Hume's Philosophy Research Articles

How Hume's Philosophy Informed Radical Behaviorism.

The present paper analyzes consistencies between the philosophical systems of David Hume and B. F. Skinner, focusing on their conceptualization of causality and attitudes about scientific behavior. The ideas that Hume initially advanced were further developed in Skinner's writings and shaped the behavior-analytic approach to scientific behavior. Tracing Skinner's logical antecedents allows for additional historical and philosophical clarity when examining the development of radical behaviorism.

Rethinking the Real withRobinson Crusoeand David Hume

This essay reimagines the relationship between Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (1719) and David Hume's skeptical philosophy, a relationship previously defined by Ian Watt's suggestion in The Rise of the Novel (1957) that Hume's emphasis upon man's essentially social nature in A Treatise of Human Nature (1739–40) stands in refutation of Defoe's iconic portrayal of human isolation. Instead, I argue for affinities between Hume's secular skepticism and Crusoe's religious faith and suggest that both Defoe and Hume channel the same spiritual allegory of the pilgrim as shipwrecked traveler. More than rhetorically similar, both texts, I argue, dramatize epistemological crises that precipitate a renewed sense of life's contingency. Both Defoe and Hume employ Puritan spiritual autobiography, and in each case this literary mode's questionable referential status reproduces the epistemological uncertainty that each text represents. Crusoe and Hume model how such epistemological uncertainty might be a source of pleasing wonder by exhibiting an attitude of viewing the ordinary as if it were rare, and the illusory as if it were real—and by extension the real as if it were illusory. The essay suggests that this capacity to illuminate the extraordinary within the ordinary and the illusory within the real becomes one of novelistic fiction's distinctive characteristics. The experience of apprehending the real is reframed as a source of aesthetic pleasure rather than knowledge.

A Born Again Humanist

This essay describes the somewhat unusual circumstances that precipitated the author’s transition from belief in traditional religion to adopting Humanism as a philosophy of life. Included are personal perspectives contrasting Humanistic philosophy with theistic religious faith.

Hume’s Two Causalities and Social Policy

Hume maintained that, philosophically speaking, there is no difference between exiting a room out of the first-floor window and using the door. Nevertheless, Hume’s reason and common sense prevailed over his scepticism and he advocated that we should always use the door. However, we are currently living in a world that is more seriously committed to the Humean philosophy of empiricism than he was himself and thus the potential to act inappropriately is an ever-present potential. In this paper, I explore how Hume’s two versions of causality have detrimentally affected our ability both to arrive at and to use research to improve human well-being. I illustrate my argument with an example of what I think is an incorrect yet supposedly scientifically sound assumption: that absenteeism causes poor school attainment. Instead I make the interdisciplinary argument that absenteeism is better understood as an aggravating symptom of a number of other causes of poor attainment, such as poverty and individual psychological factors. I suggest that an instrumental, punitive policy against parents whose children tend to be absent from school may be ineffectual or even counterproductive if the objective is to improve the well-being of those children. To support my argument, I introduce the critical realist idea of transfactuality. Using the example of research into moon rocks, I show how mainstream science uses transfactuality despite its empiricist aversion to it. I also suggest that it is our honesty, integrity, and stoicism that lead us to the extreme overthrow of reason and common sense that we see today in many of the UK’s social policies; an overthrow that Hume himself did not achieve. Metaphorically speaking, British professionals, stoically and honestly believing in the ability of their trusted research correlations to guide their action, are exiting out of the first-floor window rather than using the door. This is a significant barrier to our ability to devise and implement social policy.

Hume's Scepticism Revisited

AbstractI shall situate Hume's scepticism within a broader philosophical and historical context. Firstly, I shall consider the place of Hume's thought within the early modern break with the almost millennium long metaphysical tradition, a break initiated by Descartes. The framework of being structured by a universal order was replaced by the individual human mind that broke free from any higher authority and became an autonomous cognitive agent. Subsequently, the ontological self-evidence of the world or the possibility of adequate knowledge came under sceptical attack. Hume firmly belongs to this discourse and can be seen as the most consistent exponent of this early modern sceptical line. In this light, the ‘New Hume’ claim that Hume was an ontological realist will be shown to be misplaced in principle. Secondly, the strong influence of Pyrrhonism on Hume's philosophy will be considered, together with his concept of mitigated scepticism. The Pyrrhonian legacy is especially noticeable in Hume's acceptance of the weakness of reason and in his emphasis on the instructive role of philosophy – instead of attempting to make it the foundation of science it becomes a guide to a balanced, happy life. In this respect, Hume stands outside the early modern mainstream in philosophy.

