Theoretical Beliefs Research Articles

Stigmatizing intimate relationships in schizophrenia: a study comparing mental health professionals, health students and the general population

Background Discrimination in intimate relationships (IR) is frequently reported among persons with schizophrenia. Despite ongoing effort of international organizations to combat mental illness stigma, there remain a limited understanding of specific IR-related stereotypes. Aims The study aimed to i) identify the stereotypes related to IR of persons with schizophrenia held by Mental Health Professionals (MHP), health students and the general population, and ii) explore the effects of several factors associated with these stereotypes. Methods This study used a mixed-methods approach. A survey developed collaboratively with persons with lived experience of mental health conditions (PWLE) was disseminated among MHP, health students and the general population. Results The majority of the nine IR-related stereotypes previously identified by PWLE were endorsed by the participants (N = 532). PWLE were perceived as particularly incompetent in the domain of IR (e.g. to achieve couple project). Stereotypes endorsement varied among the groups. Continuum beliefs, perceived similarities and recovery beliefs were negatively associated with stereotype endorsement. Conclusions The general population, MHP and health students endorsed several stereotypes regarding IR of persons with schizophrenia. The results provide support for the role of theoretical beliefs in IR stigmatization, suggesting they may be relevant targets for evidence-based stigma reduction programs.

Construction of Overseas Social Responsibility Image of Chinese State-Owned Enterprises Based on Corpus: Overseas Social Responsibility Image of Chinese State-Owned Enterprises

As the "cornerstone" of the socialist economy with Chinese characteristics and the "pioneer" in expanding international markets, state-owned enterprises' overseas social responsibility image directly affects the nation's image and reputation. Drawing on the latest achievements in discourse analysis, this study constructs a multidimensional analytical framework for the overseas social responsibility image of Chinese state-owned enterprises based on a corpus. Using state-owned enterprise social responsibility reports as the corpus, the study examines the linguistic features of the texts and the constructed social responsibility image from the perspectives of thematic words and phrases, intertextuality and interdiscursivity, modal verbs, and explores the underlying socio-cultural context. The findings of the research are as follows: 1) State-owned enterprise social responsibility reports construct multiple social responsibility images, including those of loyal party patriots, guardians of social stability and sustainability, practitioners of shared prosperity, industry leaders, and promoters of firm theoretical beliefs, thereby promoting traditional culture. 2) Furthermore, the reports exhibit positive traits such as openness, diversity, innovation, inclusivity, moderation, and friendliness. The research also indicates that the multifaceted and three-dimensional corporate social responsibility image of state-owned enterprises is closely related to their unique mission and status, as well as China's distinctive cultural context. This study also aims to provide insights into the construction of social responsibility images for non-state-owned enterprises.

A Case Study Method for Integrating Spirituality and Narrative Therapy

Theological/spiritual reflection in psychotherapeutic practice has increased in recent years. Approaches for reflection and integration vary depending on the practitioner’s spiritual and theoretical beliefs. The integrative approach utilized in this paper is derived from a phenomenological perspective of the author, who was schooled in pastoral theology and later family therapy. Considering the pastoral theologian Seward Hiltner’s perspectival approach, this integrative approach creates a conversational method, integrating the client’s concerns with specific narrative therapy interventions or practices and the theological/spiritual concepts of immanence–transcendence. Finally, this case study’s methodology offers constructive questions that clinical practitioners can apply to specific psychotherapy approaches as well as theological concepts.

Saving time and staying rigorous: The RADaR technique for qualitative research

Saving time within a research process is a joy to all qualitative researchers. However, combing a time-saving qualitative approach with a rigorous process and ending up with valid findings is an even bigger pleasure. In this Contemporary Issue, I present the Rigorous and Accelerated Data Reduction (RADaR) technique as described by Watkins, to disseminate an example of how to master this venture. The RADaR technique is a five-step approach combining data collection, data analysis and reporting of findings in a structured tabular format. Even though the RADaR technique is performed without a philosophical paradigm of basic theoretical beliefs of the researchers and how it influences the steps of their research approach, the advantages of using this technique are considerable. They include eluding extensive periods of abduction and the time-consuming process of transcribing data materials as well as providing an opportunity to include more participants than usual.

Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices Relating to the Use of Tasks in Tertiary English as a Foreign Language Classrooms in China

Task-based language teaching (TBLT) has been recommended in the new College English Curriculum Requirement in China (Ministry of Education, 2017) for students learning English as a foreign language. Teachers might not, however, implement these concepts in their classes. This study aims to investigate whether the concept of TBLT has made its way into EFL teachers’ theoretical beliefs and the degree to which TBLT is being put into practice. By using semi-structured interviews and classroom observations, this study investigated the beliefs and practices of three tertiary English teachers in China and their use of tasks in their language classes. The results show that although these teachers had positive attitudes toward TBLT, only some activities in their classes could be classified as tasks. The teachers’ use of tasks seemed to be influenced by web-based textbooks and their own reflective practices. This study provides recommendations for developing language teacher education programmes based on TBLT in China.

MORE THAN MEETS THE FACT: THE UNIVERSALITY OF HISTORY AND THE COLONIAL MEDIATION

ABSTRACTThis article examines how mediation is not just limited to the format that's selected to convey the findings of previously conducted research that supposedly followed the conventional protocols of the historical discipline. Rather, it considers mediation as a fundamental part of building historical knowledge, for it assumes that every part of the historiographical operation can be defined as “mediation.” Specifically, it deals with colonial historical mediation, a concept that refers to the combination of an overt or concealed agenda, intentional or unnoticed bias, commonsense assumptions, inherited academic and political traditions, conceptual constellations, and more or less informed theoretical beliefs that configure the subtext upon which historical explanation is built, particularly in Latin America.

Unity and Division. Lefort and Clastres on the Role of Power in the Constitution of Society

ABSTRACT This article looks at the relation between the ideas of philosopher Claude Lefort and ethnologist Pierre Clastres. Both French authors worked in the same paradigm. They were convinced that politics is the “infrastructure” of society: all societies are politically constituted and can only be understood by interpreting the workings of political power. Yet they strongly disagreed on the dividedness of society. Clastres believed that a good solution to the problem of power is possible, while Lefort believes that the presence of power points to the impossibility of any society to coincide with itself. This article also discusses the way they both use the expression “the place of power” and asks to what extent non-Western societies were, both for Clastres and for Lefort, ever more than just a foil to present and illuminate their strongly held theoretical beliefs.

Intentional teaching for visual arts in Early Childhood Education: teachers’ practices and perceptions

The early childhood sector in New Zealand has a long-held tradition of free play and child-led pedagogy, influencing visual arts approaches with young children. However, alongside learning through play, New Zealand’s sociocultural curriculum highlights the active role of the teacher and intentional pedagogy. This article explores the practices and perceptions of early childhood teachers regarding visual arts through a mixed methods study, including a nationwide survey and an embedded case study. Data indicated that teachers are confused about the appropriateness of taking an active role during children’s visual arts learning, and about when to be intentional versus leaving children to play without interference. Such tensions appear to be founded in contradictory theoretical assumptions, and are evident through a lack of confidence, skills, strategies and language for teaching. The authors argue that professional learning could ameliorate these tensions by clarifying educational theories and identifying intentional visual arts teaching practices that align with current theoretical beliefs about how young children learn in early childhood.

In-store, pre-warehouse, or store-and-warehouse integration: Strategic analysis for neighborhood fresh product retail modes

Neighborhood retail has become increasingly popular among fresh product retailers. Retailers commonly adopt three modes to sell the fresh product: in-store (S), pre-warehouse (W), and store-and-warehouse integration (SW). However, different modes have their strengths and weaknesses, and which mode would help retailers effectively win the market is still unclear in both practice and literature. In this paper, we develop an analytical model to examine the efficiencies of the three fresh product retail modes and identify the retailer’s optimal mode choice. We find that the SW mode always generates the highest freshness-keeping service level, whereas the S mode invariably generates the lowest retail price. Importantly, consumers’ channel preference heterogeneity and retailer’s delivery cost for online order fulfillment jointly determine the retailer’s mode choice. More specifically, when the delivery cost is high, the retailer prefers the S mode. By contrast, when the delivery cost is low, the retailer’s preferred mode will be the W mode or the SW mode depending on the degree of consumers’ channel preference heterogeneity. Furthermore, we examine the consumer surplus across the S, W, and SW modes, and find that all three modes can generate the highest consumer surplus under certain conditions. Our study can complement extant theoretical beliefs on the fresh product retail mode choices and provide new managerial insights for neighborhood fresh product retailers.

The Myth of the Eclectic IR Scholar?

