ABSTRACTOn 4 September 2015 asylum seekers who got stranded in Budapest’s Keleti train station began a march to cross the Austrian border. Their aim was to reach Germany and Sweden where they believed their asylum claims would be better received. In this article, I argue that the march should be characterized as an act of civil disobedience. This claim may seem to contradict common convictions regarding acts of civil disobedience as well as asylum seekers. The most common justifications are given (...) with reference to moral rights of citizens and concerns for enhancing justice or democracy within states. Asylum seekers are not members of the European public. How can they be entitled to break the law? I first show that the march displays features of a paradigm case of civil disobedience. Then, I identify moral reasons for asylum seekers to carry out the march acceptable from both strong and weak cosmopolitan perspectives. After that, I point out its corrective, stabilizing and democracy-enhancing roles in the European political landscape. I conclude by emphasizing that conceptualizing the march as an act of civil disobedience is significant in recognizing asylum seekers as political agents making claims within an evolving framework of refugee protection. (shrink)

This study examines the impact of the Chief Executive Officer ’s interlocking, created through serving on other companies’ audit committees and/or boards, on corporate social responsibility performance of the focal company and that of its linked companies. We find that CEO interlocking positively affects CSR performance of both the focal company and its linked companies. Further analysis shows that interlocks created by the CEO enhance CSR performance and in turn the financial performance of both the focal company and its linked (...) companies. Our findings are robust to a battery of analyses, including Heckman’s selection bias correction, propensity score matching, alternative measures of CSR performance, and CEO interlocks. These findings are important to regulators, company management teams, and other stakeholders with an interest in how the social ties of CEOs influence companies’ CSR performance and in the CSR–financial performance nexus. (shrink)

Background: Moral sensitivity is a life-long cognitive ability. It is expected that nurses who work in a professional purpose at “curing human beings” should have a highly developed moral sensitivity. The general opinion is that ethics education plays a significant role in this sense to enhance the moral sensitivity in terms of nurses’ professional behaviors and distinguish ethical violations. Aim: This study was conducted as intervention research for the purpose of determining the effect of the ethics training on fourth-year students (...) of the nursing department recognizing ethical violations experienced in the hospital and developing ethical sensitivity. Methods: The study was conducted with 50 students, with 25 students each in the experiment and control groups. Students in the experiment group were provided ethics training and consultancy services. The data were collected through the data collection form, which consists of questions on the socio-demographic characteristics and ethical sensitivity of the students, Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire, and the observation form on ethical principle violations/protection in the clinic environment. The data were digitized on the computer with the SPSS for Windows 13.0 program. The data were evaluated utilizing number, percentile calculation, paired samples t-test, Wilcoxon test, and the McNemar test. Results: The total Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire pre-test score averages of students in the experiment group were determined to be 93.88 ± 13.57, and their total post-test score averages were determined to be 89.24 ± 15.90. The total pre-test score averages of students in the control group were determined to be 91.48 ± 17.59, and their total post-test score averages were determined to be 97.72 ± 19.91. In the study, it was determined that the post-training ethical sensitivity of students in the experiment group increased; however, this was statistically not significant. Furthermore, it was determined that the number of ethical principle protection/violation observations and correct examples provided by students in the experiment group were higher than the control group and the difference was statistically significant. Ethical considerations: Written permission and ethical approval were obtained from the university where the study was conducted. Written consent was received from students accepting to participate in the study. Conclusion: As a result, ethics education given to students enables them to distinguish ethical violations in a hospital and make a proper observation in this issue. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to highlight an interdependence between procedural and agential norms that undermines their neat separation when appraising argumentation. Drawing on the munāẓara tradition, we carve a space for sequencing in argumentation scholarship. Focusing on the antagonist’s sequencing of critical moves, we identify each sequence’s corresponding values of argumentation: coalescence, reliability, and efficacy. These values arise through the mediation of virtues and simultaneously underpin procedural as well as agential norms. Consequently, an ambiguity between procedure and agent (...) becomes apparent. This ambiguity hints at the potential for a virtue theory of argumentation that draws on procedural norms. (shrink)

