Moral Concepts Research Articles

Dual panic theory: new Insight into moral panics

Objective: to comprehensively analyze the moral panic concept, developed in the works by S. Cohen, and to elaborate, on its basis, a new concept – the dual panic theory. Methods: dialectical approach to cognition of social phenomena, allowing to analyze them in historical development and functioning in the context of the totality of objective and subjective factors, which predetermined the following research methods: formal-logical, sociological. Results: Moral panics have been broadly discussed in the public discourse since S. Cohen’s (1972) seminal text on the topic. Despite copious research, we believe that the theory is in need of expansion due to the increased complexity of societal interactions. Through the lens of an increasingly polarizing American culture, we believe the original concept of moralpanics is overly simplified and no longer encompasses the intricacies of American society. Using the story of the McCloskey family’s 2020 interactions with Black Lives Matter protestors and Goode and Ben-Yehuda’s (1994) definitional criteria, we propose a new, expanded theory of moral panics – Dual Panic Theory. Scientific novelty: based on the analysis of the existing approaches to the moral panic concept, the paper offers and elaborates a new concept – the dual panic theory. It suggests that an event can happen that causes a competing panic by two opposing sides of an issue. Different from a culture war, dual panics are genuine panics about an action rather than a reaction to oppositional outrage from a competing interest group. Goode and Ben-Yehuda argue that researching moral panic cannot be complete without an examination of all societal levels, from elites to grassroots, and the full spectrum from ideology and morality at one end to crass status and material interests at the other. As society has evolved, so too must the theoretical explanations of societal reactions, moral panic or otherwise. Practical significance: the main provisions and conclusions of the article can be used in scientific, pedagogical and law enforcement activities when considering the issues related to the moral panic concept.

The Holism of Morality in Taha Abdurrahman’s Work

This study aims to examine Taha Abdurrahman's moral philosophy by synthesizing the concepts of human, reason, morality, religion, and modernity. In conducting this examination, special emphasis is placed on the interrelatedness of the aforementioned concepts, focusing on where Taha Abdurrahman's claims stand within the context of moral philosophy. The study distinguishes itself from other related works on Taha Abdurrahman’s philosophy by firmly establishing his position in moral philosophy and elucidating his approach to moralization. Taha Abdurrahman offers an alternative understanding to the existing moralization by attempting to reestablish a holistic moral understanding akin to that of the Ancient and Medieval periods, in contrast to the fragmented moral understanding of the Modern Age, which centers the individual in moralization. In this regard, this study concludes that Taha Abdurrahman holds a position based on the concept of “metaphysical good” within the context of moral philosophy. Another fundamental result of this study is the demonstration that through the synthesis of the concepts used by Taha Abdurrahman, he approaches moralization by considering moral obligation and moral sustainability. The document analysis method, one of the qualitative research methods, was employed in this study.

Maximize the Impacts of Forgiveness Education with Moral Agency Development

Forgiveness education is more than the teaching of forgiveness. Since forgiveness education cultivates virtuous characters and the best self as the moral self, it sets the foundation for moral agency development. Based on a review of research and the literature about the psychological processes of forgiveness and moral agency, this article illustrates how the forgiveness virtue and moral agency operate and enhance each other for their common roots in the moral self. Due to their symbiotic relationship, promoting moral agency development in forgiveness education is beneficial for the cultivation of mature forgivers, mature moral agents, and good citizens with virtuous characters. To maximize the effectiveness and the impacts of forgiveness education, the GMIRA method is proposed. That is, setting the learning goal of living and being the best self; social modeling towards the goal, and blending the holistic moral agency concept into the existing forgiveness curriculum using the IRA (invitation, reflection, and assessment) strategies. Since moral agency is adaptive, the IRA methods can be flexibly applied to fit individual developmental needs across time and social-cultural contexts in all types of education. This novel idea is open for future research.

Unveiling Religious Paradigm and Postmodern Deconstruction in Dramatic Works from The Balkan Countries of the 20th And Early 21st Centuries: A Study of Sabri Hamiti’s Drama

The article investigated the religious paradigm and postmodern deconstruction in the dramatic works of Balkan playwrights, focusing on Kosovar writer Sabri Hamiti, exploring the role of religious and mythological narratives in his plays and their deconstruction through postmodernist techniques. The research analysed how Hamiti incorporates biblical, Qur’anic, and mythological symbols to question traditional moral frameworks, offering new interpretations of sin, redemption, and moral responsibility. Using a comparative literary approach and textual analysis, the study identified key postmodern principles such as multiplicity of meanings, temporal disruptions, and deconstruction of fixed structures in Hamiti’s works. The results demonstrate that Hamiti’s dramas challenge the stability of religious and moral concepts, while simultaneously utilizing them as cultural artifacts that contribute to the national identity of the Balkans. His plays reveal a complex interaction between the sacred and the profane, highlighting the role of religion in shaping both individual and collective consciousness. The findings underscore the enduring significance of religious symbols in contemporary Balkan drama and the profound impact of postmodernist tendencies on the cultural and theatrical development of the region.

