Is science like a crossword puzzle? Foundherentist conceptions of scientific warrant

This paper argues that the crossword puzzle analogy is great for scientific rationality, but not scientific warrant. It provides a critical analysis of foundherentist conceptions of scientific warrant, especially that of Susan Haack, and closely related positions, such as non-doxastic coherentism. Foundherentism takes the middle ground between foundationalism and coherentism. The main idea is that warrant, including that of scientific theories, is like warrant of crossword entries: the degree to which a theory is warranted depends on one’s observations, the extent to which it coheres with one’s other scientific theories and whether one’s evidence includes a sufficiently large portion of the relevant evidence. I identify three problems for a foundherentist conception of scientific warrant, two of which are also problems for the image of science as a crossword puzzle. First, Haack’s conceptions of personal and social warrant of scientific theories are incompatible. Second, the notion of warrant defeaters is crucial to any account of warrant, but foundherentism cannot accommodate certain warrant defeaters. Third, Haack’s treatment of inconsistent evidence renders her account of social warrant for scientific theories implausible. Finally, I suggest that switching from the objective notion of warrant to the subjective notion of rationality might save foundherentism about scientific theories and the image of science as a crossword puzzle. I also draw lessons for social epistemology generally by applying the distinction between warrant and rationality to non-doxastic coherentism and Paul Faulkner’s hybrid theory of testimonial warrant.     

Social network composition and attitude strength: Exploring the dynamics within newly formed social networks

Recent evidence suggests that people who are embedded within attitudinally congruent social networks have stronger attitudes than those embedded in attitudinally diverse networks. The current research examines the causal processes responsible for this relation. Two studies capitalized on naturally occurring experiments whereby college students are quasi-randomly assigned to social contexts containing varying levels of attitudinal diversity. Replicating past research, individuals in attitudinally diverse social networks exhibited less resistance to attitude change and less attitude stability than those in more attitudinally congruent networks. Although there was evidence of attitude projection and selective network construction, neither of these processes could account for the relation between social network composition and attitude strength. These findings corroborate and extend previous results, reinforcing the notion that the social context in which people are embedded has important implications for the durability of their attitudes.     

Contributors to the Appraisal of Major Life Changes: Gender, Perceived Controllability, Sensation Seeking, Strain, and Social Support

This study investigated relationships between the appraisal of life events and gender, locus of control, social support, strain, and sensation seeking. In group sessions, undergraduate males and females completed self-report measures assessing life events appraisals and self-report measures for the above individual differences. Analyses supported the notion that a range of these variables, previously shown to serve as moderators of life stress, are significantly related to the appraisals of life events. Moreover, in addition to the gender differences obtained for the perception of life events, gender was found to influence several associations between the individual differences and life events appraisal.     

The Chinese Moral Ethos and the Concept of Individual Rights

ABSTRACT This paper is concerned with the contrast in views between traditional mainstream Chinese philosophy and Western liberal individualism on the importance of the concept of individual rights in social and political thought. The contrast is striking because, whereas individual and political rights have long featured in public discourse in the West, in China, mainstream social and political thought has developed without a notion of individual rights. In search of the significance of this major difference, the paper traces ideas of the self in China through Confucian ethics, and compares the Confucian conception of the self with the deontological liberal conception of the subject as a bearer of rights in the West. Having established that the Chinese way of thinking about the self and about moral agency is in stark contrast to the image of the self as a bearer of rights in the deontological conception, the paper goes on to discuss the inadequacy of the moral individualism of a rights-based morality and argues for an alternative view of morality which places importance on the intrinsic value of collective goods and on membership in a society.     

Commentary: causal processes leading to antisocial behavior

Conceptual, and empirical, questions are raised regarding the notion that physical aggression is the main individual risk factor for antisocial behavior, that language impairment also constitutes a risk factor, the meaning of the male preponderance for antisocial behavior, the findings on environmentally mediated risk; the role of biosocial interplay; social context effects; the construct of antisocial behavior, developmental trends; processing of experiences; and transactional effects. The main blocks to using research to develop policy are the lack of evidence on (a) the mediators of the causal processes, (b) what is needed to bring about change, (c) ways to ensure that individuals who need interventions actually receive them, and (d) differences in levels of antisocial behavior.     

