Theory Of Individual Behavior Research Articles

Whose Knowledge Heals? Transforming Teaching in the Struggle for Health Equity.

Racial health inequities persist despite many attempts to correct them. Inadequate comprehension of racism obscures the ordinariness of racism in public health institutions. In addition to applying critical race theory (CRT) to the research and practice of public health, we argue that the struggle for health equity must also apply CRT toward the teaching of public health students. Adhering to conventional approaches in academic public health without grappling with their roots in Whiteness reproduces a public health workforce that is insufficiently equipped to address the complex, systemic issues underlying health inequities. By default, academic public health excludes the perspectives of scholars of color, relies too heavily on theories of individual behavior, and applies top-down teaching methods. To make durable changes, the rising generation of public health scholars and practitioners must understand how health equity fits within broader struggles for racial and social justice. Thus, we critique three responsibilities for teaching about public health: assigning readings, shaping analytical lenses with theories, and modeling change through andragogy. By questioning whose knowledge is legitimized when defining public health needs, whose lenses are used to prioritize solutions, and whose insights drive change, we can train a public health workforce more critical of racism, and more prepared to deal with the enduring reality of racial relations.

The Wide, the Deep, and the Maverick

Although player performance in online games has been widely studied, few studies have considered the behavioral preferences of players and how they impact performance. In a competitive setting where players must cooperate with temporary teammates, it is even more crucial to understand how differences in playing style contribute to teamwork. Drawing on theories of individual behavior in teams, we describe a methodology to empirically profile players based on the diversity and conformity of their gameplay styles. Applying this approach to a League of Legends dataset, we find three distinct types of players that align with our theoretical framework: generalists, specialists, and mavericks. Importantly, the behavior of each player type remains stable despite players becoming more experienced. Additionally, we extensively investigate the benefits and drawbacks of each type of player by evaluating their individual performance, contribution to the team, and adaptation to changes in the game environment. We find that, overall, specialists tend to outperform others, while mavericks bear high risk but also potentially reap great rewards. Generalists are the most resilient to instability in the environment (game patches). We discuss the implications of these findings in terms of game design and community management, as well as team building in environments with varying levels of stability.

‘Situational Analysis’ and Economics: an attempt at clarification

AbstractPopper’s ‘Situational Analysis’ (SA) constitutes his methodological proposal for the social sciences. We claim that the two hallmarks of SA are: (i) that scientists assume they possess a ‘wider’ view of the problem-situation than actors do, and (ii) use the model as an ideal ‘benchmark’ scenario to identify thedeviationof actors’ actual behaviour from the former. We argue that SA is not a generalization of the neoclassical theory of individual behaviour but captures instead the methodology adopted by modern behavioural economists. Last, we argue that SA highlights a way of acquiring knowledge that has gone unnoticed in the literature.

Explaining patterns, not details: reevaluating rational choice models in light of their explananda

It has been argued persistently that economic models frequently suffer from poor empirical performance because they rely upon empirically inadequate behavioral foundations, i.e. theories of rational choice. In this paper, I argue that much of this criticism misses the point: it assumes that economics is about explaining human behavior when in fact, since Adam Smith, economists have been more interested in explaining patterns that emerge from social interaction. While some minimal account of human behavior is needed for explaining such phenomena, a full-fledged psychological or neurobiological theory of individual behavior might not be. The more pressing yet under-researched challenge for economic models is to arrive at an adequate description of social interaction processes that connect individual choices on the micro-level and robust patterns on the macro-level.

From St. Petersburg to Monte Carlo: A Resolution Rediscovered and Affirmed

The St. Petersburg paradox has served as an intriguing pedagogical device for almost 300 years, since it was first described by Daniel Bernoulli in 1738. Many explanations of the paradox have been offered, most involving either theories of individual behavior or the practical limitations of playing the game. We do not revisit any of the conventional explanations. Rather, we endeavor to demonstrate that the premise underlying the paradox – that the St. Petersburg game’s expected value is infinite – is mistaken. The analysis focuses on how the probability distribution of the game’s duration determines and limits the expected value. We do not claim precedence on so fundamental a resolution of the paradox. Our analysis is guided by the approach first described by the mathematician William Feller in 1945. We conduct a massive array of computer simulations within the framework suggested by Feller’s approach. The simulation results allow for an empirical evaluation of his coherent resolution.

Risk management with regard to the effect of human factors

One of the most important components in today's market is a party decision-making under risk and uncertainty. The first step in making such decisions - to adequately process the information for estimating the future value of assets and the interests of investors probabilities of each particular scenario. The next step is to choose the alternative that has the greatest utility for the investor. Each of these steps is associated with numerous difficulties, the roots of which stem from the specificity of human psychology. The article notes that an integral part of professional risk management is to identify the nature of the object of management in the sphere of economy. Since the domestic theory of risk management is being formed-tion, the problem of a clear comprehensive definition of “risk” becomes now particularly relevant-ness. The article deals with along with economic forecasts of the risks and the human factor in decision-tions solutions. Along with economic forecasts, the report focuses on psychological problems and attempts to take into account the human factor in decision-making at the forecast of risks arising in the company. The important parameters are the status and position of the person in the society, as well as its social well-being. Analysis Meto-ing risk assessment concluded that the need to develop new models and methods of risk management, taking into account the four-lovecheskogo factor. Economic psychology and its applications have developed into a special branch of economic knowledge - the so-called behavioral economics, which surely develops a wide range of economic issues - from the actual theory of individual behavior to the problems of public choice and the financial economy. The most interesting item is the fact that the concept of “risk” is considered from different points of view - as the economist-mathematician with the position, and a psychologist.

