Contradictions in a Totalitarian Society

1969 ◽  
Vol 39 ◽  
pp. 30-40
Author(s):  
Michael Lindsay
Keyword(s):  
Characteristic Feature ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Communist System ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Unanimous Agreement

Some aspects of the Chinese People's Republic have been explained as reversions to traditional Chinese patterns. There are resemblances between the Chinese Communist ideal for society and the traditional Confucian ideal. Both assume that, in a properly ordered society, there should be universal acceptance of a true doctrine and universal agreement on what is right. Paul Linebarger, describing the Confucian ideal, wrote, “Government, once cheng ming has been set in motion, is not a policy making body. There is no question of policy, no room for disagreement, no alternative; what is right is apparent. … government needs only to administer for … the maintenance of the ideology. Once right views are established, no individual is entitled to think otherwise. … control of the individual will devolves upon persons making up his immediate social environment. …” One can compare this with the frequent Chinese Communist statements about the universal validity of Marxism-Leninism and the thought of Mao Tse-tung and the continually appearing assumption that a process of discussion must end with unanimous agreement on what is right. Also, control of the individual by persons in his immediate social environment is a characteristic feature of the Chinese Communist system.

“I called out with my song, whose grandchildren you are..." Prophetism in Felix Batorin’s poetry

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-181
Author(s):  
Dzmitry Kliabanau
Keyword(s):  
Characteristic Feature ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Language And Identity ◽  
Christian Tradition ◽  
Political Transformation ◽  
Religious Thought ◽  
Communist System ◽  
Cultural Specificity ◽  
The Individual

Belarusian poet Feliks Batorin is the author of many poems on philosophical and civic topics. A characteristic feature of these poems is that they draw inspiration from religious thought founded on the Judeo-Christian tradition. They contain numerous Old Testament allusions and evangelical reminiscences. Batorin’s poems are also characterized by their allegoric quality, and their parabolic, metaphorical, and creative synthesis of biblical themes and folkloristic motifs. Biblical motifs began to appear in Felix Batorin’s poetry in the 1980s, during a period of social and political transformation in Belarus. Reflecting on the reality, the poet often turns to the motif of prophetism and the figure of the prophet, which might prove conducive to trying to find answers to important questions - both universal and resulting from Belarusian historical and cultural specificity. The drama of being a prophet results from the overwhelming feeling of loneliness arising from opposing the society in order to fulfil the mission which has been entrusted to a prophet. The tragedy of the poet-prophet lies in the fact that he is aware of his weakness and helplessness in the struggle against the individual for the individual, in his attempts to reach the morose society. The destructive activities of the oppressive communist system against the culture, language and identity of Belarusians turned out to have serious consequences for the society of the post-Soviet Belarus. That is why it cannot be surprising that pessimism resounds in prophetic works of Felix Batorin. However, despite pessimism, there is still hope in his poetry – the hope to reverse the fate of the nation and homeland.

scholarly journals The phenomenological transformation of Abay’s poetry

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 28-36
Author(s):  
S. Ibraev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Characteristic Feature ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Social System ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Psychological State ◽  
Life And Death ◽  
The Social ◽  
Main Motive ◽  
The Individual

The article analyzes the phenomenological character of Abay’s poems, cognitive and aesthetic representation of being (activity). The fact that the manifestation of human characteristics in the social environment is studied within the framework of an existential dichotomy (E. Fromm) is a characteristic feature of most of Abay’s philosophical poems. We see that the division of existential dichotomy summarizes the classification of the concepts «myself» and «other» in Abay’s poems. The separation of the poet from his «I» is associated with his psychological state, incompatible with the social system. The reasons for the contradiction between the individual and society are, at first, a phenomenon that takes place in consciousness. Abay’s identification with the social environment was ambiguous. The psychological and phenomenological features of the discrepancy are clearly visible in Abay’s poetry. The main motive of Abay’s poems is the search for answers to the reasons for these contradictions. At the same time, reflections on the meaning of life in terms of the dichotomy of life and death are accompanied by a search for the path of truth. At the same time, sending thoughts to the essence of existence from the point of view of the the dichotomy of life and death is combined with the search for the path of truth. The formation of transcendental phenomenological consciousness in Abay’s poem «Time is like wisps of fog on the hills” is found in many of the poet’s poems.

scholarly journals Individual behavioural traits not social context affects learning about novel objects in archerfish

2021 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick A. R. Jones ◽  
Helen C. Spence-Jones ◽  
Mike Webster ◽  
Luke Rendell
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Social Contexts ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Behavioural Phenotype ◽  
Social Species ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Animals ◽  
Novel Objects ◽  
The Individual

