Monday, January 27, 2020

Ethical Leadership And Unethical Behavior Management Essay

Ethical Leadership And Unethical Behavior Management Essay Ethical leadership, is a form of leadership including attributes such as integrity, trustworthiness, fairness, concern for others, and behaving ethically. A more systemic definition divides ethical leaders into two parts moral persons and moral managers (Trevià ±o, Hartman, Brown, 2000). For moral persons, it refers to the ethical part of the term ethical leadership, suggesting that ethical leaders should be moral persons who are honest, trustworthy, taking good care and be fair to their followers, having right behaviors in both personal and professional lives. For moral managers, it refers to the leadership part, focusing on more transactional efforts to influence the ethical behavior of followers (Trevino, Brown Hartman, 2003). As moral managers, ethical leaders communicate with their subordinates about their ethical and values-based expectations, use reward and punishment to encourage ethical conduct or prevent unethical behaviors. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004). As ethical behaviors refer to behaviors that are generally morally acceptable to the larger community; conversely, we define unethical behaviors as behaviors that are morally unacceptable generally. (Jones, 1991; Trevià ±o, 2006) And in this paper, the ethical (unethical) behaviors refer to the behaviors conducted in companies or organizations. After defining the terms, we base on two theories or processes to explain the effects of ethical leadership on the unethical work behavior, which is consistent with the recent relevant studies about the topic. (Mayer, Aquino,Greenbaum Kuenzi, 2012; Mayer et al., 2009; Brown, Trevià ±o Harrison, 2005; Kirkman, Chen, Farh, Chen Lowe, 2009) Social Learning Theory Social learning theory posits that leaders influence their subordinates through the process of role-modeling. (Bandura, 1977, 1986) Employees learn what ought to do and what ought not, by observing the leaders behaviors and the corresponding results. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004). Given the virtue and power in an organization, leaders are generally perceived as a credible and legitimate role model (Mayer et al., 2012). So by mimicking the behaviors of the ethical leaders, the subordinates would also be more likely to do things in a morally desirable way. Apart from direct observation on leaders, employees would also pay close attention to behaviors that are rewarded and punished to themselves or others (Brown, 2005), and to do what is rewarded while avoiding what is punished, and thus reduce the unfavorable behaviors. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004). Ethical leadership highlights on ethical behaviors. So through behave ethically as a valid ethical role models, at the same time, encourage ethical behaviors and discipline unethical ones by putting forward proper rewards and punishments, ethical leader can have a role on preventing or reducing the unethical behaviors in the organization. (Mayer et al, 2012). Social Exchange Theory The effect of ethical leadership on the subordinates behavior can also be explained by social exchange processes (Blau, 1964; Trevià ±o Brown, 2004; Mayer et al., 2009). Social exchange is based on the norm of reciprocity (Gouldner, 1960), which means that if one party do something beneficial to the other party, the counter party will then assume the obligation to do something good as the reciprocation back to the first party. (Cropanzano Mitchell, 2005). So in the relationship of ethical leadership and unethical behavior, ethical leadership defines leaders with characteristics of having fairness, trustworthiness, integrity etc, if employees regarded themselves as being treated fairly and perceived organizational support create a closer relationship between employer and employee, they are more likely to reciprocate these favorable treatment by being more loyal and supportive to their leaders or organizations, thus tends to reduce the harmful behaviors (Bies Moag, 1986 ; Phillips Elkins ,2000 ; Trevià ±o Brown, 2004). Besides, it is found that if employees maintain a high-quality relationship with their leader, they are less likely to engage in retaliation (Liden, Sparrowe, Wayne, 1997). As ethical leaders are perceived as admirable leaders due to their trustworthiness, integrity and care and concern for others, they are likely to create a positive social exchange relationship with their subordinates. In return, more citizenship behaviors and less unethical conduct will be expected. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004) So base on the review of the two processes that ethical leadership takes effect, we propose the first hypothesis. Hypothesis 1: Ethical leadership is negatively related to unethical behavior in organization. Power Distance Orientation as Moderator Power distance is defined as the extent to which one accepts the legitimacy of unequally distributed power in institutions and organizations. (Hofstede, 1980). And in this article, the research is on the individual-level, thus the term power distance orientation (Kirkman, Chen, Farh, Chen, Lowe, 2009; Clugston, Howell, Dorfman, 2000) was adopted. Recent studies and researches in the cross-cultural management field indicates that cultural value orientations, or individually held cultural values and beliefs, have an important role in how employees react to aspects of their work (Kirkman et al., 2009). And compared