Chinese Beliefs Research Articles

A focus group study of older Chinese people with CVD patients in the North West of the UK

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for Chinese migrants around the world. Chinese CVD patients rely heavily on their native Chinese language, cultural values and beliefs, which adds challenges for the healthcare providers to offer primary healthcare services with standard protocol. The inappropriate treatment could lead to life loss, mistrust in doctor-patient relationship and heavy burden for healthcare funding. 28 participants were included for focus group study with the grounded theory methodology. There is considerable misunderstanding among the Chinese community about the role of primary care doctors in the treatment of cardiovascular disease resulting in the variable use of primary care services. Chinese CVD patients or identified risk factors for CVD arguably need closer management, culturally sensitive advice, support and robust follow-up compared to the general population. Doctors and nurses should enhance their practice and give them confidence in their interaction with Chinese patients on the basis of how they think and behave in relation to help seeking.

A Theory of Objects: Transformations in Northern Song Conceptions of “Emblematic Forms in the Construction of Tools”

At the turn of the twentieth century, scholars put forward the idea of Chinese artifacts from different perspectives in order to overturn the prejudice against "artifacts" in traditional Chinese philosophy. In particular, they considered the normative role of artifacts for public literacy. Recent scholarly research shows that contemporary scholars are increasingly inclined to use Chinese artifactological ideas to explain ancient Chinese concepts and beliefs about artifacts. In fact, however, this idea of artifact design and production can be traced back to the Song Dynasty. The scholars of the Song Dynasty interpreted the contents of the I Ching about "ware" from a new perspective, legitimizing the study of "ware" and forming the original Chinese idea of artifact theory, which was widely applied to various disciplines in the Qing Dynasty. In this essay, I explore the changing conceptions of ‘object’ and ‘emblem’ through the Song, through differentiation and analysis of the differing contexts in which the phrase ‘zhi qi shang xiang’ occurs. Through close readings of the context in which it appears in Song official histories, incidental writings (biji) and essay collections, I am able to tease out the concrete significance of the phrase, allowing us to analyse it transformations over time. I start with analysis of the original source of the phrase to seek its earliest connotations as a basis on which to distinguish and classify the later, alternative readings it gains. Subsequently, I move into an analysis of Chen Xiliang’s Zhi qi shang xiang lun and the debate it generated to explore the Song transformations of the meaning of the phrase and the reasons for the semantic shift which occurred during this period. From this, I determine that between the Northern Song to the Southern song there was a shift in the approach to tools, from uncertainty to a definite affirmation of their importance and aesthetic value.

THE ROLE OF THE BIG DIPPER’S DEITIES IN THE CHINESE BELIEF SYSTEM (ON THE EXAMPLE OF 北斗 七 真君)

The main goal of the article is an attempt to systematize and generalize the available information about the famous group of deities of the Chinese Taoist pantheon - The Lords of the Stars of the Northern Dipper (北斗星 君). An attempt was made to take a closer look at the place of deities in the Chinese belief system. The work mentions the place of the Bei Dou constellation in Taoism and Chinese mythology. In addition to it, the practices and ways of worshiping deities and the role of the Lords of the Stars of the Northern Dipper, inhabiting the specified constellation, is also indicated. The work also provides a translation and analysis of fragments of canonical texts, which obtain an information about the Seven Lords of the Dipper. The conclusion indicates the value of the human life, and how it was understood with taking into account the role of the stars of the Northern Dipper

Health and local food consumption in cross-cultural tourism mobility: an assemblage approach

