Complementary teaching practices: Ignatian pedagogy and Buddhist‐inspired compassion meditation

While scholarly discussions on Jesuit education are plentiful, inquiries related to Ignatian pedagogy are rare. This article examines the applications of Ignatian pedagogy by juxtaposing it with the analysis of a Buddhist‐inspired and interdisciplinary contemplation program, Cognitively‐Based Compassion Training® (CBCT®). Drawing from the author's experience in teaching CBCT® at a Jesuit University, this article explores how CBCT® aligns with the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm's five elements: context, experience, reflection, action, and evaluation. This study uses psychometrical measurements, such as the Compassionate Love for Humanity Scale, to document how my interdisciplinary approach may enhance participants' emotional well‐being and widen their ethical concerns. As these outcomes are inherently cross‐disciplinary and include intellectual and affective dimensions, they cannot be achieved through a single field. Building a bridge between the Ignatian Pedagogical Paradigm and CBCT® provides a successful strategy for the educational objectives of developing the whole person and forming a compassionate character.     

Infant lightness perception: do 4-month-old infants follow Wallach's ratio rule?

When adults view a test disk embedded in a higher-luminance surround, the perceived lightness of the disk is largely determined by the surround-to-disk (S/D) luminance ratio (Wallach's ratio rule). Performance of 4-month-old infants tested with a forced-choice novelty-preference technique was consistent with predictions based on Wallach's ratio rule. This result suggests that the ability to extract and maintain information about local luminance ratios is present early in infancy. This ability is likely to contribute to the development of lightness constancy.     

The impact of development of population-based study in the biomedical field on laws and regulations: a cross-strait experience on biobank development

Together with the completion of the Human Genome Project, biomedical research has marched into the "Post-Genomic Era." In order to take advantage of this extracted gene related information extensively and precisely so as to realize man's biological phenomena as well as the mechanism of pathogenesis, consequentially, a large scale sample collection of different geological areas and/or ethnic groups becomes necessary for the future population based genetic research of a country and, in turn, the construction of population-based genetic database (Biobank). In recent years, both mainland China and Taiwan have not only made great progress in information and computation technologies, but have also gradually taken a close look into the quality of medicine delivery. Thus, it becomes unavoidable for both sides to create each one's population-based genetic databases (Biobank). Theoretically speaking, the Biobank development shall benefit the study on the correlation between genes and disease and also the solution for disease treatment as well. At the same time, medical diagnostic technology has also been significantly improved. It is believable that the population-based genetic database might be utilized to promote medical quality and to reduce the cost of public health delivery. Further; in the near future, it might become the "raw materials "for medical research application. However when taking promotion of public welfare as the premises for a Biobank development, the severe and multi challenge occurred against the traditional legal rules in terms of the privacy protection, public trust development, the compliance of informed consent principle, the implementation of benefit-sharing doctrine and the possible discrimination concern about the population/participants selection and some other ELSI issues. In this paper, the major legal issues encountered by the Biobank development will first be reviewed accompanied by the background information concerning the Biobank development scenario crossing the Taiwan Strait. Also, mainly following the realm of comparative policy or legal approaches, the paper learning from the fruits of this comparative study, tries to propose some recommendations for future legislative consideration by both mainland China and Taiwan. It's been this author's wish that, when establishing a large scale population based Biobank, the promotion of public trust shall be placed as the primary goal together with the emphasis on supporting publicity and transparency on the administrative practices, so as to encourage the public participation in observing the principle of altruism and, in turn, benefit the future biomedicine development.     

Practical Implementation Science: Developing and Piloting the Quality Implementation Tool

According to the Interactive Systems Framework for Dissemination and Implementation, implementation is a major mechanism and concern in bridging research and practice. The growing number of implementation frameworks need to be synthesized and translated so that the science and practice of quality implementation can be furthered. In this article, we: (1) use the synthesis of frameworks developed by Meyers et al. (Am J Commun Psychol, 2012) and translate the results into a practical implementation science tool to use for improving quality of implementation (i.e., the Quality Implementation Tool; QIT), and (2) present some of the benefits and limitations of the tool by describing how the QIT was implemented in two different pilot projects. We discuss how the QIT can be used to guide collaborative planning, monitoring, and evaluation of how an innovation is implemented.     

