Spontaneous order and social norms. Hayek’s theory of socio-cultural evolution

Hayek’s theory of socio-cultural evolution is a generalization of his theory on spontaneous market order. Hayek explains both the emergence of market and social institutions serving as a social basis for that order within the framework of a unified evolutionary logic. This logic interprets the emergence and survival of spontaneous order and group-level rules of conduct as an unintended consequence of human action. In order to explain the emergence of social norms exclusively on the basis of methodological individualism, one would have to give up an exclusively evolutionary explanation of these norms. Since Hayek applies the invisible-hand explanation to the investigation of social norms, he combines the position of methodological individualism with functionalist-evolutionary arguments in his analysis. Hayek’s theory of socio-cultural evolution represents a theory in the framework of which methodological individualism and functionalism do not crowd out but complement each other.

Spontaneous order and social norms. Hayek’s theory of socio-cultural evolution

Hayek's theory of socio-cultural evolution is a generalization of his theory on spontaneous market order. Hayek explains both the emergence of market and social institutions serving as a social basis for that order within the framework of a unified evolutionary logic. This logic interprets the emergence and survival of spontaneous order and group-level rules of conduct as an unintended consequence of human action. In order to explain the emergence of social norms exclusively on the basis of methodological individualism, one would have to give up an exclusively evolutionary explanation of these norms. Since Hayek applies the invisiblehand explanation to the investigation of social norms, he combines the position of methodological individualism with functionalist-evolutionary arguments in his analysis. Hayek's theory of socio-cultural evolution represents a theory in the framework of which methodological individualism and functionalism do not crowd out but complement each other.

Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior in the exercise domain: A study of community college students in an urban multicultural setting

The purpose of this study was to assess the intention to exercise among ethnically and racially diverse community college students using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). In addition to identifying the variables associated with motivation or intention of college students to engage in physical activity, this study tested the model of the Theory of Planned Behavior, asking: Does the TPB model explain intention to exercise among a racially/ethnically diverse group of college students? ^ The relevant variables were the TPB constructs (behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs), which combined to form a measure of intention to exercise. Structural Equation Modeling was used to test the predictive power of the TPB constructs for predicting intention to exercise. Following procedures described by Ajzen (2002), the researcher developed a questionnaire encompassing the external variables of student demographics (age, gender, work status, student status, socio-economic status, access to exercise facilities, and past behavior), major constructs of the TPB, and two questions from the Godin Leisure Time Questionnaire (GLTQ; Godin & Shephard, 1985). Participants were students (N = 255) who enrolled in an on-campus wellness course at an urban community college. ^ The demographic profile of the sample revealed a racially/ethnically diverse study population. The original model that was used to reflect the TPB as developed by Ajzen was not supported by the data analyzed using SEM; however, a revised model that the researcher thought was theoretically a more accurate reflection of the causal relations between the TPB constructs was supported. The GLTQ questions were problematic for some students; those data could not be used in the modeling efforts. The GLTQ measure, however, revealed a significant correlation with intention to exercise (r = .27, p = .001). Post-hoc comparisons revealed significant differences in normative beliefs and attitude toward exercising behavior between Black students and Hispanic students. Compared to Black students, Hispanic students were more likely to (a) perceive “friends” as approving of them being physically active and (b) rate being physically active for 30 minutes per day as “beneficial”. No statistically significant difference was found among groups on overall intention to exercise. ^

Self-determination theory and student motivation in social studies in an urban Broward County public high school

This study investigated how students perceived their motivation in high school social studies classes in school and to determine if a correlation exists between students’ grade level, race, gender, and their motivation. The sample included 337 high school students in Broward County, Florida. To assess students’ perceptions on their motivation the academic self-regulation questionnaire was utilized. Results indicate that social studies students show high levels of external regulation, with a mean score at 22.31 on a scale of 36 points. The results show a mean score of 24 on a scale of 28 points for identified regulation among social studies students. Findings revealed that student motivation could be gauged. No statistical significance was found between high school students’ grade level, race, gender, and their motivation in social studies classes. The findings of this study have shown that students at Boyd H. Anderson High School want to learn social studies.

Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior in the Exercise Domain: A Study of Community College Students in an Urban Multicultural Setting

The purpose of this study was to assess the intention to exercise among ethnically and racially diverse community college students using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). In addition to identifying the variables associated with motivation or intention of college students to engage in physical activity, this study tested the model of the Theory of Planned Behavior, asking: Does the TPB model explain intention to exercise among a racially/ethnically diverse group of college students? The relevant variables were the TPB constructs (behavioral beliefs, normative beliefs, and control beliefs), which combined to form a measure of intention to exercise. Structural Equation Modeling was used to test the predictive power of the TPB constructs for predicting intention to exercise. Following procedures described by Ajzen (2002), the researcher developed a questionnaire encompassing the external variables of student demographics (age, gender, work status, student status, socio-economic status, access to exercise facilities, and past behavior), major constructs of the TPB, and two questions from the Godin Leisure Time Questionnaire (GLTQ; Godin & Shephard, 1985). Participants were students (N = 255) who enrolled in an on-campus wellness course at an urban community college. The demographic profile of the sample revealed a racially/ethnically diverse study population. The original model that was used to reflect the TPB as developed by Ajzen was not supported by the data analyzed using SEM; however, a revised model that the researcher thought was theoretically a more accurate reflection of the causal relations between the TPB constructs was supported. The GLTQ questions were problematic for some students; those data could not be used in the modeling efforts. The GLTQ measure, however, revealed a significant correlation with intention to exercise (r = .27, p = .001). Post-hoc comparisons revealed significant differences in normative beliefs and attitude toward exercising behavior between Black students and Hispanic students. Compared to Black students, Hispanic students were more likely to (a) perceive “friends” as approving of them being physically active and (b) rate being physically active for 30 minutes per day as “beneficial”. No statistically significant difference was found among groups on overall intention to exercise.

Context-Based Sound and the Ecological Theory of Perception

This paper aims to investigate the ways in which context-based sonic art is capable of furthering a knowledge and understanding of place based on the initial perceptual encounter. How might this perceptual encounter operate in terms of a sound work’s affective dimension? To explore these issues I draw upon James J. Gibson’s ecological theory of perception and Gernot Böhme’s concept of an ‘aesthetic of atmospheres’. Within the ecological model of perception an individual can be regarded as a ‘perceptual system’: a mobile organism that seeks information from a coherent environment. I relate this concept to notions of the spatial address of environmental sound work in order to explore (a) how the human perceptual apparatus relates to the sonic environment in its mediated form and (b) how this impacts on individuals’ ability to experience such work as complex sonic ‘environments’. Can the ecological theory of perception aid the understanding of how the listener engages with context-based work? In proposing answers to this question, this paper advances a coherent analytical framework that may lead us to a more systematic grasp of the ways in which individuals engage aesthetically with sonic space and environment. I illustrate this methodology through an examination of some of the recorded work of sound artist Chris Watson.

Integrated Reporting in OMXS30 companies - An Analysis of Human Capital Disclosures

Background and Problem: Sustainability reporting is a growing interest in today’s organizations and it is essential to report on non-financial matters. Many of the existing frameworks have been criticized for being used only of symbolical reasons which is why the concept of integrated reporting and the <IR> framework have been developed. One of the cornerstones in the <IR> framework is human capital which is one of the most valuable assets in an organization. Traditionally, employee costs have only been treated as an expense and there have been limited disclosures in corporate reports. In the current business world it is instead seen as an investment in human resources. Since previous studies have shown an increase of human capital disclosures when corporate reports become integrated, integrated reporting might be the solution to this problem. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine if there are differences in human capital disclosures between integrated reports and separate annual and sustainability reports in companies listed at OMXS30. Delimitations: This study’s empirical examination is limited to include the companies listed at Stockholm OMX30. Only corporate reports issued for the year 2014 are treated. Methodology: For this study a self-constructed disclosure scoreboard with human capital- related items has been used to collect data from the companies’ corporate reports. Also additional information beyond the pre-determined items has been collected to extend the data collection. Empirical Results and Conclusion: The results show that human capital seems to be a subject that is relatively little reported about. The integrated reporting companies do not disclose more information compared to non-integrated reporting companies. However, the results show that integrated reporting companies seem to have a more future-oriented focus and that the disclosures are more dispersed throughout the reports. It can be concluded that company sector and size do not affect the amount or type of information. 

Motivation in action: A process model of L2 motivation

As part of a long-term project aimed at designing classroom interventions to motivate language learners, we have searched for a motivation model that could serve as a theoretical basis for the methodological applications. We have found that none of the existing models we considered were entirely adequate for our purpose for three reasons: (1) they did not provide a sufficiently comprehensive and detailed summary of all the relevant motivational influences on classroom behaviour; (2) they tended to focus on how and why people choose certain courses of action, while ignoring or playing down the importance of motivational sources of executing goal-directed behaviour; and (3) they did not do justice to the fact that motivation is not static but dynamically evolving and changing in time, making it necessary for motivation constructs to contain a featured temporal axis. Consequently, partly inspired by Heckhausen and Kuhl's 'Action Control Theory', we have developed a new 'Process Model of L2 Motivation', which is intended both to account for the dynamics of motivational change in time and to synthesise many of the most important motivational conceptualisations to date. In this paper we describe the main components of this model, also listing a number of its limitations which need to be resolved in future research.

