Medical students and faculty explore the medical humanities for diverse reasons: as a medium for self-reflection, a means to cultivate professionalism and humanism, and a way to gain an appreciation for the broader contexts in which illness and health occur. One important area for development is increasing the exposure of learners and clinicians of various levels of training to the medical humanities and to role models in the field. Student-led programs in the medical humanities at the American Medical Student Association (...) (AMSA) address these needs by offering unique opportunities for learning and sharing experiences. AMSA programs connect physicians-in-training using technology to create virtual communication and learning opportunities. These include monthly book discussion webinars, the Writers' Institute and the Medical Humanities Scholars Program (MHSP). (shrink)

Agent-causal libertarians maintain we are irreducible agents who, by acting, settle matters that aren’t already settled. This implies that the neural matters underlying the exercise of our agency don’t conform to deterministic laws, but it does not appear to exclude the possibility that they conform to statistical laws. However, Pereboom (Noûs 29:21–45, 1995; Living without free will, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2001; in: Nadelhoffer (ed) The future of punishment, Oxford University Press, New York, 2013) has argued that, if these neural (...) matters conform to either statistical or deterministic physical laws, the complete conformity of an irreducible agent’s settling of matters with what should be expected given the applicable laws would involve coincidences too wild to be credible. Here, I show that Pereboom’s argument depends on the assumption that, at times, the antecedent probability certain behavior will occur applies in each of a number of occasions, and is incapable of changing as a result of what one does from one occasion to the next. There is, however, no evidence this assumption is true. The upshot is the wild coincidence objection is an empirical objection lacking empirical support. Thus, it isn’t a compelling argument against agent-causal libertarianism. (shrink)

Event-causal libertarians maintain that an agent’s settling of whether certain states-of-affairs obtain on a particular occasion can be reduced to the causing of events by certain mental events or states, such as certain desires, beliefs and/or intentions. Agent-causal libertarians disagree. A common critique against event-causal libertarian accounts is that the agent’s role of settling matters is left unfilled and the agent “disappears” from such accounts—a problem known as the disappearing agent problem. Recently, Franklin has argued that an “enriched” event-causal account (...) can overcome this problem. Franklin, however, doesn’t consider whether, as Pereboom argues, the agent as decider of “torn decisions” disappears from even enriched accounts. As I show here, Franklin’s enriched account takes some modifying if it is to overcome Pereboom’s torn decision problem—a special case of the disappearing agent problem. However, as I also show, there is a more fundamental problem facing event-causal libertarian accounts. It is implausible that an agent qua event or state simultaneously settles whether and how she intervenes. The upshot is that events and/or states lack an ability essential to completely fulfilling an agent’s role qua settler. This isn’t a problem for agent-causal accounts like the one offered by Steward because in as much as an agent qua substance settles whether her body moves in certain ways on certain occasions she simultaneously settles whether and how she intervenes. As a consequence, event-causal libertarians face a dilemma, or rather several, that agent-causal libertarians do not. This may ultimately be explained by the irreducibility of causation by agents to causation by events. (shrink)

Virtues, broadly understood as stable and robust dispositions for certain responses across morally relevant situations, have been a growing topic of interest in psychology. A central topic of discussion has been whether studies showing that situations can strongly influence our responses provide evidence against the existence of virtues (as a kind of stable and robust disposition). In this review, we examine reasons for thinking that the prevailing methods for examining situational influences are limited in their ability to test dispositional stability (...) and robustness; or, then, whether virtues exist. We make the case that these limitations can be addressed by aggregating repeated, cross-situational assessments of environmental, psychological and physiological variables within everyday life—a form of assessment often called ecological momentary assessment (EMA, or experience sampling). We, then, examine how advances in smartphone application (app) technology, and their mass adoption, make these mobile devices an unprecedented vehicle for EMA and, thus, the psychological study of virtue. We, additionally, examine how smartphones might be used for virtue development by promoting changes in thought and behavior within daily life; a technique often called ecological momentary intervention (EMI). While EMA/I have become widely employed since the 1980s for the purposes of understanding and promoting change amongst clinical populations, few EMA/I studies have been devoted to understanding or promoting virtues within non-clinical populations. Further, most EMA/I studies have relied on journaling, PDAs, phone calls and/or text messaging systems. We explore how smartphone app technology provides a means of making EMA a more robust psychological method, EMI a more robust way of promoting positive change, and, as a result, opens up new possibilities for studying and promoting virtues. (shrink)

Libet-style experiments and volitions -- The need for an analysis of human agency -- An Aristotelian account of human agency -- Compatibilist concerns -- Choices and voluntary conduct -- Neuronal mechanisms and voluntary conduct -- A metaphysical framework : voluntary agency, emergence and downward causation.

