THE OMEGA POINT AS ESCHATON: ANSWERS TO PANNENBERG'S QUESTIONS FOR SCIENTISTS

Abstract. I present an outline of the Omega Point theory, which is a model for an omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, evolving, personal God who is both transcendent to spacetime and immanent in it, and who exists necessarily. The model is a falsifiable physical theory, deriving its key concepts not from any religious tradition but from modern physical cosmology and computer science; from scientific materialism rather than revelation. Four testable predictions of the model are given. The theory assumes that thinking is a purely physical process of the brain, and that personality dies with the brain. Nevertheless, I show that the Omega Point theory suggests a future universal resurrection of the dead very similar to the one predicted in the Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition. The notions of "grace" and the "beatific vision" appear naturally in the model.     

Shaftesbury on Liberty and Self-Mastery

ABSTRACT

The aim of this paper is to show that Shaftesbury’s thinking about liberty is best understood in terms of self-mastery. To examine his understanding of liberty, I turn to a painting that he commissioned on the ancient theme of the choice of Hercules and the notes that he prepared for the artist. Questions of human choice are also present in the so-called story of an amour, which addresses the difficulties of controlling human passions. Jaffro distinguishes three notions of self-control that are present in the story of an amour. Although I agree with many aspects of Jaffro’s interpretation, I question his conclusion that self-control in the Stoic sense is best reserved for ‘moral heroes.’ I propose an alternative developmental interpretation, according to which all human beings are on an intellectual journey aimed at personal and moral improvement. My interpretation takes seriously that for Shaftesbury philosophy is meant to be practical and help improve our lives. I end by arguing that rather than trying to situate Shaftesbury’s concept of liberty within debates among compatibilists and incompatibilists it is more promising to understand it in terms of self-mastery and thus regard it as a version of positive liberty.     

云南4个民族20年跨文化心理研究——议青少年品格的发展

调查者于1980年惊奇地发现西双版纳的克木人、基诺族、哈尼族和拉祜族的青少年品德与个性非常良好,调查者关注的是在现代化的影响下,这些品德个性的变化。这项研究的目的是探索青少年品德与个性发展的规律,同时,这对跨文化心理的研究也有重要意义。研究采用不同的研究方法,如访谈、个别接触、活动分析,甚至为了调查而几个月与青少年住在一起。2002年,研究表明,青少年的品德与个性已有很大变化,他们积极、自信、乐观和有竞争意识,他们的品格至今仍保持良好,犯罪率低,民族青少年的社会化在这变化与发展中起重要作用。     

相信智力不变是否也认为个性难改?——个人属性内隐观的普遍性

动机理论的认知心理学派认为 ,学生对智力、个性等个人属性 ,是否先天固有不可改变的主观想法 ,将直接影响他们的学习和行为表现。其影响的范围 ,将取决于这类主观想法是否具有普遍性。比如 ,有些学生认为智力是父母遗传的 ,很难改变 ,这些学生会否同样认为个性、道德等 ,也是父母遗传 ,亦难改变 ?该研究希望了解是否有一主导思想 ,影响学生对智力、个性等不同个人属性 ,是否先天不变的整体看法。被试为中国长春市高中一年级的学生 ,总计 5 5 5人。研究采用问卷调查 ,通过比较多个结构方程模型 ,结果较倾向支持学生对个性、智力等五项个人属性有共通一致的内隐观     

The Effects of Personal Need for Structure and Occupational Identity in the Role Stress Process

Abstract

The authors formed and tested a model of the antecedents, consequences, and possible moderators or mediators of the role ambiguity construct in a new occupational group of nurses (N = 1,240) in Finland. They hypothesized that (a) job characteristics (control and feedback) would be associated with role ambiguity and (b) this association, in turn, would be moderated by personal need for structure. The authors hypothesized that role ambiguity would affect occupational strain partially by the strength of occupational identity. They tested these models by using hierarchical regression analysis and structural equation modeling (LISREL 8; K. G. Jöreskog & D. Sörbom, 1993). Both hypotheses were supported.     

Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention: The Mediating Effects of Personal Sacrifice and Job Fit

ABSTRACT

This study examines the mediating role of job fit on the relationship between perceived supervisor support (PSS) and perceived organizational support (POS), and the mediating role of personal sacrifice on the relationship between POS and turnover intention. We use structural equation modeling (SEM) with a data set consisting of a sample of 346 individuals in a manufacturing firm to test our proposed model of PSS, POS, and turnover intention. Consistent with prior literature, our hypothesized model confirms that PSS is a predictor of POS and that POS is a predictor of turnover intention. By testing two additional competing and theoretically derived nested models, our findings indicate that job fit partially mediates the relationship between PSS and POS, and that personal sacrifice partially mediates the relationship between POS and turnover intention. Our study is among the first to examine job fit and personal sacrifice as mediators within the POS-turnover intention model.     

Developing Intuitions about How Personal and Social Properties Are Linked to the Brain and the Body

This study investigated the development of intuitions about which properties are associated with the brain and which are associated with the body. A sample of 60 children aged 6, 8, and 10 years, as well a sample of 20 adults, were told about a brain transplant between two individuals and were asked about where certain properties resided after the transplant. Adults and older children construed the characteristics associated with fine-motor behaviour, culpability, social contract and best friendships as transferring with the brain. Characteristics associated with gross-motor behaviour, physical/biological properties, ownership and familial relationships were more likely to be seen as remaining with the body. Domain-based explanations for this pattern of results are discussed.     

Is Sexism a Gender Issue? A Motivated Social Cognition Perspective on Men's and Women's Sexist Attitudes Toward Own and Other Gender

The present research investigated the antecedents of ambivalent sexism (i.e., hostile and benevolent forms) in both men and women toward own and other gender. In two heterogeneous adult samples (Study 1: N = 179 and Study 2: N = 222), it was revealed that gender itself was only a minor predictor of sexist attitudes compared with the substantial impact of individual differences in general motivated cognition (i.e., need for closure). Analyses further showed that the relationship between need for closure and sexism was mediated by social attitudes (i.e., right‐wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation), which were differently related to benevolent and hostile forms of sexism. In the discussion, it is argued that sexism primarily stems from individual differences in motivated cognitive style, which relates to peoples' perspective on the social world, rather than from group differences between men and women. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Risk perception,illusory superiority and personal responsibility during COVID-19: An experimental study of attitudes to staying home

Little is known about how different government communication strategies may systematically affect people’s attitudes to staying home or going out during the COVID-19 pandemic, nor how people perceive and process the risk of viral transmission in different scenarios. In this study, we report results from two experiments that examine the degree to which people’s attitudes regarding the permissibility of leaving one’s home are (1) sensitive to different levels of risk of viral transmission in specific scenarios, (2) sensitive to communication framings that are either imperative or that emphasize personal responsibility, or (3) creating ‘loopholes’ for themselves, enabling a more permissive approach to their own compliance. We find that the level of risk influences attitudes to going out, and that participants report less permissive attitudes to going out when prompted with messages framed in imperative terms, rather than messages emphasizing personal responsibility; for self-loopholes, we find no evidence that participants’ attitudes towards going out in specific scenarios are more permissive for themselves than for others. However, participants report they are more rigorous in staying home than others, which may cause moral licensing. Additionally, we find that age is negatively associated with permissive attitudes, and that male participants are more permissive to going out. Thus, during phases where it is important to promote staying home for all scenarios, including those perceived to be low-risk, imperative communication may be best suited to increase compliance.     

Residential mobility or mobile residentiality? Exploring the effects of place stability and variety in consumer psychology

Establishing a new residence is a life-changing event with a significant impact on people's psychology and behavior. However, digitalization, the sharing economy, and flexible working conditions have made it easier for people to move, and some people have even abandoned the concept of a permanent residence and adopted a new lifestyle—“mobile residentiality”—in which they seek residence only rarely and temporarily. This article explores the effects of place stability and variety on the consumer's self and identity, social relationships and networks, and personal and societal well-being.