On the reduction theory of binary forms

Cremona developed a reduction theory for binary forms of degree 3 and 4 with integer coefficients, the motivation in the case of quartics being to improve 2-descent algorithms for elliptic curves over Q. In this paper we extend some of these results to forms of higher degree. One application of this is to the study of hyperelliptic curves.

What Does Value Matter? The Interest-Relational Theory of the Semantics and Metaphysics of Value

Value and reasons for action are often cited by rationalists and moral realists as providing a desire-independent foundation for normativity. Those maintaining instead that normativity is dependent upon motivation often deny that anything called '"value" or "reasons" exists. According to the interest-relational theory, something has value relative to some perspective of desire just in case it satisfies those desires, and a consideration is a reason for some action just in case it indicates that something of value will be accomplished by that action. Value judgements therefore describe real properties of objects and actions, but have no normative significance independent of desires. It is argued that only the interest-relational theory can account for the practical significance of value and reasons for action. Against the Kantian hypothesis of prescriptive rational norms, I attack the alleged instrumental norm or hypothetical imperative, showing that the normative force for taking the means to our ends is explicable in terms of our desire for the end, and not as a command of reason. This analysis also provides a solution to the puzzle concerning the connection between value judgement and motivation. While it is possible to hold value judgements without motivation, the connection is more than accidental. This is because value judgements are usually but not always made from the perspective of desires that actually motivate the speaker. In the normal case judgement entails motivation. But often we conversationally borrow external perspectives of desire, and subsequent judgements do not entail motivation. This analysis drives a critique of a common practice as a misuse of normative language. The "absolutist" attempts to use and, as philosopher, analyze normative language in such a way as to justify the imposition of certain interests over others. But these uses and analyses are incoherent - in denying relativity to particular desires they conflict with the actual meaning of these utterances, which is always indexed to some particular set of desires.

Critics of Human Rights from a Historical Perspective

Implementation of human rights is often criticized because it is perceived as being imposed on the rest of the world. In this case, human rights start to be seen as a sole abstraction, an empty word. What are the theoretical arguments of these critics and can we determine any historical grounds for them? In this paper, I will try to point at similar critics after the French Revolution – like that of the Historical School and Hegel – and try to show if some of these critics are still relevant. And I will compare these critics with contemporary arguments of cultural relativists. There are different streams and categorizations of human rights theories in today’s world. What differentiates them is basically the source of the human rights. After the French Revolution, the historical school had criticized the individuation and Hegel had criticized the formal freedom which was, according to him, a consequence of the Revolution. In this context Hegel drew a distinction between real freedom and formal freedom. Besides the theory of sources, the theories of implementation such as human rights as a model of learning, human rights as a result of an historical process are worth attention. The crucial point is about integrating human rights as an inner process and not to use them as a tool for intervention in other countries, which we observe in today’s world. And this is the exact point why I find the discussion of the sources more important. This discussion can help us to show how the inner evaluation of a society makes the realization of human rights possible and how we can avoid the above mentioned abstraction and misuse.

Prognostic Value Of Dna And Mrna E6/e7 Of Human Papillomavirus In The Evolution Of Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia Grade 2.

This study aimed at evaluating whether human papillomavirus (HPV) groups and E6/E7 mRNA of HPV 16, 18, 31, 33, and 45 are prognostic of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) 2 outcome in women with a cervical smear showing a low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (LSIL). This cohort study included women with biopsy-confirmed CIN 2 who were followed up for 12 months, with cervical smear and colposcopy performed every three months. Women with a negative or low-risk HPV status showed 100% CIN 2 regression. The CIN 2 regression rates at the 12-month follow-up were 69.4% for women with alpha-9 HPV versus 91.7% for other HPV species or HPV-negative status (P < 0.05). For women with HPV 16, the CIN 2 regression rate at the 12-month follow-up was 61.4% versus 89.5% for other HPV types or HPV-negative status (P < 0.05). The CIN 2 regression rate was 68.3% for women who tested positive for HPV E6/E7 mRNA versus 82.0% for the negative results, but this difference was not statistically significant. The expectant management for women with biopsy-confirmed CIN 2 and previous cytological tests showing LSIL exhibited a very high rate of spontaneous regression. HPV 16 is associated with a higher CIN 2 progression rate than other HPV infections. HPV E6/E7 mRNA is not a prognostic marker of the CIN 2 clinical outcome, although this analysis cannot be considered conclusive. Given the small sample size, this study could be considered a pilot for future larger studies on the role of predictive markers of CIN 2 evolution.

