Ancient Woods, Trees and Forests

As trees age, they become ecologically richer and more full of life. The process of a tree, wood or forest becoming ‘ancient’, however defined, involves a vast and subtle web of relations – among the trees themselves, with other organisms, with the wider landscape and with human beings. A single tree can provide a vast array of habitats which are an integral part of the complex co-evolutionary relationships evolved over its lifetime and later during its sometimes long afterlife. From ancient times until today, trees and woods have inspired artists, writers and scientists; they have shaped cultures and reverberated through belief systems. Yet worldwide, forest cover has declined dramatically over the last 1,000 years, and what remains has been more or less altered from its original condition. Today, ‘virgin forests’ are only to be found at a few sites unreachable by humans, and even then they are affected by climate change, atmospheric pollution and species extinctions. The aim of this book is to help an understanding of the web of connections relating to ancient trees and woodlands, and to offer techniques to ensure effective conservation and sustainability of this precious resource. This book considers the key issues from a range of different aspects and varied geographical locations, beginning with fundamental concepts and reflecting on the strengths and limitations of the idea of ancient trees. Individual chapters then deal with cultural heritage, the archaeology of trees, landscape history, forest rights, tree management, saproxylic insects, the importance of dead wood, practical conservation and monitoring, biodiversity, and wood pasture among many other themes. Fresh perspectives are put forward from across Europe as far as Turkey, as well as Great Britain. Overall, given the urgent need to discover, understand, conserve and restore ancient woodlands and trees, this publication will raise awareness, foster enthusiasm and inspire wonder.

Mental Computations of Ideological Choice and Conviction: The Utility of Integrating Psycho-Economics and Bayesian Models of Belief

A quick scan of the political landscape reveals that people differ in the ideologies they embrace and advocate. Why do individuals prefer certain ideologies over others? A formal analysis of psychological needs and consumption desires suggests that it is possible to compute the subjective utility of selecting one ideology over another, as though it were a purchasing decision. Given resources, constraints, and available options, individuals can rationally choose the ideology that best matches or resonates with their interests. It is a compelling framework that can take into account how diverse ideologies satisfy people’s diverse and multidimensional psychological and material needs. This psycho-economic model is ambitious and informative, and I will argue that it can be even more encompassing and enlightening if it is expanded to incorporate two critical components of ideological cognition: (1) the nature of ideological conviction and extremism and (2) the dynamic, probabilistic mental computations that underlie belief formation, preservation, and change. Firstly, I will argue that a formal model of ideological choice cannot escape the question of the strength of ideological commitment. In other words, we need to ask not only about which ideologies individuals choose but also about how strongly they adhere to these ideologies once those are chosen. An analysis of ideological choice needs to be accompanied by an analysis of ideological conviction. Secondly, in order to build a robust sense of the rationality behind ideological thinking, it is useful to incorporate principles of uncertainty and probability-based belief updating into the formal model of ideological worldviews. Bayesian models highlight how human brains seek to build predictive models of the world by updating their beliefs and preferences in ways that are proportional to their prior expectations and sensory experiences. Consequently, incorporating Bayesian principles into the formal model of ideological choice will provide a more wholistic understanding of what happens when a mind enters the market for belief systems – and why a mind can, at times, purchase toxic doses of the ideologies that sellers and entrepreneurs offer on display.

Community College Presidential Leadership: How Presidents Think and Act to Support the Holistic Needs of Their Students

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore how public community college presidents draw upon data, their core values, and lived experiences to make decisions about how they can best respond to the holistic needs of their students. Method: Utilizing secondary elite focus group data with 15 community college presidents in Texas, we employed a general qualitative approach to analyze the data through a conceptual framework that integrates community college leadership and holistic student development theory. Results: Our findings revealed that community college presidents make decisions primarily through select data sources such as external survey organizations and their own core belief systems. Although community college presidents agreed on the most pressing day-to-day issues affecting community college students today, the way in which they framed their decisions and perceptions varied across individuals and institutional contexts. As such, common strategies for addressing holistic student support are presented in this study. Contributions: The residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are expected to impact community colleges in the short and long term. As a result, community college presidents are pressed to develop leadership competencies to enhance their decision-making process. This study offers timely implications closely tied to community college leadership and student development theory to inform how community college leaders can enact relevant, data-driven policies, and practices to support their students holistically.

