Gehlen's core idea in Man is that humans have unique properties which distinguish them from all other species: 1. world-openness, a concept originally coined by Max Scheler, which describes the ability of humans to adapt to various environments (as contrasted with animals, which can only survive in environments which match their evolutionary specialisation). This gives us 2. the ability to shape our environment according to our intentions, and it comprises a view of language as a way of acting (Gehlen was (...) one of the first proponents of speech act theory), Human beings are also marked 3. by an excess of impulses and by 4. the ability of self-control. These properties allow us (again in contrast to all other animals) 5. to create our own (for example cultural) environments. Gehlen's philosophy has influenced many contemporary German thinkers in a range of disciplines, including Peter L. Berger, Thomas Luckmann and Niklas Luhmann in sociology, and Hans Blumenberg in philosophy. (shrink)

The training relationship between sport psychology professionals (SPPs) and their students is a critical aspect of graduate training. Maintaining ethical, appropriate boundaries within training relationships is imperative, as boundary crossings can have deleterious effects on students. SPPs (N = 152) and Sport Psychology graduate students (N = 165) completed The Survey of Applied Sport Psychologists to explore their experiences and perceptions of sexual attractions and boundary crossings within training relationships. Nearly 30% of SPPs acknowledged sexual attractions toward their students, yet (...) few students (8.5%) perceived such attractions. Compared to the SPPs, the students reported higher levels of anxiety regarding the SPP’s attraction toward them; both groups reported infrequent use of supervision for this attraction. Nine students and 13 SPPs reported engaging in sexual behaviors (e.g., kissing, dating, intercourse) with the other. Within the larger sample, the three most common nonsexual boundary crossings were becoming social friends, attending social gatherings, and the SPP initiating nonsexual touching. Both groups are advised to engage in ongoing monitor their behaviors, receive training specific to ethics within training relationships, and seek consultation/supervision to ensure appropriate boundaries remain intact. (shrink)

Despite the skepticism of many mathematicians and logicians as to the possibility of any test which will show conclusively the consistency or independence of the members of a postulate set, several methods have nevertheless been devised and employed, e.g., the empirical methods of Russell and Huntington, the internal method of Hilbert, and the reflective method of Royce. However, with the possible exception of Hilbert's method, these techniques require us to forsake the purely formal or abstract mode of analysis, and instead (...) to rely in some sense on “concrete representations” or “interpretations” or “modes of action” which are said to “satisfy” the postulates in question. In short, they are all interpretational methods—and here is the crux of the problem. “Is it possible,” queries Weiss, “that the only way we can determine whether a set is consistent is by seeing all the postulates actually exemplified in some object? If so, we must arbitrarily assume that the object is self-consistent, so that the proof of consistency must ultimately rest on a dogma. As independence rests on consistency there are therefore no satisfactory proofs as yet of either independence or consistency.” The question “is thus answered,” according to Young, “only by reference to a concrete representation of the abstract ideas involved, and it is such concrete representations that we wished especially to avoid. At the present time, however, no absolute test for consistency is known.” Moreover, “suppose,” says the late Dr. Eaton, “that the system has no interpretation: how can the consistency independence … of the postulates be shown? There should be some analytic way—purely in the realm of the abstract, without interpretation—of establishing these properties of a set of postulates. This is an important problem that awaits solution.”. (shrink)

This paper answers the title question, “Yes,” on both counts. The first part of the paper argues that modern liberals are socialists, and the second part argues that they are also social democrats. The main idea behind the first argument is that the state has effectively taken control of the incidents of ownership through its taxation, spending, and regulatory policies. The main idea behind the second argument is that the institutions of social democracy are replicated by the institutions favored by (...) modern American liberalism. Specifically, the takeover of the American healthcare system, Social Security, employers' mandatory contributions to unemployment insurance, and workers' compensation insurance replicate the institutions of social democracy. (shrink)