Logic, rationality and knowledge in Ramsey's thought: reassessing ‘human logic’

This paper reconsiders Frank Ramsey's essay on subjective probability (1926) as a consistent way to articulate logic, rationality and knowledge. The first part of the essay builds an axiomatic theory of subjective probability based on ‘formal logic’, defining rationality as choice-consistency. The second part seems to open up different horizons: the evaluation of degrees of belief by ‘human logic’. Because of the interest Keynes (1931) had taken in ‘human logic’, it was considered to be a possible alternative to the formal logic underlying the neoclassical theory of individual behaviour. The analysis of Ramsey's method in the entire paper, the relation between logic and rationality it constructs and the conception of uncertainty it reveals, lead me to note on the contrary that Ramsey's human logic was a complementary logic rather than an alternative to formal logic. Defining a standard to evaluate beliefs formation according to a frequentist criterion, it completes a normative representation of rationality which supports an original theory of knowledge that appears more in line with further developments of neoclassical methodology than with Keynesian economics.

The behavioral foundations of Austrian economics

Behavioral and experimental economics present challenges to the neoclassical theory of individual behavior, which is based on individuals making choices within the framework of utility functions that are assumed to have certain well-defined characteristics. Results in behavioral and experimental economics have shown that it is common for individual behavior to systematically deviate from the neoclassical axioms of utility maximization. Austrian economics is also based on axiomatic theories of utility maximization, but the assumptions underlying utility-maximizing behavior are much weaker in the Austrian approach. As a result, they have more solid behavioral foundations and are less subject to challenge by the empirical findings of behavioral and experimental economics. Neoclassical policy conclusions are often overly strong because of its behavioral foundations which are challenged by behavioral and experimental economics and are often misleading because of the comparative static nature of neoclassical welfare economics. For purposes of policy analysis, the Austrian approach provides better insights because of its more realistic behavioral foundations.

Kitchen table wisdom: A Freirian approach to medication adherence

Most interventions to promote medication adherence are based on psychological theories of individual behavior. In contrast, this article describes the theory and practice of a socially based adherence intervention that is guided by the educational principles of Paolo Freire. This approach asserts that adherence is influenced by the patient's social context and attempts to improve adherence through identifying social constraints on adherence behavior. The program builds on the traditions of patient education through home nursing visits. Using a dialectic process of dialogue and problem solving and working with a team that includes a nurse and a peer-educator, patients are encouraged to act to change their social environment to support their desire to achieve high levels of medication adherence. This strategy does not replace, but rather supplements, traditional methods of understanding individual patient behavior and allows the patient and the nurse to consider potential solutions to adherence challenges in the larger social context.

Symposium on Amartya Sen's philosophy: 2 Unstrapping the straitjacket of ‘preference’: a comment on Amartya Sen's contributions to philosophy and economics

The concept of preference dominates economic theory today. It performs a triple duty for economists, grounding their theories of individual behavior, welfare, and rationality. Microeconomic theory assumes that individuals act so as to maximize their utility – that is, to maximize the degree to which their preferences are satisfied. Welfare economics defines individual welfare in terms of preference satisfaction or utility, and social welfare as a function of individual preferences. Finally, economists assume that the rational act is the act that maximally satisfies an individual's preferences. The habit of framing problems in terms of the concept of preference is now so entrenched that economists rarely entertain alternatives.

New Perspectives on Incentive System Design: Integrating the Theory of the Firm and the Theory of Individual Behavior

Classical incentive reward systems motivate employees, but because the designs of these systems neglect consideration of key factors, the rewards typically do not achieve the right degree of employee motivation. Adding insights from the effort-net return model of employee motivation and from the economic theory of the firm helps management achieve the proper amount of employee motivation. The slope of the employee's perceived reward function is most critical in coupling the interests of the firm with those of the individual.

Group Processes and Structures: A Theoretical Integration

This book integrates what is known about group processes and the structures they produce. It examines the interrelations of processes and structures in the contexts of group development, group stability, orderly change in the group, and disintegration of the group. The processes and structures considered are attraction and consensus; prestige, power, and economic reward distribution; authority, trust, and influence; and justice in the allocation of members to tasks and economic rewards to members. The theory developed is related to conformity, deviance, and social control. Social-psychological theories of individual behavior are used in formulating the integration of processes and structures. Cognitive balance, reinforcement, exchange, and external status theories are used in developing the formulation.

The Economics of Uncertainty and Information.

