Strong Claims Research Articles

Environmental control of social goals: using Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer to test cue-based pro-self and pro-social outcome responses.

A large amount of literature demonstrates that social behaviour can be triggered by environmental cues. A long-standing debate involves the question of whether such stimuli trigger behaviour directly (i.e. habits) or whether these effects mediate goals. As studies on automatic goal pursuit typically use real-world cues that are already associated with the behaviour and potentially the goal, it is impossible to make strong claims about the nature of the effects. In the present paper, we use a paradigm inspired by the Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT) literature to examine how the environment can trigger goal-directed behaviour. Building on the essence of pro-self and pro-social motives in humans, two experiments explored the PIT effect when the outcomes were framed in terms of self- versus other-interest. Participants performed actions to earn money for themselves or a charity. Each outcome was linked to a different cue. The results showed that a cue predictive of self-interest outcomes facilitated responses instrumental in gaining the outcome, while such specific PIT effect for other-interest outcomes only emerged when participants were free to donate the money. We briefly discuss these findings reflecting on whether the PIT effect in our paradigm is indeed sensitive to the value of social goals.

The Embodiment of Buddhist History: Interpretive Methods and Models of Sāsana Decline in Burmese Debates about Female Higher Ordination

The mid-twentieth century was celebrated in Theravāda civilizations as the halfway point in the five-thousand-year history of the Buddha’s dispensation, the sāsana. Around this time in Burma, fierce debates arose concerning the re-establishment of the extinct order of Theravāda nuns. While women were understood as having a crucial role in supporting and maintaining the sāsana, without a sanctioned means of higher ordination, they were excluded from its centre, that is, as active agents in sāsana history. In this paper, I explore what was at stake in these debates by examining the arguments of two monks who publicly called for the reintroduction of the order of nuns, the Mingun Jetavana Sayadaw (1868–1955) and Ashin Ādiccavaṃsa (1881–1950). I will show that both used the enigmatic Milindapañha (Questions of Milinda) to present their arguments, but more than this, by drawing from their writings and biographies, it will be seen that their methods of interpreting the Pāli canon depended on their unique models of sāsana history, models which understood this halfway point as ushering in a new era of emancipatory promise. This promise was premised on the practice of vipassanā meditation by both lay men and especially women, the latter who, through their participation in the mass lay meditation movement, were making strong claims as dynamic players in the unfolding of sāsana history. The question of whether the order of nuns should be revived therefore hinged on the larger question of what was and was not possible in the current age of sāsana decline. Beyond this, what I aim to show is that mid-twentieth-century debates around female ordination concerned the very nature of the sāsana itself, as either a transcendent, timeless ideal, or as a bounded history embodied in the practice of both monks and nuns.

Tacit consent and political legitimacy

Though historically important, the notion of tacit consent plays little role in contemporary discussions of political legitimacy. The idea, in fact, is often dismissed as obviously implausible. The ambition of this paper is to challenge this assumption and show that tacit consent can become a key ingredient in a theory of legitimacy. Instead of defining tacit consent through residence (where, according to John Locke or Plato's Socrates, staying in the country amounts to tacitly consenting to its system of rule), the paper explores a different strategy, delimiting tacit consent as an absence of active dissent. The basic idea starts from the fact that widespread anti-government protests and demonstrations always carry a potent delegitimating force. Political legitimacy is therefore never permanent and unchangeable, regardless of the nature of the regime, and can be undermined at all times by active dissent from the population. Having established the relationship between dissent and delegitimation of political power, even the inverted, stronger claim is defended: the absence of active dissent (i.e., tacit consent) can, under certain circumstances, serve to legitimize political power. The paper sets up and defends several conditions that need to be met for the right normative mandate to be created by the population tacitly accepting the existing power arrangements. If those are fulfilled (especially when full freedom of expression and information is granted), tacit consent can become a vital element of political legitimacy.

