Negative acknowledgement is an impression management technique that uses the admission of an unfavourable quality to mitigate a negative response. Although the technique has been clearly demonstrated, the underlying process is not well understood. The current research identifies a key mediator and moderator while also demonstrating that the effect extends beyond the specific acknowledged domain to the overall evaluation of a target object. The results of study 1 indicate that negative acknowledgement works through mitigating negatively valenced cognitive responses. People who (...) are presented with a negative acknowledgement are less likely to counterargue when forming an evaluation. The results of study 2 reveal that individual differences in need for structure impact the effectiveness of the technique. People who are high in need for structure are more susceptible to the effect presumably because of their desire for easy-to-use information that aids the formation and maintenance of simple knowledge structures. (shrink)

This volume explores leadership as a form of loving one’s employees, centering on the biblical concepts of Agapao and Agape. It is organized into three parts: Part 1 examines biblical principles about Agapao and Agape; Part 2 employs Positive Organizational Scholarship (POS) to identify the role of love in organizational contexts; Part 3 offers case studies illustrating instances of love demonstrated by biblical figures in organizational and familial settings. Aligned with POS research, the book accentuates positive, life-giving, and conditions fostering (...) human flourishing within organizations. This scholarly endeavor contributes to advancing research in areas such as work relationships, workplace spirituality, meaningful work, and the role of leadership in improving organizational performance. (shrink)

The second edition of The Great Psychotherapy Debate has been updated and revised to include a history of healing practices, medicine, and psychotherapy, an expanded theoretical presentation of the contextual model, an examination of therapist effects, and a thorough review of the research on common factors such as the alliance, expectations, and empathy.

The Great Psychotherapy Debate: Models, Methods, and Findings comprehensively reviews the research on psychotherapy to dispute the commonly held view that the benefits of psychotherapy are derived from the specific ingredients contained in a given treatment (medical model). The author reviews the literature related to the absolute efficacy of psychotherapy, the relative efficacy of various treatments, the specificity of ingredients contained in established therapies, effects due to common factors, such as the working alliance, adherence and allegiance to the therapeutic protocol, (...) and effects that are produced by different therapists. In each case, the evidence convincingly corroborates the contextual model and disconfirms the prevailing medical model. (shrink)

This collection uses Susan Sontag's "Notes on 'Camp'" as a foundation from which to explore current topics related to camp. It recognizes Sontag's work as significant in spurring examination of the phenomenon but also limited in its descriptive rather than philosophical, theoretical, and conceptual nature.

Joann Starr, a Roman Catholic nun, and Bruce Zawacki, a burn surgeon, met 22 years ago in the Los Angeles County, University of Southern California Burn Center in the roles of a patient and her physician struggling over issues of autonomy and informed consent. After recovery, she remained a nun and has become a patient advocate and doctoral candidate in bioethics. He remained a burn surgeon and has become a bioethics teacher and author. Although they live in distant locations, (...) they maintain their friendship and frequently discuss their shared experience. Recently they met to reflect on the events, lessons, and meanings of their original encounter. (shrink)

This chapter contains sections titled: Toxic Chemicals in the Arctic Stratospheric Ozone Loss and Global Warming References and Further Reading.

Darwin's theory of natural selection is as applicable to the analysis of the behavior of organisms as it is to their origins. Skinner's theoretical writings have guided operant psychologists in this area. The behavioral account of selection by Donahoe and Palmer (1994) is positively compared to the points on operant selection made by Hull et al. The “general account of selection” was found to be useful.

Adequate Citation of data sets is crucial to the encouragement of data sharing, to the integrity and cost-effectiveness of science and to easy access to the work of others. The citation behavior of social scientists who have published based on shared data was examined and found to be inconsistent with important ideals of science. Insights gained from the social sciences, where data sharing is somewhat customary, suggest policies and incentives that would foster adequate citation by secondary users, and greater openness (...) and sharing in other disciplines. (shrink)

A wealth of research suggests the importance of classroom discussion of controversial issues for adequately preparing students for participation in democratic life. Teachers, and the larger public, however, still shy away from such discussion. Much of the current research seeking to remedy this state of affairs focuses exclusively on developing knowledge and skills. While important, this ignores significant ways in which students? beliefs about the concept or nature of controversy itself might affect such discussions and potentially, the sort of citizen (...) that educators are fostering. We argue that examining the concept of ?controversy? is central to conducting such discussions and propose a framework of four crucial virtues or habits of mind that can be developed through such an examination. We illustrate how these four habits of mind are essential for establishing classroom ?counterpublics? that aim to develop more justice-oriented democratic citizens. (shrink)

