‘Theory of mind’ in animals: ways to make progress.Elske van derVaart &Charlotte K. Hemelrijk -2014 -Synthese 191 (3).detailsWhether any non-human animal can attribute mental states to others remains the subject of extensive debate. This despite the fact that several species have behaved as if they have a ‘theory of mind’ in various behavioral tasks. In this paper, we review the reasons of skeptics for their doubts: That existing experimental setups cannot distinguish between ‘mind readers’ and ‘behavior readers’, that results that seem to indicate ‘theory of mind’ may come from studies that are insufficiently controlled, and that our (...) own intuitive biases may lead us to interpret behavior more ‘cognitively’ than is necessary. The merits of each claim and suggested solution are weighed. The conclusion is that while it is true that existing setups cannot conclusively demonstrate ‘theory of mind’ in non-human animals, focusing on this fact is unlikely to be productive. Instead, the more interesting question is how sophisticated their social reasoning can be, whether it is about ‘unobservable inner experiences’ or not. Therefore, it is important to address concerns about the setup and interpretation of specific experiments. To alleviate the impact of intuitive biases, various strategies have been proposed in the literature. These include a deeper understanding of associative learning, a better knowledge of the limited ‘theory of mind’ humans actually use, and thinking of animal cognition in an embodied, embedded way; that is, being aware that constraints outside of the brain, and outside of the body, may naturally predispose individuals to produce behavior that looks smart without requiring complex cognition. To enable this kind of thinking, a powerful methodological tool is advocated: Computational modeling, namely agent-based modeling and, particularly, cognitive modeling. By explicitly simulating the rules and representations that underlie animal performance on specific tasks, it becomes much easier to look past one’s own biases and to see what cognitive processes might actually be occurring. (shrink)
A note on life tables and nonlinear death processes.H. R. van derVaart -1983 -Acta Biotheoretica 32 (1):3-11.detailsThis note is viewing survival data of a natural cohort as being generated by a possibly nonlinear, nonhomogeneous death process. It proves that the usual conditional distributions of the number of survivors at a certain age are binomial if and only if the death process is linear. Thus the customary statistical methods for the analysis of life table data are, strictly speaking, invalid whenever the underlying death process is nonlinear. For example, if a contagious disease is the cause of some (...) or all of the deaths, the deaths will not be independent and the death process, not linear. One should then base the statistical analysis on a model for the spread of the disease rather than the routine binomial model. (shrink)
The autocatalytic growth model.H. R. van derVaart -1968 -Acta Biotheoretica 18 (1-4):133-142.detailsBecause of the important role which the ‘autocatalytic’ or ‘logistic’ equation has played in determining the direction of a good deal of research both in demography and in the study of individual growth phenomena, a critical and comparative evaluation of those leading ideas inRobertson's book which pertain to this equation and of some of the criticisms levelled against it seemed to be of interest. The present paper shows that, contrary to common belief,Robertson did not really assume that the autocatalytic reactions (...) to which he compared growth processes, took place in closed systems . On the other hand, he does not seem to have found a satisfactory representation of how the growth phenomena of the individual cells in an organism might interact to yield the overall growth of the organism as a whole. Nor is the manner in which he made his equation account for the openness of the individual cells free from possible criticism. An alternative equation is here proposed, which will be discussed in another paper. The properties of the solutions of this equation are such that the autocatalytic theory might never have gained a foothold if this, more realistic, equation would have been the object of the initial studies. (shrink)
The impact of religious identity on intergroup encounters.Daniëlle Leder,Wander van derVaart &Anja Machielse -forthcoming -Archive for the Psychology of Religion.detailsIn recent decades, social cohesion in Western societies has been progressively undermined, leading to increased polarisation and fragmentation. Efforts to counteract this trend have included organising intergroup activities to restore trust and foster ‘bridge-building’ between different communities. While social psychology has extensively explored the dynamics of intergroup encounters, particularly in terms of their ability to promote successful community bridging, the role of religious identity in these encounters remains underexplored. Through an integrative literature review, this article aims to investigate the influence (...) of participants’ religious identity on the outcomes of these bridging activities. A systematic literature search was conducted across various academic databases, utilising combinations of search terms such as ‘intergroup encounters’ and ‘religion’. In the search, both forward and backward snowballing techniques were added to ensure a comprehensive selection of relevant literature. Our analysis reveals that two central aspects of religious identity – religious truth claims and the perception of religious identity as a voluntary choice – pose significant challenges to bridging initiatives. In addition, minority versus majority status and self-uncertainty further complicate the effectiveness of these encounters. While interfaith interventions are often presented as mechanisms for enhancing bridging social capital, the findings suggest that they may inadvertently lead to increased bonding within religious groups, reinforcing existing divisions rather than fostering broader social cohesion. The implications of these findings for community-building initiatives are discussed. (shrink)