Acquisition of the algorithms of social life: a domain-based approach

Proposing that the algorithms of social life are acquired as a domain-based process, the author offers distinctions between social domains preparing the individual for proximity-maintenance within a protective relationship (attachment domain), use and recognition of social dominance (hierarchical power domain), identification and maintenance of the lines dividing "us" and "them" (coalitional group domain), negotiation of matched benefits with functional equals (reciprocity domain), and selection and protection of access to sexual partners (mating domain). Flexibility in the implementation of domains occurs at 3 different levels: versatility at a bioecological level, variations in the cognitive representation of individual experience, and cultural and individual variations in the explicit management of social life. Empirical evidence for domain specificity was strongest for the attachment domain; supportive evidence was also found for the distinctiveness of the 4 other domains. Implications are considered at theoretical and applied levels.     

Gender and individualistic vs. collectivist bases for notions about the self

This article provides a critique of traditional psychological theories of the self that emphasize autonomy, separation, and independence, and ignore the inherently social character of the self Evidence from an empirical investigation of selected experiences of 84 white adult women and men who evidence two different notions of the self (autonomous individualism and social individuality) suggest that the culturally dominant notion of the self, rooted in assumptions of autonomy, independence, and separation, is but one orientation to the self A contrasting notion, social individuality, reflects a dialectical understanding of individuality and sociality grounded in an experience of social relations characterized by inequalities of power Preliminary research suggests that differences between women's and men's notions of the self are grounded in their different experiences of power These findings support a larger argument that research on the self in psychology must be grounded in an analysis of material social reality and reflect the dialectical relation of individuality and sociality     

Formalizing Happiness

The level of happiness of an individual who accepts the consequences of authoritative policy decisions is a clearly different concept from the utility that is delivered to the same individual by these policies and it depends on the whole range of elements that compose the political environment. This paper proposes a formal notion of happiness that is neither identical nor detached from the notion of utility. Our analysis focuses on how the introduction of new policies or new decision rules in the awareness of the society might influence the individual and the social level of happiness and, thereafter, the optimal policy choices of an ideology oriented authority. The main result indicates that a change in the policy (or decision rule) awareness on behalf of the society might lead to a direct alteration of the authority’s implemented policy. That is, if the society becomes aware of a "better" policy (in social terms) than the one implemented today, then the authority might need to implement something "better" for the citizens, even if this "better" policy assigns a lower utility level to the authority.     

From solidarity to autonomy: towards a redefinition of the parameters of the notion of autonomy

Starting from examples of concrete situations in France, I show that autonomy and solidarity can coexist only if the parameters of autonomy are redefined. I show on the one hand that in situations where autonomy is encouraged, solidarity nevertheless remains at the foundation of their practices. On the other hand, in situations largely infused with family solidarity, the individual autonomy may be put in danger. Yet, based on my ethnographic observations regarding clinical encounters and medical secrecy, I show that while solidarity may endanger individual autonomy, it does not necessarily endanger autonomy itself. The social practices observable in France reflect the reality of an autonomy that goes beyond the individual, a reality that involves a collective subject and includes solidarity. The opposition between these two values can then be resolved if the content of the notion of autonomy is understood to be dependent on its cultural context of application and on its social use.     

Historigism and historical laws of development

Philosophers, social thinkers, and social activists continue to puzzle over the notion of an historical law of development. What this paper attempts is: (1) a statement of what might reasonably be understood by the notion of an historical law of development as well as some historical background to the notion, (2) a discussion of the various logical possibilities regarding the status of historical laws of development, (3) an examination of the views of Karl Popper on historical laws of development and social science, and (4) a suggestion or two concerning the connection between the analysis of the notion of an historical law of development and politics.     

