Self-esteem Research Articles

Restoring Sexual Dignity: Sexual Violence, Human Dignity and Transitional Justice in Colombia

This article explores the role of human dignity in shaping policies and advocacy efforts, particularly in recognizing and addressing the harm caused by sexual violence against victims of Colombia’s armed conflict. It focuses on women who have experienced sexual and reproductive violence, using the concept of sexual dignity to examine the mechanisms employed in Colombia’s transitional justice process. The analysis draws on interviews, reports from the Truth Commission, the Historical Memory Group, laws and reports by victims’ organizations, applying a binary model of “dignity takings” and “dignity restoration”. The article proposes that policies for addressing the needs of victims of sexual violence should consider the multiple forms of dignity takings and dignity restoration experienced by victims. The article proposes a model with four binaries: body violation/body autonomy; lack of control over the future/control over the future; denial of the past/authorship of one’s narrative; and shame/honour. It also addresses other forms of dignification, such as spiritual healing and community-building.

Law Technology and Human Dignity: Shaping Rights Respecting Digital future

The swift progression of technology has significantly altered civilizations, offering both unparalleled potential and substantial challenges to human rights. This article examines the complex interplay between law, technology, and human rights, highlighting the historical evolution of legal frameworks in response to technological advancements and the necessity for ongoing adaptation. It investigates significant technology advancements—such as digital surveillance, artificial intelligence, social media, biometric systems, and the Internet of Things—and evaluates their effects on essential rights including privacy, freedom of expression, equality, and security. The article emphasizes urgent human rights issues in the digital era, including extensive data gathering, algorithmic prejudice, online censorship, and digital disparity, demonstrating how technology advancements may both empower individuals and jeopardize their liberties. It also examines current international and regional legal instruments, ethical standards, and the existing gaps, emphasizing the necessity for adaptive, inclusive, and enforced frameworks. The paper emphasizes the necessity of proactive regulation, responsible innovation, and international collaboration to mitigate the rising threats linked to technologies such as blockchain, quantum computing, and deepfakes. It ultimately endorses a rights-based strategy that harmonizes innovation with the protecting and advancement of human dignity, underscoring that the protection of human rights in the digital age is crucial for cultivating a just, transparent, and inclusive future.

Collapse and validation of terror management anxiety buffers –therapists’ reactions to war

This qualitative study aimed to analyze therapists’ reactions to the Israel-Hamas war, using lenses offered by Terror Management Theory (TMT). Israeli therapists (N = 201) were asked to share their experiences, feelings and perceptions in light of the events and their recent professional interventions. Findings reveal four themes: first, showing that the war indeed raised existential anxiety and mortality salience, and then, in view of these, the functioning of the TMT anxiety buffer mechanisms in additional three themes, namely enhancement of self-esteem; reinforcement of collective worldviews; and seeking proximity to others. Interestingly, we observed both the collapse of these mechanisms after exposure to the salience of death, as well as their validation as a further reaction. Moreover, we identified breakdown and validation in both personal and professional elements of the anxiety buffer mechanisms, offering an extended conceptualization of TMT as relevant to therapists’ reactions to a real-world exposure to death.

Formalismo símbolo en la cadena perpetua y afectación a la libertad personal: Un análisis desde la jurisprudencia del Tribunal Constitucional Peruano

This article analyzes the legal application of life imprisonment in Peru, assessing its compatibility with the fundamental right to personal liberty. Based on a study of five Constitutional Court rulings, it identifies patterns and deficiencies regarding the proportionality of the sentence, judicial review, and its resocialization purposes. Although national jurisprudence validates this sanction under the condition of a review at 35 years, this requirement often operates as a symbolic formality without guaranteeing effective rehabilitation. It also notes that this penalty disproportionately affects vulnerable populations with limited access to adequate defense, deepening the structural inequalities of the justice system. The article argues that the current application of life imprisonment violates fundamental rights such as personal liberty, human dignity, and the possibility of social reintegration. It proposes a critical review of this penalty from a human rights and due process perspective.

Artificial Intelligence and pornography: A comprehensive research review

This comprehensive review examines the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and pornography, analyzing how AI-driven technologies such as deepfakes, recommendation systems, and content moderation tools are reshaping the adult entertainment industry. While AI introduces efficiencies in content creation and personalization, it also generates significant ethical, psychological, legal, and societal challenges. The proliferation of non-consensual deepfake pornography raises urgent concerns about consent, privacy, and image-based sexual abuse. AI's role in influencing user behaviour, reinforcing unrealistic sexual norms, and altering perceptions of intimacy is explored through psychological and media effects theories. Additionally, the paper highlights gaps in global regulation, inconsistencies in legal enforcement, and the urgent need for longitudinal and intervention studies to assess the real-world impacts of AI-enhanced pornography. Future directions emphasise the development of ethical frameworks, robust technological safeguards, and interdisciplinary research to guide responsible innovation and protect human dignity in digital environments.

