Some recurrent issues in the history of behavioral sciences

Many issues seem to have appeared, disappeared, and reappeared in the behavioral sciences during the 20th century. Salient examples discussed in the present paper are consciousness, including the concept itself and consciousness in nonhuman animals; the method of introspection; and cognition, including the interpretation of mental imagery and the role of language in thinking. One possible explanation of the apparent cycles is consistent with a suggestion by John B. Watson: Important issues are found to be intractable and are abandoned, but they recur when newer theories and methods emerge.     

台湾地区宗教的历史与现状及其对策研究

论文简要分析了台湾主要宗教的历史和现状及其四大特点,从中华文化的统一性角度,着力探讨台湾宗教与社会、政治、经济、文化之间的复杂关系,结合作者本职工作实践,研究高校台湾工作和两岸学术交流中的宗教问题和有关法规,并提出了三条具体的对策建议.     

西方思想史上关于宗教本质论述的几个阶段

本文追溯了从古希腊罗马到二十世纪这一历史进程中西方学者对宗教本质的探索 ,认为从古希腊罗马到中世纪着重于对神本质的阐述和论证 ,十六至十八世纪为宗教本质的探索从思想上和方法上奠定了基础 ,十九世纪在对宗教的口诛笔伐声中 ,不同学术流派多角度地探索了宗教本质 ,二十世纪因研究方法的多元化深化了对宗教本质的认识。     

Competition: Some behavioral issues

Conclusions drawn from research in the social sciences comparing the quality or quantity of performance under cooperation and competiton stress the advantages of cooperation. This generalization may be premature, however, because of the paucity of experimental analyses investigating variations in competitive conditions. Neglected in particular have been variables that affect reinforcement conditions among competitors. These include performance differences, the basis of reinforcement, reinforcer distribution, and stimuli that indicate the performances of other competitors. These variables provide the basis for a behavioral interpretation of performance under competition. The result is a clearer understanding of the options that are available in instituting competitive contingencies and the areas in which experimental analyses are needed.     

The history of religions and francophone research in Europe: Main disciplinary trends in Switzerland,France, Belgium and Luxemburg

This article provides an overview (as of September, 2008) of the state of the field of l’histoire des religions in the four french-speaking countries of Europe. It discusses the pioneers, along with their followers and influence, the position of principle institutions regarding teaching in the field, and the general orientations of each university, along with distinct emphases that reflect recent socio-political and cultural developments. This detailed panorama brings to light the relative weakness of french-speaking research in the field of l’histoire générale des religions. It calls attention to tensions between the former high status of this academic area, more than half of a century ago, and the disrepute into which its comparativist project has fallen over the last decades. It asks how French secularism ‐ and the growing secularization of western societies more generally ‐ may have influenced perceptions of the discipline, its orientations, and its position in today's academic market academic market. It also considers the impact of declining comprehension of religious phenomena among younger generations and correlated concerns with popularisation.     

The history of religions and francophone research in Europe: Main disciplinary trends in Switzerland, France, Belgium and Luxemburg

This article provides an overview (as of September, 2008) of the state of the field of l’histoire des religions in the four french-speaking countries of Europe. It discusses the pioneers, along with their followers and influence, the position of principle institutions regarding teaching in the field, and the general orientations of each university, along with distinct emphases that reflect recent socio-political and cultural developments. This detailed panorama brings to light the relative weakness of french-speaking research in the field of l’histoire générale des religions. It calls attention to tensions between the former high status of this academic area, more than half of a century ago, and the disrepute into which its comparativist project has fallen over the last decades. It asks how French secularism – and the growing secularization of western societies more generally – may have influenced perceptions of the discipline, its orientations, and its position in today's academic market academic market. It also considers the impact of declining comprehension of religious phenomena among younger generations and correlated concerns with popularisation.     

Information processing in bilinguals: Some selected issues

Summary Issues concerning some perceptual, attentional, and memory processes in bilinguals are reviewed and discussed with regard to language dominance and the interaction between the bilingual's language systems. The first part of the paper focuses on the speed of basic decoding and encoding operations: speed (automaticity) of processing is considered to be a major factor in language dominance. Speed of perception and rehearsal is shown to be affected by covert pronounceability of words which is typically poorer for the bilingual's weaker language. Factors causing short-time changes in the relationship between the non-balanced bilingual's languages are then considered: high information load, noise, rapid switching, and language set. Noise is thought of as enhancing language dominance by two mechanisms: the masking of inner speech, and increased arousal. The second part of the paper focuses mainly on the interaction between the bilingual's language systems. The issue of language independence/interdependence is illustrated by a task involving parallel encoding and decoding; it is shown that the input switch which is considered to be automatic can select information by language. Experiments on memory are commented on with reference to the two major models of bilingual-storage systems: the common-store hypothesis, and the separate-stores hypothesis. While most experimental data are clearly supportive of the former, it is argued that both language-specific and language-free storage takes place, depending on task demands. The problem of the retention of language-information along with item-information in verbal learning tasks is then discussed: in addition to the specific task demands (e.g., meaningfulness), retention time appears to be a decisive factor here. A model of bilingual memory storage is suggested which combines the two extreme models (i.e., the shared and the separate ones). The model assumes that working memory plays a different role with regard to the language-free and the language-specific stores respectively. Finally, some problems in the use of more than one language in the process of verbal learning are pointed out.Most of the research work reported in this paper was supported by grants from the Swedish Council for Social Science Research (now the Swedish Council for Research in Humanities and Social Sciences).     

Counselling in higher education: Some basic issues

A survey was undertaken in May/June 1972 into conditions of service and training among members of the Association for Student. Counselling. The replies revealed considerable diversity and confusion among employers and practitioners alike over such issues as the range of duties expected, qualifications acquired and required, the need for specific training, and salaries     

Minority religions in the census: the case of British Muslims

Abstract

This article considers the impact of census data on British Muslims, as well as the potential consequences of changes to the UK census beyond 2011 for minority religions. Focusing on the Muslim case, it reflects on data generated in previous censuses and the ways in which they have been used. The discussion explores the perceived need for social statistics on religion, particularly in relation to the increased identification of ‘Muslim’ as a religious rather than ethnic classification. It gives an overview of insights gained as a result of having data on religion in addition to ethnicity, notably: the high levels of socioeconomic disadvantage experienced by British Muslims and the ability to access information on Muslims that was hitherto hidden. Finally, the article provides a brief summary of proposed changes to the new census format and considers the likely outcomes for British Muslims if the scope of data collected on religion is reduced.