Phronesis is essential for good decision‐making and actions. This literature review shows how phronesis has been discussed and related to elements of the field of administration and organizations. A search in the database systems Scopus, EBSCO, Web of Science, and Scielo, based on eligibility criteria, resulted in 43 theoretical and 14 empirical works. The analysis of these studies showed the most significant empirical contributions, the most cited authors, methods, journals, and central themes addressed in studies on phronesis to understand ethics (...) in business. From a virtue ethics perspective, we discuss the major theoretical and empirical contributions, as well as the implications of a restricted understanding of phronesis when it is treated apart from other elements of the virtue ethics framework. We present a synthesis of the concepts of phronesis, based on dimensions of magnitude and amplitude of the conceptions, ranging from formal to substantive phronesis, and covering individual, organizational, or societal levels of analysis. We argue that a substantive conception of phronesis within virtue ethics may improve our understanding of ethics because it assumes the interdependence of phronesis and moral virtues, integral anthropology, and the common good. We present a future research agenda, considering the study's limitations and findings. (shrink)

RESUMO: Para Bateson, a mudança social radicaria numa mudança epistemológica profunda que incidisse sobretudo na educação e na comunicação. Essa revolução paradigmática, baseada na lógica formal de Whitehead e Russell, evitaria discursos ditos científicos destituídos de rigor. Aqui, analisamos hermeneuticamente o seu pensamento, salientando os limites que a lógica formal encontra nas experiências éticas, religiosas e estéticas. Sem essa revolução, encontramo-nos condenados à estagnação intelectual, pois formamos cidadãos sem capacidade de aprender a aprender, que possibilitaria a capacidade de produzir abduções, (...) inferência lógica tão necessária na produção do raciocínio humano; o seu desenvolvimento garantiria a capacidade de pensar/construir complexamente o mundo, interligando os saberes; poucos são também aqueles que explicitam e argumentam a favor das suas crenças, base axiomática da capacidade abdutiva. A organização social se constrói com sujeitos que raramente possuem mentes bem estruturadas, favorecedoras de passagem de patamares de aprendizagem para outros superiores. Antes se estimula a confusão de tipos lógicos, tomando o todo pela parte, por exemplo. Bateson critica também o sistema de avaliação quantitativo, diminuindo a possibilidade de formação do pensamento abstrato e formal, como a filosofia e a matemática exigem. ABSTRACT: For Bateson, social change must be rooted in a profound epistemological shift, focusing mainly on education and communication. This paradigmatic revolution, based on the formal logic of Whitehead and Russell, avoids discourse that is said to be scientific but is devoid of rigor. In this article we hermeneutically analyze Bateson's thinking on these issues, stressing the limits that formal logic has in facing ethical, religious and aesthetic experiences. Without this revolution, we are condemned to intellectual stagnation, because we would be training citizens without the capacity of learning to learn. This capacity makes possible the ability to produce abduction, the logical inference required in the production of human reasoning. Its development would ensure the ability to think/construct the world in a complex fashion, connecting various areas of knowledge. Few are those who explain and argue for their beliefs, but this is the axiomatic basis for abductive capacity. Social organization depends on subjects who rarely possess well-structured minds that can pass from one level of learning to a higher one; and it actually stimulates the confusion of logical types, such as taking the whole for the part, for example. Bateson also criticizes the quantitative evaluation system, which diminishes the possibility for training in abstract and formal thought of the kind required by philosophy and mathematics. (shrink)

In a time marked by the development of innovative treatments in healthcare and the need for health professionals to deal with resulting ethical dilemmas in clinical practice, this study was developed to determine the influence of the bioethics teaching on the moral competence of medical and nursing students. The authors conduct a longitudinal study using the Moral Competence Test extended version before and after attending the ethics curricular unit, in three nursing schools and three medical schools of Portugal. In this (...) questionnaire the participant is confronted with three ethical dilemmas and asked to evaluate arguments for and against the attitude of the main character. For both nursing and medical students, C-score was lower after the attendance of the ethics curricular units, with a statistically significant decrease in the total score for nursing students and a decrease not statistically significant for medical students. A multivariate analysis did not find any association between this decrease and gender, course, or age. The phenomenon of moral segmentation was observed, with better performance in the worker and judge dilemma, than in the doctor dilemma. These results highlight the need to reflect on the curricular strategies that can be implemented for health professionals to better develop moral competence and decision-making, allowing for the provision of humanized health care. (shrink)

