This paper presents an analysis of learning effectiveness for the courses “Selected issues in visual rehabilitation” and “Ophthalmology and ophthalmic nursing” taught in the years 2009-2011 at the Medical University of Bialystok, Poland. We compared the effectiveness of traditional and distance learning methods; an e-learning platform was implemented experimentally for the purpose of this study. We assessed the usefulness of online learning in terms of organization, knowledge gained and students’ satisfaction with the course. The study was conducted among 75 second (...) year master degree students in the nursing field in the academic years 2009/2010 and 2010/2011. The students were divided into two groups. For the study group of 39 persons, lectures and seminars took place on an e-learning platform, while 36 persons in the control group attended traditional classes. 80% of students in the e-learning group and 89% of students in the traditional group assessed the organization of both forms of courses positively. The fact that the majority of students in both the e-learning and traditional classes gave positive feedback indicates that for both forms there was a high level of content and technical preparedness. The mean scores of the final exam for both courses were 82% in the e-learning group and 79% in the traditional group in the years 2009- 2011. The above results show that both forms of learning are equally effective. (shrink)

The study examines the question of how personal self-esteem, collective self-esteem and readiness for self-improvement are linked to satisfaction with life in women from countries differing with regard to level of collectivism. Our study participants were Polish and Indian female students. The obtained results indicate that personal self-esteem plays a very important role in satisfaction with life of women from the two countries. However, collective self-esteem is not directly related to satisfaction with life among women from the two cultures analyzed. (...) Structural Equation Modeling showed that: a) in the Indian group readiness for self-improvement is more important for satisfaction with life than in the Polish group and it is significantly related to satisfaction with life through collectivistic self-esteem, b) the direct influence of both personal and collective self-esteem on satisfaction with life is more significant in the Polish group than in the Indian group. (shrink)

Drawing from an ethics of care, relational approaches to autonomy have recently emerged in bioethics. Unlike individual autonomy with its emphasis on patients’ rights, choice, and self-determination which has been the hallmark of bioethics consistent with the ideology of individualism in neoliberal democracies in Western countries, relational autonomy highlights the relatedness, interdependency, and social embeddedness of patients. By examining the mediating role that male Hospital Liaison Committee members in Germany play in facilitating care that supports Jehovah's Witnesses’ refusal of blood (...) transfusions, this article moves beyond ‘dyadic relations’ and contexts of caregiving. It also contributes to a deeper understanding of care and relational conceptualizations of Witness patients’ autonomy globally. (shrink)

The article deals with the recurrent incorrect accent position in the German words articulated by Polish learners, whether when reading aloud or speaking. This seems all the more serious because incorrect word accent (as well as incorrect sentence accentuation) can contribute to communication problems or even misunderstandings. The main problem here is the frequency of the errors, which are always corrected, but without success. The article is meant as a postulate to work out efficient automation methods.

The aim of this research was to examine the impact of two specific negative emotions of anger and fear on intergroup attitudes. In Study 1 we measured emotions of anger and fear and in Study 2 we evoked these emotions incidentally, that is independently of any intergroup context. In both studies we measured attitudes towards the ingroup and the outgroup.We expected that fear would lead to more positive ingroup attitudes and anger to more negative outgroup attitudes. The results of the (...) correlational study confirmed the predictions regarding anger and decreased outgroup evaluations, and the experimental study revealed that fear enhanced positivity towards the ingroup, but anger increased negativity towards the outgroup. The impact of fear and anger on social attitudes in the specific context of a negatively self-stereotyped ingroup is discussed. (shrink)

In meinem Referat werde ich an das philosophische Problem der Ewigkeit der Welt anknüpfen. Wenn wir dieses Problem philosophisch betrachten, müssen wir uns auf das frühe Stadium der Weltevolution ziehen, d.h. auf das „präphysische" Stadium. Als „präphysisch" bezeichne ich das Frühstadium der kosmologischen Evolution, das angesichts der damaligen extremen Verhältnisse durch begründete fundamentale Theorien der gegenwärtigen Physik, wie Quantenmechanik, Relativitätstheorie oder Thermodynamik nicht zu beschreiben oder zu erklären ist. Heute kennen wir nur die obere Zeitgrenze dieses Stadiums, die sog. Plancksche (...) Schwelle, die 10~^3 s. beträgt. Das Hauptproblem im Prozess der ontologischen Charakteristik dieses Stadiums ist der Versuch, seine untere Zeitgrenze festzulegen. Mit diesem Problem ist nämlich eine der ältesten und viel diskutierten philosphischen Fragen verbunden, und zwar das Problem der Ewigkeit der Welt und : (1) das Problem des Zeitraums des „präphysischen" Stadiums (es geht um das Festlegen seiner unteren Zeitgrenze - dauerte es unendlich lang oder aber nur einen winzigen Sekundenteil?), (2) ist der Anfang der Zeit (falls es ihn gäbe) zugleich der Anfang der Welt?, (3) bildet der Grosse Ausbruch den absoluten Anfang der Welt oder nur den Anfang eines von mehreren Stadien in ihrer Evolution, (4) setzt die Möglichkeit des absoluten Anfangs der Welt unbedingt die Kreation Gottes voraus (die supranatürliche Kreation) oder läbt eine Möglichkeit die Entstehung der Welt auf eine natürliche Weise zu (die natürliche Kreation), (5) das Problem des „sonderlichen" Moments. Alle diese Fragen, stelle ich auf der Basis der neueren Errungenschaften der Physik und Kosmologie dar. (shrink)