A healthy diet is vital to sustaining tourist mobility. In cross-cultural mobility, tourists must face strange local eating environments in tourism place and the complex health problems that these environments may cause. Existing research on tourist food consumption and health mainly addresses health from a biomedical perspective by emphasizing food nutrition and hygiene. We adopt an assemblage approach to understanding health as a relational outcome determined by multiple material, psychological, and cultural dimensions. Using Chinese outbound travel to Spain as a case, we explore how psychology, dietary habits, and cultural beliefs interconnect with the foods in novel cross-cultural environments to generate healthiness. A semi-structured interview method was used to collect data in Barcelona and Madrid. We construct three formulas to illustrate the health assemblages in tourists’ food consumption. In the food-psychology assemblage, tourists believe that low-risk foods are healthy. Neophobic tourists avoid tasting novel local foods due to unknown health risks, whereas neophiliac tourists show fewer similar health concerns. In the food-dietary habits assemblage, healthy dieting is the habitual and comfortable diet. Tourists with Chinese dietary habits are uncomfortable eating novel local foods. Cosmopolitan tourists, who incorporate various food habits in their diet, switch freely between different foods to obtain health. In the food-cultural beliefs assemblage, traditional Chinese cultural beliefs of yin-yang balance affect tourists’ health experience through diet. Tourists carefully choose local foods to achieve a cold-hot balance to keep health. These three health assemblages indicate that food health in tourism is a relational result of multiple dimensions.

Designing blended learning environments with thinking tool strategies: examining a Chinese teacher's decision-making and beliefs

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to examine a Chinese teacher's decision-making and changes in beliefs in a designed, blended learning environment that explored the use of thinking tools (TTs) strategies in nurturing students' thinking skills. The study used a qualitative methodology of Cultural Psychology, Trajectory Equifinality Approach (TEA), to analyze data of a Chinese primary school teacher, Teacher C. Through the analysis, the authors found Teacher C went through five developmental stages. During these stages, the authors identified that (1) online support to address the teacher's problem was effective and multiple viewpoints at international workshops triggered the “Aha” experience. (2) Reflections on beliefs better facilitated exploring TTs strategies in a concrete context. (3) Social guidance, such as presenting Lesson Studies and support of researchers, guided good decision-making, but social directions, such as transferring of supportive administrators and opposition from senior teachers inhibited Teacher C from making certain choices. Based on these results, the authors offer two design principles, combining belief reflection activities with decision-making and paying attention to the interaction of social factors, to improve blended learning environments and to support Chinese teachers to explore TTs strategies in the future.

Struggling to live a new normal life among Chinese women after losing an only child: A qualitative study

ObjectivesLosing an only child is a life-altering event that destroys Chinese women’s lives and health in several dimensions. However, there is no unified theory exists to guide nursing practice. This study aimed to discover the substantive theory of how Chinese women live with the loss of their only child. MethodsThis qualitative study used the grounded theory method. Purposive sampling, snowball sampling, and theoretical sampling were used to recruit participants. Saturated data from the in-depth interview, observation, and field notes with 13 Chinese women who have lost an only child in Southwest China were analyzed using the constant comparative method concurrently supplemented by the ATLAS.ti program, memo writing, and diagramming. FindingsStruggling to live a new normal life among Chinese women after losing an only child emerged as the substantive theory. It consists of three phases: living in agony, coming to terms, being alive in a new way. Receiving support motivated them to deal with such a loss. However, it brought them back to the previous phase(s) whenever they encountered adverse triggering situations. Therefore, they moved back and forth between these phases. The findings also illustrated that this process was profoundly affected by Chinese culture and personal beliefs. ConclusionsThis substantive theory may guide nursing practice based on understanding the living process by working through the three phases. It would help develop a professional care plan recognizing individual diversity and incorporating socio-cultural and religious knowledge to effectively support women to deal with the loss of an only child.

