In this deeply probing, intellectually challenging work, Dr. Jaan Valsiner lays the groundwork for a dynamic new cultural-historical approach to developmental psychology. He begins by deconstructing traditional developmental theory, exposing the conceptual confusion and epistemological blind spots that he believes continue to undermine the scientific validity of its methodologies. He describes the ways in which embedded cultural biases shape interventional goals and influence both the direction research takes and the ways in which research data are interpreted. And he suggests (...) ways in which researchers and clinicians can become more aware of and transcend those biases. Dr. Valsiner then develops a hierarchical, systemic model that portrays development as an open-ended, dialectical process. Central to Valsiner's approach is the premise that, since each child is unique--as are his or her life conditions--deviations function or not the rate of development from a prescribed norm are just as likely to be constructive adaptations to changing environmental pressures as symptoms of psychological disorder. Drawing upon sources as varied as linguistic philosophy, structural anthropology, thermodynamics, and systems theory, as well as the work of many of the leading figures in twentieth-century developmental theory, Valsiner argues convincingly for an approach to developmental psychology mature enough to recognize the difference between healthy variability and dysfunction. (shrink)

The contrast between real and fictional characters in our thinking needs further elaboration. In this commentary on Eco’s look at the ontology of the semiotic object, I suggest that human semiotic construction entails constant modulation of the relationship between the states of the real and fictional characters in irreversible time. Literary characters are examples of crystallized fictions which function as semiotic anchors in the fluid construction — by the readers — of their understandings of the world. Literary characters are thus (...) fictions that are real in their functions — while the actual reality of meaningmaking consists of ever new fictions of fluid (transitory) nature. Eco’s ontological look at the contrast of the semiotic object with perceptual objects (Gegenstände) in Alexius Meinong’s theorizing needs to be complemented by the semiotic subject. Cultural mythologies of human societies set the stage for such invention and maintenance of such dynamic unity of fictionally real and realistically fictional characters. (shrink)

Contrasting conditions with and without conscious experience has served consciousness research well. However, research based on this simple contrast has led to controversies about the neural basis of conscious experience. One key reason for these ongoing debates seems to be that the simple contrast between conditions with and without consciousness is not specific for unraveling the neural basis of conscious experience, but rather also leads to other processes that precede or follow it. Acknowledging this methodological problem implies that some of (...) the previous research findings about the neural underpinnings of conscious experience are actually reflecting the prerequisites and consequences rather than the direct correlates of conscious perception. Thus, it is required to re-evaluate the previous results to find out which of them are telling us anything about the neural basis of consciousness. But first and foremost, to overcome this methodological problem we need new experimental paradigms that go beyond the simple contrastive analysis or find the ways how some older but well forgotten paradigms may foster a new look at this emerging problem. Accordingly, this research topic is looking for empirical and theoretical contributions that: 1) envision new and suitable experimental approaches to study consciousness that are free from the limitations of the simple contrastive analysis; 2) provide empirical data that help to separate the neural correlates of conscious experience from the prerequisites and consequences of it; 3) help to re-assess previous research findings about the neural correlates of conscious perception in the light of the methodological problems with the traditional contrastive analysis. We hope that the theoretical insights and experimental approaches collected within this Research Topic help us to gain a more refined understanding of the neural basis of conscious experience. (shrink)

In the 21st century, amid converging global political, social, and economic forces we are questioning the fundamental values we hold true, driven by an antagonism between different schools of philosophy--between left- and right-wing politics. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of western political philosophy and underlines the core principles of each argument. It then argues that neither have we solved nor do we have any pathway to eventually solve, the question of right and wrong--we are essentially moral relativists in disguise. (...) In order to break out of this cycle of uncertainty, the book proposes a solution of knowledge-based cognition: policy based on a concrete and proven understanding of an absolute and certain body of truths. This requires an analysis and blending of non-western political philosophical traditions, such as those espoused by Islam and Confucianism. This book gives an original critique of western political philosophy and is the first book to engage in a reconstruction of Islamic political philosophy." -- Back cover. (shrink)

