In dem Sammelband, der als Festschrift zum 65. Geburtstag von Franz Hundsnurscher erscheint, sind 47 Beiträge zu zwei thematischen Schwerpunkten versammelt, die im Werk Hundsnurschers von zentraler Bedeutung sind: Semantik und Dialoganalyse. Im ersten Teil werden neben grundlegenden Fragen der Semantik Aspekte der semantischen Beschreibung von Phraseologismen, des Fremdwortgebrauchs und des Grundwortschatzes diskutiert; neben synchronen (meist gebrauchstheoretischen) Untersuchungen zu Einzelwörtern und Quasisynonymengruppen im Deutschen stehen sprachhistorische und kontrastive Arbeiten. Vor allem mit theoretischen und methodologischen Fragen der Dialoganalyse, mit Fragen der (...) Analyse institutioneller Kommunikation (Politik, Recht, Wirtschaft) und literarischer Dialoge setzen sich die Beiträge des zweiten Teils auseinander. (shrink)

This review article summarizes various functions of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex that are related to language processing. To this end, its connectivity with the left-dominant perisylvian language network was considered, as well as its interaction with other functional networks that, directly or indirectly, contribute to language processing. Language-related functions of the DLPFC comprise various aspects of pragmatic processing such as discourse management, integration of prosody, interpretation of nonliteral meanings, inference making, ambiguity resolution, and error repair. Neurophysiologically, the DLPFC seems to (...) be a key region for implementing functional connectivity between the language network and other functional networks, including cortico-cortical as well as subcortical circuits. Considering clinical aspects, damage to the DLPFC causes psychiatric communication deficits rather than typical aphasic language syndromes. Although the number of well-controlled studies on DLPFC language functions is still limited, the DLPFC might be an important target region for the treatment of pragmatic language disorders. (shrink)

Purpose: According to literature, students' attitudes towards peers with disabilities are crucial for the social inclusion of students with disabilities.Therefore, knowledge about students' behavioral intention to interact with peers with intellectual disability can help improve the social inclusion of students with ID. This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Arabic version of the Behavioral Intention to Interact with Peers with Intellectual Disability Scale.Data were collected from 887 elementary school students (591 female and 296 male) from third to (...) sixth grades in Saudi Arabia.Psychometric properties of the BIS were examined with a confirmatory factor analysis, measurement invariance analysis (across gender), and reliability scales (internal consistency).The results supported the two-dimensional structure of the BIS. The internal consistency of the BIS and each of its subscales was good.Furthermore, no measurement variance was found for male and female students.The Arabic version of the scale showed good psychometric properties and therefore can be recommended to measure students' behavioral intention to interact with peers with intellectual disability. (shrink)

The so-called Menschenpark-debate on genetic engineering—originating in 1999—turned out to be one of the most controversial and contentious debates in German philosophy. It is also regarded as the first manifestation of the struggle between Sloterdijk and Habermas. While Sloterdijk’s ideas had a significant impact on Habermas’s theory, Sloterdijk’s philosophy has been consistently ignored and dismissed until today due to two reasons. First, he was accused of advocating for fascist ideology. Second, philosophers from the same academic circles claimed that his method (...) does not meet academic standards. The debate therefore signifies a larger problem that concerns the methodological difference between analytic-Continental philosophies that work on a formal level and Continental philosophies that work with a tropological account experimenting with different non-formal philosophical expressions. I will carve out this distinction with respect to the Menschenpark-debate to argue that Sloterdijk is an integral part of our philosophical historical moment. (shrink)

This book offers the first comprehensive collection of essays on the key concepts of Kitaro Nishida (1870-1945), the father of modern Japanese philosophy and founder of the Kyoto School. The essays analyze several of the major philosophical concepts in Nishida, including pure experience, absolute will, place, and acting intuition. They examine the meaning and positioning of Nishida’s philosophy in the history of philosophy, as well as in the contemporary world, and discuss the relevance of his philosophy in the present context. (...) The book next looks at the significance of Nishida’s philosophy in the wider contexts of science, arts, and religion. The book includes a glossary of key terms that have been translated in a unified manner throughout the volume. (shrink)

Vigilanz wird alltäglich ausgeübt, etwa im Bereich der Sicherheit, des Rechts, der Religionen oder auch der Öffentlichen Gesundheit: überall dort, wo wir auf etwas achten, gegebenenfalls auch etwas tun oder melden sollen. Der Münchner SFB 1369, in dem dieser Band entstanden ist, untersucht die Geschichte, kulturellen Varianten und aktuellen Formen dieses Phänomens nichtinstitutioneller, aber doch hochgradig funktionaler Wachsamkeit. Der erste Band der Publikationsreihe,Vigilanzkulturen' widmet sich der zeitlichen Dimension von Vigilanz. So wie menschliche Aufmerksamkeit erheblichen Schwankungen unterliegt, ist auch Wachsamkeit zeitlich (...) instabil. Die hohe physiologisch-kognitive Intensität von Wachsamkeit lässt sich nur schwer auf Dauer stellen. Wird über längere Zeit hinweg ein ereignisloses oder unstrukturiertes Geschehen beobachtet, sinkt die Aufmerksamkeit oder richtet sich auf anderes. Kulturelle Anleitungen zur Wachsamkeit arbeiten daher in der Regel selbst mit zeitlichen Strukturen: mit Rhythmisierungen, Habitualisierungen oder Dramatisierungen. Sie geben vor, in welcher Abfolge Wachsamkeit herauf- oder herabgestuft werden soll oder sie variieren denkbare Gefahren. Sie arbeiten mit natürlichen Zeitverläufen (wie Tag und Nacht, Licht und Dunkelheit), die sie, kulturell überformt, nutzbar machen. Darüber hinaus können auch Techniken und Medien helfen, Wachsamkeit zu verstetigen. Der Band untersucht diese zeitliche Gestaltung der Wachsamkeit anhand historisch spezifischer Konstellationen. Er versammelt Beiträge aus unterschiedlichen Disziplinen wie Geschichte, Ethnographie, Kunstgeschichte, Literatur- und Medienwissenschaft, um die Zeiten der Wachsamkeit zu erforschen. (shrink)

