C. S. Jenkins
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199231577
- eISBN:
- 9780191716102
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199231577.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Logic/Philosophy of Mathematics
This book is a philosophical discussion of arithmetical knowledge. No extant account, it seems, is able to respect simultaneously these three strong pre-theoretic intuitions: (a) that arithmetic is ...
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This book is a philosophical discussion of arithmetical knowledge. No extant account, it seems, is able to respect simultaneously these three strong pre-theoretic intuitions: (a) that arithmetic is an a priori discipline; (b) that arithmetical realism is correct, i.e.. that arithmetical claims are true independently of us; and (c) that empiricism is correct, i.e., that all knowledge of the independent world is obtained through the senses. This book investigates the possibility of a new kind of epistemology for arithmetic, one which will is specifically designed to respect all of (a)-(c). The book proposes that we could develop such an epistemology if we were prepared to accept three claims: (1) that arithmetical truths are known through an examination of our arithmetical concepts; (2) that (at least our basic) arithmetical concepts map the arithmetical structure of the independent world; and (3) that this mapping relationship obtains in virtue of the normal functioning of our sensory apparatus. Roughly speaking, the first of these claims protects a priorism, the second realism, and the third empiricism.Less
This book is a philosophical discussion of arithmetical knowledge. No extant account, it seems, is able to respect simultaneously these three strong pre-theoretic intuitions: (a) that arithmetic is an a priori discipline; (b) that arithmetical realism is correct, i.e.. that arithmetical claims are true independently of us; and (c) that empiricism is correct, i.e., that all knowledge of the independent world is obtained through the senses. This book investigates the possibility of a new kind of epistemology for arithmetic, one which will is specifically designed to respect all of (a)-(c). The book proposes that we could develop such an epistemology if we were prepared to accept three claims: (1) that arithmetical truths are known through an examination of our arithmetical concepts; (2) that (at least our basic) arithmetical concepts map the arithmetical structure of the independent world; and (3) that this mapping relationship obtains in virtue of the normal functioning of our sensory apparatus. Roughly speaking, the first of these claims protects a priorism, the second realism, and the third empiricism.
Jeffrey Longhofer, Jerry Floersch, and Janet Hoy
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195398472
- eISBN:
- 9780199979325
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195398472.001.0001
- Subject:
- Social Work, Research and Evaluation
Qualitative methods have become increasingly popular among researchers in the professions: social work, nursing, education, business, computer science, and occupational therapy. And while many ...
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Qualitative methods have become increasingly popular among researchers in the professions: social work, nursing, education, business, computer science, and occupational therapy. And while many comprehensive textbooks (in sociology, anthropology and psychology) describe the standard techniques and philosophical assumptions, when the audience is broadened to include practitioners, it is often assumed that practitioners are the consumers of research, not the producers. This book uses qualitative methods to engage practitioners as knowledge producers. In particular, theory-to-practice gaps are described as indispensable conditions for conducting research that matters in worlds of practice. Practitioners are encouraged to lead research by conducting engaged scholarship, which promotes collaboration between practitioners and researchers to address practice-related problems in real world settings. Whereas reductionist methods assume that practice unfolds in closed systems, where variables can be manipulated and controlled or used to predict, the argument developed in this work, using critical realist philosophy, supports the idea that practice takes place in complex open systems. This, in turn, requires a specific practice-to-research vocabulary: brute and institutional facts, contingency and necessity, essentialism, and the phenomenological practice gap. Engaged scholarship and critical realist assumptions are applied to three case studies that combine research questions with data collection techniques and analytic strategies. Thematic, grounded theory, and narrative research techniques are illustrated, including original quick-start instructions for using ATLAS.ti computer software. Institutional ethnography is described, and a case study is used to illustrate the influence of policy implementation on clinical practice.Less
Qualitative methods have become increasingly popular among researchers in the professions: social work, nursing, education, business, computer science, and occupational therapy. And while many comprehensive textbooks (in sociology, anthropology and psychology) describe the standard techniques and philosophical assumptions, when the audience is broadened to include practitioners, it is often assumed that practitioners are the consumers of research, not the producers. This book uses qualitative methods to engage practitioners as knowledge producers. In particular, theory-to-practice gaps are described as indispensable conditions for conducting research that matters in worlds of practice. Practitioners are encouraged to lead research by conducting engaged scholarship, which promotes collaboration between practitioners and researchers to address practice-related problems in real world settings. Whereas reductionist methods assume that practice unfolds in closed systems, where variables can be manipulated and controlled or used to predict, the argument developed in this work, using critical realist philosophy, supports the idea that practice takes place in complex open systems. This, in turn, requires a specific practice-to-research vocabulary: brute and institutional facts, contingency and necessity, essentialism, and the phenomenological practice gap. Engaged scholarship and critical realist assumptions are applied to three case studies that combine research questions with data collection techniques and analytic strategies. Thematic, grounded theory, and narrative research techniques are illustrated, including original quick-start instructions for using ATLAS.ti computer software. Institutional ethnography is described, and a case study is used to illustrate the influence of policy implementation on clinical practice.
