Forms of logic in faith development theory

A fundamental characteristic of structural-developmental psychology is that development is governed by a logico-mathematical, hence scientific, principle of equilibrium. In this article I examine James Fowler's proposal for a metaphorical interpretation of logic in his theory of faith development. I intend to argue that a metaphorical understanding of logic radically shifts the theory of faith development away from Piagetian structuralism and towards dialectical psychology. A metaphorical reading of stages and their transformation raises serious questions about the attempt to define faith in terms of stages of individual psychological development. A secondary proposal to be considered is the relevance of metaphorical theology to faith development theory.An earlier version of this paper was read at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Religious Research Association in Salt Lake City, Utah, October 29, 1989. I am indebted to Professor Brown from the University of New South Wales, Australia for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.     

THE CROSS-CULTURAL STUDY OF INTELLIGENCE: PIAGET AND THE BAOULÉ*

There are two aspects of Piaget's theory that can be at least partly distinguished: (1) The stage theory, or the development of particular concepts through a series of hierarchical stages; (2) The metatheory, or the interactionist model of adaptation (assimilation and accommodation) that explains the mechanisms of cognitive development. Most cross-cultural research has been based on the first of these aspects, using and adapting “Piagetian tasks ”in various conceptual areas. Some findings of this line of enquiry, and the methodological problems encountered, are briefly reviewed. It is argued that no specific task, nor a combination of them, can be taken to measure a general cognitive level; the tasks measure the attainment of particular concepts rather than “intelligence”. New evidence is presented on the reliability and validity of Piagetian tasks used in a cross-cultural setting. In the second model, intelligence is broadly defined as adaptation to the environment; in this conception it would be reasonable to expect divergent paths of cognitive development in different cultures. In other words, one might need a different Piagetian psychology in each culture, but based on universal deep mechanisms. As a modest contribution to a more “emic ”study of intelligence, the concept of intelligence as defined by the Baoulé of Ivory Coast, n'glouèlě is presented and discussed. Ratings on n'glouèlě and its different components are related to performance on Piagetian tasks in a sample of 8- to 9-year-old rural Baoulé children. The thrust of the paper is to point out once more the cultural relativity of any conception of intelligence, be it from a Piagetian or any other perspective.     

Autonomy and Common Good: Interpreting Rousseau’s General Will

Rousseau’s project in his Social Contract was to construct a conception of human subjectivity and political institutions that would transcend what he saw to be the limits of liberal political theory of his time. I take this as a starting point to put forward an interpretation of his theory of the general will as a kind of social cognition that is able to preserve individual autonomy and freedom alongside concerns with the collective welfare of the community. But whereas many have seen Rousseau’s ideas as a prelude to communitarianism or authoritarianism, we should instead see his project as articulating an alternative model of moral-cognitivist reasoning. In order to provide a framework for this interpretation, I propose reading his conception of the general will through the theory of collective intentionality and social ontology. I end with a consideration of how this interpretation of the general will can provide a more satisfying understanding of political and practical rationality contemporary debates over republicanism and liberalism.     

A Religious Experience: A Psychological Interpretation of Kevin Kelly’s Conversion to Christianity

This paper, presented at the Group for New Directions in Pastoral Theology meeting in October 2012, uses the work of Sigmund Freud and Donald Capps to interpret a religious experience. The religious experience—a narrative about being born again—is recounted from the first story on the first episode of the radio program This American Life, which focuses on the religious conversion of Kevin Kelly, founder of Wired magazine. Using Freud’s “A Religious Experience” as a model for interpretation, I employ psychoanalytic ideas (such as the castration complex) to provide an initial reading of the experience, and I then use Capps’s work on male melancholia and on life cycle theory to further the interpretation. I argue that this young man’s religious experience is reflective of what Capps calls “the religion of honor” and “the religion of hope”; that the timing of his religious experience can be understood by means of life cycle theory; and that, theologically speaking, his experience can be understood using the language of the spirit and the soul.     

Disequilibrium and Loss of Narrative Coherence in Identity Construction: A Piagetian Perspective on Trauma in Adolescent Victims of Sexual Abuse

Previous authors have presented contradictory views of trauma as either the over- or under-elaboration of experience. This article provides a new theoretical perspective on trauma by incorporating Piagetian constructivism. On a theoretical level, it argues that both forms of narrative disruption following a traumatic episode are not contradictory. Rather, both over- and under-elaboration indicate disequilibrium and loss of narrative coherence in the construction of personal identity. Results are presented from an empirical study of the autobiographies of 15 adolescent victims (between the ages of 12 and 17) of sexual assault. Participants were enrolled in the initial stage of a psychotherapeutic treatment program for abuse in Santiago, Chile, at the time of study. Analysis of participant autobiographies reveals multiple forms of disorganization. The majority of adolescent narratives referred to predominance of traumatic experiences, whereas a small number of cases excluded traumatic experiences altogether. Discussion of study results shows that both forms of narrative disorganization indicate disequilibrium and loss of narrative coherence. Piagetian constructivist theory provides insight into this phenomenon by supporting and advancing understandings of trauma from a constructivist perspective. Implications for therapeutic treatment of sexual abuse, which may help generate clinical guidelines, are presented.     

