Medical semiotics in the 18th century: A theory of practice?

Medical semiotics in the 18th century was more than a premodern form of diagnosis. Its structure allowed for the combination of empirically proven rules of instruction with the theoretical knowledge of the new sciences, employing the relation between the sign and the signified.     

New Philosophies of Science in North America – Twenty Years Later

This survey of major developments in North American philosophy of science begins with the mid-1960s consolidation of the disciplinary synthesis of internalist history and philosophy of science (HPS) as a response to criticisms of logical empiricism. These developments are grouped for discussion under the following headings: historical metamethodologies, scientific realisms, philosophies of the special sciences, revivals of empiricism, cognitivist naturalisms, social epistemologies, feminist theories of science, studies of experiment and the disunity of science, and studies of science as practice and culture. A unifying theme of the survey is the relation between historical metamethodologists and scientific realists, which dominated philosophical work in the late 1970s. I argue that many of the alternative cognitive naturalisms, social epistemologies, and feminist theories that have been proposed can be understood as analogues to the differences between metamethodological theories of scientific rationality and realist accounts of successful reference to real causal processes. Recent work on experiment, scientific practice, and the culture of science may, however, challenge the underlying conception of the field according to which realism and historical rationalism (or their descendants) are the important alternatives available, and thus may take philosophy of science in new directions. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Positive contrast obtained in reacquisition following interpolation of nonreinforced or partially reinforced trials

Two experiments investigated the effects of shifting from either nonreinforcement or partial reinforcement (PRF) to continuous reinforcement conditions (CRF). In the first experiment, three groups of rats were given food reinforcement under CRF conditions in a runway followed by regular extinction trials (RE), extinction trials where Ss were delayed for 30 sec before entering the empty goal box (DE), or CRF trials where Ss were delayed for 30 sec before entering the baited goal box (DF). Then all Ss were run on the delayed reinforcement condition (DF). In the final delayed reinforcement condition, group DE ran significantly faster than group DF, reflecting positive contrast. In the second experiment, four groups of rats were trained in a runway to receive either 4% or 18% sucrose reinforcers under either PRF or CRF conditions. Then all Ss were transferred to a Skinner box and bar presses were continuously reinforced, with each S continuing to receive the same sucrose concentration as before. The former PRF Ss, regardless of the reinforcer, bar pressed at a significantly higher rate in the Skinner box than the former CRF Ss. The evidence seemed to favor the view that the effectiveness of a reinforcer is not an absolute, unchanging quantity but rather depends on the historical context in which the reinforcer occurs.     

What Religion Affords Grassroots NGOs: Frames,Networks, Modes of Action

The international relief and development sector has swelled in the last two decades thanks to American grassroots NGOs: groups that rely on volunteer labor and individual contributions, often on budgets of less than $25,000 a year. Most of these organizations reject the label of “faith‐based organization,” yet they find the symbolic and material resources of religion indispensable. Religion affords these NGOs three kinds of resources to meet their distinct organizational needs. First, it provides frames, or ways of thinking and speaking about relief and development work that imbue it with legitimacy. Next, religion offers networks that provide money, volunteers, and entrée into aid‐receiving communities. Finally, religion affords familiar modes of action that link the NGO, supporters, and local aid recipients. I support these claims with LDA topic modeling (a computerized method of text analysis), content analysis of websites, and in‐depth interviews with 43 informants.     

Examination of efficacious,efficient, and socially valid error‐correction procedures to teach sight words and prepositions to children with autism spectrum disorder

Prior research shows that learners have idiosyncratic responses to error‐correction procedures during instruction. Thus, assessments that identify error‐correction strategies to include in instruction can aid practitioners in selecting individualized, efficacious, and efficient interventions. The current investigation conducted an assessment to compare 5 error‐correction procedures that have been evaluated in the extant literature and are common in instructional practice for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Results showed that the assessment identified efficacious and efficient error‐correction procedures for all participants, and 1 procedure was efficient for 4 of the 5 participants. To examine the social validity of error‐correction procedures, participants selected among efficacious and efficient interventions in a concurrent‐chains assessment. We discuss the results in relation to prior research on error‐correction procedures and current instructional practices for learners with ASD.     

