Engaging Diversity in Teaching Religion and Theology: An Intercultural,De‐colonial Epistemic Perspective

This essay explores new ways of engaging diversity in the production of knowledge in the classroom using coloniality as an analytical lens. After briefly engaging some of the recent literature on coloniality, focusing on the epistemic dimension, the author uses the example of teaching a course on religion, culture, and theology, where he employs this analysis, to develop a new pedagogical approach as a step towards an intercultural, de‐colonial theological education.     

Perversion and infancy and adolescence

Abstract

Studying the works of Freud and Lacan, the authors carried out research on perversion in childhood. Their work covered the perverse polymorphism of infantile sexuality and the perception of the anatomic difference between the sexes that leads the child to create sexual theories and fantasies. The phallic mother and the fetish are viewed as imaginary solutions directly related to the Oedipus and castration complexes. In perversion, a particular position is taken in relation to the Oedipus complex: a serious flaw occurs in the symbolization of the law, and the mechanisms of denial and disavowal take form. Sexuality requires a second “logical time,” separated from infancy by the latency period, in order to confirm (in action) that a fixed position of jouissance (enjoyment) has actually been established. This can only happen in a period after adolescent enhancement. The distinction between perverse traces and a perverse structure is made, taking into account the fact that, in the case of child analysis, the analyst should free the child from the family fantasy and help him/her to build his/her own fantasy.

Campos Santoro V. et al. Perversion und Kindheit und Adoleszenz.

Im Studium der Arbeiten von Freud und Lacan haben die Autoren Forschung über Perversion in der Kindheit gemacht. Die Studien behandeln den perversen Polymorphismus der infantilen Sexualität und die Wahrnehmung des anatomischen Unterschiedes zwischen den Geschlechtern, welche das Kind dazu führt, Sexual-Theorien und Phatasien zu schaffen.

Die phallische Mutter und der Fetisch werden als imaginäre Lösungen angesehen, die sich direkt auf den Ödipus- und Kastrations-Komplex beziehen. Bei der Perversion wird eine besondere Position in Bezug auf den Ödipus angenommen; ein ernsthafter Mangel tritt bei der Symbolisierung des Rechts auf; die Mechanismen der Verneinung und der Verleugnung bilden sich. Sexualität erfordert eine zweite “logische Zeit”, von der Kindheit durch die Latenz Periode getrennt, um (in der Handlung) zu bestätigen, daß eine fixierte Position der jouissance (Vergnügung) sich tatsächlich etabliert hat. Das kann sich nur in einer Periode nach der adoleszenten Verstärkung ereignen.

Es wird die Unterscheidung zwischen perversen Spuren und einer perversen Struktur gemacht, in Rechnung stellend, daß im Fall der Kinder-Analyse der Analytiker das Kind von der Familien-Phantasie befreien sollte und ihm/ihr helfen sollte, seine/ihre Phantasie auszubilden.

Campos Santoro V. Perversión e infancia y adolescencia.

Estudiando los trabajos de Freud y Lacan, los autores han investigado la perversión en la niñez. Los estudios cubren la sexualidad infantil perversa polimorfa y la percepción de la diferencia anatómica entre los sexos, que llevan al niño a crear teorías sexuales y fantasías.

La madre fálica y el fetiche son vistos como soluciones imaginarias relacionadas directamente con el complejo de Edipo y de castración. La perversión, toma una posición particular en relación al Edipo; un fallo importante tiene lugar en la simbolización de la ley; los mecanismos de negación y repudio toman forma. La sexualidad requiere un segundo “tiempo lógico” separado de la infancia por el periodo de latencia, para confirmar (en acto) que una posición fija de jouissance (goce) se ha establecido. Esto solo puede ocurrir en un periodo posterior a la intensificación adolescente.

La distinción entre las huellas perversas y la estructura perversa se ha hecho, teniendo en cuenta que, en el caso del análisis de niños, el analista debe librar al niño de la fantasía familiar y ayudar a el/ella a construir su propia fantasía.     

Coping with dental treatment correlates of dispositional and domain specific monitoring and blunting

Abstract

Relations between coping style and several variables on an intermediary level were studied in a group of dentally anxious patients (N = 68) awaiting dental treatment. Monitoring was found to be positively related to the need of information: General dispositional monitoring was the best predictor of the need of information in case of more distant threat, whereas domain specific monitoring was the best predictor in case of imminent threat. Furthermore. dental trait anxiety was strongly related to early anticipatory tension, degree of anticipatory tension at several moments in time, and tension during treatment as perceived by the dentist, thereby overshadowing the weaker effects of coping style. Domain specific blunting was negatively related to desires for informational adaptations in the waiting room, and to question proneness as perceived by the dentist during treatment. It is concluded that, in order to study further effects of coping style, a sample homogeneous with respect to domain specific anxiety is needed.     

