The Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by...

The Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin In The story of an Hour, Kate Chopin reveals the complex character, Mrs. Mallard, In a most unusual manner. THe reader is led to believe that her husband has been killed in a railway accident. The other characters in the story are worried about how to break the news to her; they know whe suffers from a heart condition, and they fear for her health. On the surface, the story appears to be about how Mrs. Mallard deals with the news of the death of her husband. On a deeper level, however, the story is about the feeling of intense joy that Mrs. Mallard experiences when she realizes that she is free from the influences of her husband and the consequences of†¦show more content†¦She noticed the there were patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds. The other characters in the story have one impression of Mrs. Mallard; she seems to have reacted to the terrible news as one would expect, but the r eader is aware that a distinct change has come over her. The story unviels its theme at this point: Mrs. Mallard, for the first time in her life, experiences a new-found freedom. Instead of dreading the future without her husband, she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. She could now live her life and be absolutely free of the imposing will of her husband: There would be no one to live for her during the coming years; she would live for herself. There would be now powerful will bending hers in the blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature.(15) Mrs. Mallard had, in that brief moment of illumination(15), stumbled upon a truth: she was now her own person, free from the confines of her husband. She had loved her husband, sometimes(15), but that didnt matter: What could love ....count for in the face of theis possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being! THE theme of the story unfolds at this point: Mrs. Mallard, through the death of her husband, is able to experience the joy of the realizationShow MoreRelatedReaction to the Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin660 Words   |  3 PagesReaction to the Character of Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin In â€Å"The Story of an Hour,† Kate Chopin describes to her readers a young woman’s response to her husband’s death, or at least his presumed death. The opinions readers will draw from this story will vary from person to person due to personal experiences. The experience and wisdom that I have gained through the trails and tribulations of my life help me to understand, relate, and even despise Mrs. Mallard’s characterRead More Irony in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour Essays1295 Words   |  6 PagesIrony in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour A very dull and boring story can be made into a great story simply by adding in something that is unexpected to happen. When the unexpected is used in literature it is known as irony. An author uses irony to shock the reader by adding a twist to the story. The author of â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is Kate Chopin. Her use of irony in the story is incredibly done more than once. Irony is thinking or believing some event will happen but in return the unexpectedRead MoreThe Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin Essay1528 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin is very intriguing, not only because of the emotional change Louise Mallard goes through the hour after her husband’s tragic death but also the way Chopin uses irony in the story. During this analysis of â€Å"The Story of an Hour† we will discuss the summary, plot, setting, tone, theme, point of view, emotions of Louise Mallard and other characters involved in the story. Chopin’s story uses the feelings of a married womanRead More The Story of an Hour and The Hand Essay1161 Words   |  5 PagesThe â€Å"Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin and ‘†The Hand† by Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette are similar in theme and setting. Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and Kate Chopin create the theme of obligatory love and the unhappiness it entails. Both stories illustrate the concealed emotions many women feel in their marriage yet fail to express them. The two stories take place in a sacred room of the house a nd both transpire in a brief amount of time. The differences between the two stories are seen through theRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin881 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin is one of the most popular short story in literature. This story is somewhere reflected on real life of Kate Chopin, where she had to raise six children by herself after her husband’s death and other struggles in society. Kate Chopin used her literature knowledge to show woman’s freedom and other role of woman in society back in 1900th century. â€Å"The Story of an Hour† is also related to woman’s role in society, the story talks about the wife and husband’sRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin862 Words   |  4 PagesFiction Analysis: The Story of an Hour Kate Chopin’s short story, â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, is about one married woman’s true hidden feelings of being married in the 19th century. The story was published in 1894, a time where it was unacceptable for women to express their wants and needs as a woman. Women were not seen equal to men and did not have the same privileges as men such as voting. Therefore, some of her literary works were considered controversial. It wasn’t soon until the late 20 centuryRead MoreThe Death From The Emotions1200 Words   |  5 Pagesthe Emotions In the short story The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin, Louise Mallard, the main character, is told that her husband, Mr. Brently Mallard, is dead in a railroad disaster. This