Laboratory medicine between technological innovation, rights safeguarding, and patient safety: A bioethical perspective

Abstract Introduction The evolution of Laboratory Medicine (LM) has expanded diagnostic and therapeutic horizons, yet ethical concerns pervade its advancements. This article explores the ethical challenges inherent in LM and advocates for a personalist bioethical framework as a guiding principle. It addresses issues such as patient data privacy, healthcare equity, communication of complex analysis results, genetic information management, and conflicts of interest. Objectives The proposed framework emphasizes principles such as the defense of life, freedom, responsibility, totality in therapy, and sociality and subsidiarity, with a focus on human dignity. Results Various bioethical theories address complex ethical issues in medicine and health sciences, often combined to guide clinical practice. This study focuses on personalist bioethics, prioritizing human dignity and intrinsic value, advocating for principles like defense of physical life, freedom, totality in therapy, and sociality. In LM, ethical analysis involves patient care, genetic testing, informed consent, and Artificial Intelligence integration, emphasizing transparency and patient autonomy. Conclusion LM plays a crucial role in healthcare, necessitating ethical considerations amidst technological progress. Upholding ethical frameworks, such as the ethics of good work, can ensure equitable and quality healthcare delivery.

COMPENSATION FOR VIOLATION OF HUMAN DIGNITY IN THE PRISON SYSTEM

The text analyzes the evolution of law after World War II, highlighting the transition from positivism to post-positivism, a movement that values ​​human dignity as a fundamental core of the legal system. It emphasizes that, despite the formalization of constitutional guarantees and international human rights treaties, the implementation of these principles faces challenges, notably in the Brazilian prison system. The article examines the civil liability of the State in the face of systematic violations of inmates' rights, including overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, and degrading treatment, which give rise to compensation for moral damages. It also explores the role of the Supreme Federal Court in recent decisions that consolidate state accountability and propose alternatives for reparation, such as sentence reduction. Finally, it discusses the limitations of judicial activism and the need for institutional reforms to guarantee the dignity of prisoners, highlighting the insufficiency of isolated financial compensation to solve the structural problems of the prison system.

Abortion, Consistent Social Ethics, and Public Policy: History and Contemporary Implications of American Magisterial Teaching and Action

While American magisterial teaching has continuously cast abortion as part of a consistent ethic covering a comprehensive and interrelated set of issues affecting human life and dignity, the teaching also entails a set of tensions between the single issue of abortion and the larger framework, and this has been resolved by insisting that the legality of abortion affects all other issues and so deserves special focus; this focus has played out in public policy with detrimental consequences. This essay argues that if the bishops’ goals truly are a reduction in abortions, the promotion of respect for life and human dignity, and the promulgation of a truly comprehensive and consistent ethic, then there must be a change in their approach. This change would consist of a focus on the unintended lethal impacts of illegality, more grassroots arguments aimed at changing cultural attitudes, and more support—in both rhetoric and action—for measures that work, including but not limited to the myriad levels of structural justice for the poor and women in particular. These actions would, in turn, reinforce the consistent ethic. Further, the bishops should disavow a single-issue approach and move toward an actually comprehensive approach to public policy.

Ethical Considerations in the Application of Artificial Intelligence in Health Systems: A Narrative Review

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative technology in healthcare, enabling the management of vast data volumes and predictive analysis of the future of issues to support decision-making. This narrative review examines ethical dimensions of AI integration in health systems, drawing from articles published from January 1, 2000 to November 30, 2023, across seven databases—Cochrane Library, PubMed, SCOPUS, Science Direct, BMJ Journals, ProQuest, and SAGE. Using Boolean operators such as “AI” paired with “health”, “health system”, or “hygiene”, the study identifies critical ethical concerns including the preservation of human dignity, confidentiality, informed consent, and the dual principles of beneficence and nonmaleficence. It further highlights systemic challenges like algorithmic bias, transparency gaps in decision-making processes, and disruptions to social justice, alongside legal complexities surrounding accountability for errors, fraud, and compensatory mechanisms. To address these challenges, the study advocates for multilayered solutions. These include establishing ethical audits, formulating policies to ensure equitable global access to AI benefits, and enforcing robust data protection frameworks. Designers are urged to develop comprehensive systems safeguarding patient confidentiality and extending privacy protections to healthcare personnel and affiliated individuals. International regulatory standards must align with social and ethical norms rooted in human dignity, while frameworks for error identification and damage compensation should be prioritized. Continuous adaptation of AI capabilities to evolving medical expertise, coupled with strict adherence to ethical guidelines, is emphasized as essential for sustainable integration of AI in healthcare systems.

