Therapeutic Discourse and the American Public Philosophy: On American Liberalism's Troubled Relationship with Psychology

I explore the main currents of postwar American liberalism. One, sociological, emerged in response to the danger of mass movements. Articulated primarily by political sociologists and psychologists and ascendant from the mid-fifties till the mid-seventies, it heralded the "end of ideology." It emphasized stability, elitism, positive science and pluralism; it recast normatively sound politics as logrolling and hard bargaining. I argue that these normative features, attractive when considered in isolation, taken together led to a vicious ad hominem style in accounting for views outside the postwar consensus. It used pseudo-scientific literature in labeling populists, Progressives, Taft conservatives, Goldwaterites, the New Left and others "pathological," viz. mentally ill. Hence, "therapeutic discourse." I argue that philosophical liberalism, which reasserts the role of political theory in working out norms and adjudicating disagreement, is a more profitable way of thinking about and defending from critics liberalism. I take the philosopher John Rawls as the tradition's modern representative. This inquiry is important because the themes of sociological liberalism are making a comeback in American public discourse, and with them perhaps the baggage of therapeutic discourse. I present a cautionary tale.

Ethics in a capitalistic society

The problem of semantics is inherent in any discussion of ethics. The general term "ethics" is itself commonly confused. In addition, systems of ethics must be built upon assumptions, and assumptions are necessarily subject to lengthy debate. These two problems are encountered in my investigation of the ethical practices of the modern business community and to remedy the situation I have taken two steps: the first being an attempt to clarify the meaning of terms used therein;-and the second being a clear description of the assumptions utilized to further my analysis. To satisfy those who would disagree with these assumptions, I have attempted to outline the consequences of differing premises. The first assumption in my discussion is that the capitalistic economy is powered by the motivation supplied by man's self-interest. We are conditioned to basing our courses of action upon an orientation toward gratifying this self-interest. Careers are chosen by blending aptitude, interest, and remuneration. of course, some people are less materially inclined than others, but the average member of our capitalistic society is concerned with the physical rewards derived from his employment. Status and happiness are all-important considerations in pursuing a chosen course of action, yet all too often they are measured in physical terms. The normal self-interest natural to mankind is heightened in capitalism, due to the emphasis placed upon material compensation. Our thinking becomes mechanistic as life devolves into a complex game played by the rules. We are accustomed to performing meaningless or unpleasant duties to fulfill our gratifications. Thought, consequently, interferes with the completion of our everyday routines. We learn quickly not to be outspoken, as the outspoken one threatens the security of his fellow man. The majority of the people are quite willing to accept others views on morality, and indeed this is the sensible thing to do as one does not risk his own neck. The unfortunate consequence of this situation has been the substitution of the legal and jural for the moral and ethical. Our actions are guided by legal considerations and nowhere has this been more evident than in the business community. The large legal departments of modern corporations devote full time to inspecting the legality of corporate actions. The business community has become preoccupied with the law, yet this is necessarily so. Complex, modern, capitalistic society demands an elaborate framework of rules and regulations. Without this framework it would be impossible to have an orderly economy, to say nothing of protecting the best interests of the people. However, the inherent complexities, contradictions, and sometimes unfair aspects of our legal system can tempt men to take things into their own hands. From time to time cases arise where men have broken laws while acting in good faith, and other cases where men have been extremely unethical without being illegal. Examples such as these foster the growth of cynicism, and generally create an antagonistic attitude toward the law on the part of business. My second assumption is that the public, on the whole, has adopted an apathetic attitude toward business morality. when faced with an ethical problem, far too many people choose to cynically assume that, if I don't do it someone else will. "The danger of such an assumption lies in that it eliminates many of the inhibitions that normally would preclude unethical action. The preventative factor in contemplating an unethical act not only lies in it going against the "right course of action", but also in that it would display the actor as one of the few, immoral practitioners. However, if the contemplator feels that many other people follow the same course of action, he would not feel himself to be so conspicuous. These two assumptions underly my entire discussion of modern business ethics., and in my judgment are the two most important causal factors in unethical acts perpetrated by the business community. The future elimination of these factors seems improbable, if not futile, yet there is no reason to consider things worse than they ever have been before. The heightened public interest in business morality undoubtedly lies in part in the fact that examples of corporate malpractice are of such magnitude in scope, and hence more newsworthy.

