Viewpoint Relativism

This book offers new insights into truth, knowledge, and reality. It details a unique approach to epistemological relativism based on the concept of points of view. In a point of view, an aspect represents an object for a subject. By applying this concept of points of view, the author develops a consistent and adequate form of relativism, called viewpoint relativism, according to which epistemic questions like “Is X true (or justified or existing)” are viewpoint-dependent. The monograph examines central issues related to epistemological relativism. It analyzes major arguments pro and con from different opinions. The author presents the arguments of well-known philosophers. These include such thinkers as Paul Boghossian, John Dewey, Nelson Goodman, Martin Kusch, C.I. Lewis, John MacFarlane, Hilary Putnam, W.V.O. Quine, Richard Rorty, John Searle, and Ludwig Wittgenstein. In the process, the author deconstructs the standard account of correspondence theory of truth. Viewpoint relativism is a moderate relativism, which is not subjected to standard criticism of extreme relativism. This book argues that knowledge creation presupposes openness to different points of view and their comparison. It also explores the broader implications of viewpoint relativism into current debate about truth in society. The author defends a critical relativism, which accepts pluralism but is critical against all points of view. In the conclusion, he explores the relevance of viewpoint relativism to democracy by showing that the main threat of modern democratic society is not pluralism but absolutism and fundamentalism.

A critique of moral relativism, the belief that there exists no objective moral standards that apply to every place, person, and time.

From biblical times through the Middle Ages and the Reformation, the Christian religion enjoyed a sturdy belief in God, consistent with human knowledge of the universe. But modern science then introduced a new picture of this world, at odds not only with the old world picture but with the miracle-working God of ancient Scripture. Of the many different responses to this conflict, three stand out:i) To deny the religious view of God and the world; orii) To deny many solid findings of generations of scientists concerning the evolution of stars, the Earth, and life; oriii) To deny little, yet to affirm little in religionto repeat ancient rituals without serious conviction. Lee Adams Young, a physicist and Bible scholar, claims to replace this chaos with an orderly view of God and the worldin only 437 pages! He makes three main points: 1. The Bible consistently but falsely split the world into two separate realms: Heaven and Earth. God rarelyor neverleft his celestial throne room to visit the Earth. The steeples of traditional churches pointed toward this Sky God, and the Lord's Prayer still speaks of a Father in Heaven. The result has been a disconnect between God and the believera chasm bridged only by armies of angels and other intermediaries, or via long-distance calls. The solution, according to At Home with God: Here and Now, is to proclaim (as does science) that there is only one realm of reality. God should be seen as dwelling in this world, says Youngindeed, within each of us, available for direct communication and personal support. Prayer should take the form of face-to-face communication with a person no farther away than the other end of a park bench. 2. The Bible consistently and correctly insists upon the inseparability of the human body and soul. So does Aristotle, and the latest Catholic Catechism. Alas, in postbiblical times many Jews and Christians have come to believe that at death the human soul could detach itself from the body and ascend to Heaven. Young responds as follows: a. If there is no Heaven, the latter step has no meaning. We are face to face with God now in this life. Because we already live in a sacred world, one need not die in order to reach the divine. b. The notion of a soul that can function independently of bodily support goes against ancient and modern awareness of the influence of bodily conditions on thinking and memory. c. Near-death experiences (NDEs) are reports from the living, not from those who died. Medical research shows that NDEs are triggered, not by the objective peril of death, but by the subjective fear of death. d. Human faith in an afterlife can blunt the human need to put interpersonal relationships in order in this life. We must mend our personal fences nowthere is no second chance, as the Hebrew Bible says. 3. The God depicted in Young's book is entirely consistent with modern science. That God is seen as the essential governor of nature, whose regularities people depend on and science describes. This book is recommended to all who seek a religious faith based on reality, not makebelieve; a faith grounded in ancient wisdom yet believable in this modern age.