Author: Bogaczyk Małgorzata Title: THE DIFFERENT ART. ON THE PRIMITIVE ART, NAÏVE ART AND ART BRUT (Sztuka Inna. O sztuce prymitywnej, naiwnej i surowej) Source: Filo-Sofija year: 2006, vol:.6, number: 2006/1, pages: 239-256 Keywords: DIFFERENT ART, PRIMITIVE ART, ART BRUT, NAÏVE ART Discipline: PHILOSOPHY Language: POLISH Document type: ARTICLE Publication order reference (Primary author’s office address): E-mail:In the sketch I show some similarities in the artist’s way of perceiving the work of art, the process of artistic creativity, and the (...) fate of work in the inner reality, to quote Proust. The fact that all art is met with wider or narrower reception is the background for my analysis of the general phenomenon of the popularity of art fascinating or being rejected because of its variety. (shrink)

ABSTRACTThe present study was designed to address the hypothesis that differences and similarities in patterns of attentional processing in recently proposed types of anxiety and depression are connected with the dominant function they play in stimulation processing and their structural components. Participants filled out the Anxiety and Depression Questionnaire, which assesses types of anxiety and depression, and completed the Emotional Faces Attentional Test one week later. The obtained results confirmed our prediction and suggested that the proposed typology of anxiety and (...) depression is valid in the adaptive meanings of both phenomena. (shrink)

The paper examines changing media representations of Jacinda Ardern, former Aotearoa New Zealand Prime Minister, from the global broadcaster, BBC News Online, across three key milestones in the politician’s career: her appointment, re-election and resignation. Our socio-semantic analysis of this representation demonstrates how the media intersect her professional identity with age, gender, social class, and later, her identity as a mother. Whilst earlier coverage of Ardern’s career praises her successfully reconciling these aspects of her personal, social and professional identities, later (...) coverage implies that ‘having it all’ was never really possible longer term. We argue that the visibility of this discourse, and the focus on intersectional aspects of Ardern’s personal and social identities, leads to her resignation being positively evaluated as her ‘finally’ succumbing and committing to the ‘natural’ inevitabilities of heterosexual family life. The article considers what such representation means for Ardern and women politicians and leaders more broadly, and contextualises these findings in relation to existing research on media representations of women in politics and leadership. Finally, we also consider the value of a more longitudinal approach to tracking the cumulative effects of the representation of social actors and groups. (shrink)

Scholars have long wrestled with the question of why the Laws of Hammurabi provide two different sanctions for the theft of temple (and palace) property: the death penalty (§6) and thirtyfold restitution (§8). While reviewing Neo- and Late Babylonian evidence on sacrilegious theft, this paper argues that Babylonian law neatly distinguished between the theft of sacred objects and the theft of nonsacred temple property, which incurred different penalties, corresponding to those that §6 and §8 of the Laws of Hammurabi impose. (...) It further seeks to identify the criteria that determined the classification of certain objects as res sacrae and the legal and cultic consequences of sacrilegious theft. (shrink)

Advising is an important area of human activity, it helps to clarify own experiences and thoughts, increases self-awareness and competence, leads to well grounded decisions and choices. In modern times advising gained even more importance as it has successfully became a part of a business world. This very practical aspect of advising significantly influences development of technology, management methods and organization of human work, while at the same time it may lead to problems and risks of economical, political or ecological (...) nature. Hence advising should be supported by philosophical consideration and ethical assessment – this is even more so, as advising in it’s theoretical, methodological and ethical foundations is well grounded in philosophy. Main perspectives of reflection on advising are driven by traditional philosophical questions and disputes. Historical research shows that many virtues are of stable properties that last across ages. Thus, drawing on experience of philosophers-advisors from Sophists, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and Seneca we see that practical philosophy can give support in solving different problems of business advisory and can help in drawing professional code rules of advisor. (shrink)