Julianne S. Oktay
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199753697
- eISBN:
- 9780199932627
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199753697.001.0001
- Subject:
- Social Work, Research and Evaluation
Grounded Theory (GT) is one of the oldest and most often used forms of qualitative research. Unlike other methods, GT is used to develop theory. Grounded Theory has great potential for social work ...
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Grounded Theory (GT) is one of the oldest and most often used forms of qualitative research. Unlike other methods, GT is used to develop theory. Grounded Theory has great potential for social work because in order to conduct theory-based practice, social workers need middle-range theories that are neither highly abstract nor difficult to apply in real life. Social work and Grounded Theory focus on the interaction of individual and society. GT studies can provide theories about how individuals navigate their surroundings that can be tested in social work practice and, ultimately, be used to guide social work practitioners. This book provides discussions of the common roots of social work and Grounded Theory, the basic characteristics of grounded theory research, and issues of quality in grounded theory research. In addition, practical guidelines and suggestions are provided for conducting grounded theory research, from writing the proposal to advanced data analysis. Exemplars from social work literature are used to illustrate grounded theory research in different social work fields. This book offers practice exercises, guidelines for formulating problems and gathering and analyzing data, tips for working with software, consideration of ethical and institutional review board issues, and discussion of new developments such as mixed-method and synthesis.Less
Grounded Theory (GT) is one of the oldest and most often used forms of qualitative research. Unlike other methods, GT is used to develop theory. Grounded Theory has great potential for social work because in order to conduct theory-based practice, social workers need middle-range theories that are neither highly abstract nor difficult to apply in real life. Social work and Grounded Theory focus on the interaction of individual and society. GT studies can provide theories about how individuals navigate their surroundings that can be tested in social work practice and, ultimately, be used to guide social work practitioners. This book provides discussions of the common roots of social work and Grounded Theory, the basic characteristics of grounded theory research, and issues of quality in grounded theory research. In addition, practical guidelines and suggestions are provided for conducting grounded theory research, from writing the proposal to advanced data analysis. Exemplars from social work literature are used to illustrate grounded theory research in different social work fields. This book offers practice exercises, guidelines for formulating problems and gathering and analyzing data, tips for working with software, consideration of ethical and institutional review board issues, and discussion of new developments such as mixed-method and synthesis.
Richard Swinburne
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199243792
- eISBN:
- 9780191598524
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199243794.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
Modern disputes about what makes a belief epistemically justified or rational are flawed through failing to recognize that there are different kinds of justifications that are in different ways ...
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Modern disputes about what makes a belief epistemically justified or rational are flawed through failing to recognize that there are different kinds of justifications that are in different ways indicative that the belief is true. I distinguish synchronic justification (the belief being a justified response to the believer's situation at the time) from diachronic justification (the belief constituting a justified response to adequate investigation over time); and, for each of these kinds, internalist justification (justification by introspectible factors) from externalist justification (justification by factors not necessarily accessible to the believer). A belief is internally synchronically justified if it is rendered inductively probable by the believer's basic beliefs; but ‘inductively probable’ may mean probable by true a priori standards (logically probable), by true standards to the best of the believer's ability to discover this (epistemically probable), or simply by the believer's own standards (subjectively probable). External synchronic justification is normally a matter of being produced by a reliable process, and there are many different ways of spelling that out. A belief is diachronically justified to the extent to which it results from adequate investigation. This depends (positively) on how probable it was that investigation would lead to evidence that would make a difference to the original probability of the belief; how probable it was that the issue was important; and (negatively) on how probable it was that investigation would cost much time and money. But all these ‘probabilities’ can be spelled out in different internalist and externalist ways. Almost all these kinds of justification are worth having, because it is logically probable that a belief justified in almost all these ways will be true. This account of justification is extended to give an account of different kinds of knowledge, all of which are worth having.Less
Modern disputes about what makes a belief epistemically justified or rational are flawed through failing to recognize that there are different kinds of justifications that are in different ways indicative that the belief is true. I distinguish synchronic justification (the belief being a justified response to the believer's situation at the time) from diachronic justification (the belief constituting a justified response to adequate investigation over time); and, for each of these kinds, internalist justification (justification by introspectible factors) from externalist justification (justification by factors not necessarily accessible to the believer). A belief is internally synchronically justified if it is rendered inductively probable by the believer's basic beliefs; but ‘inductively probable’ may mean probable by true a priori standards (logically probable), by true standards to the best of the believer's ability to discover this (epistemically probable), or simply by the believer's own standards (subjectively probable). External synchronic justification is normally a matter of being produced by a reliable process, and there are many different ways of spelling that out. A belief is diachronically justified to the extent to which it results from adequate investigation. This depends (positively) on how probable it was that investigation would lead to evidence that would make a difference to the original probability of the belief; how probable it was that the issue was important; and (negatively) on how probable it was that investigation would cost much time and money. But all these ‘probabilities’ can be spelled out in different internalist and externalist ways. Almost all these kinds of justification are worth having, because it is logically probable that a belief justified in almost all these ways will be true. This account of justification is extended to give an account of different kinds of knowledge, all of which are worth having.