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Healthcare Professionals’ Acceptance of Digital Cognitive Rehabilitation.Ineke J. M. van der Ham,Rosalie van derVaart,Anouk Miedema,Johanna M. A. Visser-Meily &Milan N. A. van der Kuil -2020 -Frontiers in Psychology 11.detailsWith technological possibilities in healthcare steadily increasing, more tools for digital cognitive rehabilitation become available. Acceptance of such technological advances is crucial for successful implementation. Therefore, we examined technology acceptance specifically for this form of rehabilitation in a sample of healthcare providers involved in cognitive rehabilitation. An adjusted version of the Technology Acceptance Model questionnaire was used, including the subscales for perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, subjective norm, and intention to use, which all contribute to actual use of a (...) specific technology. Results indicate a generally favorable attitude toward the use of digital cognitive rehabilitation and positive responses toward the TAM constructs. Only for subjective norm, a neutral mean response was found, indicating that this could pose a potential obstacle toward implementation. Potential differences between subgroups of different age, gender, and professional background were assessed. Age and gender did not affect the attitude toward digital cognitive rehabilitation. Occupational therapists showed lower scores than healthcare psychologists and physiatrists with regard to perceived usefulness, possibly linked to a difference in operational and managerial tasks. The findings of his study stimulate further implementation of digital cognitive rehabilitation, where the role of subjective norms should be specifically considered. (shrink)
Extending Social Sustainability to Suppliers: The Role of GVC Governance Strategies and Supplier Country Institutions.Sarah Castaldi,Miriam M. Wilhelm,Sjoerd Beugelsdijk &Taco van derVaart -2022 -Journal of Business Ethics 183 (1):123-146.detailsThe disaggregation and geographic dispersion of global value chains (GVCs) have expanded the responsibility of international buyers from firm-level corporate social responsibility (CSR) towards social sustainability of their emerging country suppliers. We theorize, in this paper, that the effectiveness of lead firms’ GVC governance strategies for social sustainability—which can be audit-based or cooperation-based—depends on the local institutional context of the supplier. Supplier country institutions exert legal and civil society pressures for social sustainability, which shape suppliers’ attitude and receptiveness towards lead (...) firm requests. Using unique primary data from 356 garment and footwear suppliers in 11 emerging countries, which supply to Western European or North American buyers, we show that GVC governance strategies are particularly effective for suppliers’ social sustainability implementation when there is ‘contextual fit’ with local institutional pressures for social sustainability in the supplier country. Our study identifies the boundary conditions of GVC governance modes, and demonstrates a complementary relationship between organizational arrangements and their institutional-level counterparts in the context of social sustainability. (shrink)
The study of granulocyte kinetics by mathematical analysis of DNA labelling.William M. O'Fallon,Richard I. Walker &H. Robert Van DerVaart -1971 -Acta Biotheoretica 20 (3-4):95-124.detailsA commonly used experimental procedure for the study of granulocyte kinetics involves the labelling and subsequent tracing of granulocyte DNA. Following the introduction of a label into the system, observations are made periodically on the concentration of label in the DNA of granulocytes taken from the circulating blood. A mathematical model for the expected value of this concentration has been derived, studied, and related to experimental observations from studies using P32 as a label. Insofar as the derivation of the model (...) accurately incorporates the relevant aspects of granulocyte kinetics, the model will be useful in the interpretation of the experimental observations in terms of these kinetics.Among other things, study of the model indicates that the assumption of “flash” labelling made with respect to some labels is quite crucial and needs to be examined critically. It has also been necessary to make adjustments to allow for the observed emergence of labelled cells from the marrow soon after label introduction. In addition, despite a high degree of confounding of parameter effects it has been possible to suggest bounds on some of the parameters of the model for some species. The bounds will be refined as the model is improved and more data become available. Study and development of the model continues with particular interest in generalizations to include the diseased state chronic granulocytic leukemia. (shrink)
Political Philosophy as Love of Wisdom.Bas van der Vossen -2020 -Australasian Philosophical Review 4 (1):23-31.detailsABSTRACT The traditional view holds that political philosophy should aim at the truth. By contrast, Avner de Shalit argues that political philosophers should do something different. According to him, they should work in direct consultation with “the people” in order to think through their theories about political institutions. This article defends the traditional aim of truth-seeking and shows the mistakes in De Shalit’s alternative approach.