Abstract What does the decline in paradigmatic self-identification mean for how international relations (IR) scholars think about the world? We answer this question with a 2020 survey among nearly two thousand IR scholars. We uncover a two-dimensional latent theoretical belief space based on scholarly agreement with conjectures about the state, ideas, international institutions, domestic politics, globalization, and racism. The first dimension separates status quo–oriented scholars from more critical scholars. The second dimension captures the realist–institutionalist divide. We have three key findings. First, non-paradigmatic scholars vary greatly in their theoretical beliefs. Second, measurement invariance tests show that there is a similar structure underlying the beliefs of paradigmatic and non-paradigmatic scholars. Third, we find no evidence that non-paradigmatic scholars rely less on their theoretical beliefs in making predictions about conflict, institutions, political economy, democracy, and human rights. Instead, the positions of scholars in the two-dimensional theoretical belief space rather than self-assigned paradigmatic labels correlate with predictions about the world. Our findings suggest that non-paradigmatic scholars are not so different from self-identified Liberals, Constructivists, and Realists, although the decline of paradigmatic self-identification may still matter for how scholars organize debates and disciplinary divides.

Part of the solution yet part of the problem: factors of schizophrenia stigma in mental health professionals

Background Stigma is highly prejudicial to persons with schizophrenia, their families, the society and the health care system. Mental health professionals (MHP) are considered to be one of the main sources of schizophrenia stigma. Objectives The aim of the study was to identify individual and contextual factors associated with stigma in MHP in its three dimensions (stereotypes, prejudices, discrimination, Fiske, 1998). Methods An online survey was conducted with specific measures of MHP stigma (stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination). Four categories of potential associated factors were also measured: sociodemographic characteristics, contextual characteristics (e.g., Work setting), individual characteristics (e.g., Profession, Recovery-oriented practices) and theoretical beliefs (e.g., Biological beliefs, Perceived similarities, Continuum versus Categorical beliefs). Results Responses of 357 MHP were analysed. Factors that were the most strongly associated with MHP stigma were Perceived similarities, Categorical beliefs, Biological beliefs, Recovery-oriented practice and Work setting (independent practice). Conversely, Gender, Specific trainings in stigma or recovery and Cognitive aetiology beliefs showed no association with any of MHP stigma dimension. Remaining factors show associations with a weak effect size. Conclusions The survey results suggest that MHP stigma is more influenced by individual factors such as theoretical beliefs and recovery-oriented practices than contextual factors. These original results provide perspectives for reducing stigma in mental health practices. Key points Mental health professionals (MHP) considering they share similarities with persons with schizophrenia or believing that schizophrenia is not a discrete social category but rather the extreme on a continuum between ‘normal’ and ‘pathologic’ reported less stigmatisation. MHP holding higher professional utility beliefs and using recovery-oriented practice reported fewer stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination. Other factors such as age, academic level, contact frequency, familiarity and multidisciplinary practice show associations with a weak effect size.

Epistemic Emotions Justified

The view that emotions can provide defeasible justification for evaluative beliefs is widespread in the emotion literature. Despite this, the question of whether epistemic emotions can provide defeasible justification for theoretical beliefs has been almost entirely ignored. There seems to be an implicit consensus that while emotions may have justificatory roles to play in the former case, they have no such roles to play in the latter case. Here, I argue against this consensus by sketching a proposal for securing epistemic emotions justificatory roles.

“Part of the solution yet part of the problem” Stigmatization in mental health professionals: characteristics and associated factors

IntroductionThe consequences of schizophrenia stigma are numerous and highly damaging to individuals, their families, the health care system and society. Mental health professionals (MHP) are considered to be one of the main sources of schizophrenia stigmatization.ObjectivesThe aim of the study was to identify individual and contextual factors associated with stigmatization in MHP in its three dimensions.MethodsAn online survey was conducted with specific measures of MHP stigmatization (stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination). Four categories of potential associated factors were also measured: sociodemographic information, contextual characteristics (e.g. work setting), individual characteristics (e.g. profession, recovery-oriented practices) and theoretical beliefs (e.g. biological beliefs, perceived similarities, continuum beliefs). Models of prediction were computed when applicable.ResultsResponses of 357 MHP were analysed. The main factors associated with stigmatization (stereotypes, prejudice) in MHP are of two types: i) individual beliefs (about mental illness: biological etiological beliefs, categorical beliefs; or about MHP themselves: professional utility beliefs, similarity beliefs) and ii) characteristics of practices (recovery oriented practice, work setting, profession).ConclusionsThese original results suggest new strategies for reducing stigma in mental health practices such as focusing on individual beliefs and fostering recovery-oriented practice and professional utility beliefs.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