Rein Taagepera
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199534661
- eISBN:
- 9780191715921
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199534661.003.0014
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics, Political Economy
Routine statistical approaches are essentially descriptive, giving answers within a narrow range of questions. Quantitatively formulated logical model force us to ask further questions and are ...
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Routine statistical approaches are essentially descriptive, giving answers within a narrow range of questions. Quantitatively formulated logical model force us to ask further questions and are predictive in an explanatory way. Descriptive approaches are not conducive to detection of social laws, especially if one simultaneously feeds in variables which actually connect sequentially. Rather than a single sequence of “hypothesis testing,” scientific procedure involves repeat cycles where predictive and descriptive approaches enter intermixed. Directional models and reams of numbers ground out by canned computer programs must make room for quantitative logical models and sparse conceptually grounded constants.Less
Routine statistical approaches are essentially descriptive, giving answers within a narrow range of questions. Quantitatively formulated logical model force us to ask further questions and are predictive in an explanatory way. Descriptive approaches are not conducive to detection of social laws, especially if one simultaneously feeds in variables which actually connect sequentially. Rather than a single sequence of “hypothesis testing,” scientific procedure involves repeat cycles where predictive and descriptive approaches enter intermixed. Directional models and reams of numbers ground out by canned computer programs must make room for quantitative logical models and sparse conceptually grounded constants.
Michael Williams
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195169720
- eISBN:
- 9780199786343
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195169727.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
This essay argues that the Pyrrhonian regress argument presupposes a Prior Grounding conception of justification. This is contrasted with a Default and Challenge structure, which leads to a ...
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This essay argues that the Pyrrhonian regress argument presupposes a Prior Grounding conception of justification. This is contrasted with a Default and Challenge structure, which leads to a contextualist picture of justification. Contextualism is said to incorporate the best features of its traditionalist rivals — foundationalism and coherentism — and also to avoid skepticism. It is argued that we should not ask which conception is really true, but instead give up epistemological realism.Less
This essay argues that the Pyrrhonian regress argument presupposes a Prior Grounding conception of justification. This is contrasted with a Default and Challenge structure, which leads to a contextualist picture of justification. Contextualism is said to incorporate the best features of its traditionalist rivals — foundationalism and coherentism — and also to avoid skepticism. It is argued that we should not ask which conception is really true, but instead give up epistemological realism.
Joshua Gert
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199657544
- eISBN:
- 9780191742217
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199657544.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
This short introductory chapter explains the overall strategy of the book. This is to demystify the domain of normativity not by giving a definition or account of normativity, but by providing an ...
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This short introductory chapter explains the overall strategy of the book. This is to demystify the domain of normativity not by giving a definition or account of normativity, but by providing an account of a handful of undisputedly normative notions: practical rationality, practical reasons, and personal harms. This strategy accomplishes two things. First, it provides a model for demystifying accounts of other normative notions. And it also provides a grounding for more complex normative notions, such as moral wrongness, which can be defined in terms of rationality, reasons, and harms, along with other non-normative notions.Less
This short introductory chapter explains the overall strategy of the book. This is to demystify the domain of normativity not by giving a definition or account of normativity, but by providing an account of a handful of undisputedly normative notions: practical rationality, practical reasons, and personal harms. This strategy accomplishes two things. First, it provides a model for demystifying accounts of other normative notions. And it also provides a grounding for more complex normative notions, such as moral wrongness, which can be defined in terms of rationality, reasons, and harms, along with other non-normative notions.
Koen P.R. Bartels
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781447318507
- eISBN:
- 9781447318521
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447318507.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Public Policy
Participatory democracy has become an unshakable norm and widespread practice. Nowadays, public professionals and citizens regularly encounter each other in participatory practice to address shared ...
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Participatory democracy has become an unshakable norm and widespread practice. Nowadays, public professionals and citizens regularly encounter each other in participatory practice to address shared problems. But while the frequency, pace, and diversity of their public encounters has increased, communicating productively in participatory practice remains a challenging, fragile, and demanding undertaking that often runs astray. This book explores how citizens and public professionals communicate, why this is so difficult, and what could lead to more productive conversations. This done by comparing cases of community participation in neighbourhood governance in three European countries (the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Italy). An emergent, grounded theory is presented based on interpretive research of the narratives citizens and public professionals tell about participatory practice. The theory of communicative capacity holds that citizens and public professionals tend to sustain habitual communicative patterns that limit their ability to cooperatively solve the problems they are facing together. Therefore, they need the ability to recognise and break through these habitual patterns by adapting the nature, tone, and conditions of conversations to the ‘law of the situation’. Exercising communicative capacity will enable public professionals and citizens to have more integrative encounters leading to shared understandings, joint activities, and cooperative relating. As such, the book presents policy makers, practitioners, students, and academics with a much needed evidence base for understanding and appreciating the often overlooked impact of communicative practices in participatory theory and practice.Less
Participatory democracy has become an unshakable norm and widespread practice. Nowadays, public professionals and citizens regularly encounter each other in participatory practice to address shared problems. But while the frequency, pace, and diversity of their public encounters has increased, communicating productively in participatory practice remains a challenging, fragile, and demanding undertaking that often runs astray. This book explores how citizens and public professionals communicate, why this is so difficult, and what could lead to more productive conversations. This done by comparing cases of community participation in neighbourhood governance in three European countries (the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Italy). An emergent, grounded theory is presented based on interpretive research of the narratives citizens and public professionals tell about participatory practice. The theory of communicative capacity holds that citizens and public professionals tend to sustain habitual communicative patterns that limit their ability to cooperatively solve the problems they are facing together. Therefore, they need the ability to recognise and break through these habitual patterns by adapting the nature, tone, and conditions of conversations to the ‘law of the situation’. Exercising communicative capacity will enable public professionals and citizens to have more integrative encounters leading to shared understandings, joint activities, and cooperative relating. As such, the book presents policy makers, practitioners, students, and academics with a much needed evidence base for understanding and appreciating the often overlooked impact of communicative practices in participatory theory and practice.