Factivity and complementizer omission in English embedded gapping

Taking as a starting point the variation in introspective judgments on embedded gapping in English in the literature, the main goal of this paper is to test the ‘No Embedding Constraint’ experimentally. Building on a first experimental study designed to measure the interaction between that-omission and factivity in English embedded complement clauses, we conducted two experiments testing the role of the complementizer in embedded gapping, paying special attention to the semantic nature of the matrix predicates (non-factives vs semi-factives vs true factives). Our results show, on the one hand, that the ‘No Embedding Constraint’ makes too strong claims that are not backed up by our experimental findings, and, on the other hand, that embedded gapping is affected by both the presence/absence of that and by the semantic class of the matrix predicate in English. In particular, embedded gapping seems to be more acceptable under non-factive verbs, especially in the absence of a complementizer. Both constraints (that-omission and factivity) can be accounted for by a constructionist fragment-based analysis, where the gapped clause is a non-finite phrase that has to address the same Question Under Discussion as its source. This explains, in turn, why embedded gapping under true factive predicates is considered significantly less acceptable. We show that the acceptable cases of embedded gapping involve true syntactic embedding (so, the matrix clause has no parenthetical use). We conclude that English has the same sensitivity to the semantic class of the matrix predicate as other languages, but that the requirements on the presence/absence of that are English specific.

Kurinji Songs Based on Propositional Theory

In Kurinji songs the meaning of proposition, properties of words, the stage at which language works are explained in detail. The strategies for setting up the narration, the nature of the narration in the internal literature, the narrators in love making, and the narrators in the chastity period have been explained and narrated well in Tolkappiyar's materialism chapter. It has been pointed out that Nattrai, who is missing among the purveyors of chastity period mentioned by Tolkappiyar, has been declared as one of the purveyors of chastity in the content description of Narkavirasa Nambi. The conversation of the people in the town, the neighbors, the informers, the father, the brother and the friend’s strong claim for the heroine have been compiled. The role of learning in external songs are explained well. Although Kurinchi songs covers only the narration of heroine’s friend’s, the conversation between hero and heroine are clearly understood by heroine’s narration. In friend’s narration heroine’s position, guarding the treasury, swimming in the waterfall, playing with flowers, hero’s arrival and hero’s love are described. In the narration of the heroine, the love position of the heroine and the acceptance of the love of the hero are well described. The manner in which love manifests has been explained. In the narration of the hero, his love languages and his speech are explained with appropriate evidence.

The Constitution of 3 May 1791: Testament of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Constitution of 3 May 1791: Testament of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

Affordances of musical instruments: Conceptual consideration.

While the concept of affordances has been applied in music research, it has not been satisfyingly developed regarding musical instruments. The resulting vagueness restricts the potential of the concept to guide exploration, discussion, and development of new approaches towards musical learning. Also, the concept of affordances comes with strong ontological claims and thus prompts the researcher to be careful when merging it with other theoretical domains or applying it in empirical studies. Consequently, the present article aims at contributing to a conceptualization of affordances of musical instruments by highlighting and discussing components that are necessary to consider in such a project. The first part consists of an overview of key elements of ecological psychology and more recent theoretical contributions, which are of relevance to the aim of the article: Material Engagement Theory, Skilled Intentionality Framework, and Sensorimotor Contingency Theory. A brief review of examples on how the concept of affordances has been applied in music research is presented. The main section of the article discusses four components, vital to further theoretical developments on affordances of musical instruments: the musical niche, spatial networks, sensorimotor relationship, and the amodal nature of affordances. Central to the argument is an understanding of affordances as relational, limited in scope and bound up with the physical interaction between musician and instrument. Accordingly, it is proposed that analytical focus in studies of musical instruments should be the sensorimotor relationship, spatiotemporally unfolding through a musical event. The article is concluded with comments upon educational implications of the presented perspective and suggestions on further research on the topic.

A functional neuroimaging investigation of Moral Foundations Theory

ABSTRACT Moral Foundations Theory (MFT) posits that the human mind contains modules (or “foundations”) that are functionally specialized to moralize unique dimensions of the social world: Authority, Loyalty, Purity, Harm, Fairness, and Liberty. Despite this strong claim about cognitive architecture, it is unclear whether neural activity during moral reasoning exhibits this modular structure. Here, we use spatiotemporal partial least squares correlation (PLSC) analyses of fMRI data collected during judgments of foundation-specific violations to investigate whether MFT’s cognitive modularity claim extends to the neural level. A mean-centered PLSC analysis returned two latent variables that differentiated between social norm and moral foundation violations, functionally segregated Purity, Loyalty, Physical Harm, and Fairness from the other foundations, and suggested that Authority has a different neural basis than other binding foundations. Non-rotated PLSC analyses confirmed that neural activity distinguished social norm from moral foundation violations, and distinguished individualizing and binding moral foundations if Authority is dropped from the binding foundations. Purity violations were persistently associated with amygdala activity, whereas moral foundation violations more broadly tended to engage the default network. Our results constitute partial evidence for neural modularity and motivate further research on the novel groupings identified by the PLSC analyses.