Managing education during the pandemic in the Netherlands and South Africa: A comparative study.Nicolaas A. Broer,Johannes L. van der Walt &Charl C. Wolhuter -2022 -HTS Theological Studies 78 (4):1–8.detailsOptimism has reigned supreme for a long time regarding the potential of education (schooling) to address the many societal ailments that humankind has had to deal with. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 shifted all such aspirations to the back-burner. Now, after just more than a year after the initial outbreak of the pandemic, the question can be raised whether those who managed the pandemic in the educational context followed the correct policies and instituted the correct (ethical, (...) moral) measures in combatting the pandemic. This comparison between the situation in the Netherlands and South Africa reveals that although the role-players in both countries had a good understanding of the situation and of their duties in such conditions, they tended to treat education as just another facet of society, thereby demonstrating a lack of empathy with the unique demands of education (schooling). CONTRIBUTION: In this article, the authors investigate the governance performance of two different countries during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic concerning education and judge that performance based on a Biblically driven ethical-moral-pedagogical framework. (shrink)
(1 other version)Assessment model for the justification of intrusive lifestyle interventions: literature study, reasoning and empirical testing.Michiel Wesseling,Lode Wigersma &Gerrit van der Wal -forthcoming -Most Recent Articles: Bmc Medical Ethics.detailsIn many countries health insurers, employers and especially governments are increasingly using pressure and coercion to enhance healthier lifestyles. For example by ever higher taxes on cigarettes and alcoholi..
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Ten philosophical problems in deontic logic.Gabriella Pigozzi,J. Hansen &Leon van der Torre -manuscriptdetailsThe paper discusses ten philosophical problems in deontic logic: how to formally represent norms, when a set of norms may be termed ‘coherent’, how to deal with normative conflicts, how contraryto-duty obligations can be appropriately modeled, how dyadic deontic operators may be redefined to relate to sets of norms instead of preference relations between possible worlds, how various concepts of permission can be accommodated, how meaning postulates and counts-as conditionals can be taken into account, and how sets of norms may (...) be revised and merged. The problems are discussed from the viewpoint of input/output logic as developed by van der Torre & Makinson. We argue that norms, not ideality, should take the central position in deontic semantics, and that a semantics that represents norms, as input/output logic does, provides helpful tools for analyzing, clarifying and solving the problems of deontic logic. (shrink)
Evolution as Natural History: A Philosophical Analysis.Wim J. Van der Steen -2000 - Praeger.detailsWim van der Steen charts conceptual foundations of evolutionary biology and, on the basis of this, he evaluates applications of evolutionary theory outside biology. Philosophical analysis shows that key notions of the theory such as fitness, adaptation, selection, and optimality are empty place-holder concepts that call for context-dependent specifications of meaning. For example, as he points out, the notion of optimality is empty without a specification of constraints. Hence, the controversial thesis that animals perform optimal behaviors as a result of (...) natural selection is meaningless rather than true or false. Analysis shows that many other controversies in evolutionary biology are spurious. Thus, the thesis of genic selectionism, which puts genes at center stage in evolutionary theory, is best reconstructed as an arbitrary conceptualization without substance. Disagreements over the thesis are futile. They reflect preferences for different conceptualizations which are ultimately equivalent. As concepts are properly specified, van der Steen asserts evolutionary theory turns out to be a body of interesting natural history at a low level of generality. General laws of evolution do not exist. Hence, evolutionary approaches do not allow sweeping claims about human nature. Unfortunately, in disciplines outside biology such claims are often defended with evolutionary approaches. Evolutionary theory also cannot serve as a foundation for normative views in ethics or epistemology. This is an important and controversial work for scholars and advanced researchers in biology and the philosophy of biology. (shrink)
Enfleshed: ecologies of entities and beings.Kristiina Koskentola &Marjolein van der Loo (eds.) -2023 - Eindhoven: Onomatopee Projects.detailsEnfleshed: Ecologies of Entities and Beings brings together practitioners, thinkers, and artists from across Eurasia to collectively explore multispecies ecologies. The volume reflects anthrodecentric and embodied approaches to collaboration and knowledge production -- processes that are always interwoven with a multitude of entities and actors. In this book, the contributions flow like a river across the Eurasian continent, branching out into all directions. The contributors engage in an exploration of experimental epistemic alliances, which operate as a way to learn and (...) make new dialogic relations. The conflicts generated by ecological disaster, war, the global economy, identity politics, and the power structures of knowledge production and science here intertwine with shamanisms, rituals, magic, speculation, politics, and poetics. How do we imagine an active and implicated role of the human as one being among other beings? What might this entail, and what might this generate?"--Page 4 of cover. (shrink)
