Liberal Views Research Articles

Postmaterialism and voluntary childlessness

ABSTRACT Decisions to remain childfree are becoming more common across many of the world’s affluent societies. This study asks how citizen values relate to decisions to not have children? It utilizes cross-national data drawn from Wave 7 of the World Values Survey to assess questions posed to respondents in two samples of countries (63 and 90 states). Questions about having children are investigated and are related to measures on postmaterialism by way of descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation analysis, and regression with interaction terms. Results reveal robust and statistically significant negative correlations between postmaterialist values and individuals’ beliefs about whether it is a societal duty to have children. Similarly, higher levels of postmaterialism are associated with respondents attributing stronger priority to protecting the environment and also are associated with more liberal views on reproductive rights and abortion. Concurrently, in materialist societies, societal duties to have children are more significant, restrictive views on abortion are more prevalent, and respondents tend to favour economic growth and job creation over environmental protection. These results provide among the first cross-national set of insights on conditions that function as tributaries of voluntarily childlessness – a phenomenon that appears to be increasing in prominence across postmaterialist societies.

Political Attitudes and Sexual Identity in Germany: Examining the Sexuality Gap

AbstractThe association between LGB+ identity and political attitudes in Europe remains relatively underexplored, despite the growing visibility of LGB+ individuals in electoral politics. Existing research tends to focus on a limited range of political attitudes and seldom uses indicators that reflect LGB+ self‐identification. This research note presents new evidence based on original survey data (N = 1,599) from Germany in 2021, which directly measures sexual identity and its association with political attitudes. It shows that self‐identifying as LGB+ (9.63 percent; N = 154) is associated with left‐liberal political attitudes, confirming previous findings from studies in the US and Western Europe. However, in contrast to those studies, LGB+ individuals in Germany do not exhibit more liberal views on migration or greater solidarity with EU member states in financial need. These findings suggest that LGB+ individuals are not always more liberal than heterosexuals.

Феміністичні аспекти життєпису Елізи Ожешко та Олени Пчілки

The purpose of the publication is to determine the origins of feminist views based on specific facts from the biographies of Ukrainian Olena Pchilka and Polish Eliza Orzeszkowa. The results. In the 19th century, views on the role and place of women in family and society began to change radically. It is outlined that these changes start with family upbringing, which, according to both writers, plays a crucial role in preparing girls for adult life, laying the foundation for the realization of their personal needs and desires, and developing a clear civic position. An important role in this process is assigned to the mother, who should contribute to teaching her daughter not only good manners, crafts, singing, and dancing but also to cultivate a love for the native language and respectful attitude towards folk traditions. It is clarified that in the family of the Dragomanovs, the role of women and mothers went beyond the traditional boundaries of patriarchal society. Olena Pchilka is a vivid example of a new woman-mother, a woman-citizen. It is determined that the lack of understanding with her mother prompted Eliza Orzeszkowa to pay much attention to family issues and its role in shaping the next generations of Poles, giving rise to the conviction that the fate and future of the nation are in the mothers’ hands. A woman-mother should not forget that having a family is not just a privilege, but above all a duty. On her shoulders lies the burden of raising the next generations, and therefore, the responsibility for the fate of future Poland. It is noted that for the full fulfilment of these functions, women lack appropriate education, knowledge in solving household problems, and financial independence since women cannot realize themselves in many professions. The conclusions emphasize that the personal life experience of Olena Pchilka and Eliza Orzeszkowa influenced the formation of feminist views in them, which undermined patriarchal notions of women and their purpose.

The political economy of gender mainstreaming in energy access in Sierra Leone

Abstract In 2017, the Economic Community of West African States launched its Policy for Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Access with each member state tasked to create a National Action Plan (NAP). This study explores the case of Sierra Leone, to understand how stakeholders have influenced the NAP process, and what that might mean for implementation. Using the Actor-Objective-Context framework with interview data from key gender and energy actors. We find elements that make Sierra Leone’s NAP unique; such as addressing systematic barriers, explicitly promoting solar energy and heavily relying on civil society. The study finds that a policy focus on gender reflects both a push from international donor organisations and the national efforts of civil society. Sierra Leone’s NAP reflects the tension between the high priority of gender politics at the national and international level and more immediate interest from the Ministry of Energy and government actors on economic development. It affirms the uneasy co-existence of the liberal and liberating view of women in international development with some evidence that the liberal view prevails. Still, despite the government focus on economic development, poor engagement with the private sector and cultural barriers are likely to hamper the inclusion of women into the energy industry.

