance, the article literature review is divided into parts which makes it convenient for the readers to search for the information they needed. Also, based on the research question, the reader can follow and pin easily the content in relation to the research objective. In the nutshell, the article involves the evaluation on how Basque language is reinforced using the schooling system.  The second part evaluates of the dynamics of the language separation and the translanguaging in relation to the Basque language. Therefore, it makes it possible for the article to introduce the pedagogical translanguaging and multingualism contexts to support the research aim.

In the literature review, strength lies with evident from the provision of the contextual background regarding information covered.  In the coverage, the authors give the illustration of the short history of the Basque language and where it has been widely utilized.  The author addresses bias by examining the dynamics of the Basque language. In other words, though Basque is considered to be a minority language, its speakers are not confined to economic disadvantages compared to the speakers of the majority language.   Also, there is examining the ways in which the translanguaging offers the learning opportunities in the Multingual School. The provision of such vital information is integral to the reader to be able to evaluate on the pedagogical uses of translanguaging and evaluates how these items are prerequisite in the protection and development of the Basque language.

 Other than highlighting some of the strategies that are useful in the protection and development of the Basque language has the minority language, the article has also provide the link of reinforcing the minority language using the multilingual schooling environment.  The presentation of the arguments in such manners   is imperative for the readers to identify the challenges and the issues rose in the article and how they are being addressed by the author. For example the article highlights that Basque not only face the old challenges but also the new challenges  as the results of the increasing constant with a myriad of the languages and therefore the new situation has the potentialities of creating a threat for Basque.

 The literature review is seen as useful since the article provides all the information that would be useful to the target audience.  The article is targeting teachers with the aim of providing them with new and useful information to use translanguanging pedagogies for the purpose of protection and development of Basque, a minority language to have the equal competencies with majority language such as English and Spanish. Therefore, to build on the effectiveness of the strategies employed; the author provides more literatures on the concepts with the help of examples.  This manner of the arrangement and the evaluation of the article is an indication that research was conducted before drawing the conclusion of the topic of discussion. For example, there is widely incorporation of information from the other studies to illustrate the research aims. For example one of the studies was used to illustrate on the three dimension of the multilingualism concept (Cenoz and Gorter, 2011). The approach is an indication of some of the qualities in the evidence used in the article in an attempt to ensure the information provided is not vague and it is valid. The author not only evaluates the effectiveness of these strategies to enhance protection and development of the Basque language but also highlights some of the practical situations and ethical issues that need to be evaluated to ensure the entire process of the literature review is effective.

 Although, the literature review in the article presents several strengths evident from the presentation viewpoint. , its appropriateness of the target group, the elimination of the bias aspects and the quality of the evidence, there are factors that are prerequisite and should be included by the author to improve the quality of the article. The authors of the article have only provided general information of the strategies to be used in the implementation of the translanguanging pedagogies to improve on the protection and development of the Basque minority language. Although, this information is useful to the reader, the article should attempt to build the strength of these strategies by providing sufficient information. Such information would play a significant role by ensuring the information collected from the other sources is not only valid but also relevant in regard to the dynamics of the modern world.

2.3 Participants

 The sampling technique is aspect of the research which plays a critical role in the validity   of the research outcome. The research has utilized good sampling to ensure the effectives of the research conduction.  The article has employed probability sampling which is less expensive and consumes less time (Mishra et al., 2022).  Therefore, it provides the validity of the implementation of generalization for population of the selected sample population. Quality sampling enables the article to enable the generalization of the research problem. With a sample population of 63 students out of 600 students, a proper sampling enables the article to give valid results of the problem of the population. Also, high number of the sample population increases on the validity of the research findings since there is high proportion representation of the research situation in the entire population. 

