Oxford University Press Research Articles

The image of God: the problem of evil and the problem of mourning (Eleonore Stump) publisher: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022, 432 pp, $130.00

The image of God: the problem of evil and the problem of mourning (Eleonore Stump) publisher: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022, 432 pp, $130.00

Ethics in Patients' Health Literacy: a scoping review and a critical discussion.

A growing body of literature has acknowledged that a high number of populations with low Health Literacy (HL) is related to poor health outcomes, inequities in healthcare and high economic costs. Those findings have formulated the research questions of this review: (i) what ethical issues arise within the context of patients' HL and (ii) What is the relationship between HL and quality of life? This review followed the guidelines of Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) and the Preferred Reporting Items for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) and it was conducted in five databases: PubMed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Scopus and Science Direct between June 2022 and December 2023. Out of the 3164 titles retrieved, 285 abstracts were eligible to proceed. Following a thorough examination of the full text of 61 papers, 45 sources were identified that met the inclusion criteria. The data analysis process was guided by the research questions, employing a thematic approach. Four themes were identified: the use of language and patient understanding, human rights, the principlism approach (justice, beneficence, non-maleficence and autonomy) and quality of life. The first theme mainly focused on the relation of HL with the notion of consent forms and national action plans. Human rights in relation to HL were discussed as a minor issue. The bioethical framework by Beauchamp and Childress (Principles of Biomedical Ethics, 6th edn. Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 2009), was addressed by several studies, with a particular focus on justice and the loss of autonomy. Quality of life indicated a positive correlation with HL by most of the authors, while few studies revealed a moderate correlation.

Brian P. Levack, Distrust of Institutions in Early Modern Britain and America. Oxford, Oxford University Press 2023

Brian P. Levack, Distrust of Institutions in Early Modern Britain and America. Oxford, Oxford University Press 2023

Hermann Beck, Before the Holocaust. Antisemitic Violence and the Reaction of German Elites and Institutions during the Nazi Takeover. Oxford, Oxford University Press 2022

Hermann Beck, Before the Holocaust. Antisemitic Violence and the Reaction of German Elites and Institutions during the Nazi Takeover. Oxford, Oxford University Press 2022

Policing Sport Mega-Events: Security, Spectacle, and Camouflage in Rio De Janeiro. By Dennis Pauschinger (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2024, 289pp. £90.00 hbk)

Policing Sport Mega-Events: Security, Spectacle, and Camouflage in Rio De Janeiro. By Dennis Pauschinger (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2024, 289pp. £90.00 hbk)

Revelation in a Pluralistic World by Louis Roy, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2022, pp. 336, £90.00, hbk

Revelation in a Pluralistic World by Louis Roy, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2022, pp. 336, £90.00, hbk

Impact of microlearning on academic performance of students in higher education: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Microlearning is an innovative pedagogy which is the process of learning through small-sized, well-planned learning units and short-term learning activities. The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the impact of microlearning compared to macro-learning on the academic performance of students enrolled in higher education. Studies conducted on microlearning in higher education, in which the academic performance in theoretical examinations following microlearning method was evaluated quantitatively and compared with macro-learning. Studies which were reported in English language were included in this review. Ten databases were searched including SCOPUS, EBSCOhost, Emerald, JSTOR, Taylor & Francis, PubMed (MEDLINE), Oxford University Press, ERIC, ACM and IEEE Xplore. The search retrieved 602 studies and 12 studies were included in the systematic review. Cochrane’s risk of bias tool was used for the risk of bias assessment of the included studies. Five studies were included in the meta-analysis which was conducted using the RevMan 5.4 software. Meta-analysis showed a higher academic performance in students learned using microlearning (n=344) compared to the students learned using macro-learning (n=310) (p = 0.03). The overall mean difference in academic performance in relation to post-test scores in theoretical examinations between microlearning and macro-learning groups was 12.6 (95% CI: 1.2 - 23.9). Microlearning has contributed to a substantial increase in academic performance among students in higher education compared to macro-learning. Microlearning can increase academic performance of students by reducing cognitive load, providing flexible learning environment, promoting self-directed learning and by providing timely feedback.