Beliefs and strategies for coping with stillbirth: A qualitative study in Nigeria

Stillbirth, the loss of a baby during pregnancy or childbirth, is one of the most devastating losses a parent can experience. The experience of stillbirth is associated with trauma and intense grief, but mothers’ belief systems can be protective against the impacts of grief. Women in Nigeria endure a high burden of stillbirth and the aim in this study was to describe the beliefs and strategies for coping with stillbirth. Twenty mothers bereaved by stillbirth in Nigeria were interviewed; seven of them also participated in a focus group. The findings of the study revealed that the experience of stillbirth was influenced by beliefs which originated from superstitions, religion, and social expectations. These beliefs played significant roles in how mothers coped with the loss, by providing them with a framework for sense-making and benefit-finding.

How party polarization shapes the structuring of policy preferences in Europe

A significant body of literature has addressed the impact of party polarization on voting behavior. Yet little is known of the relationship between party polarization and belief systems. The present study argues that party polarization enhances the ideological consistency of belief systems and does so for the citizenry as a whole. We first demonstrate that the more party systems are polarized on economic and sociocultural issues, the more consistently belief systems are aligned with the progressive-conservative continuum. Second, we show that ideological consistency is greater in highly polarized party systems, not only among the most politically attuned Europeans but also among those with lower levels of political sophistication. Results have implications for our understanding of citizen competence and responsiveness to elite cues in polarized party systems.

Counter-Hacking the Subconscious Mind

This chapter addresses the destructive impact of the media sphere on human perception. Humanity is currently facing an avalanche of cataclysmic events which have been abused by the media sphere to provoke fear and psychosis. This toxic propaganda has gradually infected the subconscious mind with false belief systems and negative habitual thinking patterns. To provide a broader perspective on some of the core working principles of conscious and subconscious perception and the role of the brain, there is a discussion about levels of consciousness, brainwaves, the RAS (reticular activating system), and neuroplasticity. The application of these principles enables the development of a benign and practical method for counter-hacking the subconscious heart-mind as an antidote for the catastrophic influence of the media sphere on human perception. The concepts of this methodology can be integrated into a PEG (psychecology educational game). Such a game holds the potential to increase global coherence by providing a timely yet symptomatic antidote for toxic intention in the media sphere.

Cognitive and emotional aspects of patients with multiple sclerosis during illness and hospitalization process: Contributions of cognitive-behavioral therapy / Aspectos cognitivos e emocionais dos pacientes com esclerose múltipla durante a doença e o processo de hospitalização: Contribuições da terapia cognitivo-comportamental

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease, characterized by lesions in the Central Nervous System (CNS) that affects its healthy cells, causing motor and neurological sequelae. This work aims to understand the psychological and emotional aspects of patients inserted into a hospital and diagnosed with MS. Thus, a narrative review of the literature was carried out, investigating the main topics related to the theme, and illustrated through the case report of three patients treated with brief cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy, in a tertiary healthcare center in 2021. The literature indicates that, commonly, 30 to 50% of individuals with the disease present significant cognitive impairment symptoms, such as dysarthria, executive dysfunction, and reduced processing speed, in addition to greater depressive symptoms and dysfunctional beliefs. The most common psychological phenomena in the cases referred to were maladaptive cognitive distortions, such as catastrophizing and negative filtering, as well as saddened affection and psychomotor retardation. Considering the common semiology presented by them, and also taking into consideration the characteristics of the family and the social and environmental context in which they are placed, it is evident that there is an influence of these factors on their belief systems and thoughts, as already predisposed characteristics or originated by the progression of the disease. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques, such as motivational interviewing and psychoeducation, are shown to be effective for the treatment of dysfunctional comorbidities associated with the disease.