short story is interesting mentioning the inner happenings of Louise character within an hour when she hears the news from her husband’s death until seeing her husband, peaceful and healthy, appearing at the downstairs. Although the story is told quite simple within only one hour of time, readers can realizeRead More Irony in Kate Chopins Story of an Hour Essay796 Words   |  4 Pagesin Chopins Story of an Hour    Irony is a useful device for giving stories many unexpected twists and turns. In Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour, irony is used as an effective literary device. Situational irony is used to show the reader that what is expected to happen sometimes doesnt. Dramatic irony is used to clue the reader in on something that is happening that the characters in the story do not know about. Irony is used throughout Chopins The Story of an Hour through theRead Moreâ€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin Essay922 Words   |  4 PagesKate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour is a brilliant short story of irony and emotion. The story demonstrates conflicts that take us through the character’s emotions as she finds out about the death of her husband. Without the well written series of conflicts and events this story, the reader would not understand the depth of Mrs. Mallard’s inner conflict and the resolution at the end of the story. The conflict allows us to follo w the emotions and unfold the irony of the situation in â€Å"The Story of anRead MoreThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin919 Words   |  4 Pagesthe title states, â€Å"The Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin, is a story that takes place in a very brief period of time. The story revolves around a married woman, Louise Mallard, who is troubled both mentally and physically. Several other characters are present, such as Josephine, Mr. Mallard, and Richard, but play a limited role in the story. Mrs. Mallard is used to bring about a feminist theme in a time where women were viewed as invalidated until taking a husband. This story makes an effort to show

Explain Why the Nep Was Unpopular with Many Communists in...

Explain why the NEP was unpopular with many communists in the 1920’s USSR. The NEP, abbreviation for the ‘New Economic Policy’, was a number of policies deployed by Vladimir Lenin to improve the conditions of post war USSR. The NEP replaced the system of War Communism which was used between 1918 and 1921. The main motive for the War Communism policy was to support and supply the Red Army with food and weapons during the Russian Civil War. However, after the war the country was in turmoil and the majority of the Soviet Union’s population suffered hardship and poverty. This was when a quick solution was needed to revamp the Russian economy and the NEP policies were the solution. The NEP was made to balance the needs of the well of and†¦show more content†¦Other European countries used much more modernised equipments. However, the NEP does not encourage this modernisation which could in fact dramatically improve the country’s economy. Grain export was the most important source for their agriculture yet the exports were thre e fourth lower than it was a decade ago. This left the Russian economy to be far behind in modernisation than any other European countries. Modernisation was pivotal as it can enhance a country’s strength in many ways. Most importantly, it would help support Russia’s military at a time where an invasion to any European country could be foreseen. The Communists were afraid of this, since they were prone to any invasion with their weapons being out of date. The Communists felt they should be a major industrialization powerhouse against other European rivals such as Germany however the NEP would make the country even more vulnerable. Moreover, peasant realised feeding themselves is more important than buying insignificant consumer goods. So, they held grain for themselves and the grain export seems to have been abandoned. A system scale of individual peasant farming under the NEP couldn’t support plans for industrialisation and the Communists were out of favour for this plan and so, the current NEP policy needs to be replaced by a more vigorous and rapid one. Developing the Russian economy would further be significant as there was an increase in unemployment. The idleness wasShow MoreRelatedLenin13422 Words   |  54 PagesVladimir Ilyich Lenin Ð’Ð »Ã °Ã ´Ã ¸Ã ¼Ã ¸Ã'€ ИÐ »Ã'Å'Ð ¸Ã'‡ ЛÐ µÃ ½Ã ¸Ã ½ | | Lenin in 1920 | Chairman of the Council of People s Commissars of the Soviet Union (Premier of the Soviet Union) | In office 30 December 1922  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 21 January 1924 | Preceded by | Position created | Succeeded by | Alexei Rykov | Chairman of the Council of People s Commissars of the Russian SFSR | In office 8 November 1917  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ 21 January 1924 | Preceded by | Position created | Succeeded by | Alexei Rykov | Member of the Politburo

Myth of powerlesness Essay Example For Students

Myth of powerlesness Essay Linda McQuaigs book, The Cult of Impotence: Selling the Myth of Powerlessness in the Global Economy, is a refreshing new approach to viewing the current state of global economy and Canadas place in it. In recent years, such mysterious terms as fiscal deficits, natural rate of unemployment, stock market fluctuations, interest rate cuts and zero inflation and so on, have received an exceptional level of public consideration. Nevertheless, in spite of the now generally acceptable importance of the terms, their meaning an the effects of the domestic economic policies is left for the professional economists to analyze and present the public, as well as nations governing bodies with a list of remedies. Their guiding logic and principles are rarely questioned and more rarely fully understood. In such an environment, McQuaig has earned a wide audience for her writings by stripping