to other culture dimension, such as individualism-collectivism,uncertainty avoidance and masculinity-femininity etc. (Hofstede, 1980), power distance orientation, in theory, has a more direct relationship to leadership reactions (Kirkman et al., 2009) or the individuals perception and reaction to authority (Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012). And according to the review of the ethical leadership unethical behavior relationship, we note that ethical leadership can influence the subordinators unethical behavior through two processes social learning and social exchange. Studies suggest that by influencing the two processes, power distance orientation can act as a facilitator or barriers (Kirkman et al., 2009) to the ethical leadership-unethical behavior relationship. Power Distance Orientation and Social Learning Theory In the social learning perspective (Bandura, 1973), subordinates behavior will be influenced by leaders through the modeling process(Trevià ±o Brown, 2004; Brown,Trevià ±o, Harrison, 2005), where the subordinates will take the leaders as their role models, and learn from or mimic what the leaders do; besides, the subordinates would observe the reward and punishment to themselves or to the others offered by the leaders to get to know what to do or not to do. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004) On the basis of this, with support from the studies, we argue that the power distance orientation will influence the effectiveness of the social learning in following ways. On one hand, compared to the low power distance orientation individuals, those who are with high power distance orientations will tend to view their leaders as the ones with high-status (Bochner Hesketh, 1994; Kirkman et al., 2009; Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012) and are superior as well as elite (Javidan, Dorfman, de Luque, House, 2006;Kirkman et al., 2009), thus they will be more likely to take their leaders as role models and mimic their behaviors. (Mayer, Aquino, Greenbaum Kuenzi, 2012; Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012) On the other hand, referring to the definition of power distance, we could note that subordinates with high power distance orientation accept unequally distributed power to a greater extent(Hofstede, 1980), thus they will hold a stronger belief, compared to low power distance orientation individuals, that one should not be against but to respect the leaders decision. (Bochner Hesketh, 1994; Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012), which means, the reward and punishment decision made by the leaders would be less likely to doubt and more likely to be accepted and followed by the high power distance orientation subordinators. As stated earlier, ethical leadership can have effects on subordinators unethical behavior through the social learning process. And with the present of power distance orientation, we expect the effect of ethical leadership will be affected, compared to low power distance orientation, individuals holding high power distance orientation will be more likely to regard their leaders as the ethical role model and mimic them to behave ethically. Also, they would be more convinced by and learn from the rewards on ethical behavior and punishments on unethical behavior. Power Distance Orientation and Social Exchange Theory Besides of Social learning processes, the ethical leaderships relationship with subordinates unethical behavior can be also explained by the social exchange processes. (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004; Mayer, Kuenzi, Greenbaum, Bardes, Salvador, 2009). As stated earlier, in social exchange theory and based on the norm of reciprocity (Gouldner, 1960), ethical leadership can help to prevent or mitigate the subordinators unethical behaviors when leaders and subordinators are in a positive social exchange relationship with elements such as perceived fairness, trust in leaders, etc. being satisfied. So by affecting these aspects, we expect power distance orientation will influence the ethical leaderships effect. For example, in the perceived fairness aspect, individuals with high power distance orientation will accept the unequally distributed power in a larger extent (Hofstede, 1980), so they will tend to be more tolerant for the unequally treatment and regard it as non unfair (Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012). So we posited that, with the less perceived unfairness, subordinates with high power distance orientation would view the leaders as fair which would result in less undesirable behavior such as unethical behavior (Trevià ±o Brown, 2004). Similarly, in the aspect of trust in leaders or affection for leaders, high power distance orientation plays a role that subordinates with high power distance orientation are more likely to admit their leaders superiority and elite (Javidan et al., 2006;Kirkman et al., 2009) so are more likely to show their respect to and trust their leaders (Kirkman et al., 2009; Sully de Luque Sommer, 2000;Lian Ferris Brown 2012). As a result, they will tend to behave favorably for the leaders or even the whole organization (Javidan et al., 2006; Kirkman et al., 2009) and reduce the undesirable behaviors including the unethical behaviors. To sum up the above, we expect the moderating effect of power distance orientation on the strength of the relationship between ethical leadership and unethical behaviors, and as such we put forward the second hypothesis. Hypothesis 2: The relation between ethical leadership and unethical behavior in organization is moderated by power distance orientation, such that the relation is stronger for individuals with high power distance orientation than for individuals with low power distance orientation. 