Determinism Essays (Examples)

Determinism and Sliding Doors

Determinism is an integral theme in Director Peter Howitt's movie, Sliding Doors. In Sliding Doors, a small, seemingly insignificant act makes profound changes in the life of the lead character, Helen. Nonetheless, as the movie progresses, it becomes clear that some fundamental aspects of Helen's life, told in parallel stories, remain the same, suggesting some role for determinism.

Determinism is a school of philosophical thought that argues that every event is predetermined, or caused, by events in the past. Even human thoughts are caused by prior events and thoughts, according to the determinist idea. This contrasts completely with the idea of free will, in which humans are capable of making decisions and taking actions that can alter the course of their lives (ikipedia).

The movie, Sliding Doors, tackles the problem of determinism vs. free will head on. Sliding Doors examines two potential parallel life courses for…

Determinism

FREEDOM OF THE WILL AND DETERMINISM

Contra: Chapter 39. Baron D'Holbach: "We Are Completely Determined"

Pro: Chapter 40. "Corliss Lamont: Freedom of the Will and Human Responsibility" (334-337)

The nature of the freedom of the human will remains one of the most debated questions between philosophers. The durability of the debate is evidenced in the introductory philosophy anthology The Quest for Truth, when the Enlightenment era defender of determinism, Baron D'Holbach is pitted against the 20th century philosopher of Humanism Corliss Lamont. Despite the centuries that divide them, the two men engage in a dialogue that continues to have profound policy implications. The freedom of the will debate touches upon everything from the Christian religion's conception of the soul and salvation, to political science's conceptualizations of human rights, and to the current legal debate over retributive punishment, most specifically capital punishment.

Corliss Lamont, in his essay "Freedom of the…

Devoted as she was to her husband, their intimate conjugal life was something which she was more than willing to forego for a while" (Chopin 1889). In Chopin's wording there is the implication that Clarisse is not as sexual as her husband. Still, like "The Storm" itself, the consequences of the illegitimate passion are minor: "So the storm passed and every one was happy" (Chopin 1889).

"The Story of an Hour" takes place in an urban, industrial landscape. Its plot also revolves around a deterministic twist of fate: Mr. Brently Mallard is killed in a railroad disaster. Suddenly, his wife begins to envision all of the new possibilities that have been opened up to her as an independent woman. Her grief is described as a "storm" but is one that quickly passes (Chopin 1894). In her environment, Mrs. Mallard suddenly only sees joy and hope: "the tops of trees that…

There are certain countries where culture still appears to be a strong determinant. A middle ground does exit, as with most complex concepts. For example, Yeh and Lawrence (1995) contest that Hofstede's model did not allow for an understanding of the multifaceted interrelationships that connect culture and economic growth. Through their studies of the relationship between economic growth and Confucianism, Yeh and Lawrence concluded that "the findings from these studies do not greatly enhance our understanding of the relationship between culture and economic growth and may actually mislead us."

As can be seen by the present influence of globalization and the impact of Western culture across the world on developing countries, economics does undeniably play a major role. Yet, this does not mean that the underlying cultural aspects should be disregarded. Despite the fact that two countries are capitalistic, they can have very different cultural systems that will impact this…

Bruce N. Waller, through Chanelle, denies moral responsibility for a person's actions. How does he argue his unusual position?

Choice by its nature arises from character -- except for flipping a coin or certain subatomic acts of randomness, nothing happens without some causal predisposition. No one can not 'be themselves' and make a choice. A rebellious teen from a classically-inclined family who has musical talent but takes up the electronic guitar rather than the oboe is still making decisions that casually proceed from his character. Sabrina is lucky to have the genetic predisposition to practice, family support, and exterior structures that support her innate determinism to play the oboe and make her able to choose a musical career. Someone needs to have a desire to practice a talent, or a desire to change a bad habit. Without the predisposition to want to change, no change will occur.

There is no…

Today's world has greatly expanded and the challenges and provocations that humanity faces are great. Starting with political and economical challenges, and continuing with social and informational challenges, these are all more vast and complex than they were during Ancient Greek times. It is because of all these challenges that individuals will sometimes feel the need to resort to a higher power rather than treat everything in a causal, scientific approach based on reason and inquiry. Despite their tremendous impact on the human thought and perception on nature and human nature, Christianity and religious faith in general has also played an important role in actually limiting the influence of Greek thought in our society. Christianity and free will being brought into this dialogue, it became more and more complicated to accept determinism and its explanations, for example.

Overall, however, one can appreciate the fact that the Greek thought made its…

Free Will Views of Chisholm and Ayer

Determinism vs. Libertarianism

Contrasting the Free Will Views of Chisholm and Ayer

Contrasting the Free Will Views of Chisholm and Ayer

The philosophical dissection of the concept of 'free will' necessarily requires defining causality and the criteria that can influence causation. Towards this goal, the views of two philosophers who take opposing deterministic and libertarianism views will be presented and analyzed.

The possibility that a person's internal state of mind doesn't play an influential role in events is inconsistent with what I believe.

