Trypophobia refers to the extreme negative reaction when viewing clusters of circular objects. Two major evolutionary frameworks have been proposed to account for trypophobic visual discomfort. The skin disease-avoidance (SD) framework proposes that trypophobia is an over-generalised response to stimuli resembling pathogen-related skin diseases. The dangerous animal (DA) framework posits that some dangerous organisms and trypophobic stimuli share similar visual characteristics. Here, we performed the first experimental manipulations which directly compare these two frameworks by superimposing trypophobic imagery onto multiple image (...) categories to evaluate changes in comfort. Participants from two countries (United States and Croatia) were evaluated on several measures, including general trypophobia levels, perceived vulnerability to disease, and generalised anxiety. Several analyses showed stronger changes in comfort in the human skin condition (hand, feet, and chest images) compared to the dangerous animal condition (snake and spider images). Furthermore, participants with higher levels of trypophobia showed significantly stronger changes in comfort in the skin condition than the dangerous animal condition, with comparable effects obtained across nationalities. Several variables entered as covariates failed to significantly account for this effect. The present work is the first to experimentally test both evolutionary frameworks of trypophobia, with results supporting the skin disease-avoidance framework. (shrink)

A worrying trend of autocratization that has been spreading globally in recent years, has thrust forward a new wave of appeals for deliberative and participatory democracy as a remedy for the crisis. With a few exceptions, the majority of participatory and deliberative institutions were implemented in stable democracies. The efforts to institutionalize participatory and deliberative models are almost completely absent in Serbia and other Western Balkan countries. Yet, there has been a trend of citizen mobilization in the form of social (...) movements and local civic initiatives, which are both a symptom of unresponsive and quite openly authoritarian institutions, as well as a potential pathway to democratization. The pace and scope of these developments in the undemocratic societies of the Western Balkan region, in terms of both bottom up and top-down democratic experimentation, call for a better understanding of their internal dynamics, and their social and political impact. Responding to this need, the articles in the special issue focus on social movement mobilizations and deliberative experimentation. To begin with, our introductory article focuses particularly on understanding the possible role deliberative institutions could have in hybrid regimes. It looks at the first two cases of deliberative mini publics (DMPs) ever organized in Serbia, analyzing their rationale, specific design, implementation, as well as considering the possible role deliberative institutions could play in the hybrid regime of Serbia. (shrink)

The concept of the digital-facial-image as employed by Mark N. Hansen offers a new paradigm of our approach to digital media. The article aims at exploring the category of affect , which is understood not as a quality inherent to the image , but as a potential of human body, which thus achieves a privileged position. Affection can be conceived a necessary bodily response to digital information. To experience it as an information unit the data flux have to be sifted (...) through our corporeal being and transformed into images that have a meaning for us. Hansen argues that the digital image as such is inseparable from perceiving it since the former is not a fixed representation of reality. The notion of “digital image” is then used in its broader, not only visual sense, as a term that encompasses the entire process in which information is made perceivable. (shrink)

Exposure to bullying at work is a serious social stressor, having important consequences for the victim, the co-workers, and the whole organization. Bullying can be understood as a multi-causal phenomenon: the result of individual differences between workers, deficiencies in the work environment or an interaction between individual and situational factors. The results of the previous studies confirmed that some characteristics within an individual may predispose to bullying others and/or being bullied. In the present study, we intend to clarify the relationships (...) between workplace bullying considered from the victim’s and the perpetrator’s points of view, the employee Machiavellianism as a personality factor and the perceptions of organizational culture as depicted by Cameron and Quinn. The sample consisted of 117 workers, employed in different organizations in Poland. The empirical data regarding both being exposed to bullying as well as being a perpetrator of bullying were obtained by the use of self-reports from participants. According to the expectations, Machiavellianism predicted involvement in bullying others. The groups of bullies and bully-victims had a higher Machiavellianism level compared to the groups of victims and persons non-involved in bullying. The results showed that being bullied was negatively related to the perceptions of clan and adhocracy cultures and positively related to the perceptions of hierarchy culture. The results of a moderated regression analysis demonstrated that Machiavellianism was a significant moderator of the relationships between the perceptions of adhocracy and hierarchy cultures and being bullied. Theoretical and practical implications of the results were discussed. (shrink)