away the aura of complexity from controversial economic issues and making them accessible and relevant to a gene ral audience. Challenging the opinions of the experts, she is trying to bring back the debatable economic policies of the global age to democratic accountability. McQuaig is a notable journalist and a writer, who has written a number of books on the state of affairs that Canadas economy is. Unlike her previous books that she has written ,discussing deficit reduction and cuts to social programs among others, this time she drifted away from the specifics and focused on our general view and acceptance of the economic processes. In the book, she attacks nations political passivity and acceptance of the believed fact that the domestic economy fully depends on the global market situation and that is should follow the trends. Trapped in this view, governments act as a victims to the global economic process and accepts an its people and impose this view on the electorate. Canadas economic troubles is not unique. Although, Canada is enjoying a period of relative economic growth, and the level of unemployment is at its lowest level since April 1976 at 6.8% in January 2001 (Tam). However, these 6.8% still mean 1.1 million people jobless. McQuaig argues that combating the unemployment should be the number one national economic policy, at times at the expense of the corporate and governmental financial institutions and currency speculators. The fiscal conservatism of Bank of Canada under Gordon Thiessen, the banks governor, and anti-inflationism which have become, it seems, the ide fixe for most state financiers became a source of tremendous political apathy, hindering the capacity of elected officials to carry through on their more progressive and egalitarian campaign promises. Afteral, Jean Chretiens government has been elected in 1993 and re-elected again in 1998 because the electorate bought their promise of the increased social spending and more socia l programs, which mean more jobs. Instead, Chretien and the Liberals suddenly forgot their election promise of a spending program to create jobs, and decreased the government social programs by about 30 percent for a start. As a result, the country has eliminated its deficit at the expense of the government involvement in the economy, which has been reduced to the level of the 1940s. Linda McQuaig argues that a policy of economic growth through lowering interest rates would have cut the deficit without the side effects to the Canadian society. The core of the dispute actually goes back to Keynesian-Friedman economics debate. In its essence, which should have been made clear for the voters at during the election campaign, Keynesian economics about active role of the government in the nations economy to manage the level of demand. Demand, according to the theory, is the economy, because adjusting it, it is possible to indirectly affect all other economic derivatives. When economic activity is depressed, the government should spend more, and when the economy is booming the government should spend less to achieve equilibrium. If aggregate demand in low then the government should pursue reflationary policies such as cutting taxes or boosting government spending to push aggregate demand higher and boost employment and output. However, if aggregate demand is too high and causing then the government should pursue deflationary policies. The theory was conceived by English economist John Maynard Keynes (hence the name), in 1930s at the times of

MaxCo Research proposal Essay Example

MaxCo Research proposal Essay The Max Mar Group is one of the largest international fashion houses and the first Italian clothing company, recognized throughout the world as the precursor of modern prà ªtporter fashion. The Group was formed in 1951 the Group with the aim of offering haute De game feminine clothing, produced according to excellent industrial processes. This is a record that the Max Mar Group has consolidated over time through a meticulous, luxurious style that has always achieved rising success on a world-wide scale (Mascara Group), maintaining however its strongest market in Italy. The Group is composed of nine different brands, each targeting a different segment, none of which are particularly active through digital communications, with the exception of websites and online shops. MOB Research Agency was contacted to develop a study aimed at analyzing the use of social media and digital communication tools for the MaxCo brand, which as company results show, is the most developed of the nine brands on new media, with particular focus to the Italian market. In fact, the further development of this brand online will define a model for the Groups other brands to also develop a social media ND digital communication strategy accordingly both within Italy and worldwide. It must be noted that the rapid evolution of social media and digital communications has led fashion companies to develop new communication strategies aimed at establishing a closer relationship with their customers. For the fashion industry, social media have been identified as a powerful enabler to build strong relationships with their consumers. We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on MaxCo Research proposal specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Social media and fashion brands both show strong relational features; in fact, among all sectors, the fashion market appears to be the most social, u to its underlining mechanisms of social diffusion. From this derives the importance for fashion brands to build a social image which leads to high levels of social involvements, in contrast with the mere presence of social media; the number of social networking channels manned by brands has a clear correlation with the ROI of social media marketing strategies. 