3. Method Sample and Procedures This study is a quantitative study. Data would be collected in mainland China, the questionnaires will be translated to Chinese and back-translated into English for results analysis. (Kirkman et al., 2009). Sample size is expected to be around 200 subordinates in individuals. Measures Ethical leadership Referring to the recent ethical leadership studies of (Mayer et al., 2009, 2012), in this paper, we measure ethical leadership by using the ten-item scale from Brown et al. (2005). (See Appendix 1) Unethical behavior To measure the unethical behavior, we adopt the 17-item-scale used by (Akaahs ,1996) and (Mayer et al., 2012), which was originated from Newstrom Ruch (1975). (See Appendix 2) Power distance orientation As this article is on the individual-level, we follow the previous studies (Brockner et al., 2001; Earley, 1999; Kim Leung, 2007; Kirkman et al., 2009) to use the eight-item linkert scale from Earley and Erez (1997) for the measurement of the power distance orientation. (See Appendix 3) Control variables In this study, control variables including: age, gender, tenure, (Brockner et al., 2001; Kirtment et al., 2009; Lian, Ferris Brown, 2012); we will also control the position factor, which refers to whether the employees hold the role of subordinate and supervisor at the same time. (Brockner et al., 2001). Analysis Method We will first use the bivariate regression to test the main effect (Hypothesis 1) and we will use multiple regression to test the moderating effect (Hypothesis 2). 5. Schedule Reference Akaah, I. P. (1996). The influence of organizational rank and role on marketing professionals ethical judgments. Journal of Business Ethics, 15: 605-614. 15: 605-614. Blau, P. M. (1964). Exchange and power in social life. New York: Wiley. Bandura, A. (1973). Aggression: A social learning analysis. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Brislin, R. W. (1980). Translation and content analysis of oral and written materials. In H. C. Triandis J. W. Berry (Eds.), Handbook of cross-cultural psychology: Methodology, vol. 2: 389-444. Boston: Allyn Bacon. Bandura, A. (1986). Social foundations of thought action. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Bochner, S., Hesketh, B. (1994). Power distance, individualism/collectivism, and job-related attitudes in a culturally diverse work group. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 25, 233-257. doi:10.1177/ 0022022194252005 Brockner, J., Ackerman, G., Greenberg, J., Gelfand, M. J., Francesco, A. M., Chen, Z. X., . . . Shapiro, D. (2001). Culture and procedural justice: The influence of power distance on reactions to voice. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 37, 300 -315. doi:10.1006/ jesp.2000.1451 Brown, M. E., Trevià ±o, L. K., Harrison, D. A. 2005. Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing. 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The transplanted executive: Why you need to understand how workers in other countries see the world differently. New York: Oxford University Press Earley, P. C. 1999. Playing follow the leader: Status determining traits in relation to collective efficacy across cultures. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 80: 192-212. Gouldner, A. W. (1960). The norm of reciprocity. American Sociological Review, 25, 161-178 Hofstede, G. H. (1980). Cultures consequences: International differences in work-related values. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Hofstede, G. 1993. Culture constraints in management theories. Academy of Management Executive, 7(1): 81-94. Hofstede, G. 2001. Cultures consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Jones, T. M. 1991. Ethical decision making by individuals in organizations: An issue-contingent model. Academy of Management Review, 16: 366-395. Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., de Luque, M. S., House, R. J. 2006. In the eye of the beholder: Cross-cultural lessons in leadership from Project GLOBE. Academy of Management Perspectives, 20(1): 67-90. Kim, T., Leung, K. 2007. Forming and reacting to overall fairness: A cross-cultural comparison. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 104: 83-95. Kirkman, B. L., Chen, G., Farh, J.-L., Chen, Z. X., Lowe, K. B. (2009). Individual power distance orientation and follower reactions to transformational leaders: A cross-level, cross-cultural examination. Academy of Management Journal, 52, 744-764. doi:10.5465/AMJ.2009.43669971 Lian, H., Ferris, D. L., Brown, D. J. (2012). Does power distance exacerbate or mitigate the effects of abusive supervision? it depends on the outcome. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(1), 107-123 Mayer, D. M., Kuenzi, M., Greenbaum, R., Bardes, M., Salvador, R. (. (2009). How low does ethical leadership flow? test of a trickle-down model. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108(1), 1-13. doi:10.1016/j.obhdp.2008.04.002 Mayer, D. M., Aquino, K., Greenbaum, R. L., Kuenzi, M. (2012). Who displays ethical leadership, and why does it matter? an examination of antecedents and consequences of ethical leadership. Academy of Management Journal, 55(1), 151. Newstrom, J. W., W. A. Ruch: 1975, The Ethics of Management and the Management of Ethic, MSU Business Topics (Winter), 31. Trevià ±o, L. K., Weaver, G. R., Gibson, D. G., Toffler, B. L. (1999). Managing ethics and legal compliance: What works and what hurts. California Management Review, 41(2), 131-151. Trevià ±o, L. K., Hartman, L. P., Brown, M. E. 2000. Moral person and moral manager: How executives develop a reputation for ethical leadership. California Management Review, 42(4): 128-142. Trevino, L. K., Brown, M. E., Hartman, L. P. (2003). A qualitative investigation of perceived executive ethical leadership: Perceptions from inside and outside the executive suite. Human Relations, 56, 5-38. Trevià ±o, L. K., Brown, M. E. (2004). The Role of Leaders in Influencing Unethical Behavior in the Workplace [PDF document]. Retrieved from http://www.corwin.com/upm-data/4910_Kidwell_Chapter_3.pdf Trevià ±o, L. K. (2006). Behavioral ethics in organizations: A review. Journal of Management, 32(6), 951-990. doi: 10.1177/0149206306294258 Appendices Appendix 1 10 items Ethical Leadership Scale (Brown et al., 2005) Items will be rated on a scale from 1 (highly unlikely) to 7 (highly likely) Conducts h/h personal life in an ethical manner Defines success not just by results but also the way that they are obtained Listens to what employees have to say Disciplines employees who violate ethical standards Makes fair and balanced decisions Can be trusted Discusses business ethics or values with employees Sets an example of how to do things the right way in terms of ethics Has the best interests of employees in mind When making decisions, asks what is the right thing to do? Appendix 2 17 items unethical behavior scale ( Newstrom Ruch 1975) Items will be rated on descriptive range from 1 Never to 7 Frequently Personal use Using company services for personal use Doing personal business on company time Pilfering company materials and supplies Taking extra personal time (lunch hour, breaks, early departure) Passing blame Concealing ones error Passing blame for errors to an innocent co-worker Claiming credit for someone elses work Bribery Giving gifts/favors in exchange for preferential treatment Accepting gifts/favor in exchange for preferential treatment Falsification Falsifying time/quality/quantity reports Calling in sick to take a day off Authorizing a subordinate to violate company rules Padding expenses Padding an expense account up to 10% Padding an expense account more than 10% Deception Taking longer than necessary to do a job Divulging con ¬Ã‚ dential information Not reporting others violations of company policies and rules

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Was The Grand Prix Beneficial For Melbourne :: essays research papers

Was The Grand Prix Beneficial For Melbourne Issues Part -B- Was the Grand Prix, promoted as "The Great Race" which was held at Albert Park beneficial for Melbourne, or was it just a huge waste of taxpayers money? The race was televised to 650 million people in 130 different countries is expected to pump $50 million into the Victorian economy every year and boost tourism enormously. I along with the owners of seventy-two percent of hotels, motels, restaurants and other entertainment complexes agree that Albert Park having the Grand Prix will have a positive impact on business. Infact it pumped $10 - $15 million into local business. This will mean these businesses did put on more part time staff who will be gaining valuable work experience and there will also be a flow on effect to suppliers of these industries. Fifty-nine percent of interstate visitors and forty five percent of overseas visitors would not have come to Adelaide in a two year period because of the Grand Prix if not for the race. By Albert Park getting the Grand Prix created between 1000-1500 new jobs. The Grand Prix will promote Victoria on an international scale with international press, television and media caring out a world wide coverage of this event. This could convince people to come and visit Melbourne and would also be a major tourism boost. Approximately $23.8 million has been spent overhauling the park and upgrading the Lake side track. They built better fences and barricades to help protect spectators in case of a crash, and the track is said to be the safest and finest in the world, creating a benchmark for Albert Park. Temporary seating will cater for 150,000 people, and there was approximately an attendance of 400,000 over the four days. 9,000 part-time jobs and 1,000 full-time jobs were created over the weekend. The "greenies" are still trying to stop the race at Albert Park. First it was "Save The Park" and now it's "Stop The Grand Prix." At first they protested about the cutting down of hundreds of trees to make way for the track. But this has been overcome by the replanting of 5000 new trees which would cover 16 football ovals. This is almost double the amount of trees that were there previously. They don't care about the huge impact that the race had on Melbourne, instead they unsuccessfully protest against it and by doing so it has cost the Victorian taxpayers $1.3 million. But the track has already been built and the first race held, so there is no chance of it being removed and the park could

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Chadwick: A Balanced Scorecard