A fundamental concept of a philosophy of music is that of sound. Any investigation of this concept has to be ontologically as well as epistemically adequate. The main proposition of the article is that sounds can only be understood ontologically if we take into consideration their main characteristic of being strictly shapeless and lacking content, an insight that we can learn from Kant. In contradiction to Kant, sounds can be epistemologically characterized as objects that can only be re-presented if the (...) hearer co-presents their temporal extension. The argument is developed through a discussion of the work of P. F. Strawson, G. Evans, R. Scruton, and H. Riemann. (shrink)

Patientenverfügungen werden häufig als Ausdruck eines Bestrebens verstanden, ausschließlich selbst über die eigene Behandlung am Lebensende oder in anderen medizinisch kritischen Situationen entscheiden zu wollen. Kritische Stimmen wenden sich gegen eine Marginalisierung von Angehörigen oder ein verkürztes Verständnis von Autonomie, welches von der Relationalität als Grundgegebenheit menschlicher Existenz abstrahiert. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird zunächst der rechtliche Rahmen beschrieben, der die Praxis bezüglich Patientenverfügungen und Stellvertretern in der Schweiz bestimmt. Zudem werden in der Schweiz verfügbare Patientenverfügungsformulare hinsichtlich der darin vorgesehenen Rolle (...) von Angehörigen bzw. nahe stehenden Personen analysiert. Abschließend soll gefragt werden, ob Patientenverfügungen, wie sie derzeit im Schweizer Kontext genutzt werden, wirklich als Instrumente rein individualistischer Selbstbestimmung verstanden werden können. (shrink)

This article summarizes Carroll (Cal) Izard’s contributions to theory and research on emotion competence and an emotion-centered preventive intervention program. Cal’s contributions to emotion competence research began with some of the earliest studies of whether or not recognition and labeling of emotions relate to social and behavioral functioning. He also theorized about the adaptive use of discrete emotions, a construct Cal termed “emotion utilization.” He translated theory and research on emotions into seven principles for emotion-based prevention and intervention, and he (...) applied these principles to a preventive intervention, the Emotions Course. The Emotions Course has been shown to promote emotion competence and reduce problem behaviors. The article concludes with recommendations to deepen the research base on emotion competence. (shrink)

The aim of this paper is to explore the complexity of the concept of the victim within the context of organ trading. By examining the intricate phenomenon of organ trade, we show how prevailing notions of victimhood form the basis of concrete social practices. The empirical basis for this exploration comprises in-depth interviews conducted during fieldwork in South Africa and Kosovo. We also draw on research undertaken at various expert meetings. What our research in these locations attests to is that (...) one-dimensional and generalised conceptualisations of victimhood are rife, and that these tend to be founded on a pre-theorised opposition between agency and victimhood. For persons who become practically and intimately involved in dealing with cases of organ trade – such as investigators and prosecutors – such conceptualisations do not hold. What is required is an understanding of victimhood that takes into account its complexity. In this paper, we explore attempts to grasp and reduce this complexity, and argue against generalised concepts of victimhood and for concepts that are sensitive to contextual and relational variations. (shrink)

Students come into contact with the natural world and nonhuman others in a variety of scenarios. Of the embodied experiences with the nonhuman available to educational endeavors, the nature-based edutainment venue is growing in popularity. This article examines how such spaces work as ontological orderings—frames—for the human viewers and what the implications might be for an ecological sensibility. Through an exploration of Kant's and Dewey's philosophies of art, this article posits the implications of viewing nature as art, taking into consideration (...) the harmful and helpful implications of aesthetic viewing. Ultimately, this article is interested in the ways nonhuman beings and landscapes are situated in our visual perception and the implications for an education for ecological consciousness. (shrink)

Although U.S. President Barack Obama has often sounded the rhetorical notes of a certain type of philosophical pragmatism, his actual policies during his presidency have to date failed to address in adequate fashion the structural inequalities that seriously compromise the American democratic potential. Thus, from the perspective of a Deweyan democratic pragmatism, which could readily side with Occupy Wall Street and related movements, the Obama presidency has yet to prove that it is truly committed to fostering the social intelligence that (...) only a more participatory and deliberative form of democracy could realize. (shrink)

Evolutionary pressure selects for the most efficient way of information processing by the brain. This is achieved by focussing neuronal processing onto essential environmental objects, by using focussing devices as pointers to different objects rather than reestablishing new representations, and by using external storage bound to internal representations by pointers. Would external storage increase the capacity of cognitive processing?

The career of Oxford philosopher Roger Crisp has produced a wonderfully rich yield of elegant, lucid philosophizing that combines in a rare mix historical erudition and brilliant, creative, and highly interdisciplinary ethical argument. Crisp is steeped in Aristotle and Mill, W. D. Ross and Derek Parfit, but his deepest source of inspiration is by his own admission the Victorian era Cambridge philosopher Henry Sidgwick, author of the famous Methods of Ethics. Although Sidgwick has been regarded as a kind of master (...) of those who know by everyone from Brand Blanshard and C. D. Broad to John Rawls and Peter Singer, his star has been on an especially dramatic ascent in recent decades, in very... (shrink)