Emergence of New Male Leads in Korean Dramas

Korean TV production has been greatly influenced by the arrival of a wave of feminism in South Korea and the subsequent wave of anti-feminism. Moreover, writers and directors have taken the opportunity to update the main male and female characters of the series. The aim of this paper is to introduce two new types of male heroes that we notice in contemporary Korean dramas: an “underdog” and a “dream-like hero”. Through a narrative analysis that focuses on the personality development of characters within a narrative, we examine two heroes – Park Sae-ro-yi from Itaewon Class and Ryu Sun-jae from Lovely Runner. Park Sae-ro-yi introduces the character of an underdog whose life became worse after a tragedy and was left marked by the inaction of his surroundings when he entered this unfortunate situation. He can succeed despite adversity. The adversity in question can be aided by illegal practices, which is why the underdog often becomes a vigilante as well. Ryu Sun-jae embodies a dream-like hero, but he should not be understood as a person who exists solely for the heroine, and loses himself. He is a character who is mature but willing to give the heroine anything she desires. In doing so, he fulfills feminist views, sentiments and expectations of actualization that came to Korean television production after 2012. At the same time, he does not have to be a selfless character because the character may not only be positive, but may also have certain negative character traits.

Testimonial liberalism and the balance of epistemic goals

There are two broad views in the epistemology of testimony, conservatism and liberalism. The two views disagree over a particular necessary condition on testimonial justification: the positive reasons requirement (PRR). Perhaps the most prominent objection levelled at liberalism from the conservative camp stems from gullibility; without PRR, the thought goes, an objectionable form of gullibility looms large for liberals. In this paper I aim to make two main contributions: to introduce a new metric for adjudicating this debate; and to argue that, from the perspective of this new metric, the liberal view is stronger than has been appreciated. Drawing on work from James (The Will to believe and other essays in Popular Philosophy, Harvard University Press, 1896), Goldman (Epistemology and Cognition, Harvard University Press, 1986), and Kelp et al. (Synthese 197:5187–5202, 2020), I firstly countenance the distinction between positive and negative epistemic measures. Positive measures concern, roughly, the acquisition of truths, whereas negative measures concern the avoidance of falsehoods. Both, it is argued, are relevant to epistemic justification, but this debate has proceeded in such a way as to overemphasise the importance of the latter over the former. Once this distinction is made, new conceptual terrain opens for the liberal. Rather than being resigned to a predominantly defensive role—of mitigating worries about negative measures—the liberal can go on the offensive, and explore the independent epistemic strengths of their position. The upshot is that liberals have a new way to dispel their most prominent objection.

Representation of Gender Dominants in the Russian Language. Diachronic Aspect

The article speaks about gender dominants in the Russian language. In Russian linguistics the problem of studying gender becomes especially relevant in the beginning of the 21st century, although the studies of peculiarities and differences in the speech of men and women were conducted throughout the 20th century. Gender studies make it possible to analyze language taking into account the multifactorial influence of gender, with the binary opposition «male / female», «masculine / feminine» largely representing the value orientations of any ethnos. In modern society, linguistic gender dominants are associated with the activation of the feminist movement around the world, as well as with the spread of variously interpreted liberal views. In general, femininity and masculinity as part of modern linguoculture are related to the essential characteristic of an individual and are determined by the qualities considered «feminine» or «masculine» in Russian ethnoculture. That is why the phraseosemantic group of feminine and masculine lexicon is actively replenished in the modern Russian language. However, in general, it should be stated that in Russian linguoculture, first of all, the gender dominants, preserved since ancient times, which are based on the binary opposition of mother / father, man / woman.