Biopolitics and the Scourge of Cracolândia: an Analysis from the Perspective of Homo Sacer in Giorgio Agamben

Objective: The objective of this study is to analyze the issue of Cracolândia, the users who form the flow of the environment and the state interventions that they have experienced, from the perspective of biopolitics in Foucault and homo sacer in Agamben. Theoretical Framework: The research is based on the theoretical contributions of Michel Foucault, especially the concept of biopolitics as a form of management of life in society, and of Giorgio Agamben, with an emphasis on the figure of homo sacer, bare life and the state of exception as expressions of sovereign power over life and death. Contemporary authors who study public policies, social exclusion and urban security are also used. Method: The methodology adopted for this research comprises qualitative research, with a focus on theoretical research, carried out through bibliographical research. Results and Discussion: The results obtained revealed that the repressive policies historically adopted in Cracolândia are aligned with a logic of thanatopolitics, while programs such as “De Braços Abertos” and “Redenção” point to possibilities of positive biopolitics, centered on social inclusion and human dignity. The study reveals that strategies based solely on repression are ineffective, as they disregard the multiple factors that sustain the permanence of individuals in that territory of exclusion. Research Implications: The research contributes to the academic and political debate by highlighting the need for intersectoral public policies, supported by a human rights perspective, that contemplate the social, psychological and economic complexity of the population of Cracolândia. It also points out the risks of normalizing the state of exception as a daily practice of government. Originality/Value: The value of this research lies in the articulation between contemporary political philosophy and a concrete urban problem. By relating the concepts of biopolitics and homo sacer to the reality of Cracolândia, it offers an innovative critical reading of the strategies of control, exclusion and resistance in the city of São Paulo, contributing to the advancement of discussions on citizenship, vulnerability and public policies.

Engineers as Problem‐Solvers for Sustainable Development?—Exploring Students' Learning Outcomes From Sustainability and Human Rights‐Centered Approaches in Engineering Education

ABSTRACTThis paper examines the impact of a human rights framework in engineering education on students' perceptions of sustainability and human rights. Recently, scholars have emphasised the need to develop a new engineering pedagogy and an ethical framework for the workforce. This emphasis arises from the fact that, as the engineering workforce has become multicultural and globalised, prospective engineers require new ideas, technologies, perspectives and professional ethics to adapt to the changing world. In this context, scholars have primarily focused on creating sustainable approaches that highlight the coexistence between humans and nature, along with equity, diversity and human dignity, while also developing educational strategies to challenge the conventional notion of engineers as problem‐solvers. The University of Connecticut (UConn) has developed a curriculum that equips students with the core concepts and methodological tools essential for understanding the socially and environmentally responsive roles of engineers and their solutions. This paper examines learning outcomes in an existing course within this curriculum, ‘Engineering for Human Rights’, by analysing original, anonymized exit survey data and anonymized SET evaluations from enrolled students. We also assess the instructors' reflections on the class. The findings of our research contribute to broader discussions of innovation in engineering pedagogy.

How Alternative Management Ideas Are Realized for the Public Good: Performative Fabrics of Humanistic Practices

AbstractRepurposing management for the public good involves realizing alternative ideas to serve societal interests. Humanistic management is centred on such ideas as human dignity and well‐being. Realization refers to the generation and maintenance of social realities corresponding to these ideas. The conceptual lens of performativity is uniquely suited for studying realization but requires broadening to capture the wider set of practices involved. Accordingly, we explore the wider performative practices that realize humanistic management ideas and how they do so. We studied three cases through a thematic analysis of 165 interviews, secondary sources, and observations. Our framework explains how humanistic management ideas were realized through performative fabrics of practices, interwoven heterogeneous practices that make and keep the embedded humanistic management ideas real. Performing, interweaving, and reweaving dynamics continuously shape these fabrics of interrelated humanizing, seeding, and nurturing practices. The fabrics generated four types of realizations of humanistic management ideas: potentialities, anomalies, normalities, and transferabilities. We prime a change in the conversation from studies of individual performative practices to relational studies of performative fabrics of practices. We also advance the performativity discussion to understand generativity, stabilization, defence, and reformativity. Our framework contributes theoretically and practically to repurposing management for the public good and offers insight into desirable future making.