Abstract Learning can enable rapid behavioural responses to changing conditions but can depend on the social context and behavioural phenotype of the individual. Learning rates have been linked to consistent individual differences in behavioural traits, especially in situations which require engaging with novelty, but the social environment can also play an important role. The presence of others can modulate the effects of individual behavioural traits and afford access to social information that can reduce the need for ‘risky’ asocial learning. Most studies of social effects on learning are focused on more social species; however, such factors can be important even for less-social animals, including non-grouping or facultatively social species which may still derive benefit from social conditions. Using archerfish, Toxotes chatareus, which exhibit high levels of intra-specific competition and do not show a strong preference for grouping, we explored the effect of social contexts on learning. Individually housed fish were assayed in an ‘open-field’ test and then trained to criterion in a task where fish learnt to shoot a novel cue for a food reward—with a conspecific neighbour visible either during training, outside of training or never (full, partial or no visible presence). Time to learn to shoot the novel cue differed across individuals but not across social context. This suggests that social context does not have a strong effect on learning in this non-obligatory social species; instead, it further highlights the importance that inter-individual variation in behavioural traits can have on learning. Significance statement Some individuals learn faster than others. Many factors can affect an animal’s learning rate—for example, its behavioural phenotype may make it more or less likely to engage with novel objects. The social environment can play a big role too—affecting learning directly and modifying the effects of an individual’s traits. Effects of social context on learning mostly come from highly social species, but recent research has focused on less-social animals. Archerfish display high intra-specific competition, and our study suggests that social context has no strong effect on their learning to shoot novel objects for rewards. Our results may have some relevance for social enrichment and welfare of this increasingly studied species, suggesting there are no negative effects of short- to medium-term isolation of this species—at least with regards to behavioural performance and learning tasks.

scholarly journals Dominance relationships and coalitionary aggression against conspecifics in female carrion crows

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benedikt Holtmann ◽  
Julia Buskas ◽  
Matthew Steele ◽  
Kristaps Solokovskis ◽  
Jochen B. W. Wolf
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Social Rank ◽  
Social Benefits ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
The Third ◽  
Dominance Relationships ◽  
Dominant Individual ◽  
The Individual

Abstract Cooperation is a prevailing feature of many animal systems. Coalitionary aggression, where a group of individuals engages in coordinated behaviour to the detriment of conspecific targets, is a form of cooperation involving complex social interactions. To date, evidence has been dominated by studies in humans and other primates with a clear bias towards studies of male-male coalitions. We here characterize coalitionary aggression behaviour in a group of female carrion crows consisting of recruitment, coordinated chase, and attack. The individual of highest social rank liaised with the second most dominant individual to engage in coordinated chase and attack of a lower ranked crow on several occasions. Despite active intervention by the third most highly ranked individual opposing the offenders, the attack finally resulted in the death of the victim. All individuals were unrelated, of the same sex, and naïve to the behaviour excluding kinship, reproduction, and social learning as possible drivers. Instead, the coalition may reflect a strategy of the dominant individual to secure long-term social benefits. Overall, the study provides evidence that members of the crow family engage in coordinated alliances directed against conspecifics as a possible means to manipulate their social environment.

Enabling Occupation: The Importance of an Affirming Environment

2001 ◽  
Vol 68 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen L. Rebeiro
Keyword(s):  
Mental Illness ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Occupational Therapists ◽  
Therapeutic Interventions ◽  
Occupational Engagement ◽  
Occupational Performance ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Over Time

Occupational therapists have become increasingly concerned with factors beyond the individual which impact occupational performance. Several recent models propose that the environment is a significant influence on occupational performance and upon its meaningfulness. An in-depth, qualitative study was conducted which explored the meaning of occupational engagement for eight women with mental illness (Rebeiro & Cook, 1999). This study yielded several important insights about the environment, which have recently been replicated by Legault and Rebeiro (2001) and Rebeiro, Day, Semeniuk, O'Brien, and Wilson (In Press). Participants suggested that environments that provide opportunity, and not prescription are more conducive to fostering occupational performance. Participants further suggested that an environment that provides Affirmation of the individual as a person of worth, a place to belong, and a place to be supported, enables occupational performance over time. A series of research studies indicated that the social environment is an important consideration in planning therapeutic interventions which aim to enable occupation. Implications for occupational therapy practice, education and research are offered

scholarly journals Value Orientations of Entrepreneurs Management Activity

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 106-112
Author(s):  
D. Seleznov ◽  
V. Kacharova
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Personality Development ◽  
Value Orientations ◽  
Human Cognition ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Management Activity ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Specific Material ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Internal And External Factors