Adequate Citation of data sets is crucial to the encouragement of data sharing, to the integrity and cost-effectiveness of science and to easy access to the work of others. The citation behavior of social scientists who have published based on shared data was examined and found to be inconsistent with important ideals of science. Insights gained from the social sciences, where data sharing is somewhat customary, suggest policies and incentives that would foster adequate citation by secondary users, and greater openness (...) and sharing in other disciplines. (shrink)

The purpose of this study was to determine if an instrument could be developed to measure spiritual engagement. The study resulted in the Spiritual Engagement Instrument concept comprised of four factors that included the following: worship that explained 57.8% of the variance and Cronbach’s alpha of.94, meditation that explained 12.7% of the variance and Cronbach’s alpha of.96, fasting that explained 9.58% of the variance and Cronbach’s Alpha of.98, and rest that explained 5.16% of the variance and Cronbach’s alpha of.99. The (...) four factors together explain 85.24% of the variance. The four spiritual engagement scales within the Spiritual Engagement Instrument show significant correlation with other similar but different measures of spirituality, the Brief Multidimensional Measure of Religiousness/spirituality scale and Daily Spiritual Experience Scale, confirming convergent validity. A supplemental validation study was performed using CFA, p <.001, CFI =.98, TLI =.97, RMSEA =.06). This SpEI offers researchers a tool that might be used as a pre-/post-test measure in conjunction with a spiritual development program or to measure effects of the four factors of spiritual engagement with other social constructs such as job satisfaction, normative commitment, or leadership behaviors. Ethical behavior may be influenced by individual worldview and underlying religious practices, so the SpEI offers a validated instrument to study the cycle of behaviors, attitudes, and beliefs of spiritual practices that may influence ethics. (shrink)

Doctor Stephen Strange was a renowned neurosurgeon in his “previous life”, but after his time in Kamar‐Taj he is mostly associated with his mastery of the mystic arts. In Doctor Strange people learn that mastery of physical skills is critical for mastery as a mystic. In addition to the physical skills of martial arts, the portrayal of Doctor Strange is reminiscent of many aspects of Eastern philosophical traditions. Ironically, the reason that Strange originally gave for seeking the elixir is that (...) he swore the Hippocratic Oath, which requires him to prescribe medical treatments for the good of his patients. One problem with applying the Hippocratic Oath to Strange's choice is that it's meant to apply to the doctor‐patient relationship. Perhaps Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the creators of Doctor Strange, meant to show that, by losing his skill as a surgeon, Strange finally learned what it means to be a good physician. (shrink)

Property rights are important institutions that influence economic performance and reflect the historical, cultural, and political realities of particular societies. Drawing on a variety of concepts from legal and economic studies, a framework for explaining the origin and evolution of property rights is developed and applied to the specific case of changing ground water rights in Nebraska. The Nebraska case is an interesting example of reliance on local control in regulating water use. Despite the importance of local initiatives in ground (...) water management, this case also illustrates the need for external support from the judicial and legislative systems. The evolution of ground water property rights in Nebraska, as in other parts of the United States, has been conditioned by historical circumstances and changing values and attitudes as well as by economic and political forces. (shrink)

This book is about the mind and its connection to the brain. The first two chapters discuss the basic characteristics of the mind, and places it in historical context by noting trends in popular culture, and various people's ideas about the mind. This discussion ends by concluding that the most fruitful approach to studying the mind is a scientific approach that looks for connections between the mind and the brain. The last four chapters focus on the following specific principles: The (...) operation of the mind is hidden; Prediction is an important function of the mind; and Connectivity and communication between different areas of the mind are crucial for the mind's operation. An important feature of this discussion is that it is supported by empirical research, by briefly describing experiments. This book therefore goes beyond simply presenting conclusions, by elucidating the procedures and reasoning that led to those conclusions. The intent of the book is to give readers a feel for the latest scientific thinking about the mind, by focusing on basic principles that hold across many different functions of the mind. One key to marketing the book is to emphasize the fact that the writing makes a fascinating, but complex, subject accessible to the general reader. (shrink)