Needs to focus Its business strategy by first addressing the following questions: How do customers see us? What must we excel at? Can we continue to improve and create value? How do we look to shareholders? The Balanced Scorecard is a set of measures that gives top management a fast but comprehensive view of the business. It details both financial and operational measures by focusing on four parameters: Innovation and Learning Perspective, Internal Business Perspective, Customer Perspective, and Financial Perspective.By adopting the Balanced Scorecard, Chadwick, Inc. Will create a report that Includes financial measures of results already taken together with operational measures that are the drivers of future financial performance. Innovation and Learning Perspective Chadwick will fulfill its company value through its ability to introduce its new products, improve operating efficiencies to generate its revenue. Well-trained employees bring value to a company, and a good training prog ram can improve the employees' performance.The best measurement of training is return on investment (ROI). Chadwick, Inc. ‘s goal Is to create an Increase of new drug Innovation; measured y comparing after-training results to previous pre-training results, setting a benchmark at 5%. The Research and Development department (R&D) plays an important role by getting feedback from the market, customers, and specialists. It will use the feedback to create future products to meet their customer's needs and create profits. The company should set up both short-term and long-term goal for the R;D department.The short-term goal will be measured by two deferent ways: the amount of new product's weight on total sales and time a product takes to be Introduced to the market. New products must occupy 60% of the sales. To measure product introduction, Chadwick, Inc. Can compare the time spends on the new product development and compare it to its competitors. The long-term goal is to maintain t echnology leadership in the industry, measured by Chadwick ability to develop next generation of drug innovation. To motivate the employees, the company should set up a reward system or work environment to stimulate the creativity of Its workers.Chadwick should Incorporate both monetary and non monetary methods to reward its employees. The non monetary awards include: public recognition such as reduce development team award dinners and ceremonies, recognition through video spots or the company newsletter; or, time off like time allocated to work on â€Å"pet† projects, extra vacation for overtime worked, etc. (Sunken, 30). Above all, to build an engaged workforce, enable a rewarding work environment, and leverage technology are essential elements the company must Include when setting measures under Its Innovation and learning perspective.Internal Business Perspective Chadwick Inc. Needs to implement internal business measures to meet its customers expectations. By identifying and measuring specific goals such as new compound velveteen, excellence in manufacturing and new product introduction, Chadwick will ensure its continued market leadership. New compound development will be measured by the number of products in development and focusing on three factors: will make it through, attrition can determine the number of compounds needed in each stage to ensure registration.Cycle time will measure the amount of time it takes for a compound to go through the entire process from development to market introduction. Funding will determine how many projects the company can financially support throughout the year. Based on the three factors, management will be able to calculate how many compounds are needed in each development stage and identify any gaps in its strategy. Chadwick needs to continue its excellence in manufacturing. Creating a quality product at a reasonable cost will ensure customer loyalty and drive profits.The manufacturing development will measur e the unit cost of each drug. Also it will measure the cycle time of each drug focusing on quickness and efficiency. Management will be able to calculate if a certain drug takes longer, or is more expensive to manufacture, and make changes accordingly to minimize cost and improve lead time. Product introduction will be measured by the time it takes to market the newly approved drug. It will also measure the costs associated with introducing the new drug, such as advertisement and incentives to distributors.Management will be able to track each drug and determine if there are any delays in the distributing and marketing process Customer Perspective Customer retention is one of the most important parts in keeping a company going strong. Chadwick must realize that the customer's opinions, finances, and willingness to buy their products are significant in moving forward. One way that Chadwick can see what customers are thinking is to have a section on their website that allows them to a sk questions about the products and to express their concerns about the products that might not be working.If the company provides this option on their website, the innovation and learning perspective can focus on ways to improve the products and keep the customers coming back for more. Another way to see what customers think of the company and its products is to ask them directly, whether it's sending them a survey in the mail or asking them at the doctor's office. These surveys can include questions that refer to which products are effective and not effective, which products consumers tend to purchase, which products people can afford, ask if the products are delivered promptly, and ask whether or not they are satisfied with the service.Since Chadwick is always looking to grow in quarterly sales and increase market share, it is important to see what customers are willing to pay for and which products they are purchasing. It is