Polarization or bridging? Responses of Muslim and non-Muslim organizations to criticism of Islam in the Netherlands

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, Islam has been a target of harsh criticism in the Netherlands, as in many other European countries. This article examines and analyses the way leaders of 10 Muslim and 11 non-Muslim organizations responded to criticism of Islam in the Netherlands in the period 2004–10. The focus is on the response to five episodes: the film Submission (2004), the Danish Cartoon Affair (2005–2006), the film Fitna (2008), the Internet film An interview with Mohammed (2008) and the Swiss ban on the building of minarets (2009). Several specific patterns of response are noted. The responses of Muslim organizations vary from resignation to defensive to offensive, and those of non-Muslim organizations from supportive to critical. These patterns are strongly linked to the organizations' leaders' framing of the situation, including the incidents themselves and other organizations, and their own mission and strategy, as well as, in the case of Fitna, to the policy of the Dutch government. All the organizations researched reject extreme forms of polarization and the mainstream Christian, Islamic and Jewish organizations in particular have strengthened their mutual ties in response to expressions of criticism of Islam.     

The Simon Effect With Wheel-Rotation Responses

The authors examined clockwise and counterclockwise wheel-rotation responses to high- or low-pitched tones presented in participants' (N = 96, Experiment 1; N = 48, Experiment 2; N = 48, Experiment 3) left and right ears. In Experiment 1, a Simon effect (fastest responding when tone location and direction of wheel turn corresponded) was obtained when participants' hands were at the top or middle of the wheel but not at the bottom. With line bottom hand placement, a Simon effect was induced by instructions emphasizing hand movements but not by instructions emphasizing wheel movements (Experiment 2), and by a visual cursor controlled by the wheel but not one triggered by the response (Experiment 3). The results of the experiments showed that the nature of the task and the instructed action goal influence the direction of the Simon effect.     

The effects of initial movement dynamics on human responses to postural perturbations

Falls are a major cause of injury, and often occur while turning, reaching, or bending. Yet, we have little understanding of how an ongoing feet-in place activity at the onset of imbalance, and its associated cognitive and biomechanical demands, influence our ability to recover balance. In the current study, we used an ankle-rocking paradigm to determine how the nature of the baseline task influences the balance recovery response to a backward support surface translation. Fourteen participants were instructed to “recover balance without stepping” and were perturbed at vertical while standing quietly (“S”), while ankle rocking and moving forward (“A_f”), or while ankle rocking and moving backward (“A_b”). The results showed that changes in rocking velocity at the time of the perturbation elicited changes in the incidence of stepping, magnitude of trunk angular displacements (p < .01), and the onset latencies of distal muscles (gastrocnemius and soleus, both p < .01) used to recover balance. In addition, plots of onset latencies across all muscles showed that onset latencies appeared to occur earlier in many muscles when participants held a static position compared to when they performed a dynamic task at the onset of the perturbation. The results suggest that muscle activities used to recover balance are tailored to the nature of the perturbation and the ongoing task, and that onset latencies are later when participants are performing a dynamic as opposed to static task at the time of a perturbation. These findings support previous research suggesting that automatic postural responses are highly adaptable to environmental, situational, and task demands.     

Coping Responses and Emotional Distress in Fathers of Children with Special Needs and “Redreaming” as a Creative Intervention

Abstract

Parents dream that their children will have every benefit possible to survive and thrive in the world. When their children have special needs, these dreams are challenged. Parents must adjust to the needs of their child and to the loss of this aspect of their dream. Common challenges and considerations when working with fathers of children with special needs are presented. “Redreaming,” an intervention to facilitate positive reappraisal, and creative approaches are also presented.     

Contextual effects on prejudiced attitudes: When the presence of others leads to more egalitarian responses

In the present paper, we tested the hypothesis that the physical presence of other ingroup members may ameliorate Whites’ spontaneous affective responses toward Blacks. Results of Study 1 demonstrated that IAT-assessed attitudes toward Blacks were indeed less negative when participants were tested in small groups rather than individually. Study 2 shed light on the underlying processes by demonstrating that respondents at the presence of others displayed increased accessibility to egalitarian-related concepts after Black primes, as compared to respondents tested individually. Overall, results point to the wide malleability of spontaneous affective responses and to the possibility that contextual factors, like the presence of other individuals, might automatically activate egalitarians goals. Results are discussed in relation to current models of automatic intergroup bias and preconscious control over it.     

