Syllogistic: Old Wine in New Bottles

In the late nineteenth century there were two very active lines of research in the field of formal logic. First, logicians (mostly in English-speaking countries) were engaged in formulating a generally traditional logic as an algebra, a part of mathematics; second, logicians (mostly on the continent) were busy building a non-traditional logic that could serve, not as a part of, but as the foundation of, mathematics. By the end of the First World War the former line had been pretty well abandoned while the second continued to expand. However, that old abandoned line, stretching from Aristotle, through the Scholastics and then Leibniz to the nineteenth century algebraists, had not been completely forgotten. One of those logicians who has recently worked on the restoration (and, importantly, the extension) of that line is Fred Sommers. His Term Logic preserves a number of traditional insights (especially involving the theory of logical syntax), while also enjoying a power to account for formal inference at least comparable to that of the standard logic now in place.     

Old Wine in New Bottles

Evolutionary debunking arguments (EDAs) purport to show that robust moral realism, the metaethical view that there are non-natural and mind-independent moral properties and facts that we can know about, is incompatible with evolutionary explanations of morality. One of the most prominent evolutionary debunking arguments is advanced by Sharon Street, who argues that if moral realism were true, then objective moral knowledge is unlikely because realist moral properties are evolutionary irrelevant and moral beliefs about those properties would not be selected for. However, no evolutionary, causal explanation plays an essential role in reaching the argument’s epistemological conclusion. Street’s argument depends on the Benacerraf-Field challenge, which is the challenge to explain the reliability of our moral beliefs about causally inert moral properties. The Benacerraf-Field challenge relies on metaphysically necessary facts about realist moral properties, rather than on contingent Darwinian facts about the origin of our moral beliefs. Attempting to include an essential causal empirical premise yet avoiding recourse to the Benacerraf-Field problem yields an argument that is either self-defeating or of limited scope. Ultimately, evolutionary, causal explanations of our moral beliefs and their consequences do not present the strongest case against robust moral realism. Rather, the question is whether knowledge of casually-inert, mind-intendent properties is plausible at all.     

Toward Development of a Projective Set

An exploration of the possibility of developing a projective set in a client that will allow for lowering of his defenses and thus possibly eliciting “richer projective materials.” A “anxious tension” set was produced in one group of Ss by means of an intelligence type test and “playful tension” was produced in another group by means of a fantasy task. A projective technique (Part A of the Rosenzweig F-Battery) was then given to both groups. The results indicate that this projective technique was taken at a more implicit (or deeper) level following the “playful tension” than following the “anxious tension.” Implications for the pre-test environment of projective techniques are given.     

New Wine in a New Bottle: Refining The Assessment of Authentic Leadership Using Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (ESEM)

The aim of this study was to investigate the multidimensional nature of authentic leadership (AL) through the re-evaluation of the factor structure of the most commonly used scales in AL research, the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire (ALQ) and the Authentic Leadership Inventory (ALI). Results from Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling (ESEM) conducted among 538 workers of private (57,81%) and public (42,19%)? organizations provide support for the multidimensional nature of AL but also reveal excessive content overlap across subscales and an inability to properly reflect the a priori factor structure of both instruments. Further analyses enabled the identification of key items from both instruments providing a cleaner depiction of the a priori dimensionality of AL, leading to the development of an integrated optimized measure, the Authentic Leadership Integrated Questionnaire (AL-IQ). The main contribution of this study is the proposition of an alternative and optimized measure of authentic leadership that sheds light on the distinct theoretical facets of this positive leadership style. Our data suggest that the AL-IQ is a promising tool for characterizing the strengths and weaknesses of leaders and managers’ AL practices. To our knowledge, this is the first study to use a combination of classical Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) and newly developed ESEM framework to assess the construct validity (factor structure, reliability, and criterion-related validity) of the two main AL measures: the ALQ and the ALI.     

Herman Bavinck and the Problem of New Wine in Old Wineskins

Recent years have witnessed a flowering in Bavinck studies and a new focus on the synthetic character of Bavinck's theology. Bavinck's epistemology represents a prime example of this synthetic character, as Bavinck recasts the principia of Reformed Orthodoxy in a trinitarian framework, which in turn is used to address a residual problem of post‐Enlightenment philosophy. While ingenious, certain inconsistencies emerge on account of the sheer complexity of Bavinck's principia. This article explores two inconsistencies that have been identified in the secondary literature and the extent to which these inconsistencies threaten the coherence of Bavinck's epistemology as a whole.     