Michail Peramatzis
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199588350
- eISBN:
- 9780191728877
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199588350.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
Recent work in metaphysics has witnessed a noticeable turn to Aristotelian discussions of priority in one form or another. This revival of interests in Aristotle-inspired themes focuses on questions ...
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Recent work in metaphysics has witnessed a noticeable turn to Aristotelian discussions of priority in one form or another. This revival of interests in Aristotle-inspired themes focuses on questions of what priority consists in and how it relates existents, rendering some basic and others derivative. For Aristotle, in contradistinction with (e.g.) Quinean metaphysical views, questions of existence are not considered central. Rather, the crucial questions are what types of existent are fundamental and what their grounding relation to derivative existents consists in. It becomes extremely important, therefore, to return to Aristotle's own theses regarding priority and to study them not only with exegetical caution but also with acutely critical philosophical eye. Aristotle deploys the notion of priority in numerous levels of his thought. In his ontology he operates with the notion of primary substance. His Categories, for instance, confer this honorific title upon particular objects such as Socrates or Bucephalus, while in the Metaphysics it is essences or substantial forms, such as being human, which are privileged with priority over certain types of matter or hylomorphic compounds (either particular compound objects such as Socrates or universal compound types such as the species human). The chief aim of the book is to understand priority claims of this sort in Aristotle's metaphysical system by setting out the different concepts of priority and seeing whether and, if so, how Aristotle's preferred prior and posterior items fit with these concepts.Less
Recent work in metaphysics has witnessed a noticeable turn to Aristotelian discussions of priority in one form or another. This revival of interests in Aristotle-inspired themes focuses on questions of what priority consists in and how it relates existents, rendering some basic and others derivative. For Aristotle, in contradistinction with (e.g.) Quinean metaphysical views, questions of existence are not considered central. Rather, the crucial questions are what types of existent are fundamental and what their grounding relation to derivative existents consists in. It becomes extremely important, therefore, to return to Aristotle's own theses regarding priority and to study them not only with exegetical caution but also with acutely critical philosophical eye. Aristotle deploys the notion of priority in numerous levels of his thought. In his ontology he operates with the notion of primary substance. His Categories, for instance, confer this honorific title upon particular objects such as Socrates or Bucephalus, while in the Metaphysics it is essences or substantial forms, such as being human, which are privileged with priority over certain types of matter or hylomorphic compounds (either particular compound objects such as Socrates or universal compound types such as the species human). The chief aim of the book is to understand priority claims of this sort in Aristotle's metaphysical system by setting out the different concepts of priority and seeing whether and, if so, how Aristotle's preferred prior and posterior items fit with these concepts.
Amie L. Thomasson
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195319910
- eISBN:
- 9780199869602
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195319910.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
Those who accept an ontology of ordinary objects face the problem of colocation: holding that different objects — such as a lump of clay and a statue — occupy the same place at the same time or are ...
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Those who accept an ontology of ordinary objects face the problem of colocation: holding that different objects — such as a lump of clay and a statue — occupy the same place at the same time or are composed of the same parts. Anti-colocation arguments appear in several forms: rhetorical appeals that surely there is nothing “over and above” the clay, claims that this violates the plausible principle that no two objects may share the same space or parts, and worries that this falsely leads to “doubling up” property instances (such as weighing ten pounds). This chapter aims to defuse all these related worries. We are then left with the grounding problem: how can two objects share all the same parts and non-modal, non-sortal properties, yet differ in their identity and persistence conditions? It is argued that the modal conceptualist view of Chapter 3 provides the key to resolving this problem.Less
Those who accept an ontology of ordinary objects face the problem of colocation: holding that different objects — such as a lump of clay and a statue — occupy the same place at the same time or are composed of the same parts. Anti-colocation arguments appear in several forms: rhetorical appeals that surely there is nothing “over and above” the clay, claims that this violates the plausible principle that no two objects may share the same space or parts, and worries that this falsely leads to “doubling up” property instances (such as weighing ten pounds). This chapter aims to defuse all these related worries. We are then left with the grounding problem: how can two objects share all the same parts and non-modal, non-sortal properties, yet differ in their identity and persistence conditions? It is argued that the modal conceptualist view of Chapter 3 provides the key to resolving this problem.