The single-mind and many-minds versions of quantum mechanics

There is a long tradition of trying to find a satisfactory interpretation of Everett's relative-state formulation of quantum mechanics. Albert and Loewer recently described two new ways of reading Everett: one we will call the single-mind theory and the other the many-minds theory. I will briefly describe these theories and present some of their merits and problems. Since both are no-collapse theories, a significant merit is that they can take advantage of certain properties of the linear dynamics, which Everett apparently considered to be important, to constrain their statistical laws.     

Mill on Happiness

Abstract

In this paper, I argue against the standard interpretation of Mill as a hedonistic utilitarian, and argue instead that Mill holds a ‘eudaimonic’ conception of happiness. I begin by clarifying exactly what I mean by a eudaimonic conception of happiness, and then examine the textual evidence for this eudaimonic interpretation, as well as the evidence against the standard hedonistic interpretation. Naturally, a great deal of the paper will revolve around an analysis of Mill's Utilitarianism, but special attention will also be paid to On Liberty, reading it as a development of Mill's moral theory rather than a mere application of it.     

A RESERVED READING OF CARNAP'S AUFBAU

Abstract:  The two most popular approaches to Carnap's 1928 Aufbau are the empiricist reading of Quine and the neo-Kantian readings of Michael Friedman and Alan Richardson. This paper presents a third "reserved" interpretation that emphasizes Carnap's opposition to traditional philosophy and consequent naturalism. The main consideration presented in favor of the reserved reading is Carnap's work on a physical construction system. I argue that Carnap's construction theory was an empirical scientific discipline and that the basic relations of its construction systems need not be eliminated.     

Structures and strictures: Some functional limitations on the course of cognitive growth

A functional (as opposed to structural) theory of intellectual development is presented, and used to generate specific performance models for Piagetian tasks involving the control of variables. On the basis of these models, it is concluded that intelligent, field independent 7- and 8-year-olds should be able to acquire the control of variables scheme, even though they have not yet acquired either conservation of weight or the combinatorial system. Preliminary data (n = 52) are presented to support this conclusion. They are discussed with regard to Piaget's formal theory of intellectual development, and the functional limitations of development on learning.     

Rapid word identification in pure alexia is lexical but not semantic

Following the notion that patients with pure alexia have access to two distinct reading strategies-letter-by-letter reading and semantic reading-a training program was devised to facilitate reading via semantics in a patient with pure alexia. Training utilized brief stimulus presentations and required category judgments rather than explicit word identification. The training was successful for trained words, but generalized poorly to untrained words. Additional studies involving oral reading of nouns and of functors also resulted in improved reading of trained words. Pseudowords could not be trained to criterion. The results suggest that improved reading can be achieved in pure alexia by pairing rapidly presented words with feedback. Focusing on semantic processing is not essential to this process. It is proposed that the training strengthens connections between the output of visual processing and preexisting orthographic representations.     

Relation of neurological findings on decoupling of brain activity from limb movement to Piagetian ideas on the origin of thought

Neurological research has demonstrated that brain activity in animals originally dedicated to the production and regulation of physical activity can be decoupled from that physical activity. Furthermore, animals can use the brain activity in this new condition to achieve particular results such as moving a cursor on a screen. These findings are here related to the idea that the origin of thought lies in action, an idea central to Piagetian theory. Seen in this context, these findings open a new avenue for empirical exploration of Piagetian ideas on the origin of thought.     

Reconsidering the will to power in Heidegger's ‘Nietzsche’

In this paper, I reconsider Martin Heidegger's well-known interpretation of the Nietzschean conception of the will to power that emerges during the 1930s and 40s, focusing specifically on his conception of the will to power as the principle that suspends (or to use Heidegger's word, ‘permanentises’) becoming. After revealing the difficulties that this reading presents, I provide my own tentative interpretation of the doctrine. Specifically, I argue that Heidegger's opposition of the will to power and becoming cannot be sustained, and provide a so-called ‘strong’ reading of the will to power as an alternative.     

Evidence-based practice in stuttering: Some questions to consider

A recent forum in JFD (28/3, 2003) evaluated the status of evidence-based practice in fluency disorders, and offered recommendations for improvement. This article re-evaluates the level of support available for some popular approaches to stuttering therapy and questions the relative value placed on some types of programs endorsed by the forum. Evidence-based practice is discussed within the context of emerging concerns over its application to non-medical interventions and suggestions are made for grounding fluency interventions by reference to empirically supported principles of change. A popular, evidence-based intervention for stuttering in young children (the Lidcombe program) is evaluated within the suggested parameters. EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES: After reading this article, the reader will be able to: (1) evaluate the status of evidence-based practice in fluency disorders; (2) list concerns about the impact of narrow interpretation of EBP on research and practice in the field of fluency disorders and other non-medical domains; (3) articulate the role of theory and basic research in selecting among and evaluating therapy approach options.     