BackgroundOrgan transplantation represents the most effective and acceptable therapy for end-stage organ failure. However, its frequent practice often leads to a shortage of organs worldwide. To solve this dilemma, some countries, such as Portugal, have switched from an opt-in to an opt-out system, which has raised concerns about respect for individual autonomy. We aimed to evaluate whether young university students are aware of this opt-out system so that they can make informed, autonomous and conscious decisions, as well as to identify (...) the factors that determine a positive attitude toward post-mortem organ donation.MethodsAn observational, cross-sectional study was developed and a questionnaire was administered to first-year students from six faculties of the University of Porto.ResultsOf the 841 participants, 60% were unaware that Portugal had adopted an opt-out system. Among the informed individuals, their main sources of information included social media, internet, and family. Furthermore, only 48% of all participants agreed with the current opt-out system. Female sex (p = 0.049; OR 1.393), knowledge of the law (p < 0.001; OR 4.749) and family being the primary source of information (p < 0.001; OR 2.855) were independent factors associated with a positive attitude toward post-mortem organ donation law.ConclusionsThere is a significant lack of knowledge among young university students regarding the presumed post-mortem organ donation law and how it works. Female sex, having family as a primary source of information and being aware of the presumed post-mortem organ donation law are the strongest independent factors that determine a positive attitude toward the opt-out system. (shrink)

The term sustainability has become one of the most significant in the current era. It seems to be ubiquitous amongst academics, politicians, business leaders, media personnel and even the general public. It is no exaggeration to state that it is considered all over the world to be the most pressing issue to be addressed for the long-term future of the planet and its inhabitants. The topic is of course complex, and the issue of sustainability is under much debate as to (...) what it actually is and how it can be achieved, but it is completely certain that the resources of the planet are fixed in quantity and, once used, cannot be reused except through being reused in one form or another. At present, much of the discourse of sustainability has focused upon the environment and in particular upon climate change and the effects that this is having. Thus, the discourse has tended to be about mitigation. Sustainability of course requires all three pillars of the triple bottom line—economic, environmental and social—to be addressed. Indeed, it might be considered that the effects upon the social, and how we choose to live our lives, might well be the most profound effect of achieving sustainability. This book therefore focuses upon some of the many aspects of the social and how we can adapt our lives to accommodate the requirements of sustainability. it therefore takes a very different approach to addressing the issues of sustainability, while of course not ignoring the other pillars. This book therefore sets out to examine various aspects of the changes to personal, corporate and institutional behaviour which may have to come about in our search for sustainability. It is tended to address some of the issues and how they are being dealt with in various parts of the world. As always, our concept is to share best practice and thereby enrich both the discourse and our progress towards sustainability. Thus, we focus upon the current situation while also considering the extent to which the focus is changing so much that we need to think about new approaches to our understanding of behaviour and differing effects in practice. The international origins of the contributors to this book make this an original contribution taking some of the best ideas from around the world. This book therefore addresses these issues from a perspective not generally addressed by researchers, or even by politicians and the press. It therefore provides fresh perspectives upon the important issue of our common future. As always, this approach is based on the tradition of the Social Responsibility Research Network srrnet.org (a worldwide body of scholars with membership of several thousand), which in its 20-year history has sought to broaden the discourse and to treat all research as inter-related and relevant to business. This tradition has always been to explore the subject widely and to seek relevant solutions, while also sharing best practice. This book is based primarily upon some of the contributions from the network at our recent conference and shows both commonality and diversity in approaches and effects. (shrink)

Este estudio recupera la idea de inconsciente del análisis fenomenológico de Edmund Husserl a fin de contribuir y apoyar la ciencia psicológica. Se realizó un estudio de investigación teórico-bibliográfica, llevando en consideración la propia trayectoria analítico investigativa del filósofo, buscando resaltar la importancia de este análisis para comprender el concepto de subjetividad y sus implicaciones para la reflexión sobre el tiempo, sobre la memoria y la afectividad, elementos que componen la historia individual y colectiva. Husserl valora la noción de inconsciente (...) vinculada a actos de afecto y de horizonte, cuyo contenido se evidencia en la síntesis asociativa pasiva, realizada en el fluir de la conciencia intencional. Concluye enfatizando la necesidad de considerar lo implícito en la experiencia humana en todos sus niveles, lo que incluye la cuestión del “enigma del inconsciente”, contribución esencial a la fundación de la Psicología y de las ciencias humanas. (shrink)