1. Max Max mainly targets young women, who appear to be also one of the most significant groups of social media and digital communications users, therefore the effectiveness of the Groups strategy in this sector is essential. Research shows that Faceable and Mainstream are the most popular social media in Italy, both of which MaxCo has been using for the past 3 years and 12 months, respectively. Faceable has become a tool for consumers to interact with other consumers and with the brands, and it can increase brand awareness; also, it is a tool for word of mouth, with about 1. Million users in Italy, has become a powerful tool for the fashion industry today, as it allow creating a connection directly through a brands products and ideas. However, Maxs results for March 2014 show and overall negative trend on the use of the brands Faceable page and Mainstream page. Furthermore, with regards to other digital communications, Maxs websites shows regular visits that peak at times of the release of a new collection as well as of sales. To even the presence on their website throughout the year, MaxCo has been developing websites to present certain items of the seasons collection. . 1. 1 Introducing the new Max app The Mascara Group has begun developing an app for smartness and tablet, which will allow to access information about videos, campaigns, press, and other events related to its brands. The idea is to develop an interactive mobile magazine, tit stories about t he brands everyday life, integrated with the brands social media sites (Faceable and Mainstream) and with the possibility to be customized by entering personal data for style tips and possible purchases. The app will also allow accessing an online store. The launch of the app for Max will be a part of the brands new digital communication strategy, the app will also allow accessing an online store. This will not only give the brand the opportunity to build a personal relationship with its loyal customers, but also increase its reach and gather valuable information on customers. Liquor and Donna Koran International have been identified as top competitors for MaxCo brand, within the Italian market and worldwide, respectively. Liquor Donna Koran International MaxCO Faceable x Twitter Mainstream Youth channel Website Online shops Smartened and tablet app As the table above shows, MaxCos direct competitors have been developing on all major social online platforms as well as they have developed a brand application for smartness and tablet. This has allowed both competing brands to build a deeper relationship with their customers, proving that Max is indeed in need to take action to be able to compete both within the Italian market and at worldwide level and avoid losing its position in the market. According to Gallbladder data for the last quarter of 2013, Italians are amongst the top users of social media and digital communication tools such data indicate a solid window of opportunity for the firm to expand rapidly and diminish the gap with its competitors regarding virtual activities. MOB has been asked to plan a research to respond to Max Mar Fashion Groups concern that it may be falling behind its competition due to the low social media and digital communication use for its brands. It was agreed with the client to begin the research by analyzing MaxCo, one of the nine brands managed by the Group; in fact, this is the most active in terms of presence on social media and digital communications, in particular regarding its use of Faceable, Mainstream and its website. The introduction of the new app has also been planned for MaxCo solely. The results presented for the brand show a negative trend in online users for the brand social accounts. Having stated the importance of social media and digital communication for the fashion industry, MOB truly believes that carrying out the proposed research will offer MaxCo (and later he whole Group) the opportunity to redirect its digital communication strategy and continue excelling in the future making their brands socially smart and directly involved with their customers. Additionally, this research intends to analyses the possibilities and threats related to the introduction of a smartened application (the MaxYou app), which main competitors have already done. Taking into account the increase in access through mobile devices, the launch of the app shall allow the brand to reach all equal position on the market, with regards to social media and International and Liquor) appear to be a few steps ahead as they have established themselves in the digital world, this research should truly represent the first step toward the improvement of MaxCo and later the whole Groups strategy. It is the goal of this research proposal to lay out a detailed plan of how to measure the effectiveness of social media and digital communications, in terms of reach and engagement, and reinforce the urgency of ensuring the Max Mar Fashion Group is responding to growing trends for social media involvement and activity in the Italian fashion sector. Main techniques used in this research intend to analyses Max activities online in terms of reach and engagement for Faceable, Mainstream and the brands website. Additionally, the study seeks to investigate possible customer responses to the launch of the new app. The study will primarily focus on fully disclosing customers understanding, awareness and perception of MaxCo online activities in relation to what they perceive as effective, involving and ethical. The goal is to allow the Group, through this assessment and information available, to gather valuable consumer insight on current possible future strategies, and adapt to best spoon to its customer needs and preferences, in order to increase competitiveness. MOB has identified the following research objectives: 2. Understand the attitudes across women between the age of 19 and 35 toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands, with reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites and finally smartened and tablet applications. 2. 1. 1 . What kind of activities do customers expect from fashion brands? 