Metapsychology and Discourse: A Note on Some Neglected issues in the Psychology of Religion

Based on a brief discussion of some of the classic problems in the psychology of religion, the concepts metapsychology and discourse are introduced as pointing to the hitherto neglected task of developing adequate models of the inner world (metapsy- chology) and analyzing the written or spoken discourse of religious experience. Finally, it is argued that an inclusion of this more hermeneutic research agenda points in the direction of a reconceptualized psychology of religion, that is, a scientific discipline with a broadened self-understanding and a more independent status vis-a-vis mainstream psychology.     

Premotor and Motor Reaction Time as a Function of Preliminary Muscular Tension

Ss squeezed a hand grip device to 1 of 3 submaximal tensions, and reacted to either a light (Exp. I, N = 30) or to a buzzer (Exp. II, N = 24) by squeezing as quickly and forcefully as possible. Total RT was the time from stimulus to the change in tension, and this was divided into Premotor RT (stimulus to change in EMG) and Motor RT (change in EMG to change in tension) to determine the locus of changes in Total RT found by Clarke (1968). Whereas Total RT was unaffected by increased pre-tension, Premotor RT shortened and Motor RT lengthened. Partial programming or activation hypotheses were tenable for the Premotor RT changes, whereas changes in the contractile component, but not in the series elastic component, were tenable for the Motor RT changes.     

Visible Speech as a Function of Image Quality: Effects of Display Parameters on Lipreading Ability

Two experiments are reported that examine effects of certain visual display parameters on subjects' ability to lipread numbers. The quality of the image of the speaker's face is altered by varying temporal resolution (frame rate), spatial resolution (number of pixels) and contrast resolution (number of grey scale levels). In Experiment 1, combinations of these variables are examined in a repeated measures design and reliable effects of reducing both frame rate and number of grey levels are evident. In Experiment 2, the frame rate and grey scale settings are factorially combined on a between-subjects basis, and practice is given so that subjects can adapt to the display conditions to which they are exposed. Effects of frame rate and grey scale are again statistically significant, and additive. Lipreading performance improves over the short duration of the experiment, but both image variables continue to affect performance. The effect size of the grey scale factor decreases with practice, but not that of frame rate. The results are discussed with regard to the kinds of relevant visual cues that may be affected by image degradation. Implications for the planned development of low cost digital communication are also considered. Trading off one image variable at the expense of another may be necessary to meet bandwidth limitations, and data such as those presented will be necessary to decide on a combination of parameter values to satisfy human performance and technical criteria.     

试论妈祖信仰的文化纽带作用

妈祖信仰作为一种民间文化,已有上千年的历史。妈祖信仰是一种活态文化期性和群众性;在社会变迁中,妈祖文化具有了多重功能。我们在充分发挥妈祖信仰的文化纽带作用的同时,还要大力保护和研究妈祖文化这份珍贵的历史遗产和文化资源。     

Strength of a Secondary Reinforcement as a Function of the Quality of Food Reward

Thirty-two children were presented 18 stories containing either a good, neutral, or negative act which was followed by either a reward or punishment. It was predicted that Ss' responses would be influenced by the sanctions. It was also predicted that the type of story (good, neutral, or bad) would influence the extent to which a child judged the act independent of the effects of the sanction (reward or punishment).

These predictions were supported. Ss made more positive responses to acts followed by reward than to those followed by punishment. However, an examination of a Content × Sanction interaction found the sanction of reward relatively ineffective for the stones with negative content.     

Nurses' Anxieties about Biohazards as a Function of Context and Knowledge1

Final-year nursing students (N= 96) described their anxieties about biohazards, not only in relation to the occupational context of a hospital ward, but also in relation to their general life context. These contexts were reported to vary in the extent to which they permitted control over exposure to the two particular biohazards chosen for study: human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV). The data showed that nurses' anxiety about contracting HIV infection varied significantly across the two contexts, while anxiety about contracting HBV infection did not. In the general life context, anxiety about HIV was greater than anxiety about HBV for all subjects. This difference was significantly greater for those with incorrect knowledge about objective HIV seroconversion rates than for those with correct knowledge.     

