A REVIEW OF COCAINE ABUSE: BEHAVIOR,PHARMACOLOGY, AND CLINICAL APPLICATIONS,EDITED BY S. T. HIGGINS AND J. L. KATZ

This book comprises 17 chapters that deal with a variety of topics related to cocaine and its abuse. Several of the chapters are excellent, and the book in its totality contains a wealth of information. These are major strengths. On the down side, some important topics are ignored, the relevance of several chapters to cocaine abuse is not apparent, and the various chapters are not well integrated. We recommend Cocaine Abuse as a reference volume for scientists with specific training in the areas that it covers. But we do not recommend it for cover‐to‐cover reading as an overview of cocaine abuse.     

SCIENCE AND TRANSCENDENCE: WESTPHAL,DERRIDA, AND RESPONSIBILITY

Abstract. On the naive reading, “radical social constructivism” would be the result of “deconstructing” science. Science would simply be a contingent construction in accordance with social determinants. However, postmodernism does not necessarily abandon fidelity to the objects of thought. Merold Westphal's Derridean philosophy of religion emphasizes that even theology need not eliminate the transcendence of the divine other. By drawing an analogy between natural and supernatural transcendence, I argue that science is similarly called to responsibility in the encounter with that which lies outside its horizon of expectation. Science's rational autonomy is overcome by the heteronomy of realities that precede it. Understanding species as homeostatic property clusters is an example of nonessentialist, postmodern, and scientific realism. Science is still a vehicle for encountering natural alterity, thus decentering the relativism thought to characterize postmodernism. However, natural science must not attempt to place the whole of being at human disposal if it is to fulfill the potential of Westphal's philosophy of religion.     

ETHICS AND OBSERVATION: DEWEY,THOREAU, AND HARMAN

Abstract: In 1929, John Dewey said that “the problem of restoring integration and cooperation between man's beliefs about the world in which he lives and his beliefs about the values and purposes that should direct his conduct is the deepest problem of human life.” Using this as its theme, this article begins with an examination of Gilbert Harman's reasons for denying the existence of moral facts. It then presents an alternative account of the relationship between science and ethics, making use of the writings of Dewey and Henry David Thoreau. For both Dewey and Thoreau, the dichotomy between a scientific approach to the world and an ethical approach to the world is a false one. The article explores the reasons for believing that the dichotomy is a false one, agreeing with Thoreau that there “is no exclusively moral law—there is no exclusively physical law.”     

SELF-DISCLOSURE AND INTERPERSONAL SOLIDARITY: MEASUREMENT,VALIDATION, AND RELATIONSHIPS

This study investigated the relationship of self-disclosure and interpersonal solidarity. Major emphasis was devoted to the refinement of a multidimensional measure of reported self-disclosure and development of a preliminary measure of solidarity. Results replicated in two studies indicated that (1) the self-disclosure scales could be improved to acceptable levels of reliability, (2) the solidarity measure validly distinguished between closer and more distant relationships, (3) self-disclosure and solidarity were positively related, and (4) meaningfully higher levels of self-disclosure were associated with high solidarity relations than with low solidarity relations.     

C. S. PEIRCE,G. W. F. HEGEL,AND STUART KAUFFMAN'S COMPLEXITY THEORY: A RESPONSE

Stuart Kauffman's work on complexity and self‐organization echoes ideas found in writings of C. S. Peirce and G. W. F. Hegel. Included in these common threads are the understanding of science as historical narrative, the recognition of emergence as a phenomenon associated with complex systems, and the appreciation of agency as an emergent property that serves as both a creative and determining force in evolution.     

GUATEMALAN, FILIPINO, AND U.S. ADOLESCENTS'IMAGES OF WOMEN AS OFFICE WORKERS AND HOMEMAKERS

Although adolescents of different countries often draw pictures of the ideal woman cooking or working in an office, the meaning of the images may vary cross-culturally. In the present study, 88 adolescents from the Philippines, the U.S.A., and Guatemala interpreted drawings by their same-nationality peers. Interpreters from all three countries described the woman working in an office as hardworking and the woman cooking as a mother cooking for her family. In addition, Filipino adolescents wrote themes of contentment and organization, Guatemalan adolescents wrote themes of betterment, family, and hope, and U.S.A. adolescents wrote themes of contentment and niceness. Similar images of women's roles may have different meanings for adolescents of different cultures, and the use of emic approaches can provide psychological researchers with increased understanding of complex social phenomena.     

SCIENCE,RELIGION, AND ETHICS: A RESPONSE TO MICHAEL J. REISS

The respondent agrees with Michael Reiss's general diagnosis of the rudderless state of ethics in our modern society, but not with all of his account of its causes or possible solutions. Scripture has always been limited in terms of direct moral commands, and secular ethics has, since Aristotle at least, been influential in directing Christian understanding of the “good life.” Ethics must be based in biology, but evolutionary biology can tell us more readily what is, than guide us into “what ought” to be. Christian teaching classically emphasized moral formation, grounded in the understanding that we are creatures of a good Creator. We have our being as gift, and human life flourishes when oriented to the Good.     

THIS IS NOT B. F. SKINNER'S BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS: A REVIEW OF HAYES,STROSAHL, AND WILSON'S ACCEPTANCE AND COMMITMENT THERAPY

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999) is an important addition to and extension of the growing field of clinical behavior analysis. The book provides a comprehensive introduction to a new therapy that is rooted in functional contextualistic philosophy and a “post-Skinnerian” behavior-analytic theory of verbal behavior. It begins with the assertion that language or verbal processes are at the heart of psychopathology and human suffering and goes on to describe a therapeutic approach that seeks to undermine these verbal processes and facilitate clients' active commitment to value-driven behavior change. Along the way, the book provides a compelling behavior-analytic account of a number of important but neglected issues in behavior analysis, including human suffering, the nature and function of private events, the self, suicide, anxiety, depression, values, responsibility, and commitment. In so doing, the book cogently challenges the unfortunately common but erroneous assertion that behaviorism does not and perhaps cannot address the complexity of the human condition. The present review provides a general overview of the book, summarizes its chapters, and raises a number of questions that might be addressed in future research.     

TIME AND ETERNITY: HYMNIC,BIBLICAL, SCIENTIFIC,AND THEOLOGICAL VIEWS

The book Time and Eternity, the English version of Zeit und Ewigkeit, by Antje Jackelén, contains scientific and theological treatments of these two topics, starting with the usage of such ideas in German, Swedish, and English hymns. This essay describes her work and explains how the scientific ideas provide a coherent framework for understanding the place of time.