Fuzziness in the Mind: Can Perception be Unconscious?

Recently, a new movement has arisen in the philosophy of perception: one that views perception as a natural kind. Strangely, this movement has neglected the extensive work in philosophy of science on natural kinds. The present paper remedies this. I start by isolating a widespread and influential assumption, which is that we can give necessary and sufficient conditions for perception. I show that this assumption is radically at odds with current philosophy of science work on natural kinds. I then develop an alternative, new view of perception. This new view takes as its starting point the dominant position on kinds in the life sciences: the homeostatic property cluster account. I show that, if you accept this view, then all of the putative cases of unconscious perception are more plausibly seen as cases where it is indeterminate whether the mental episode in question is an instance of perception.     

Timelessness and freedom

One way that philosophers have attempted to defend free will against the threat of fatalism and against the threat from divine beliefs has been to endorse timelessness views (about propositions and God’s beliefs, respectively). In this paper, I argue that, in order to respond to general worries about fatalism and divine beliefs, timelessness views must appeal to the notion of dependence. Once they do this, however, their distinctive position as timelessness views becomes otiose, for the appeal to dependence, if it helps at all, would itself be sufficient to block worries about fatalism and divine beliefs. I conclude by discussing some implications for dialectical progress.

     

Aggressive behavior in the free-ranging rhesus monkeys of kathmandu,nepal

We present a composite sample of the aggressive behavior of free-ranging rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta), recorded at two temples in Kathmandu, Nepal. We analyze the total number and the rate per monkey of threats, chases, attacks, fights, and aggressive acts directed at other species (principally humans), in order to elucidate social dynamics of the troop as a whole. Our 1,506 hours of observation were divided among the four seasons; between a.m. and p.m.; and among a temple yard, two parklands, and a forested garden. We found seasonal patterns to be the most important correlates of aggressive behavior. Habitat was a modulating influence, and time of day was the least important factor. Rates of aggression were generally higher per male monkey than per female. In terms of total aggression recorded, however, females instigated significantly more than males, both in encounters between monkeys and in aggression against other species. This finding is consistent with the females' greater numbers in the troop and with their lifelong membership in the troop. Analysis of behavior by social groups, rather than by individual rates, points up the iomportance of adult females and their social stability in troop behavior.     

Student volunteer social support and infant intervention: A case study

The emphases in infant mental health have been in the three areas of supporting the mother-infant dyad through education, psychotherapy to help parents resolve emotional conflicts that interfere with the parent-infant interaction, and support during the acute crisis that follows an abnormal birth. The case described herein involves a child with a genetic defect born to competent parents, a chronic stressful situation that does not fit these categories. It became apparent in the first few months after the birth that both the child and parents were in need of some help in coping with the situation. An intervention was designed to help provide both the necessary stimulation for the baby and the needed emotional support for the family, while it acknowledged their skill and competencies as parents. This was done through the help of college student volunteers, who assisted the mother in the home. Developmental data recorded at birth, 7 months, 12 months, and 39 months indicate that the child is severely multiply handicapped. Interview data with the parents at those times document their personal and family difficulties, the eventual resolution as a family in dealing with this problem, and the importance of the volunteer help during that process.     

The chronic perseverative stuttering syndrome; Incurable stuttering

After recounting the story of Todd to illustrate the significance of the issue, the chronic perseverative stuttering (CPS) syndrome is defined and its characteristics identified. After a discussion of treatment goals for the CPS syndrome client, the significance of its identification in the client's teenage years and its relevance to support groups for stutterers, the paper concludes with a call for acknowledging the reality of the CPS syndrome and for establishing realistic therapy goals in view of its existence.     

A Simple Solution to the Liar

Philosophical Studies -     

Reflections on "Nursing considered as moral practice

This response to the preceding article by Gastmans, Dierckx de Casterle, and Schotsmans challenges the notion of "good care" as the ultimate goal of nursing practice, explores further the possible goals of nursing and how they may be identified, and presents six elements of professional caring along with their related virtues and moral obligations.     

A poem and a dream

Recently, a journalist in analysis had a dream that stimulated the writing of a poem, the two psychic products occurring no more than a few hours apart. Since the analysand had copious free associations to both products, believing both to be culled from the same unconscious raw material, an interesting study of an act of aesthetic creation almost in statu nascendi became possible. A concept called poem work is entertained in this paper and is compared and contrasted with the classical psychoanalytic concept of dream work, allowing some unanswerable questions to be posed and discussed in regard to the formal constitutive elements of poetry.     

Psychosocial and Moral Development of PTSD‐Diagnosed Combat Veterans

Two related studies were conducted in order to investigate whether psychosocial and moral development appeared to have been disrupted and arrested in veterans diagnosed as having posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Study 1 was devoted to developing a measure of late adolescence, early adulthood, and adulthood stages of psychosocial development. In Study 2, a sample of 32 PTSD‐diagnosed and 32 PTSD‐free veterans participated. The PTSD‐diagnosed participants presented evidence of arrested psychosocial and moral development.     

Effects of facial attractiveness and gender on causal attributions of managerial performance

The present study examined the effect of facial attractiveness and gender on raters' evaluations of and explanations for managerial performance. Results showed attractiveness to be a potential liability for both males and females. Good performance of attractive females was more likely than that of others to be attributed to luck or bias, while that of attractive males was viewed as occurring with little effort. In addition, the poor performance of attractive individuals was blamed on lack of effort (females) or lack of ability (males). Implications of these findings are discussed.An earlier version of this paper was published in the 1986 Proceedings of the Southern Management Association.