BackgroundResearch and academic institutions use various delivery channels to deliver Research Integrity education in their communities. Yet there is no consensus on the best delivery method and the effectiveness of these channels in inculcating a positive RI culture varies across institutions. Hence, this study aimed to understand the preferences of the research community in Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.MethodsAn online survey was conducted on NTU research community to understand their experience with, and preference for each RI education mode offered in NTU. (...) The RI education modes surveyed in the general ranking question are Data Management Plan workshops, Epigeum e-Learning, Compass e-newsletter, and NTU policy on Research Integrity and Responsible Conduct of Research. There were 242 responses, comprising 50% research students, 32.2% research staff and 17.8% faculty members. Non-parametric statistical techniques were used to analyse preferences across different RI education modes and within sub-groups.ResultsMore than 92% of respondents subscribed to the importance of RI education, but with different preferences for education modes. With respect to RI education in NTU, Compass e-newsletters were ranked the lowest. Most felt that they were too wordy and unengaging, making it difficult to absorb information. Similarly, Epigeum e-Learning and ‘policy’ were found to be too lengthy in presentation. The compulsory NTU RI education modes enjoyed higher participation rates of 70–80% compared with 32–37% for the self-regulated modes. This suggests that regulatory mechanisms are still necessary to promote participation in RI education, and thus, core RI education content should be made compulsory in research/academic institutions. Although Epigeum is a compulsory course, some may not have participated in the programme due to technical issues or they might have forgotten to participate in the programme within the permissible timeframe. For all four RI education modes in NTU, the lack of awareness was among the top cited reasons for not participating.ConclusionsMost NTU researchers perceived RI education positively although they may have reservations for some approaches. Conversely, e-Learning is favored over all the other modes except for the mode of Policy. Findings from this study are useful for improving the design of RI education strategies to be more appealing to the research community by enhancing user experience in terms of user-friendliness, relevance to specialisation, providing concise information and better presentation of materials For institutions with similar modes of RI education as NTU, these results may be relevant in improving participation rates and presentation of RI education modes, such as the use of infographics and more concise information. (shrink)

The current study strives to examine the determinants of employee innovative work behavior and job performance. Therefore, an integrated research model is developed with the help of paternalistic leadership style and job embeddedness theory to investigate employee behavior toward innovative work behavior. The research model is extended with the moderating effect of environmental dynamism between the relationship of innovative work behavior and employee job performance. Data were collected from 411 employees working in small medium enterprises. For inferential analysis, the structural (...) equation modeling technique is used. Results of the structural equation modeling revealed that altogether paternalistic leadership style and factors underpinning job embeddedness theory have explained 52.1% of the variance in employee innovate work behavior. The findings of this research suggest that managers and policy makers should focus on benevolent leadership, moral leadership, and on-the-job embeddedness to boost employee job performance and innovative work behavior. (shrink)

BackgroundNurses provide the majority of health-care services and face numerous health challenges during an epidemic. During the COVID-19 epidemic, nurses are subjected to physical, mental, and social disorders that impair their quality of life and hardiness. Therefore, it is important to be aware of the situation of nurses. The current study aimed to compare the compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and hardiness among nurses before and during the COVID-19 outbreak.Materials and MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 508 clinical nurses from one public hospital (...) in southern Iran. The subjects were recruited using census sampling methods in 2019–2020. Sampling was performed before and during the COVID-19 with a 1-year interval. Although, the study setting was the same before and during the COVID-19, questionnaires were completed by different nurses before and during the COVID-19. Demographic questionnaire, professional quality of life questionnaire and Occupational Hardiness Questionnaire were used to collect data.ResultsThe scores of compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and hardiness did not differ significantly during the COVID-19 compared with before the COVID-19. Before COVID-19, hardiness and work experience predicted 11% of the variance of compassion satisfaction, whereas during COVID-19, hardiness and gender predicted 26% of the variance of compassion satisfaction. Before COVID-19, hardiness and work experience predicted 3% of the variance of compassion fatigue, whereas during COVID-19, hardiness, type of employment and gender predicted 6% of the variance of compassion fatigue.ConclusionThe current study found that compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue and hardiness did not change during the COVID-19 outbreak compared with before the COVID-19 outbreak. However, during the COVID-19, the hardiness was a significant predictor of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue. The study results showed that it was possible to increase the compassion satisfaction and reduce the compassion fatigue by strengthening the hardiness of nurses. However, these results need to be considered in future studies, especially in crises such as COVID-19 disease. (shrink)