The First Islamic Classic in Chinese: Wang Daiyu’s by Sachiko Murata

Reviewed by: The First Islamic Classic in Chinese: Wang Daiyu’s by Sachiko Murata Cuma Ozkan Sachiko Murata, trans., The First Islamic Classic in Chinese: Wang Daiyu’s Real Commentary on the True Teaching. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2017, vii, 273 pp. US$23.95 (pb). ISBN 978-1-4384-6508-1 Sachiko Murata has previously contributed to the research on Islam in Late Imperial China, especially by translating seminal texts from the Han Kītab collection (Islamic writings in Chinese) into English. In her Chinese Gleams of Sufi Light, she translated Wang Daiyu’s 王岱輿 (ca. 1570–ca. 1660) Great Learning of Islam (Qingzhen daxue 清真大學) and Liu Zhi’s 劉智 (ca. 1660–ca. 1739) translation of Jami’s Lawa’ih into Chinese as Displaying the Concealment of the Real Realm (Zhenjing zhaowei 真境昭微), as well as produced a synopsis of Wang Daiyu’s Real Commentary on the True Teaching (Zhengjiao zhenquan 正教真詮) by translating snippets from each chapter.1 In the Sage Learning of Liu Zhi, she translated and annotated Nature and Principle in Islam (Tianfang xingli 天方性理).2 In this book, she translates the full forty chapters of Wang’s Zhengjiao zhenquan, which is the first Islamic text written in China, together with the author’s “Self-Narrative” (zixu 自敘) and a “Record of Questions and Answers” (wenda jiyan 問答紀言). Murata bases her translation on the 1657 edition of the text, but she also notes the differences between the editions of 1642, 1873, 1904, and 1922 (pp. 32–33), finding that they mostly have to do with typographical errors or the use of synonymous words. The Zhengjiao zhenquan consists of two sections of twenty chapters each, in which Wang explains the “spiritual and ethical underpinnings” of Islamic beliefs and practices while providing a “social and spiritual rationale” for them (p. 3). The first section of the work mainly introduces Islamic theology and cosmology explaining the attributes of Allah, Islamic creation, prophethood in Islam, and the relationship between human beings and God. Wang also explains deviant views that mischaracterize God in chapters titled “Similarity to the Real” (sizhen 似真), “Changing the Real” (yizhen 易真), and “Darkening the Real” (meizhen 昧真). The chapter “The Outstanding Differences” (jiongyi 迥異) presents the differences between Islam and the other religions in seven aspects, asserting the superiority of Islam over Chinese religions. The chapter “Huihui 回回,” the Chinese term for Muslims at that time, which Murata translates as “the Returning Returners,” explains the meaning of huihui as a return of body to its origin in two ways and a return of heart to its origin in two ways. The chapter “Husband and Wife” (fufu 夫婦) is unusual in the first section in that it deals with practical topics of marriage, celibacy, and a wife’s obedience to her husband. The first section ends with the chapter on the first pillar of Islam, the profession of faith (shahadah) where Wang explains the necessity of a creator (the “Real Lord” in the text) and prophets. The second section mainly introduces Islamic practices, showing their similarities to and differences from those of Chinese religions. It starts with the five pillars of Islam, which Wang refers to as “The Five Constants” (wu chang 五常), alluding to the Confucian concept. This section also includes topics such as filial piety, friendship, animal sacrifice, vegetarianism, gambling, drinking alcohol, usury, and hoarding. [End Page 307] Nevertheless, Zhengjiao zhenquan provides not a manual of Islamic beliefs and practices but a rationale for their superiority. Wang’s position in the text is often “polemical,” defending Islamic beliefs and practices against Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism (p. 5). Wang also presents Islam as the only true teaching and shows inconsistencies and fallacies in the beliefs and practices of Chinese religions. Wang often quotes from a wide range of Chinese sources and uses metaphors intelligible to the Chinese audience to demonstrate that Islamic beliefs and practices conform to Chinese antiquity. Yet, he does not abstain from boldly criticizing some Chinese beliefs and practices to show the superiority of Islam. With regards to fengshui 風水, he notes that “the teaching of Islam takes the method of yin and yang as incoherent and regards the clarity of knowledge as shallow . . . The foolish people of the world talk happily about...

