Omnipotence in the transference and in the countertransference

The concept of omnipotence refers to a primitive fantasy, a mechanism of defense, and a pathological psychic structure. Omnipotence and its derivative defensive operation, omnipotent control, are highly prevalent in borderline personality organization. Three clinical vignettes illustrate these mechanisms in the treatment of patients with borderline, narcissistic, and obsessive personality disorders, respectively. These vignettes illustrate the transference developments when omnipotence and omnipotence control are dominant, and the therapeutic approach to these conditions.     

The patient in the family and the family in the patient

The notion that the family is “the unit of care” for family doctors has been enigmatic and controversial. Yet systems theory and the biopsychosocial model that results when it is imported into medicine make the family system an indispensable and important component of family medicine. The challenge, therefore, is to provide a coherent, plausible account of the role of the family in family practice. Through an extended case presentation and commentary, we elaborate two views of the family in family medicine — treating the patient in the family and treating the family in the patient — and defend both as appropriate foci for care by family doctors. The practical problem that arises when the family is introduced into health care is deciding when to concentrate on the family system. The moral problems that arise concern how extensively doctors may become involved in the personal lives of their patients and families. The patient-centered clinical method provides a strategy for handling both problems. Thus, making the family a focus of care in family medicine can be justified on theoretical, practical, and moral grounds.     

Information in the Universe and in the Organism

There is a branch of modern medicine that relies on information rather than on biochemical substances to maintain health and cure disease. Known as information medicine, it offers an important complement to the dominant biochemical approach of mainstream medicine. This note offers a few reflections on the potentials of information medicine in reference to what is currently known regarding the role of information in the universe, and in the living organism.     

Disequilibrium in the mind, disharmony in the body

Although it is generally acknowledged that experiences of frustration, confusion, and anxiety are embodied phenomena, very little is known about how these processes modulate presumably unconscious, but constantly present, subtle bodily movement. We addressed this problem by tracking the low-level dynamics of body movement, using 1/f noise, pink noise, or "fractal scaling", during naturalistic experiences of affect in two studies involving deep learning and effortful problem-solving. Our results indicate that body movement fluctuations of individuals experiencing cognitive equilibrium was characteristic of correlated pink noise, but there was a whitening of the signal when participants experienced states that are diagnostic of cognitive distress such as anxiety, confusion, and frustration. We orient our findings within theories that emphasise the embodied nature of cognition and affect and with perspectives that view affective and cognitive processes as emergent products of a self-organising dynamical system (the brain) that is inextricably coupled to the body.     

Disequilibrium in the mind,disharmony in the body

Although it is generally acknowledged that experiences of frustration, confusion, and anxiety are embodied phenomena, very little is known about how these processes modulate presumably unconscious, but constantly present, subtle bodily movement. We addressed this problem by tracking the low-level dynamics of body movement, using 1/f noise, pink noise, or “fractal scaling”, during naturalistic experiences of affect in two studies involving deep learning and effortful problem-solving. Our results indicate that body movement fluctuations of individuals experiencing cognitive equilibrium was characteristic of correlated pink noise, but there was a whitening of the signal when participants experienced states that are diagnostic of cognitive distress such as anxiety, confusion, and frustration. We orient our findings within theories that emphasise the embodied nature of cognition and affect and with perspectives that view affective and cognitive processes as emergent products of a self-organising dynamical system (the brain) that is inextricably coupled to the body.     

明代伏牛山佛教派系考

历史上对伏牛山地区的佛教记载较散,资料较详的是在明代。当时来山修行的僧人很多,但是到现在为止还没有人对伏牛山的佛教进行过研究,笔者根据掌握的禅宗史料提出这时伏牛山佛教已经有了明显的禅宗派系特征,在这里传教修行的僧人,主要是元代禅宗断桥伦一支的浙江天目山高峰原妙及其弟子中峰明本一系,其中受四川禅宗无际明悟禅师一派的影响很大,早期来山的僧人大多数都是无际明悟的弟子与后人,可以说成立了无际伏牛山禅派一系。     

孕育中的旅游伦理学--近年来西方国家旅游伦理研究述评

旅行和旅游是一项历史悠久的人类活动,旅游活动中的伦理问题的存在也和旅游发展的历史一样久远.二战以后,"大众旅游"经过半个多世纪的高速发展,对自然环境和社会文化的负面影响已经凸显出来,因此,旅游研究便开始关注旅游发展伦理问题;与此同时,应用伦理学研究也开始从不同的角度关注旅游发展这一新领域.     

Explaining the Past in the Geosciences

Abductive reasoning is central to reconstructing the past in the geosciences. This paper outlines the nature of the abductive method and restates it in Bayesian terms. Evidence plays a key role in this working method and, in particular, traces of the past are important in this explanatory framework. Traces, whether singularly or as groups, are interpreted within the context of the event for which they have evidential claims. Traces are not considered as independent entities but rather as inter-related pieces of information concerning the likelihood of specific events. Exemplification of the use of such traces is provided by dissecting an example of their use in the environmental reconstruction of mountain climate.     