2. 1. 2. How frequently do they expect websites and social media accounts to be updated? 2. 1. 3. Do they like to interact with br ands? . 1. 4. How do Italian users feel about fashion brands Faceable pages? . 1. 5. How do Italian users feel about fashion brands Mainstream accounts? 2. 1. 6. How do Italian users feel about company website engagement and online shopping? 2. 1. 7. What do they think of a user-adjustable app for fashion brands? The first goal of this research is to offer the company a clear overview of what their customer target segment thinks and expects from social media and digital communication activities from fashion brands, with particular reference to company Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and company websites, as well as APS. The target group identified for this study is representative of the people that most use such tools; the results are therefore expected to be reliable in outlining the attitudes (positive, negative or neutral) toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands within the Italian market. 2. Analyses the perception of MaxCos existing customers regarding the brands use of Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites for interaction and information in comparison to other customer experiences (with competitor brands) 2. 2. 1 In comparison with other fashion brands, re Max Faceable page and Mainstream account appealing in terms of content and activities? Sufficiently active? 2. 2. In comparison with other fashion brands, is Max website sufficiently informative and appealing for users? Is the online shop easy to use? 2. 2. 3 What are competitors doing? Are there other particular fashion doing? 2. 2. 4 Overall, what do customers think of Max a ctivities comparison with other fashion brands? Secondly, the research will look at Max existing customers perception of the brand use of social media and digital communication in comparison to other fashion brands. As it was noted before, the fashion industry is extremely sensitive to the use of these new means of communication and interaction between customers and brands, therefore the goal is to develop a thorough understanding of what customers think of what the brand is doing, in particular in comparison to what their competitors do within the Italian market, with regards to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and commerce activities, as well as the use of smartened and tablet APS. 2. 3 Determine which channels MaxCo customers prefer to communicate and interact with brands with respect to social media and chital communications 2. . 1 Where and when do MaxCo customers prefer to interact with the brand? 2. 3. 2 Do MaxCo customers enjoy interacting with the brand on Faceable and Mainstream? How frequently? 2. 3. 3 Should MaxCo be posting/sharing more often? What content is preferred by customers? 2. 3. 4 Do MaxCo customers enjoy the brands website? When do they visit it and why? 2. 3. 5 Would Max customers use a user-adjustable app for online shopping and news about the brand? What should it include? Thirdly, the research will determine what are the contact situations that Max customers refer to interact with the brand. This includes the how, when, and where preferences for interaction, which will allow the company pinpoint what are the Groups strengths and weaknesses of the brands strategy at the moment, benchmarking the research results with company activities. Understanding when and where the customers prefers to be in touch with the brand will also serve as a basis for future developments on other media. While investigating on target segments preferences, this research will also examine the possible responses to the introduction of a new application, which competitors already have. Therefore, the goal at this stage is to outline what customers would like from MaxCo and the Group in order to build a strong and loyal relationship with the brand. 2. 4 Identify based on customer responses how the brand could improve its use of social media and digital communication for interaction with its customers 2. 4. 1 How and where else would MaxCo customers like to interact with the brand? 2. 4. 2 What could MaxCo do differently? 2. 4. 3 What can be improved in MaxCos Faceable page, Mainstream account and website? 2. 4. 4 Is there something that competitors do that Max customers would eke from the brand? The final goal of this research is to identify opportunities for improvement for the brands online activities, building upon responses to the other objectives and an overall evaluation of MaxCo customers. The goal is to identify specific activities for the brand to strengthen its social media and digital communications strategy, in particular with regards to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts and website activities, as well as new tools that competitors already use successfully, in accordance to customers attitudes and personal preferences expressed in their responses. The aim of this research is to benchmark Max position in this sector at the moment with how customers see it and how they would want the brand to act in the future. The research will begin with secondary data analysis in order to create a framework for the research, in particular using available data and information regarding the use of Faceable, Mainstream, company websites and APS by Italian users for fashion brands. Secondly, the research will proceed with collecting qualitative and quantitative data through focus groups and structured (close and open questions) questionnaires, respectively. The results are expected to provide a framework for the company to identify its strengths and weaknesses, and identify opportunities and threats for future digital developments to compete with other fashion brands. They will also define the most suitable strategy for the launch of the new Max smartened and tablet application. According to the Isomer Glossary secondary data is data that have already been