In: Heimbrock, H. (Ed.). (2016). Taking position: Empirical studies and theoretical reflections on Religious Education and worldview. Waxmann.
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Social workers nowadays are confronted with recurrent issues about religion and spirituality when in contact with diverse client groups. This was also the case in the beginning of the profession around 1900, in Europe as well as in the US. This study analyses the work of a Dutch pioneer in social work, Marie Muller-Lulofs (1854–1954) and presents the religious and worldview aspects of her reflections on social work. Her standard work Van mensch tot mensch (From person to person) of 1916 forms the basic text for theory-driven content analysis by applying the seven-dimension model of worldview of Ninian Smart: doctrine/philosophy, organisations, ethics, stories, experiences, rituals and materials. Results show that Muller-Lulofs makes a strong plea for a secular profession. Social-economic approaches are on the foreground. And yet, the methods, skills and professional attitudes she describes are substantially accounted for in religious and spiritual terms. This is mainly done by introducing narratives and metaphors derived from Christian and Buddhist traditions. It is concluded that Muller-Lulofs uses religion and spirituality in a non-dogmatic and non-prescriptive way, but as a source of inspiration to underpin the new profession. Her approach is relevant for current issues in social work in multicultural societies.
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Brains and gender, separately and in their interrelatedness, are hot items today in popular journals and academic literature. It is in particular the complexity of the interdependence of physical-, psychological-, and contextual-related developments of feminization in education that we focus on these contributions. We argue that a combination of recent findings of brain research and Marcia's psychological model of identity development in a “provocative pedagogy”—combining youngsters’ (boys and girls) need for exploration, console, and support—is a promising “stepped care” strategy for religious development of youngsters in a multicultural and multireligious context.
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The authors consider the reality that endless economic growth on a finite planet is unsustainable, especially if society has exceeded ecological limits. The paper examines various aspects of society's endless growth predicament. It reviews the idea that there are 'limits to growth'; it then considers the 'endless growth mantra' within society. The paper then considers the 'decoupling' strategy and its merits, and argues that it is, at best, a partial solution to the problem. The key social problem of denial of our predicament is considered, along with the contribution of anthropocentric modernism as a worldview that aids and abets that denial. Finally, the paper outlines some potential solutions to our growth predicament. https://www.ecologicalcitizen.net/article.php?t=insanity-endless-growth https://www.linkedin.com/in/helenkopnina/
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At the age of a failing economic system and undeniable evidence of the effects humankind has had over the planet, it is necessary to look for alternatives to the way we live locally. This article explores the use of designing narratives and metanarratives to co-create imaginaries serving as the needed alternatives. This research starts by considering the historical factors to understand how industrialisation and the loss of traditional practices created a culture of disconnection from Nature in the Girona area, but also looks at why people start now reconnecting with it. The analysis is the foundation for speculative design practices to co-create a new local narrative of connection and regeneration. The project adopted the Integrative Worldviews Framework and used paradoxes to create possible future worldviews based on historical factors and literature. Citizens participated in conversational future-visioning workshops to develop and evaluate their local imagery of the previously created worldviews. This conversation-based exercise evidenced the potential of paradoxes in destructive futures to create imaginaries of regeneration. These imaginaries merge and form future stories. From the future narratives, the practice created cultural artefacts embodying a new culture of connection based on storytelling, traditional jobs, and a mythological understanding of Nature. Finally, as observed at the end of the project, these artefacts allow citizens to adopt them as their culture and expand their current worldview.
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This article will discuss liberal arts college students’ perceptions of environmental and ecological justice. Complementing emerging studies of education that tackles human-environment relationships, this article discusses student assignments related to the debates in social/environmental and ecological justice written as part of the course “Environment and Development”. Student assignments are analyzed with the aim of gauging their view on the environment and society, identifying reasoning patterns about anthropocentrism-ecocentrism continuum. In conclusion, this article distills recommendations for the design of a university curriculum that can facilitate the development of a non-anthropocentric worldview. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0973408219840567 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helenkopnina/
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Stefan Bengtsson's commentary about policy hegemony discusses the alternative discourses of socialism, nationalism, and globalism. However, Stefan does not adequately demonstrate how these discourses can overcome the Dominant Western Worldview (DWW), which is imbued with anthropocentrism. It will be argued here that most policy choices promoting sustainability, and education for it, are made within a predetermined system in which the already limiting notion of environmental protection is highly contingent on human welfare. What would really contest the dominant assumptions of Vietnamese policy and, more specifically, education for sustainable development (ESD) is an alternative discourse that challenges the DWW. That alternative discourse embraces philosophical ecocentrism and practices of ecological justice between all species, and deep ecology theory - all perspectives fundamentally committed to environmental protection. https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2015.1048502 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helenkopnina/
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Introduction: With a shift in healthcare from diagnosis-centered to human- and interprofessional-centered work, allied health professionals (AHPs) may encounter dilemmas in daily work because of discrepancies between values of learned professional protocols and their personal values, the latter being a component of the personal dimension. The personal dimension can be defined as a set of personal components that have a substantial impact on professional identity. In this study, we aim to improve the understanding of the role played by the personal dimension, by answering the following research question: What is known about the personal dimension of the professional identity of AHPs in (allied) health literature? Methods: In the scoping review, databases, CINAHL, ERIC, Medline, PubMed, and PsychINFO were searched for studies focusing on what is regarded as ‘the personal dimension of professional identity’ of AHPs in the health literature; 81 out of 815 articles were included and analyzed in this scoping review. A varying degree of attention for the personal dimension within the various allied health professions was observed. Result: After analysis, we introduce the concept of four aspects in the personal dimension of AHPs. We explain how these aspects overlap to some degree and feed into each other. The first aspect encompasses characteristics like gender, age, nationality, and ethnicity. The second aspect consists of the life experiences of the professional. The third involves character traits related to resilience and virtues. The fourth aspect, worldview, is formed by the first three aspects and consists of the core beliefs and values of AHPs, paired with personal norms. Discussion: These four aspects are visualized in a conceptual model that aims to make AHPs more aware of their own personal dimension, as well as the personal dimension of their colleagues intra- and interprofessionally. It is recommended that more research be carried out to examine how the personal dimension affects allied health practice.
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In: Heimbrock, H. (Ed.). (2016). Taking position: Empirical studies and theoretical reflections on Religious Education and worldview. Waxmann.
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