Book Review Mauro Bassanini, Antony J. Sebok, Marta Infantino, Common Law and Civil Law Perspectives on Tort Law, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2022.

The work by Bassanini, Sebok and Infantino, published by Oxford University Press, is an interesting and in-depth analysis of the law of civil liability, in five legal systems: England, the United States, France, Germany and Italy. The analysis starts from the identification of this area of law, as named in the different legal systems as “tort law”, “responsabilité civile”, “Deliktsrecht”, “responsabilità civile” The work contains a lucid, wide-ranging and detailed comparison between the Common Law and Civil Law systems selected with specific reference to the «civil liability for injuries arising outside of contract»

Segev, Mor. The Value of the World and of Oneself: Philosophical Optimism and Pessimism from Aristotle to Modernity. New York: Oxford University Press 2022, xii + 272 pp.

Segev, Mor. <i>The Value of the World and of Oneself: Philosophical Optimism and Pessimism from Aristotle to Modernity</i>. New York: Oxford University Press 2022, xii + 272 pp.

For-Profit Philanthropy: Elite Power and the Threat of Limited Liability Companies, Donor- Advised Funds, and Strategic Corporate Giving By Dana Brakman Reiser and Steven A. Dean. Oxford University Press. $55. January 2023. ISBN: 0190074507.

For-Profit Philanthropy: Elite Power and the Threat of Limited Liability Companies, Donor- Advised Funds, and Strategic Corporate Giving By Dana Brakman Reiser and Steven A. Dean. Oxford University Press. $55. January 2023. ISBN: 0190074507.

A radically usage-based, collostructional approach to assessing the differences between negative modal contractions and their parent forms

Abstract Starting from the premise that English negative modal contractions constitute partly variable patterns of associations that include both the preceding subject and the following verb infinitive, the study sets out to investigate distributional differences between can’t, shouldn’t, and won’t and their corresponding uncontracted parent forms. Given that some configurations are assumed to correlate with specific modal meanings (e.g. inanimate subjects and stative verbs &gt; ‘epistemic prediction’; first person subjects &gt; ‘(un)willingness’ or ‘commissive modality’), roughly 200,000 trigrams from COCA are submitted to distinctive covarying collexeme analysis in order to uncover if these contractions and their full forms are conventionalized and entrenched differentially enough to merit their separate treatment on both conceptual and methodological grounds. The results point to probabilistic tendencies, suggesting a cline where won’t and can’t appear to be more emancipated from their respective full-form analogue than shouldn’t. Furthermore, the study showcases how collostructional methods can be applied fruitfully to case studies embedded in Schmid’s (Schmid, Hans-Jörg. 2020. The dynamics of the linguistic system: Usage, conventionalization, and entrenchment. Oxford: Oxford University Press) Entrenchment and Conventionalization Model.

The metaphysics of mechanisms: an ontic structural realist perspective

Existing metaphysical accounts of mechanisms commit to the existence of objects or entities posited in scientific theories, and thus fall within the category of maximal metaphysics. In this paper, I demonstrate the incompatibility of object-based metaphysics of mechanisms with the prevailing trend in the philosophy of physics by discussing the so-called bottoming-out problem. In response, I propose and flesh out a structuralist metaphysics of mechanisms based on Ontic Structural Realism (OSR), which is a kind of minimal metaphysics. I argue that the metaphysical underpinnings of mechanisms are structures, whose metaphysical nature is elaborated through comparison with existing metaphysical theories of mechanisms. After that, I address the concern of whether objects in mechanisms can be accommodated in my account by invoking existing metaphysical theories of objects in special science by structuralists, such as Ladyman, J., & Ross, D. (2007). Every Thing Must Go: Metaphysics Naturalized. Oxford University Press.)’s real pattern account, and suggesting a potential alignment between OSR and processual ontology. Finally, I demonstrate how my view can naturally serve as the metaphysics for Mechanism 2.0 and be applied to systems biology.