三成分心理系统：诠释传递性推理的新理论

Wright在传递性推理的研究中提出三成分心理系统模型以来,该模型理论成为了传递性推理领域研究的热点。三成分心理模型是在经典皮亚杰理论和传统信息加工理论基础上提出来的,代表了人们进行传递性推理时所进行的传递性转换、顺序抽取和协调反应等三个主要的加工机制,在不同的加工机制中运用了不同的加工策略。在此基础上,文章讨论了三成分心理模型理论未来的研究方向。     

Anerkennung als interaktionelles Moment der Psychoanalyse*

After having developed a theory of appreciation in more detail in an earlier article (Daser 2003), the author examines now the phenomenon of appreciation in the practice of therapy. First, appreciation is presented as a value-ascribing act, strengthening the self-confidence of the patient and lowering his relationship-anxiety, thereby allowing him to reduce his defence and to get involved into the analytic process. Appreciation seems to be on the one hand an effect of the analytic method, but on the other hand it may be connected to interventions which seem to contradict this method. Such interventions assume therefore a fostering quality for the self-experience of the patient and, consequently, for the analytic process. This effect will be demonstrated here on several examples. Further, the importance of appreciation for empathy is elaborated on an example of “play” between analyst and patient as an element allowing the transition from re-enactments to new forms of enactment. At last, the concept of appreciation is related to concepts of Stern as well as of Weiss and Sampson. Appreciation turns out to be an element of that “something more”, Stern requires in his analytic therapy beyond the interpretation. But this “something more” is not only adjuvant for emotionally paving the way to interpretation. Existential appreciation is, in contrast to pedagogic praise, rather a result of triangulation and, therefore, processually correlated with interpretation. Appreciation and interpretation appear as complementarily interconnected moments in the process of self-experience, the formation of the relationship and the moment of insight being inseparably intertwined.     

皮亚杰理论近期的若干发展──差别观点的贡献

皮亚杰认知发展理论的一个新趋势是从智力发展的认识论过渡到智力发展的心理学,差别心理学的近期实验研究为这一过渡提供了方法。后皮亚杰学派理论对差别心理的强调在教育学和临床心理学中有着重要意义。     

Truth in the Investigations

According to a widespread interpretation, in the Investigations Wittgenstein adopted a deflationary or redundancy theory of truth. On this view, Wittgenstein’s pronouncements about truth should be understood in the light of his invocation of the equivalences ‘p’ is true = p and ‘p’ is false = not p. This paper shows that this interpretation does not do justice to Wittgenstein’s thoughts. I will be claiming that, in fact, in his second book Wittgenstein is returning to the pre-Tractarian notion of bipolarity, and that his new development of this notion in the Investigations excludes the redundancy-deflationary reading. Wittgenstein’s thoughts about truth are instead compatible with another interpretative option: Wittgenstein remains faithful to his methodological pronouncements, and he merely presents us with (grammatical) platitudes about the notions of “true” and “false”.

     

Theories of mind in infancy

This paper reviews and evaluates various theories of the origins of theory of mind in infancy. In what a theory of mind consists is first considered. It is argued that any theory of mind has two important features. Firstly, a theory of mind recognizes, at least, the existence of psychological relations between agents and objects, including some relations which involve “action at a distance”. Secondly, in a theory of mind, self and other are equivalent in that both can act equally as agents of psychological relations. Any theory of the development of theory of mind must explicate how it is possible to acquire an understanding of these two features. With this requirement in mind, four main types of recent theories are considered — modularity theories, Piagetian theories, matching theories, and intersubjectivity theories. While no decision is made amongst these theories, suggestions for further improvement in theorizing on this topic are presented.     

Taking desirelessness () seriously

There is a principle of charity within the Indian philosophical tradition that states that one is justified in reverting to a non-literal interpretation of a text only when a literal reading entails a clear contradiction. Most scholars have argued that a literal interpretation of the Bhagavadgītā's advice to act without desire ought to be abandoned for this reason, because it contradicts the obvious fact that desire is a necessary condition of action. In this paper two often cited arguments for the claim that desire is a necessary condition of action are considered and it is argued that neither is cogent. Consquently, a literal reading of the Bhagavadgītā does not result in a clear contradiction, and the literal reading cannot be abandoned based on the principle of charity. Further, I argue that aside from the unjustified assumption that the text must be in accord with a Humean theory of action, the textual evidence from the Gītā weighs heavily in favor of a literal reading of the advice to act without desire.