Leading and supporting: principals reflect on their task as pedagogical leaders of Swedish school-age educare

ABSTRACT Principals in Sweden face leadership challenges as pedagogical leaders of School-age educare Centers (SAECs). This study examines how principals identify both professional development needs as well as challenges they face in supporting the SAEC teachers. The empirical data is based on reflections from 29 principals and vice-principals from four different municipalities in Sweden, which were analyzed using a framework for successful school leadership (Leithwood, K., A. Harris, and D. Hopkins. 2020. “Seven strong claims about successful school leadership revisited.” School Leadership & Management 40 (1): 5–22) and thematic analysis. Within the key areas for development three main themes were found: personal professional understanding of SAEC, building collaborative cultures within and between SAEC departments, and increasing student participation and engagement. The participants further identified specific challenges in supporting the SAEC teachers: building a culture of collaboration between SAEC and the compulsory school, structuring planning and collaboration, and improving assessment practices in SAEC.The results highlight how by not prioritizing the work in SAECs has impacted their ability to lead the program; they emphasize their need to improve and develop the SAECs and their desire to change their leadership priorities.

The Benefits and Challenges of a Unifying Conceptual Framework for Well-being Constructs.

Centuries of philosophical debate and decades of empirical research have sought to characterize what it means to be psychologically well. A unifying conceptual framework to organize these diverse perspectives is needed to facilitate clear communication and cumulative science within the field of well-being science. Although a handful of overarching theoretical and measurement models of well-being have been proposed, they typically make strong claims about which constructs should be included or excluded as well as the manner and degree to which well-being constructs are related to one another. Thus, these models are often not widely adopted as organizational or communicative tools, due to their exclusion of particular theoretical perspectives or disagreement among researchers about the empirical structure of well-being. While the field continues to grapple with these issues, it would benefit from a unifying conceptual framework that is broad in scope and that can flexibly accommodate diverse theoretical perspectives and new empirical advances. In this paper, I discuss the benefits of a unifying conceptual framework for well-being, as well as the challenges in its construction. Specifically, I review strengths and limitations of Park et al.'s proposed framework of "emotional well-being," and suggest an alternative framework of "psychosocial well-being" that encompasses the diverse array of constructs that have been proposed as positive psychological aspects of well-being.

Dripping with Blood and Dirt from Head to Toe: Marx’s Genealogy of Capitalism in Capital, Volume 1

Abstract I argue that Marx’s critique of political economy in volume 1 of Capital relies on a kind of genealogical argument that takes capitalism as its object. In the first section of the article, I sketch out an interpretation of the argumentative structure of Capital 1, highlighting what I take to be the two crucial turning points in Marx’s critique of political economy. Marx’s specifically genealogical argument comes to the foreground with the second of these turning points, which can be found at the start of his account of primitive accumulation in Part 8 of Capital 1. The first part of the paper defends the thought that the genealogy of capitalism’s prehistory is no mere digression from or complement to the main theoretical argument, but rather the crucial completion of Marx’s critique of political economy in Capital 1. In the second part of the paper, I turn to the somewhat thornier question of what sort of genealogy Marx offers. Drawing on and extending Bernard Williams’s distinction between vindicatory and subversive genealogies, I contend that Marx’s genealogy of capitalism, despite containing both subversive and vindicatory strands, is embedded in a longer vindicatory historical arc that, while avoiding crude teleologies and strong claims to unilinearity, nonetheless maintains a kind of necessity claim for its genealogical object.