Pesquisa de clima organizacional: uma análise crítica

The organization climate research is a widely used human resources tool grounded on the managerial discourse that preaches that listening to employees's opinions is relevant for the identification of corporate aspects that demand improvement. This study aims at desmistifying this discourse by means of analytical tools from the Critical Administration Studies, namely: denaturalized view of administration, detachment between intentions and performance and search for emancipation. The study is grounded on the assumption that the organizational climate research derives from functionalist theory, which benefits a dominating class, in name of productivity and for the maintenance of the status quo, therefore contributing for individual alienation at work. The study was designed to identify elements that show the relation between an organizational climate research tool and the social control over individuals in an organization - here the research conducted in 2005 by Centrais Elétricas Brasileiras S/A - Eletrobrás, the Brazilian power sector holding company. The theoretical section presents an overview of corporate paradigms relevant for a sound understanding of the organizational climate concept. Data analysis was conducted by means of the post-modern method of binary deconstruction: the questions contained in the tool's questionnaire were grouped into categories and then analyzed in terms of the fallowing conceptual pairs: well-being/productivity, autonomy/control, ethics/ competitiveness and participation/alienation. The analysis showed that the organization climate research tool is used as a resource for social control and power, because it contributes to individual alienation as it satisfies some specific individual demands, therefore preventing the individual form a thorough understanding of how the system works. Besides, the helps anticipate, mitigate and conceal the conflicts arising from the opposing interests of capital and labor.

A deeper look at ethics within banking corporations: the approach of one of the biggest bank in the world

Existe uma preocupação crescente da sociedade com a ética, devida em parte aos numerosos escândalos que surgiram no mundo corporativo ultimamente, em particular no setor financeiro em que as repercussões de malversações têm geralmente um impacto maior para a sociedade do que podem ter quando acontecem em outro setor de atividade. Outra consequência é o interesse cada vez maior dos acadêmicos em estudar ética dos negócios. Porém, a pesar do uso frequente do termo ética e dos conceitos relacionados, não existe ainda um consenso sobre uma definição comum de ética dos negócios. Pertence a cada corporação definir o que considera ser ética dos negócios. Portanto, para entender melhor o que tem por trás do termo ética, é preciso voltar a sua definição, explicar a sua evolução, colocá-lo dentro do nosso contexto contemporâneo, para depois aplicá-lo à área de interesse. Para o setor bancário, ética se refere mais ao aspecto legal, mas também faz referência ao desenvolvimento da responsabilidade social corporativa dentro das corporações através de diferentes práticas. A literatura a respeito ressalta que a abordagem da ética pelas corporações bancárias tradicionais desconecta a ética do foco de negócio, considerando que não pertence ao centro da sua atividade. De fato, as corporações respondem aos mesmos mecanismos isomorfos institucionais, os quais as levam a adotar práticas com o objetivo de conseguir legitimidade dentro da sociedade. Ao contrário dessas corporações bancárias tradicionais, os bancos qualificados como éticos pela literatura, tem em comum o fato de estruturar as suas atividades sobre ou em volta da ética, diferenciando-se dos outros bancos por ter como principal objetivo ser ético. O banco Brasileiro Itaú Unibanco, um dos maiores bancos tradicionais do mundo em termos de valor de mercado, foi percebido aos poucos como um banco muito preocupado com a ética, e foi recentemente reconhecido como o banco mais sustentável do mundo pela revista Financial Times. O Itaú 5 Unibanco desenhou e implementou um programa de ética, o qual junta um componente teórico (com diretrizes, regras e princípios e um código de ética), usado como um suporte para o componente prático (estrutura organizacional particular e práticas cotidianas). Esse programa levou o Banco Itaú a ser campeão inovador na institucionalização da ética dentro do setor bancário.

The ethics of gender in Milton's paradise lost

ERICKSON, Sandra S.Fernandes. The ethics of gender in Milton's paradise lost. Principios: revista de filosofia. Natal (RN). v. 5, n. 6, p. 155-170. 1998. ISSN 1983-2109. Disponivel em: . Acesso em: 04 out. 2010.