Zusammenfassung Unter den verschiedenen Kulten, die sich im Römischen Reich verbreiteten, sind einige in der Forschung seit langem unter der Bezeichnung „die orientalischen Religionen“ diskutiert worden. Am Ende des 19. und Anfang des 20. Jahrhunderts hat sich in der europäischen Forschung ein relativ einheitliches Bild von diesen Kulten ausgebildet, das die Forschung bis in die 70er und 80er Jahre des 20. Jahrhunderts beinflusste und teilweise noch heute zu greifen ist. Im zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts begann sich ein neues Bild (...) von „orientalischen Religionen“ entwickeln, dessen Ausformung sich zu Beginn des 21. Jahrhunderts fortgesetzt hat. Verglichen mit dem alten Bild dieser Kulte ist das neue Bild nicht so einheitlich, sondern differenziert, und es zeichnet sich durch eine heftige Diskussion über Begriffe und Grundprinzipien der bisherigen Forschung aus. Das Thema des vorliegenden Aufsatzes ist der Wandel des Bildes von diesen Kulten, die lange Zeit als „orientalische“ bezeichnet worden sind. Dieser Wandel wird vom Autor des vorliegenden Aufsatzes als „Paradigmenwechsel“ beschrieben. (shrink)

Toutes les sciences sociales aujourd'hui semblent adopter une position politiquement correcte qui consiste en une «utilisation appliquée» pour la «société». Nous affirmons ici que l'adoption de cette valeur pratiqued'une science repose sur un assujettissement aux demandes de contrôle social et institutionnel sur les sciences. En insistant sur la nécessité d'une orientation «appliquée», ces demandes excluent les sciences sociales de l'univers du savoir universel qui risquerait de révéler les nombreuses fonctions sociales des institutions de contrôle. Les cadres de demande sémiotiques construits (...) pour réguler les sciences sociales leur garantissent un développement non linéaire dans l'histoire et une répartition géographique inégale. L'histoire de la psychologie sociale - plus spécifiquement son transfert de l'Europe vers l'Amérique - fournit des preuves de ces processus qui ont eu pour conséquence une fragmentation des savoirs et la confiance en des méthodes consensuelles. Il est nécessaire de surmonter ces oeillères historiquement concoctées par une discipline si l'on veut produire un savoir général applicable à toutes les sociétés.All the social sciences of our day seem to adopt the politically correct position of relevance and of being of "practical use" for "society". The author claims here that such appropriation of the applied value of a science subjugates it to social-institutional control demands on the sciences. Emphasizing the necessity for "practical use" means these demands keep the social sciences away from the world of universal knowledge which might reveal the multiple social functions of the controlling institutions. The Semiotic Demand Settings set up to regulate what social sciences do guarantee that the development of the given science is non-linear in its history and uneven in its social-geographical distribution. The history of social psychology - especially its transfer between Europe and America — provides evidence of such processes that have resulted in the fragmentation of knowledge and the reliance on consensually accepted methods. It is necessary to overcoming these blinkers historically set by a discipline if it is to generate general knowledge applicable to all societies. (shrink)

Human development takes place in an ornamented – redundantly patterned and highly repetitive – world. The emergence of knowledge takes the form of episodic unpredictable synthetic events at the intersection of the fields of internal and external cultural meaning systems – through the mutually linked processes of constructive internalization and externalization. Patterns of decorations – ornaments – are relevant as redundant “inputs” into the internalization/externalization processes. Ornaments can be viewed not merely as "aesthetic accessories" to human activity contexts but as (...) holistic devices of cultural guidance of human conduct that acts through the subjectivity of personal feelings. This guidance is peripheral in its nature – surrounding the ordinary life activities with affectively oriented textures of cultural meanings. (shrink)

Vygotsky was a brilliant literary scholar whose role in psychology borrows substantially from his interests in and fascination with literature and theatre. The central question for Vygotsky’s theory was aesthetic synthesis – the emergence of generalized feelings in human life-experiences. The critical empirical example for the emergence of affective synthesis for Vygotsky was the short story by Ivan Bunin, ‘Legkoe dykhanie’. My task in this article is to analyse Vygotsky’s way of conceptualizing dialectical synthesis as a general psychological process. I (...) demonstrate that Vygotsky succeeded in locating the empirical phenomena where such syntheses can be observed, and proceeded halfway towards creating a general model of affective synthesis. Yet he failed to complete the task due to the limitations of the analogical transfer of the notion of short circuit into the psychological realm. The problem of synthesis remains unsolved up to the present day. Possible ways of solving it require formalization of the notion of double negation that has been used in dialectical philosophies, but has not been encoded into psychology’s research methodologies. (shrink)

My aim in this paper is to present and evaluate one version of the deflationary attitude to truth, namely the Modest Account, propounded by Wolfgang Künne in his Conceptions of Truth (2003). I introduce the deflationary theories of truth in the first part of my paper and present briefly the views of a more familiar deflationist, Paul Horwich, as a "stepping-stone" to Künne's account. In the second part of the paper I give an overview of Künne's theory and in the (...) final part I present a dilemma that his account faces: either it is not modest after all or it is incomprehensible. (shrink)

Name der Zeitschrift: Zeitschrift für Religionswissenschaft Jahrgang: 25 Heft: 2 Seiten: 233-262.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1969.