La recherche scientifique sur les prélèvements biologiques réalisés dans le cadre des autopsies et objets de scellés judiciaires. Nécessité d’une adaptation législative

Currently, it is legally impossible to conduct scientific research on tissue and organ samples taken from forensic autopsies. In fact, the law schedules the destruction of such samples at the end of the judicial investigation, and the common law rules governing cadaver research cannot be applied to the forensic context. However, nothing seems in itself to stand in the way of such research since, despite their specific nature, these samples from forensic autopsies could be subject, following legislative amendments, to common law relating to medical research on samples taken from deceased persons. But an essential legislative amendment will have the goal firstly to allow the Biomedicine Agency to become authorized to issue a research permit and secondly, to change the research conditions in terms of the non-opposition of the deceased to the said research. Such an amendment would be a true breakthrough because it would allow teams to continue to move forward calmly in research, and allow this research to be placed within a legal framework, which would promote international exchanges.     

Centering prayer’s effects on psycho-spiritual outcomes: a pilot outcome study

Centering prayer is a spiritual and religious form of meditation grounded in the history of Christian contemplative prayer. Despite its popularity, empirical research investigating centering prayer’s effects on psycho-spiritual outcomes is relative sparse. This pilot outcome study explored the effect of a centering prayer workshop on participants’ (N?=?9) depression, anxiety, stress, spiritual transcendence, religious crisis, faith development, and mindfulness. Several significant changes were noted over the course of the six-week study, including decreased anxiety and stress, and increased faith development and mindfulness. Interestingly, we noted that participants likely also experienced a spiritual or religious struggle that follows the established spiritual development paradigm called the Dark Night of the Soul. The study did not include a control group, and so did not account for effects related to history, maturation, or regression to the mean. Nevertheless, the initial results prove promising to develop more sophisticated research programmes that replicate the study’s findings.     

The intersubjectivity of spiritual experience in the art practice of people with histories of mental distress: a phenomenological study

The therapeutic outcomes gained through engaging with the art making process are well documented. Somewhat less probed are the auxiliary and sometimes enigmatic experiences of art making that impact on the sense of mental wellbeing; experiences which, by their nature, can be difficult to capture. This paper discusses such experiences, described by a group of art makers with histories of mental illness, as being spiritual in nature. A phenomenological approach using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) methodology was used, with Heideggerian concepts of ‘Dasein’ (There-being) and ‘Mitsein’ (With-being) informing an interpretation of the intersubjective. Such experiences were felt to be profound, and were often claimed to be accessible exclusively through an art practice that was sustained over a number of years of regular activity. The paper concludes by pointing out the difficulty in capturing evidence of sustained, non-clinical strategies for wellbeing such as those developed as an inherent part of the experiences reported here, due to their nuanced nature and the reluctance with which they may be narrated.     

Sources of anxiety among pre-service teachers on field placement experience

This study examined pre-service students’ perceptions of their sources of anxiety during field experience. A sample of 85 undergraduate education students participated in the study (females = 52.9%). The students completed a survey on their perceptions of sources of anxiety during teaching practice. The results suggest students experience anxiety in four domains, namely preparation and execution of lesson plans, evaluation of lessons, classroom management, and relationship with host school staff. Evaluation of lessons ranked high as a source of anxiety for student teachers on field placement, followed by preparation, classroom control and relationship with the host school staff, respectively. Seeming inconsistencies between university and school-based supervisors in lesson plan formats compounded the pre-service teachers field placement-related anxieties Appropriately targeted student support interventions can help allay the fears and anxiety of pre-service teachers during teaching practice.     

‘… you kind of frantically go from one thing to the next and there isn’t any time for thinking any more’: a reflection on the impact of organisational change on relatedness in multidisciplinary teams

This paper reflects on the relational impact on Clinical Psychologists of NHS organisational change in the context of cuts and reorganisation. The reflections illustrate one theme drawn from a study of eight Clinical Psychologists working within adult Community Mental Health Multi-Disciplinary Teams. The paper considers the impact of competition and change in healthcare on the ability to engage in reflective practice potentially affecting client care due to reduced joint-working, consistency and creativity. The paper considers how acts of kindness (compassion) within organisational contexts at all levels can facilitate relatedness, reflection and more human care. It concludes by considering how shifting from short-term planning evaluating efficiencies based on perceived financial value, to thinking more widely and long-term about relational value may be of benefit to clinicians, clients and the system as a whole.