Artificial intelligence in healthcare analytics

Artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare analytics represents a transformative force with the potential to revolutionize clinical decision-making, operational efficiency, and patient-centered care. While its applications in precision medicine, predictive modeling, and administrative optimization are promising, the integration of AI also raises critical ethical, governance, and trust-related concerns. This paper explores the evolution, use cases, and associated challenges of AI in healthcare analytics, emphasizing the dual-use nature of these technologies. Drawing on agency theory and moral responsibility theory, the study highlights the shared responsibilities of developers, healthcare institutions, regulators, and patients in ensuring equitable, transparent, and accountable AI deployment. It proposes a multi-pronged strategy combining technical safeguards, regulatory oversight, and ethical capacity-building to align AI innovation with public interest. Through this comprehensive analysis, the paper offers guidance for ethically sustainable integration of AI in healthcare systems while preserving human dignity and social trust.

From Humane War to Pacifism: Critiquing the Use of ‘Human Dignity’ in the Debate Over Autonomous Weapons Systems

Abstract Criticism of ‘humane war’ has become commonplace over recent years as a number of studies have emerged exploring the perverse effects of discourses and practices surrounding arms control, international humanitarian law, and just war theory. The primary thrust of these arguments is that war has been rendered more palatable to a privileged – primarily Western – audience through the introduction of legal mechanisms for the control of weapons and warfighting. I argue that the campaign for control over new and emerging autonomous weapons systems (aws) is susceptible to this critique, and that this is manifest in the argument that such weapons are an affront to ‘human dignity’. The upshot of this argument is a call to focus more resources and energy on pacifist or war abolitionist campaigns, as this is the only path by which a genuine, morally consistent, and non-co-optable stance against the horrors of war can be maintained.

AÇÕES EDUCATIVAS PARA PREVENIR A VIOLÊNCIA OBSTÉTRICA PELOS PROFISSIONAIS DE SAÚDE: Uma Revisão Integrativa

Obstetric violence refers to disrespectful and abusive practices that women may face during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period, which may be physical, verbal or psychological. This study aimed to identify, through an integrative literature review, educational actions to prevent obstetric violence. For this purpose, databases indexed in BVS, Lilacs, Bdenf, Scielo, Medline, PubMed were used, using the descriptors: obstetric violence, prevention, education and nursing. The inclusion criteria were articles published in the last 6 years, in English and Portuguese. The exclusion criteria were duplicated, incomplete articles and those that did not address the research question. The main findings highlighted that educational actions emerge as a transformative vector, capable of promoting a culture of humanized care centered on the parturient. The prevention of obstetric violence requires a collective and continuous effort, based on respect for human dignity, the appreciation of female autonomy and the ongoing training of health professionals.

Burnout and Compensation Equity in Mission-Driven Workforces: A Systemic Review of HR Interventions in Healthcare and Nonprofit Sectors

Burnout and compensation inequity are increasingly recognized as twin crises destabilizing mission-driven sectors such as healthcare and nonprofit organizations. This systemic review explores the theoretical and empirical linkages between inadequate compensation and burnout, drawing on the Job Demands–Resources and Effort–Reward Imbalance models. Evidence shows that perceptions of unfair pay exacerbate emotional exhaustion, reduce employee commitment, and drive high turnover rates—especially among frontline workers. In response, organizations have implemented a range of HR interventions including competitive pay benchmarking, pay transparency, equity audits, fair performance evaluations, and wellness initiatives. Leadership development programs emphasizing psychological safety and compassionate management have also emerged as pivotal strategies. The review finds that effective interventions are those that integrate compensation reforms with broader well-being support, signaling respect and investment in staff. Notably, studies suggest that improving compensation fairness can mitigate burnout more sustainably than standalone wellness efforts. The paper concludes with recommendations for HR leaders to adopt holistic, justice-oriented practices that reinforce both equity and employee mental health. Ultimately, ensuring workforce sustainability in these critical sectors will require aligning compensation systems with values of fairness, transparency, and human dignity. Keywords: Burnout, Compensation Equity, Human Resources, Nonprofit Workforce, Healthcare Workforce, Organizational Justice, Employee Well-Being, Workforce Sustainability, Performance Management, HR Interventions.