Michael L. Raposa Plays with Peirce, Love, and Signs: Review Essay on Theosemiotic: Religion, Reading, and the Gift of Meaning

Michael L. Raposa Plays with Peirce, Love, and Signs: Review Essay on <i>Theosemiotic: Religion, Reading, and the Gift of Meaning</i>

HIPASS study of southern ultradiffuse galaxies and low surface brightness galaxies

ABSTRACT We present results from an H i counterpart search using the HI Parkes All Sky Survey (HIPASS) for a sample of low surface brightness galaxies (LSBGs) and ultradiffuse galaxies (UDGs) identified from the Dark Energy Survey (DES). We aimed to establish the redshifts of the DES LSBGs to determine the UDG fraction and understand their properties. Out of 409 galaxies investigated, none were unambiguously detected in H i. Our study was significantly hampered by the high spectral rms of HIPASS and thus in this paper we do not make any strong conclusive claims but discuss the main trends and possible scenarios our results reflect. The overwhelming number of non-detections suggest that (a) Either all the LSBGs in the groups, blue or red, have undergone environment aided pre-processing and are H i deficient or the majority of them are distant galaxies, beyond the HIPASS detection threshold. (b) The sample investigated is most likely dominated by galaxies with H i masses typical of dwarf galaxies. Had there been Milky Way (MW) size (Re) galaxies in our sample, with proportionate H i content, they would have been detected, even with the limitations imposed by the HIPASS spectral quality. This leads us to infer that if some of the LSBGs have MW-size optical diameters, their H i content is possibly in the dwarf range. More sensitive observations using the SKA precursors in future may resolve these questions.

Must a Just Distribution of Emissions Shares Respect Territorial Claims to Terrestrial Sink Capacity?

A central task of climate justice is to agree upon a just distribution of the right to emit greenhouse gases. According to the equal per capita shares view, the right to emit should be divided equally between every inhabitant of Earth, since to emit is to use up the resource of atmospheric absorptive capacity, and this is a resource to which no one person has any stronger claim than any other. The fact that a significant proportion of the Earth’s ability to absorb and sequester greenhouse gases actually comes not from the atmosphere, but from terrestrial climate sinks that are located within national borders, and that are therefore plausibly subject to legitimate territorial claims, poses a serious challenge to the intuitive egalitarian simplicity of the equal per capita shares view. A defence of this view, then, is tantamount to a defence of the redistribution of terrestrial sink capacity, and therefore must involve either (1) an argument against the legitimacy of territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity, or (2) an argument for why legitimate territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity should nevertheless be ignored in favour of an equal per capita distribution of emissions shares. One strategy for doing so involves applying Charles Beitz’s resource redistribution principle to terrestrial sink capacity. Some authors have argued that this strategy will fail due to important differences between the nature of ‘conventional’ natural resources, and the nature of a resource link climate sink capacity. In this paper, I consider five arguments to this effect that seek to establish the legitimacy of territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity. Respectively, they appeal to attachment, identity, self-determination, improvement and fairness in order to do so. I argue that each one either fails to establish the legitimacy of territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity, or, where they do plausibly establish legitimacy, they do so in a way that renders them vulnerable to type-(2) objections that suggest territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity should nevertheless be ignored. I conclude that, if one is willing to adopt the resource redistribution principle, a just distribution of emissions shares need not respect territorial claims to terrestrial sink capacity.

Inhaled corticosteroids, COPD, and the incidence of lung cancer: a systematic review and dose response meta-analysis

BackgroundThere has been debate on whether inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) reduce the incidence of lung cancer amongst patients with Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (COPD). We aimed to perform a systematic review and dose–response meta-analysis on available observational data.MethodsWe performed both a dose response and high versus low random effects meta-analysis on observational studies measuring whether lung cancer incidence was lower in patients using ICS with COPD. We report relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), as well as risk difference. We use the GRADE framework to report our results.ResultsOur dose–response suggested a reduction in the incidence of lung cancer for every 500 ug/day of fluticasone equivalent ICS (RR 0.82 [95% 0.68–0.95]). Using a baseline risk of 7.2%, we calculated risk difference of 14 fewer cases per 1000 ([95% CI 24.7–3.8 fewer]). Similarly, our results suggested that for every 1000 ug/day of fluticasone equivalent ICS, there was a larger reduction in incidence of lung cancer (RR 0.68 [0.44–0.93]), with a risk difference of 24.7 fewer cases per 1000 ([95% CI 43.2–5.4 fewer]). The certainty of the evidence was low to very low, due to risk of bias and inconsistency.ConclusionThere may be a reduction in the incidence for lung cancer in COPD patients who use ICS. However, the quality of the evidence is low to very low, therefore, we are limited in making strong claims about the true effect of ICS on lung cancer incidence.