Attitudes Toward Business as a Function of Student Quality and Career Intentions

This study sought to determine student attitudes toward business as a social institution, careers in business, and businessmen, and then to relate these attitudes to measures of career intention and student quality. A random sample of 91 subjects was administered a double pre-tested questionnaire after results of a pilot study were reviewed. Positive and negative attitudes toward business were analyzed following three popular hypotheses: the “values” hypothesis, the “seduction” hypothesis, the “grey flannel suit” hypothesis. A negative relation between student quality and intention to enter business careers was found. The most consistent underlying explanation for this result was found to relate to student values and motivations and not to attitude sources external to the individual.     

Effects of Culturally Consistent Counseling Tasks on American and International Student Observers' Perception of Counselor Credibility: A Preliminary Investigation

The researcher investigated the causes of international students' perception of counselor credibility. Student observers viewed two videotapes of simulated counseling that were determined to be significantly different: Tape A was consistent with the Asian lndian client's cultural values; Tape B, with mainstream counseling. The observers, White American students and Asian Indian and South Korean international students, were asked to view Tape A or Tape B and answer Barak and LaCrosse's Counselor Rating Form (CRF). The Asian Indians found the culturally consistent counselor significantly more expert-like and trustworthy than the culturally discrepant counselor. The Asian Indians differed from the Americans on their perceptions of the culturally discrepant counselor.     

罪犯精神病态的初步探索

以中国罪犯为被试,对Hare精神病态量表进行修订,并在此基础上进一步探讨罪犯精神病态的影响因素。研究结果表明:(1)修订的Hare精神病态量表具有良好的信度和效度;(2)年龄、文化程度、婚姻状况和犯罪次数是影响罪犯精神病态得分的重要因素。20-29岁年龄组罪犯精神病态的得分显著高于30-38岁年龄组;文化程度高的罪犯精神病态的得分显著低于文化程度低的罪犯,大专以上文化程度的罪犯精神病态得分最低;未婚罪犯精神病态的得分显著高于已婚和离异的罪犯;累犯精神病态的得分显著高于初犯。     

Provincial Nominee Programs: A Note on Policy Implications and Future Research Needs

This note focuses on the rapidly evolving role of provinces in immigrant selection through Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs). While past years have seen their significant expansion and diversification, research and policy response seem to lag behind: literature on PNPs remains scarce. This note offers preliminary observations on the new dynamics in the immigration system arising as a result of the nominee programs. It sets out background on PNPs, situating them vis-à-vis federal skilled worker and Canadian Experience Class, outlines emerging trends, and discusses challenges associated with the increasingly complex policy landscape of the two-tiered immigrant selection system.     

Bull定理一个证明的注记

Blackburn等的ModalLogic是一部优秀的中高阶教材,但是该书中对Bull定理的证明存在着不少疏漏。本文对之进行了修正,同时给出关键步骤的简化证明。     

Period and Cohort Effects on Religious Nonaffiliation and Religious Disaffiliation: A Research Note

Period and cohort effects on reports of no religious preference and religious disaffiliation are estimated. Results show that by 2006, the probability of reporting no religious preference had risen to almost .16. Additionally, the growing proportion of Americans raised with no religious preference substantially influences the increase in reporting no religious preference. Two recently developed analysis techniques for disentangling period and cohort effects are used: intrinsic estimator models and cross‐classified, random‐effects models. Results show (1) period‐based increases in the probability of reporting no religious preference from 1990 to 2006, (2) across‐cohort increases in no religious preference beginning with those born in the 1940s, and (3) a decline in the likelihood of religious disaffiliation (being raised with a religious preference but currently reporting no religious preference) for those born in the 1960s and 1970s compared to those born between 1945 and 1959.     

Research Note: Sociology and the Study of Atheism

Historically, atheism has been neglected by the social sciences. This fact, in the light of the recent upsurge of popular and media interest in the subject, is particularly unfortunate. Rectifying this is, however, not a straightforward task: studies devised for exploring religion cannot, for example, reliably be used to investigate its lack. This research note presents findings from a preliminary survey, administered to Oxford University students in November 2007; it was specifically designed with the study of atheism and related issues in mind. In addition to revealing the religious attitudes and beliefs of students at a modern British university, the survey yields a number of significant results regarding contemporary atheism and unbelief.     

Some highs and lows of hylomorphism: on a paradox about property abstraction

Philosophical Studies - We defend hylomorphism against Maegan Fairchild’s purported proof of its inconsistency. We provide a deduction of a contradiction from SH+, which is the...