Politicised religion and the religionisation of politics

The dilemmas of dealing with difference are currently at the heart of our society. Among the anomalies of our age is the survival and even flourishing of complex systems of values based on religion. However, we see that mosques flourish, ethnic associations with religious undertones multiply and religion is present in the public sphere through conflicts about religion or persons believed to be religious. Islam is a much discussed topic. The line between private and public religion is as thin as ever, and I would argue so is the line between religion and politics. This can be observed at two levels. First, the invocation of religion in the political discourse, leading to the politicisation of religion and second, as the influence religion has on political life, the religionisation of politics.     

Measurement invariance of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) across Bulgarian,Dutch and Greek samples

The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM; Phinney, 1992) is a widely used instrument to quantify the way people think, feel, and behave regarding their ethnic origin. This instrument is commonly used to compare groups of people from different ethnic and/or cultural backgrounds. However, in order for these comparisons to be accurate, measurement invariance between groups needs to be tested and this is what has been done in the current study. First, confirmatory factor analyses were conducted separately for data sets with Bulgarian, Dutch, and Greek adolescents. Second, configural and scalar invariance were tested. Finally, comparisons between Bulgarian, Dutch, and Greek adolescents were made on their scores on MEIM.     

Double bind: An essay on counselling training

Gerard Egan's problem management and opportunity development model is currently in use training prospective counsellors, social workers, nurses, managers, etc. the skills of helping. This essay attempts, experimentally, to depict in three different ways Egan's work and its relationship to operations of power: (1) from a relatively uncritical stance, (2) from a personal experience stance, and (3) from a social constructionist perspective. The whole piece, taken together, attempts to tackle the issue of theory as practice — to ground/unmask/make present the ways in which we are socialised into a profession and the problems inherent in that process. Two themes run through the work: the double bind created for a student on a counselling course which makes some claim to train around Rogers' core conditions, and which is also assessed/accredited; the connections between theory, training and practices.     

“亚当·斯密问题”的逻辑张力

“亚当·斯密问题”是指斯密的《国富论》与《道德情操论》之间存在着对立或不一致的问题,最初由十九世纪中叶的德国历史学派所提出。此后,随着现实与理论的发展,出现了不同的看法。学者们普遍认为,斯密的两大著作之间、经济学与伦理学之间存在着对立或者不存在对立,而是相互一致的。这些看法都具有各自的积极合理的内容,但缺乏辩证的观点,而没有看到“斯密问题”自身的逻辑张力,也就是说,“斯密问题”所指涉的是现实的经济与伦理之间及作为其理论表现的经济学与伦理学之间的关系。“斯密问题”所含的这些关系呈现出了一个动态的、由肯定到否定再到否定之否定的辩证过程。     

论中国入世后的道德应对

中国入世给道德嬗变提供了现实基础和动力,本从分析经济全球化两种道德话语入手,提出中国入世后的道德建设主要应着力于继续高举爱国主义伟大旗帜,建立起经济活动中的“诚信”机制和寻求“绿色壁垒”的伦理跨跃。     

由知识对伦理的辩护到伦理对知识的批判——论知识的伦理价值

古希腊哲学最早将美德与知识相联系,“真”的达到就是“善”的实现,人的合目的性是建立在其合规律性的基础上的,伦理学从此有了独立存在的根据。近代知识论提出“知识就是力量”,将获得知识与获得幸福视为同一,知识(理性)是建立伦理的绝对普遍的坚实基础,人的尊严和主体性成为伦理追求的最大价值。20世纪以来,由于科学知识的异化,“知识与人的幸福和命运问题”凸现在当代伦理学面前。为知识找寻一条“应然”的光明之路,不仅是伦理学的理论使命,也是人类自身的神圣使命。     

马克思思想与后现代性

马克思与后现代都致力于实现从实体主义和本质主义的思维方式向实践的和关系性的思维方式的转变,但马克思思想中蕴含的历史自我意识则与后现代主义的历史相对主义形成了一种批判性的对话。后现代性语境下的马克思思想提醒我们反思当代西方思想的人类性价值以及当代精神的过渡性状况。作为马克思核心论阈的社会与社会化的人给后现代哲学所关注的核心问题主体间性提供了一种有效的反省与治疗价值。     

Evidence for differentiation of right hemisphere visual-perceptual functions

Performance on tasks sensitive to right hemisphere dysfunction (facial discrimination and perceptual closure) are reported in eight patients with right hemisphere lesions. Patients demonstrated an apparent double dissociation of performance on the two measures. Site-by-task specificity for the closure task was strongly suggested. Implications for right hemisphere organization and underlying psychological processes are considered.     

The functional theory of human values: From intentional overlook to first acknowledgement—A reply to Schwartz (2014)

Schwartz has been aware of the Functional Theory of Values for over a decade. For the first time, Schwartz (2014) acknowledges the Gouveia theory and provides considerations based on the Gouveia, Milfont, and Guerra (2014) study. In this reply we present a historical overview of the development of the theory, noting unwarranted barriers to the publication of our work. We then address his comments, focusing on the theoretical innovations of the theory and remarking that recent refinements of Schwartz’s model were already evident in the Gouveia theory. Hypotheses tested in Gouveia et al. (2014) are also re-tested and supported with European Social Survey data using the Schwartz PVQ-21. We conclude by summarizing current projects that offer further opportunities to continue the theoretical debate.