Riassunto: Presentiamo una prospettiva semiotica e dinamica per indagare e discutere dal punto di vista psicologico i fenomeni della regolazione affettiva attraverso la mediazione e l’articolazione dei segni. Al fine di evitare uno sguardo semplicistico, lineare e riduttivo, i fenomeni affettivi sono presentati come campi quasi strutturati, i quali vengono a differenziarsi attraverso mediatori semiotici. La loro funzione è quella di orientare le persone attraverso l’anticipazione dell’immediato futuro. La regolazione semiotica conduce alla costruzione di gerarchie – temporanee – ovvero strutture (...) di segni che incanalano le esperienze. Dalla costituzione di segni operatori di meta-livello segue sia la veloce espansione della costruzione di segni sia l’arresto e la demolizione della temporanea gerarchia regolativa di segni. Tali segni permettono tanto l’espansione flessibile quanto la limitazione della profondità e della ridondanza dei processi di auto-regolazione delle esperienze soggettive e delle azioni nei diversi contesti. Parole chiave: Mediazione semiotica; Segni; Gerarchie; Affetti; Regolazione affettiva; Campi affettivi The Dynamic Regulation of Affective Processes through Semiotic Mediation: We introduce a semiotic and dynamic perspective to investigate and discuss – from a psychological point of view – the process of affective regulation through the mediation and articulation of signs. In order to avoid a simplistic, linear and reductive appraisal, affective phenomena are presented as quasi-structured fields, which differentiate themselves through semiotic mediators. Their function is to orient people in anticipation of the immediate future. Semiotic regulation leads to the construction of temporary hierarchies, namely structures of signs that guide experiences. From the constitution of meta-level operator signs ensues both the rapid expansion of the construction of signs and the arrest and the demolition of the temporary regulatory hierarchy of signs. These signs allow for flexible expansion but also limit the “depth” and redundancy of self-regulation processes in subjective experiences and actions in different contexts. Keywords: Semiotic Mediation; Signs; Hyerarchies; Affects; Affect Regulation; Affective Fields. (shrink)

We endorse Amy Caruso Brown’s position that clinicians and ethicists should consider the voices of people marginalized by hierarchical family or community structures. In this open peer comme...

In this deeply probing, intellectually challenging work, Dr. JaanValsiner lays the groundwork for a dynamic new cultural-historicalapproach to developmental psychology. He begins by deconstructingtraditional developmental theory, exposing the conceptual confusionand epistemological blind spots that he believes continue toundermine the scientific validity of its methodologies. Hedescribes the ways in which embedded cultural biases shapeinterventional goals and influence both the direction researchtakes and the ways in which research data are interpreted. And hesuggests ways in which researchers and clinicians can become moreaware of (...) and transcend those biases. Dr. Valsiner then develops a hierarchical, systemic model thatportrays development as an open-ended, dialectical process. Centralto Valsiner's approach is the premise that, since each child isunique--as are his or her life conditions--deviations in functionor the rate of development from a prescribed norm are just aslikely to be constructive adaptations to changing environmentalpressures as symptoms of psychological disorder. Drawing uponsources as varied as linguistic philosophy, structuralanthropology, thermodynamics, and systems theory, as well as thework of many of the leading figures in twentieth-centurydevelopmental theory, Valsiner argues convincingly for an approachto developmental psychology mature enough to recognize thedifference between healthy variability and dysfunction. In later chapters the focus shifts from development in the abstractto the everyday challenges encountered by the developing child.Case histories illustrate the subtle interplay of cultural,physiological, and psychological factors in shaping childhoodbehavior. Called an "intellectual tour de force" by the Bulletin of theMenninger Clinic, Culture and the Development of Children's Actionis important reading for developmental psychologists, childpsychologists, and all child clinicians. "Of course, no science progresses in a linear fashion. It movesinterdependently with the society in which it is embedded, makinguse of the narrative forms in describing itself to its insiders andoutsiders. The rhetoric of scientists about their science istherefore necessarily inconsistent. Sciences are both socialinstitutions within a society and social organizations that attemptto build universal knowledge. It is a complicated task forpsychology to be both knowledge-constructing and self-reflexive atthe same time. Nevertheless, it is the latter kind of reflexivitythat guides the actual construction of knowledge." -- JaanValsiner "[This book] is a fascinating and important work that challengesmuch of contemporary developmental psychology. The Second Editionhas changed in a number of respects, and much new material has beenadded, but at root, Valsiner grapples with the question 'how shallwe understand development?' He continues to struggle also with whathe describes rather vividly as the 'epistemological windmills ofpsychology.' His challenge is summed up succinctly in two linesfrom a poem by T. S. Eliot: * Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? * Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" -- -- fromthe Foreword by Kevin Connolly. (shrink)