The present book reflects on the life, work, and legacy of an exceptional and enigmatic woman: the philosopher and French Jewish mystic Simone Weil. It constitutes a testimony so unique that it is impossible to ignore. In a Europe where authoritarian regimes were dominant and heading, in a sinister manner, toward World War II, this woman of fragile health but indomitable spirit denounced the contradictions of the capitalist system, the brutality of Nazism, and the paradox of bourgeois thought. At the (...) same time, her spiritual journey was one of zeal and sorrow--that of a true mystic--but her radical intransigence and passion for freedom kept her from actually approaching the institutional church. Curious and insatiable, she wanted to experience, in the flesh, the suffering of society's least fortunate and the truths of other religions. The reader will need to develop a discerning empathy for Simone Weil's sensibility, beyond her particular passion and zeal, in order to appreciate her in depth. But undeniable are this truly singular woman's authenticity, her capacity to suffer, her identification with the other, her inner passion, her almost magical perception of the depths of the human spirit. And that is why her story merits being told as one of the great witnesses of our age. (shrink)

Auschwitz se ve a menudo como una singularidad histórica, un evento que no se puede explicar con las categorías tradicionales que dan cuenta de la agresión entre los seres humanos. En éste artículo queremos dar cuenta, siguiendo la explicación de Freud y Lacan, que lo que pasó allí es una muestra de la actividad de deshumanización inherente a toda guerra que se llevó a su grado máximo en el campo de concentración. La agresión busca la deshumanización más que la muerte; (...) de esto dará cuenta la imagen del musulmán. Con tal categoría se designaba a aquel judío en el campo de concentración, que perdía su humanidad por los maltratos que sobre él se cometían, es decir, debido al poder que ejercía sobre él el yo narciso de otro. Encontraremos que el yo narciso explica la necesidad que tenemos de imponer nuestra humanidad a los otros, hasta el punto de crear significantes imaginarios que deshumanizan a los que no la comparten; en la guerra esa deshumanización se vuelve algo real; el punto máximo de esta acción sobre los otros será el no-humano, aquel que ha perdido completamente su yo. (shrink)

Theoria, Volume 87, Issue 4, Page 870-873, August 2021.

Deliberative Transformative Moments (DTM) is a new concept that serves as an amendment to the DQI. With this new concept it is easier to get at the quick give-and-take of discussions of small groups of ordinary citizens. As an illustration, we apply the concept to discussions about the peace process among Colombian ex-combatants, ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitaries. Specifically, we show how personal stories can transform a discussion from a low to a high level of deliberation and how they can have the (...) opposite effect. To increase the level of deliberation in the general population, we recommend that good illustrations of DTM’s should be part of the school programs from an early age on, so that children learn how to discuss with others who have different opinions and values. (shrink)

Los pacientes con somatoparafrenia reportan que una extremidad no les pertenece. En filosofía, esta psicopatología motiva la discusión sobre el autopercatamiento, entendido como el sentido de propiedad que acompaña nuestras experiencias mentales. También motiva reflexiones sobre el autopercatamiento corporal; es decir, sobre la experiencia de un miembro como parte del propio cuerpo. Propongo que la somatoparafrenia involucra una dimensión intercorporal anómala. A diferencia de otras patologías de la espacialidad del cuerpo, en la somatoparafrenia se gana alteridad dentro de los límites (...) del cuerpo orgánico: el miembro pertenece a otro. Desarrollo mi propuesta en dos partes: en la primera, retomo discusiones de la filosofía sobre la autopercatamiento corporal usando la somatoparafrenia como ejemplo. En la segunda parte, planteo algunas reflexiones para entender el problema de la alteridad en la somatoparafrenia, y por qué este trastorno puede ubicarse dentro de las discusiones actuales sobre las vivencias intercorporales. (shrink)