The Utility of Pragmatism in Educational Research

This article seeks to address why the pragmatic approach is of utility to the educational researcher. The article’s objectives will address the major contributory thinkers of Peirce, James, and Dewey, and demonstrate why pragmatism is not an epistemology but best considered a methodological approach, and why it is thus, suited to the utility of both quantitative and qualitative methodology and method. It will do this first, by reviewing such arguments in 2 sections: in the first, I will introduce the philosophical assumptions & beliefs relevant in the role of knowledge acquisition, whilst explaining the key theoretical beliefs of the 3 classic pragmatists. I will then summarise how it is not considered an epistemological approach; albeit the approach demonstrates ontological and epistemological awareness. In the second half of the article, I will explore through the logic of justification why it is most beneficial as a methodology. The article fundamentally addresses, through example of an educational research inquiry—how pragmatic methodology does not merely reduce all that is known and experienced to binary assumption for the researcher, like its epistemic competitors. But by evaluating social scientific knowledge via reflexivity and quantitative methods, research thus, becomes a social endeavour—for the practitioner & researcher alike. The article will also conclude noting such distinction between Peircean pragmatic method and that of more contemporary theorists, whilst challenging why the former is most suitable for the investigative pragmatic researcher.

A Qualitative Study of Experience in Forming Teachers’ Cognition on the Concept of Language Noticing

Awareness, in language learning, is a focused area of debate encompassing many different aspects of language teaching research, especially that of grammar. Although the learner’s awareness has been widely taken into account, noticing, which embraces the meaning of awareness, is something that lacks empirical data and literature in teacher’s cognition when it comes to second language teaching studies. Therefore, this qualitative study aimed to explore the teachers’ theoretical and practical cognition in conceptualizing and using noticing in teaching and practicing language; in addition, the congruency between teachers’ theoretical beliefs and actual practices were investigated. To this end, a total of 30 novice and experienced teachers were interviewed and the role of teaching experience as an overarching concept affecting teachers’ beliefs and performance was detected by using constant comparative analysis. Findings revealed seven conceptual themes out of the collected data as pedagogical effects, type of input, skill type, when to notice, noticing techniques, time allocation, and measurement. Then, six teachers from the same sample group were observed for possible inconsistencies in their teaching practices and their cognition about the concept. The discrepancies between the teachers’ stated beliefs and actual practices revealed that teaching experience has a relative impact on teacher’s performance.

The Evolution of Autonomy in Pragmatist Aesthetics

Writers in pragmatist aesthetics tend, as naturalists, to avoid the originally Kantian-Idealist term “autonomy” when discussing art and aesthetic experience. Even so, a more general autonomy concept, emphasizing that art and the aesthetic comprise a normatively special aspect of experience, is already implicit in much of the pragmatist aesthetics literature, including in John Dewey’s seminal Art as Experience. As the cultural disciplines move beyond earlier modernist- and postmodernist-era debates about art’s total autonomy from or total “heteronomous” absorption within the processes of life, I argue that a more naturalistically down-to-earth version of the above general autonomy idea remains indispensable in a century of social, environmental, and existential crises whose solutions demand creative agency of a kind that artistically charged experiences can inspire. Drawing upon key pragmatist themes, I further develop the general autonomy idea by arguing that aesthetic experiences within and without the fine arts are horizontally transcendent; that art and the aesthetic answer a persistent human need for experiences that are intrinsically rewarding while also serving the instrumental function of being redemptive; that to this end, our global culture needs collectively accessible autonomous spaces within language and experience that can help people explore and interrogate the meanings of what we individually and collectively do; and that the value of our theoretical beliefs about the arts lies not in their power to represent a world supposedly independent of human thought and action but in what they lead us to do in the world. In conclusion, I illustrate this pragmatic interpretation of the general autonomy idea with a reading of Richard Powers’ novel The Overstory.