Finding the Gift in the Horror

Summary

This brief article proposes an analysis of the risks society faces in coping with terrorism, and suggests broad outlines of a plan to increase national resilience through creating a national strategy for enhancing psychosocial security. The analysis is based on survival mode theory, which posits two survival sub-systems in human beings: the threat detection system and the human bonding and attachment system. It proposes to redefine the concept of national security policy to go beyond the traditional military aspects of defense to include establishing psychological countermeasures that define maintaining psychological safety as a key marker of the defense against terrorism.     

Belief in the paranormal and suggestion in the seance room

In Experiment 1, participants took part in a fake seance. An actor suggested that a table was levitating when, in fact, it remained stationary. After the seance, approximately one third of participants incorrectly reported that the table had moved. Results also showed a significant relationship between the reported movement of the table and belief in the paranormal, with a greater percentage of believers than disbelievers, reporting that the table had moved. Experiment 2 varied whether the suggestion was consistent, or inconsistent, with participants' belief in the paranormal. Results again showed that believers were more susceptible to suggestion than disbelievers, but only when the suggestion was consistent with their belief in the paranormal. Approximately one fifth of participants believed that the fake seances contained genuine paranormal phenomena.     

Social isolation-induced changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in the rat

Social isolation of rats both reduces the cerebrocortical and plasma concentrations of 3a-hydroxy-5a-pregnan-20-one (3a,5a-TH PROG) and 3a,5a-tetrahydrodeoxycorticosterone and potentiates the positive effects of acute stress and ethanol on the concentrations of these neuroactive steroids. We now show that social isolation decreased the plasma level of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), moreover, intracerebroventricular administration of corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) induced a marked increase in the plasma corticosterone level in both isolated and group-housed rats, but this effect was significantly greater in the isolated rats (+121%) than in the group-housed rats (+86%). In addition, in isolated rats, a low dose of dexamethasone had no effect on the plasma corticosterone concentration, whereas, a high dose significantly reduced it; both doses of dexamethasone reduced plasma corticosterone in group-housed rats. Furthermore, the corticosterone level after injection of dexamethasone at the high dose was significantly greater in the isolated animals than in the group-housed rats. These results suggest that social isolation increased sensitivity of the pituitary to CRF and impaired negative feedback regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.     

从秦汉时期皇帝诏书称引儒家经典看儒学的发展

两汉皇帝自武帝起有 1 7人在诏书中征引经书 ,这从一个侧面反映了两汉经学发展的轨迹。这一现象展示了政治与经学互动的规律 :经学政治化与政治经学化。此后 ,引经据典成为中国古代文人为文的传统 ,历千年而不衰。其对中国社会发展的影响主导面是消极的     

The role of the leader in managing the preoedipal patient in the group setting

Preoedipal patients present a special problem in group treatment. This is because their difficulties arose largely before they learned to use words. Such patients are prone to act rather than talk. They do not respond well to interpretation. They must be approached and influenced through feelings. We can utilize the group to provide them with maturational experiences, helping them reach a more adult level of mental functioning so that our usual technical interventions can be brought into play. The paper discusses methods for enhancing this process, including reflection, emotional communication, using reconstruction to close developmental gaps, and immunization.     

论明武宗崇奉藏传佛教

明武宗朱厚照在历史上以崇奉藏传佛教而著称。他在京师大量封授、供养藏僧,自封为大庆法王,坚持迎取活佛,为藏僧等建寺造塔,大量开度藏僧行童。明武宗崇奉藏传佛教,与他信奉藏传佛教教义及修行方法,以及其荒嬉的个性有很大关系。宫中浓厚的藏传佛教信仰、朝政日益黑暗腐朽也有一定影响。武宗崇奉藏传佛教,使明朝政治日趋黑暗腐朽,加剧了财政危机,加强了汉藏文化交流,也成为反面典型和后世诸帝鉴戒。     

Attachments in the workplace: How attachment security in the workplace benefits the organisation

In four studies, we tested if workplace secure attachment entails organisational benefits, given that such relationships are associated with increased positive relationship emotions. In Study 1, employees rated the extent to which colleagues, supervisors, and other individuals fulfil the attachment functions. In Study 2, employees listed up to 10 individuals before completing the same rating task as Study 1. In the remaining studies, employees rated their attachment security with their supervisors (Study 3) or colleagues (Study 4), and completed measures of positive relationship emotions with these individuals, proactive behaviour, organisational allure, and organisational deviance. We found that supervisors and colleagues fulfil attachment functions (Studies 1–2), and that workplace attachment security confers organisational allure and proactive behaviour due to its association with positive relationships emotions. However, workplace attachment security directly lowers organisational deviance (Studies 3–4). Thus, supportive and trusting work environments may encourage workplace relationships that could bestow organisational benefits.     

《隋书·经籍志》中婆罗门典籍与隋以前在中国的婆罗门教

本文从在华流传之婆罗门文化典籍,婆罗门教徒在华活动史迹,以及夹杂在佛教艺术与经籍中的婆罗门教因子等等,论证婆罗门教曾来到过中国.