The ability to reason ethically is an extraordinarily important aspect of professionalism in any field. Indeed, the greatest challenge in ethical professional practice involves resolving the conflict that arises when the professional is required to choose between two competing ethical principles. Ethical Reasoning in the Mental Health Professions explores how to develop the ability to reason ethically in difficult situations. Other books merely present ethical and legal issues one at a time, along with case examples involving "right" and "wrong" answers. In dramatic contrast, Ethical Reasoning in the Mental Health Professions provides you with the needed background in methods of ethical reasoning and introduces an innovative nine-step model of ethical decision-making for resolving ethical dilemmas. Ethical Reasoning in the Mental Health Profession discusses the ethical codes of both psychology and counseling. This interdisciplinary approach promotes a better understanding of the similarities and differences in the points of emphasis in the two codes, which, in turn, enriches your understanding of the range of ethical considerations relevant to the practice of the mental health professions.

Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical Explorations of Human Strengths comprehensively covers the science and application of positive psychology. Authors Shane J. Lopez, Jennifer Teramoto Pedrotti, and C. R. Snyder bring positive psychology to life by illustrating issues such as how psychological strength can help increase positive outcomes in school and the workplace and promote cooperative relationships among people. Furthermore, the book encourages readers to engage with concepts in order to understand positive emotions and strengths, such as empathy, altruism, gratitude, attachment, and love. Over 50 case studies grounded in practice, research, and the authors’ teaching experience reveal how positive psychological phenomena operate in the lives of real people.

Foundations of Civic Engagement is a comprehensive survey and reassessment of the entire field of social and political philosophy. Suitable for use as a primary text for courses on political thought, this book explores the basic arguments of the most important historical and contemporary figures and offers a thematic critique and integration of these philosophies. This dynamic book includes in-depth discussions of Ancient Greek, modern and contemporary theories of communitarianism, social contract, feminism, classical liberal rights-based approaches, African American philosophy, postmodernism, Marxism, critical theory, and theories of communicative actions (e.g. Habermas). Throughout philosophical history, there is a tension between social development of the political person—as in personalist, communitarian, feminist, postmodern, and Continental thought—and the abstract contractual principles needed for impartial justice and freedom of conscience. This chasm can be bridged to some extent by combining ideal contractualism with the tools of feminist theory, discourse ethics, and critical theory. Foundations of Civic Engagement evaluates these tensions, as well as the criticisms and response to criticism for each theory, in order to promote open dialogue, analysis, and a realistic assessment of each philosophy.

The goal of cultural psychology is to explain the ways in which human cultural constructions -- for example, rituals, stereotypes, and meanings -- organize and direct human acting, feeling, and thinking in different social contexts. A rapidly growing, international field of scholarship, cultural psychology is ready for an interdisciplinary, primary resource. Linking psychology, anthropology, sociology, archaeology, and history, The Oxford Handbook of Culture and Psychology is the quintessential volume that unites the variable perspectives from these disciplines. Comprised of over fifty contributed chapters, this book provides a necessary, comprehensive overview of contemporary cultural psychology. Bridging psychological, sociological, and anthropological perspectives, one will find in this handbook: - A concise history of psychology that includes valuable resources for innovation in psychology in general and cultural psychology in particular - Interdisciplinary chapters including insights into cultural anthropology, cross-cultural psychology, culture and conceptions of the self, and semiotics and cultural connections - Close, conceptual links with contemporary biological sciences, especially developmental biology, and with other social sciences - A section detailing potential methodological innovations for cultural psychology By comparing cultures and the (often differing) human psychological functions occuring within them, The Oxford Handbook of Culture and Psychology is the ideal resource for making sense of complex and varied human phenomena.

Relativism is a philosophical topic that has many dimensions and can mean many things. It is the view that one thing owes existence, truth, goodness or beauty to something else and is central to an understanding of any of the four traditional divisions of philosophy: ontology, epistemology, ethics and aesthetics. Relativism: A Guide for the Perplexed offers a concise introduction to relativism and how it applies to the different parts of the basic, foundational areas of philosophy and, indeed, to every area of human enquiry. Timothy Mosteller provides an overview of the topic across the discipline of philosophy, examining it in detail in its primary forms: ontological relativism, epistemological relativism, moral relativism and aesthetic relativism. The book concludes with a summary of the role of relativism in three other key academic disciplines: science, politics, and religion.