important to find out which products are not being sol d so Chadwick can take those items off the shelves and save money. Chadwick must see who its target consumers are; they have to find out which age range, gender, and race purchase the products. In order to keep Chadwick customers coming back, Chadwick must provide them with the best products and services.Another great way to stay in touch with customers is a loyalty program. It's a great way to use the email marketing tool and Chadwick can send its loyal customers special offers and let them know about upcoming events and new products. To make the customers feel appreciated, Chadwick can send out birthday greetings with gifts or special offers. This personal touch helps customers understand that Chadwick alee them as individuals and invites more loyalty and trust. Lastly, Chadwick needs to keep its loyal customers involved so Chadwick must ask for their opinions on the that would alienate its loyal customers.From a consumer perspective, a loyal customer would love to have a say in t hings and provide an invaluable incite on the upcoming business plan. After the decision is reached, their word of mouth marketing will achieve more success than almost any type of advertising or marketing efforts Chadwick employ. Financial Perspective Financial performance and measurements continue to be the crucial measurements or both the company and the company's shareholders. Financial goals have been set to determine profitability, growth, and shareholder value. Chadwick, Inc. Seed Return on Capital Employed (ROCK) to control the returns from the most profitable divisions and transfer the excess to those divisions that held out the highest promise for profitable growth. Chadwick implemented the reporting of financial summaries by each division to corporate headquarters. The Chadwick executive committee consisted of the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Operating Officer, two Executive Vice Presidents, and the Chief Financial Officer. The executive committee met on a monthly b asis with each division manager to review ROCK performance.In order to improve production within the Norwalk Division, we recommend that Chadwick implement to a total quality management program. This program will measure extensively the factors in employee participation, statistical process control, and key quality indicators. Chadwick can use computerized control and remote data entry systems which can produce daily income statements. This information can be available to the department managers and operating personnel. With this information, the value of output from production process can be estimated.This can be accomplished by using market prices and subtracting the expense of raw materials, energy, and capital consumption in the production process. In conclusion, Chadwick, Inc. Needs to create a clearly defined business vision and strategy to properly apply the Balanced Scorecard Theory. The vision and strategy needs to be implemented from top management. Chadwick measurement sy stem will strongly affect the behavior of management and employees. Monetary incentives can be added to the implementation of this program to make it successful.

Friday, January 3, 2020

History of Electric Christmas Lights

Like so many things electrical, the history of electric Christmas lights begins with Thomas Edison. During the Christmas season of 1880, Edison, who had invented the incandescent bulb the previous year, hung strings of electric lights outside his laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. An article in the New York Times  on December 21, 1880, described a visit by officials from the New York City government to Edisons laboratory in Menlo Park. The walk from the train station to Edisons building was lined with electric lamps was illuminated with 290 light bulbs which cast a soft and mellow light on all sides. Did You Know? The first use of electric Christmas lighting was by Thomas Edison in 1880.The first illuminated Christmas tree was shown off by one of Edisons employees to reporters who visited his Manhattan house in 1882.Electric lights were very costly at first and required the services of a trained electrician.When the cost of electric lights became affordable, their use quickly spread as they were much safer than candles. It doesnt appear from the article that Edison intended the lights to be associated with Christmas. But he was hosting a holiday dinner for the delegation from New York, and the novel lighting seemed to fit in with the holiday mood. Up to that time, it was common to illuminate Christmas trees with small candles, which could, of course, be dangerous. In 1882, an employee of Edison put on a show with electric lights that was fully intended to establish the practical application of electricity to the celebration of Christmas. Edward H. Johnson, a close friend of Edison and the president of the company Edison formed to provide illumination in New York City, used electric lights for the first time to illuminate a Christmas tree. The First Electric Christmas Tree Lights Johnson rigged up a Christmas tree with electrical lights, and, in typical style for the Edison companies, he solicited coverage in the press. An 1882 dispatch in the Detroit Post and Tribune about a visit to Johnson’s house in New York City may have been the first news coverage of electric Christmas lights. A month later, a magazine of the time, Electrical World, also reported on Johnson’s tree. Their item called it â€Å"the handsomest Christmas tree in the United States.