DESCRIMINALIZAÇÃO DA MACONHA PARA USO PESSOAL: ANÁLISE SOBRE A DECISÃO DO STF NO RECURSO EXTRAORDINÁRIO (RE) 635659 E SEUS IMPACTOS NA ATUAÇÃO POLICIAL

This article aims to analyze the decision of the Supreme Federal Court regarding quantitative parameters that distinguish possession for personal use from the illicit trafficking of marijuana, according to Article 33 of Law No. 11,343/2006, highlighting the legal and social impacts, particularly in relation to police approaches and public safety. The study is based on understanding, in light of jurisprudence and current legislation, the reflections of this new interpretation, employing a descriptive methodology grounded in the analysis of judicial decisions and scientific literature. Furthermore, based on the establishment of objective criteria by the Supreme Federal Court concerning the amount of substance necessary to characterize trafficking, the article seeks to understand the legal limits of police approaches and adapt them to the new legal understanding, considering the constitutional principles of privacy, human dignity, and the implications of structural racism and penal selectivity.

A INEFICÁCIA DA APLICAÇÃO DO DIREITO INTERNACIONAL HUMANITÁRIO NO ÂMBITO DAS GUERRAS: RESPONSABILIDADE E PROTEÇÃO DAS PESSOAS EM CONFLITOS BÉLICOS

This article analyzes the formation, evolution and relevance of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) using the deductive method, based on bibliographical research and using a historical and comparative analysis, focusing on the principles that underpin it and its applicability in contemporary armed conflicts. IHL is the law that protects individuals present in war contexts, a guarantee that has developed over time and with the advancement of society, which, from the beginning, has seen conflicts resolved through wars, seeking to resolve the differences between ethnic groups. The creation of Humanitarian Law was fundamental to preserving human life in the face of negative results in war territories, guarantees that have come to implement international standards with the objective of solving humanitarian problems. Despite this advancement of IHL, it is clear that this law still faces challenges in its application to this day, since there are direct violations of human dignity as a consequence of wars, especially when they involve great powers. In light of these events, we will analyze in depth how guarantees are implemented in armed conflicts, which still generate situations of extreme scarcity and danger to human beings present in conflict sites, in order to ensure people's safety. We will observe the need for continued development of International Humanitarian Law to avoid labeling based on the past and to resolve inconsistencies that have arisen over time, since society continues to develop.

Prisoners’ Right to Rehabilitation: Micro and Macro Level Indicators for the Assessment of the Fulfilment of States’ Positive Obligation

Abstract The right to rehabilitation for prisoners is a fundamental human right recognized under international standards, imposing a positive obligation on states to ensure its fulfilment. This Article undertakes an in-depth examination of prisoners’ rehabilitation through both micro and macro lenses, examining individual experiences alongside broader societal impacts. Drawing on insights from scholars like Edgardo Rotman and Amanda Ploch, contrasting rehabilitation models are explored, highlighting tensions between institutional discipline and individual empowerment. At the macro level, rehabilitation addresses socio-economic inequalities and collective benefits, yet may overlook individual dignity from a human rights perspective. In contrast, Rotman’s humanistic model emphasizes personal insight, dialogue, and prisoners’ intrinsic rights at the micro level, fostering empowerment and a sense of responsibility. A dual perspective—from macro policy indicators to micro-level prisoner experiences—is crucial for a nuanced evaluation of rehabilitation efficacy. This exploration underscores the need for effective execution and resource allocation to uphold principles of human dignity and ensure the right to rehabilitation becomes a tangible reality for every individual within the criminal justice system.

Alliances on Balance of Power in International Peace and Security in the East Asian Hub and Spokes

This study sought to evaluate the workings of alliances in the exercise of Balance of Power (BOP) in international relations, importantly whether BOP undermines or enhances international peace and security in reference to East Asian ‘Hub and Spokes’. The discourse on international peace is a very delicate area of inquiry among scholars of global studies and practitioners. Available new thinking experts know peace as a situation that represents an occurrence when human people are endowed with real human dignity that depicts their life and they are able to carry out their daily transactions without regard to who they are, where they are, and what they do. This study used three objectives as a guide to answer whether BOP undermines or enhances desired peace and security. The objectives of this study are 1) examining nature of security alliance in the global dispensation and why they have existed, 2) establishing whether alliances on balance of power undermine or enhance international peace and security, and 3) evaluation of alliances in relation to East Asian ‘Hub and Spokes’. The study employed a desktop research, using available relevant literature to the research surrounding the objective themes. Conclusions indicate; these states seem to forget what they should do in anarchic international system; balancing the most powerful states or balancing the most threatening ones, no country claims to form military alliances to contain China in Asia as had happened to the Soviet Union, and other realists suggest soft balancing under unipolarity. Keywords: Balance of Power, Global Security, Hub and Spokes, International Peace, International Relations, International Security, Military Alliances, Non-Military Alliance, Unipolarity