John Archibald Wheeler is one of the staunchest advocates of the idea that information is more fundamental than anything else in physics. In this paper, we examine the status of this idea summarized in Wheeler’s slogan ‘it from bit’ in the context of Bohmian Mechanics and spontaneous collapse models. We will argue that any question about the status of ‘it from bit’ crucially depends on the particular interpretation of these theories one favors.

Causal sets are a particular class of partially ordered sets, which are proposed as basic models of discrete space-time, specially in the field of quantum gravity. In this context, we show the existence of temporal foliations for any causal set, or more generally, for a causal space. Moreover, we show that automorphisms of a large class of infinite causal sets fall into two classes 1) Automorphisms of spacelike hypersurfaces in some given foliation, or 2) Translations in time. More generally, we (...) show that for any automorphism \ of a generic causal set \, there exists a partition of \ into finitely many subcausets, on each of which or above hold. These subcausets can be assumed connected if, in addition, there are enough distinct orbits under \. (shrink)

The vast majority of extant empirical research examining the relationship between corporate social performance and financial performance selects samples of only those firms which are observed engaging in CSP. In this study, the authors assert that firms’ efforts to pursue CSP and subsequently their appearance in social-choice investment advisory firms’ ranking databases are non-random. Studying the CSP–FP link using selected samples of only those firms whose social performance is ranked by SIA firms introduces a sample-selection bias which limits generalization of (...) results to a population of all firms, and at worst provides alternate explanations for observed relationships. The authors test these assertions on a large sample of public corporations in the United States over 6 years and find a sample-selection bias. Upon correction of this bias, this study confirms the positive impact of CSP on FP. (shrink)

This paper explores the practices of auditors in a non-Western cultural environment. Drawing on Alasdair MacIntyre’s virtue ethics framework and narrative interviews with twenty Tunisian auditors, we investigate how auditors reconcile their duty to independence with the expectations of a kinship economy. Additionally, we explore how institutions—such as professional oversight bodies—play into this reconciliation. We find that, although auditors may pursue a telos at odds with international auditing standards, the purpose that these auditors serve is congruent with their moral tradition. (...) That is, rather than positioning themselves as objective arbiters of financial reporting, these auditors position themselves as guardians of their auditees. While this revised position engenders conduct that may appear to violate their independence, our auditors’ practices are congruent with the virtues of justice, courage, and honesty, as they conceive of them in the context of a Tunisian moral tradition. This study makes two main contributions to the literature. First, we provide empirical evidence into the ways in which auditors redefine independence in the context of a kinship economy. Second, we demonstrate that, when auditing local firms, auditors apply a version of professionalism that emphasizes community-oriented care over objectivity. (shrink)

Miqdādī Iṣfahānī, ʻAlī - Correspondence ; Islamic ethics ; Sufi poetry, Persian.

Yazīdī, Mahdī al-Ḥāʼirī, biographies; philosophy; Shiites.

