“WHITE CRISIS” AND/AS “EXISTENTIAL RISK,” OR THE ENTANGLED APOCALYPTICISM OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

In this article, I present a critique of Robert Geraci's Apocalyptic artificial intelligence (AI) discourse, drawing attention to certain shortcomings which become apparent when the analytical lens shifts from religion to the race–religion nexus. Building on earlier work, I explore the phenomenon of existential risk associated with Apocalyptic AI in relation to “White Crisis,” a modern racial phenomenon with premodern religious origins. Adopting a critical race theoretical and decolonial perspective, I argue that all three phenomena are entangled and they should be understood as a strategy, albeit perhaps merely rhetorical, for maintaining white hegemony under nonwhite contestation. I further suggest that this claim can be shown to be supported by the disclosure of continuity through change in the long‐durée entanglement of race and religion associated with the establishment, maintenance, expansion, and refinement of the modern/colonial world system if and when such phenomena are understood as iterative shifts in a programmatic trajectory of domination which might usefully be framed as “algorithmic racism.”     

Influence of affective distractors on working memory capacity in relation to symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder

Symptoms evoked in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when processing trauma‐relevant material arguably impair higher order cognitive functions. An example is working memory capacity (WMC), which has been shown to be disrupted by affective distractors. However, it is unknown whether this association varies across different types of PTSD symptoms. This study explored the association between WMC performed in affective (relative to neutral) contexts in relation to different symptoms of PTSD (avoidance, re‐experiencing, hyperarousal). Motor vehicle accident survivors with PTSD and without PTSD completed a delayed‐match‐to‐sample task including trauma‐related, neutral, and scrambled distractors in the interval between the presentation of the memoranda and the recognition target. The results showed that there was support for an indirect pathway between PTSD diagnosis and WMC performed in affective (versus neutral) contexts through re‐experiencing and avoidance symptoms. The findings suggest that avoidance symptoms in particular may benefit from interventions directed at improving WMC.     

Tri-parent Baby Technology and Preservation of Lineage: An Analysis from the Perspective of Maqasid al-Shari’ah Based Islamic Bioethics

Science and Engineering Ethics - Tri-parent baby technology is an assisted reproductive treatment which aims to minimize or eliminate maternal inheritance of mutated mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The...     

Monolingual and bilingual children's social preferences for monolingual and bilingual speakers

Past research has shown that young monolingual children exhibit language‐based social biases: they prefer native language to foreign language speakers. The current research investigated how children's language preferences are influenced by their own bilingualism and by a speaker's bilingualism. Monolingual and bilingual 4‐ to 6‐year‐olds heard pairs of adults (a monolingual and a bilingual, or two monolinguals) and chose the person with whom they wanted to be friends. Whether they were from a largely monolingual or a largely bilingual community, monolingual children preferred monolingual to bilingual speakers, and native language to foreign language speakers. In contrast, bilingual children showed similar affiliation with monolingual and bilingual speakers, as well as for monolingual speakers using their dominant versus non‐dominant language. Exploratory analyses showed that individual bilinguals displayed idiosyncratic patterns of preference. These results reveal that language‐based preferences emerge from a complex interaction of factors, including preference for in‐group members, avoidance of out‐group members, and characteristics of the child as they relate to the status of the languages within the community. Moreover, these results have implications for bilingual children's social acceptance by their peers.     

Embracing mental illness: do education and contact make any difference in help-seeking intention among Pakistani students?

Those suffering from mental illness usually fall victim to stigmatization and the resulting discrimination. This study aims at finding out whether students differ in their attitudes based on the courses studied and previous contact with mentally ill. Using purposive sampling technique, 236 students from seven departments of University of Karachi were selected for this study. They were divided into three groups based on their educational background i.e. “psychology group”, “allied group” and “other group”. Community Attitude towards Mental Illness (CAMI) Scale along with a demographics sheet were administered to the participants. Using SPSS version 23, one-way ANOVA was carried out between educational groups and responses of CAMI sub-scales. Results indicated that in comparison to the other two groups, attitudes of psychology students were lower on authoritarianism, social restrictiveness subscales and higher on community mental health ideology subscale. Results are discussed in detail.     

A Threatened Identity: The Mental Health Status of Syrian Refugees in Egypt and Its Etiology

This study utilized the development-based trauma framework on identity traumas to study the cumulative effects of trauma on the identities of Syrian refugees. Participants included 196 Syrian refugees residing in Cairo, Egypt (Mean age = 35.99, SD = 11.05). The rate of post-traumatic stress disorder was 33.5%, and the rate of depression was around 30%; the level of comorbidity was high with a high rate of suicidal plans or attempts (13.7%). Analyses indicated that existential annihilation anxieties, moderated by identity salience, mediated the effects of cumulative trauma on mental health. The results confirmed the utility and validity of the identity trauma model and provided evidence of the dire mental health needs of Syrian refugees.     

Temperament-Character Profile and Psychopathologies in Patients with Alopecia Areata

The aim of this study is to investigate psychopathologies and the temperament-character profile of Alopecia Areata patients and to compare them with healthy controls. Patients and controls who presented at a dermatology clinic were selected by convenience sampling to respond to Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), SCL-90-R, and a checklist about the demographic data and their dermatologic and psychiatric history. Patients reported higher harm avoidance and reward dependence than controls (Cohen's d = .93 and = .94). A significant correlation between Harm Avoidance (r = ?0.33, p = .02) and Reward Dependence (r = ?0.28, p = 0.05) with sex was found (females scored higher). Lifetime history of AA relapse was significantly associated with higher psychiatric symptoms; the effect sizes were large for Obsessive-Compulsive (d = .81) and Paranoia Ideation (d = .89). The higher psychological symptoms in AA patients with the history of relapses in this study have a practical message for clinicians.     

The Association Between Muslim Religiosity and Young Adult College Students’ Depression,Anxiety, and Stress

Depression, anxiety, and stress are among major psychological disorders being predominant in present day. This study proposed to analyze the role of Muslim religiosity in male students showing these mental indications. A sample including 723 Pakistani young adults enrolled at college level was randomly chosen. Muslim Religiosity Measurement Scale and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale were utilized to gather information. Discoveries uncover an inverse relationship between conduct and affiliation with the symptoms of mental disorders, anxiety and stress among the respondents. Results bolster the incorporation of religious dimensions in psychological wellness and mental well-being thought of young adults in Pakistan.