collected and published for another research project; secondary data can be internal and external. For the purpose of this research internal secondary data will e obtained from internal company databases and previous research reports on the topic, while external secondary data will be taken from specialized researches and reports done by other specialized agencies and researchers. Available secondary research data will help clarify the target during the initial exploratory and descriptive research phases. The analysis of secondary research will provide the necessary background to ensure the research takes the correct direction in analyzing the problem, and will also give MOB and Max a set of information to test the research exults against at the end of the research, ensuring the accuracy of the results. In order to optimize the use of secondary data, considering the great availability of research on the topic of social media and digital communication, MOB will screen for relevance and inaccuracy and will ensure to use solely data strictly relevant for the purpose of this research, publicly available or from other partner agencies. In particular, secondary data will be evaluated based on the following criteria: credibility of publisher/researcher, purpose of the research, time of data collection, search methodology used for data collection, and relevance, comparability and reliability of data. The research will begin with the analysis of internal secondary data, company internal databases, which will be useful for the researchers to build an initial reference framework on the activities and results of the brand. MOB will be analyzing through data mining the following internal sources: Annual reports for 2012 and 2013, sales and communication reports determine trends and strengths and weaknesses of the brand as well as identify opportunities to develop Internal experts ports in order to get insight on the objectives and ideas of the brands employees Database of customer information and purchase history determine target segment and identify the participant for primary research. Secondary research will directly answer the first objective of this research, by outlining the general attitudes of the selected target group toward the use of social media and digital communication tools for interaction with fashion brands, with reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, websites and finally smartened and tablet applications. External data research is also expected to generate initial espouses on customers preferred digital contact situations with brands, also for Max, thus partially responding to the second and fourth objective identify customer perception of Maxs digital strategy and opportunities for improvement. MOB will be gathering secondary data from the following external sources (syndicated data): Competitors annual reports, including social media reports highlight the strengths and weaknesses of competitors and benchmark results with Maxs Fashion reports on social media use by fashion brands, specifically data collected on MaxCo (Faceable and Mainstream reports) review activities of the rand so far and determine customer response to them Gallbladder reports on use of social media and web-based platforms in Italy gather information on the target segment use of social media and smartened and tablet APS, frequency of use as well as reason for using them. Primary research is defined as data that are collected specifically for a current research project (Isomer Glossary). For the purpose of this research, primary data will be collected through focus groups and a questionnaire administered to social media users and website visitors, to answer all the objective of this research from a alliterative and quantitative perspective (with the exception of objective 1 which will be measured solely through quantitative research). 3. 2. 1 Qualitative Qualitative research is defined as the use of unstructured exploratory techniques (such as group discussions and in-depth interviews) that are based on statistically small samples in order to understand a problem further (Isomer Glossary), which in this case will be collected through focus groups. Primary research will begin with qualitative data collection to identify non-quantifiable insights on the target segment; Hough quantitative data is by definition less structured and more flexible as well as it involves smaller samples, it allows to gain a deeper understanding of the topics (Wilson, 2006), it will be important to firstly obtain a thorough understanding of the attitudes and behaviors of the target group, to then develop accurate measurements through quantitative research. Qualitative data will be gathered through focus groups. Focus groups are a type of qualitative research that consists of an informal discussion of a particular topic with a small number of selected participants (Dib and Siskin, 2009). The discussion will be guided by a skilled moderator, ensuring that the group discusses all relevant subject areas and the views of the participants are as clear as possible (Isomer Glossary). The data gathered through qualitative research is expected to generate information about regards to social media and digital communications, in particular in reference to Faceable pages, Mainstream accounts, company websites and APS. Additionally, the responses obtained from focus groups are expected to provide detailed information about customers perceptions and attitudes directly by being in contact with the people and observing their behaviors and emotions throughout the discussion about Max. MOB will ensure that solely MRS. certified and experienced moderators will run the focus groups. A discussion guide will be made available to each moderator, which will include an introduction to the research, its objectives and the agenda for the focus group. The moderator will give an introduction, after which the dissuasive part of the discussion guide will start. In this phase respondents will