During crises and uncertain situations such as the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, social media plays a key function because it allows people to seek and share news, as well as personal views and ideas with each other in real time globally. Past research has highlighted the implications of social media during disease outbreaks; nevertheless, this study refers to the possible negative effects of social media usage by individuals in the developing country during the COVID-19 epidemic lockdown. Specifically, this study investigates (...) the COVID-19 fear using the survey data collected from a developing country. In total, 880 entries were used to analyze the COVID-19 fear using the AMOS software. Findings indicated that information-seeking and sharing behavior of individuals on social media has a significant impact on perceived COVID-19 information overload. Perceived COVID-19 information overload has a positive impact on COVID-19 fear. In addition, fake news related to COVID-19 strengthens the relationship between perceived COVID-19 information overload and COVID-19 fear. The implication and limitations of the study are also discussed in the final section of the study. (shrink)

A Theory of Universal Democracy empowers cultures and communities across the world to custom design democracy in consonance with their traditional values. For example, the book makes concrete proposals for Muslim countries to democratize their constitutions without accepting Western values and without violating the principles of Islamic law. More importantly, Universal Democracy further develops the idea of Free State, which the author first presented in his previous book, The Extinction of Nation-States (Kluwer, 1996). The proposed fusion of Universal Democracy and (...) Free State is designed to revolutionize the classical theory of government and to offer a new paradigm that accommodates both universality and uniqueness. Scholars, teachers and students of international law, constitutional law, legal theory, and Islamic law will find this book a source of valuable ideas. (shrink)

The purpose of this study was to explore the difference of depression between working and non-working women of Pakistan. The sample comprised of 250 women. The target group’s age range was between 28 to 45 years. The women were selected from different organizations and areas of Karachi, Pakistan through purposive sampling technique. After taking the permission from authorities and informed consent from the participant demographic forms were filled then in order to measure the depression, Lovibond and Lovibond DASS Scale was (...) administered, individually. Descriptive statistics and t-test for independent mean were used to analyze the data through Statistical Package Social Science Version 12. It was hypothesized that ’’the working-women will score lower on the variable of Depression ascompared to non-working women. The findings show that non-working women scored higher on the scale of depression than working-women in Pakistan. The Mean score of the age was and the standard deviation was. The Mean score of Depression of Non-working women was 14.28 and the Mean score of Depression of working women was10.26. The scores depict the lower level of depression in working women compared to non-working women. (shrink)

Some simulationists have argued that the information obtained during the perceptual process of facial expression (the geometric features) is sufficient for recognition of the emotion intended by that expression. Drawing on evidence from cross-cultural studies, with particular attention to conceptual act theories, I show that both emotion expression and recognition are top-down modulated by expressivity norms, observer-specific internal representations, and expectations. I thus conclude that direct simulation, or a purely bottom-up approach, is not sufficient for emotion recognition. Next, I will (...) consider the generate and test strategy as an alternative to direct simulation. This is a highly promising approach in that top-down and bottom-up processes work in parallel, according to the presence, or not, of additional information. For this reason, it avoids the difficulties of direct simulation. I will argue, however, that it is based on a misconception of emotions, specifically on how emotions are represented in the brain. To improve the model, I distinguish between two different categorical approaches to emotions, then argue that only one of which is viable in a simulational account of emotion recognition. (shrink)

Here, a novel conservative chaotic oscillator is presented. Various dynamics of the oscillator are examined. Studying the dynamical properties of the oscillator reveals its unique behaviors. The oscillator is multistable with symmetric dynamics. Equilibrium points of the oscillator are investigated. Bifurcations, Lyapunov exponents, and the Poincare section of the oscillator’s dynamics are analyzed. Also, the oscillator is investigated from the viewpoint of initial conditions. The study results show that the oscillator is conservative and has no dissipation. It also has various (...) dynamics, such as equilibrium point and chaos. The stability analysis of equilibrium points shows there are both stable and unstable fixed points. (shrink)

يعالج الدكتور الشيخ علي جابر في هذا الكتاب قضية التأويل وآليات تفسير النصوص الدينية عند صدر الدين الشيرازي.