In phenomenology, the delusion of thought insertion is described and explained in different ways. There is a common idea that the delusion depends either on a lack of sense of agency or on a confusion between self and others. I propose that the delusion is an alienation in regard to what is expressed in some thoughts, that make them unfamiliar. In this perspective, the delusion has to do with the fact that the lifeworld expressed in inserted thought is given in (...) a second-person perspective, is rooted in a different lived-body experience than one’s own. This contrasts with ordinary thoughts which are given in the first-person perspective, with which we have a sense of intimacy. This discussion is an opportunity for putting forth the idea of the second-person perspective: that is, certain experiences of the world are given to me through others, as distinct from those that are given to me directly as a lived body. In inserted thoughts, there is a sense in which some perspectives of reality, different to my own, are disclosed through an alien voice or through inside me. The distinction between the first person and second person perspectives leads to a better understanding of the primal constitution of the self and of others, based on the relation between the body and the world as it is given to us. (shrink)

Violence has become the number one problem in contemporary societies, and has reached the point of becoming a true challenge to present-day moral conscience. Its general form shows up both as a question and a paradox for our understanding of natural and social phenomena, the progress of scientific knowledge and intellectual conquests, and any attempt to assert the value and respect for life. Each day, no doubt each moment, human rights are both proclaimed and violated.

Violence has become the number one problem in contemporary societies, and has reached the point of becoming a true challenge to present-day moral conscience. Its general form shows up both as a question and a paradox for our understanding of natural and social phenomena, the progress of scientific knowledge and intellectual conquests, and any attempt to assert the value and respect for life. Each day, no doubt each moment, human rights are both proclaimed and violated.

Book review: AQUINO JÚNIOR, Francisco de. O caráter práxico-social da teologia: tópicos fundamentais de epistemologia teológica. São Paulo: Loyola, 2017.

Our current context is a “moving” and unstable one. We are facing not only a time of change, but what Pope Benedict XVI terms “an epochal change.” The impact of this transformation upon religion is unmistakable. In this article I reflect on one aspect of this impact: the one that affects and transforms the experience of God, also called mystical experience. I explore the concept of experience, trying to give a more precise idea of what we understand by mystical experience. (...) I then reflect on the importance of mystical biographies and narratives to theology, including the particular characteristics that emerge when this narrative is about the mystical experiences of twentieth‐century people of faith. I present the specific “case” of Dorothy Day as an exemplification of mystical experience. I conclude with several reflections about how human beings find the way towards God in our secular. (shrink)

During the past century, an enormous effervescence of events changed the sociopolitical configuration of the world. The interpretation of these facts helped further deepen the crisis in which modern thought already found itself--and it generated the uncertain and unstable environment in which we live today, the so-called postmodernity, late modernity, or hypermodernity. In this context, one of the most profound impacts is most certainly the one on religion. During the twentieth century, religion proved not to be banished from the human (...) horizon as the masters of suspicion intended. Known as the godless century, the twentieth century saw also a resuscitation of the search for the sense of life and spirituality. With the crisis of modern reason, humankind turned toward consumerism and provisional and "light" practices. The last century represents not only the height of the postmodernization process but also the rescue of the transcendent and absolute, even if it is an absolute without face and identity. It is in this scenario that religious experiences, apparently exiled by modern rationality, begin to occur and multiply again. Mystical experiences will be, then, the basis for highlighting recurrent characteristics with universal import. But they will show a different configuration than before. One will be able to find them not in so-called sacred spaces but in very secular ones; not so much within institutions but at the borders, or even outside them; not configured by a specific tradition but in an interface that makes more than one tradition meet and dialogue. (shrink)