2.3 procedures

2.3.1 Data collection

 The data collection method is interview and focus groups. On one side by the research employing interviewing as method of collection of data it enables the accurate screening.  The face to face interview enables an accurate screening and evaluating the interviewee (Schaeffer et al., 2010). The individuals being interviewed are unable to provide false information during screening question such as gender and race in effect it increases the validity of the provided information. The duration of 30 to 40 minutes should be ideal to maintain the focus of the interviewees. In this situation, the interviewee is in control of over the interview and keep the interviewee focused and to be on the track to completion. However, these approaches also possess some of the challenges to the article. Due to requirement to grant every participants same interviewing time, it limit the sample population.  It can be noted that the size of the sample population is limited to the size of the interviewing population, the area in which the interview is conducted and the number of the qualified individuals within the selected population.

On the other side, the research as employed focus group as the other method of data collection. To begin with, focus group enables the research to collect data quickly. Size the focus group can involve up to 10 people, the research has the advantage of gathering valuable information within the stipulated 65 minutes. Therefore, since the article manages to gather valuable insights within a short time it improves the quality of research paper focus quickly shifts to analysis and interpretation of the collected information.

However, the approach has it challenges in regarding the well-being of the research. By the article employing focus group then it may not get valid information since they may not be true representation of the population (Acocella et al., 2012). Within the focus group spectrum it is always difficult to achieve and assemble a true societal representation. Thus, it is more likely that regroup may only a small portion of the target population. Notably, it is better to use the results of the focus group to feed into the supplementary research rather than relying on the outcome as the main source of the information. Therefore, with the unreliability of the data from the focus group, the validity of information is on the downward trajectory.

2.4 results

 The findings are divided according to the interview and make it easy to develop conclusion and other research elements. For the readers it is easy to correlate each of the interview outcomes with the research problem to help in drawing the article quality.  This is further aid by grouping the results based on the categories of the sample population to give precise and clear findings of the research.  

The article has only provided the description analysis within the statistical representation.  The lack of statistics becomes it difficult to draw valid conclusions. Notably, the use of statistics allows evaluation of claims based on the provided evidence and plays a vital role in differencing between the reasonable and dubious conclusions (Queirós et al., 2017). This is because there is interpretation based on the collected information to form arguments for discussions.   When the interpretation is conducted correctly, they tend to produce accurate results. Therefore, since the article has not included the statistical analysis it is difficult to account for the uncertainty and error in the results. Also, it is difficult to account whether all the aspects of the study were followed the appropriate methods to results to trustworthy outcome.

On one side, the discussion of the results of the findings is precise and short. This aspect provides the reader with the easy time to find the key points and claims. A short discussion segment enables the reader to further avoid reading unnecessary information that is unrelated to the research objective.  The discussion part has removed the element of biasness by addressing on the research limitations. The inclusion of limitation information is useful to future topics related to the article’s topic.

On the other side, the analysis of the outcome of the research is shallow and need more information to connect between the research problem and conclusion. The article has only tried to give overall analysis of the findings without providing the statistical data to support the argument. This weak argument has the potential to reduce on the quality of the research paper.  Furthermore, the information in the segment has not been supported by the information from the order studies.     

2.5 Conclusion

  The article elicit mixed-reactions in terms of its quality to address the use of  translanguanging pedagogies  to improve on the protection and development of the Basque language to enhance its competencies to be in the same level with main language such as English and Spanish. To begin with the article is well structured and it has systematically organized all the segments form the abstract to the conclusion. There is to some considerable extent provision of sufficient discussion in some of the major parts such as the literature review and introduction. However, there is limited utilization of the high-frequency words since the paper did not employ the statistical analysis.

 In the nutshell, the paper is persuasive and informative. In other words, there is development of a concept that is gaining momentum in the contemporary world due to globalization.

 References

Acocella, I., 2012. The focus groups in social research: advantages and disadvantages. Quality & Quantity, 46(4), pp.1125-1136.

Cenoz, J. and Gorter, D., 2011. Focus on multilingualism: A study of trilingual writing. The Modern Language Journal, 95(3), pp.356-369.   

Mishra, S.B. and Alok, S., 2022. Handbook of research methodology.

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China's Cultural Influence in the Arab World: A Complex Tapestry of Perception and Stereotypes

 Explore the diverse perceptions of China and its culture in the Arab world, from admiration for open-mindedness to the mystique surrounding Chinese traditions. Discover how China's growing economic and political influence shapes its image in Arab media and society.