Ting Xu and Alison Clarke (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780197266380
- eISBN:
- 9780191879579
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197266380.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Environmental and Energy Law
‘Communal’ property is an important mechanism for allocating natural resources and regulating their use – whether for economic exploitation, recreational use or the promotion of biodiversity and ...
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‘Communal’ property is an important mechanism for allocating natural resources and regulating their use – whether for economic exploitation, recreational use or the promotion of biodiversity and nature conservation. The form which communal property regimes take, however, and their relationship to private property structures, varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and is poorly understood. Nevertheless, the importance of communal property, transcending the public/private divide in property rights, is increasingly apparent globally. Contributions to this volume focus on legal strategies for the development and protection of communal property and how these strategies ‘map’ over different jurisdictions (England and Wales, Scotland, South Africa, Cameroon, Italy, Israel and China) and jurisprudential approaches. They look at property beyond the traditional, individualist, and exclusive ownership model, engaging with communal property ‘practices’ in different jurisdictions to explore the theoretical grounding of communal property, not only linking theory with practice but also linking the local with the global.Less
‘Communal’ property is an important mechanism for allocating natural resources and regulating their use – whether for economic exploitation, recreational use or the promotion of biodiversity and nature conservation. The form which communal property regimes take, however, and their relationship to private property structures, varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and is poorly understood. Nevertheless, the importance of communal property, transcending the public/private divide in property rights, is increasingly apparent globally. Contributions to this volume focus on legal strategies for the development and protection of communal property and how these strategies ‘map’ over different jurisdictions (England and Wales, Scotland, South Africa, Cameroon, Italy, Israel and China) and jurisprudential approaches. They look at property beyond the traditional, individualist, and exclusive ownership model, engaging with communal property ‘practices’ in different jurisdictions to explore the theoretical grounding of communal property, not only linking theory with practice but also linking the local with the global.
CROSS IAN
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197264195
- eISBN:
- 9780191734540
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264195.003.0007
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
Music is conceptualized as a product and a process of imagination. It is often assumed that engagement in music initiates the developmental and evolutionary emergence of imagination. This conception ...
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Music is conceptualized as a product and a process of imagination. It is often assumed that engagement in music initiates the developmental and evolutionary emergence of imagination. This conception of music and its relationship to human powers of imagining is treated differently in science and musicology. For science, music is simply a complex pattern of sound or the experience of structured sound. For musicology and ethnomusicology, music cannot be separated from the cultural contexts in which they are embedded. This chapter proposes a broad operational definition of music which can be acceptable and applicable cross-naturally. This radical redefinition of music may provide ways of understanding music as both a culturally embedded practice and biologically grounded structure. Apart from providing a redefinition of music, the chapter also investigates some of the potential implications and consequences of this radical redefinition of music such as the possibility that the human capacity for culture may have been supported and consolidated by the emergence and presence of musicality.Less
Music is conceptualized as a product and a process of imagination. It is often assumed that engagement in music initiates the developmental and evolutionary emergence of imagination. This conception of music and its relationship to human powers of imagining is treated differently in science and musicology. For science, music is simply a complex pattern of sound or the experience of structured sound. For musicology and ethnomusicology, music cannot be separated from the cultural contexts in which they are embedded. This chapter proposes a broad operational definition of music which can be acceptable and applicable cross-naturally. This radical redefinition of music may provide ways of understanding music as both a culturally embedded practice and biologically grounded structure. Apart from providing a redefinition of music, the chapter also investigates some of the potential implications and consequences of this radical redefinition of music such as the possibility that the human capacity for culture may have been supported and consolidated by the emergence and presence of musicality.
Carl Wellman
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199744787
- eISBN:
- 9780199827138
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199744787.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, General
This chapter explains the grounds of international human rights. Their material grounds are primarily texts such as human rights conventions, General Assembly resolutions, committee reports, or ...
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This chapter explains the grounds of international human rights. Their material grounds are primarily texts such as human rights conventions, General Assembly resolutions, committee reports, or judicial decisions. The legal relevance of these texts depends on the formal grounds of international law, especially treaties ratified by nation-states or customary state action accepted as law. Thus, the grounds of international human rights are institutional, unlike the moral reasons that ground moral human rights. However, because many of these texts presuppose moral human rights, moral human rights are relevant to the justification and interpretation of international human rights.Less
This chapter explains the grounds of international human rights. Their material grounds are primarily texts such as human rights conventions, General Assembly resolutions, committee reports, or judicial decisions. The legal relevance of these texts depends on the formal grounds of international law, especially treaties ratified by nation-states or customary state action accepted as law. Thus, the grounds of international human rights are institutional, unlike the moral reasons that ground moral human rights. However, because many of these texts presuppose moral human rights, moral human rights are relevant to the justification and interpretation of international human rights.
Ronald W. Langacker
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195331967
- eISBN:
- 9780199868209
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331967.003.0010
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
Personal pronouns and proper names are inherently grounded. The structure of other nominals tends to reflect semantic function, with the head noun as core, grounding as the outermost layer, and ...