RESUMO: Na época em que Shakespeare escolheu Veneza para cenário de Otelo e O Mercador de Veneza, a cidade-república correspondia aos ideais renascentistas de liberdade e estabilidade. Descobertas no âmbito da geografia e da astronomia exigiam uma reavaliação do lugar ocupado por mulheres e homens na nova concepção do universo. Este ensaio pretende refletir sobre a Veneza mítica do imaginário shakespeariano, uma paisagem simbólica, menos física e concreta que ideológica. Nesse sentido, o trabalho recorre ao conceito foucauldiano de heterotopia para (...) ilustrar como, na representação da cidade, se projetavam os anseios de uma época. Aqui, a jurisprudência é de importância central. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Shakespeare, Mercador de Veneza, Renascimento, Veneza, heterotopia, jurisprudência In the storied city: justice and other conflicts of The Merchant of Venice ABSTRACT: When Shakespeare chose Venice as the location for Othello and The Merchant of Venice, the republic corresponded to Renaissance ideals of freedom and stability. Discoveries in the realm of geography and astronomy required a re-evaluation of the place occupied by women and men in the new conception of the universe. This essay intends to discuss the mythical Venice of Shakespeare’s imagination, a symbolic landscape, less physical and concrete than ideological. In this sense, this paper turns to Foucault’s concept of heterotopia to illustrate how the anxieties of an epoch were projected in the representation of the city. Here, jurisprudence is of central importance. KEYWORDS: Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, Renaissance, Venice, heterotopia, jurisprudence En la ciudad historiada: justicia y otros conflictos del Mercader de Venecia RESUMEN: En la época en que Shakespeare escogió Venecia como escenario de Otelo y El Mercader de Venecia, la ciudad-república correspondía a los ideales renacentistas de libertad y estabilidad. Los descubrimientos en el ámbito de la geografía y de la astronomía exigían una reevaluación del lugar ocupado por mujeres y hombres en la nueva concepción del universo. Este ensayo pretende reflexionar sobre la Venecia mítica del imaginario shakespeariano, un paisaje simbólico, menos físico y concreto que ideológico. En este sentido, el trabajo recurre al concepto foucauldiano de heterotopía para ilustrar cómo, en la representación de la ciudad, se proyectaban los anhelos de una época. Aquí, la jurisprudencia es de central importancia. PALABRAS CLAVE: Shakespeare, Mercader de Venecia, Renacimiento, Venecia, heterotopía, jurisprudencia. (shrink)

The article presents a critical evaluation on the concept of justice as equality proposed by John Rawls. Based on the analysis of the latest book written by Rawls the article defends (1) the necessary compromise in any kind of political concept interested in the justice with real and individual f..

O objetivo deste artigo é fornecer uma elucidação do conceito de pessoa. Para tal, pretendo em primeiro lugar apresentar a caracterização desse conceito fornecida por Strawson, como sua solução para o problema tradicional da relação mente/corpo. Na medida em que a caracterização do conceito de pessoa fornecida por Strawson se revela incompleta, pretendo então, investigar a tese de Frankfurt segundo a qual o conceito de vontade livre deve ser considerado como o critéri decisivo para caracterização de uma pessoa. Aceitando, com (...) Frankfurt, que apenas entidades às quais atribuímos liberdade podem ser consideradas como pessoas, pretendo contra Frankfurt mostrar que o aspecto crucial para a distribuição entre pessoas e outras entidades não é fornecido pelo conceito de vontade libre, mas pela nossa compreensão de liberdade como autodeterminação. (shrink)

In group discussions of any kind there tends to be an up and down in the level of deliberation. To capture this dynamic we coined the concept of Deliberative Transformative Moments (DTM). In deeply divided societies deliberation is particularly important in order to arrive at peace and stability, but deliberation is also very difficult to be attained. Therefore, we wanted to learn about the conditions that in group discussions across the deep divisions of such societies help deliberation. We organized such (...) group discussions between ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitaries in Colombia, Serbs and Bosnjaks in Srebrenica, and poor residents and local police officers in the favelas (slums) of Brazil. We could identify factors that help to transform discussions from low to high deliberation and risk transformations in the opposite direction. We could also identify factors that help to keep a discussion at a high level of deliberation, and, in a next step, we could determine to what extent long sequences of deliberation had a positive impact on the outcomes of the discussions. Finally, we show how our research results can have a long term effect if it is used in schools of such deeply divided societies. (shrink)

O objeto deste trabalho é a crítica de Jacobi tanto ao Aufklärung, quanto ao conceito kantiano de coisa-em-si. Essas críticas foram inicialmente elaboradas durante a querela do panteísmo - discussão encadeada por Jacobi e Mendelssohn acerca do racionalismo e suas possíveis consequências - e continuou até a contribuição e resposta de Kant a essas questões com a publicação do texto “O que significa orientar-se no pensamento”. Nesse texto, Kant desenvolve o conceito de fé racional, o qual sustenta que não se (...) pode abrir mão da razão quando se trata de objetos suprassensíveis, uma vez que eles são dela uma exigência. De certa forma, Jacobi se viu frustrado com o posicionamento Kant e, em resposta, identificou em sua filosofia um conceito que teria, para ele, um caráter intrinsecamente contraditório: a coisa-em-si. (shrink)