Toward a New Paradigm for Multicultural Counseling

Wisdom is introduced as a fundamental quality of the effective multicultural counselor. Wisdom is defined, discussed, and differentiated from intelligence. The authors propose that to be an effective multicultural counselor requires more than textbook knowledge. Wisdom, as a transcultural concept, is considered in relation to culture, context, dialectical thinking, awareness, metacognition, deep interpersonal insight, and advanced empathy. Implications for counselor education and professional practice are discussed. Wisdom is an ancient subject that may provide a “new” paradigm with the potential to bring the field to a higher plateau of effectiveness in practice and training.     

The Meaning of Drawing-Completion Stimuli: New Guidelines for Projective Interpretation

The study investigated whether the eight gestalt stimuli used in Kinget's Drawing-Completion Test (DCT) can be defined by the eight word-concepts Mundy hypothesized to “name” them and to reflect their meaning. Thirty college students made semantic differential ratings. The 4,320 ratings analyzed show some correspondence between stimuli and their respective meanings, suggesting new guidelines for interpreting such drawing completions.     

Toward a New Pragmatist Politics

In A Pragmatist Philosophy of Democracy, I launched a pragmatist critique of Deweyan democracy and a pragmatist defense of an alternative view of democracy, one based in C. S. Peirce's social epistemology. In this article, I develop a more precise version of the criticism of Deweyan democracy I proposed in A Pragmatist Philosophy of Democracy, and provide further details of the Peircean alternative. Along the way, some recent critics are addressed.     

Toward New Directions for Ministry in Aging:

The church has a leadreship role in the field of aging in providing its own definitions, utilizing its own resources, and functioning with the spiritual orientation toward person-centered growth of the aging. While psycho-social theories of aging have shaped the church's role in the past, the church should avoid ageism, broadly define aging, and reinterpret its functions. The themes of religiosity, religion, theology, spirituality, and ministry are discussed. The developmental and wholistic goal of the church's involvement in aging is spiritual well-being. Solid theological basis and acerful spiritual focus lead to sound ministry. Development of the concept of spiritual aging is proposed.     

Toward a New Model of Integrative Psychotherapy: Psychosynergy

The goal of resynthesizing that which has been disconnected in our field is what the author has designated as psychosynergy. This article seeks to advance our shared interest in the subject matter of psychotherapy. Particularly noted are efforts to reconnect the separate realms that give support to therapeutic practice, namely its undergirding scientific principles, its theoretically deduced personality and psychopathologic features, its classification format for organizing psychic pathology, its empirically grounded assessment instruments, and its integration of diverse therapeutic modalities. This overall goal stems from the author's belief that a synthesis of these components not only is possible, but will strengthen progress through mutual reinforcement and reciprocal enhancements.     

Toward a New Geography of Hasidism

The geography of Hasidism has long been one of the most contentious issues in the history of the movement. This article represents an attempt to free hasidic geography from outmoded preconceptions by proposing a new conceptualization of the hasidic leadership and its following in Eastern Europe. Based on an original, extensive database of hasidic centers, the authors drew five maps in sequence showing the development of Hasidism from its inception to the Holocaust. The five periods into which the database is divided are demarcated by four historically significant landmarks: the years 1772, 1815, 1867, and 1914. The article offers some possible interpretations of the maps, and draws a number of conclusions arising from them. The authors examine the dynamics and tendencies of the expansion of the movement within geographical frameworks, including the shift of hasidic centers from Podolia and Volhynia in the eighteenth century to Galicia and the southeastern provinces of Congress Poland in the nineteenth century, and subsequently to Hungary and Romania in the twentieth century; hasidic penetration into Jewish Eastern Europe, reaching its peak in the period between 1815 and 1867; and the metropolization of the hasidic leadership after 1914. The article also analyzes the patterns of concentration and diffusion of the hasidic leadership, and the impact of political factors upon these parameters.