德性伦理复兴与当代中国道德建设

20世纪中期之后,西方伦理学由注重规范,到自觉地思考和重新回归德性的历程,使我们认识到德性在人类文明前行中的重要性和不可或缺性.当代中国的许多道德问题,不可否认地在很大程度上与德性的状况和建设存在一定的关系.德性伦理的复兴给予当代中国道德建设有益的启示.从理论上看,德性与规范关系密切,道德建设要以规范为基础,以德性为目标;从实践上看,道德建设不仅要加强规范意义上的制度伦理和伦理制度建设,还应该注重社会信念伦理体系的德性建设,把握两者的统一.     

试论信息技术环境下伦理问题的特点

与一般的科学技术相比较,现代信息技术本身有着一定的特殊性.这种特殊性使得信息技术环境下的伦理问题呈现出一定的特点:信息技术涉及到的道德德关系具有多元性;在这个领域中,对道德主体的约束更加注重自律的作用;与信息技术的发展速度相比,现有的信息伦理规范具有滞后性.此外,信息技术所带来的伦理问题的影响深远、危害极大,这使得信息技术环境下加强道德建设显得尤为迫切.     

农村金融生态环境问题研究——宝鸡地区实证分析

金融生态环境是引入经济领域的一个仿生学概念.本文在对农村金融生态环境理论探讨的基础上,针对宝鸡地区农村金融生态环境的现状及存在问题,从农村经济、法治环境、信用环境等几个方面进行了实证分析,并且提出了相应的政策建议,旨在对农村金融生态的建设研究提供新的视角.     

关于环境污染日趋农村化的调查与对策研究

改革开放以来,经济飞速发展,但生态环境也发生了巨大的变迁,环境污染问题从城市逐渐向农村扩散.本文阐述了当前农村一系列环境问题,通过调查分析当前农村污染的现状与特点,针对相关问题提出治理与改善的对策和方法,希望能高举农村环境保护的旗帜,在更好的发展农村经济建设中发挥重要的作用.     

论技校生环境教育的实施

当前生态环境的恶化,使人们认识到通过教育塑造人们的环境常识,树立环境道德已经成为大势所趋,环境教育正在成为全社会高度关注的重大问题,加强技校生的环境教育亦应成为当前的一项重要任务.     

对当前社会弱势群体问题的伦理探索

弱势群体已成为整个社会需要同情和关爱的对象群体.从伦理角度分析了弱势群体生活的道德尴尬现状,以及漠视弱势群体的道德危害,并提出了相应的伦理对策.     

何谓"认同行动"?——规范伦理学的一种拓展性分析

规范伦理学视野中的"认同"意味着行动的"合道德"理由;但是,这还不能达成道德行动的行为动机与辩护理由之间的统一,所以,美德伦理指出"道德理论与道德生活"之间的不和谐.本文试图通过对"认同行动"的拓展性分析,在以"行动者(Agent)"为中心的规范伦理学结构框架中解决这一"内在矛盾"问题.具体指出:"认同"是指称行动者的道德意向行动;而"行动"意味着行动者"个体认同"的伦理性现实.在此基础之上,"消极的"与"积极的"两种认同行动的区分,意味着现代世界中"伦理认同"可行性形态的道德哲学基础转变.因而,行动者的"认同行动"内蕴于规范伦理学的结构之中,拓展了伦理的"规范性"空间,并且一定程度上纠正了德性伦理的传统世界与现代性之间的混淆.     

亚里士多德的德性理论辨析——基于品德养成的视角

品德的养成是人成为一个有德行的人的重要环节.这个环节不仅有赖于通过道德推理所获得的道德认知,更重要的是有德行的人应当乐于将认知转化为道德行为.亚里士多德的德性伦理从作为行为逻辑的实践智慧、作为情境逻辑的特殊主义和作为内在驱动的道德情感养成三个方面给我们提供了一个将道德认知、道德情感和道德行为三者加以结合以培育公民良好德性的综合性的道德养成方案.     