The article deals with the theoretical approaches and mechanisms of determination of entrepreneurial activity, the formation of individual value orientations of the individual and factors influencing the formation of value and sense of life orientations of entrepreneurs. The analysis of the activity of foreign entrepreneurs shows that among the various personal qualities can be distinguished five of the most important: independence, ambition, perseverance, hard work, stability. The author notes that the increased interest of scientists in the problem of values and valuable orientations is the need for a deeper understanding of the nature of human cognition, which in the process of transformation acquires new characteristics and helps the individual to adapt to qualitatively new socio-cultural living conditions. The work reveals the essence of value orientations of the personality, as those that perform the functions of regulating behaviour and defining its purpose, linking into a single whole personality and social environment. Therefore, at each stage of personality development, the choice of the dominant mechanism of value system formation is determined by a complex set of internal and external factors. Internal psychological factors and factors of the external social environment determine the peculiarities of the development of the system of value orientations, interacting with each other in the implementation of one or another activity. Thus, the article shows that the subject of entrepreneurial activity is characterized by its specific (material, social, spiritual) value orientations, which underlie its activity and determine its structure. Consequently, values that have been identified as specific to entrepreneurial activity are strictly related to the fundamental values of each individual, but have a specific identity to them and determine the direction of the vector-specific business.

The wider social system

2021 ◽  
pp. 238-281
Author(s):  
Robbie Duschinsky ◽  
Sarah Foster
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Social System ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Epistemic Trust ◽  
School Based ◽  
System P ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual

Critics have alleged that in attempting to adapt to the individual-centric environment of contemporary health provision, mentalization-based therapy itself has been complicit with the atomization of society. Conversations with his colleague Peter Fuggle and Dickon Bevington at the Anna Freud Centre have also had a profound role in highlighting to Fonagy the importance of the wider social system around the individual. Pursuing these questions, this chapter begins by examining the growing attention to the social environment shown by Fonagy and colleagues, and especially their exploration of the role of friends and friendships for mentalization and epistemic trust. It will then examine the reflections and research by Fonagy and collaborators on public mental health. The researchers’ hopes regarding school-based prevention will be given particular attention, and the chapter will also show how this work has shaped Fonagy’s efforts as a policy influencer. Finally, the chapter will appraise the considerations offered by Fonagy and colleagues of the role of culture, in particular the issue of whether attention to cultural processes should be regarded as mentalizing, non-mentalizing or as not mentalizing, and whether organizations and societies can themselves be said to institutionalize cultures of mentalizing or non-mentalizing.

Developing Athletes in the Context of Sport and Performance Psychology

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luc J. Martin ◽  
David J. Hancock ◽  
Jean Côté
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Developmental Process ◽  
Sport Performance ◽  
Performance Psychology ◽  
The Social ◽  
Early Specialization ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Athletic Development

Talent development in sport is achieved through years of preparation and requires constant interaction between personal and contextual resources. Accordingly, extensive research has been dedicated to understanding factors that contribute to sport performance. Literature suggests the factors influencing athletic development can be classified in terms of the physical environment, the social environment, and engaging learning activities. Investigations pertaining to the physical environment suggest the importance of appropriate settings, which can relate to the sport organization or the larger community. Researchers must also cogitate the activities in which athletes take part. These considerations involve the maturational status of athletes, the volume of deliberate practice and play, and early specialization versus diversification. Finally, the salience of the social environment in relation to sport performance cannot be overlooked. Not surprisingly, the relations established with social agents (i.e., coaches, peers/teammates, parents) can facilitate or impede the developmental process. Consequently, the development of athletes in the context of sport and performance psychology extends past the individual and is influenced by several factors that must be discussed.

Towards a Regime of Emission Litigation based on Science

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 443-444
Author(s):  
Kai Purnhagen
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Policy ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Policy Tool ◽  
Default Position ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Right

Courts in Europe increasingly acknowledge an individual right to emission reduction against states. Such a right forms a new policy tool that can be used to enforce emission reduction. It can also be used to enforce scientifically sound environmental policy, as Courts recognise science as a default position when determining the content of the right. The individual right to emission reduction is another tool in the making to consider when implementing scientific insights into policy making.

Program Evaluation in Independent Living Rehabilitation

1981 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 200-204
Author(s):  
Richard T. Roessler
Keyword(s):  
Social Environment ◽  
Independent Living ◽  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Severe Disabilities ◽  
Client Outcomes ◽  
Functional Capabilities ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
Independent Living Programs ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Satisfaction With Services

This paper presents an overview of evaluation questions and techniques appropriate for independent living programs. Key evaluation questions focus on the extent to which the independent living program is a) accomplishing its stated objectives, b) enabling individuals to increase functional capabilities in physical, economic, psychosocial, and educational-vocational areas, and c) increasing access to the physical and social environment for individuals with severe disabilities. Accomplishments in these areas should also have a positive relationship to the satisfaction that the individual has with the services provided. Hence, efficiency and effectiveness of program operation, client outcomes, environmental change, and client satisfaction with services are dimensions along which independent living programs should be assessed.

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