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Personal pronouns and proper names are inherently grounded. The structure of other nominals tends to reflect semantic function, with the head noun as core, grounding as the outermost layer, and modifiers in between. Noun modification is varied both semantically and in its structural implementation. When nominal and relational expressions combine grammatically, there is often a discrepancy between the nominal expression's profile and the entity which participates most directly in the relationship—its active zone with respect to that relationship. Noun classes have varying degrees of semantic motivation. Distributional classes, defined by participation in particular patterns, may be semantically arbitrary. While gender-type classes have semantic prototypes, the class as a whole is defined by a consistent set of grammatical behaviors. In a usage based approach, such classes are characterized by families of constructional schemas. Noun classifiers likewise have prototypical values semantically extended to a range of other cases. They represent a distinct kind of nominal structure in which the classifier functions as a schematic head noun. Classifiers are related to quantifier constructions allowing the unitization of a mass. Nouns bear various kinds of grammatical markings. Most intrinsic to nouns are elements deriving them from other classes. There is no sharp distinction between such derivation and noun inflection. Markings of gender and number are intermediate. More extrinsic are markings indicating a nominal's role in higher-level grammatical constructions. These are meaningful in a symbolic account of grammar. Such an account accommodates both agreement—the multiple realization of semantic specifications—and cases where multiple specifications are realized by a single, unanalyzable form. Analyzability is a matter of degree.Less
Personal pronouns and proper names are inherently grounded. The structure of other nominals tends to reflect semantic function, with the head noun as core, grounding as the outermost layer, and modifiers in between. Noun modification is varied both semantically and in its structural implementation. When nominal and relational expressions combine grammatically, there is often a discrepancy between the nominal expression's profile and the entity which participates most directly in the relationship—its active zone with respect to that relationship. Noun classes have varying degrees of semantic motivation. Distributional classes, defined by participation in particular patterns, may be semantically arbitrary. While gender-type classes have semantic prototypes, the class as a whole is defined by a consistent set of grammatical behaviors. In a usage based approach, such classes are characterized by families of constructional schemas. Noun classifiers likewise have prototypical values semantically extended to a range of other cases. They represent a distinct kind of nominal structure in which the classifier functions as a schematic head noun. Classifiers are related to quantifier constructions allowing the unitization of a mass. Nouns bear various kinds of grammatical markings. Most intrinsic to nouns are elements deriving them from other classes. There is no sharp distinction between such derivation and noun inflection. Markings of gender and number are intermediate. More extrinsic are markings indicating a nominal's role in higher-level grammatical constructions. These are meaningful in a symbolic account of grammar. Such an account accommodates both agreement—the multiple realization of semantic specifications—and cases where multiple specifications are realized by a single, unanalyzable form. Analyzability is a matter of degree.
Ronald W. Langacker
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195331967
- eISBN:
- 9780199868209
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331967.003.0013
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. ...
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A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. Abstracted units retain these properties to varying degrees. At both the semantic and the phonological pole, discourse unfolds in a number of channels: objective content, information structure, speech management; segmental content, prosody, gesture. Discourse presupposes an elaborate conceptual substrate which supports and makes coherent what is overtly expressed. One facet of this substrate is the context, including the speaker-hearer interaction and the ongoing discourse itself. Another is the viewing arrangement, i.e. the relation between the interlocutors and the situation described. Also involved are speech acts, based on culturally recognized scenarios of linguistic interaction; while typically covert, these can also be expressed by clauses used descriptively or as performatives (actual enactments of the scenarios). Closely related are vocatives and other kinds of expressive utterances. Being used for many purposes, discourse occurs in many spoken and written genres. Depending on the genre, various levels and dimensions of organization can be discerned. Important in conversation is organization into attentional frames: intonation groups each representing a single window of attention. As discourse proceeds, a conceptual structure is built and progressively updated. Discourse is most effective when it follows certain basic principles of structure building. Grammar is shaped by discourse, and grammatical structures serve particular discourse functions. Grammar includes not only conventional patterns for assembling complex expressions but also established ways of applying them to the ongoing discourse. Grounding is often effected in this manner.Less
A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. Abstracted units retain these properties to varying degrees. At both the semantic and the phonological pole, discourse unfolds in a number of channels: objective content, information structure, speech management; segmental content, prosody, gesture. Discourse presupposes an elaborate conceptual substrate which supports and makes coherent what is overtly expressed. One facet of this substrate is the context, including the speaker-hearer interaction and the ongoing discourse itself. Another is the viewing arrangement, i.e. the relation between the interlocutors and the situation described. Also involved are speech acts, based on culturally recognized scenarios of linguistic interaction; while typically covert, these can also be expressed by clauses used descriptively or as performatives (actual enactments of the scenarios). Closely related are vocatives and other kinds of expressive utterances. Being used for many purposes, discourse occurs in many spoken and written genres. Depending on the genre, various levels and dimensions of organization can be discerned. Important in conversation is organization into attentional frames: intonation groups each representing a single window of attention. As discourse proceeds, a conceptual structure is built and progressively updated. Discourse is most effective when it follows certain basic principles of structure building. Grammar is shaped by discourse, and grammatical structures serve particular discourse functions. Grammar includes not only conventional patterns for assembling complex expressions but also established ways of applying them to the ongoing discourse. Grounding is often effected in this manner.