Chinese traditional cultural belief of medical students and its relationship with depression

ObjectiveTo study the cultural beliefs of medical students and its relationship with depression.MethodA questionnaire survey was conducted among 977 medical students using the Chinese Traditional Culture Belief Scale (CTCBS) and Nine Item-Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).ResultsThe total score of medical students' cultural belief was 48.34± 7.31, and 54.4% of them had clear cultural belief. Cultural belief did not differ significantly among the medical students with different genders, places of residence or economic status, but those with ideals and beliefs had significantly higher cultural belief than those without (48.87±7.40 vs 47.09±6.95, P < 0.001). Cultural belief was negatively correlated to depression among the medical students (r=-0.215, P < 0.001), and those with a high-level cultural belief had lower levels of depression (6.09±3.88 vs 7.42 ± 3.82 vs 9.00 ± 4.90, P < 0.001). The total and all the dimensions scores of CTCBS of the students without depressive symptoms were significantly higher than those in students with depressive symptoms. The medical students with lower cultural beliefs had a higher positive rate for depression screening (37.8% vs 18.8% vs 12.2%).ConclusionMedical students have a high level of cultural beliefs. Strong culture beliefs are beneficial to relieve depression symptoms and reduce the incidence rate of depression. Chinese traditional culture education should be strengthened in the quality education of medical students.

Positive Thinking, School Adjustment and Psychological Well-being among Chinese College Students

Background: Previous studies have found that traditional positive Chinese beliefs contribute to the maintenance of the quality of life. It is interesting to explore the functions of positive thinking on stress in the Chinese context in order to test whether positive thinking influences the psychological well-being of college students. Objective: This study aims to examine the associations between positive thinking, school adjustment, and the psychological well-being of Chinese college-going students. It investigates the moderating role of positive thinking in the effects of poor school adjustment on stress and well-being. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to 299 male and 396 female college students aged 17-28 years across eight universities of Hong Kong. Results: Results confirmed that school adjustment was negatively related to stress (β= -.194) and positively related to life satisfaction ( β = .074). It was also indirectly related to psychological distress via stress ( β = -.194; β = .620). Moreover, positive thinking was a moderator to the relationships between school adjustment and stress ( β = .011) and to the relationships between school adjustment and life satisfaction ( β = -.009). School adjustment was more related to stress at higher levels of positive thinking while it was more related to life satisfaction at lower levels of positive thinking. Conclusion: These results suggested that enhancing positive thinking is beneficial to Chinese college-going students’ psychological well-being. Therefore, student services at universities can consider organizing workshops to educate and promote the appropriate use of positive thinking for students to alleviate their stress and enhance their psychological well-being.

Cultural Influences on Complementary Feeding Beliefs amongst New Chinese Immigrant Mothers in England: A Mixed Methods Study.

Adequate nutrition during infancy and early childhood is essential for ensuring the growth, health, and development of children so that they can reach their full potential. There is a current void of data on infant and young child feeding practices (IYCF) in ethnic minority communities in the UK; specifically, it is difficult to find accurate Chinese IYCF data in the UK because survey data often includes Chinese in the category of ‘Chinese or other ethnic group’, further contributing to health inequalities. This mixed methods study aimed to explore the cultural influences on IYCF beliefs among new Chinese immigrant mothers. A total of 31 mothers of infants aged 6–23 months were recruited from informal community organizations. All 31 mothers were born in Mainland China, the mean length of their stay after immigrating to the UK was 10 years (range = 1–21 years), and their mean age was 29 ± 3.40 years. When using the Infant Feeding Style Questionnaire (IFSQ) to investigate IYCF beliefs, the highest score was obtained for responsive attention, with a value of 4.28 ± 0.92, indicating that parents were very attentive to child hunger and satiety cues; lower scores were obtained for indulgence soothing (1.82 ± 1.01), indulgence coaxing (2.11 ± 1.18), indulgence pampering (1.90 ± 0.95), and pressuring to soothe (1.92 ± 0.86), indicating lesser maternal indulgence and pressuring/controlling beliefs. A sub-sample (n = 14) participated in semi-structured interviews in order to understand the balancing sources of information and cultural preferences, the influence of traditional Chinese medicine, and language difficulties in accessing health services. The mothers reported barriers of IYCF beliefs and the introduction of solid foods earlier than the NHS guidelines. This study can promote optimal IYCF in Chinese immigrants and show health services the need to reconcile differences between the perceptions of British and Chinese health beliefs.