Chisholm and Ayers on Free Will

The concept of free will or freedom necessarily invokes a consideration of causation. Chisholm's view on causation, as interpreted by Feldman and Feldman (2008), requires an explanation of the criteria surrounding causality that Chisholm termed 'conceptual primatives' (Section 6). The first primitive concept introduces causal contribution. For example if a train is late (event…

Determinism, Compatibilism, Libertarianism

Contemporary philosophical debates about free will can frequently resemble the old parable of the blind men and the elephant. Various blind sages are asked to examine an elephant: one grabs the tusk and declares the elephant is very like a spear, another grabs the tail and says that the elephant is like a rope. In the case of free will debates, we witness various schools of thought groping around a central question. Determinists examine free will -- the human capacity to choose a course of action from different ethically-weighted possibilities -- and decide that every cause has a prior cause, and thus free will is a myth. Libertarians examine free will, and decide that determinism is a myth. Meanwhile compatibilists examine determinism and libertarianism and find some middle route whereby the two possibilities can be made consistent with each other. In this paper I will examine the…

Determinism and Sociology

For as long people have been aware of their own consciousness we have struggled to comprehend the mysterious factors which determine human behavior. Varying schools of thought have been originated within the realms of sociology and psychology, with each adhering to its own interpretation of why the human system naturally organizes itself in the manner it does. Each of these behavioral theories inevitably derives its inspiration from the prevailing social and scientific attitudes of the era from which it was conceived. The theory of biological determinism, for example, is closely linked to the advent of genetics and our growing understanding of the role that genes play in human development. Proponents of biological determinism attribute the entirety of human behavior to the inexorable influence of DNA and genetic makeup. From one's personal taste in music to their level of athletic ability, the foundation of biological determinism is a…

Darwin and Determinism

All theory is against the freedom of the will; all experience is for it.

Samuel Johnson

James Boswell's Life of Johnson (1791)

Are we the conscious authors of our actions or do our actions happen to us? A casual discussion of this critical question quickly deteriorates into an abstract metaphysical argument between determinism and free will and settles nothing. Instead of opposites, the experience of conscious will and psychological determinism can both be understood as evolutionary adaptations which function in tandem to promote the fitness of the individual. In Michael use's Darwin and Determinism a biology-based discussion of evolutionary thought is presented and its implications on humanity's notions of free will. use's major thrust is to present his perspective on biology and teleology. This perspective can be understood as arguing that one's motivations and decisions are inherently based on biological principles (food, sex, survival) and that there…

Therefore, probabilism is more about making an informed and educated choice based on the realm of probabilities available. Probabilism brings with it the theory of prediction, and also positivism, with which it is closely associated. However, probabilism is always referred to as being the half way point between determinism and possibilism. ("Infrastructure Possibilism and Probabilism," 2006)

To conclude, it must be said that while environmental probabilism states that almost all or any behaviors may be probable within one or in any environment, while determinism states that it is the physical environment, and not social conditions, that would shape a person's character and behaviors. Herein lies the basic difference between the two theories. There can be no doubt that several more theories related to these theories will emerge soon, and perhaps these would explain human behavior in a more succinct and terse manner.

eferences

Banning, Carolyn S; Banning, James H. (1994)…

If we assume that 1) and 2) are true, then hard determinism is valid. Free will then is only an illusion that man perceives as a result of the complexity of all interacting cause-and-effects. Although he thinks he has possible courses of action, his final choice has already been the sum result of these interacting variables. However, if either 1) or 2) is false then it breaks down the whole concept of hard determinism.

This paper further argues that 1) and 2) are both false. First, the cause-and-effect concept is only a human phenomenon. What we know as science is only a generalization of seemingly regular and repeatable events. For example, Newton's laws of motion had been considered the only way of explaining the movement of planets, stars, and galaxies. This generalization has been accepted for hundreds of years. However, Einstein's theory of relativity has shown inconsistencies in Newton's explanation…

Absolute Determinism

Questions about place and role of reason puzzle generations of philosophers as they are among the fundamental questions of philosophy. In case it appears that everything is planned and all events are mutually connected it may witness for the divine origin of the universe and man. Laplace proposed the theory of absolute determinism which stated that every process which took place in the universe had a reason so that the next or previous stage of this process could be predicted and described in the absolute form.

Determinism of Laplace had a lot of strong points at the time when he developed this theory. First of all Laplas was a mathematician and physicist and the principle of sufficient reason corresponded to all dynamic processes he studied: motion, oscillations, etc. This principle laid in the fundamentals of classic mechanics and was applied for any dynamical system on the hand with…

hen Edith harton tells us that "it was the background that she [Lily] required," we understand that both Emma Bovary and Lily have a very important thing in common. They are first of all women in the nineteenth century society, fettered by social conventions to fulfill any kind of aspirations or ideals. A woman, as it is clearly stated in both novels, had no other means of being having a place in society than by acquiring respectability and money through a good marriage. To marry was the only vocation of a woman, as harton tells us.

Of course, there interferes a great difference between the two heroines here, because Madame Bovary, as her very title proves it, is already a married woman, while Lily in harton's book is in constant pursue of a redeeming marriage. But, essentially the frustration of the two heroines is the same, as Emma is as…

However, a determinist theorist could argue that given the wage inequity between the genders, women who turn to prostitution may do so due to the lack of professions that pay good wages for female employees.