‘Where else can they go?’: Violence, resistance and the socio‐cultural trajectories of Kashmiri women in Freny Manecksha's Behold I Shine: Narratives of Kashmir's Women and Children

AbstractIn the armed conflict between Kashmiri militancy and the Indian state forces, Kashmiri women have been relentless victims of abduction, rape, molestation, and cruel objectification by the militaristic patriarchs of both sides. In the context of the state's unaccountability, the rebuttal of justice is horrific in Kashmir. Consequently, due to predominant masculine, state‐centric, absolutist, and neo‐realist perceptions, the majority of atrocities against Kashmiri women have gone unregistered and unreported, failing to reach the pan‐Indian masses through the dominant media and literary narratives. This article explicates Freny Manecksha's book Behold I Shine: Narratives of Kashmir's Women and Children (2017) as a unique retelling of Kashmiri women's physical violence, fears, trauma, and, most importantly, their fortitude and recuperation. Drawing on feminist views on rape and repression, it exposes how rape in Kashmir incessantly functions as a weapon of suppression, relegating women to the most precarious position. Simultaneously, the discussion demonstrates how rape and oppression render Kashmiri women docile and vulnerable to cultural and collective trauma by employing the Foucauldian notion of docility. The article further addresses how Kashmiri women repudiate the traditional divides of private and public, overturn the social expectations of womanhood, contest the patriarchal excesses of militaristic Kashmir vis‐à‐vis their resilience, and protest against state‐sponsored violence. Thus, the article posits Manecksha's writing as a counter‐historiographic narrative for the marginalized voices of Kashmiri women, whose ways of redressing their grievances constitute subversive modes of resistance.

The Immigration‐Related Political Ideology Scale: Development, factor structure, and validity evidence

AbstractThe aim of the present study was to develop and validate the Immigration‐Related Political Ideology Scale (IRPIS), designed to measure diverse political perspectives on immigration among US voters. The IRPIS was developed following a series of focus groups and refined through a systematic item‐generation process involving expert panels. The scale was validated using a two‐step factor analysis with a nationally representative sample of 1292 US voters, divided into exploratory (n = 632) and confirmatory (n = 660) sub‐samples. The exploratory factor analysis identified seven distinct factors: conservative views, welcoming attitudes, world regions, flexibility, assimilationist expectations, multicultural expectations, and undocumented immigrant rights. Confirmatory factor analysis provided an acceptable fit (CFI = .901; RMSEA = .050), and the scale demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach's alphas ranging from .89 to .97). Inter‐factor correlations varied, with strong links observed among welcoming attitudes, flexibility, and multicultural expectations (r’s > .80), confirming a polarization between liberal and conservative stances on immigration. These findings suggest that the IRPIS is the first scale specifically designed to assess immigration‐related political orientations in a polarized US context. This tool has important implications for political strategy and policymaking, especially in the context of rising immigration rates and political polarization.Public Significance StatementThe present study validates the Immigration‐Related Political Ideology Scale (IRPIS) using a nationally representative sample of 1292 US voters. Immigration remains a highly polarizing issue, with deeply entrenched ideological differences influencing policy preferences and public discourse. Exploratory factor analysis identified seven distinct factors and confirmed a clear polarization between liberal and conservative views on immigration. The IRPIS represents a critical tool for research, political strategy, and policymaking.

Svenska narkotikapolisföreningens tidskrift - polisens bild av ett problem?

Aim: To analyze how the Police in Sweden perceives the drug problem and how it relates to changes in drug politics in the direction of liberalization. Method: The material analyzed consists of a content-analysis of the magazine of the Swedish Narcotic Police Association, covering 145 issues since the start in 1988, concentrating on lead articles, editorials and other articles on principles and politics. Results: The magazine demonstrate an alarmistic view of the drug problem, criticize government agencies and the media for liberal views, question the motives of proponents of decriminalization and legalization, leaves the costs of control of drug interventions aside, and sees the Police as guardian of status quo and as the defender of the goal of Swedish drug policy: "a drug-free society".

Post-conservative: A proposal for theological polarisation in Indonesia

Indonesia, as a country with rich diversity, faces a significant challenge in the form of polarisation, which occurs not only in the political sphere but also in religion and belief. In the context of Christian theological education in Indonesia, polarisation also occurs between conservative and liberal views. Conservatives adhere to literal interpretations and established doctrines, while liberals are more flexible and open to contextual interpretations. To address this polarisation, an approach that transcends both extremes is needed. This article proposes post-conservative thought as a conceptual solution for theological education in Indonesia. Postconservatism positions itself in the middle between conservative and liberal, recognising the importance of fundamental principles of faith while also being open to change and dialogue. This article employs a literature review method to analyse and develop a theoretical framework supporting the application of post-conservatism in Christian theological education in Indonesia. The analysis shows that postconservative theological education needs to be transformative, constructive-creative and liberating to break down polarisation and create inclusive, relevant and impactful education for society.Contribution: This study helps in integrating postconservative theology within theological education, fostering a more nuanced and transformative approach to interpreting Scriptures and addressing ethical and social issues. Interdisciplinary implications involve collaboration with social sciences, education, peace studies and health sciences to develop comprehensive strategies for community engagement, conflict resolution and holistic well-being.