Do counselor candidates have individualizing or binding moral foundations?

ABSTRACT Recent research has highlighted the application of moral foundations theory in counseling settings as it can provide a complex framework to understand the concept of morality, moral diversity, values, and decision-making processes. The emergence and development of social justice and multicultural counseling competencies has particularly raised important concerns regarding the application of values in counseling. The present study examined moral foundations as predictors of counseling students’ universality – diversity orientation. Three hundred and fifty-six counseling students at the undergraduate level participated in the research (M age = 21.86, SD = 2.26, 77.1% female). The results of a series of multiple regression analyses indicated that individualizing foundations were stronger predictors of universality – diversity orientation. Fairness was the only significant predictor of the behavioral aspect of universality – diversity orientation (diversity of contact), while fairness and care robustly predicted the cognitive aspect of universality – diversity orientation (relativistic appreciation). Care, authority, and loyalty significantly predicted the emotional aspect (comfort with differences). Overall, these results suggest that the participating counselor candidates were more likely to rely on individualizing foundations for cultural competence.

The Effects of Social Cues in Self-Produced Micro Video Lectures on Parasocial Interaction, Motivational Interest, Extraneous Cognitive Load, and Concept Learning Performance: an Empirical Study in a Junior High School

Background and Aim: Videos are popular in the dissemination of knowledge at scale, which can be seen in various video-based platforms and educational disruption. However, inconsistent results were reported in studies. This research is designed to determine the effectiveness of social cues in self-produced micro video lectures on parasocial interaction, motivational interest, extraneous cognitive load, and concept learning performance and the relationship among them. Materials and Methods: Self-produced videos for learning concepts of morality and the rule of law in junior high schools were used as the treatment. Tests were used to determine concept learning performance and Likert scales were utilized to collect information on the other three variables. 248 students from the eighth grade in a public school were involved in the sample. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze differences among groups, and path analysis as well as was adopted to determine the relationship between variables. Results: There was no significant difference among the four groups on each variable. Parasocial interaction has a significant positive impact on motivational interest, motivational interest has a negative significant impact on extraneous cognitive load, and extraneous cognitive load has a negative significant impact on concept learning performance. Conclusion: The effects of the increment of types of social cues can be ignored in 6-minute self-produced video lectures. Students’ parasocial interaction can influence concept learning performance via the mediation of the cognition process and motivational factors. The extraneous cognitive load decreases with the stimulation of the motivational interest.

Tax consequences and the principle of impossibilium nulla obligatio est and the internal morality of the law

The article contains considerations in the context of the constitutionality of taxation of the acquisition of inheritancewhen the subject of the inheritance is only real estate. The considerations are made in the context of theRoman paremia impossibilium nulla obligatio est (no one can be obliged to do the impossible) and Lon LuvoisFuller’s concept of the internal morality of law. The considerations concern the feasibility of the tax structure dueto financial aspects.

Relationship between Vitality and Characteristics of Coping Strategies in Deviant Adolescents

Adolescence is important in the development and formation of a personality, and the family radically influences the development of a teenager; under the family influence, foundations of intentional behavior, ways of responding to stress, level of vitality and defense mechanisms are laid, and a general direction in the formation of moral concepts and relationships emerges. And all this happens against the background of contradictions in physiological and mental development, spiritual formation. The reasons for the use of psychoactive drugs are varied, and most often chemical dependence is determined by the combined action of various factors and conditions. The purpose of the research work was to study the relationship between family structure and characteristics of the adolescents’ response to stress in undergoing inpatient treatment due to the use of psychoactive substances. The study was conducted on the basis of the Novosibirsk Regional Clinical Narcological Dispensary (teenage department). The main group included 18 young men, age: from 15 to 18 years, with experience of using psychoactive substances from one year to three or more years - “teenage addicts”. The control group, “conditionally healthy”, denying the use of psychoactive substances, was represented by high school students of one of the gymnasiums, 15 young men of the same age group. The following methods were used: the Family Adaptation and Cohesion Scale (FACES-3) questionnaire; Plutchik, Kellerman, Conte questionnaire - Life Style Index (LSI) methodology; questionnaire “Methods of coping behavior” by R. Lazarus and S. Folkman and test of vitality (S. Muddy) adapted by D.A. Leontyev. Results. It was revealed that adolescent addicts differ from adolescents without addictive behavior in the following parameters: low level of family adaptation and family cohesion; Adolescents with addictive behavior differ in their style of responding to difficult life situations: they more often use defenses and coping, which serve the function of regulating negative emotional states associated with unmet needs for communication, self-affirmation, etc., while adolescents without addictive behavior use coping and defense, which main function is to resolve the situation; Adolescents with addictive behavior have a lower level of resilience than relatively healthy adolescents. The possibilities of psychotherapeutic influences are discussed.