El marxismo político, excéntrico, heterodoxo, radical y sin ismos de un epistemólogo comunista que amaba “La flauta mágica”

Manuel Sacristan Luzon (1925-1985) was a logician, epistemologist and unorthodox philosopher -PSUC-PCE militant during many years- who had an essential role in the reintroduction of the Marxist-communist tradition in our country at the end of the fifties. He proposed, during the last years of his life, a strong revision of the communist ideology after May 68 and the annihilation of the Prague Spring. He also concentrated on the irruption of environmentalism. His proposals for a politics of science oriented in a socialist way, and close to the technoscientific tradition which is not blind but which is critical of the new romantic conceptions inspired in the work of Heidegger –about whose gnoseology he wrote his doctoral thesis- are still proof of the lucidity and penetration of his thought. He always fought for an (emancipatory) passion that is anchored in reason and in scientific information, in the commitment towards the most disadvantaged groups in the Earth, and in the practice of a creative and humanist philosophy.

Practice and research of medical students' global health capacity development

Objective Examine and evaluate the influences and effects of Short-term Overseas Exchange Program (SOEP) on the medical students' global health capacity development.Methods This study collected data through interview and questionnaire of students participated in SOEP,and review of their exchange reports.The quantitative data was analyzed by using the SPSS 17.0 software.Results SOEP is a useful practice of global health capacity development of medicals students,the effects of which are shown in the following aspects:1.Learn and compare different medical education models; 2.Learn and compare different health care systems and models; 3.Cultivate students' global perspective; 4.Understand the different medical culture and medical humanistic philosophy; 5.Promote personal and career development.Conclusions SOEP has fundamental positive effects on the global health conception and capacities development of medical students.Therefore,SOEP should be promoted,and developed in a healthy,orderly and sustainable manner. Key words: global health; Short-term Overseas Exchange Program (SOEP); medical students; capacity development

Humanism and Ethos in the Works of Ralph Waldo Emerson

Abstract The article deals with the ideas of humanity and morality as reflected in the works of R. W. Emerson, the main representative of an intellectual movement called American transcendentalism. It conveys basic facts about the movement and focuses on the key aspects of Emerson’s transcendental philosophy, particularly his concept of the Over-soul and his concept of Nature, which gave his humanistic philosophy a religious and moral accent. Due to it, Emerson’s religious humanism also became the basis of American democratic individualism. The article offers insight into Emerson’s ideas on morality and ethical behaviour, which challenge us to live in harmony with God and nature.

Behavioural controversy concerning homo economicus: a Humean perspective

In his monumental masterpiece, A Treatise on Human Nature, which explains the methodology of human reasoning concerning matters of fact and describes the roles that passions and morals play in it, Hume arrives at an enormously interesting maxim: An academic controversy cannot continue for long unless the disputants assign different meanings to the major terms employed in the debate. This theory has been applied in this paper to examine the behavioural criticisms about Homo Economicus (HE), the pivotal perception in the neoclassical microeconomic model.To achieve this objective, the paper discusses the origin and evolution of the concept, reviews behavioural criticisms, summarises the main tenets of Hume's philosophy of human knowledge and finally examines the behavioural opinions from Hume's perspective. The paper concludes that Hume's theory convincingly explains the reason why the HE controversy is continuing for over half century-a fact that both the mainstream and behavioural economists are ignoring.

Because Neglect Isn't Cute: Tuxedo Stan's Campaign for a Humane World

Because Neglect Isn't Cute: Tuxedo Stan's Campaign for a Humane World

Being a mindful clinical teacher: Can mindfulness enhance education in a clinical setting?