“Childless cat ladies” and the 2024 US presidential election

Abstract Introduction : This study, part of a larger research project assessing the political views of people with pets (dogs and cats), investigates the political views and life satisfaction of women without children who own cats. The research aims to provide insights into this group’s perspectives on current issues, including abortion rights and voting intentions for the 2024 US presidential election. Methods : A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in August 2024, involving 236 American women cat owners without children, recruited through Prolific, an online marketplace for survey respondents. The survey assessed the sample’s demographics, life satisfaction using the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), concerns about current events, views on abortion, political affiliation, and voting intentions. Results : Participants mean SWLS score was 18.64 (SD = 7.74), comparable to other adult populations. The majority identified as liberal (71%) and Democrat (54%). This population’s top concerns included healthcare, abortion rights, climate change and environment, and government ethics. A total of 88.1% believed abortion should be legal in all or most circumstances. Regarding the 2024 election, 86.4% plan to vote, with 72.9% of those planning to vote indicating they support the Harris/Walz ticket. Discussion/Conclusion : The findings suggest that childless women with cats are a politically engaged population with predominantly liberal views. While study limitations include lack of racial and ethnic diversity in the sample, this research provides valuable insights into the political leanings and life satisfaction of an often-stereotyped group.

Mental time travel in animals: the 'when' of mental time travel.

While many aspects of cognition have been shown to be shared between humans and non-human animals, there remains controversy regarding whether the capacity to mentally time travel is a uniquely human one. In this paper, we argue that there are four ways of representing when some event happened: four kinds of temporal representation. Distinguishing these four kinds of temporal representation has five benefits. First, it puts us in a position to determine the particular benefits these distinct temporal representations afford an organism. Second, it provides the conceptual resources to foster a discussion about which of these representations is necessary for an organism to count as having the capacity to mentally time travel. Third, it enables us to distinguish stricter from more liberal views of mental time travel that differ regarding which kind(s) of temporal representation is taken to be necessary for mental time travel. Fourth, it allows us to determine the benefits of taking a stricter or more liberal view of mental time travel. Finally, it ensures that disagreement about whether some species can mentally time travel is not merely the product of unrecognized disagreement about which temporal representation is necessary for mental time travel. We argue for a more liberal view, on the grounds that it allows us to view mental time travel as an evolutionarily continuous phenomenon and to recognize that differences in the ways that organisms mentally time travel might reflect different temporal representations, or combinations thereof, that they employ. Our ultimate aim, however, is to create a conceptual framework for further discussion regarding what sorts of temporal representations are required for mental time travel.This article is part of the theme issue 'Elements of episodic memory: lessons from 40 years of research'.

Бенжамен Констан как философ религиозного чувства

The paper deals with Benjamin Constant’s philosophy of religious sentiment. Constant is known primarily as political philosopher defender of Liberalism; at the same time, during his life Constant was interested in religion. The paper follows development of Constant’s views till his Athenaeum Lectures of 1818 and mature opus magnum “On Religion” (5 vols., 1824–1831). Constant’s philosophy of religious sentiment in many traits differs of the similar projects that were elaborated in the German-speaking space. Constant visited Germany for a long time, accordingly, he was acquainted with German-speaking philosophy and theology (Semler, Kant, Schleiermacher and many others); however, it did not shape Constant’s worldview. Rather, Constant used German ideas to answer on his own questions. Hence, Constant’s views are original in some traits. Firstly, unlike German colleagues he does not concentrate on epistemology of religious sentiment, but on the political and ideological aspects of religious feeling. Secondly, Constant opposes the sentiment itself to its forms changing in history as well as illustrates the latter by materials of ethnology and anthropology. Thirdly, this opposition represents the key scheme of phenomenology of religion, that is why Constant influenced not German but Dutch researchers, more precisely C. P. Tiele and G. van der Leeuw. Fourthly, Constant unlike German thinkers due to his explicite liberal views strongly criticizes church institutions. In general, despite of considerable distance between Constant’s and his German collеagues philosophers’ views, Constant is one of the closest to the German philosophy French thinkers. Constant's philosophy of religion is known primarily because of his political fame.

