Critique Of Andrew Abbott Essays - Andrew Abbott, Free Essays

Critique Of Andrew Abbott Essays - Andrew Abbott, Free Essays Critique Of Andrew Abbott Part A: Summary Introduction: Andrew Abbotts book, The System of Professions: An Essay on the Division of Expert Labour contains a mix of comparative historical analysis and current evaluation, which is assembled within an analytical model that looks at professions from the viewpoint of their jurisdictions, the tasks they do, the expert knowledge needed for those tasks, and how competitive forces internally and externally work to change both the jurisdictions and the tasks. Abbott attempts to show that professions are interdependent systems, containing internal structures. He accomplishes this task by means of analyzing the emergence of modern professions and their relationships with each other cooperatively and competitively. Section I: Work, Jurisdiction, and Competition Abbotts book takes on an individualistic direction in its inception then moves to a more systematic view of professions. Modern studies of formal professions began with the rise of the discipline of social sciences in the 19th century. In the beginning, scholars debated about the theoretical interpretations of professionalism. There was a split between proponents of functionalist and monopolistic approaches. However, academics on both sides agreed, that a profession was an occupational group with some special skill (Abbott 1988: 7). Abbott mentions that there have been four different perspectives that have sought to interpret professionalization, a functional, structural, monopolistic, and a cultural view. Abbott states that the tasks of professions are to provide expert service to amend human problems (Abbott 1988: 33). These problems can be objective, in that they originate naturally or through technological imperatives. Problems can also be subjective, whereby they are imposed by society or a culture either from the present or past. Abbott argues that the real difference between the objective and subjective qualities of problems is a difference in amenability to cultural work (Abbott 1988: 36). Abbott outlines that there are several types of objective foundations for professional tasks. Some being technological, some organizational, other sources of objective qualities lay in natural objects and facts, while others came from slow-changing cultural structures. Abbott also argues that a profession is always vulnerable to changes in the objective character of its central tasks (Abbott 1988: 39). Besides the objective qualities, professional tasks also have subjective qualities, which m ake them susceptible to change. Unlike objective tasks, change does not come from the vagaries of external forces, but from the activities of other professions impinge[ing] on the subjective qualities (Abbott 1988: 39). According to Abbott, three acts helped to embody the cultural logic of professional practice. The three subjective modalities being diagnosis, inference, and treatment. Diagnosis is the process wherein information is taken into the professional knowledge system, and treatment is wherein instruction is brought back out from it (Abbott 1988: 40). During the process of diagnosis, relevant information about the client is assembled into a picture of the clients needs. This picture is then categorized into a proper diagnostic category. This process consists of two sub-processes known as colligation and classification. Colligation is the first step in which the professional knowledge system begins to structure the observed problems (Abbott 1988: 41). Colligation is the forming of a picture of the client, and consists primarily of rules declaring what kinds of evidence are relevant and irrelevant, valid and invalid, as well as rules specifying the admissible level of ambiguity (Abbott 1988: 41). Classification is the referral of the colligated picture to the dictionary of professional legitimate problems (Abbott 1988: 41). Colligation and classification help to define which type of problems fall under which body of profession, and specifically what kind of problem it is in that particular profession. Abbott mentions that sometimes problems of classification arise. For some problems are constantly shifting classifications, and fall under more than one classification, due to their defining traits. This may lead to intervention or competition by other professions who want to assimilate the unclear problem into their own professional repertoire (Abbott 1988: 44). The procedure of treatment is organized around a classification system and a brokering process, whereby results are given to the client and prescription is offered (Abbott 1988: 44). One major problem associated with treatment is the clients willingness to accept treatment. A profession that adamantly forces clien ts to take treatment risks losing clients to their competition who may be

Vital Records of Birth, Marriage and Death in France

Vital Records of Birth, Marriage and Death in France Civil registration of births, deaths, and marriages in France began in 1792. Because these records cover the entire population, are easily accessible and indexed, and include people of all denominations, they are a vital resource for French genealogy research. The information presented varies by locality and time period but often includes the individuals date and place of birth and the names of the parents and/or spouse. One additional bonus of French civil records  is that birth records often include what is known as margin entries, handwritten notes made in the side margin, which can lead to additional records. From 1897, these margin entries will often include marriage information (date and location). Divorces are generally noted from 1939, deaths from 1945, and legal separations from 1958. The best part of French civil registration records, however, is that so many of them are now available online. Records of civil registration are typically held in registries in the local mairie (town hall), with copies deposited each year with the local magistrates court. Records over 100 years old are placed in the Archives Dà ©partementales (series E) and are available for public consultation. It is possible to obtain access to the more recent records, but they are not usually not available online due to privacy restrictions, and you will generally be required to prove, through the use of birth certificates, your direct descent from the person in question. Many Departmental Archives have placed portions of their holdings online, often beginning with the actes detat civils (civil records). Unfortunately, online access to the indexes and digital images has been restricted to events older than  120 years by the Commission nationale de linformatique et des libertà ©s (CNIL). How to Locate French Civil Registration Records Locate the Town/CommuneThe important first step is to identify and approximate date of a birth, marriage, or death, and the city or town in France in which it occurred. Generally knowing just the department or region of France is not enough, although there are some cases such as the Tables darrondissement de Versailles which indexes the actes dà ©tat civil across 114 communes (1843-1892) in the Yvelines department. Most civil registration records, however, are accessible only by knowing the town - unless, that is, you have the patience to wade page by page through the records of dozens if not hundreds of different communes. Identify the DepartmentOnce you have identified the town, the next step is to identify the department that now holds those records by locating the town (commune) on a map, or using an Internet search such as lutzelhouse department france.  In large cities, such as Nice or Paris, there may be many civil registration districts, so unless you can identify the approximate location within the city where they lived, you may have no choice but to browse through the records of multiple registration districts. With this information, next locate the online holdings of the Archives Dà ©partementales for your ancestors commune, by either consulting an online directory such as French Genealogy Records Online, or use your favorite search engine, to search for the name of the archives (e.g. bas rhin archives) plus etat civil. Tables Annuelles and Tables Dà ©cennalesIf the civil registers are available online through the departmental archives, there will generally be a function to search or browse to the correct commune. If the year of the event is known, then you can then browse directly to the register for that year, and then turn to the back of the register for the tables annuelles, an alphabetical listing of names and dates, organized by event type - birth (naissance), marriage (mariage), and death (dà ©cà ¨s), along with the entry number (not page number). If you are not sure of the exact year of the event, then look for a link to the Tables Dà ©cennales, often referred to as the TD. These ten-year indexes list all names in each event category alphabetically, or grouped by the first letter of the last name, and then chronologically by the date of the event. With the information from the tables dà ©cennales you can then access the register for that particular year and browse directly to the portion of the register for the event in question, and then chronologically to the date of the event. What to Expect Most French civil registers of birth, marriage, and death are written in French, though this doesnt present a great difficulty to non-French speaking researchers as the format is basically the same for most records. All you need to do is learn a few basic French words (e.g.  naissancebirth) and you can read pretty much any French civil register. This French Genealogical Word List includes most of the common genealogy terms in English, along with their French equivalents. The exception is the localities that at some point in history were under the control of a different government. In Alsace-Lorraine, for example, some civil registers are in German. In Nice and Corse, some are in Italian.