Chinese and US Preschool Teachers’ Beliefs About Children’s Cooperative Problem-Solving During Play

Many researchers have investigated the cooperative problem solving (CPS) of children during play; however, there is a lack of studies focused on teachers’ beliefs about how to support the development of children’s CPS in classrooms. This study aims to investigate the pedagogical beliefs of Chinese (n = 3) and US (n = 3) teachers about the CPS of children during play and their decision-making capabilities in supporting children to advance this skill in classrooms. A semi-structured interview was conducted with the integration of video-stimulated recall approach in order to achieve this aim. Results confirm that the Chinese and US teachers believe that children are competent and have the autonomy to decide how to solve problems with their peers. The beliefs are similar across the teachers, whereas their execution of these beliefs varies, which reflects their cultural uniqueness in scaffolding and creating classroom environments.

How do people in China think about causes of their back pain? A predominantly qualitative cross-sectional survey

BackgroundLow back pain (LBP) is the second highest cause of health burden in China. Delayed recovery, poor clinical outcomes and persistence of LBP are associated with negative pain beliefs about LBP. Chinese philosophies are nested into the daily life of people in China, which is likely to influence pain beliefs. However, there is lack of knowledge about people’s discourses regarding their LBP in China. The primary aim of this study was to explore the discourses underlying the beliefs of people in China about what causes their persistent or recurrent LBP. The secondary aim was to investigate the sources of these pain beliefs.MethodsPeople (n = 152) from South Central, East and North Mainland China with LBP completed an online survey about what they believed caused their persistent or recurrent LBP and where these understandings came from. Potential causes of persistent or recurrent LBP were explored qualitatively using discourse analysis. The sources of these discourses were assessed by descriptive statistics with conventional content analysis.ResultsFive discourses were identified to underpin participants’ beliefs about what caused their persistent or recurrent LBP, namely: (1) biomedical problems (66.4%), (2) unbalanced lifestyle (48.7%), (3) menstruation and ‘kidney’ status (9.2%), (4) the ‘Five Elements’ imbalance (7.9%), and (5) energy status (5.9%). Most participants responded that their pain beliefs were based on information derived from healthcare professionals (59.2%), followed by the internet (24.3%) and family (23.0%).ConclusionsPeople from moderately and well-developed parts of Mainland China think predominantly in line with a Western biomedical viewpoint about their LBP. Traditional Chinese medicine related pain beliefs mainly to the concept of ‘balance’ were evident on contemporary Chinese society’s understandings of LBP. These cultural beliefs could be relevant to consider in LBP management and involve healthcare professionals, family and patient in this process.

Consuming Alcohol to Prepare for Adulthood: An Event History Analysis of the Onset of Alcohol Use Among Chinese College Students

Heavy episodic drinking among college students is a common but scarcely researched public health problem in China. Although social drinking could be regarded as an enjoyable activity across cultures, the Chinese cultural belief about alcohol use is different from that of its Western counterpart, which has been richly evidenced in the research literature. Specifically, Chinese college students may consider social drinking as a venue for practicing an important social skill and preparing for life after college. This project introduces and tests the concept of “drinking as preparation for adulthood.” An approximate longitudinal study was conducted with a purposive sample of 338 college students (65.5% as females) in Southern China. An event history analysis confirms that drinking as preparation for adulthood is a significant predictor of college drinking onset. Findings indicate that culturally unique psychological factors can provide valuable alternative explanations and expand the scientific validity of theories established in the West.

Health and Chinese Beliefs: A Scientometric Analysis of Health Literature Related to Taoism and Confucianism.