The current debate about the moral status of animals is strongly determined by a misunderstanding of the role of moral intuitions. It is often assumed that our moral intuitions contain an implicit understanding of something that could ideally always be made explicit in terms of a consistent set of general principles. I have argued that this assumption is certainly wrong with respect to our moral intuitions about how we should behave towards animals. The meaning of these intuitions will always be (...) intimately tied up with deeply ingrained attitudes which precede the endorsement of any explicit moral view. While it cannot be excluded that these attitudes might radically change, it is wrong to suppose that such a transformation could result from abstract reasoning. (shrink)

Positive and negative forms of social control are commonly used to regulate another person’s health-related behaviors, especially in couples. Social control efforts have been shown to result in desirable, but also undesirable effects on different outcomes. Little is known for which outcomes, when, and under which contextual conditions these different effects unfold in people’s everyday lives. Using the dual-effects model of health-related social control, we predicted that same-day and previous-day positive social control would result in desirable effects on target behavior, (...) and same-day positive control on affect. Same-day and previous-day negative control was assumed to result in undesirable effects on reactant responses, and same-day negative control on affect. Further, we explored whether it makes a difference if one or both partners intend to change their health behavior. Three daily diary studies addressed these questions for smoking, and physical activity. Receiving more positive control related to more desirable target behavior, and feeling better; more negative control was associated with more reactant responses and feeling worse. Social control unfolded its effects within 1 day, but hardly across days, indicating that control and its reactions to it are fast-acting processes in daily life. The pattern of results were the same for couples with one and both partners intending to change their behavior. Further, results replicated when using partner-reported provided control. Based on these results, social control cannot be unanimously recommended as a behavior change strategy in couples. Future studies should follow up on dyadic and temporal dynamics of social control in couples’ everyday lives in different contexts. (shrink)

The Ethos of Medicine in Postmodern America is an analysis of medical care, medical education and medical professionalism with reference to the cultural touchstones of the postmodern era: consumerism, computerization, destruction of meta-narratives, and “stakeholder late capitalism.” The prism of postmodern thought provides a powerful heuristic to grasp the fundamental changes that have occurred and substantively changed the ethos of healthcare delivery, the patient-physician relationship, the physician-corporate entanglement, and the addition of more stakeholders in healthcare delivery.

Volume 20, Issue 10, October 2020, Page W4-W7.

Liberation philosophy and democratic struggles -- The quest for the revolutionary subject : the early Marcuse -- The retrieval of Eros and the quest for a new sensibility -- Marcuse and the problem of intersubjectivity : beyond drive theory -- One-dimensional society and the demise of dialectical thinking -- Spectres of liberation : beyond one-dimensional man -- Liberal democracy and its limits : the challenge of race, class, gender, and sexual orientation -- Marcuse and discourse ethics -- Liberation and the (...) democratic vision : educating for a new sensibility. (shrink)

Soft robots promise an exciting design trajectory in the field of robotics and human–robot interaction (HRI), promising more adaptive, resilient movement within environments as well as a safer, more sensitive interface for the objects or agents the robot encounters. In particular, tactile HRI is a critical dimension for designers to consider, especially given the onrush of assistive and companion robots into our society. In this article, we propose to surface an important set of ethical challenges for the field of soft (...) robotics to meet. Tactile HRI strongly suggests that soft-bodied robots balance tactile engagement against emotional manipulation, model intimacy on the bonding with a tool not with a person, and deflect users from personally and socially destructive behavior the soft bodies and surfaces could normally entice. (shrink)

Why do people buy particular products? Which are the antecedents that lead to the decision in favour of or against the purchase? Knowledge of the underlying semiotic and perceptual mechanisms is of key importance for understanding marketing processes. There are different psychological approaches that help to explain the effects of advertisements and product design. Analysing the sign processes of marketing clarifies the strategies applied. By identifying the manipulative functions of advertising, this book supports the consumers' critical discourse.

The term “objective” has both a metaphysical and an epistemological meaning, and each of these meanings gives rise to a corresponding objective-subjective dichotomy. A formal definition of objectivity is given, and this clarifies the nature of the epistemological dichotomy. These dichotomies are represented by classes of existents, and a Venn-type diagram is used to illustrate the relationship between them. It is shown that the class of all existents can be partitioned into three mutually exclusive and exhaustive classes, which correspond to (...) Rand's intrinsic-subjective-objective trichotomy. (shrink)