《道德经》的生命伦理精神探析

处于社会转型期的中国生命伦理学同时也面对着后现代的道德境遇:传统道德基础的崩坍、道德权威的消解与生命伦理的学理匮乏使得中国生命伦理学亟需重新构建.尽管恩格尔哈特曾断言:一般的俗世的生命伦理学无法发现一种标准的、充满内容的俗世道德,但是他仍主张寻求一个包容道德多元论的道德结构.本丈的生命伦理精神即作为这样一种道德结构的尝试,旨在为中国语境下的生命伦理学构建提供可能性根基.作为中国传统文化生命胚基的道家经典<道德经>因其对生命之"道"的终极关照与对生命自由的无极追求而成为中国生命伦理精神的始源之一,与生命伦理有着一致的内在旨归,即何以安身立命.本文基于生命伦理学构建的目的沿循生命之源、社会生命之治与个体生命之养的生命理路探析<道德经>中饱含的生命伦理精神.     

文化传统、德治与政治腐败

中国传统的德治理论是中国封建国家治国思想的核心.通过把握传统道德的特定内涵,分析德与治在政治体制、治国手段等方面的结合,以史为鉴,为当代德治理论准备更充分的历史思考.在制度伦理及其安排的问题上,反思传统文化在制度伦理、制度安排上的利弊得失,对于我们建构制度伦理、实践传统文化的现代转换具有一定的借鉴意义.     

Diagnostic and treatment overshadowing of vocational problems by personal problems.

Investigated 165 counseling psychologists' vocational diagnostic and treatment decisions when vocational and personal problems are presented concurrently. Participants assessed the same vocational problem either alone or in conjunction with a personal problem of one-half, equal, or double the severity of the vocational problem. Without consideration for counselors' problem preference, ratings of the vocational problem were equivalent across the 3 personal problem severity levels. However, with preferences considered, counseling psychologists who reported greater preference for working with personal problems, in comparison to vocational problems, were less likely to assess, diagnose, and treat the vocational problem than were counseling psychologists who reported equivalent or reversed problem preferences. This biasing effect occurred when the personal problem was of equal or double the severity of the vocational problem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pathways of Youth Gambling Problem Severity.

Prospective studies are needed to advance knowledge of the developmental features of gambling involvement and associated problems. Developmental pathways of youth gambling problem severity (no problem gambling, at-risk gambling, and problem gambling) are described on the basis of a 3-wave data set that spans midadolescence to young adulthood (N = 305). The most prevalent group was the resistors (no problem gambling at all data points); 60% of study participants were in this group. New incidence cases (no problem gambling followed by at-risk or problem gambling) and desistors (at-risk or problem gambling followed by no problem gambling) were found among 21% and 13% of participants, respectively. Only 4% of cases were persistors, that is, at-risk or problem gambling at all 3 data waves. Findings are discussed in light of extant research on adolescent gambling that heretofore has not benefited from a developmental pathway perspective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emergencies: What are they and do they influence bystanders to intervene?

Empirical literature does not seem to be available on what factors bystanders use to define an emergency nor the effect of such a decision on the rate of helping. A series of 4 studies, employing 1,232 undergraduates, sought to answer these questions. Results show the following: (a) Emergencies are a subclass of problem situation that usually result from accidents. (b) There is a high degree of agreement concerning what problem situations are definitely emergencies. (c) Emergency situations are differentiated from other problem situations by threat of harm or actual harm worsening with time, unavailability of an easy solution to the problem, and necessity of obtaining outside help to solve the problem. (d) Disagreement on whether a problem situation is an emergency or not results from differing perceptions of the degree to which threat of harm or actual harm worsens with time. (e) Bystanders are more likely to help in emergency than in nonemergency problem situations. Results indicate that the need of the victim is a salient feature used by bystanders in determining whether or not to help. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

To calculate or not to calculate: A source activation confusion model of problem familiarity's role in strategy selection.

How do people decide whether to try to retrieve an answer to a problem or to compute the answer by some other means? The authors report 2 experiments showing that this decision is based on problem familiarity rather than on retrievability of some answer (correct or incorrect), even when problem familiarization occurred 24 hr earlier. These effects at the level of the individual problem solver and the results reported by L. M. Reder and F. E. Ritter (see record 1992-30097-001) are well fit with the same parameter values in a spreading-activation computational model of feeling of knowing in which decisions to retrieve or compute an answer are based on the familiarity or activation levels of the problem representation. The authors therefore argue that strategy selection is governed by a familiarity-based feeling-of-knowing process rather than by a process that uses the availability of the answer or some form of race between retrieving and computing the answer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The slave of the passions: Experiencing problems and selecting solutions.