Mindfulness may be viewed as a vehicle to promote the healer’s role in medicine. This role addresses the way in which a medical practitioner interacts with patients. The aim of this article is to highlight how mindful qualities may also enhance teaching in clinical settings. Challenges to being a mindful clinical teacher are presented along with creative ways to accommodate them. Residents play an important role in training medical students. Examples of how mindfulness influenced a psychiatric resident’s teaching experiences are presented to illustrate the concepts discussed herein. The dimension of “being” in medicine, based on the humanist philosophy of Dr Karl Jaspers, is provided as a framework for this article.

USING HUMOROUS VIDEO CLIPS TO ENHANCE STUDENTS' UNDERSTANDING, ENGAGEMENT AND CRITICAL THINKING

This essay examines the results of my attempt to use humorous video clips in a ‘Philosophy of Humor and Laughter’ course taught in the Fall of 2010 and 2011. The regular display of these clips was designed to enhance my students' understanding of the central concepts of the course, participation in class discussions and to encourage them to think more critically and creatively. The results of a survey I administered at the end of the semester suggest that there is a positive correlation between the use of the humorous clips and my students' understanding of the content, engagement in the lessons and ability to think critically. Both the quantitative and qualitative results of the survey as well as other methods of data collection indicate that watching and analyzing the humorous clips provided the students with a very valuable perspective that illuminated the ideas that we read. The results of this study also suggest that a course on the philosophy of humor and laughter can be very effective in getting students to think philosophically and appreciate the value of philosophy for their lives.

Imo Ade Awo: A Principle of Transcultural Humanist Philosophy of the Annang People of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

Man, who is both a product and a producer of culture, often becomes the victim of/in culture. As a victim in cultures, both his latent potentials and manifest realisations suffer. Indeed, it could be safely held thatpatterns of the total mode of existence in the 21 st century approximate to aggressive threats to human life and statehood.This paper decries this anomaly as a direct consequence of the rapid drift in morality from communally beneficial traditional values to unconscionable hybrid patterns inimical even to the individuals and groups involved.It thereforearticulates the annang fecund ideology ‘imo ade awo’ as the grand norm for reordering our scale of values as humans in order to guarantee human dignity, safety,development and by extension, foster community advancement in and beyond particular cultures.

The Ancients, the Vulgar, and Hume's Skepticism

Section III of part IV of Book I of Hume's Treatise entitled “Of ancient philosophy” has been virtually ignored by most Hume scholars. Although philosophers seem to concentrate on sections II and VI of part IV and pay little or no attention to section III, latter section is paramount in showing how serious Hume's skepticism is, and how Hume's philosophy, contrary to his intention, is far removed from the sentiments of vulgar. In this paper I shall first explore Hume's view on ancient philosophy as it is presented in section III, and I shall particularly focus on his discussion of identity and simplicity of bodies. Second, I shall argue that Hume's account of identity and simplicity in terms of qualities is at best unsatisfactory. Finally, I shall try to show that Hume's advice to hold a moderate skepticism cannot be taken seriously. On contrary, Hume seems to hold an extravagant skepticism, since he claims that there is a contradiction between our most fundamental natural beliefs, as well as between our natural beliefs and philosophical reasoning. Hume’s Account of Identity The section “Of Ancient Philosophy” is just another application of Hume's naturalistic approach to birth of ancient philosophical theories. According to Hume, our ideas of bodies are nothing but collections form'd by mind of ideas of several distinct sensible qualities, of which objects are compos'd, and which we find to have a constant union with each other(Hume, p. 219). However, in our everyday experience we regard, mistakenly, these distinct sensible qualities as One thing, and as continuing Same under very considerable alterations(Hume, p. 219). We therefore attribute (falsely) to acknowledged composition of perceptions simplicity and to variation of them identity. But this is a contradiction, Hume tells us, since on one hand our senses perceive totally distinct and different qualities, and on other hand, we believe that combination of these discrete parts possesses a unity and simplicity which endure over time. This is main reason, according to Hume, that ancients resorted to notions of substance or prime matter. They merely wanted to provide a philosophical system that would salvage us, vulgar, from our contradictions. Although

Faiz and Neruda: The East meets the West

The paper attempts to study the similarity between the thought and poetry of two greater ever poets, one belonging to the east and other to the west: Faiz Ahmad Faiz, a Pakistan Urdu poet and Pablo Neruda, a Chilean poet. They not only became famous in their respective motherlands but their works won global recognition. Just as the poetry of Pablo Neruda was massively popular with ordinary Chilean who regarded him as their national poet, so was Faiz Ahmad Faiz loved by millions of Pakistanis. They were pioneers of great struggles and their works were interwoven with the ideas they believed in. Key words: Faiz, Pablo Neruda, humanist philosophy.