Vietnam tries to respond to changing international situations, while attempting to stay in accordance with its own ambitions. China and the USA, the two superpowers, are the most important partners of Vietnamese strategy, which is determined by these two countries. The most important economic partner and ideological ally is China. But both sides have some serious problems to resolve such as maritime disputes. The situation imposes the need to seek counterbalance, a reliable ally who provides protection for its own interests. (...) So Vietnam looks to balance improved relations with China while seeking deeper and multidimensional relations with the USA. The United States offers many advantages that are attractive to Vietnam. Inevitably, economic ties and new projects e.g. TPP, political, cultural and scientific cooperation make up these advantages. However, the United States can only provide support for the Spratly and Paracel Islands’ dispute and improving cooperative measures in the South China Sea with the presence of U.S. naval vessels and dialogue that assists Vietnam defense. Vietnam has again become an element in the American strategy of pivoting to Asia. (shrink)

Patterns of inattention in children: Findings from the inattention checklist for teachers This study concerns construction of a checklist for teachers designed to find out types of attention disorders in children. Inattention is not a homogenous phenomenon. Patterns of coexistence of inattention signs and other behavioral symptoms could reflect different psychological mechanisms. In first study teachers described 242 children aged 9 to 10 using Inattention Checklist for Teachers. In second study teachers described 361 children aged 8 to 10 using modified (...) version of the ICT. Factor analysis conducted in the first study resulted in extraction of five factors. In the second study previously extracted factors were validated by cluster analyses and profiles referring to co-occurring behavioral symptoms were developed. Analysis of profiles has shown that attention disorders comprise at least two groups of inattention symptoms that in relation to other factors and learning difficulties constitute different patterns of inattention. It is suggested that these patterns reflect differences between attention disorders caused by cognitive malfunctioning, impaired behavioral or emotional control. (shrink)

Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA, mathias_risse{at}ksg.harvard.edu ' + u + '@' + d + ' '//--> It is a widespread view that support for Fair Trade is called for, whereas agricultural subsidies are pegged as unjustifiable. Though one supports farmers in developing countries while the other does the same for those in already developed ones, there are, nonetheless, similarities between both scenarios. Both are economically `inefficient', upholding production beyond what the market would sustain. In both cases, supportive arguments (...) can assume two forms. First, such arguments might draw on normative claims made by producers. In the case of agricultural subsidies, farmers in developed countries assert claims against their fellow citizens, who ought to accept redistributive measures to keep them in business. In the case of Fair Trade, the claim can be made by farmers in developing nations against consumers, who ought to pay higher prices to keep them in business (under conditions deemed acceptable). Second, arguments to keep producers in business might be presented as the prerogative of both groups: even if farmers in developed countries did not have a claim to be kept in business, these countries would have the right to take measures to do so because they value their products. In the case of Fair Trade, even if farmers in developing nations had no claim against consumers, it is a consumer prerogative to pay more to keep them in business because they value their product or the process of producing it. There are, of course, differences between these scenarios as well, but in light of these parallels in the moral cases for subsidies and Fair Trade, it will be illuminating to examine the arguments for and against subsidies and Fair Trade together. Key Words: trade • subsidies • fairness • markets • development. (shrink)

This paper looks at cognition from the perspective of Yaśovijaya-sūri’s Jaina-tarka-bhāṣā. Considering the nature of sensory cognition (mati-jñāna), represented by the four stages (sensation, speculation, perceptual judgement, retention) and of verbal cognition (śruta-jñāna), it reflects on the form and rendering of the word as a raw, physical sound or the meaningful particle of language linked to an infinite number of other such particles, deeply rooted in reliance on linguistic convention. The author considers here what properties such cognition recognises and relates (...) to them especially in light of the theory of viewpoints, providing a contribution to reflections on its meaning. The other questions posed in the article are: which prerequisites are met by people between whom this kind of communication takes place and what role do the scriptures play? Yaśovijaya-sūri’s thought is set in the broader context (Siddhasena Divākara, Jinabhadra Gaṇi, Vādideva-sūri, Dharmabhūṣana, Vinayavijaya Gaṇi), with emphasis of his sources of inspiration. (shrink)