Objective: Compassion has been associated with eudaimonia and prosocial behavior, and has been regarded as a virtue, both historically and cross-culturally. However, the psychological study of compassion has been limited to laboratory settings and/or standard survey assessments. Here, we use an experience sampling method (ESM) to compare naturalistic assessments of compassion with standard assessments, and to examine compassion, its variability, and associations with eudaimonia and prosocial behavior. -/- Methods: Participants took a survey which included standard assessments of compassion and eudaimonia. (...) Then, over four days, they were repeatedly asked about their level of compassion, eudaimonia, and situational factors within the moments of daily life. Finally, prosocial behavior was tested using the Dual Gamble Task and an opportunity to donate task winnings. -/- Results: Analyses revealed within-person associations between ESM compassion and eudaimonia. ESM compassion also predicted eudaimonia at the next ESM time point. While not impervious to situational factors, considerable consistency was observed in ESM compassion in comparison with eudaimonia. Further, ESM compassion along with eudaimonia predicted donating behavior. Standard assessments did not. -/- Conclusion: Consistent with virtue theory, some individual’s reports displayed a probabilistic tendency toward compassion, and ESM compassion predicted ESM eudaimonia and prosocial behavior toward those in need. (shrink)

How best to realize international human rights law in practice has proved a vexing problem. The challenge is compounded in the USA, which has not ratified several treaties including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The Cities for CEDAW movement addresses this deficit by encouraging cities to endorse and implement CEDAW norms. In doing so, it seeks to catalyze a local boomerang effect, whereby progressive political momentum at the local level generates internal pressure from (...) below to improve gender equity outcomes across the country and eventually, at the national level. In this article, we trace the diffusion of Cities for CEDAW activism with attention to the case of Cincinnati and analyze its implications for advancing women’s rights principles. We argue that while Cities for CEDAW has potential to enhance respect for women’s rights in local jurisdictions, its impact on national policy remains limited. (shrink)

Abdurrahman Aliy, Felsefenin Tanrısı: Felsefi Teolojiye Giriş [The God of Philosophy: An Introduction to Philosophical Theology], 129 pp.

Fahreddin er-Râzî (öl. 606/1210) bazı eserlerinde dile getirdiği naklî/lafzî delillerin zannîliği meselesini temellendirirken zikrettiği öncüllerden en önemlisi “naklî delile muârız olacak aklî bir delilin bulunması ihtimali vardır” şeklindedir. Bu öncül aklî delilin kesinlik verdiği üzerine kuruludur. Şöyle ki naklî bir delilin aklî bir delille teâruz etmesi hâlinde ya ikisinden birisi kabul edilip diğeri reddedilir ya her ikisi de kabul edilir ya da hiçbirisi kabul edilmez. Son iki ihtimal çelişiklerin aynı anda bir arada olması veya aynı anda olumsuzlanması imkânsız olduğundan uygulanamaz. (...) Akıl naklin aslı olduğundan ve aklî delil kesinlik bildirdiğinden naklî delil kabul edilip aklî delil reddedilemez. Öyleyse aklî delil kabul edilir ve naklî delil ret ya da tevil edilir. Sonuç olarak naklî delilin kesinliği ortadan kalkar. Bu söylem günümüzde kendisine nispet edilen bazı iddialar sebebiyle Râzî özelinde önemli bir probleme sebep olmaktadır. Zira özellikle el-Metâlibü’l-ʻâliye isimli eserinin mukaddimesindeki ifadeleri delil gösterilerek Râzî’ye “aklın metafizikte kesinliğe ulaşamayacağı” görüşü nispet edilmiştir. Dolayısıyla Râzî görünürde akıl ve aklî delil hakkında iki çelişik hüküm vermektedir. Bu çalışmada yukarıda tasvir edilen problem çözüme kavuşturulmaya çalışılacaktır. Öncelikle Râzî’nin aklın sınırından bahseden ifadeleri bağlamı içinde aktarılacak ardından bu ifadeler tahlil edilecektir. Temel iddiamız Râzî’nin gerçekte akıl hakkında iki zıt söylemi olmadığı şeklindedir. (shrink)

In the modern world, about 1 billion people in Asian and African, partly European and American countries, who in their thinking and daily practice turn to the sacred texts about the Prophet Muhammad, his Sunnah, to find acceptable answers not only to questions of a domestic nature, but also to solve problems related to the sphere of socio-political development, as well as international relations. The purpose of this article is to study rare types of hadith by studying the works of (...) modern and classical theologians of Islam. The novelty of this study is that it attempts a contextual and comparative analysis of rare types of hadith. Aliy is the Hadith in which the number of transmitters in the chain is smaller, and unfortunately it is its antonym. Maukuf is a hadith whose chain reaches the companions, but whether it is speech or action, it does not reach the Prophet. A hadith mursal is a hadith in which the name of a companion is omitted. The hadith of a mushroom is a hadith narrated by one transmitter. The hadith of munkati is a hadith in which there is no transmitter in the chain. Two transmitters are missed in the chain of hadith modal. There are two types of hadith maklub: replacing the location of one transmitter instead of another, and replacing the chain of one hadith with the circuit of another. Other rare types of hadiths have also been studied. The importance of a correct understanding of these catches is emphasized, so as not to get lost in the system of the hadith hierarchy as a whole. Ignorance of the subtleties of hadith studies can lead to unforgivable errors in the interpretation of hadiths. And, unfortunately, extremist sects have become widespread in our age, which misinterpret and mislead hadiths, illustrating the above-mentioned ignorance. (shrink)

Bu araştırma notu, Râzî’nin el-Metâlibü’l-âliye adlı eserinin, epistemoloji, mantık ve ontoloji kısımlarını içeren ve şimdiye kadar kullanılmayan bir nüshasını ve bu nüshanın içeriğini tanıtmaktadır (Süleymaniye Kütüphanesi, Fatih 3145). Bununla yazı, Sekkâ neşrinin sebep olduğu el-Metâlibü’l-âliye’nin adı ve kapsamıyla ilgili iki temel yanlışı düzeltmekte ve el-Metâlibü’l-âliye’nin mantık, ontoloji, fizik ve teoloji kısımlarını içeren kuşatıcı bir ansiklopedik eser olduğunu göstermeyi amaçlamaktadır.