For all human sciences, understanding of how the mind works requires a new theory that starts from the assumption of potential infinite variability of human symbolic forms. These forms are socially constructed by the person who moves through an endless variety of unique encounters with the world. A theory of symbolic forms needs to capture the essence of hyperdynamic, irreversible nature of the stream of consciousness and activity. The human mind is regulated through a dynamic hierarchy of semiotic mechanisms of (...) increasingly generalized kind, which involves mutual constraining between levels of the hierarchy. It is demonstrated that semiotic mediation leads to a triplet of personal-cultural constructions — a new symbolic form, a metasymbolic form, and a regulatory signal to stop or enable the construction of further semiotic hierarchy. In everyday terms — human beings produce new problems, together with new efforts at solving them, and make decisions when to stop producing the former two. Hence, semiotic mediation guarantees both flexibility and inflexibility of the human psychological system, through the processes of abstracting generalization and contextualizing specification. Context specificity of psychological phenomena is an indication of general mechanisms that generate variability. Scientific investigation of human psychological complexity is necessarily oriented to the study of variability within the individual person’s psychological time-space. (shrink)

This book brings together a group of scholars from around the world who view psychology as the science of human ways of being. Being refers to the process of existing - through construction of the human world - here, rather than to an ontological state. This collection includes work that has the goal to establish the newly developed area of cultural psychology as the science of specifically human ways of existence. It comes as a next step after the "behaviorist turn" (...) that has dominated psychology over most of the 20th century, and like its successor in the form of "cognitivism", kept psychology away from addressing issues of specifically human ways of relating with their worlds. Such linking takes place through intentional human actions: through the creation of complex tools for living, entertainment, and work. Human beings construct tools to make other tools. Human beings invent religious systems, notions of economic rationality and legal systems; they enter into aesthetic enjoyment of various aspects of life in art, music, and literature; they have the capability of inventing national identities that can be summoned to legitimate one's killing of one's neighbors, or being killed oneself. The contributions to this volume focus on the central goal of demonstrating that psychology as a science needs to start from the phenomena of higher psychological functions, and then look at how their lower counterparts are re-organized from above. That kind of investigation is inevitably interdisciplinary - it links psychology with anthropology, philosophy, sociology, history, and developmental biology. Various contributions to this volume are based on the work of Lev Vygotsky, George Herbert Mead, Henri Bergson, and on traditions of Ganzheitspsychologie and Gestalt psychology. Psychology as the Science of Human Being is a valuable resource to psychologists, sociologists, philosophers, biologists, and anthropologists alike. (shrink)

This paper analyzes the reception of decolonial and neo-Marxist thought in a jihadist critique of the modern state. The author argues that a study of Abū Qatāda al-Filisṭīnī, a prominent theorist of modern Jihadism and Salafism, reveals his nuanced interaction with theories of hegemony, ideology, and decolonization. An examination of Abū Qatāda’s critique of modern state institutions and ideology shows that he engages with philosophical critiques of sovereignty, hegemony, capitalism, and the nation-state and utilizes both neo-Marxist and decolonial thought. This (...) paper explores how Abū Qatāda theorizes the modern state as a colonial project, leading him to rationalize jihad, or violent resistance, as the only solution to realize paradigmatic change. It further shows how Abū Qatāda justifies opposition to the modern state and hegemony with seamless deployment of scripture and Islamic jurisprudence and insists that his political project builds on premodern Islamic theories of knowledge and government necessary for decolonization, albeit often without offering details. This study reveals a feature of jihadist thought that has remained largely unnoticed in the literature and is the first to explore the interactions between Salafism and critiques of the modern state. (shrink)

Human beings create their private worlds of feelings and thoughts through immersion in the semiosphere created through situated activity contexts. Processes of internalization/externalization are at the center of development of human beings through the whole of their life courses. We consider the contexts of schooling as organized through Semiotic Demand Settings (SDS) for development of intrinsic motivation of the students. Intrinsic motivation is a process mechanism that operates as internalized and hyper-generalized feeling at the most central layer of internalization. It (...) is a result of integration of social suggestions, hyper-generalized as an affective field, and turned into a value that directs future actions. (shrink)

This is the very first authoritative book on the role of Carl Gustav Carus (1789-1869) in the history of psychology. Carus was the initiator of the notions of development, unconscious, and archetype in psychology. The book emphasizes the interdisciplinary focus of Carus’ work as it was based on the literature and art of his time and is closely related with medicine and Naturphilosophie. The readership of the book will get access to the life course of a key figure of science (...) of the 19th century. (shrink)