Drug use is another issue that generates much debate. Rational choice theorists often follow the "Just say no" route, and that drug addicts should be penalized for violating the law. Determinists, on the other hand, point out that laws vary by society, and that the laws prohibiting marijuana use only reflect the values of a select elite.

Rational choice theorists may also condemn people who commit euthanasia, whether or not the act was committed with a patient's consent. However, determinists would look more into the situation. Was the patient terminally ill and in pain? Was there consent? These questions will help a determinist in evaluating whether or not a crime has occurred.

Ekstrom 121)

The greatest strength of the concept of free will is that it allows evil deeds to be explained as poor conceptions of a weak human mind. The individual abilty to learn and become a greater agent of responsibility seeks a concept of free will to explain how this can be done and with good reason. The individual has no reason to express learning and to grow from human ideas and actions if he or she is resolved to live with a predetermined set of consequences and actions. As man's ability to reason is what is said to seprate us from animals then "free will" becomes and essential aspect of the equation.

hy exactly is it important to so many of us whether or not we can be self-directed, not just politically but also metaphysically? In certain philosophical contexts, such as some discussions of the problem of evil, the…

Environmental determinism relies on the importance of the physical environment around the individual in relation to that individual's behavior. Applying the ideas of environmental determinism to serial murder means that one would believe the physical environment of a murderer would be the most influential factor which determines them to kill. However; this more generalized theory does not fully account for why a murderer would commit mass or multiple murders. ather, like many other generalized theories attempting to explain seemingly senseless violence, it just poses a theory for why individuals would be driven to kill in the first place.

The trauma-control model, formulated by Hickey, gives a more in depth look at why individuals would turn from murderers to serial murderers. According to this model, individuals can harbor intense feelings of depression and rejection. As these feelings are amplified throughout life, that individual's tendency to engage in abnormal behaviors would increase.…

Geographic Determinism on the Course of Historical Events

Historical studies often highlight the qualities or actions of specific civilizations, or focus on the choices and errors of a certain significant personality. Sometimes, however, the real determining factor with regards to events in history is basically a nation's geography: the climate, the mountains, the rivers, and other elements of terrain. This historically themed paper will focus on nature itself - revealing the role of land layout on some among history's most significant outcomes. Social scientists maintain that the development process has to be derived from civilizational dynamics that have shaped particular geographic areas and their peoples. Thus, from the social perspective, the development process is evaluated within and across various civilizational "ecumene" of the world. In this context, ecumene refers to an area of continual cultural exchange and interaction (Woods, 2003).

Analysis of Geographic Determinism on the course of historical events…

Ethics and Public Policy

Ethical Dilemma

This paper discusses the application of the major ethical theories of consequentialism (utilitarianism), deontology, and virtue ethics to a specific policy question, namely how to improve the nutrition of the nation's poor and to reduce the rise in food insecurity. It also discusses the implications of ethical theories such as determinism and moral relativism. First, the theory is discussed in the abstract, followed by an exposition of how the theory relates to real-world practice. The paper concludes with a more general reflection on the implications of ethical theories for public policy-makers. The specific merits of virtue ethics are stressed vs. The more extreme and polarizing views of deontology and consequentialism.

An ethical dilemma: Food insecurity

One of the dilemmas facing public policy-makers regarding food insecurity and the need to improve the diet of poor Americans is the balance between individual liberties and the need…

Enlightenment

Baruch Spinoza believed that humans' actions and activities are not based on free will, but rather humans are moved to action and thought because he believed that nothing happens by mere chance. His rationale for believing as he does is the basis for this essay.

Free Will vs. Determinism

A review of what Spinoza believed is not the easiest thing to accomplish since some of what Spinoza puts forward is seemingly esoteric to the lay person or student engaged in research. But in researching Spinoza's philosophy, looking carefully at his positions, one can come to understand basically why he did not believe in free will. He believed that God, and God alone, is free to make decisions and to act according to His free will. Since God is Nature, and Nature is God, and therefore everything that exists on Earth are there because God decided, of His own free…

Yet, when you go beyond the generalities, it is obvious that this a taking a one size fits all approach when it comes to society. Where, you are assuming that everyone will react the same to the various rules / laws that have been established. However, the pessimists argue that such thinking does not take into account how various experiences and personal relationships will determine someone's morals and values. This is troubling because when you apply such thinking to the person who committed the act. They can be able to claim that they are excused from the different forms of punishment, because they qualify for a special consideration. This, the critics argue is the biggest flaw of determinism, where you are assuming that ample amounts of punishment / penalties would serve as a deterrent. Then, once someone breaks various laws you are allowing the special considerations to give them the…

Ethics in Law Enforcement

Ethics are what almost anyone would define as a person's determination between what is good or bad, or more accurately what is right or wrong. Although many of these attitudes can be a product of parenting or other factors in one's maturing environment, ethical decisions could also be a product of environmental factors that are outside of the control of individuals. It is difficult to determine where a person's ethical code, but some professions demand an ethic that is not needed elsewhere.