Expressão da ética na assistência de enfermagem aos jovens intoxicados

Analisar sobre o processo de cuidar da equipe de enfermagem na visão dos usuários intoxicados por tentativa de suicídio. Metodologia: estudo descritivo exploratório, de abordagem qualitativa, realizada em um centro de assistência ao intoxicado da Paraíba/Brasil, com nove usuários. Como critérios de inclusão, participaram as pessoas que tentaram o suicídio por intoxicação, nos meses de abril e maio de 2010, período de coleta de dados do estudo, e que tivessem condições de responder as questões formuladas. A coleta de dados foi realizada por meio de entrevista semiestruturada com uso de formulário, cujos dados foram tratados pela Análise Temática. A pesquisa foi aprovada conforme avaliação do Comitê de Ética em Pesquisa da UEPB e mediante CAAE nº 0003.0.349.133-10. Resultados: os participantes concentraram-se na faixa etária de 14 a 26 anos, predominando o gênero feminino e o consumo de agrotóxicos na tentativa de suicídio. A análise dos discursos permitiu identificar que todos os integrantes demonstraram-se satisfeitos com a assistência de enfermagem, entretanto, apontaram ausência de comunicação com os profissionais cuidadores e atraso para a realização dos procedimentos. Conclusão: a ética na assistência de enfermagem supõe o estabelecimento da valorização do humano durante as atribuições profissionais, proporcionando o bem-estar daqueles que não enxergam a dádiva maior, que é nesse plano, a vida

A fragilidade e suas representações para idosos domiciliados no contexto da estratégia de Saúde da Família

This study aims to analyze social representations of elders to their fragile situation at home, with the presence of one or more characteristics, as defined by the Brazilian Ministry of Health. It is a descriptive and qualitative study, based on methodological -principles of the Theory of Social Representations. Setting was the homes of elderly residents in the area ascribed to a Family Health Unit (FHU) in the city of Natal. A total of 10 elderly subjects, whose choice was intentional and according to the need for USF home visit in a period of time, considering the saturation process of the information. As collection procedures were used the semi-structured interview and participant observation in accordance with the ethical rules of Resolution No. 196/96, with the assent of the Ethics and Research UFRN. To analyze the results, it was used the thematic content analysis in the aspect of preparation of representations, focusing on the totality of the discourse of the subjects. The results indicate that most study participants felt difficult to give meaning to the terms weakness and to be weak, although many present one or more aspects of the syndrome of frailty. From the content analysis of participants speeches in this study, we achieved the following categories: fragility as illness and disease as aging, aging and frailty as causes of changes and difficulties in daily life, the presence of family life in the fragile elderly, fragility as weakness and the risk for falls, the perception of being weak like a different person in addition to the absence of fragility in elderly life. Thus, through the processes of anchoring and objectification, the "fragile being" became familiar and concrete, showing that the meaning of weakness, besides the scientific definition found in the reified universes, can be reinterpreted and built within the consensus universes. About the care received by the staff of Family Health, from the viewpoint of older people there seems to be an understanding about the role of professional nurses; on the other hand, older people often mention the role of the Community Health Agent

Vozes sociais e dimensão ética da lingüística aplicada: a construção discursiva da área nos CBLAs

This research deals with Applied Linguistics and its structure as a scientific field, in compliance with knowledge produced within the range of the Brazilian Congresses of Applied Linguistics (CBLA). The purpose of this research is to understand the meanings disclosed by the voices that make up the scientific discourse on this field, pointing toward its course of development, the ethical position that is peculiar to it and how this position is represented in its scientific practice. The scientific discourse typical of the production of knowledge of Applied Linguistics is now construed as leading to practices that define the production of this field of learning whose object is to study man and man s relationship to language. Theoretical groundwork is anchored on the work the Social Sciences have developed on the paradigmatic crises of science and the social changes resulting from modern and post-modern times, on Applied Linguistics researches on the identity of the field of study, its courses and ethics, and on the bakhtinian theory that supports a view of language as a social practice built under the aegis of the subject s ethics and responsibility. The corpus of this work comprises qualitative and quantitative data made into articles presented at the CBLA. The research methodology conforms to the interpretive paradigm and has the concept of social voices as its category of analysis. Results point towards the progress of Applied Linguistics that, from its role as a mediator discipline between linguistic theory and practical applications, is assuming a position in a field of study of its own, independent, with transdisciplinary characteristics, pursuing through its quests and redefinitions to get closer to the dimension of life and assuming the ethical position of taking on responsibility for its doings and sayings