By defining consciousness as nothingness or simply as “nothing,” Sartre plays with several meanings of these terms: negativity and negation, distance, indetermination, irreducibility. The nothingness of consciousness takes on an ontological meaning: it is a “tearing away” from being-in-itself, a transcendence understood as the capacity to transcend what is, while retaining an epistemological meaning: it is what cannot be positively determined as “something” or as a property of being. Still, on the epistemological level as well as on the ontological level, (...) it is indeed from “something,” from physical and social being, that the nothingness of consciousness draws its existence and its capacities. In my article, I examine different meanings that can be given to the “nothing” of consciousness in the light of the thought of Sartre himself, emphasizing the difference between two major meanings of negation: as opposition and as indetermination. Then I confront Sartre’s concept of consciousness with more recent considerations of different inspiration, notably from researchers like Chalmers, Damasio, Gallagher, and Zahavi. My thesis is that the Sartrean concept, semi-transcendental and semi-naturalist, does admit the search for a naturalist explanation of consciousness, but assigns its limit precisely through the concept of nothingness. En définissant la conscience comme néant, néantisation, ou simplement comme un « rien », Sartre joue avec plusieurs acceptions de ces termes : négativité et négation, distance, indētefmination, irréductibilité... Le néant de la conscience prend un sens ontologique : c’est un « arrachement » à l’être-en-soi, une transcendance entendue comme capacité de transcender ce qui est, tout en gardant un sens épistémologique : c’est ce qui ne peut pas être déterminé de manière positive comme « quelque chose » ou comme une propriété d’être. D’autre part, sur le plan épistémologique comme sur le plan ontologique, c’est bien de « quelque chore », de l’être physique et social, que le néant de la conscience tire son existence et ses capacités. Dans mon article, j’examine différents sens qu’on peut donner au « rien » de la conscience à la lumière de la pensée de Sartre lui-même, en mettant l’accent sur la différence entre deux sens majeurs de la négation : comme opposition et comme indétermination. Ensuite je confronte le concept sartrien de la conscience avec les considérations plus récentes et d’inspiration différente, notamment chez les chercheurs comme Chalmers, Damasio, Gallagher et Zahavi. Ma thèse est que le concept sartrien, semi-transcendantal et semi-naturaliste, admet bien la recherche d’une explication naturaliste de la conscience, mais lui assigne la limite précisément par le concept du néant. (shrink)

The supple and ever-present search for the possibilities offered by the narrative form in fictional writing corresponds to the use of the narrative as a mode of understanding and explaining our being-in-the-world in philosophy. The intimate liaison between the realm of fictional imagination and that of human everydayness inspires writers to seek ways to tackle issues of temporality, the conflicting character of human drives, and the ultimately unresolvable tension between finitude and infinitude. As a literary and philosophical category, the narrative (...) remains an inexhaustible space for the exploration of the way we understand our lives. I propose a hermeneutic investigation of the interactions between the art of narration and the categories of space, presence/absence, and (be)- longingness as evoked in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway. This article engages Martin Heidegger’s hermeneutics of facticity, and, more specifically, his notions of homelessness and homecoming, to shed light on the inimitable character of Woolf’s artistic representations of the spatial dimension of human existence, reality viewed as both tremulous and solid, as well as of human embodiment and the disparity/closeness between the corporeal and the spiritual. (shrink)

Powrót do filozofii starożytnej Grecji pozwala przypomnieć etyczny wymiar politycznej aktywności, w którym umiejętność łączenia dobra własnego z dobrem ogółu postrzegano jako świadectwo rozumnej natury człowieka wolnego i odpowiedzialnego zarazem. Republikański ideał życia zostaje przez Arendt skonfrontowany z dominującymi tendencjami politycznymi oraz ekonomicznymi, które rozwinęły się w nowożytnej kulturze europejskiej. Etyczne zdeprecjonowanie sfery publicznej prowadziło do postrzegania jej w kategoriach przymusu i przemocy, stanowiących zagrożenie indywidualnej wolności. Na znaczeniu zyskała natomiast sfera indywidualnej aktywności, związanej zwłaszcza z pracą wytwórczą, zarobkowaniem oraz (...) konsumowaniem. Zwyciężyła idea prywatności, bogactwa, rywalizacji. Narodziło się społeczeństwo masowe, składające się ze zatomizowanych jednostek niezdolnych do wzięcia na siebie odpowiedzialności za wspólnotę polityczną. (shrink)

The collection of papers addresses the perennial problem of the relation between language and meaning. It proposes various theoretical approaches to the issue ranging from a synergetic theory of meaning merging the cognitive and the socio-historical perspectives, through holistic, evolutionary models and a revision of some of the assumptions of Cognitive Metaphor Theory to the discussion of the role of pragmatic competence in meaning construction. A number of papers make recourse to corpus based studies and psycholinguistic experiments. The topics of (...) specific linguistic investigations cover such diverse issues as idiom processing, emotion words in Chinese, valuation of abstract nouns, the preposition <I>at and scalar adjectives. Several papers explore the application of the reflections on the nature of meaning to lexicography and translation. One, self-reflective article investigates the consequences of the unformulated assumptions about meaning for the coherence of proposed linguistic theories. The volume firmly places the study of meaning in the centre of the linguistic research by showing its significance for linguistic theory and its applications. (shrink)

