The early evolution of Jean Piaget's clinical method

This article analyzes the early evolution of Jean Piaget's renowned "clinical method" in order to investigate the method's strikingly original and generative character. Throughout his 1st decade in the field, Piaget frequently discussed and justified the many different approaches to data collection he used. Analysis of his methodological progression during this period reveals that Piaget's determination to access the genuine convictions of children eventually led him to combine 3 distinct traditions in which he had been trained-naturalistic observation, psychometrics, and the psychiatric clinical examination. It was in this amalgam, first evident in his 4th text, that Piaget discovered the clinical dynamic that would drive the classic experiments for which he is most well known.     

Re/Thinking Critical Thinking: The Seductions of Everyday Life

The way that critical thinking has been framed as aneducational objective has led, on the one hand, to itssuccessful saturation of educational discourse and, onthe other, to an equation of critical thinking withdemonstrable rhetorical skills. This essay suggeststhat both critical thinking and obstacles tosuccessful critical thinking are most commonly foundin the activities of everyday life. Humans deploycritical thinking in expressions of socialimagination, illuminations of our selves andrelationship, and in ethical choices and publicengagements. By reframing critical thinking,educators may find ways to enrich its exercise both inand out of the classroom.     

"He sees the development of children's concepts upon a background of sociology": Jean Piaget's honorary degree at Harvard University in 1936

In the recent memory, Jean Piaget has been known as a cognitive developmental psychologist. But in 1936 when Harvard gave him his first honorary degree, he was recognized mainly as a sociologist. Why did Harvard honor him in 1936? Who knew his work well enough to nominate him? This article will address these questions by exploring archival documents from different sources. Evidence draws our attention to a broad social and intellectual endeavor in philanthropy, other social sciences, and especially industrial research that brought Piaget across the water. This article also attempts to interpret the circumstances of the nomination process inside and outside of Harvard University by using a theory of institutional design. It suggests that embodied in Harvard's honor of Piaget in 1936 was an idealistic act in social designing for a future society.     

Mad Scientist: The Unique Case of a Published Delusion

In 1951, entomologist Jay Traver published in the Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington her personal experiences with a mite infestation of her scalp that resisted all treatment and was undetectable to anyone other than herself. Traver is recognized as having suffered from Delusory Parasitosis: her paper shows her to be a textbook case of the condition. The Traver paper is unique in the scientific literature in that its conclusions may be based on data that was unconsciously fabricated by the author’s mind. The paper may merit retraction on the grounds of error or even scientific misconduct “by reason of insanity,” but such a retraction raises the issue of discrimination against the mentally ill. This article asks what responsibilities journals have when faced with delusions disguised as science, what right editors have to question the sanity of an author, and what should be done about the Traver paper itself. By placing higher emphasis on article content than author identity, scientific integrity is maintained and a balance is struck between avoiding discrimination against the mentally ill and not preventing patients from seeking needed treatment.     

Representations of Self and Other: A Semantic Space Model

ABSTRACT This article describes a semantic space model of personality. According to the model, representations of facets of the self (e.g., actual self, self) and of others are arrayed in a semantic space, with proximities among representations predicted to be associated with mood, self-evaluation, broad personality dimensions. The relation of proximities among pairs of representations to personality and mood measures was found to be mediated by spatial proximity of other representations, indicating that the representations constitute dynamic systems. Proximities among representations were shown predict self-esteem and self-evaluative moods even after controlling for the contribution of the personality dimensions of Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Agreeableness. Generally, the semantic space model led to better predictions did several related models concerning representations of self and other.     

梁漱溟的佛学思想和生活

梁漱溟是20世纪的思想家,也是在佛教信仰和佛学造诣方面的大师。梁漱溟在青年和晚年时代都有过长期的佛教修持经历。在他的著作中也表现了丰富的佛学理论,而且以西方哲学来解释古老的唯识学。     

差异与互补:皮亚杰与维果茨基认知发展观比较的新思考

皮亚杰与维果茨基是10世纪两位最有影响的发展心理学家．他们开辟了研究儿童发展的两条线路。这两种取向存在着根本性的差异,同时在研究方法与具体观点中又存在着多方面的类似和交叉．两种取向互动互补．共同描绘了儿童发展的整体画卷。     

Familial Thinking Patterns: Rational and Irrational Beliefs During a Life Transition

Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy - Despite the increase in research on shared issues among family members, less is known about familial thinking patterns and potential...     

Scientist and practitioner role preferences: The undergraduate dilemma

Research on preference for the scientist and practitioner roles in psychology has focused mainly on professionals and graduate students. The current study focused on undergraduates in a formative stage of career development to determine whether scientist and practitioner preferences could be indentified using instrumentation such as the Scientist-Practitioner Inventory (Leong & Zachar, Journal of Counseling Psychology, 38, 331- 341, 1991). The results indicated that comprehension of terminology within the field may affect students' indication of preference and that the divergence of preference seen in studies using professionals and graduate students does nto exist among undergraduate students. These finding could be due to a lacak of comprehension of terminology used to determine preferences. The need for an instrument that accurately measures undergraduate preferences for scientist and practitioner activities is clearly indicated to determine scientist or practitioner role preferences.     

Life History theory and social deviance: The mediating role of Executive Function

The present work examined predicted relations among Life History strategies, Executive Functions, socially antagonistic attitudes, socially antagonistic behaviors, and general intelligence. Life History (LH) theory predicts that Executive Functions and socially antagonistic attitudes and behaviors underpin an interrelated and coherent set of behavioral strategies (LH strategies) designed to enhance reproductive success. Specifically, LH theory predicts a positive relation between Executive Functioning and LH strategies; a negative relation between socially antagonistic attitudes and behaviors and LH strategies; and that Executive Functions mediate relations among LH strategies and socially antagonistic attitudes and behaviors. Results from a Structural Equation Model (SEM), based on self-reported Life History strategies, Executive Functioning, socially antagonistic attitudes and behaviors, and general intelligence support these predictions. The structure of the model suggests that Executive Functions serve a mediating role in the relations between LH strategy and social deviance.