One such profession is law enforcement. Officers of the law are called upon to "stand in "harm's way" not so much against enemies with bullets, but against enemies skilled in every form of trickery, deceit, feigned ignorance, and deception" (Stevens, 2005). Because of the environment that they must exist in, police officers are constantly deciding whether to make the right decision or take the…

Free Will

A friend of mine has just offered to give me a well-written paper that he wrote for a philosophy class. It just so happens that the paper topic is just like the one I have been assigned in my philosophy class. His paper got an "A," and I know that he has not sold this paper or posted it on his blog. The chances of my being caught, therefore, are nil. Moreover, I am very busy and because I am distracted, it is unlikely I will do a very good job on my philosophy paper. If I turn my friend's paper in as my own, I will get a good grade without doing much work. I still took the class; I am still learning. This would just alleviate my stress.

However, after some deliberation I decide that I will write my own paper. I was tempted, but I…

The popular media's negative coverage of the insanity defense in contested cases when a defendant claims not to have the rational capacity to commit a crime or has a diminished capacity to conceptualize a criminal intent has caused the public to dismiss forensic psychiatry as providing rationalizations or excuses for bad behavior, rather than possessing a real scientific method. The use of the insanity defense is clearly subject to sociological and societal factors, such as the statistically greater willingness to believe a man who kills his child is competent vs. A woman. However, the authors contend that this ignores the many cases where the defense and the prosecution both agree that the criminal in question was not competent and was operating upon a different schema of 'reality' that affected his or her ability to judge circumstances in the same fashion as a sane person. (It might be argued, in the…

Airs, Waters, Places

A close reading of "Airs, Waters, Places" by Hippocrates will show that it was the first instance of climatic (environmental determinism. Climatic Determinism is based on the idea that the climate, the natural resources, and the land itself determine the nature of the habitants (which includes the physical nature, the cognitive ability, the moral compass, ethnical-being, intellectual being, etc.). Climate determines the physical nature and then the intellectual being of individuals living on the land, which in turn forms the culture of the group. It has greatly contributed to the development of the "Greek vs. Barbarian Antithesis" and the development of racism. However, how would culture affect the argument? Would the culture itself also influence the characteristics of the people on the land? We will examine these questions as well as how absolute the cultural determinism is in Hippocrates and whether or not is permeable, that is…

The indetermistic coin-toss can plausibly be seen as the essential foundation of your pronouncement; however, it is not under your command.

Theories and Critiques of Determinism

To begin with, I visualize that when it comes into a man's intellect to carry out or not to carry out some firm deed, if he has no point on purpose, the responsibility of it or refraining automatically follows the current consideration he had of the first-class or wickedness corollary thereof to him. As for illustration, in abrupt antagonism, the deed shall pursue the deliberation of vengeance; in hasty fear, the contemplation of fleeing. Besides while a man has time to plan, however plans not, for the reason that by no means whatever thing appeared that possibly will make him qualm of the end result, the act follows his estimation of the integrity or mischief of it.

These proceedings I entitled intentionally my Lord;…

Media

How Technology Shapes Society

A society is a conglomerate of people who, for some reason, are throw together in a particular bounded region. The group has to make laws that will govern their actions and they also determine how they will live together in the most productive manner. But, there are events and devices that some say can change the way this group of people behaves and what laws they will make for one another. For example, an early hunter-gatherer society subsisted on what they could kill and find. Then someone invented the hoe, and they became cultivating societies (Keel, 2011). This meant that the people did not have to roam so far afield to find they needed to exist. Thus they could stay closer together and build up societies. Small events sometimes shape great changes in society without the people within the society realizing that the invention will…

Technology has certainly had an impact on the history of man. Not only have the devices and processes that have emerged from advancements in technology had their effect so has the relationship of technology to politics, economics, science, and the arts. Technology has affected how man interacts with man and as history is a record of man's interactions with each other technology has affected history.

Not surprisingly, historians have adopted different approaches to examining the effect that technology has on history. Essentially, two approaches have emerged to dominate the field: technological determinism and social constructionism.

The essence of technological determinism is that it is the introduction of new technology changes society and that these changes are often unexpected. For example, proponents of technology determinism would argue that the introduction of printing changed society from one driven by oral communication into a society driven by writing and literacy or that the…

Another important aspect of observational learning is retention. For effective classroom management to take place it is important the students understand and retain the few classroom management rules that will be set out in the beginning of the year.

aise hand to speak

Treat others with respect

If you don't know then please ask

The retention factor with regard to classroom management will be reinforced each time the students witness another student having to suit out for five minutes of recess because they failed to respond appropriately to the clapping signal for attention. In addition we will have a weekly short discussion about classroom rules and why they are important and how the students can help themselves and each other to remember what they are.

The production step in the path to observational learning with regard to effective classroom management will be easily found in the response of the class…

hat is needed, then, is a concept of free will that can effectively counter the claims of naturalists that there is no physical basis for free will. It requires a different kind of free will that permits moral responsibility to be leveled squarely at the individual without ignoring the reality that sometimes there are external causes to internal decisions. In fact, some philosophers have even used the conceptual tools of the naturalists to make the argument that free will can exist in a deterministic world. Daniel Dennet argues that the deterministic universe provides the reliable framework of reality by which informed, individual choices can be made (Bailey par. 14-17). ithout some determinism in the universe, it would be impossible for free will to functionally exist, because no one would ever be able to make a rational choice in a purely chaotic world. So free will requires some level of determinism.…

Narrator

In many ways, the literary movements and philosophies of determinism and individualism are opposites of one another. Determinism is one of the facets of Naturalism, and is based on the idea that things happen due to causes and effects largely out of the control of people and that choice is ultimately an illusion. Individualism, however, is widely based on the idea of free will and the fact that people can take action to control their surroundings and their fates in life. Theodore Dreiser's Sister Carrie provides an excellent example of determinist literature and is based on the critical ideas of amorality and environmental factors controlling a person's fate, while Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an example of individualism and illustrates the idea that a person can take action to make his or her own fate.