The Process Mechanisms Linking Recruiter Positive Moods and Organizational Attraction

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the mechanisms through which recruiters' positive moods lead to organizational attraction. Participants consisted of 161 applicant–recruiter dyads from 55 companies in Taiwan. Results show that recruiters' felt positive moods were positively related to applicant's perceptions of informativeness and competence, which, in turn, influenced organizational attraction. In addition, recruiters felt that positive moods were positively related to their display of positive moods, which were positively related to applicant's positive moods, which, in turn, affected organizational attraction.     

论基因检测之应用及其ELSI议题的文化意涵

在基因科技的革命性发展过程中,整体社会似乎未能提供一个充分保障研究参与者与科学研究之完整性的机制.以台湾面临基因检测之挑战的经验为例,探讨了伦理、法律与社会意涵(Ethial,Legal and Social Implications,ELSI)研究如何完善规范体制的实务应用需求,并兼顾人权团体所期待的妥善保护研究参与者.     

Teacher's Encouragement on Creativity,Intrinsic Motivation,and Creativity: The Mediating Role of Creative Process Engagement

Drawing on Dewey's pragmatic perspective on talent cultivation and previous research on promoting employee creativity in industry, this study investigates student creativity performance in relation to teacher's encouragement, intrinsic motivation, and creative process engagement. Based on survey data collected from 140 vocational high school students who participated in a nation‐wide contest in Taiwan, path analyses were performed using structure equation modeling techniques. The results indicate that both teacher's encouragement and intrinsic motivation have a significant, although indirect, effect on student creativity, and that creative process engagement, as opposed to teacher encouragement or intrinsic motivation, has a direct and significant mediating effect on student creativity. This finding is in partial agreement with prior research which reports student creativity is positively associated with teacher encouragement and intrinsic motivation, highlighting the mediating role of creative process engagement in facilitating student creative performance.     

Impact of signals and experience on trust and trusting behavior

Trust is an essential factor that drives virtual interaction and transactions on the Internet. Researchers have investigated the trust development process, and identified several important factors that form the basis for trust. This research combines the signal perspective and trust theory to examine the impact of market signals and past experience on trust formation and trusting behavior. Three market signals, including brand image, Web-site investment, and privacy policies, are identified and empirically tested to determine their impact on consumer trust. Based on 322 active Web users, the quantitative results suggest that brand image, Web-site investment, privacy policies, and past experience all positively impact trust formation. Furthermore, trust shows a positive effect on Web-site stickiness. Both theoretical and practical implications of the results are also offered.     

Phosphorylation of ERK/MAP kinase is required for long-term potentiation in anatomically restricted regions of the lateral amygdala in vivo

We have previously shown that the extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase (ERK/ MAPK) is transiently activated in anatomically restricted regions of the lateral amygdala (LA) following Pavlovian fear conditioning and that blockade of ERK/MAPK activation in the LA impairs both fear memory consolidation and long-term potentiation (LTP) in the amygdala, in vitro. The present experiments evaluated the role of the ERK/MAPK signaling cascade in LTP at thalamo-LA input synapses, in vivo. We first show that ERK/MAPK is transiently activated/phosphorylated in the LA at 5 min, but not 15 or 60 min, after high-frequency, but not low-frequency, stimulation of the auditory thalamus. ERK activation induced by LTP-inducing stimulation was anatomically restricted to the same regions of the LA previously shown to exhibit ERK regulation following fear conditioning. We next show that intra-LA infusion of U0126, an inhibitor of ERK/MAPK activation, impairs LTP at thalamo-LA input synapses. Collectively, results demonstrate that ERK/MAPK activation is necessary for synaptic plasticity in anatomically defined regions of the LA, in vivo.