† Two years later, the New York Times sent a reporter to Johnson’s house on the East Side of Manhattan, and an astoundingly detailed story appeared in the edition of December 27, 1884. Headlined, A Brilliant Christmas Tree: How an Electrician Amused His Children, the article began: A pretty as well as novel Christmas tree was shown to a few friends by Mr. E.H. Johnson, President of the Edison Company for Electric Lighting, last evening in his residence, No. 136 East Thirty-sixth Street. The tree was lighted by electricity, and children never beheld a brighter tree or one more highly colored than the children of Mr. Johnson when the current was turned and the tree began to revolve. Mr. Johnson has been experimenting with house lighting by electricity for some time past, and he determined that his children should have a novel Christmas tree. It stood about six feet high, in an upper room, last evening, and dazzled persons entering the room. There were 120 lights on the tree, with globes of different colors, while the light tinsel work and usual adornment of Christmas trees appeared to their best advantage in illuminating the tree. An Edison Dynamo Rotated the Tree Johnson’s tree, as the article went on to explain, was quite elaborate, and it rotated thanks to his clever use of Edison dynamos: Mr. Johnson had placed a little Edison dynamo at the foot of the tree, which by passing a current through from the large dynamo in the cellar of the house, converted it into a motor. By means of this motor, the tree was made to revolve with a steady, regular motion. The lights were divided into six sets, one set of which was lighted at a time in front as the tree went round. By a simple devise of breaking and making connection through copper bands around the tree with corresponding buttons, the sets of lights were turned out and on at regular intervals as the tree turned around. The first combination was of pure white light, then, as the revolving tree severed the connection of the current that supplied it and made connection with a second set, red and white lights appeared. Then came yellow and white and other colors. Even combinations of the colors were made. By dividing the current from the large dynamo Mr. Johnson could stop the motion of the tree without putting out the lights. The New York Times provided two more paragraphs containing even more technical detail about the Johnson familys astounding Christmas tree. Reading the article more than 120 years later, it’s obvious that the reporter considered the electric Christmas lights to be a serious invention. The First Electric Christmas Lights Were Costly While Johnson’s tree was considered a marvel, and Edison’s company tried to market electric Christmas lights, they did not become immediately popular. The cost of the lights and the services of an electrician to install them was out of the reach of the general public. However, wealthy people would hold Christmas tree parties to show off electric lighting. Grover Cleveland reportedly ordered a White House Christmas tree that was lit with Edison bulbs in 1895. (The first White House Christmas tree belonged to Benjamin Harrison, in 1889, and was lit by candles.) The use of small candles, despite their inherent danger, remained the popular method of illuminating household Christmas trees until well into the 20th century. Electric Christmas Tree Lights Made Safe A popular legend is that a teenager named Albert Sadacca, after reading about a tragic New York City fire in 1917 caused by candles lighting a Christmas tree, urged his family, which was in the novelty business, to begin manufacturing affordable strings of lights. The Sadacca family tried marketing electric Christmas lights but sales were slow at first. As people became more attuned to household electricity, strings of electric bulbs became increasing common on Christmas trees. Albert Sadacca, incidentally, became the head of a lighting company worth millions of dollars. Other companies, including most notably General Electric, entered the Christmas light business, and by the 1930s electric Christmas lights had become a standard part of holiday decorating. Early in the 20th century the tradition began of having public tree lighting. One of the most famous, the lighting of the National Christmas Tree in Washington, D.C., began in 1923. A tree, place on the ellipse, at the southern end of the White House grounds, was first illuminated on December 24, 1923 by President Calvin Coolidge. A newspaper report the following day described the scene: As the sun sank below the Potomac the President touched a button which lighted up the nations Christmas tree. The giant fir from his native Vermont instantly blazed with myriad electrics which shone through tinsels and reds, while those who surrounded this community tree, children and grown-ups, cheered and sang. The crowds on foot were augmented by thousands who came in motor cars, and to the music of the singers was added the discord of horns. For hours the people thronged to the ellipse, which was dark except in the spot where the tree stood, its brilliancy heightened by a searchlight which shed its rays from the Washington Monument overlooking it. Another prominent tree lighting, at Rockefeller Center in New York City, began modestly in 1931 when construction workers decorated a tree. When the office complex officially opened two years later, the tree lighting became an official event. In the modern era the Rockefeller Center tree lighting has become a yearly event carried live on national television.