Issues on Disciplinary Literacies - Research Paper Example

DISCIPLINARY LITERACIES The field of economics, more specifically finance, is an important discipline that naturally attracts intense academic interest. The utility of a body of literature is manifested in the need to document, analyze, compare and learn from past experiences in order to apply into current circumstances, either to improve on economic and financial models or to avert or remedy some crises. This can be demonstrated in the case of two articles cited in this paper. Both of these articles provided information and analysis on the most recent financial crisis. They highlight how finance as a field provided a framework for explaining and solving economic issues and approaching problems in a systematic and efficient manner. Revising the Financial Crisis The first is a scholarly paper entitled, The Role of Financial Innovations in the Current Global Financial Crisis written by Yoon-Shik Park. It was published in 2009 and was an immediate discourse of the global economic crisis that began two years earlier. The trade journal is entitled Prospects in the Global Financial crisis. Both of these articles revise how the financial crises are perceived. Being of scholarly extraction, it is mainly descriptive in nature, opting to use secondary sources or a wide array of prior literature and theorizing in order to depict the financial dilemma. The article introduced some sort of model to solve its identified problem. The writer directly stressed the need to address the issues of securitization and regulation to prevent a similar crisis from happening in the future. The author took pains in presenting empirical evidence, albeit all secondary, to support his positions. There was a good number of theories and statistical figures to support assertions. The revisionist argument centered on the need for financial innovations and reform. The trade journal article focused on a different angle of the financial crisis. It devoted a good amount of space and content on specific points that would appeal to its readers most. For example, it talked about the impact of the financial crisis on the Western market. It also outlined the likely short- and long-term effects on the Asia Pacific region. It has also proposed very specific solutions, according to specific stakeholder, such strict regulation so that the effects of crisis are either mitigated or diluted. The information provided seeks to revise regional attitudes towards the financial crisis. It cited that those less affected by the meltdown should not be content with the existing conditions that cushioned their economies but work to improve on them because the next crises would always have global implications. The article also tried to revise, although indirectly, the idea of globalization. It raised the point that a country’s global exposure is at risk of economic collapse because of the performance or economic development of another. It explained the attractiveness of a so-called de-globalization and regionalization (p.13). The Utility of the Inventions The variables cited above underscore the value of two types of literature in the financial industry. Such value can be depicted in regards to how readers and researchers use the information and insights found therein. For example, a student could use one or the other article as a template for his own research or written discourse about financial topics. If his intended readers are students or novices in the financial subject, then he could follow the format and methods of research used by Park. The two articles are explicit in their approaches, making them easy for those interested to learn. Also, the two articles - as discussed according to their content and form - contributes to the existing literature by providing fresh new insights or by building on existing ones, leading to a more comprehensive and accurate database of information. They are excellent materials that contain theorizing of experts. Park posited his theories and developed a framework by a comprehensive review of prior studies. The other article, provided a highly analytical discourse of the financial crisis, using contemporary and primary sources. Aside from the two previously cited utilities, students majoring in finance, will find the two articles valuable in their learning to synthesize theories. The two articles are very good sources of disparate paradigms and thoughts on the financial crisis. The content, structure, format and angle of arguments and evidences can inform their judgments in determining what is sound and what is a valid model or theory. It can also augment their capacities to decide and learn multidimensional concepts, giving them a capacity for deeper understanding and reasoning regarding financial issues. Arrangement and Delivery A good amount of research and the gathering of valid information typify scholarly papers such as Parks opus. The same might not be said about an entry in a trade journal because it relied on personal analysis and evidence from resource persons via interviews. The trade journal functioned in the same manner as the previously discussed scholarly piece. In comparing this work to Parks article, one will not help to notice the difference in writing forms and method. Where the latter has profound formality in structure, format and content, the trade journal article was written in a less scholarly style. The difference can be attributed to the characteristics of the readers of the