Quelles mutations de la scène contemporaine le concept de paysage, de plus en plus présent dans le discours théâtral actuel, est-il capable d’éclairer? De quoi le paysage est-il le nom? Par le prisme de la scène-paysage, l’article engage une réflexion sur les possibles conceptions d’une scène non anthropocentrique, en visitant des spectacles de Robert Wilson, Claude Régy et Maguy Marin. Ni décor pour les personnages ni fond de scène pour les acteurs, le paysage, caractérisé par la ligne d’horizon qui l’unifie (...) et par son absence de centre, nous inciterait à penser la scénographie en lien direct avec l’activité cognitive du spectateur et, plus précisément, avec l’expérience du regard. (shrink)

Se describe una propuesta de intervención comunitaria en convivencia escolar, a partir de los resultados obtenidos en una investigación previa (Rodríguez, Vaca, Hewitt & Martínez, 2009) que buscaba caracterizar las formas de interacción en un contexto escolar. Si bien el punto de partida lo constitu..

We use phenomenology to reflect on the experience of being with others as mediated by screens through videoconferencing platforms, a phenomenon accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic and social isolation measures. We explore two directions to explain the intersubjective experience of a videoconference. One direction introduces a conceptual background based on previous contributions in phenomenology, while the other one is more speculative: we introduce the novel idea of a phantom other. First, we understand this phenomenon either as a correlate of image (...) consciousness or as a paradoxical perception. Then, we introduce the phantom other using ideas offered in phenomenological descriptions in which the phantom limb appears as a quasi-presence. The phantom other is the same flesh and blood body with whom I co-constitute senses of the world. In a videoconference, the other appears as a whole body with which I coordinate, although she appears as a phantom other. (shrink)

From the local level to international politics, deliberation helps to increase mutual understanding and trust, in order to arrive at political decisions of high epistemic value and legitimacy. This book gives deliberation a dynamic dimension, analysing how levels of deliberation rise and fall in group discussions, and introducing the concept of 'deliberative transformative moments' and how they can be applied to deeply divided societies, where deliberation is most needed but also most difficult to work. Discussions between ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitaries in (...) Colombia, Serbs and Bosnjaks in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and police officers and locals in Brazilian favelas are used as case studies, with participants addressing how peace can be attained in their countries. Allowing access to the records and transcripts of the discussions opens an opportunity for practitioners of conflict resolution to apply this research to their work in trouble spots of the world, creating a link between the theory and practice of deliberation. (shrink)

Normal 0 false false false PT-BR JA X-NONE Este ensaio é constituído por reflexões a respeito de alteridade na educação, defendendo a necessidade de olhar o Outro como fonte de aprendizagem, visando o desenvolvimento de relações dialógicas e alteritárias. De início, analisa-se a construção da subjetividade moderna cuja centralidade é o sujeito autônomo e racional que pensa e define as relações a partir de princípios pretensamente universais, os quais muitas vezes procuram assimilar o Outro em si mesmo. A sustentação teórica (...) do texto é o pensamento de Emmanuel Levinas, e daí emerge a proposta de pensar o Outro em sua diferença não para objetivá-lo, mas acolhendo-o em sua realidade concreta. Assim, a presente proposição defende processos de mediação educativa, onde os sujeitos, pela presença do rosto do Outro, deixam-se despertar para a responsabilidade e abertura à exterioridade. (shrink)

Editorial - Dossiê: Religião, Política e Violência.

François Stirn, professor de Filosofia, leciona em Saint-Omer, França. Autor de numerosas obras, entre elas a coleção Les grands penseurs contemporains e em colaboração com Hervé Lautrelle, Lexique de philosophie.

The generic idea that the human should enhance seems uncontroversial. However, there is a great controversy about the meaning of enhance and the means that should be used. The possibilities of enhance humans through the use of biotechnology are a central theme of the current bioethical debate. Human Enhancement is the concept used to translate the idea that a biotransformation would generate a bioenhancement. In this article, we present a proposal for a factual-elementary framework of the generic concept of human (...) enhancement, in order to highlight the differences between a normative terminology and a descriptive terminology. Then, we contest the radical polarization that creates a harmful bias in the debate, arguing that what is at issue is a decision making based on non-universal value judgments. (shrink)