Visual arts pedagogy in early childhood contexts: The baggage of self-efficacy beliefs, pedagogical knowledge and limited pre-service training

Visual arts provisions are central to children’s holistic, play-based learning, yet the visual arts self-efficacy beliefs and subject content knowledge of early childhood educators influence pedagogical choices. When early childhood educators lack the visual arts confidence, skills, and knowledge required to effectively support children’s visual arts learning and engagement, children’s learning in the visual arts domain may be restricted; resulting in a negative cycle of influence whereby the next generation are denied their right to access visual languages. Qualitative case study research explored the visual arts beliefs and pedagogy of 12 degree qualified and vocationally trained early childhood educators. The conceptual framework, designed to to interpret and analyse the research data, aligns Dewey’s philosophies of democracy, education and art with the philosophy and visual arts praxis of the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. The research findings suggest educator’s low visual arts self-efficacy beliefs develop during childhood and are not improved by pre-service training, resulting in limited visual arts skills and knowledge. The research participants’ visual arts pedagogy appeared to be strongly influenced by the experiential ‘baggage’ they carried into their pre-service training and practice contexts, by the participants’ theoretical beliefs about children’s development and by a range of divergent beliefs about the purposes of visual art in the early childhood context. Although training has the potential to broadly inform knowledge and practice, this study suggests that unless limiting visual arts self-efficacy beliefs are disrupted by constructivist theoretical knowledge and combined with practical skills and knowledge, the visual arts curriculum offered to children may be significantly compromised.

The nature of law and its role in society: reflections on the basis of William Golding’s novel ‘Lord of the Flies’

Literature provides a great deal of material for more general observations regarding the as- sessment of law and its role in public awareness. Literary works act as a mirror in which we can see the dangers of breaking the link between law and morality. An excellent example is William Golding’s novel, ‘Lord of the Flies’. His parabolic story about human nature provides a reflection on the role and nature of law in society. The task of defining the essence of law and its role in society has captured the minds of legal theorists, philosophers, and sociolo- gists for centuries. This paper includes a brief analysis of two basic concepts of the nature of law, i.e. natural law and legal positivism. It is an attempt to show that theoretical beliefs about the essence of law have a direct impact on the practice of making and applying laws. The pluralism of values is used by various social groups or the ruling political elite to achieve their own goals. They value individual civil liberties, giving primacy to values that safeguard their interests. This often happens at the expense of other groups whose freedoms are being limited. Importantly, such mechanisms of assigning value are used in both undemocratic and democratic systems.

The Secular Stagnation of Productivity Growth

The concern that an economy could experience persistent stagnation, caused by a structural weakness of aggregate demand, goes back to Alvin Hansen’s (1939) thesis of ‘secular stagnation’. Hansen’s thesis has been revived in recent times, when it became clear that productivity and potential growth in the OECD countries have been declining for decades. However, in line with deep-rooted theoretical beliefs, that inadequate demand can only affect growth in the short run, secular stagnation (of potential growth) is treated as an exclusively supply-side problem, the root of which is a worrying steady decline in productivity growth. This paper argues that it is a mistake to dismiss secular demand stagnation as main cause of declining potential growth in the OECD. We argue that the theoretical case for demand-caused secular stagnation is strong and empirical evidence that it has affected the U.S. economy after the mid-1970s is entirely convincing. Demand is leading supply, also in the long run. Hansen had it right, after all.

Moving Beyond Definitions in the Search for Extraterrestrial Life.

According to the 2015 Astrobiology Strategy, a central goal of astrobiology is to provide a definition of life. A similar claim is made in the 2018 CRC Handbook of Astrobiology. Yet despite efforts, there remains no consensus on a definition of life. This essay explores an alternative strategy for searching for extraterrestrial life: Search for potentially biological anomalies (as opposed to life per se) using tentative (vs. defining) criteria. The function of tentative criteria is not, like that of defining criteria, to provide an estimate (via a decision procedure) of the likelihood that an extraterrestrial phenomenon is the product of life. Instead, it is to identify phenomena that resist classification as living or nonliving as worthy of further investigation for novel life. For as the history of science reveals, anomalies are a driving force behind scientific discovery and yet (when encountered) are rarely recognized for what they represent because they violate core theoretical beliefs about the phenomena concerned. While the proposed strategy resembles that of current life-detection missions, insofar as it advocates the use of a variety of lines of evidence (biosignatures), it differs from these approaches in ways that increase the likelihood of noticing truly novel forms of life, as opposed to dismissing them as just another poorly understood abiological phenomenon. Moreover, the strategy under consideration would be just as effective at detecting forms of life closely resembling our own as a definition of life.