Dreiser's work chronicles the rise to wealth and social prominence of…

Moral Luck" by admitting defeat: he informs the reader that he will be assessing "a fundamental problem about moral responsibility to which we possess no satisfactory solution" (450). The problem is essentially one about ethical judgment, and he begins it with an illustration from Kant. Kant's view of the ethical will, in the quotation offered by Nagel at the outset, is one in which goodness is not determined by "what it effects or accomplishes or because of its adequacy to achieve some proposed end" (449). In other words, goodness is to be located in process, rather than in results. The reader may find it ironic, then, that Nagel begins his paper by promising us no solution whatsoever -- in his critique of Kantian ethics, Nagel seemingly requires the reader to measure Nagel's own work as a philosopher by the Kantian criterion, of admiring Nagel's will to philosophize without judging him…

If all of the events the world could be understood by examining a mathematical model, if there was essentially no free will on a macro level -- probably very little would be changed on a micro level. Even today, people are more and more aware of how genes affect their emotional behaviors and physical health, and how economic and social circumstances shape their character. Yet they still approach the questions of their daily lives as if they have freedom of choice, and the criminal justice system has been loathe to refuse to punish people, simply because of defendant's unavoidable previous circumstances. Politicians pass legislation that suggests human behavior can be changed, such as anti-smoking laws. Even if determinism exists on a 'macro' level, on a 'micro' level the perception of choice prevails and that is how we behave -- hence the timelessness but also the futility of Max's quest. The…

Dee:

The Shape of Things, a play by Neil LaBute, (A) expands on the central themes of society's distortional emphasis on appearances, and art as a potentially limitless and human-sculpting instrument. Linearly structured in three acts, the plot closely follows the problematic evolution of a student couple from a Midwest university. Starting as a discrepant match, Evelyn and Adam develop an oddly unequal relationship, as the former increasingly impacts major changes in the apparel and psychological onset of her partner, who complies with every single suggestion out of innocent devotion.

The public clarification scene from the third act has a great potential for theatricality due to the fact that it comes across as a bitter surprise and a ruthlessly planned humiliation, yet admittedly it challenges the cultural and ethical boundaries concerning art and the human being as object for art. The reason why a large part of the audience exhibits…

The philosopher argues that no matter his final decision, its character will be a determined one.

If he does not jump, it is because he wants to live and in this will to live we can read the instinct for survival, which is a print that has been put unto us by nature. If he decides to jump in order to prove his total freedom, his action will be equally determined by the need to demonstrate something.

This latter need is another characteristic that the individual was not born with but probably acquired during his life. A man who commits suicide may be considered man and madness can be connected to passions and not reason. However, no matter if one is a slave to his reason or to his passions, he is still a slave.

Happiness on the other hand is another concept which we all build in time, according…

Nonetheless, this does not make philosophy any less important in the field.

Philosophy today can be seen as a manifestation of the workings of the human mind, while psychology studies the mind itself. Philosophy is therefore a very important aspect in helping the psychologist understand the human mind. Philosophy is indeed responsible for the birth of psychology as a discipline in itself, as mentioned.

While the early philosophers, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, are responsible for many of the ideas in both philosophy and psychology today, the 17th century philosopher ene Descartes is known as the "father of modern philosophy" (Consciousness 9). All these philosophers made a specific point of studying what it means to be human and conscious.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung built upon the work of all the above philosophers in order to develop his theories of the conscious and the…

Starting from 19th century psychology, school of thought of behaviorist shared commonalities and as well ran concurrently with the 20th century psychology of psychoanalytic and Gestalt movements, however it was different from Gestalt psychologists' mental philosophy in significant ways. Psychologists who had major influences in it were Edward Lee Thorndike, John B. atson, they opposed method of introspective and advocated to use of experimental methods: Ivan Pavlov, investigated classical conditioning, but he was not to the idea of behaviorists or behaviorism: B.F. Skinner, he did his research on operant conditioning.

During second half of the 20th century, it was widely eclipsed that behaviorism was due to cognitive revolution. Even though behaviorism as well as cognitive schools of psychological thought tends to disagree in terms of theory, they have gone a head to compliment one another within applications of practical therapeutic, for example, cognitive-behavioral therapy has shown utility in treating some…

Technology and Social Change

The Industrial evolution completely changed the way that human beings live and work. Before the Industrial evolution, society was dominated by agrarian economies. The Industrial evolution created a new way of life in which an increasingly large percentage of the population either owned or worked in factories involved in mass production. Populations became increasingly concentrated in urban areas; fewer people worked on farms or owned farms. Instead of making their own goods and services, people now bought the majority of the items they needed in stores.