Ronald W. Langacker
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195331967
- eISBN:
- 9780199868209
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331967.003.0009
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
Grounding is the grammaticized means of relating the thing profiled by a nominal, or the process profiled by a finite clause, to the ground (the speech event and its participants). As narrowly ...
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Grounding is the grammaticized means of relating the thing profiled by a nominal, or the process profiled by a finite clause, to the ground (the speech event and its participants). As narrowly defined, grounding elements make very fundamental specifications of a basically epistemic nature. Moreover, they construe the ground subjectively—leaving it implicit as the offstage locus of conception—with the profiled entity being the focused, onstage object of conception. Whereas a lexical noun or verb merely names a type of thing or process, a full nominal or finite clause designates and grounds an instance of the type. An instance differs from a type by being thought of as having a particular location in the domain of instantiation, one that distinguishes it from other instances. The profiled instance is not necessarily an actual individual, but may also be a virtual (or fictive) entity confined to a special mental space. A nominal referent is generally identified through a combination of description, which selects a set of eligible candidates, and grounding, which directs attention to a member of this set. Two basic grounding strategies are deixis (abstract pointing) and quantification. The deictic grounding elements—demonstratives and the definite article—are definite: they single out the intended referent independently of the content of the clause containing the nominal. By contrast, with indefinite grounding elements the referent is initially virtual, pending its identification by means of the clausal content (in the case of indefinite articles), or is necessarily virtual (in the case of quantifiers). Clausal grounding is less concerned with identification than with existence, i.e. whether or not an event occurs. For English the basic grounding elements are tense and the modals. The tense opposition present vs. past is a special case of the more schematic value of immediate vs. non-immediate (with respect to the ground). The absence of a modal indicates that the speaker accepts the profiled occurrence as part of the speaker's conception of reality. The presence of a modal indicates that it does not yet have this status, but is still a target for realization. The choice of modal registers the impetus for speaker control, which occurs on either of two levels: effective vs. epistemic control (corresponding to root vs. epistemic modals).Less
Grounding is the grammaticized means of relating the thing profiled by a nominal, or the process profiled by a finite clause, to the ground (the speech event and its participants). As narrowly defined, grounding elements make very fundamental specifications of a basically epistemic nature. Moreover, they construe the ground subjectively—leaving it implicit as the offstage locus of conception—with the profiled entity being the focused, onstage object of conception. Whereas a lexical noun or verb merely names a type of thing or process, a full nominal or finite clause designates and grounds an instance of the type. An instance differs from a type by being thought of as having a particular location in the domain of instantiation, one that distinguishes it from other instances. The profiled instance is not necessarily an actual individual, but may also be a virtual (or fictive) entity confined to a special mental space. A nominal referent is generally identified through a combination of description, which selects a set of eligible candidates, and grounding, which directs attention to a member of this set. Two basic grounding strategies are deixis (abstract pointing) and quantification. The deictic grounding elements—demonstratives and the definite article—are definite: they single out the intended referent independently of the content of the clause containing the nominal. By contrast, with indefinite grounding elements the referent is initially virtual, pending its identification by means of the clausal content (in the case of indefinite articles), or is necessarily virtual (in the case of quantifiers). Clausal grounding is less concerned with identification than with existence, i.e. whether or not an event occurs. For English the basic grounding elements are tense and the modals. The tense opposition present vs. past is a special case of the more schematic value of immediate vs. non-immediate (with respect to the ground). The absence of a modal indicates that the speaker accepts the profiled occurrence as part of the speaker's conception of reality. The presence of a modal indicates that it does not yet have this status, but is still a target for realization. The choice of modal registers the impetus for speaker control, which occurs on either of two levels: effective vs. epistemic control (corresponding to root vs. epistemic modals).
Philip N. Howard
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199736416
- eISBN:
- 9780199866441
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736416.003.0007
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics, Democratization
This chapter develops grounded theory about the role of information and communication technologies in civil society development. Civic groups are important for democratization because they are, by ...
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This chapter develops grounded theory about the role of information and communication technologies in civil society development. Civic groups are important for democratization because they are, by definition, social organizations independent of the state. Across the Muslim world, civic associations are sprouting up as a result of the new, supportive information infrastructure provided by ICTs. Relatively cheap consumer electronics allow such civic groups to find new members and build affiliations with groups in cities and other countries. Such groups are particularly important in Muslim countries where political parties are illegal. The chapter reviews the ways in which the internet has had an impact on the political pacts negotiated between social elites and authoritarian regimes—pacts that determine the pace of political change.Less
This chapter develops grounded theory about the role of information and communication technologies in civil society development. Civic groups are important for democratization because they are, by definition, social organizations independent of the state. Across the Muslim world, civic associations are sprouting up as a result of the new, supportive information infrastructure provided by ICTs. Relatively cheap consumer electronics allow such civic groups to find new members and build affiliations with groups in cities and other countries. Such groups are particularly important in Muslim countries where political parties are illegal. The chapter reviews the ways in which the internet has had an impact on the political pacts negotiated between social elites and authoritarian regimes—pacts that determine the pace of political change.