Hypertrophic Adenoid Is A Major Infection Site Of Human Bocavirus 1.

Human bocavirus 1 (HBoV1) is associated with respiratory infections worldwide, mainly in children. Similar to other parvoviruses, it is believed that HBoV1 can persist for long periods of time in humans, probably through maintaining concatemers of the virus single-stranded DNA genome in the nuclei of infected cells. Recently, HBoV-1 was detected in high rates in adenoid and palatine tonsils samples from patients with chronic adenotonsillar diseases, but nothing is known about the virus replication levels in those tissues. A 3-year prospective hospital-based study was conducted to detect and quantify HBoV1 DNA and mRNAs in samples of the adenoids (AD), palatine tonsils (PT), nasopharyngeal secretions (NPS), and peripheral blood (PB) from patients undergoing tonsillectomy for tonsillar hypertrophy or recurrent tonsillitis. HBoV1 was detected in 25.3% of the AD samples, while the rates of detection in the PT, NPS, and PB samples were 7.2%, 10.5%, and 1.7%, respectively. The viral loads were higher in AD samples, and 27.3% of the patients with HBoV had mRNA detectable in this tissue. High viral loads and detectable mRNA in the AD were associated with HBoV1 detection in the other sample sites. The adenoids are an important site of HBoV1 replication and persistence in children with tonsillar hypertrophy. The adenoids contain high HBoV1 loads and are frequently positive for HBoV mRNA, and this is associated with the detection of HBoV1 in secretions.

Carotenoids Are Effective Inhibitors Of In Vitro Hemolysis Of Human Erythrocytes, As Determined By A Practical And Optimized Cellular Antioxidant Assay.

β-Carotene, zeaxanthin, lutein, β-cryptoxanthin, and lycopene are liposoluble pigments widely distributed in vegetables and fruits and, after ingestion, these compounds are usually detected in human blood plasma. In this study, we evaluated their potential to inhibit hemolysis of human erythrocytes, as mediated by the toxicity of peroxyl radicals (ROO•). Thus, 2,2'-azobis (2-methylpropionamidine) dihydrochloride (AAPH) was used as ROO• generator and the hemolysis assay was carried out in experimental conditions optimized by response surface methodology, and successfully adapted to microplate assay. The optimized conditions were verified at 30 × 10(6) cells/mL, 17 mM of AAPH for 3 h, at which 48 ± 5% of hemolysis was achieved in freshly isolated erythrocytes. Among the tested carotenoids, lycopene (IC(50) = 0.24 ± 0.05 μM) was the most efficient to prevent the hemolysis, followed by β-carotene (0.32 ± 0.02 μM), lutein (0.38 ± 0.02 μM), and zeaxanthin (0.43 ± 0.02 μM). These carotenoids were at least 5 times more effective than quercetin, trolox, and ascorbic acid (positive controls). β-Cryptoxanthin did not present any erythroprotective effect, but rather induced a hemolytic effect at the highest tested concentration (3 μM). These results suggest that selected carotenoids may have potential to act as important erythroprotective agents by preventing ROO•-induced toxicity in human erythrocytes.

Atomic Charge Transfer-counter Polarization Effects Determine Infrared Ch Intensities Of Hydrocarbons: A Quantum Theory Of Atoms In Molecules Model.

Atomic charge transfer-counter polarization effects determine most of the infrared fundamental CH intensities of simple hydrocarbons, methane, ethylene, ethane, propyne, cyclopropane and allene. The quantum theory of atoms in molecules/charge-charge flux-dipole flux model predicted the values of 30 CH intensities ranging from 0 to 123 km mol(-1) with a root mean square (rms) error of only 4.2 km mol(-1) without including a specific equilibrium atomic charge term. Sums of the contributions from terms involving charge flux and/or dipole flux averaged 20.3 km mol(-1), about ten times larger than the average charge contribution of 2.0 km mol(-1). The only notable exceptions are the CH stretching and bending intensities of acetylene and two of the propyne vibrations for hydrogens bound to sp hybridized carbon atoms. Calculations were carried out at four quantum levels, MP2/6-311++G(3d,3p), MP2/cc-pVTZ, QCISD/6-311++G(3d,3p) and QCISD/cc-pVTZ. The results calculated at the QCISD level are the most accurate among the four with root mean square errors of 4.7 and 5.0 km mol(-1) for the 6-311++G(3d,3p) and cc-pVTZ basis sets. These values are close to the estimated aggregate experimental error of the hydrocarbon intensities, 4.0 km mol(-1). The atomic charge transfer-counter polarization effect is much larger than the charge effect for the results of all four quantum levels. Charge transfer-counter polarization effects are expected to also be important in vibrations of more polar molecules for which equilibrium charge contributions can be large.