The current Knowledge evolution is technologically driven, just like the Industrial evolution. It is fueled by the Internet and radically expanded accessibility of information to everyone who has an Internet connection. In some ways, like the Industrial evolution, it is extremely democratic -- just as many people made their fortune through capitalism, the knowledge economy of World Wide Web has…

Societal Collapses

Environmental determinism has long been out of favor among historians and social scientists, although well into the 19th Century even the majority of Westerners were highly dependent on the climate and environment for their survival. Since the entire world economy was based on agriculture, a shortfall in harvests meant famines, epidemics and death for those who were at or below subsistence level. Such famines were a primary cause for the overthrow of the monarchy in France in 1789, for example, and they led to rebellions, riots and instability wherever they occurred. As late as the 1840s in Ireland, the great potato blight led to the death or immigration of half the population, and the near-destruction of Irish society. In the case of Easter Island, Norse Greenland and the Classic Maya civilization, climate change combined with deforestation and agricultural practices that destroyed the environment led to the total collapse…

Gender and Identity

Perhaps the most important question facing any human, be they male or female, is that of the discovery of their own identity. The majority of child development theories, from Freud onward, have dealt with the way in which children must learn to disengage their own identity from that of their parents (mothers in particular) and discover who they are as adults. Yet this process is far from over when one reaches physical maturity, and one may even see many other psychological theories, from Maslow to the existentialists, as exploring the stages through which one continues to define one's true identity as distinct not only from one's parents but also from one's biological and social circumstances. It is somewhat ironic that the word identity which was originally used to note categories of same-ness and unity (Connell 2002) is now so vitally bound up with defining distinctness. At the…

Free ill" Exist and if so, to hat Extent does it Exist?

The concept of "Free ill" has been debated by many philosophers over a period of centuries, not only regarding its very existence but also regarding its elements, the extent to which it may or may not exist and its moral implications. Our assigned readings have merely touched on debates that have raged and will probably continue to rage as long as human beings contemplate the "truths" about being. Though an exhaustive review of differing philosophical treatments of "Free ill" would probably take hundreds of pages, this work will briefly examine several major philosophies of "Free ill" and some of their most notable proponents. In reviewing these sources and differing approaches to "Free ill," we can see that philosophers approach the concept of "Free ill" with differing definitions, examining disparate aspects and resulting in somewhat different implications for Morality.…

Empiricism is fundamentally the belief that all knowledge is eventually resultant from the senses and experience, and that all conceptions can be linked back to data from the senses. John Locke, George Berkeley, and David Hume are considered to be three of the most persuasive empiricists in philosophy. The key aspects that the philosophies of these three empiricists have are that knowledge develops from sensory experience. However, it is imperative to note that each of these three empiricists have their own views (Meyers, 2014).

To begin with, Locke repudiated the prospect of intrinsic ideas and that when an individual is born, his or her mind is blank. Therefore, Locke makes the argument that all notions come from experience and that devoid of such experience, reason does not have a benchmark for differentiating the truth from fallacy. In turn, Locke asserted that the foundation of all ideas stem from sensation and…

This approach can take the focus off of the child, and instead treats the child's environment as a way of holistically treating his or her condition. Also, if time and the nurse's relationship allows for the use of such an open-ended tool, a great deal of information can be yielded about the family system that cannot by other models.

orks Cited

Chen, J.L, C.H. Yeh, & C. Kennedy. (2007, Jun 22). eight status, self-competence, and coping strategies in Chinese children. Journal of Pediatric Nursing. 22.3:176-85.

Cochran, Jill. (2008). Empowerment in adolescent obesity: State of the science. Online Journal of Rural Nursing and Health Care. 8. 1. Retrieved 19 Mar, 2009 at http://www.rno.org/journal/index.php/online-journal/article/viewFile/159/190

Cox, Cheryl L., Julia M. Cowell, Lucy N. Marion, & Elaine H. Miller. (2007, January 19). The Health Self-Determinism Index for Children. Research in Nursing and Health.

13. 4: 237-246. Retrieved March 18, 2009 at http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/114079089/abstract

Skybo, Theresa…

Revolutions

Ogburn identifies four social revolutions that have occurred as the result of new technologies. The first was the move from the hunter-gathered model to pastoralism or horticulturalism, where people settled either to raise animals or to grow plants for food. Technologies for hunting or agriculture made such moves possible. As we were able to learn enough about food production to remain in one place for extended periods, we chose to do so.

The next step was the move to an agrarian society. Using both animals and machinery, we were able to make significant improvements in food production, not just for food but for other uses as well. This allowed for much greater population density, as well as excess production for winter months. The third social revolution was the development of the industrial society. Machinery that dramatically increased productivity brought about industrial society, which incorporated a stronger division of labor.…

His career at school and university was undistinguished - his certificate mentioned his "inadequate grasp of philosophy." At Tubingen university he studied not philosophy but theology - and in a sense all his philosophy was essentially a theology, an exploration of the workings of the world-spirit which he identified with God."

He spent time as a family tutor and worked in Frankfurt and Berne. His work as a tutor gave him a lot of free time that he could devote to his private examination of the world and history. His private studies were not impeded by a hard or long houred job.