What can performance tell us about learning? Explicating a troubled concept

The notion of “performance7rdquo; has a central place in the contemporary discourse of learning and competence. The notion is used to translate abstract ideas and ideals of lifelong learning, organizational learning, learning society, etc., into practical measures. Changes in performance provide the identifiable measures that learning has taken place, evidence of enhanced competency/capability. Different versions of the learning and competency/capability agenda may place different emphases upon the extent to which such performance changes may be predetermined or are essentially emergent, but the assumption remains that performance provides the basis for attribution that learning has (or has not) taken place. This article takes issue with the conventional notion of “performance” as unequivocally observable. Drawing upon traditional philosophical distinctions between behaviour and action, and interpretative, constructionist, situational, and relational traditions within the social sciences, the nature of performance is subjected to theoretical analysis. It is argued that performance cannot be taken as transparent evidence of learning. Rather the attribution of performance is itself the outcome of situated acts of interpretation, essentially contestable and negotiated, subject to reinterpretation and renegotiation. The key social processes by which such interpretation is accomplished will be shown to implicate issues of identity (and identity formation) and social practice (and its discursive production). The potential fruitfulness of the identity-practice model will be illustrated by applying it to the issue of graduate “employability”, in order to address problems with the conventional “skills” approach.     

The Last Shall Be First: Human Potential in Genetic and Theological Perspectives

The notion of “human potential” provides a fruitful window through which to explore the competing conceptual frameworks of contemporary genetics and Christianity. The contemporary cultural frame of genetics conceives of human potential in a broadly positive manner: the source of personal and societal flourishing is located within individual bodies, waiting to be identified and unleashed by genetic science and medicine for the good of persons and society. In the Judeo-Christian narrative, human individual, biological potential is far less relevant—and, in fact, may be construed as an impediment to the achievement of personal and social flourishing. Implications for the dialogue between genetics and religion are discussed.     

The group as an object in the cultural field

This paper illuminates the interplay between group and individual processes by exploring members' notions of the group itself. What members hold in common about the "group" is understood as an object in the cultural field, which is a particular kind of transitional phenomenon (Winnicott). The paper connects this notion to Bion's concept of "basic assumptions," and describes members' motivations for creating the "group" as well as its role in the psychotherapy group. The object in the cultural field is then further elaborated in its more general role in the relation between the individual and the group, which leads to a consideration of psychotherapy groups in terms of their value in facilitating living in the social world.     

Social appraisal influences recognition of emotions

The notion of social appraisal emphasizes the importance of a social dimension in appraisal theories of emotion by proposing that the way an individual appraises an event is influenced by the way other individuals appraise and feel about the same event. This study directly tested this proposal by asking participants to recognize dynamic facial expressions of emotion (fear, happiness, or anger in Experiment 1; fear, happiness, anger, or neutral in Experiment 2) in a target face presented at the center of a screen while a contextual face, which appeared simultaneously in the periphery of the screen, expressed an emotion (fear, happiness, anger) or not (neutral) and either looked at the target face or not. We manipulated gaze direction to be able to distinguish between a mere contextual effect (gaze away from both the target face and the participant) and a specific social appraisal effect (gaze toward the target face). Results of both experiments provided evidence for a social appraisal effect in emotion recognition, which differed from the mere effect of contextual information: Whereas facial expressions were identical in both conditions, the direction of the gaze of the contextual face influenced emotion recognition. Social appraisal facilitated the recognition of anger, happiness, and fear when the contextual face expressed the same emotion. This facilitation was stronger than the mere contextual effect. Social appraisal also allowed better recognition of fear when the contextual face expressed anger and better recognition of anger when the contextual face expressed fear.     

Convergence of multiple sources of information on infant individuality: neonatal behavior,infant behavior,and temperament reports

To shed light on the notion of enduring individual infant characteristics, convergence of three presumably interrelated measures of infant individuality was examined. Data collected included standardized behavioral assessments of the newborn (NBAS), maternal reports of infant temperament (at 3 and 9 months), and naturalistic observations of infant behavior at 1, 3, and 9 months. Infant temperament reports were significantly stable from 3 to 9 months; observed infant fussiness was significantly stable from 1 to 3 and 3 to 9 months; observed altertness/social responsiveness was not stable over time. Analyses of convergence of neonatal and infant behavior revealed that 9-month infant alertness/social responsiveness was significantly correlated with neonatal habituation. Similar analyses of neonatal behavior and reported temperament revealed that 3-month reported dullness was significantly correlated with neonatal habituation and range of state. At 9 months, temperament ratings of infant fussiness and unpredictability were significantly correlated with autonomic stability; fussiness was also significantly correlated with regulation of state. Finally, no significant relationships were observed between reported temperament and observed infant behavior. These results fail to support a simple notion of enduring individuality in infants over their first year of life.     