two journals. It is easy to understand how Parks work was written for academics and researchers whereas the trade journal article was intended towards financial experts and peers, hence, the less formal and more straightforward writing approach. It resembles a news article, reporting important bits of information that are essential for practitioners of the industry. The scholarly article was very comprehensive in cataloguing theories, historical evidences and other prior research. On the other hand, the article for the trade journal is more on expert analysis, reported in contemporary news feature style. The differentiation in delivery and style may be attributed to several important factor. One catered to readers who are relatively new in the field and, hence, expounded on the subject matter appropriate to their knowledge and sensibilities. Park dissected the phenomenon by comparing it with previous financial crises, identifying similarities and differences in the process. The paper, as a descriptive analysis-type of work and demonstrated a type of validity that was confirmed by the array of unimpeachable sources used. The condensed information provided insights in regard to the elements or variables that are persistently prominent in all crises as well as those differences that could reveal different dimension, characteristics or complexity to each and every problem. This aspect was divided into two subsections: one, detailing the causes and nature of previous financial crises; while the other focused on the same inquiry but confined to the latest economic meltdown (Park, 125-126). These sections are quite helpful for readers or for researchers and students of the field. It presented a theoretical framework that outlined the dynamics of financial crises: how they emerge, how they spread and, most importantly, how they can be addressed. The language of the article published in the trade journal, on the other hand, did not mince words, so to speak. There was an abundance of financial concepts that are difficult to those who would read them for the first time. Finally, having been published in an actual trade journal, it resembles other artifact in the media with its tendency to have more rhetoric or sensational content and style. This affliction is, of course, often absent in severely formal nature o f academic or scholarly writing. On a positive note, such resemblance also meant that the element of balance in reporting with the use of various sources to explain a point or support an argument is present. For example, when the article raised the matter of Asia Pacific regions prospects after the crisis, a certain Dr. Subir Gokarn and a host of other esteemed personages were used as a resource person (ProQuest Entrepreneurship, 10). Conclusion As previously cited in the very introduction of this paper, finance, as an academic discipline, is important given the fact that it informs us, specially the decision makers, in navigating economic problems. Finance, as demonstrated by the two articles, has a comprehensive body of literature written about past experiences, which, in the case of the examples in this paper, happened to be about financial crises. It also includes a comprehensive array of theories and principles that serve as a framework so the economic issues are better addressed. The financial crisis demonstrated the magnitude of these variables. The wealthy elite were supposed to be smart but they were severely affected by the subprime crisis nonetheless. Finance effectively depicted the failures of this sector, the market and policymakers to anticipate and avoid risks. Finance approaches economic phenomena in a multi-dimensional manner. It is not all about numbers and statistics or the use of such information to develop economic models and paradigms. Rather, it can include aspects such as the behavioral, social and even cultural or anthropological approaches. These are actual branches in the field that enable us to explain economic phenomena, conduct analysis and formulate methods and strategies effectively. The authors of the two articles displayed an aptitude in these respects excellently. It is not surprising, hence, that in the area of research, finance offer broad methodologies and tools that simply work. The series of financial crises that disrupted the human economic experience, show not just the failures and weaknesses of the economic system but also revealed the increased sophistication of the financial markets, including the complexities in the design of financial securities. This is further aggravated by the manner in which computational technology has developed in recent years. These were all depicted in the two articles explored in this essay. Finance, as a discipline, provides the tools to navigate these issues. It is also in a better position to develop new models and tools appropriate to their requirements. Out of all these, the most important argument here is that finance provides an approach to explain economic and financial phenomena, enabling us to better understand them and eliminate risks systematically. Works Cited Park, Yoon-Shik. “The Role of Financial Innovations in the Current Global Financial Crisis. Seoul Journal of Economics.” 22.2 (2009): 123-144. ABI/INFORM Complete. 2009. Web. 24 Feb. 2013. ProQuest Entrepreneurship. “Prospects in the global financial crisis: Market experts look for eye of the storm.” Private Equity Asia, 5.4. (2009): 12-14. ProQuest Entrepreneurship. 2009. Web. 24 Feb. 2013. Read More