Taoism and Confucianism both exited simultaneously as philosophies of living in dynastic China. Although there has been an increasing popularity in scientometric studies, religion and health (R&H) literature lacks a holistic evaluation investigating articles relevant to Taoism and Confucianism. All publications produced in Taoism and Confucianism literature and indexed in Web of Science (WoS) databases between 1975 and 2018 were included in this study. Database search on health and Taoism literature retrieved 199 documents from WoS databases. Main research areas were Psychology, Religion and Behavioral Sciences (24.121, 21.608 and 20.603, respectively). The USA ranked first with 38 papers followed China, Taiwan and the UK (n = 35, 20 and 6 documents, respectively). Hong Kong Polytechnic University from China was the most contributor institution in health and Taoism literature. A total of 448 documents were published in health and Confucianism literature between 1975 and 2018, and original articles covered 93.08% of all literature. China was leading country with 126 articles followed by the USA, South Korea and Taiwan (n = 97, 35 and 35 items, respectively). The most productive institutions were City University of Hong Kong (China), Karolinska Institute (Sweden) and University of Hong Kong (China). Researchers from developing and least developed countries should be encouraged to carry out novel scientometric studies in R&H literature.

Posttraumatic stress symptoms, adversity belief, and internet addiction in adolescents who experienced a major earthquake

This study assessed the moderating role of adversity beliefs in the association between post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSSs) and internet addiction (IA) in adolescents over 9.5 years old in the period after the Wenchuan earthquake. We recruited a total of 776 middle-school students in the area hit by the earthquake. The students were asked to complete a negative life events scale, the DSM-5 PTSD checklist, the Chinese adversity beliefs scale, and the Chinese internet addiction scale. We found that PTSSs, including intrusive symptoms, negative alterations in mood and cognition symptoms (NAMC), and hyperarousal symptoms but not avoidance symptoms, had positive predictive effects on IA. Positive adversity beliefs had negative predictive effects on IA. A moderating effect analysis showed that positive adversity beliefs could buffer the influence of PTSSs’ negative alterations in mood and cognition symptoms on IA. However, positive adversity beliefs were not found to have a buffering role in the relationship between intrusive, avoidance, and hyperarousal PTSS symptoms and IA.

Green Burial in Hong Kong

Green Burial is a burial method which uses biodegradable materials to entomb the dead body instead of cremating by using embalmed liquid. It aims to let the body return to the nature naturally. With an ageing population, there is an increase of demand on columbarium and niches in Hong Kong, and green burial has been introduced as a more sustainable option to bury the deceased. The current paper has summarised the official documents regarding the green burial programme proposed by the Hong Kong government. The reason why people do not prefer green burial may be due to the Chinese traditional belief and the lack of education. Methods of delivery of message and social media coverage are issues leading to people not being encouraged to use green burial. United States and Singapore develop improved approaches in performing green burial. The effect in promoting green burial services is evaluated in this study and recommendations on improving the way of promotion are proposed.

Mothers Left without a Man: Poverty and Single Parenthood in China

Most single-parent families in China are headed by women, and single mothers represent one of the fastest-growing groups living in poverty. Yet few studies have examined this group. This article seeks to better understand how (and why) single mothers are disadvantaged in China. Based on in-depth interviews conducted in Zhuhai, Guangzhou Province, it demonstrates that single mothers are left behind in four respects: lower income and worse economic conditions, lower employment and career development opportunities, worse physical and mental health, and poorer interpersonal relationships and less chance of remarriage. The causes of these disadvantages include Chinese family beliefs, a culture of maternal sacrifice, the traditional division of labour between men and women and social stereotypes about single mothers. The article highlights the impacts of Chinese familism culture on single mothers and advocates incorporating a gender perspective into the agenda of family policy and other relevant social policies in China.

Attitudes and Beliefs Toward Advance Care Planning Among Underserved Chinese-American Immigrants