The self beyond words: comment on ‘Is there a place for individual subjectivity within a social constructionist epistemology’

Roy‐Chowdhury (2010) is on a quest to reclaim the subject in constructionist practice, specifically therapeutic practice. His argument rests on the claim that there is no subject, no self, no individual outside language in social construction. To be sure, the notion of a self‐contained, privately cognizing individual is dismissed within social construction, noting instead that knowledge of self and world is a byproduct of relational interchange. As Lock and Strong (2010 , p.7) put it, ‘meaning and understanding have their beginnings in social interaction, in shared agreements as to what these symbolic forms are to be taken to be’. The relational self – social construction's version of the self – is very much alive and well. The relational self is very much a person.     

The structure of social relationships among captive female giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis)

Giraffe herds have been characterized as random associations of individuals, but recent evidence suggests giraffe have a more complex social structure. The authors formulated 3 hypotheses designed to evaluate whether a herd of captive giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) associated randomly or patterned their behavior and proximity in a manner indicative of social relationships. Affiliative interaction, proximity, and nearest neighbors for 6 captive female giraffe living in a large outdoor enclosure were analyzed, and all three measures were nonrandomly distributed, indicating female giraffe had social preferences. Furthermore, preferences were consistent across measures and time, suggesting that adult female giraffe maintain relationships. Mother-daughter pairs and pairs with large age differences between members interacted and associated most often. The social structure of this captive herd is influenced by social relationships between individual adult females, and the social behavior of individual females should be examined more closely in the wild.     

个体情绪智力与任务绩效：社会网络的视角

基于社会网络视角, 分别以社会资本的关系性维度为中介变量, 以社会资本的结构性维度为跨层调节变量, 探讨了个体情绪智力对任务绩效的影响。通过收集模拟网络实验背景中46个项目团队210位个体的调查数据, 运用多元统计分析方法对提出的假设模型进行了实证检验。研究发现：在控制个性的前提下, 关系性社会资本在个体情绪智力影响任务绩效过程中起到中介作用, 结构性社会资本(咨询网络密度)跨层正向调节影响个体情绪智力与任务绩效的关系。结果表明, 不同层次的社会资本及其维度在情绪智力影响绩效过程中扮演着不同角色, 运用社会资本概念框架有助于解释情绪智力的作用机制。     

The pattern of subjective anxiety during in-session exposures over the course of cognitive-behavioral therapy for clients with social anxiety disorder

Exposure-based therapies are efficacious treatments for social anxiety disorder (i.e., Gould et al., 1997). Much of the theory behind these treatments is derived from Foa and colleagues' (Foa, Huppert, & Cahill, 2005; Foa & Kozak, 1986) work on emotional processing. However, there has been little research examining individual differences in emotional processing patterns within and between treatment sessions among clients with social anxiety disorder. This study utilized longitudinal data analytic methods to examine changes in subjective anxiety during the first 3 exposure sessions in group and individual cognitive-behavioral therapy for social anxiety disorder. The results of this study provide preliminary evidence that, although anxiety generally decreases across exposures, some individuals experience considerable fluctuations in anxiety during a single exposure. Although anxiety during the first exposure was not significantly related to outcome, the relationship between anxiety during exposure and outcome became stronger during subsequent exposures. Overall, this study highlights the need to conduct more fine-grained analyses to better understand the mechanisms underlying exposure-based therapies for social anxiety disorder.     

The psycho-heresy of Rom Harré

The elaboration of Harré's “ethogenic approach” in his various works is discussed. This approach hinges on the notion of rationality as expressive self-display in the context of discourse, and entails the primacy of the social over the individual order and the moral sciences over psychology. Harré's critique of individual psychology, particularly that of the cognitive developmental tradition, is examined critically.