It has long been theorized that Heidegger’s idea for Dasein was highly influenced by the Chinese notion of the Dao. This is due to a misinterpretation on behalf of Heideggerian scholars and others of what the Dao represents. In fact, Heidegger, in explicating what he thought to be “the most extreme inversion of φύσης-ουσία [phusis-ousia],” made this equal to “Chinese-like ‘constancy,’” which is the basis of the Dao. Taking what Heidegger interpreted phusis to be (derived from Aristotelian metaphysics and an (...) assumption of pre-Socratic thought) as a process of unconcealment from continuing re-concealment which signals a kind of “truth” of being [phusis], that which calls for constant presence is inauthentic Dasein, rather than authentic Dasein. In other words, Heidegger’s idea of what inauthentic Dasein calls for could be explained within Aristotle’s system as equal to aiming to replace phusis with the know-how of τέχνη [techne]. The Dao, as rightfully understood and utilized by the master craftsman and the Sage, is accessible, constant, and knowable. This could not be in more opposition to Heidegger’s notion of phusis. (shrink)

Farming is undergoing a digital revolution. Our existing review of current Big Data applications in the agri-food sector has revealed several collection and analytics tools that may have implications for relationships of power between players in the food system. For example, Who retains ownership of the data generated by applications like Monsanto Corproation's Weed I.D. “app”? Are there privacy implications with the data gathered by John Deere's precision agricultural equipment? Systematically tracing the digital revolution in agriculture, and charting the affordances (...) as well as the limitations of Big Data applied to food and agriculture, should be a broad research goal for Big Data scholarship. Such a goal brings data scholarship into conversation with food studies and it allows for a focus on the material consequences of big data in society. (shrink)

Many theoretical publications make assumptions about the facts of globalization, and in particular about the role and autonomy of the nation state. These factual claims and assumptions often play an important role in justifying the normative conclusions, yet remain under-explored. This interdisciplinary volume examines questions that are central to the problems of both social and international justice, and in particular, to their interdependence: How do global and transnational factors influence the capacity of states to be internally just? Has the state (...) lost its capacity for autonomous action in the global economy, and thus its ethical significance for theories of justice? If so, which institutional reforms could address this problem? What is the role of the state in a just international order? The authors address important connections between domestic social justice and global dynamics, by identifying problematic practices and trends in the current global order. They examine political, economic and legal changes and offer normative views on concrete policies and institutions that are particularly important and/or problematic – i.e. international health policies, the World Bank, taxation policies and the World Trade Organization. Focusing on the relationship between social and global justice and establishing connections between political theory and empirical research, this book is vital reading for students and scholars of Politics, International Relations, and Development Studies. (shrink)

In this essay I use the term “whistleblowing” and its various forms to apply to unauthorized disclosures of information by employees or people in some category of labor relationship to an organizat...

This article investigates some special criteria of implementation of the EU directives into the national legal order and the consequences of their non-compliance, that could arise from the EU membership obligation to the European Union law. The most important acting form for the Institutions of European Union comes after the Reform treaty of Lisbon the form of the EU directive. The law-making practice of the Institution of the European Union set out with different levels of full or partial harmonization of (...) the EU directives. Consequently, there comes the problem of the enforcement of the adopted EU directives into the domestic legal order. The article analyses the changes in European Union law after the Reform of Lisbon. The investigation begins with treatment of the general characteristic of the EU directive. After that it analyses the choice of primary legal ground for adopting of the EU directive and the consequences of its wrong choice for the legality of the EU directive. (shrink)

The main subject of the present research is the enforcement of the European Union law in the domestic legal order. This topic was chosen considering the Treaty of Lisbon amending the Treaty on the European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community and especially its declaration No. 17 on primacy of EU law. This article will explain the meaning of primacy of the European Union law and the resulting problems in some EU Member States, as well as possible solutions (...) to tackle the problems. The primacy of the European Union law over the national law was recognised as one of the constitutive principles of the European Union. The article includes relevant provisions of the Lisbon Treaty that deal with the rules concerning the legal requirements of the primacy of the European Union law in the EU primary law. The European Court of Justice has developed the meaning of the principle of primacy, which means that the European Union law should take precedence over national law (even over constitutional provisions) and should there be any conflicts between EU law and national law, every national court is obliged to apply the law of the European Union. The main issue of this article is analysing the principle of primacy of the European Union law over the Lithuanian law. (shrink)