Feminist view in Emily Dickinson's selected poems

Feminist view in Emily Dickinson's selected poems

RAJA RAMMOHAN ROY: AN ANALYSIS OF HIS LIBERAL THINKING

Liberalism is one of the dominant political ideologies in the Nineteenth Century in Europe and today globally. Locke, Bentham, Mill, and all other liberalists seek to establish individual liberty and rights of the individuals. These are the core political values of liberalism. However, in the history of Indian political thought, Raja Rammohan Roy was a social reformer, the father of India’s Renaissance, the inaugurator of Modern India, and the ‘prophet of humanity’, had provided his liberal political views and argued it was the best ideology for the development and progress of India and its societies. He also speaks for individual liberty, freedom of the nations, rights of the individuals and their education, faith in democracy and constitutionalism, international coexistence, liberal perception of law and legislation, etc. All these made him a truly liberal thinker in India.

LATE MODERN ANXIETY AND DIGITAL JIHADIST ALTERNATIVE IN ANNA ERELLE’S IN THE SKIN OF A JIHADIST AND TIMUR BEKMAMBETOV’S PROFILE

For almost a decade, ISIS has held the status of the West’s radical other, its symbolic and real challenge to the western idea of modernity becoming ever more prominent and threatening with a growing accessibility of online propaganda content and recruitment via social media platforms in a largely unregulated social networking environment. In that context, the paper discusses Anna Erelle’s book In the Skin of a Jihadist and its film adaptation Profile as two distinct but complementary visions of the West and its other. My argument is that Timur Bekmambetov’s adaptation, as a Baumanesque critical reading of the West’s late modernity, is supplemental to the original text and its liberal views of jihadist otherness. Profile thus views the West and ISIS as two universalist visions of the world so that by facing the dangerous alterity on the computer screen, the West should not only see the morally inferior enemy to be exposed, transformed or eventually defeated but the reflection of its own late modern failures, disappointments and frustrations.

Short-term mindsets show co-development with adolescent delinquency, but not with adolescent cannabis use.

Guided by General Theory of Crime and Psychosocial Maturity Hypothesis, we investigated co-development between short-term mindsets (impulsivity and future orientation) and risk behaviors (cannabis use and delinquency). Parallel process latent growth modeling on three-wave data from ethnically diverse Swiss adolescents (N = 1365; Mage 13.67 years, 48.6% female), showed baseline-level associations between short-term mindsets and risk behaviors, and between the two risk behaviors. Additionally, correlated change (co-development) existed between short-term mindsets-particularly impulsivity-and delinquency, but not between short-term mindsets and cannabis use. These results support the above-mentioned theories and emphasize the importance of investigating the correlates of change in delinquency and cannabis use separately, as divergent findings might emerge. These divergent findings could partially stem from Switzerland's liberal views on cannabis use.

What is the Relationship between Islam and Liberalism in the Qur'anic Perspective?

This study examines the relationship between Islam and liberalism, reviews the concept of liberalism, its history, and the perspective of the Qur'an. Liberalism, which emphasizes individual freedom, is often seen as contrary to Islamic principles centered on Sharia. Rooted in the European Renaissance period, liberalism developed in response to the domination of religion and monarchy, encouraging democracy and a free economy. The Qur'an, in verses such as Sura Al-Baqarah, Ar-ra'ad and Al-Isra affirms the importance of obeying the Shari'a and staying away from lust. This research method uses an interpretive approach. Researchers analyze the text and interpretation of the Qur'an to understand the Islamic view of liberalism, with the aim of providing insight into contemporary liberalism discourse.

The Impact of Theology on Disaffiliation, Disengagement, and Disbelief

Abstract While the reasons for the differences in the growth rates of conservative and liberal churches are well studied, one important potential reason for this difference has received little attention. The argument that liberal theology undermines the basis of belief implies that those with liberal theological views may be more likely to lose faith and disaffiliate than those holding conservative theologies that reinforce adherents’ religious faith and practice. Using a nationally representative panel survey of the American public, the analysis performed here shows that those with liberal theologies were significantly more likely to disaffiliate from Christianity, attend church less often, and cease believing in God between the two waves of the survey than those with more conservative theologies. On the basis of these findings, more attention should be given to the role that theology may play in understanding patterns of secularization.