ContextMany in the rapidly growing Chinese-American population are non-English-speaking and medically underserved, and few engage in advance care planning (ACP). Evaluating culturally-determined factors that may inhibit ACP can inform programs designed to increase ACP engagement. ObjectivesTo describe attitudes and beliefs concerning ACP in older, non-English-speaking Chinese Americans in a medically-underserved urban region. MethodsPatients were consecutively recruited from a primary care practice in New York City to participate in a cross-sectional survey. Attitudes and beliefs were measured using an ACP Survey Tool and the validated Traditional Chinese Death Beliefs measure. Exploratory analyses evaluated associations between these two measures and between each measure and sociodemographics, primary dialect, acculturation (using the Suinn-Lew Asian Self Identity Acculturation Scale), and health status (using the Short Form-8 Health Survey). ResultsPatients (n = 179) were 68.2 years on average; 55.9% were women, and 81.0% were non-English speaking (42.8% Cantonese, 15.2% Mandarin, 19.3% Toisanese, and 19.3% Fuzhounese). Most had low acculturation (mean 1.7/5.0) and highly-rated physical and mental health (mean 70.1/100 and 81.5/100, respectively). Few patients (15.1%) had an advance directive and 56.8% were unfamiliar with any type; 74.4% were willing to complete one in the future. Thirty-two percent "agreed" that "talking about death in the presence of a dying person would accelerate death". The analyses revealed no significant associations. ConclusionThese Chinese-American older adults had low acculturation and very limited knowledge of, or engagement in, ACP. Factors that may predict culturally-determined attitudes and beliefs about ACP were not identified. Further research can inform efforts to improve ACP engagement in this population.

Moral rhythm: Minutes change of moral motivation based on Sina Weibo data

Moral motivation refers to the internal driving forces that give rise to individuals’ moral behaviors for achieving their moral goals. It typically contains two dimensions: Agency and communion. Agency denotes motives to advance the well-being of self within a social hierarchy, as manifested in achievement, social power, or material wealth. Communion denotes motives to advance the well-being of others, as manifested in concerns for disadvantaged, distant others, or the ecological well-being of the planet. Based on Sina Weibo data, the current study has depicted how moral motivation fluctuated throughout the day. Our Weibo data contained tens of millions of social media user statistics and hundreds of microblogs. Two separate levels of analysis were used to explore the changes of moral motivation. The first level was group-means level. In this level, we used all data we collected including all microblog users, and the “group-means” means the word frequencies of communion or agency per minute, which neglected the individual differences. The second level was individual-means level. In this level, only the most active individuals were included. When we calculated the moral motivation per minute, we first looked at the communion/agency of each user, and then averaged the results of all users. Results indicated that moral motivation in the morning was higher than that in the afternoon, evening, and night, with rejuvenating benefits of eating and sleeping at both group level and individual level. Moreover, there appeared a diverging effect between agency and communion. Specifically, we have found that after eating (especially lunch) and sleeping (including naps around noon), moral motivation peaked and then decreased until the next time for food and bed, which is consistent with the traditional Chinese belief that every morning is a refreshing start in everyday life. Our findings also extend previous research on self-regulatory strength depletion and restoration to the domain of moral motivation, and changes of moral motivation might be the real cause and underlying mechanism behind the behavioral differences in the morning and the afternoon. The current study makes contributions in several areas. First, this research has provided a complete picture of moral changes throughout the day for the very first time based on Sina Weibo data. Second, this research advances the literature on moral behaviors by including changes of moral motivation, which might be a crucial and new mediator for moral behavioral changes. Third, our findings increase the generalizability of previous research on moral behaviors by replicating the findings with a Chinese sample. Finally, compared with survey study and experiments, the social media data we collected and utilized include more comprehensive and in-depth information, which contributes to the robustness of our results. Taken together, our findings provide further validation and empirical support for the morning morality effect and reveal the dynamic pattern of the changes of human moral motivation.

Where got ghost movie?: The boundaries of Singapore horror

While acknowledging that the horror film is generally not considered a major part of the ‘Singapore new wave’, this article makes the case that Singapore horror films nevertheless merit closer critical evaluation not only because of their sustained output in a very small industry, but also because of their articulation of a range of issues germane to Singapore nationhood and identity – issues which obtain in other Singapore films as well. The discussion surveys the entirety of the Singapore horror output from the 1990s onwards and draws out a number of key distinctive themes and trends, such as the referencing of Chinese supernatural beliefs and regional Southeast Asian spirits, and also the distinctive preponderance of horror narratives involving military or police. The films are then read in relation to broad tropes of gender, geography and regulation.