Foucault e a (bio) política: possibilidades e metamorfose de um conceito

The fundamental question developed in this research is to consider the possible meanings of biopolitics in the thought of Michel Foucault. In the first chapter of this study seeks to examine the rationality of biopower. It is able to show the rationality of acting as a social machinery for the manufacture of the subjectivity of individuals, biopolitics as a producer of bodies and subjectivity. The theme of biopolitics appears as inspiration of Nietzsche's metaphor of war. The idea that history is the war for dominance of the bodies. In the second chapter, the (bio) political will and political thought of resistance, fighting criticism as an attitude of revolt of the subject before his condition subjugated. The biopolitical here is intended as a conceptual tool for reading the thought / Foucault's work. A resistance that can be thought of as a biopolitical as a "refractoriness reflected". The third chapter will seek to show how the Foucault argues that power was already present the ethics of self-care. If the subject is a product, is captured by the discourse of biopower that manufactures its subjectivity, self care, it's time to think about the inner contents. Self care is something that offers resistance, as a possibility to think that these contents are constructed historically, and that therefore it is possible to reestablish the self-care is a policy of fighting these sedimented content that promotes colonization of the subjects. You can move from ruler to ruled itself, although this pursuit of liberty is always unfinished, always be a tension, a desire for freedom that can be undertaken not as a state, but at least the minimum and temporarily in other forms of existence, and other ways of relating, other ways of sociability, friendship, sexuality

Processo argumentativo na (re)significação de concepções ético/morais

This study analysed the relationship between the production of argumentative discourses and the development and (re)signification of ethical/moral concepts, conceptions and reasoning. It focused on ethical-argumentative reasoning concerning other people and their different points of view. The specific aims of this research were: (1) to investigate the considering alternative positions on adolescents previous views on a specific topic; (2) to verify whether the ability to generate counterarguments was associated with higher levels of moral reasoning, according to Kohlberg theory, and (3) to have a better comprehension of a possible relationship between adolescents abilities to use cognitive and verbal-argumentative strategies and the (re) signification of concepts/beliefs of an ethical/moral nature, and also the solution of conflicts of the same nature. The participants in this study were seventh grade students of private and public schools. Four empirical tasks were used in order to evaluate argumentative and moral reasoning. These tasks focused on: the evaluation of moral dilemmas (DIT); the evaluation of moral dilemmas with the presentation of a written justification for subjects responses; the production of arguments and the reaction to counterarguments. There was also a group-debate situation in which both argumentation and the discussion ethical/moral issues were observed. The moral dilemmas tasks aimed to evaluate the level of moral reasoning of the participants. The argumentation tasks investigated whether the adolescents generated and justified a point of view and how they dealt with counterarguments or alternative information which could lead the participants to modify their initial positions on the topic under discussion in a monological situation as well as in a group-debate setting. The results showed that, in a monological situation, most of the adolescents produced only a partial developed argumentative discourse, whereas in a more social-verbal interaction situation their discourse appeared to be more elaborated. As a general result, it was observed that the confrontation with the other s views, or dealing with counterarguments allow the adolescents to re-evaluate and re-elaborate their own views on a debatable topic. Regarding the relationship between counterargumentation and moral reasoning, it was verified that there was a subtle tendency associating the two processes. However, other factors, such as, social, emotional and cultural aspects might also influence the development of moral reasoning

Processo de trabalho em saúde: uma análise das condições de trabalho dos assistentes sociais no âmbito hospitalar

This paper presents the survey results: PROCEDURE FOR WORK IN HEALTH: an analysis of working conditions of social workers in hospitals. Analyzes the inclusion of social workers in work processes in healthcare, specifically in the public hospital, from the objective conditions of work, according to which materializes professional action. The aim is to understand them from the point of view of its relationship with users and other health professionals through the privatization of health, which prevents the Unified Health System (SUS), limiting the operation of the services and the guarantee of rights. The approach to the reality studied was through theoretical and methodological procedures based on the qualitative and quantitative research, focusing on documentary research, observation, semi-structured interview and the theoretical foundation. It is observed that the inclusion of social workers in this context arises from the demands derived from expressions of social issues, "raw material" of professional work, and the gaps resulting from contradictions in the process of rationalization / reorganization of the SUS, meaning that the needs the population are confronted with the content and form of organization of services. At the hospital, the professional actions are developed through the shift, space contradictory clash between the collective and individual, in which individual activities are prioritized and ad hoc unplanned and reduced to the solution of "problems" of users, through actions assistance in an emergency and bureaucratic. These findings emphasize the inadequacy of space and lack of minimum conditions of service to users, which undertakes the professional with regard to ethical and political principles of the profession, since it is the responsibility and duty of the social guarantee the secrecy and privacy of users what is revealed during the process of professional intervention. The professional social workers is permeated by the diversity of skills and competence; lack of planning activities, by incorporating the institutional discourse at the expense of professional goals, by knowing the Code of Professional Ethics, for small number of professionals, the increasing number informality; by poor working conditions and wages; by discouraging research and participation in social policy councils, as well as professional training