Introduction

China’s footprints in the Arab countries have ballooned significantly over the past couple of decades. These developments have increased the interest of Arab countries in China and its culture. Particularly, the unprecedented level of interest is attributed to China’s growing economic and political influence in the Middle East.  According to Khan et al. (2022), China’s positive image in Arab media is the result of its friendly relationship and healthy economic undertakings in the Arab countries. Therefore, the Arab media, such as mainstream and social media (Facebook and Quora) largely utilize a positive and neutral tone when covering issues related to Chinese culture.  The perception of the Arab countries of Chinese culture is diverse and nuanced a reflection of a myriad of socioeconomic and political ties between the two regions. 

Non-prejudiced and open-minded

Arabs perceived the Chinese as non-prejudiced and open-minded. Notably, findings of studies on stereotypes in American and Europe countries have viewed the Chinese people to be prejudiced and narrow-minded (Siy et al., 2016).  In this view, the Arab countries' media view of the Chinese as non-prejudiced and open-minded is deeply rooted in the traditional and political sphere. Consequently, politically Arab people consider china and its culture as a friend who gave them fair treatment, compared to the European people. Arguably, Arab society is conservative, with characteristics attributed to the supremacy of religion and traditional rules and regulations (Roy, 2012). Therefore, the widespread perceptions that the Chinese occupational and business world practices are nurtured without the code of religion that is similar to that of the western countries, and are easily integrated into the expectations of the west-mode of modernization, forms the perception of the Arab countries on the Chinese as open-minded and creative. Arab countries' social media platforms are saturated with opinions that China is a developed country succeeding while curving an independent path, not dictated by western countries and global institutions. Thus, the positive stereotype of the non-prejudiced and open-minded China is due to its conservative approach to economic and political issues.

Exotic and mystifying

Chinese culture is uncommon in many Arab countries and difficult to understand.  According to Fiske (2017), a cultural variation is central to stereotype formations that cut across different regions and culture. The Chinese people tend to focus on traditional practices such as acupuncture and eating different foods which are not common in the Arab world. In the other words, the Oriental cuisine of the Chinese is not very popular in Arab countries.   Therefore, as Chinese culture is seen as exotic and difficult to understand, some individuals have developed negative opinions towards Chinese culture.  The Buddha religion is not well understood by many people in Arab countries (Alharbi et al., 2019). An ardent Muslim would find it hard to agree with some of the Buddha teachings which are perceived as contradicting Muslim teachings.  With mystifying religion, Arab stereotypes Chinese as arrogant and aggressive. Such findings are in agreement with some of the earlier studies on stereotyping Chinese as aggressive and selfish in the western countries' media as well as surveys of the public viewpoint.  Therefore, though China and Arab nations enjoy a strong relationship, Chinese culture remains exotic and mysterious in the Arab world.

Conclusion

 Arab countries and media and individuals through social media accounts tend to have a different perspective of China’s culture and its impacts on the region. Some are positive, while some are negative. Notably, the general public’s perception tends to differ from those of the elites. The elites tend to have more insights and experience in the Chinese culture, thus creating a more positive perception.

 References

Alharbi, J., & Al Hadid, L. (2019). Towards an understanding of compassion from an Islamic perspective. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28(7-8), 1354-1358.

 

Fiske, S. T. (2017). Prejudices in cultural contexts: Shared stereotypes (gender, age) versus variable stereotypes (race, ethnicity, religion). Perspectives on psychological science, 12(5), 791-799.

 

 Khan, M. K., Sallam, M. H., Pratt, C. B., & Farid, T. (2022). Stereotyping the Chinese in Arab Nations: Effects of media use, perceived realism, and perceived Chinese-Arab relations. The Social Science Journal, 1-21.

Roy, O. (2012). The transformation of the Arab world. Journal of democracy, 23(3), 5-18.

 

 Siy, J. O., & Cheryan, S. (2016). Prejudice masquerading as praise: The negative echo of positive stereotypes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 42(7), 941-954.