As has been shown by several studies, teaching is a highly stressful occupation (Johnson et al., 2005), and most teachers experience work stress. Long-term stress decreases job satisfaction and can result in chronic exhaustion which can develop into burnout syndrome. Implications of burnout syndrome are strongly negative both for the personal and professional life of teachers. As burnout syndrome puts teachers’ well-being, quality of the teaching process and relationships with students at risk, it is important to seek ways to avoid (...) teachersÉ’ burnout. Many studies have confirmed the protective role that coping strategies play in managing stressful situations, teacher’s self-efficacy or social support. In previous studies, a negative connection was found between burnout syndrome and job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is a crucial element in the definition of wellbeing. We find wellbeing rather not as a resource for burnout prevention but as an opposite state to burnout syndrome. The paper presents a quantitative survey on burnout syndrome and related variables among Czech elementary school teachers (n = 2,394). According to burnout score, two subgroups were selected – teachers with no burnout manifestations and teachers with developing/developed burnout syndrome. Through the statistical analysis, these two groups were compared in job satisfaction, self-efficacy, coping strategies, and social support. The study shows significant differences between the two groups of teachers... (shrink)

Is territorial jurisdiction over natural resources justified? This paper argues that a freedom-based account of self-determination coupled with ‘functionalist’ justifications of territorial right support territorial jurisdiction over natural resources. This justification simultaneously gives rise to limits on the permissible exercise of the right: the principles of reciprocity and generality, and of equal freedom. This ‘reciprocal’ view on territorial jurisdiction over natural resources, defended here, differs from two alternatives: the traditional sovereignty view on the one hand and the transnational jurisdiction view—which (...) favours the transfer of sovereignty over natural resources from states to transnational institutions—on the other hand. (shrink)

Contemporary political thought is deeply divided about the role of ontology in political thinking. Famously, political liberal John Rawls has argued that ontological claims are best to be avoided in political thought. In recent years, however, a number of theorists have claimed that ontology is essential to political philosophy. According to the contributors to this ‘ontological turn’, ontological investigations may foster the politicisation of hegemonic political theories and can highlight new possibilities for political life. This essay aims to contribute to (...) the debate about ontology in political philosophy by arguing that a compelling case for ontology can also be made in light of Rawls’ political liberalism itself, in particular, by taking seriously Rawls’ commitment to the politicisation of justice and the task of orientation of political philosophy. To make this case, the paper brings Rawls' perspective in conversation with the critical methodology and the ontology of agonism and reflections on parrhesia or frank truth-telling of Michel Foucault. (shrink)

Investor-state-dispute-settlement is an arbitration mechanism to settle disputes between foreign investors and host-states. Seemingly a technical issue in private international law, ISDS procedures have recently become a matter of public concern and the target of political resistance, due to the power they grant to foreign investors in matters of public policies in the countries they invest in. This article examines the practice of ISDS through the lenses of liberal-statist theories of international justice, which value self-determination. It argues that the investor-state (...) arbitration system illustrates how liberal-statist theories of international distributive justice ought to care about relative socioeconomic disadvantage, contra the sufficiency principle that they typically defend. The sufficiency principle draws on a questionable conception of the freedom that self-determination consists in. (shrink)

Contemporary political thought is deeply divided about the role of ontology in political thinking. Famously, political liberal John Rawls has argued that ontological claims are best to be avoided in political thought. In recent years, however, a number of theorists have claimed that ontology is essential to political philosophy. According to the contributors to this ‘ontological turn’, ontological investigations may foster the politicisation of hegemonic political theories and can highlight new possibilities for political life. This essay aims to contribute to (...) the debate about ontology in political philosophy by arguing that a compelling case for ontology can also be made in light of Rawls’ political liberalism itself, in particular, by taking seriously Rawls’ commitment to the politicisation of justice and the task of orientation of political philosophy. To make this case, the paper brings Rawls' perspective in conversation with the critical methodology and the ontology of agonism and reflections on parr... (shrink)

Proponents of global egalitarian justice often argue that their positions are compatible with the principle of self-determination. At the same time, prominent arguments in favor of global egalitarianism object to one central component of the principle: namely, that the borders of states (or other political units) are normatively significant for the allocation of rights and duties; that duties of justice and democratic rights should stop or change at borders. In this article, I propose an argument in defense of the normative (...) significance of territorial boundaries that draws on a political interpretation of the principle of self-determination. The political interpretation is distinct from the two major approaches to self-determination: the national and the democratic. It makes a twofold contribution to the debates about global justice and democracy; while it (a) challenges the position that political memberships and political borders are morally arbitrary; it (b) helpsdefine the realm of permissible autonomy for self-governing political units, which does not ignore duties to nonmembers and outsiders. (shrink)