The main idea of the article is that in our „postmodern” world ideologies are not at all dead but adopt new forms which I call both cynical (in Slotedijk’s sense of the term) and naïve. I start with reflecting on the very meaning of the term “ideology” and propose to adopt its broad and “dialectical” sense, embracing ideology as false knowledge and as false consciousness, but emphasizing its connection with power. After recalling some theories of the “end of ideology”, from (...) Aron to Lyotard, through Polish thinkers such as Leszek Kołakowski, all based on a rather narrow sense of ideology. I argue that ideologies understood as a complex interconnection of desire and power have regained a crucial role, after the fall of the communist utopia, in the context of consumerist and technological capitalism and its conservative opponents. (shrink)

Artykuł podejmuje zagadnienia struktury osobowości i filozoficznych podstaw psychologii oraz etyki w filozofii Bergsona i Junga. Psychologiczna aparatura pojęciowa Junga jest tak rozbudowana, że próżno by szukać jej odpowiednika u Bergsona, lecz istnieje daleko idąca zbieżność między obu autorami, jeśli chodzi o rozumienie zadań i metod psychologii, drogi i celu życia ludzkiego oraz naczelnych wartości etycznych. Jaźń jest w koncepcji Junga w zasadzie tym, czym "ja głębokie” dla Bergsona. Rozwój świadomości zarówno w porządku filogenetycznym, jak i ontogenetycznym, widzi Jung, podobnie (...) Jak Bergson, w procesie jej względnej emancypacji w stosunku do sfery instynktowej i nieświadomej. Tak dla Junga, jak i dla Bergsona, proces poznawania siebie - "stawania się tym czym się jest", to sprawa między człowiekiem a nim samym, sprawa indywidualna. Więc także i moralność jest sprawą indywidualną, przy czym u Bergsona jest jeszcze istotna relacja "ja-Bóg", która u Junga nie odgrywa takiej samej roli, bowiem nie przesądza on pozytywnie kwestii istnienia Boga, jakkolwiek obraz Boga ma ważną i nieredukowalną funkcję w psychice. Optymizm aksjologiczny tak u Bergsona, jak i Junga, wsparty jest na przekonaniu o ścisłym związku moralności z wolnością i na pewności, że świadome siebie Życie prowadzi do realizacji najwyższych wartości moralnych - wiary, nadziei, miłości i poznania. (shrink)

Recently the virtual organization of work has become of crucial significance. The changes in the work environment induced by the Industry 4.0 revolution are also reflected in the emergence of virtual negotiations. New settings impose new challenges not only for negotiators, but also for higher education struggling to provide students with the best opportunities for comprehensive development. Given the applicability of virtual exchange (VE) in business higher education, the main objective of this paper is to present the usefulness of virtual (...) exchange as a tool to boost students’ skills that are necessary for virtual negotiations. Firstly, the concept of the 4th space was applied to compare the context of virtual negotiations and VE projects. Secondly, the learning outcomes of the VE projects were studied from the perspective of the requirements of virtual negotiations. (shrink)

The issue how to reduce of tax evasion is widely discussed in the literature. A public authority may affect the behavior of taxpayers, not only through economic factors, but also by strengthen fiscal discipline. In this process especially role play such issues as tax morale, tax mentality and perceived tax justice. The purpose of the study was to identify groups of taxpayers with similar attitudes towards taxes and similar tax behaviors. Cluster analysis elicited four types of tax payers: Intrinsic Tax (...) Payer, External Tax Payer, Intrinsic Tax Evader, External Tax Evader. In the study the most common were the first two types of taxpayers. Elicited types correspond with motivational tax postures identified by Braithwaite and Torgler. The conclusions sum up the key issues discussed, policy implications and the limitation of the analysis. (shrink)

The authoress focuses her attention on three major issues. She starts her deliberations by referring to the roots of philosophical and pedagogical ides of Europeanism. Then, she describes contemporary Europe from the perspective: of the world (external) and Europe itself (internal) creating a perspective for further analyses. Assuming that education is a screen of culture, the authoress points out interpretative bridges aimed at portraying education holistically understood as: being in the world, in Europe, “at home”. Ultimately, she shows the challenging (...) areas for education, which should integrate three modi of contemporary man’s existence: cosmopolitan, European, ethnic. (shrink)