BIMBINGAN AKHLAK REMAJA DAN PENINGKATAN MORAL DI DESA JAYASAMPURNA

Guidance on teenage morality is an educational program designed to strengthen moral values and ethics in the daily lives of teenagers. The program aims to help teenagers develop awareness of moral norms and reinforce positive character and behavior. Implemented in Desa Jayasampura, this program involves active interaction between facilitators and teenagers, focusing on the moral situations and challenges faced by teenagers in their local environment. Through a participatory approach and group activities, teenagers are encouraged to understand the concepts of morality in Islam and how to apply them in their daily lives. Moral guidance includes discussions on integrity, responsibility, empathy, and respect for oneself and others. Practical activities such as discussions, role-playing games, and community-based projects are used to engage teenagers in the learning process. Evaluation of this program will be conducted by measuring changes in attitudes, knowledge, and behavior of teenagers before and after participating in moral guidance. The results of this evaluation are expected to provide a better understanding of the program's effectiveness in increasing moral awareness and strengthening ethical values among teenagers at the local level. Thus, it is hoped that this program will make a positive contribution to shaping the character and morality of teenagers in Desa Jayasampurna.

Moral Learning and Decision-Making Across the Lifespan.

Moral learning and decision-making are crucial throughout our lives, from infancy to old age. Emerging evidence suggests that there are important differences in learning and deciding in moral situations, and these are underpinned by co-occurring changes in the use of model-based values and theory of mind. Here, we review the decision neuroscience literature on moral choices and moral learning considering four key concepts. We show how in the earliest years, a sense of self/other distinction is foundational. Sensitivity to intention versus outcome is crucial for several moral concepts and is most similar in our earliest and oldest years. Across all ages, basic shifts in the influence of theory of mind and model-free and model-based learning support moral decision-making. Moving forward, a computational approach to key concepts of morality can help provide a mechanistic account and generate new hypotheses to test across the whole lifespan.

The Embodiment of Benevolence and Destiny in Er Pai in late Ming Dynasty

Author Ling Mengchu wrote the Slapping Table in Amazement-First Series and Slapping Table in Amazement-Second Series (The following collectively referred to as Er Pai). The “business-related chapters” have as many as 31 business-related chapters. This kind of theme accounted for 1/3 of the total number of articles of the novel. The business-related articles refer to the “business-related chapters” in which the relevant chapters in Er Pai are summarized based on previous research results, which involve commercial activities, describe merchants’ behavior, and reflect merchants’ thoughts, and show commercial cultural phenomena. The business-related chapters of Er Pai depicts a lot of good and evil stories, with the development of the plot reveals that destiny can be divided into the manipulation of God and man-made. The destiny of the characters in the text is mostly affected by the individual’s own moral conduct, which leads to the subsequent results. Some of them are not in the right shape to save themselves from disaster, benevolent people are in the right shape to enjoy happiness and prosperity. The connection between benevolence and destiny is not divorced from reality. The moral relationship between benevolence and destiny, the influence of benevolence on destiny, the influence of scholars-merchants culture on the moral concepts of benevolence and destiny, and the consideration and choice of scholars-merchants class on benevolence and destiny are the focus of this chapter. This chapter discusses the scholars-merchants culture and the social moral concepts of benevolence and destiny in the business-related chapters of Er Pai, to analyze the balance and choice made by the scholars-merchants class on benevolence and destiny in the face of public morality and private interests, and even the calculation of the present or future. In addition, the destiny presented in the novel can be divided into the domination of God and the destiny caused by human. Through the description of the plot, the inviolable destiny is analyzed, and the transformation after being influenced by human is also the main part of this chapter.

Morality through the lens of Confucian heritage countries: collective self variations and moral worldviews.