In 1801 he won his first university post at the University of Jena. After the Battle of Jena in 1806 when Napoleon defeated the Prussians, Hegel saw the emperor riding past."

He soke of this years later and said it had a huge and significant impact on his…

Emanuel Kant Philosophy

Kant on the nature of the mind

Kant insinuated that the intrinsic features of the mind are finally linked to the extrinsic stimuli of the surrounding or environment that it processes. What the mind tells a person or processes is what the surrounding has fed into it and not a noble never seen before phenomenon. He also adds that what the mind projects are only the images or the appearances and not the real things as they are in themselves. He backs his claims by indicating that time and space which are the master definers of all things that we see in real life, are two things that do not exists within the things that they define or describe but are a projection and making of our own sense. This is true since there is nothing to do with time in a car race that is scheduled…

Therefore, they are compelled to choose what they do in order to instantiate God's foreordainment of history. It wouldn't seem to make sense, therefore, for the person to attempt to change their circumstances or to fight against fate. Affliction, tragedy and evil would be just what God wishes to throw at an individual, who could scarcely escape its occurrence. This seems to suggest a response of futility toward life in which all is merely endured and passes almost robotically. At the same time, one might interpret it as comforting, for it eliminates the human's striving and desire to achieve something before the eyes of God. Or if God allows good to enter a life, this good is not deserved or merited, but is purely random. God's character would appear fickle, if not even unjust, for subjecting people to a predestined fate they cannot hope to change. Perhaps the main problem…

It is argued that teacher are exposed to role conflict, role ambiguity, lack of autonomy, social isolation and lack of self-fulfillment resulting from the special position in the schools bureaucratic system. Coupled with this is the general tendency for the teaching profession to be the least rewarded in the hierarchy of jobs.

The physical education teacher and burnout intersect at two different but related points. Firstly the notion that the teacher's reward is in heaven as some writers argue positions the teaching job as sacrificial for which adequate compensation is not given. The situation among physical education teacher has been exhausted in a lot of research because of specific peculiarities. Parsons (1968) has already discovered that the physical education teacher and the teaching profession's professionalism are highly questionable under the functional theory. Parsons who is the originator of this theory has been one of the forthright analysts of teachers and…

Jefferson's Principles and their Impact on Education

Jefferson's radical beliefs in the inherent moral and developmental capacities of humans, and in their capacities to take part to participatory democracy, in turn reinforced his enduring commitment to an education that would be accessible to all. Jefferson was well aware that democracy could only work properly when the people were both virtuous and enlightened.

From these notions that people were naturally virtuous but not naturally enlightened, but that enlightenment was necessary for democracy, it followed that the society had a vested interest in investing in education to provide enlightenment.

In a letter to the Welsh born philosopher Richard Price dated January 8, 1789, Jefferson observed that "wherever the people are well informed they can be trusted with their government."

uch well informed or enlightened people could be relied on, "whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice," to set…

It outlines those programs and benefits to be offered on campuses to help service international students more effectively. Japanese students are here identified. Since they speak English as second language, they have more stress, requiring more time to read their textbooks, receiving the abuse from students that are enrolled with them in classes or who are being taught by them when they serve as graduate assistants. This causes miscommunication and a loss of learning comprehension. The fact is that the native born student may feel resentment about being passed over for assignment to the teaching assistantship when it is given to the foreign born student. A series of programs is suggested to provide cultural sensitivity for the foreign student and then a staged program series to help the foreign student adapt (Lin, & Yi, 1997, 473-80).

Finally, the needs of students with special needs can not be ignored. Unfortunately, many…

In his novels he focused on characters, motivations, and reactions to the forces around his characters. He realistically examined Spanish politics, economy, religion, and family through the eyes of the middle class, addressing the cruelty of human beings against each another in his novels Miau and Misericordia. Galdos was called the conscience of Spain for his realistic observations of society with all its ills. (Columbia 2005) His plays were less successful than his novels.

In 1907 he became deputy of the Republican Party in Madrid. He went blind in 1912, but overcoming this tragedy, he continued to dictate his books until his death. Other works translated into English are Tristana (tr. 1961) and Compassion (tr. 1962) Outside Spain his Novelas Espanolas Contemporaneas are the most popular. Perez Galdos was elected to the "Real Academia Espanola" Real Academia Espanola (Royal Spanish Academy) in 1897. A statue of him was raised in…

Freud's Theory Of Repression

Freud is popularly known as the father of psychoanalysis and the idea of psychological repression of memories and urges, even though he was neither the first psychoanalyst or even the first to posit the existence of repression. His justifiable fame comes both from the way he popularized psychoanalysis, and from his further development of its theories. He is commonly attributed with creating the theory of the conscious and subconscious, of the many sexual complexes and drives which run our lives and our subconscious, and with the idea that things which are not socially acceptable will be hidden away within the subconscious. Freud called this process of burying the unacceptable aspects of life away into the subconscious regression, which he was to eventually succinctly defined thus: "the essence of repression lies simply in the function of rejecting and keeping something out of consciousness." (Rieff, 147) It is…

