Heartless Bimbo or Subversive Role Model?: A Narrative (Self) Critical Reading of the Character of Esther

Abstract :  She has been described as weak, beautiful but brainless, and "the scab undermining the impact of a striking worker's sacrifice." This article engages such opinions, but takes a different view of the character of Esther. It is a narrative critical reading that is nuanced with 'realistic empathy', from the perspective of someone whose life story has much in common with Esther's tale. Given away as a child by my biological parents in a society that preferred boys, like Esther, I was adopted by a single parent and raised in a strongly patriarchal society. I am now an Asian immigrant in New Zealand, a predominantly Western society, while Esther was a diasporic Jew in Persia. ¹     

Theory of Mind and Sensitivity to Teacher and Peer Criticism Among Japanese Children

This study investigated sensitivity to teacher and peer criticism among 89 Japanese 6‐year‐olds and examined the connection between sensitivity to criticism and first‐order and second‐order theory of mind separately. Participants completed a common test battery that included tasks assessing sensitivity to criticism (teacher or peer condition), the Picture Vocabulary Test—Revised, and theory of mind tasks. The results showed that the children with better understanding of second‐order mental states rated their ability negatively after teacher criticism, but they were motivated to keep trying. This phenomenon was found under only the teacher condition, and peer criticism did not significantly affect children's response, irrespective of theory‐of‐mind level. Cognitive and social factors that may have contributed to the children's responses to criticism are discussed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cultural variation in the motivational standards of self-enhancement and self-criticism among bicultural Asian American and Anglo American students

Recent work on biculturalism has made theoretical and methodological inroads into our understanding of the relation of cultural processes with psychological functioning. Through the use of cultural priming methodologies, investigators have demonstrated that biculturals, or individuals who have experienced and identify with more than one culture, can switch between various "cultural frames of reference" in response to corresponding social cues (Hong, Morris, Chiu, & Benet-Martinez, 2000). Drawing on this work on the cognitive implications of biculturalism, the purpose of the present study was to examine the assumption that independent and interdependent self-construals are associated with the motivational standards of self-enhancement and self-criticism, respectively. More specifically, the effects of differential primes of self on ratings of self-enhancement were investigated in a sample of bicultural Asian American (N = 42) and Anglo American (N = 60) college students; overall, more similarities than differences were noted between the two groups. It was hypothesized that Anglo American students would display marked tendencies toward self-enhancement. However, this hypothesis was not supported. Nevertheless, consistent prime effects were observed for a selected number of ratings related to academic virtues, with those who received an independent-self prime often exhibiting greater self-enhancing tendencies than those who received an interdependent-self prime. For example, participants in the independent-self condition reported on average significantly higher ratings for self-discipline and initiative, as well as the degree to which they perceived themselves to be hard working. Implications for the work on self-representations, motivation, and acculturation are discussed.     

The role of personality in defeat: a revised social rank model

This study sought to test the role of personality within the social rank theory of depression. Specifically, self‐criticism was hypothesised to be a risk factor for mechanisms underlying involuntary subordination, while self‐efficacy was hypothesised to have a protective function. Involuntary subordination has been implicated as an underlying cause of depression and it was therefore important to determine the personality variables and other intrapsychic mechanisms that lead to this condition. The sample consisted of 115 participants (average age of 20.2 years) who were involved in athletic competition. Participants were evaluated at baseline for personality and social rank variables and for mood immediately before and after a competitive match. Two models were tested: the first model showed that self‐criticism and neuroticism predicted a heightened perception of defeat following a loss. Self‐criticism also predicted an inability to accept defeat which was associated with a latent variable interpreted as involuntary subordination. The second model demonstrated that self‐efficacy was associated with a more adaptive response to defeat, being negatively related to the perception of defeat. Both models proved to be viable and suggest that different personality styles confer specific vulnerabilities to involuntary subordination in the context of defeating events. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

程颢易学思想管见

对于程颢易学思想,学界述及较少,本文仅从"生生之易即为道"、"天人一也"、"只心便是天"、"形上形下之辩"等方面入手展开讨论.程颢以易为道,认为道的内容即是生生,生生之易为道体,为天理.从具有普适性的道、天理出发,程颢提出了"天人一也,更不分别"的思想.在天人关系中,程颢彰显了人的价值意蕴,认为"无人则无以见天地","人为天地心","只心便是天".同时,以道、天理为基础,在道器关系上,程颢阐述了道器的清晰区分和真正关联,并更加重视道器的圆融为一.     