This article argues that problem solving is motivated by feelings. The proposition is made that a person will experience a problem and engage in problem solving only if the person is in a state that feels aversive or if a mentally represented state becomes a goal by eliciting feelings more pleasurable than those that currently dominate. When people solve problems, the criteria they use in evaluating alternative solutions cannot in themselves motivate the choosing at an alternative. On evaluation, each alternative elicits a feeling that can be placed somewhere on a hedonic continuum. Whether rational or irrational, and even if the problem solver regards another alternative as correct, the alternative that produces the best feeling will always be selected as the solution to the problem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental changes in regulation of the Na+, K(+)-ATPase alpha 3 isoform by thyroid hormone in ferret heart

Examined how and what children think under conditions of automatic and controlled processing within the context of social problem solving. In a condition that elicited automatic processing, hyperactive-aggressive children did not differ in being able to identify the components of a problem or in the number of solutions generated to solve a problem, but were more aggressive in the types of solutions generated, as compared to nonhyperactive-nonaggressive children. Furthermore, in a condition eliciting controlled processing, hyperactive-aggressive children did not differ in identifying problem components, generating solutions, or in anticipating outcomes for solutions, but were less able to anticipate consequences, and were more aggressive in choosing a best solution to solve a problem, as compared to nonhyperactive-nonaggressive children. The study demonstrated a relation between problem-solving codes that discriminated between groups, and overall child adjustment. Implications for social problem-solving interventions are discussed.     

Effects of paradoxical and self-control directives in counseling.

32 students who reported having a serious and recurring procrastination problem were randomly assigned to either of 2 directive interview conditions (paradoxical or self-control) or to a no-interview control condition. Dependent measures included weekly S ratings of problem frequency, perceptions of problem controllability, expectation to change, and satisfaction with behavior, as well as a measure of Ss' perceptions of the interviewer. Results after 4 wks indicate that both directive groups exhibited generally greater improvement over time than controls and that the opposing forms of direction promoted different change patterns on self-report measures of problem frequency and controllability. Specifically, Ss exposed to paradoxical directives reported a sharper rate of change in their procrastination without viewing their problem behavior as significantly more controllable. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nondominated Archiving Multicolony Ant Algorithm in Time–Cost Trade-Off Optimization

Time–cost trade-off analysis is addressed as an important aspect of any construction project planning and control. Nonexistence of a unique solution makes the time–cost trade-off problems very difficult to tackle. As a combinatorial optimization problem one may apply heuristics or mathematical programming techniques to solve time–cost trade-off problems. In this paper, a new multicolony ant algorithm is developed and used to solve the time–cost multiobjective optimization problem. Pareto archiving together with innovative solution exchange strategy are introduced which are highly efficient in developing the Pareto front and set of nondominated solutions in a time–cost optimization problem. An 18-activity time–cost problem is used to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm. Results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the well-known weighted method to develop the nondominated solutions in a combinatorial optimization problem. The paper is more relevant to researchers who are interested in developing new quantitative methods and/or algorithms for managing construction projects.     

Hearing loss

Hearing loss may be caused by either a conductive problem, such that the sound waves do not reach the tympanic membrane, ossicles or inner ear, or a sensorineural problem, in which the cochlea and/or auditory nerve are somehow damaged. A combination of the above may also occur. The various causes of hearing loss and the options in treatment will be presented.     

Benchmark Problem for Response Control of Wind-Excited Tall Buildings

This paper presents an overview and problem definition of a benchmark problem for the response control of wind-excited tall buildings. The building considered is a 76-story 306 m concrete office tower proposed for the city of Melbourne, Australia. The building is slender with a height to width ratio of 7.3; hence, it is wind sensitive. Wind tunnel tests for such a 76-story building model have been conducted at the University of Sydney and the results of across-wind data are used in the present benchmark problem. Either active, semiactive, or passive control systems can be installed in the building to reduce the wind response, although only an active control sample problem has been worked out to illustrate the control design. In the case of active control systems, either an active tuned mass damper or an active mass driver can be installed on the top floor. In the case of passive or semiactive systems, such as viscous dampers, viscoelastic dampers, electrorheological, or magnetorheological dampers, etc., control devices can be installed in selected story units. Control constraints and evaluation criteria are presented for the design problem. A simulation program based on the linear quadratic Gaussian technique has been developed and made available for the comparison of the performance of various control strategies.