Ethical and Ecological Dilemmas of Environmental Protection

Abstract The article analyses the problems (dilemmas) in approach to the environmental protection and management. EU has declared the plan for the Great Reset of global economy and environmental politics. The idea is not new, but the approach is expected to be completely different. While the EU leaders set the strategy of centralisation, there are strong claims for opposite way – decentralisation. The second dilemma we analyse in our article is the problem of European Commission massive support of green investments (including using of renewable sources of energy and focus of environmental protection), especially after lockdowns connected with covid pandemic which meets with the strong negative position of those economical circles which see such types of initiatives as green shooting to the economy. Terra Carta as an integral part of Sustainable Markets Initiative was launched in 2020. The third dilemma we pay our attention is connected with the efficiency of new environmental taxes. The article focuses also on the good practice as can be seen in environmental protection management efforts and green solutions for using and saving energy resources. As an examples we assess the projects supporting use of renewable energy in Africa (e.g. Lights for Africa), Cradle to Cradle Program (C2C) and we go back to the Come2CoM. The whole is analysed in the context of corporate social responsibility.

Downwards Propriety in Epistemic Utility Theory

AbstractEpistemic utility theory is often identified with the project of axiology-first epistemology—the project of vindicating norms of epistemic rationality purely in terms of epistemic value. One of the central goals of axiology-first epistemology is to provide a justification of the central norm of Bayesian epistemology, Probabilism. The first part of this paper presents a new challenge to axiology-first epistemology: I argue that in order to justify Probabilism in purely axiological terms, proponents of axiology-first epistemology need to justify a much stronger claim about epistemic value—what I label ‘Downwards Propriety’—than any they have offered a justification for. The second part of this paper offers an argument that this challenge cannot be met given a purely accuracy-based account of epistemic value: that there is no hope for providing a purely axiological justification of Downwards Propriety if accuracy is the fundamental source of epistemic value.

CAN INTERNATIONAL LAW PROVIDE GREECE WITH A SUITABLE AVENUE FOR THE PARTHENON MARBLES REPATRIATION?

&#x0D; The Parthenon Marbles (‘the Marbles’) extraction from Greece to the United Kingdom in the nineteenth century by Thomas Bruce, 7th Lord of Elgin, where it remains today in the British Museum, has been part of controversial public debate about who possesses lawful title over the Marbles. Greece has made numerous demands for the restitution of this historically and culturally significant piece, yet the United Kingdom has denied these requests and is protected by domestic legislation from returning the Parthenon Marbles. Currently, it appears the most suitable avenue of restitution for Greece is by pursuing legal action under international law. Based on the evidence collected, Greece has a strong claim for restitution, however there are jurisdictional difficulties and the non-binding nature of advisory opinions which will need to be overcome for a successful outcome.

Current Perspectives on Teacher Unionization, and What They’re Missing

Educational policy research on teacher unionization in the United States has been dominated by two theoretical perspectives: rent-seeking and teacher voice. While bringing valuable insights to bear, these views have mutated into rigid and often ideologically charged alternatives with strong normative claims about teacher collective bargaining. Drawing from a political economy framework, this article advances a distinct theoretical perspective focusing on the progressive coalition building activities of teachers’ unions (i.e., organizing and mobilizing to promote the interests of working people in policymaking). This perspective resolves previous theoretical anomalies of union behavior; provides many new avenues for research; and highlights distinct considerations for the practice of teacher organizing.

History, Social Science, and Public Policy: Reflections on Hugh Stretton's Thought

This article examines aspects of Hugh Stretton's thought, challenging an exclusively historical reading of his work and defending his importance as a theoretically engaged thinker on a wide range of issues in the social, political, and economic sciences. While Stretton distanced himself from strong theoretical claims in his work, this paper argues that he did articulate and defend a general framework for social, political, and economic thought and analysis, which needs to be better understood. This is examined through engagement with some of Stretton's contributions on cities, social democratic reform, economic rationalist and neoliberal thought, and public policy. Some concluding arguments are made linking Stretton's thought to that of other thinkers and theorists in the social, political, and economic sciences. In making these connections it is argued that his work is best viewed as an exercise in intellectual trespassing and interpretive social science, and as a normative defence of social democracy.