Becoming a father: a psychoanalytic perspective on the forgotten parent

This article has presented a psychoanalytic perspective on the process of becoming a father. It began with a discussion of the neglect of the father during pregnancy and briefly considered evidence as to the unique contributions made by fathers of the newborn. Nine psychodynamically based wishes emerging throughout the developmental process were next proposed to embody the male's motivation to become a father. The final section examined seven specific phases of expectant fatherhood, from getting ready through parturition.     

Extending Models of Prosocial Behavior to Explain University Alumni Contributions1

Survey data merged with contribution records from a development office database provided a basis for understanding alumni support for a university. The survey randomly sampled alumni of a state university school of management who had graduated between 1980 and 1988. Subjects filled out mail questionnaires measuring social psychological constructs from the literature on prosocial behavior. The determinants of obligation to donate included perceived efficacy, perceived need, reciprocity, and individual attachment to the university. Obligation and other constructs explained the number of donations recorded in the development office database over 6 years. The model also predicted intentions to support the university by working for an alumni association or attending reunions. This model of alumni donation leads to recommendations for designing university fund-raising communications.     

Shadowing in bisensory memory

Shadowing (vocalization-at-presentation) was applied to a bisensory situation where different messages were simultaneously presented to the visual and auditory modalities. Three groups of subjects were employed: Group I shadowed the visual modality; Group II shadowed the auditory modality; Group III was a control, shadowing neither modality. Shadowing in the present experiment facilitated recall of the shadowed modality, particularly the visual modality, which is usually inferior to auditory recall.

It also became apparent that visual recall in an ordinary bisensory situation was minimal if not near an incidental level and that a true bisensory situation with equal division of attention between the two modalities employed does not exist.     

Bernard Williams on the Human Prejudice

In “The Human Prejudice”, Bernard Williams discusses our treating human beings differently in our moral thinking from the ways we treat other creatures. He criticises the idea that this expresses a prejudice, speciesism, analogous to racism and sexism. His essay has been misunderstood by some of its critics, including Peter Singer and Jeff McMahan. My essay sets out several questions one may have about Williams's essay, and explains how they can be answered. I make clear the connections between “The Human Prejudice” and some main elements in Williams's thinking about ethics, including his criticisms of moral theory.