Fostering the Virtues of Inquiry

This paper examines what constitute the virtues of argumentation or critical thinking and how these virtues might be developed. We argue first that the notion of virtue is more appropriate for characterizing this aspect than the notion of dispositions commonly employed by critical thinking theorists and, further, that it is more illuminating to speak of the virtues of inquiry rather than of argumentation. Our central argument is that learning to think critically is a matter of learning to participate knowledgeably and competently in the practice of inquiry in its various forms and contexts. Acquiring the virtues of inquiry arises through getting on the inside of the practice and coming to appreciate the goods inherent in the practice.     

The Viability of Structural Family Therapy in the Twenty-first Century: An Analysis of Key Indicators

This paper examines the degree to which structural family therapy has adapted effectively to client families and professional demands of the twenty-first century. A review of the current professional literature was conducted to assess the structural model’s continued clinical relevance, how the model has changed in adapting to contemporary social and professional contexts, and whether or not the integrity of the model’s core proposition has been eroded or confounded as a result of adaptive changes.     

Sociopolitical Enactments as Arenas of Mutual Vulnerability: Psychotherapeutic Experiences During the War Between Israel and Gaza in the Summer of 2014

The understanding that sociopolitical, cultural, and socioeconomic spheres always play a part in psychotherapeutic endeavors forms a central aspect of the relational premise. Nevertheless, the literature rarely relates to psychotherapeutic interactions in which patient–therapist exchanges involve sociopolitical disputes or discussions. The main thesis of this paper suggests that the sociopolitical context in which the psychotherapeutic process takes place tend to serve as an arena of mutual vulnerability (Aron & Starr, 2013) between patient and therapist out of which Sociopolitical Enactments characterized by a curative potential tend to emerge, especially during times of war and horror. Two very different Sociopolitical Enactments that took place with patients in Tel Aviv during the war between Israel and Gaza in August 2014 are presented, followed by a literature review and conceptualization of Sociopolitical Enactments as arenas of mutual vulnerability that explicitly or implicitly facilitate working through processes of traumatic self-states, challenge binaries, and open up ways for inquiring power relations in the therapeutic alliance and beyond.     

Optimal Distinctiveness and Identification with the Furry Fandom

We examined perceptions of optimal distinctiveness in the furry fandom and the relationship between this perception and identification with the furry fandom. Self-identified furries (N?=?2998) completed measures of optimal distinctiveness that included felt inclusion/belongingness with the fandom and a measure of perceived group distinctiveness from other groups. Participants also completed a measure of identification with the fandom. Results revealed an interaction between felt belongingness and perceived distinctiveness that predicted fandom identification. Furries who felt both a high degree of belonging/inclusion to the fandom and who perceived the group to be distinct from other fandoms expressed the highest level of identification with the fandom. The results support prior optimal distinctiveness research and demonstrate that furries’ motivation to feel psychologically connected to the furry fandom is driven, in part, by the need for optimal distinctiveness.     

A Rural Youth Consumer Perspective of Technology to Enhance Face-to-Face Mental Health Services

The imbalance between need and available resources with respect to youth mental ill-health has encouraged a growing body of literature around technology to support existing face-to-face services. However, this literature has not adequately investigated the perspective of youth as consumers and no data exists on the views of rural youth. In response to this gap, in-depth qualitative study investigated the perspectives of rural youth who were currently seeking help at a mental health service. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with a clinical sample of 10 young people (5 female), aged 16–22 years. Participants were recruited from two different mental health services located in two rural South Australian regions. Data were analysed via inductive thematic analysis. Results highlighted a young person’s desire for self-determination around their health and help-seeking within a service current environment that systematically subverts it. Overall, participants had long and complex histories of help-seeking associated with a history of isolation, disadvantage and trauma. A strong need for personal connection in the context of help-seeking was evident. Preferences for, and actual use of, the internet for mental healthcare existed on a continuum from no current (or future desire) to use technologies through to active interest in, and current use of, technologies as an adjunct to face-to-face care. Limited financial and infrastructural resourcing made it more difficult to access help online. Understanding and actively seeking out these views in design and implementation of technologies is in line with the current shift toward more consumer-focused and inclusive service design and delivery.     

Putting concepts into context

At first glance, conceptual representations (e.g., our internal notion of the object “lemon”) seem static; we have the impression that there is something that the concept lemon “means” (a sour, yellow, football-shaped citrus fruit) and that this meaning does not vary. Research in semantic memory has traditionally taken this “static” perspective. Consequently, only effects demonstrated across a variety of contexts have typically been considered informative regarding the architecture of the semantic system. In this review, we take the opposite approach: We review instances of context-dependent conceptual activation at many different timescales—from long-term experience, to recent experience, to the current task goals, to the unfolding process of conceptual activation itself—and suggest that the pervasive effects of context across all of these timescales indicate that rather than being static, conceptual representations are constantly changing and are inextricably linked to their contexts.     

Are you for real? Exploring language use and unexpected process questions within the detection of identity deception

The current study was to test whether reality monitoring and language use could distinguish identity liars from truth tellers when answering outcome questions and unexpected process questions. Truth tellers (n = 30) and liars (n = 30) discussed their identity in a recruitment interview. No differences emerged between truth tellers and liars in the details they provided. In terms of language use, liars used more positive language than truth tellers, whereas truth tellers used more cognitive process words than liars. However, neither were more pronounced when asking process questions. Overall, process questions elicited more cognitive process and cause words than outcome questions. Therefore, process questions may be able to contribute to the cognitive load approach. The findings suggest that reality monitoring may not be diagnostic when applied to identity deception. We discuss the language use differences in relation to impression management theory.     

Exploring the Relationship Between Self-Isolation and Distress Among People with Gastrointestinal Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings - This study aimed to explore the association between perceived isolation and symptoms of distress in people with GI disorders at the time of the...     

A cure for worry? Kierkegaardian faith and the insecurity of human existence

In his discourses on ??the lily of the field and the bird of the air,?? Kierkegaard presents faith as the best possible response to our precarious and uncertain condition, and as the ideal way to cope with the insecurities and concerns that his readers will recognize as common features of human existence. Reading these discourses together, we are introduced to the portrait of a potential believer who, like the ??divinely appointed teachers????the lily and the bird??succeeds in leading a life that is full of care, but free of worry. Such a portrait, we claim, echoes Kierkegaard??s portrait of the knight of faith in Fear and Trembling. In this essay we suggest that faith, as characterized in the ??lily and bird?? discourses, is a kind of existential trust that would allow us to overcome worry, while remaining wholeheartedly engaged in the finite realm of our cares and concerns. We claim that Kierkegaard??s goal in these discourses is not to belittle our earthly cares, but to invite us to develop a modified attitude toward all that we are susceptible to worry about.