Psychometric evaluation and further validation of the Hagedoorn et al. modified EVLN measure

The aim of the present study was to evaluate and further validate a modified Exit, Voice, Loyalty and Neglect (EVLN) instrument (Hagedoorn, Van Yperen, Van de Vliert & Buunk, 1999), in a Swedish sample (n= 792). To test the underlying scaling assumptions, the convergent and divergent validity, a multitrait/multi-item analysis was conducted and factor analyses were used to evaluate the factor structure. The concurrent validity was tested by using the modified EVLN instrument as predictor and three different forms of justice as criteria in the analysis. The criterion-related validity was tested and an association between exit behavioral response and actual exit behavior was found (predictive validity). The results showed that the instrument may be considered to be a valid measure with the exception of the aggressive voice scale.     

幼儿自我调控的中日比较

实验以中日77名大班幼儿为被试(其中中国幼儿40名,日本幼儿37名).在实验中,根据幼儿园的日常生活,设置幼儿与同伴间矛盾场面(抑制场面和主张场面)的测试问题,采用逐张呈现图片并一对一询问的方式进行实验.根据幼儿在测试问题上的情绪反应与行为反应数据,比较中日幼儿自我调控的特征,结果表明:(1)在与同伴间的矛盾场面中,中国幼儿发生情绪反应的人数比率显著小于日本幼儿;(2)在表现出情绪反应的幼儿中,不论在抑制场面还是在主张场面,日本幼儿都比中国幼儿有更多的"自我抑制"或"自我抑制"倾向,而中国幼儿比日本幼儿出现了更多的"依赖教师"和"冲动行为"倾向;(3)中国幼儿的行为反应因情绪反应强度的变化表现出了差异,而日本幼儿的行为反应没有随着情绪反应强度的不同表现出差异.     

The Passion to Heal: A Theological Pastoral Approach to HIV/AIDS

Abstract. The global pandemic of HIV/AIDS is the most significant challenge of our time. The ongoing conversation between religion and science comes to a critical juncture in this pandemic. The global community has not yet found a vaccine or cure for this virulent virus, which will likely claim five million more lives in the coming year. The global statistics challenge even the most sophisticated imagination, with projections in the tens of millions of people dead, orphaned children, and many more living in various stages of incapacitation or diminished lives. There is a common prophetic religious imperative among Western faith communities that urgently requires both science and religion to respond. Both disciplines define their scope and purpose as universal, and the global pandemic provides a significant challenge to that universal claim. Regardless of the many differences among the nations and peoples challenged by this pandemic, there is a common moral foundation to which the Western religious and scientific traditions must respond. Religion and science cannot deny their respective social responsibilities by claiming the role of neutral bystander. There are several critical ethical choices to be made in response to the pandemic, and the disciplines of religion and science are critical in formulating those choices.     

短声强度为95dB时猫的两耳听现象

研究短声强度为95dB时猫的两耳听现象,探讨两耳干涉作用和交叉听力在听觉脑干电反应(ABR)上的表达。以ABR为检测指标,观察和比较耳蜗破坏前后对侧耳负荷75dB SWN时95dB短声诱发的ABR各波振幅的变化。结果：(1)耳蜗破坏前对侧耳负荷的75dB SWN可使95dB短声诱发的ABR之PⅢ、PⅣ波振幅增大(P＜0．01)。(2)耳蜗破坏后对侧耳负荷的75dB SWN对95dB短声诱发的ABR各波振幅无影响(P＞0．05)。(3)耳蜗破坏前对侧耳负荷75dB SWN时95dB短声诱发的ABR之PⅣ波振幅比耳蜗破坏后95dB短声诱发的ABR之PⅣ减小(P＜0．05)。结论：短声强度为95dB时,交叉听力现象在ABR之PⅢ、PⅣ波上均有表达,与75dB5WN产生的两耳干涉作用仅在ABR之PⅣ波有表达。     

A marginal maximum likelihood method for the vector threshold model to analyze dichotomous choice data

Abstract: At least two types of models, the vector model and the unfolding model can be used for the analysis of dichotomous choice data taken from, for example, the pick any/ n method. The previous vector threshold models have a difficulty with estimation of the nuisance parameters such as the individual vectors and thresholds. This paper proposes a new probabilistic vector threshold model, where, unlike the former vector models, the angle that defines an individual vector is a random variable, and where the marginal maximum likelihood estimation method using the expectation-maximization algorithm is adopted to avoid incidental parameters. The paper also attempts to discuss which of the two models is more appropriate to account for dichotomous choice data. Two sets of dichotomous choice data are analyzed by the model.