The issue of Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (WEIRD) samples dominating research has been ongoing for decades, and now the emerging trend is to turn to theoretical perspectives from the Majority World. Adopting Western-centric methods based on reductionism can overlook important details and differences between similar cultures, particularly in East Asian cultures, where the Confucian values of relational harmony take many forms. We discuss a novel theoretical perspective on moral constitutions in Confucian heritage cultures. Our central tenet is that divergent moral concepts and ideals are present in Confucian cultures because each culture emphasizes a specific pillar and the self is situated differently in the social relationships that define the scope of interpersonal moral obligations. We consider three Confucian countries: China, Japan, and South Korea as examples. Despite geographical proximity and conventional categorization in cultural psychology, each Confucian country manifests distinct patterns of the self, moral ideals, and behavior in socio-moral contexts. To understand how and why moral worldviews vary within a region, we need to examine how the self in socio-cultural contexts differs and guides interpersonal norms and behaviors across sociocultural contexts. We conclude this paper by offering methodological recommendations for including indigenous moral concepts outside the WEIRD context.

CONCEPT OF "DEVOTION": SEMANTIC, COGNITIVE, LINGUOCULTURAL APPROACH

The choice of anthropocentric linguistics as a scientific paradigm is due to the inclusion of the studied problems in the study of the semiosphere of the inner world of man, which is one of the priorities of modern research. In modern linguistics, it becomes relevant to understand and describe the linguistic ontology of the concept of “loyalty” to the fullest extent possible, to identify and form the conceptual properties of the concept, to characterize its objective structure as a moral concept.

Leadership and the ethics of hope: Václav Havel and the Charter 77 human rights movement in Czechoslovakia

Hope as a feature in both authentic and spiritual leadership theory has become a diminished moral concept, departing from its philosophical and theological roots, and distorted by excessive positivity, success, instrumentalization, cultural bias, and ideology. Following Ciulla’s (2014) assertion that biography can do much to inform leadership theory, this paper contributes a richer understanding of hope through the though case of Václav Havel and the Charter 77 human rights movement in Czechoslovakia using French existentialist Gabriel Marcel’s ethics of hope. Five elements of Marcel’s philosophy demonstrate hope’s transforming vulnerability amidst technological control, relationship with despair, active presence, creative fidelity, and transcending power in love. Examining Czechoslovakia’s human rights movement through the lens of Marcellian ethics provides insight into the role of absurdity and truth-telling as a precursor to hope, taking responsibility for failure, overcoming fear through the “solidarity of the shaken,” creative fidelity through living in truth and using humor, and love manifesting as sacrifice and openness to seeing one’s contribution to the moral contamination of society under totalitarianism.

The Lord Is Kind-Hearted And Cannot See The Poor: Social Reflections On The Film”Return To Dust”

Chinese cinema has always played an important role in spreading culture and transmitting values. As a kind of audio-visual media, it needs to be able to reflect social reality, moral concepts as well as cultural values in a profound way. However, in China, which has a strict film censorship system, the production and dissemination of films are strictly controlled and restricted by the government censorship system. There is a film Return to Dust, which created heat through many self-media, such as XiaoHongShu and DOUYIN, before its release, in which the previews showed real rural literary scenes that attracted wide attention. After its release, the social aspect of the film explored the deep-seated human emotions and regional issues, and a month later, the film was taken off the shelves, instantly triggering a wide-ranging discussion on censorship standards and artistic freedom [1]. Return to Dust, as a literary film, is sufficiently rich in cultural connotation and social significance for the audience. The film uses linear storytelling to show the current situation of the rural underclass in Northwest China during the four seasons of the year, the social ills and the complexity of human nature, which triggers the audience to think about "suffering". However, it is worth noting that although the film shows the "suffering", it also shows the warmth of the two underclass people, i.e. the goodness and beauty of human nature. However, such films with sensitive social issues are often restricted by the Chinese government's censorship. Exploring the reasons why Return to Dust has not been accepted by the modern Chinese government is not only a critical reflection on the censorship results of the film, but also a profound analysis of the censorship standards, value orientations, and the ideology of the censors behind the censorship system of Chinese cinema

‘Don’t panic, don’t panic’: an analysis of a purported pro-eating disorder website/online content moral panic and legal and policy responses

ABSTRACT It has been argued that newspaper responses to pro-eating disorder websites, within the United Kingdom (UK), constitute a moral panic. It is feared that moral panics may spur rash legal/policy responses. My analysis indicates that the consideration of pro-eating disorder websites by British newspaper journalists and others does not constitute a moral panic. I argue that the misuse of the moral panic concept exemplifies the dominance of emotivism within contemporary culture and may trivialise potential online harms and serve as an apologia for surveillance/digital capitalism. I contend that pro-eating disorder websites are potentially harmful and assess legal and policy responses, such as the Online Safety Act 2023 and the advancement of the digital commons. I also contend that the increase in the number of people suffering with eating disorders within the UK should be addressed by devoting more resources for research into, and the prevention and treatment of, eating disorders.