Abnormal body weight has been subject to varying assessments over time. The stigmatization of obesity for aesthetic reasons only began in the Western world in the second half of the 19th century, and in the 20th century its association with increased mortality was recognized. Body weight is associated with social and cultural meanings that affect human identity, and discussions about it generate considerable emotion. Words used to refer to body weight can influence people's self-perceptions, attitudes and behavior. Experimental studies have (...) shown that even brief exposure to body-related words can trigger automatic judgements and evaluations about body shape and weight. These negative and often implicit associations are symptomatic of a wider social stigma associated with weight. Recent evidence points to globalization and the presence of weight stigma in both developed and developing countries around the world. Numerous studies further indicate that weight shaming does not lead to weight reduction but rather to weight gain. Therefore, from a public health perspective, it is important to develop messages that are at least non-stigmatizing. The aim of this article is to present existing research on stigmatizing content in the media, as well as to analyze three selected social campaigns related to obesity. (shrink)

Multinational corporations' international staffing policies have been evaluated in terms of cost and efficiency arguments. Research has not addressed, however, the ethical impact of these policies on diverse stakeholder groups. This paper presents a conceptual framework by which ethnocentric, polycentric and geocentric staffing policies are theoretically linked to underlying decision-making modes of instrumentality, bounded rationality and economic rationality, respectively. It goes on to describe the ethical rationales associated with each policy type, namely, distributive justice, moral rights of man, and utilitarianism. (...) An investigation of resulting ethical dilemmas affecting relevant MNC stakeholder groups is incorporated and offered as a tool for analyzing the true and full costs of trade-offs when choosing one policy over another. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the conceptual framework for theory and practice and directions for future research. (shrink)

Este artículo se centra en dos cuestiones: por un lado, la presunción de libertad en el «período literario» (desde el s. VIII en adelante); y, por otro, la cuestión de la esclavización, venta o servidumbre ¿voluntaria o no¿ de personas libres en la «época preliteraria» (ss. VII y VIII). Asumiendo de partida la idea de que la práctica legal en la Antigüedad Tardía influyó en las discusiones de los primeros juristas musulmanes, trataré de reconstruir el discurso legal de los siglos (...) I/VII y II/VIII y de mostrar que ese discurso contenía interesantes opiniones legales en relación a la venta de niños, servidumbre por deudas y la situación legal de los huérfanos. En la literatura legal que emergió desde el s. II/VIII los juristas, al contrario de lo que se hubiese esperado, no trataron estas cuestiones intensamente. Tal y como se muestra, existe una cierta inconsistencia entre el discurso ameno y controvertido sobre el tema del «período preliterario», que se reconstruye en este artículo, y la marginalización del tema en la literatura legal posterior. (shrink)

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors’ wide use, combined with the blurry limit between health and psychological illness, have led neuroscientists, clinicians and ethicists to envision the possibility of these medications’ use in non-clinical populations. This prospect has evoked ethical debates, which have often ignored the findings of the empirical literature. In this context, an evaluation of the empirical evidence for SSRIs’ personality enhancing effects is needed. The present paper examines SSRIs’ effects on healthy personality, including the Five Factor Model traits Neuroticism (...) and Extraversion, as well as some of their facets: Angry Hostility, Impulsiveness, Vulnerability, Warmth, Gregariousness and Assertiveness. The review encompasses investigations in healthy humans, human clinical populations, as well as relevant animal studies. Emerging data raise the possibility that SSRIs, when used by people without a currently diagnosable mental disorder, may reduce some facets of Neuroticism, especially Angry Hostility. On the other hand, very limited support exists for an SSRI-driven change in other Neuroticism facets, such as Impulsiveness, in healthy humans. An increase in Extraversion is possible, but currently available evidence is only indirect. Future research is needed, both to clarify methodological ambiguities in existing studies, and to answer unaddressed questions, such as ones of the stability, predictors, moderators, dose- and context-dependency of the effects. (shrink)

Jane English, a pioneer in feminist sport philosophy, mentioned one simple idea that has received insufficient attention, but its consequences are of great importance for decreasing discrimination...

This paper offers a discussion of the rationale for the creation of sports categorization criteria based on sporting genealogy and the gendered body, as proposed by Torres et al. in their article ‘Beyond Physiology: Embodied Experience, Embodied Advantage, and the Inclusion of Transgender Athletes in Competitive Sport’. The strength of their ‘phenomenological’ account lies in its complex account of human experience; but this is also what makes it impractical and difficult to operationalize. Categorization rather requires simplicity and practicability, if it (...) is to be applied to all athletes (and not exceptionally to transgender athletes). This discussion helps us to formulate three general principles for the process of categorization of athletes, relating to fairness, verifiability and practicability. (shrink)

A fragment of a relief icon, made of steatite plaque, depicting a female saint,was recently found in Acre (Akko) in northern Israel. The plaque has lost the head of the saint, but enough is left of the figure to discern that the pose of the female saint is typically Byzantine. Moreover, the drapery shows stylistic affinities with Komnenian art. The plaque is the first steatite icon found in Palestine and could have arrived in Acre from abroad. The archeological context suggests (...) that it might have been venerated in Acre anytime between the Crusader and the Ottoman periods. (shrink)