Plato and Socrates -- Human Soul

There are a number of philosophical tenets that have been the subject of intense scrutiny since humans coalesced into formal societies. ho are we as a species? here do we fit in with the universe? hat is morality? Do the ends justify the means? Moreover, most of all, why are we here and are we free to act as individuals toward greater good? Free will, for instance, or the idea of that human's make choices unconstrained, has been contested even as a concept. The paradigm that humans may make rational choices and that life is not predetermined from "divine" beings allows one to look at a number of philosophical constructs that are on a continuum between the idea that determinism is false and that of hard determinism, or the idea that determinism is true and free will completely impossible forms the crux of a…

Technology Changes in Work and Education

With the onset of globalization four decades ago, there have been rapid changes in all the sectors that drive the society in a significant manner. The transportation, politics, human interaction, governance, trade and investment trends all changed significantly. However, in the interest and scope of this paper, the most profound technological change that has been experienced in the education and work environment is the shift in communication trends from the traditional mail system to the online-based communication. The online mode that is currently driving the work and education sectors is the video conferencing, which will form the basis of discussion herein.

Video conferencing is a communication mode that is supported on the internet platform and involves use of various telecommunication technologies to enable two or more different locations in whichever part of the globe to simultaneously communicate through voice and video in a two…

Free and Forced Actions Analyzing an Argument

In the article, Is Determinism inconsistent with free will? Walter Stace argues that every action or event is caused; however, whereas free actions are caused by the doer's internal psychological state, forced ones are caused by forces external to the user. This text evaluates the validity of the author's argument in the short story, 'Shooting an Elephant' based on Stace's definition of free and forced actions.

Free and Forced Actions

Stace's Definition of Free and Forced Actions

In the article, Is Determinism inconsistent with free will?', Walter Terrence Stace puts forth an argument for determinism, arguing that it is consistent/compatible with free will. He is of the view that free will exists and every event in the world is caused (Colorado University, n.d.). He illustrates the compatibility of these two views by giving his own definition of what exactly constitutes free will. Stace…

147).

Therefore, the therapist and counselor should be aware of the subjective view or interpretation of reality of the patient. This has important implications in many fields; for example, in education. Using Adler's theory, "…apparent under-achievement in school is to be understood more in terms of the student subjective interpretations than in terms of standardized test results" (Dunn, 1971, p. 8). This also relates to Adler's emphasis on the uniqueness of the individual. For example he states that, "I have found that each individual has a different meaning of, and attitude toward, what constitutes success. Therefore, a human being cannot be typified or classified ( Adler, 1964, p. 68). This is a crucial aspect of his theoretical stance and the refusal to categorize human beings leads to an open-ended view of personality.

Holism is a concept that has a particularly significant place in the overall meaning of Adlerian theory. This…

And the freedom in question is the most harmless of all-namely, to make public use of one's reason in all matters" (Clarke 1997, 53). This added to classical liberalism's support of the freedom of speech and of the press. This all played a part in Kant's desire to apply reason to practical life. In The Conflict of the Faculties, he wrote in defense of the openness of the university as "an institution that exists to serve governments…and [bring about] enlightening ends" (Clarke 1997, 53-54). Thus once knowledge was separated from values, it could be harnessed to serve the human project. One area where Kant had an impact beyond philosophy has been in international relations theory. "According to the classical view of international politics, the international sphere is composed of sovereign states and characterized by anarchy" (Bartelson 1995, 257). People have order in their native land but see the rest of…

Some jobs will require that a person continue his college education and some will require learning that can take place on the job in order to acquire the needed skills.

on-the-job training can take place in several forms. An outside training firm can be brought in to the company to hold seminars on a relevant topic for the employees. In this environment, the social nature of learning could be one of camaraderie or competitiveness among the adult employees. The adult employee wanted to get ahead may try to excel and outperform his coworkers to increase his chances of advancing. On the other hand, the environment could be more of a friendly social nature while everyone is learning. They may be asked to work in groups, much like in a college classroom setting. This will allow them to collaborate and perhaps learn about new skills they can acquire from their coworkers.…

One area that was missed in the literature was the effectiveness of various intervention strategies in reducing stress in families with persons with disabilities. It is not known what interventions have been tried and which ones were most effective in helping families to build coping mechanisms and reduce stress. This is the obvious next step into developing a thorough understanding of the topic area.

This literature review revealed several key trends into research regarding families and cognitive impairment. This area continues to be an area of interest. However, the focus seems to be shifting from a psychological perspective into a sociological based approach. There is much more interest in recent years regarding the issues of cognitive disability and its impact on society at large. In the area of persons with cognitive disability, having families of their own, politics will play a factor in the direction of research in the future.…

VI. DURKHEIM'S ANOMIE

Another theory in criminology is known as 'Durkheim's Anomie' which was conceived by Emile Durkheim, a French sociologist who first introduced the anomie in the work entitled: "The Division of Labor in Society" in which the anomie was utilized in provides a description of a "condition of deregulation that was occurring in society." (Criminological Theory, 2001) This anomie was used to describe how that the mores' of behavior in society was unclear and due to this breakdown in a code of proper social behavior resulting was the 'anomie' or the failure to know what to expect between individuals. It was posited by Durkheim that: "...societies evolved form a simple, nonspecialized form, called 'mechanical' toward a highly complex, specialized form, called 'organic. In the former society people behave and think alike and more or less perform the same work tasks and have the same group-oriented goals. When societies…