Evolution of the Moral Lexicon.

Morality is central to social well-being and cognition, and moral lexicon is a key device for human communication of moral concepts and experiences. How was the moral lexicon formed? We explore this open question and hypothesize that words evolved to take on abstract moral meanings from concrete and grounded experiences. We test this hypothesis by analyzing semantic change and formation of over 800 words from the English Moral Foundations Dictionary and the Historical Thesaurus of English over the past hundreds of years. Across historical text corpora and dictionaries, we discover concrete-to-abstract shifts as words acquire moral meaning, in contrast with the broad observation that words become more concrete over time. Furthermore, we find that compound moral words tend to be derived from a concrete-to-abstract shift from their constituents, and this derivational property is more prominent in moral words compared to alternative compound words when word frequency is controlled for. We suggest that evolution of the moral lexicon depends on systematic metaphorical mappings from concrete domains to the moral domain. Our results provide large-scale evidence for the role of metaphor in shaping the historical development of the English moral lexicon.

Pendidikan Karakter dan Kedalaman Moral Perspektif Lichona dan Kohlberg

This study aims to delve into the depth of moral concepts from the perspectives of Lichona and Kohlberg and their application in character education. Through a literature review and comparative analysis, this research compares and explores the moral theories developed by Lichona and Kohlberg, particularly in the context of character development and moral education in schools. Using a qualitative approach, the study identifies the key principles of both theories and considers how these principles can be integrated into effective character education curricula and practices. The findings indicate that, despite some differences in their theoretical aspects, both thinkers contribute significantly to the understanding and teaching of morality in education. The study suggests that a combined approach, drawing on the strengths of both theories, can provide a richer and more comprehensive framework fo rcharacter educationin schools.

The National Concept Behind Japanese Aesthetic "Wabi-sabi"

This article takes the gold jewelry of Nagoya Castle as an example, and through a case study method, discusses the correlation between the Japanese aesthetic concept of "Wabi-sabi" and the social tradition of "gaman" and the philosophical thought of "no-self" in the Japanese national character. The purpose is to point out that aesthetic preferences are affected by external factors such as national growth environment and moral concepts. Similarly, Japanese philosophical thoughts and national concepts have had a profound impact on the formation and development of wabi-sabi aesthetics. The research in this article not only helps the academic community to fully grasp the essential characteristics of wabi-sabi aesthetics; it also helps the academic community to deeply understand the similarities and differences between wabi-sabi aesthetics and other aesthetic concepts; it has certain academic significance for promoting the theoretical research and practical application of wabi-sabi aesthetics and realistic value.

Good and Evil Ethical Concepts in the Linguistic Picture of the World of Kyrgyz

This article analyses actual problems of cognitive linguistics, intensively developing linguistic direction since the 80s of the XX century. The study concisely conducted a scientific and theoretical analysis of cognitivism, the object of the study of which becomes the human mind, thinking and mental processes. The formation of a concept as a basic concept of cognitive linguistics is connected with cognitive activity, world perception of a person. The concept as a result of national linguo culture reflects national, spiritual and cultural values in the linguistic picture of the world of any ethnic group. It is noted that language is a manifestation of cognitive processes, “activity of the mind” is studied on the material of language i.e. language means. The article is devoted to the analysis of ethical concepts “good” and “evil” in the language consciousness of the Kyrgyz people. It is noted that the key tokens are good and evil. The study is conducted on the material of analysis of lexical meanings of linguistic units with morphemes: zhakshy, zhaman, Kyrgyz proverb, a passage from the Epic of Manas, consisting of opposition “good” and “evil”. The article briefly describes the essence of the philosophy of good and evil of the Kyrgyz people, which reflects humanistic ideas, moral and ethical, national values, ethnic peculiarities of mentality of the Kyrgyz people. In them, good stands for love, good, success, faith, hope, honor and dignity, a sense of duty, and evil is manifested in destruction, greedy profligacy, slyness, anger, etc. The study notes that the conceptual part of the structure of concepts “good” and “evil” is “multiple and complex, as they use figurative expressions, which include purely personal perception, linguistic mentality and means of artistic expression. It has been determined that the moral and ethical concepts of “good” and “evil” are a neglected topic in Kyrgyz linguistics. They have a special place in the linguistic consciousness of the Kyrgyz people and require further in-depth study.