The years 2020 and 2021 brought new challenges to teaching and learning in the institutions of tertiary education due to the global COVID-19 Pandemic. They have been the devastating years for many teachers. Innumerable difficulties in professional and personal life increased the stress - striving to survive with the least losses. Temporary measures for remote teaching/learning in spring of 2020 extended until summer of 2021 worldwide and seem unlikely to stop in the nearest future. New challenge of novel online activities (...) made teachers reconsider their teaching philosophy due to an overall lack of students engagement in spite of the usual and familiar learning procedures. The current crisis outlines the following framework to teaching philosophy: capability, reliability, inability, suitability, ingenuity, and sustainability. This article aims at researching University students attitudes to remote and traditional learning of English for Specific Purposes. A specially designed survey was administered to 180 full-time students (9 groups, 20 students in each group). Their responses were statistically processed by a means of the SPSS software to compute the Means and Standard Variations and compare the estimates of the between-group and within-group variances. Statistical processing of multiple samples reveals whether observed differences in responses occur at random, i. e. are due to chance, or they are significant, real and meaningful. The scientific analysis of computation data might allow drawing conclusions about students preferences: which mode of learning - remote or traditional - is beneficial and how much is each of them supportive. (shrink)

Participation in deliberation in stable democracies produces effects which are beneficial for democracy, while the results of deliberative innovations in non-democracies are more ambiguous. This article contributes to the debate about the effects of participatory democratic innovations on attitudes, related to democratic commitments, political capacities and political participation, in the increasingly ubiquitous hybrid regimes. We present the evidence collected from the participants before and after deliberative mini publics (DMPs), held in Serbia in 2020. Serbia is an exemplary case of a (...) recent wave of autocratization, which had led to it becoming a hybrid regime, and it had no track record of deliberative innovations. When conducting the mini publics, we introduced an innovation in the standard design, by including active citizens - representatives of local initiatives or social movements particularly interested in the issue of DMPs. We could not find evidence that the democratic innovation affected attitudes of participants regarding democratic commitments, political capacities and political participation. However, we did find that participants of the DMPs became less satisfied with the functioning of the democracy on the local level. We argue that the anti-democratic wider context of hybrid regimes can produce adverse effects when introducing participatory democratic innovations, at least when it comes to this specific dimension of political participation. We conclude with the suggestions for further research, and a call for consideration of the wider political context when designing democratic interventions in hybrid regimes. (shrink)

Resources, coping with stress, positive emotions and health. Introduction.

Autorka objasňuje koncepci dějin filosofie A. Smetany, zařazuje ji do myšlenkového vývoje a vysvětluje jeho příslušnost k "pravému socialismu". Koncepce se soustředila hlavně na období od Kanta k Feuerbachovi. V druhé části.

Before the pandemic, our life was often described as fast, since in globalised society speed has been generally understood as a marker of efficiency, productivity and diligence; and so many people...

This paper addresses some problems arising with respect to the male/female binary division that has traditionally been central to most sports. One strategy for dealing with this problem is to remov...

In his essay?The Protestant Ethic? Max Weber explains the specific economic development and the foundation of capitalism in Western Europe due to the appearance of protestant sects and the?spirit of capitalism?. By doing so, Weber assigns religion a significant place among the factors of social and economic development. Taking Weber?s theory and argumentation as a starting point, this article drafts a thesis on?orthodox ethic? and determines its role in the development of the?spirit of capitalism? in orthodox countries. For that purpose (...) this article compares political-historical circumstances on the territory of the Western and Eastern Church on one, and pictures the theological-philosophical basis of both Protestantism and Orthodoxy on the other side. U svom eseju?Protestantska etika? Maks Veber specifican ekonomski razvoj i utemeljenje kapitalizma u zemljama Zapadne Evrope objasnjava po?javom protestantskih sekti i svojevrsnim protestantskim?duhom kapitalizma?, dodeljujuci na taj nacin religiji znacajno mesto medju ciniocima drustvenog i ekonomskog razvoja. Polazeci od Veberove teorije i argumentacije, u ovom radu se zeli postaviti teza o?pravoslavnoj etici? i odrediti njena uloga u razvoju?duhu kapitalizma? u pravoslavnim zemljama. Pri tome se uporedjuju kako politicki-istorijske okolnosti na teritoriji Zapadne odn. Istocne crkve, tako i teolosko-filozofske osnove protestantizma s jedne, i pravoslavlja s druge strane. (shrink)