What to do? Upgrade!

The contents of what we transmit in colleges and universities as philosophic traditions need upgrading. But so do the methods of transmission.     

Self‐criticism and self‐reassurance as mediators between mental health attitudes and symptoms: Attitudes toward mental health problems in Japanese workers

Japanese workers suffer high rates of mental health symptoms, recognised recently by the Japanese government, which has enacted workplace well‐being initiatives. One reason for poor mental health concerns negative attitudes about mental health problems such as shame, which may be mediated by self‐reassurance and self‐criticism. This study aimed to evaluate shame‐based attitudes toward mental health problems and explore the relationship between mental health attitudes, self‐criticism, self‐reassurance, and mental health symptoms. Japanese workers (n = 131) completed three measures: attitudes toward mental health problems, mental health symptoms, and self‐criticism/reassurance. A high proportion of workers reported negative attitudes about mental health problems. There were strong relationships between mental health attitudes, mental health symptoms, self‐criticism, and self‐reassurance. Path analyses revealed that the total and indirect effects (through self‐criticism and self‐reassurance) of mental health attitudes on mental health were larger than the direct effect alone. Hated‐self and family reflected shame were identified as predictors for mental health symptoms. The findings suggest the importance of self‐criticism and self‐reassurance in mental health and mental health attitudes. Implications for help‐seeking behaviours also are discussed. Interventions aimed at reducing self‐criticism and enhancing self‐reassurance are recommended to improve mental health attitudes and increase help‐seeking in Japanese workers.     

A tale of two audiences: Narcissism,failure reactivity,and perceived criticism from the self and others as internalized audiences

We proposed a conceptual model which postulates that anticipating greater destructive (vs. constructive) criticism from the self and others partially explains the differentiation of narcissists’ failure reactivity as a function of narcissism subtype. Participants simulated failure, rated the likelihood of experiencing destructive and constructive criticism from social audiences (self and others [important other, unimportant other, social world]), and indicated failure reactivity (indexed as change in negative affect) following failure. Results generally supported our model. Vulnerable (grandiose) narcissism related to enhanced (reduced) failure reactivity and greater (less) anticipated destructive vs. constructive criticism from audiences, particularly the self. Controlling for perceived criticism from audiences attenuated relations between each narcissism subtype and failure reactivity, supporting the theoretical merit of our model.     

Prima Scriptura: Saving Sola Scriptura from Itself

Taking bearings from Walter Altmann's attempt to retrieve a proper understanding of sola Scriptura, this essay argues that the Latin ablative, “by way of the Scripture alone,” presupposes a nominative solus Christus whom the Spirit proclaims in turn “by way of the Scripture alone”—a dialectic of Word and Spirit, a virtuous circle. It clarifies this proper understanding of sola Scriptura over against modern biblicism, crude and sophisticated, by teasing out its implications for dogmatics as a critical discipline.     

Racial Differences in Attributions,Perceived Criticism,and Upset: A Study With Black and White Community Participants

The primary aims of the current investigation were (a) to examine the relationships among attributions, perceived constructive and destructive criticism, and upset due to criticism and (b) to explore racial differences in mean levels of attributions, perceived criticism, upset due to criticism, and warmth in a community sample of Blacks and Whites (N = 272). The Attributions of Criticism Scale (ACS) was used to measure participants’ attributions regarding criticism from their relatives. No racial differences were found in mean levels of attributions or type of perceived criticism. However, Blacks were significantly less upset by perceived criticism from their relatives than Whites. When the relationships between attributions, perceived criticism, and upset were explored, results showed that positive attributions were associated with greater perceived constructive criticism and less upset due to criticism, whereas negative attributions were associated with greater perceived destructive criticism and more upset. Perceptions of relatives’ warmth were also associated with greater perceived constructive criticism and less perceived destructive criticism, but warmth was only related to less upset for Blacks and not Whites. Findings suggest that attributions and warmth play an important role in the perception of criticism and the extent to which individuals become upset in response to criticism from loved ones. Results also point to potential racial differences in mean levels of these variables and the associations among them.