The Economics of Uncertainty and Information may be used in conjunction with Loffont's Fundamentals of Economics in an advanced course in microeconomics. Both texts provide a thorough account of modern thinking on the subject and a wealth of carefully chosen examples and problems.The first four chapters of The Economics of Uncertainty and Information summarize the essential tools of the analysis of uncertainty and information: the theory of individual behavior under uncertainty, the measures of risk aversion and the measures of risk, and the notions of certainty equivalence and information structure. Subsequent chapters introduce the theory of contingent markets, model systems of incomplete markets and define the concept of a perfect foresight equilibrium, cover two fundamental institutions for sharing risk - the stock market and insurance, show how the transmission of information by prices renders information structures endogenous, and study personalized exchange with asymmetric information.Each chapter concludes with a list of suggested readings and with auxiliary sections which go into more detail about certain aspects of the subject. The book concludes with review problems and exercises.Jean Jacques Laffont is Professor of Economic Sciences at the Universite des Sciences Sociales de Toulouse and Director of Studies at I'Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales.

The alleged necessity of microfoundations

It is often said that models in the microfoundations literature derive macroeconomic results from the theory of individual behavior only. This paper examines two of the assumptions that are usually made in these models: market clearing and rational expectations. In the context of simple models it is shown that only in some special cases these assumptions can be derived from the fundamental notion that individuals behave rationally. Thus, the usual rationale for the microfoundations literature is challenged. The paper concludes with a more modest rationale for the “necessity” of microfoundations.

Toward a Revision of the Economic Theory of Individual Behavior

Toward a Revision of the Economic Theory of Individual Behavior

The Enhancement Function of Staff Development: Organizational and Psychological Antecedents to Individual Teacher Change

The purpose of this study was to examine previously unexplored relationships among the organizational contexts of schools and classrooms, teachers’ psychological states, and change in individual teacher practice through staff development unassociated with school or district innovation. A path model, based on theories of individual behavior and change within organizations, is presented and tested using a sample of teachers who voluntarily participated in a staff development program aimed solely at improving individual teacher practice. The findings from the path analysis suggest that, in the absence of organizational foci and pressures for change associated with school or district innovation, individual change is a direct function of personal teaching efficacy. The findings suggest indirect influences on individual change of teachers’ certainty about practice, the concentration of low-achieving students in teachers’ classrooms, and the interactions teachers have with their colleagues about instruction. The implications of these findings for efforts to enhance individual teachers’ practice are discussed.

Dynamic Model of Weekly Activity Pattern

This paper presents a model of weekly activity pattern, based on a theory of individual behavior. The week is divided into time periods, and the following dynamic decision-making process is suggested. At the beginning of the first period, the individual selects his/her activity pattern for the entire week. At the beginning of the second period, the individual updates his/her plans for the remaining periods of the week on the basis of the actual behavior and the additional information that was acquired during the first time periods. In this way, the individual proceeds from period to period and the observed weekly activity pattern is the outcome of successive decisions. Based on utility maximizing principles, a parametric model of this dynamic decision-making process that can be estimated with revealed preferences data is formulated. A version of the model for weekly shopping activity behavior is estimated with survey data from Israel. The model is then applied to predict the effects of shortening the workweek. The empirical results support the dynamic behavior hypothesis and demonstrate the potential biases that may arise from the omission in a travel demand model of the interdependencies among the days of the week.

Individuals and society in anthropological theory

Though relatively little direct attention has been given by Marxist anthropologists to a theory of individual behavior and thought in relation to societal processes, the above partial summary indicates the wealth of insight that is available for elaborating such a theory. In addition, there are of course significant developments in the field of psychology, notably the attention to activity as central to individual personality [1], the renewed concern with levels of integration theory [2], and the burgeoning interest in Vygotsky's writings on language, thought, and culture [3]. There are also the continuing attempts to locate Freud's positive contributions in a historical materialist frame [4].

Scholastinė moralės filosofija Lietuvoje

Straipsnis skirtas iki tol netyrinėtam klausimui – scholastinei moralės filosofijai Lietuvoje. Moralės filosofija, arba etika, buvo dėstoma paskutiniaisiais studijų metais ir turėjo užbaigti filosofijos kursą, kartais ji visai nebuvo dėstoma. Etikos kurse buvo dėstomos kai kurios Aristotelio etikos problemos, remiantis scholastikos klestėjimo laikotarpio ir vadinamosios antrosios scholastikos autoritetais. Etika buvo traktuojama kaip individualaus elgesio teorija. Teologija neatmetė etikos. Gėris buvo skirstomas į fizinį ir dvasinį. Fizinis gėris atrandamas žmogaus jutiminėje prigimtyje, jos apspręstų siekimų realizavime. Tikrasis yra dvasinis, arba moralinis, gėris, kuris laikytas tiesos kontempliacija. Scholastika nesidomėjo etinių vertybių socialiniu turiniu. Bendražmogiškosios moralės elementai buvo pateikiami abstrakčiai, atitrūkus nuo laiko dvasios, nuo gyvenamosios tikrovės. XVIII a. viduryje etikos dėstymas remiantis Aristoteliu jau ir valdantiesiems šalies sluoksniams atrodė anachronizmas.