Harmonious Environment Construction in Transport and Sustainable Development for 21st Century

Based on global vision, this article main discussion the problem of transport environment construction and sustainable development, such as: energy comprehensive utilization and air pollution, maritime transport and water pretection, soil erosion and geological disaster, regional planning and ecological recovery, environment planning and humanistic philosophy. Intended to facilitate scientific innovation and global coordination to approaches address 21st century global transportation development common to face a series of new issues, put forward the views and recommendations:Including traffic construction needed to respond with more broad vision to urbanization, logistics innovations and changes, traffic transport integration, and based facilities transformation phase associated of environment ecological and energy resources problem. Need to enhance humanities concept, and through technology innovation , across area cooperation, global coordination address the key technology and major topics of traffic construction developing faced to, through breakthrough of the key technology of above to adapt global economic requirements and sustainable development for transportation.

인본주의에 기초한 평등성과 수월성이 균형잡힌 교육정책 방안

본 연구에서는 군사정권 이후의 문민정부, 국민의 정부, 참여정부, 실용정부의 교육정책을 돌아보고, 역대 정부의 일관된 교육혁신정책인 교육의 신자유주의적 속성과 그에 따라 파생하는 교육정책상의 문제점들을 살펴보고자 한다. 이를 바탕으로 현 정부에 요구되는 국가의 교육정책이 나아갈 방향을 제시하고자 한다. 본 연구에서는 이러한 미래교육의 패러다임으로서 '인본주의 교육논리'를 제시하고 있다. 이는 기존의 수월성과 평등성이 분리된 교육정책이 아닌 양자가 조화롭게 균형을 이루는 인본주의(人本主義) 위주의 교육정책을 의미한다. This article aims to look into the education policy of the civilian government, the practical government, the participatory government and the government of the people after the military government, and then to investigate characteristics and problems to neo-liberalism, which was an common education innovation policy of past government. This study tries to suggest a far-sighted national policy of education the present government should orient. Futhermore, the article presents 'humanistic philosophy of education' as a new paradigm of a future education. This means balanced humanistic education policy, not disintegrated education in which excellence and equality take different paths.

Three Tools for Moral First Aid

The tension between naturalism and humanism is at its greatest when it comes to ethics and morality. By drawing on the affinity between the evolutionary humanistic philosophies of classical pragmatist John Dewey and contemporary pragmatist Daniel Dennett, I modify Dennett’s ethical technology, Moral First Aid, to include a kit as well as Dennett’s proposed manual. The contents of this kit draw on Dewey’s reconstructed moral genealogy in which three factors, goods, rights, and virtues, become stock parts for the technoscience of ethics. Lacking in Dennett’s account is an adequate ideal by which to measure moral success. I propose that moral first aid take up Dewey’s moral ideal of democracy as the guide for resolving moral exigencies.

Comfort of the patient's family in an Intensive Care Unit related to welcoming

This study aimed to identify the level of comfort of families of patients in a critical health condition related to the welcoming practices performed by the hospital staff. Interviews were conducted with 250 relatives in hospitals of the state Bahia, using a Likert scale. Data were analyzed as percentages and quartiles. For nine of the 12 statements of the scale, most relatives scored their comfort level between very and totally comfortable, median of 4,revealing kindness, tranquility and friendly communication with family members. More than half of the sample scored its level as not at all to more or less comfortable, median of 3, for statements about demonstration of interest towards the relative by the staff and flexible visiting of the patient. The necessity of greater interest of the team in the condition and needs of the family was observed. Promoting comfort from the dimension of welcoming demands interdisciplinary actions grounded in humanistic philosophy, in which the nurse has an important role to play.

Narrative Inquiry of Irish Transition Year and English Gap Year as Experiential Career Education Based on Humanistic Philosophy of Education

Narrative Inquiry of Irish Transition Year and English Gap Year as Experiential Career Education Based on Humanistic Philosophy of Education