The Representation of Gender and Inflectional Class in Italian: A Reply to Kučerová 2018

In a recent article, Kučerová 2018 (henceforth K18) puts forward a novel theory of the morphology and interpretation of nominal gender in Italian. This paper takes issue with this theory from both empirical and theoretical standpoints. We first show that several generalisations presented as empirical support for it are in fact incorrect. We then point out a series of fundamental challenges for the theory. First, the proposed three-way classification of nouns misrepresents the full range of facts, because it does not take into account plural morphology or the interdependencies of CLASS and GENDER features. Second, the account of gender mismatch in terms of “semiconservativity” fails to capture the Italian data, once the full paradigm is considered. Finally, K18’s use of Phase Theory to model contextual valuation of gender faces an insurmountable lookahead problem.

GENDER FEATURES OF POLYCOMMUNICATIVE EMPATHY OF LEADING STUDENTS

the article considered the problem of manifestation of polycommunicative empathy in students with strong leadership qualities. The role of empathy in the formation of students’ leadership style was analyzed. The study found that empathy is one of the most important features in the personality structure of a modern student leader, and its formation should be given special attention in higher education institutions. An empirical study of leadership skills revealed that about 29% of students have a high level of leadership skills. The analysis of gender peculiarities of the manifestation of polycommunicative empathy of students-leaders allowed to determine that empathy is better developed in girls than in boys. The article presents promising areas of development of the topic.

Gender features of the life quality of preschool children living in Dushanbe

Aim. To assess the parameters and gender characteristics of the life quality of preschool children and the influence of a complex of factors on them.Material and methods. A study of the quality of life of 354 children was carried out. Ther were divided into two subgroups - younger (3-4 years old, 97 children) and senior preschool age (5-7 years old, 257 children). The PedsQL ™ 4.0 questionnaire was used to assess the QoL of children.Results and discussion. It was found that with age, the parameters of QOL increase on the scale of “emotional functioning”, and on the scale of “functioning in kindergarten” - decreases. The children of 5-7 years old themselves rated such aspects of QOL as emotional and role functioning significantly higher. Gender differences had specificitiesthe QOL of boys in the younger preschool group was higher in terms of emotional functioning. According to children, differences were established on the scale of “social functioning”, where this indicator was significantly higher in girls. The interrelation of various risk factors on the QOL indicators of children has proved to be valid.Conclusion. The results of the survey showed that parents tend to assess the QOL of their children in this age category somewhat lower than the children themselves. The results once again confirm the influence of various medical and social factors on the QOL of children.

AGE AND GENDER FEATURES OF FORMATION SOMATIC PATHOLOGIES AT INFLUENCE OF NOISE

Relevance. Noise is the most common harmful factor in the production of titanium alloys. The aim of the study is to identify age and gender features of the formation of general somatic morbidity associated with the impact of industrial noise at a large metallurgical enterprise. Scope and methods. The study compared the prevalence of chronic pathology of 4681 people who have contact with noise above 80 dBA, and those who are not exposed to noise using the methodology of occupational risk analysis of the Research Institute of Occupational Medicine. academician N. F. Izmerov according to the results of a periodic medical examination The results. The formation of general somatic pathology of many systems of the body under the influence of industrial noise occurs from the first years of operation. An increased risk of developing ear pathology was identified with work experience of more than 7 years. Men under the influence of noise had a significantly higher prevalence of diseases of the ear and digestive organs than women, with higher risks compared to those who were not exposed to noise and a medium to high relationship with working conditions. Conclusion. The revealed features of the formation of general somatic pathology under the influence of industrial noise allow us to recommend the introduction of health and rehabilitation programs from the first years of working in noise, even during the period of adaptation of young workers to the production environment.

Gender features of professional self-realization of a woman's personality

This study aims to fulfill the gap that exists in the impact of gender differences when it comes to fulfilling one’s potential or “self-realization”. In accordance with the hierarchy of needs concept given by Abraham Maslow this study aims to explore the obstacles that lay in the path of a woman especially in terms of her personality that prevent her from self-realization. The works of notable scientists have been cited to stress the importance of self-realization. Research was conducted using various psychodiagnostic tools such as the 16-factor questionnaire by R. Cattell and the correlation of indicators of personal maturity was found using the methods of Yu.Z. Gilbukh. The results proved the hypothesis that a woman’s personality indeed has an impact on the self-realization of her potential.

A syntactic approach to gender assignment in Spanish–English bilingual speech

This paper examines gender assignment in Spanish–English bilingual speech and develops a theoretical account of gender features in the bilingual grammar on the basis of the linguistic properties that correlate with gender assignment. An analysis of 76 sociolinguistic interviews from an autonomous bilingual community in Southern Arizona, U.S. (Carvalho 2012) reveals three key findings in terms of gender assignment in Spanish Det–English Noun switched DPs (i.e., el industry ‘the.M.SG’): (i) biological sex categorically determines gender assignment with human-denoting nouns; (ii) frequent inanimate nouns that have Spanish feminine counterparts are feminine in bilingual speech; (iii) masculine is a prevailing default gender. Following Kramer’s (2015) proposal of gender features, it is argued that an interpretable [+/-FEM] feature encodes biological sex in the grammar whereby a category-neutral √ combines with a n hosting an interpretable [+/-FEM] feature and triggers feminine (i.e., la coach ‘the.F.SG’) or masculine (i.e., el stepson ‘the.M.SG’) agreement. Inanimate feminine nouns are associated with an uninterpretable [+FEM] feature as the result of bilingualism (i.e., la school ‘the.F.SG’), and masculine default gender is viewed as an effect of Preminger’ (2009) failed Agree. On the basis of these findings, this paper rejects the distinct-lexicons view of the bilingual language faculty (MacSwan 2000 et seq.) and attempts to substantiate a single-lexicon approach compatible with a realizational (Late Insertion) view of the morphosyntactic model (Halle and Marantz 1993).