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A dynamic logic for privacy compliance.Guillaume Aucher,Guido Boella &Leendert van der Torre -2011 -Artificial Intelligence and Law 19 (2):187-231.detailsKnowledge based privacy policies are more declarative than traditional action based ones, because they specify only what is permitted or forbidden to know, and leave the derivation of the permitted actions to a security monitor. This inference problem is already non trivial with a static privacy policy, and becomes challenging when privacy policies can change over time. We therefore introduce a dynamic modal logic that permits not only to reason about permitted and forbidden knowledge to derive the permitted actions, but (...) also to represent explicitly the declarative privacy policies together with their dynamics. The logic can be used to check both regulatory and behavioral compliance, respectively by checking that the permissions and obligations set up by the security monitor of an organization are not in conflict with the privacy policies, and by checking that these obligations are indeed enforced. (shrink)
“Expecting the unexpected?” Uncovering role expectation differences in a Dutch hospital.Milan Wolffgramm,Joost Bücker &Beatrice Van der Heijden -2022 -Frontiers in Psychology 13.detailsThe aim of this study was to empirically investigate differences in role expectations, among the stakeholders involved, about the devolved personnel management role of front-line managers. In particular, we researched the role expectation differences between FLMs, their middle managers, and Human Resource practitioners. In total, nineteen semi-structured interviews have been conducted involving eleven FLMs, eight middle managers, and two HR practitioners working at the same Dutch hospital. Most discovered role expectation differences were related to how FLMs should execute their HR (...) tasks. FLMs were often uncertain if their role enactment met those of their middle managers and/or HR practitioners, herewith indicating role stress. Our findings underline the importance of paying attention to role expectations’ differences in aligning components of the HRM-performance relationship. Future research could include the role expectations of other important stakeholders, such as: subordinates and top management. The outcomes of this empirical work are translated into four interventions to diminish FLMs’ role stress. (shrink)
Moral Relativism.Harry van der Linden -1996 - InReady Reference: American Justice. Salem Press. pp. 522-23.detailsHarry van der Linden's contribution to: American Justice, ed. Joseph M. Bessette.
Neo-kantianism (3rd edition).Harry van der Linden -1995 - In Robert Audi,The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy. New York City: Cambridge University Press. pp. 707-708.detailsHarry van der Linden's contribution to The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Windelband, Wilhelm (3rd edition).Harry van der Linden -2015 - InThe Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy. pp. 1131.detailsHarry van der Linden's contribution to The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Algorithms for finding coalitions exploiting a new reciprocity condition.Guido Boella,Luigi Sauro &Leendert van der Torre -2009 -Logic Journal of the IGPL 17 (3):273-297.detailsWe introduce a reciprocity criterion for coalition formation among goal-directed agents, which we call the indecomposable do-ut-des property. It refines an older reciprocity property, called the do-ut-des or give-to-get property by considering the fact that agents prefer to form coalitions whose components cannot be formed independently. A formal description of this property is provided as well as an analysis of algorithms and their complexity. We provide an algorithm to decide whether a coalition has the desired property, and we show that (...) the problem to verify whether a single coalition satisfies the property is tractable. Moreover, we provide an algorithm to search all the sub-coalitions of a given coalition satisfying the new property. Even if this problem is not computationally tractable, we show that in several cases, also the complexity of this problem may decrease considerably. (shrink)
Mission Uruzgan: Collaborating in Multiple Coalitions for Afghanistan.Robert Beeres,Jan van der Meulen,Joseph Soeters &Ad Vogelaar (eds.) -2012 - Amsterdam University Press.detailsI en række afhandlinger beskrives den hollandske ISAF styrkes indsats i Afghanisatn fra 2001-2010. I en fireårig periode fra 2006-2010 var det hollandske kontingent indsat i den afghanske provins Uruzgan og opnåede bemærkelsesværdige resultater. Sikkerhedssituationen blev forbedret, den økonomiske udvikling blev stabiliseret ligesom den offentlige administration, uddannelsen af børn og sundhedsplejen m.v. blev forbedret. Efter 2010 er provinsen overtaget af amerikanske og australske tropper.
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Reasoning about local properties in modal logic.Wiebe van der Hoek,Hans van Ditmarsch &Barteld Kooi -unknowndetailsHans van Ditmarsch, Wiebe van der Hoek and Barteld Kooi (2011). Reasoning about local properties in modal logic. In K. Tumer and P. Yolum and L. Sonenberg and P. Stone (editors). Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems (AAMAS 2011), pp. 711-718.