Family law issues in family therapy practice

Abstract

The American Journal of Family Therapy is pleased to innaugurate this new section with the intent of being at the cutting edge of the interface of the interrelationship of family law and family therapy. We introduce this endeavor with several articles on child custody-an arena of crucial concern in both disciplines. One article is a summary of child custody laws extant throu hout the United States. to commend it psychologically and legally. The third item, in keeping with the theme, is a speculative fable about joint custody written by a matrimonial attorney who practices family mediation and who has training as a family therapist. It captures the tenor of the times. The second article discusses a model for child custody ev a f uations, which has much     

Divorce mediation and its emotional impact on the couple and their children

Abstract

Only recently have stage of development concepts been applied to the process of divorce. Formulations about continuum of feelings, tasks to be accomplished, ordinary emotional fluctuations, and challenges to be mastered began to appear in the literature only in the past two decades (Bohannan, 1970; Froiland & Hozman, 1977; Kaslow, 1981b; 1983; Kessler, 1975). Nonetheless, when one is undertaking either divorce therapy or divorce mediation with a couple, it is vital to ascertain such life cycle factors as: 1) where each is in his or her individual life cycle development in terms of chronological age, emotional maturity, cognitive functioning, career status and aims, and child rearing; 2) how long the couple had been together, what are the personalities and ages of the children, the nature of the couple's prior relationship to each other, the extended family's response to the imminent divorce, the importance ascribed to independencelfreedom vs. sharing one's life and being concerned about a partner's wishes, the level of intimacy sought and reached, the nature and frequency of arguments, the extent of ennui and disillusionment, the perceived friendship and career opportunities beyond the current marriage and job, and the economic circumstances; and 3) if they have already decided to divorce or where they are in this emotional and legal process—predivorce, during divorce, or postdivorce?

It is important that the point of therapeutic entry and the selection of treatment strategies or the approach in divorce mediation be contingent upon etching a clear and accurate picture of their individual and couple identity, rhythms, intrapsychic integration and interpersonal resources, and the life cycle stage in these intertwined aspects of living.     

Autobiographical Memory, Self, and Stress-Related Psychiatric Disorders: Which Implications in Cancer Patients?

Autobiographical memory refers to information and memories of personal life events, accumulated since childhood, which enable the construction of a feeling of identity and continuity. Autobiographical memory retrieval is a dynamic and reconstructive process, as mental representations change with the passage of time. This flexible aspect of memory is linked to one’s changing self and aspirations over time, that evolve according to our personal status and environment. Hence, any breakdown in the continuity of life involves a distortion of memory. Such distortions can be observed in stress-related psychiatric disorders, such as major depression or post-traumatic stress disorder, where autobiographical memory retrieval is characterized by overgenerality (i.e., the tendency to recall generic memories rather than specific events in response to cue words). Such memory disorders can be observed at different degrees in cancer patients. We will report studies focusing on the above-mentioned psychiatric disorders and cancer, and will attempt to establish a relation with autobiographical memory disturbances. The better understanding of such memory deficits could permit new pathophysiological hypotheses to emerge. Recommendations for future research that will enhance understanding of the factors that contribute to autobiographical memory in cancer are suggested.     

Letting go of the present: Mind-wandering is associated with reduced delay discounting

The capacity to self-generate mental content that is unrelated to the current environment is a fundamental characteristic of the mind, and the current experiment explored how this experience is related to the decisions that people make in daily life. We examined how task-unrelated thought (TUT) varies with the length of time participants are willing to wait for an economic reward, as measured using an inter-temporal discounting task. When participants performed a task requiring minimal attention, the greater the amount of time spent engaged in TUT the longer the individual was prepared to wait for an economic reward. These data indicate that self-generated thought engages processes associated with the successful management of long-term goals. Although immersion in the here and now is undeniably advantageous, under appropriate conditions the capacity to let go of the present and consider more pertinent personal goals may have its own rewards.     

Religiosity and Adolescents’ Involvement with Both Drugs and Sex

Previous research has shown that religion reduces adolescents’ risk of substance use, while having little impact on sexual risk-taking. However, few studies have examined how religion might mitigate adolescents’ involvement with both drugs and sex. Using the Child Development Supplement (CDS) in combination with the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), we fill this gap by determining how adolescents’ involvement with both drugs and sex is related to religiosity. We find the statistically significant relationship between religiosity and adolescents’ involvement in both risk behaviors is accounted for by school attachment, but the relationship between religiosity and drugs is robust.