Phantoms of a Beleaguered Republic: The Deep State and the Unitary Executive, Stephen Skowronek, John A. Dearborn and Desmond King , Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2022, 360 p.

Phantoms of a Beleaguered Republic: The Deep State and the Unitary Executive, Stephen Skowronek, John A. Dearborn and Desmond King , Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2022, 360 p.

Strategic justice, conventions, and game theory: introduction to a Synthese topical collection

Evolutionary, game-theoretic approaches to justice and the social contract have become increasingly popular in contemporary moral and political philosophy. (Vanderschraaf, Strategic justice: convention and problems of balancing divergent interests, Oxford University Press, 2019) theory of strategic justice represents the most recent contribution to this tradition and, in many ways, can be viewed as a culmination of it. This article discusses some of the central features of Vanderschraaf’s theory and relates them to the contributions in this collection. Some of the contributions directly address Vanderschraaf’s work, while others explore related topics in game theory, bargaining theory, formal philosophy, rationality, equality, justice, and the theory of conventions. This collection aims to bridge a gap between disjoint but closely related literature spanning a wide range of disciplines. The contributions allow readers to systematically engage with the topic of strategic justice, advance dialogue, and more easily follow this rich and expanding field of study.

Beginning mathematics teachers’ values and beliefs about pedagogy during a time of policy flux

AbstractThis study interrogates how beginning secondary mathematics teachers align their beliefs with their practice when they justify their pedagogical choices in the context of recent English mathematics education policy which is strongly influenced by approaches to mathematics teaching in Shanghai and Singapore currently referred to as ‘mastery’ approaches. It seeks to understand beginning teachers’ perceptions and understandings of these approaches and the extent to which they recognise aspects of ‘mastery’ in practice. In setting the context, pre-service teachers’ beliefs were surveyed and found to be congruent with constructivist approaches to learning. We then draw on qualitative data from semi-structured interviews secondary mathematics teachers in their first year post-qualification. The interviews were designed to interrogate and capture understanding of the features of mastery within their own classrooms. By using vignettes to capture participants’ beliefs, our aim was to present a ‘more nuanced understanding of the phenomena’ (Skilling and Stylianides in Int J Res Method Educ 43(5):541–556, 2019, 10.1080/1743727x.2019.1704243). The analytical framework developed draws on Guskey’s (In: Wright J (ed) International encyclopedia of the social &amp; behavioural sciences, 2015, vol 14, 2nd edn, Elsevier, pp 752–759) interpretation of Bloom’s theory of mastery learning together with features of mastery learning in mathematics articulated by Drury (How to teach mathematics for mastery, 2018, Oxford University Press) and Boylan et al. (Edu Sci 8(4):202, 2018, 10.3390/educsci8040202). This posed a research design challenge given the variation in interpretation of mastery learning as it is understood in practice. The data exposes differences in the interpretation of mastery approaches in the settings where they learn to teach, as well as the tensions that arise between beginning teachers’ beliefs, practice, professional knowledge and agency in their developing classroom roles.