be put through the actual task and moderator will be there to run the focus group. In his section all the data will be collect by using voice recorders and cameras. This phase will run for 90 minutes. The last phase will be the summarizing and closing of the discussion group. It will take about 10-15 minutes. At the end, the moderator will administer all the equipment and data for analysis. MOB will arrange for participants to be selected from client databases of store in the main Italian cities (Turin, Milan, Bologna, Florence, Anaconda, Rome, Naples, Barb, Palermo and Calamari). It is estimated that a total of 40 of focus groups will be held in total, for an average of 4 per city elected number of focus groups will be assigned on the basis of volume and frequency of purchases and occupation of the subjects selected in each location. Measures to ensure that engaged and cooperative respondents are recruited for focus groups will be applied. Each participant will be given a ?10 gift card for Max stores. Each focus group will be executed in an ad-hoc location with a one- way mirror behind which the researcher will sit and observe the reactions of the participants to the questions asked. Each group will consist of 10 participants. The plan is to perform all focus groups in one day, from morning to evening. The moderator will ask the question and help frame the discussion among the participants; the moderator will also record the answers. Then the answers will be put on paper and analyses by the MOB experts. Projective techniques According to the Isomer Glossary projective techniques are a form of disguised questioning that encourage participants to attribute their feelings, beliefs or motivations to another person, object or situation. They represent a structured indirect way to investigate feelings, attitudes and motivation of focus groups participants in qualitative research. Projective techniques are based on the principle hat subjects may feel constrained in expressing their feelings, and say what they feel is expected in order to please the interviewer (Bradley, 2010). Responses gather through projective techniques then will need to be interpreted in terms of underlying meaning of the information and behaviors of the subjects. In order to prevent the gathering of non-representative results, focus group moderators will question participants indirectly by initiating the discussion with topics like changes in social environment due to the rising of Internet-based media, aiming to gain insights on heir use of social media. Moderator will then direct the discussion to fashion brands in Italy, what they do and how they interact with them, solely referring to other brand names. Additionally, MOB intends to use Photostat technique, namely present chosen in accordance to the research aims (Cain and Cervix, 2011). The initial images will represent different scenarios and objects not related to Max or social media. At a second stage the images will be social media and other fashion brands logos upon which the participants will continue discussing and exchanging views as well as hey will be asked to define an overall group position/view. MOB also suggests adding to each focus group a conflict participant, a member of the MOB team, to sit with the group and pose as the negative, issue-raising participant. This is intended to also evaluate customers responses and possible defensive attitudes towards the brand. 3. 2. 2 Quantitative Quantitative research is the collection of (statistically) large samples of quantitative data and usually some form of statistical analysis, which is often used to substantiate the findings from qualitative research (Isomer Glossary). Quantitative research will be conducted through structured questionnaires with close and open questions administered online. The use of a web based survey is will ensure speed of response, lower costs for the distribution of questionnaires and higher precision in the analysis of the data. Additionally, it is cost and time effective also for respondents, which will be more likely to take part in the research. Each participant will begin a ?10 gift card for MaxCo. Potential participants will be invited to participate in the survey through the brands online sites (Faceable, Mainstream and Bessie) where they will be given a link to a satellite website to complete thesaurus anonymously. The questionnaire will include multiple choice questions which offer respondents the ability to answer yes or no or choose from a list of several answer choices. Mostly close-end questions, and a few open questions, the survey will also include scales to ask respondents to rank their some of their answers (Dib and Siskin, 2009). The survey will be developed by MOB researchers using Snap package, and sent to Max Mar Group for approval. The aim is to develop a questionnaire that ill take the candidate about 15-20 minutes to complete (for a total of approximately 40 questions, divided in three sections). To ensure the accuracy of this research it is estimated that it will be necessary to gather 500 a total of questionnaires. The questionnaire will be administered online through hyperlinks embedded on Faceable and Mainstream posts of the Maxs official pages, which will be reposted up to 5 times per day for a week; additionally, the study will be on the company website. In case target number of participant is reached before the planned week, the hyperlink to the questionnaire will be deactivated in advance. However, due to the importance to maximize response rate in order to fulfill the objectives of the research, MOB reserves the right to repost the advertisements for the questionnaires for a longer period, until the set number of responses is collected for data analysis. It will also be important to count and control the number of participants recruited per medium: data should be obtained from an equal percentage of users from all three pages, which will be calculated based on average number of users each.