Christopher Asprey
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199584703
- eISBN:
- 9780191723209
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199584703.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This chapter examines Barth's pneumatology in Göttingen from three angles: his opposition to the doctrine of the Spirit in neo-Protestant theology, his Reformed doctrine of the Christian life, and ...
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This chapter examines Barth's pneumatology in Göttingen from three angles: his opposition to the doctrine of the Spirit in neo-Protestant theology, his Reformed doctrine of the Christian life, and sacramental theology. It argues that Barth's opposition to ‘religion’ in modern Protestantism is not based on any dualistic principle, but on his conviction that human beings must relate freely to God. His Reformed instincts lead him to describe the Christian life using the category of obedience, as well as faith; yet he is restricted by the concern that this might result in a form of subjectivism. He attempts to develop a doctrine of baptism that will cover this eventuality, by grounding the Christian subject in an event of grace. However, this will soon be abandoned, for it is only a temporary solution which cannot resolve a dilemma that really stems from a gap in his christology.Less
This chapter examines Barth's pneumatology in Göttingen from three angles: his opposition to the doctrine of the Spirit in neo-Protestant theology, his Reformed doctrine of the Christian life, and sacramental theology. It argues that Barth's opposition to ‘religion’ in modern Protestantism is not based on any dualistic principle, but on his conviction that human beings must relate freely to God. His Reformed instincts lead him to describe the Christian life using the category of obedience, as well as faith; yet he is restricted by the concern that this might result in a form of subjectivism. He attempts to develop a doctrine of baptism that will cover this eventuality, by grounding the Christian subject in an event of grace. However, this will soon be abandoned, for it is only a temporary solution which cannot resolve a dilemma that really stems from a gap in his christology.
John M. Anderson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199297078
- eISBN:
- 9780191711404
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199297078.003.0010
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Semantics and Pragmatics
This chapter makes a distinction between syntactic category and lexical word-class, and shows that the semantic basis of functors (and other functional categories) is not limited to them. The ...
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This chapter makes a distinction between syntactic category and lexical word-class, and shows that the semantic basis of functors (and other functional categories) is not limited to them. The prototypical members of lexical categories are also clearly semantically grounded. It is not sufficient to try to characterize categories such as verb and noun by distribution alone; it is the distribution of semantically prototypical members of the category that is significant. Failure to distinguish the distribution of non-prototypical members of a category from that of the prototypical leads to the mistaken predictions of parallelism among categories made by X-bar theory. A noun based on a verb shows some verbal distribution. In this way, the internal categorial structure of items is relevant to syntax. The consequences of this are explored, including a more detailed look at nominal structure, especially attribution, genitives, and (the limited) complementation.Less
This chapter makes a distinction between syntactic category and lexical word-class, and shows that the semantic basis of functors (and other functional categories) is not limited to them. The prototypical members of lexical categories are also clearly semantically grounded. It is not sufficient to try to characterize categories such as verb and noun by distribution alone; it is the distribution of semantically prototypical members of the category that is significant. Failure to distinguish the distribution of non-prototypical members of a category from that of the prototypical leads to the mistaken predictions of parallelism among categories made by X-bar theory. A noun based on a verb shows some verbal distribution. In this way, the internal categorial structure of items is relevant to syntax. The consequences of this are explored, including a more detailed look at nominal structure, especially attribution, genitives, and (the limited) complementation.
Caroline Jenkins
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199231577
- eISBN:
- 9780191716102
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199231577.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Logic/Philosophy of Mathematics
This chapter explains how the examination of arithmetical concepts can lead to knowledge. It argues that in order for an examination of our concepts to supply us with knowledge of an independent ...
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This chapter explains how the examination of arithmetical concepts can lead to knowledge. It argues that in order for an examination of our concepts to supply us with knowledge of an independent reality, it must be that those concepts are appropriately sensitive to the nature of that reality, or what is called here grounded. The core idea here — and indeed the core idea of this book — is that grounded concepts are like trustworthy on-board maps of the independent world. The chapter suggests that it is through the normal functioning of our senses that our arithmetical concepts come to be grounded, and argues that if this is so, then the ultimate source of our arithmetical knowledge is empirical, though that knowledge is still a priori by many standard definitions.Less
This chapter explains how the examination of arithmetical concepts can lead to knowledge. It argues that in order for an examination of our concepts to supply us with knowledge of an independent reality, it must be that those concepts are appropriately sensitive to the nature of that reality, or what is called here grounded. The core idea here — and indeed the core idea of this book — is that grounded concepts are like trustworthy on-board maps of the independent world. The chapter suggests that it is through the normal functioning of our senses that our arithmetical concepts come to be grounded, and argues that if this is so, then the ultimate source of our arithmetical knowledge is empirical, though that knowledge is still a priori by many standard definitions.
