Karol Wojtyla and Emmanuel Levinas on the Embodied Self: the Forming of the Other as Moral Self-disclosure

The 'other' has taken on an increased theological significance for the Church in the advent of post-modern reflection, resulting in a myriad of possibilities for those who would reflect on the significance of the other in relation to the 'self', largely in connection with various theories of embodiment. Following Karol Wojtyla's (John Paul II) emphasis on the given-ness of the body I wish to illustrate a way in which the other might be understood theologically, informed by the insights of the continental philosophical tradition, specifically Emmanuel Levinas' phenomenological outline of the other as a key locus of ethical reflection. Bringing Levinas' continental philosophy into dialogue with Wojtyla's philosophical theology, it will be argued that the other must be re-approached in terms of their subjective self-disclosure, centring upon the en-fleshed and bodily form of the human person, who confronts us as a reflection of both that which is most other to ourselves (the divine) and paradoxically that which most resembles ourselves (the human). The other is always an en-fleshed subject and in their action, their subjective identity is disclosed on the relational level.     

Wittgenstein and Basic Moral Certainty

In On Certainty, Wittgenstein’s reflections bring into view the phenomenon of basic certainty. He explores this phenomenon mostly in relation to our certainty with regard to empirical states of affairs. Drawing on these seminal observations and reflections, I extend the inquiry into what I call “basic moral certainty”, arguing that the latter plays the same kind of foundational role in our moral practices and judgements as basic empirical certainty does in our epistemic practices and judgements. I illustrate the nature and significance of basic moral certainty via critical examination of contemporary philosophical “explanations” of the wrongness of killing. These pseudo explanations, as I show them to be, will be seen to founder in a similar manner to Moore’s “Proof” of an external world, that is, in a manner that discloses the phenomenon of basic (moral) certainty.     

Dual coding under conditions of second stimulus modality uncertainty in successive matching tasks

Subjects matched successively presented stimuli within and across modalities. In conditions in which they were informed of the modalities of the two stimuli, no differences in matching performance were obtained between the four types of match (visual-visual, auditory-auditory, visual-auditory, and auditory-visual). Thus, there appeared to be no difference between the modalities in ability to perceive or retain the particular stimuli used. In conditions in which subjects were informed of the modality of the first stimulus but only of the modality in which the second stimulus would appear on 80% of trials, there was again no significant difference between auditory-auditory and visual-visual matching. However, auditory-visual matching was much faster than visual-auditory matching when the second stimulus appeared in the unexpected modality. The results suggest that subjects prepare for both possible types of match when uncertain of the second stimulus modality and that the cross-modal asymmetry reflects the additional attentional load that this incurs.     

Stereospatial masking and aftereffect with normal and transformed random-dot patterns

Masking and aftereffect in the perception of binocular depth were studied using random-dot sterograms as adaptation and target stimuli. Detection of the target was impaired by prior adaptation only when the two stimuli differed in disparity by less than 2 minarc. The masking function was unaffected by uniocular enlargement and blurring within the adaptation stimulus, but masking was no longer selective to disparity when the elements seen by the two eyes were reversed in brightness. The stereoscopic depth aftereffect was also insensitive to uniocular enlargement and blurring, and could not be generated when there was brightness complementation within the adaptation stimulus. Both the masking and aftereffect data are interpreted as evidence that stereospatial detectors in human vision are insensitive to transforms that maintain luminance-spatial correlations in binocular input.     

The ethics of enforced medical treatment: the balance model

ABSTRACT When is it right to enforce medical treatment on a patient who is refusing that treatment? English law recognises two ethical principles as of paramount importance: the autonomy of the patient; and the consequences of not treating compared with treating. The law, by and large, operates these principles in succession. Thus, in the case of a patient refusing treatment, the law asks first, is the patient competent? Only if the answer is no, are the consequences considered. We criticise the position taken by English law and argue, first, that competence is a graded and not a binary concept, and secondly, that the two ethical principles should be applied not sequentially but at the same time. These two ideas form what we have called the balance model. This model could be used for an empirical study of individuals’ ethical beliefs, and in particular to test the hypothesis that the ethical beliefs of most individuals conform to the balance model rather than to the position taken by English law.     

Non-Informative Effects of Stimuli Functioning as Cues

The category of a first stimulus (S₁) serving as a cue may allow a subject to predict the category of a second stimulus (S₂). However, a cue may have effects on RT to S₂ that are independent of those derived from its intended role as a predictor. These non-informative effects of a cue may add to or subtract from the benefits associated with its predictive function. Two experiments demonstrate that when S₁ is in the same category as S₂ (as is frequently the case for valid cues in cueing experiments) but provides no information about S₂, RT is slower than when S₁ is in a different category from S₂. It is suggested that this category relation effect arises because inhibition of a response to S₁ is still present when S₂ arrives and that, in some cueing experiments, it may subtract from the RT benefits derived from the cue as a predictor of S₂. Also, RT to a visual but not to an auditory S₂ was faster after an auditory S₁ than after a visual S₁. It is argued that this modality combination effect is consistent with the view that auditory signals are more alerting than visual ones and that this is another factor to be taken into account in the design of cueing and other experiments.     

Cumulative Risk Across Family Stressors: Short- and Long-Term Effects for Adolescents

This study examined the relationship between number of family risk factors during adolescence and three areas of psychosocial adjustment (internalizing problems, externalizing problems, and academic achievement) in adolescence and 6 years later in young adulthood. Risk factors examined included parental divorce, interparental conflict, maternal physical health problems, maternal depressive mood, and mother-adolescent relationship difficulties. The findings indicated both concurrent and long-term associations between number of family risk factors and psychosocial adjustment; however, the results differed based on area of adjustment examined and whether concurrent or longitudinal data were considered. Furthermore, a steep increase in adjustment difficulties occurred when number of risk factors increased from three to four. The results are discussed in the framework of four hypotheses which were tested, and clinical implications are delineated.     

A device for concurrent bilateral measurement of outer eyelid closures in the rabbit

This paper describes a transducer that allows for the concurrent recording of outer eyelid closure on both the left and the right eyes of a rabbit. The device makes use of voltage induced across a current-carrying conductor when the conductor is exposed to a magnetic field perpendicular to its axis (the Hall effect). The transducer is relatively compact, inexpensive, and allows the animal to be loosely restrained.     

A Comparative Study of Knowledge of Changing Demographic Trends and the Importance of HRM Practices in Three European Countries

Recent changes in the demographic structures of industrialized nations pose a potentially serious threat to work organizations in terms of their ability to attract and retain high calibre personnel. Specifically, the number of young people in their late teens and early-to-mid twenties is on the decline at the present time, coupled with a long-term recession, thus posing a dilemma for organizations concerned to develop and maintain a viable workforce. This article reports the findings of a three-country comparative study, conducted in The Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom, designed to investigate the extent to which graduate employers are aware of current demographic trends in the labour market and what HRM policies they are instituting, given this context. The findings reveal considerable levels of ignorance across all three countries, suggesting that attempts by various Government bodies, employers' organizations, professional associations and academics to draw attention to the potentially serious consquences of inadequate planning and future skill provision have largely failed. The results indicate that many organizations are engaging in human resource strategies which are not well suited to meeting the challenges of the 1990s.