O-175 Ethical practices and policies for ART carbon reduction

Abstract Background The carbon emissions of global health care activities make up 4-5% of total world emissions, placing the health care industry on par with the food sector. Health care contributes to climate change and climate change health hazards. Safe amounts of carbon in the atmosphere have been exceeded—in part because of medical lifestyles in the industrialized world. A significant proportion of health care carbon comes from pharmaceuticals and clinical services in the developed world, including reproductive technologies. Since 1978, approximately 12 million babies have been born through IVF alone. Problem statement Reproductive technologies have an exceptional impact on the environment as they 1. expend carbon in the medical process, 2. increase population growth in mostly high-carbon countries, 3. impact earth’s carrying capacity, and 4. create a carbon legacy. This would not necessarily be ethically problematic, but in a climate crisis carbon emissions must be reduced in all areas of life. Objectives This presentation by an ethicist (PhD) will: 1. Highlight aspects of environmental ethics for reproductive technologies 2. Offer practices and policies to make reproductive technologies more sustainable. Takeaways • Prevention of infertility fits within basic health care. • Carbon emissions from reproductive technologies can be reduced by life cycle assessments (LCA) of the procedures and components. • Clinical evidence can inform ethical policies to reduce the number and kind of reproductive technologies, thereby lowering fertility industry carbon emissions. • New scientific and technological developments in reproduction must consider sustainability proactively, not reactively, thus putting ethics in the pipeline of reproductive medicine. Further Reading Bhopal A, and Norheim O. Priority setting and net zero healthcare: how much health can a tonne of carbon buy?. BMJ 2021; 375:e067199. Pichler, P.-P. et al., “International Comparison of Health Care Carbon Footprints,” Environmental Research Letters 14, no. 6 (2019): 064004. Richie, Cristina. Environmental Ethics and Medical Reproduction (Oxford University Press, 2024.

Sir Roger James Elliott. 8 December 1928—16 April 2018

Roger James Elliott was a theoretical physicist and pioneer in the use of quantum theory in solid state physics, which happened a few years after the invention of quantum mechanics in the late 1920s and which spread into all areas of solid state physics during the years when Roger Elliott was active (roughly the second half of the twentieth century, 1950–2000). He specialized in the magnetic, semiconductor and optical properties of condensed matter, with a particular emphasis on the effects caused by disorder—that is, the absence of periodicity in alloys and amorphous materials. He studied at New College, Oxford, before working as a postdoc at Berkeley. He then returned to England, first to Harwell and then to a faculty position at the University of Reading. During this time he completed his seminal work on the general theory of the optical properties of excitons. He returned to Oxford in 1957, where he was to stay for the remaining 60 years, until his death in 2018. He was the Wykeham professor of physics from 1974 until 1988, and he was awarded the Maxwell Medal in 1968 and the Guthrie Medal in 1990, both from the Institute of Physics. He was knighted in 1987. In his later years he was very active in the Royal Society as Foreign Secretary and also in scientific publishing worldwide after he served as chief executive of Oxford University Press from 1988 until 1993.

Complete Poems

Fifty years after James K. Baxter’s death, we finally have an edition of his Complete Poems. This four-volume collection completes the heroic project of editor John Weir and Te Herenga Waka University Press, begun in Complete Prose (2015) and Letters of a Poet (2018), to collect together and publish in scholarly form all of Baxter’s scattered writings. The publisher’s blurb reaches for an appropriately Baxterian image in calling this a ‘Herculean task’. Indeed, the scale of the collection invites superheroic imagery: 2,977 poems in 3,155 pages – to say nothing of the appendices (and I will say something of the appendices later). Weir’s earlier, long-standard Collected Poems (Oxford University Press, 1980) ran to only 656 pages. Gathering in the unpublished contents of the manuscript notebooks in the Hocken Library, together with poems published in obscure journals or recovered from friends and acquaintances, his new edition more or less triples the quantity of Baxter’s poetry now accessible to scholars and the general reader.

The madman and the churchrobber. Law and conflict in early modern England. By Jason Peacey. Pp. xxii + 307 incl. 13 ills. Oxford–New York: Oxford University Press, 2022. £40.90. 978 0 19 289713 8

The madman and the churchrobber. Law and conflict in early modern England. By Jason Peacey. Pp. xxii + 307 incl. 13 ills. Oxford–New York: Oxford University Press, 2022. £40.90. 978 0 19 289713 8

Spiritual direction as a medical art in early Christian monasticism. By Jonathan L. Zecher. (Early Christian Studies.) Pp. xxii + 371 incl. 16 figs and 5 tables. Oxford–New York: Oxford University Press, 2022. £75. 978 0 19 885413 5

Spiritual direction as a medical art in early Christian monasticism. By Jonathan L. Zecher. (Early Christian Studies.) Pp. xxii + 371 incl. 16 figs and 5 tables. Oxford–New York: Oxford University Press, 2022. £75. 978 0 19 885413 5