This paper deals with the mental processes of authoritarians. Firstly, we explore these processes from the perspective of the type of metaphors authoritarians embody; we understand those metaphors as a conceptual framework that configurates human thought. This framework is understood as social constructs which are incorporated in the individual as a social being. We inquire about some frameworks to which the authoritarian thought appeals. One of them is the framework of the family, and the father as the main figure, which (...) explains hierarchical relations. Another one is the friend-enemy dualism: through this, authoritarian identity establishes intersubjective relations that correspond to a Manichean vision of the world: friends are those who agree with the metaphors that the authoritarian embodies, enemies are the others. Thus, the authoritarian conceives him or herself as a hero, and so this figure allows us to understand certain imaginaries and their relationship with a personal objective: such an objective ceases to be individual to be the goal of the collective, and the authoritarian person proclaims him or herself as the guarantor of its achievement. Finally, after studying frameworks as social constructs we proceed to inquire about the character of the authoritarian person as a symptom of a particular constitution of identity. Such a constitution reminds us of the figure of the successful psychopath, whose identity is shaped by inflexible agendas and an outlook on the world that even put his or her own integrity at risk. (shrink)

From the local level to international politics, deliberation helps to increase mutual understanding and trust, in order to arrive at political decisions of high epistemic value and legitimacy. This book gives deliberation a dynamic dimension, analysing how levels of deliberation rise and fall in group discussions, and introducing the concept of 'deliberative transformative moments' and how they can be applied to deeply divided societies, where deliberation is most needed but also most difficult to work. Discussions between ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitaries in (...) Colombia, Serbs and Bosnjaks in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and police officers and locals in Brazilian favelas are used as case studies, with participants addressing how peace can be attained in their countries. Allowing access to the records and transcripts of the discussions opens an opportunity for practitioners of conflict resolution to apply this research to their work in trouble spots of the world, creating a link between the theory and practice of deliberation. (shrink)

This article presents a conceptual discussion on the phenomenon of incorporation of tools and other objects in the light of Maine de Biran’s philosophy of the relation between the body and the motor will. Drawing on Maine de Biran’s view of the body as that portion of the material world which directly obeys one’s motor will, as well as on his view (supported by studies in contemporary cognitive science) of active touch as the perceptual modality that is sensitive to objects (...) as fields of forces resisting the perceiver’s movements, we discuss the phenomena of motor incorporation and haptic incorporation, as well as the relation between them. Motor incorporation occurs when something is integrated into the motor system, i.e. when practice enables one to animate an object as directly, effortlessly and fluently as one is able to animate one’s own body. The subject then has the experience of acting there, where the object is located, not at the body–object interface. In order to better understand the phenomenon of motor incorporation, we highlight the phenomenological difference between directly and indirectly moving something. Haptic incorporation occurs when something is integrated into the haptic system, i.e. when an object is used as an instrument for the haptic perception of other objects. Finally, we seek to shed light on the phenomenon of transparency, understanding the transparency acquired by the incorporated object as both a relational property and a matter of degrees. (shrink)

A pesquisa que aqui se apresenta é uma tentativa de mostrar em que medida Schopenhauer é crítico ao antropocentrismo kantiano. Esse tema partiu de uma perspectiva ecofeminista sobre um aparente conflito entre alguns pontos da filosofia de Schopenhauer: 1) a influência de Kant sobre sua obra, 2) as evidências de machismos e, curiosamente, 3) a sua utilização por filósofos contemporâneos para pensar uma ética animal ou ambiental. O primeiro ponto, baseado em críticas à tradição moderna, sugere que Schopenhauer seja leitor (...) de uma teoria antropocêntrica. O segundo não permite ignorar que a realização de sua filosofia produz pelo menos um tipo de desigualdade. E o terceiro sugere, no sentido de diminuir os sofrimentos político-ecológicos tão presentes na atualidade, uma ética que atribui um mesmo valor moral à toda natureza ou pelo menos a todos os animais, inclusive humanos. O objetivo deste artigo é, então, investigar se, de fato, Schopenhauer é crítico ao antropocentrismo kantiano e pode ser utilizado para pensar uma ética mais igualitária e abrangente, ou se as mesmas críticas feitas a Kant por algumas teóricas ecofeministas também se aplicam ao pensamento schopenhaueriano. (shrink)

This paper examines fundamentalist cognition from a formal perspective with the aim of showing that such a perspective has explanatory power. Formal traits in fundamentalist thought are shown to turn up consistently in different fundamentalist groups and regarding different issues, and to be related to fundamentalist groups’ dynamics, theology, and political organization. Analysis of fundamentalist cognition also suggests that the epistemological stance of strong relativism in the public sphere may be conducive to fundamentalism.