مطالب

Avicenna’s floating man thought experiment has been examined and criticized for over a thousand years from various philosophical perspectives. While traditional and modern criticisms exist, the latter primarily focus on the confusion between epistemology and ontology. The ontological dimensions have received significant attention, but the epistemological aspects remain underexplored. I propose a modern critique suggesting that if valid, the thought experiment may not support substance dualism. However, some modest versions could bolster modest dualism, which posits that mental properties are distinct from physical ones, without adhering to Cartesian concepts. I present seven versions of the thought experiment. The first differs from Avicenna’s original and focuses on the individuation of self and body, but is vulnerable to modern critiques due to its conflation of ontological and epistemic aspects. The remaining six versions avoid this issue and do not assert that the mind is an immaterial substance. The second version examines epistemic differences between basic self-knowledge and knowledge of the body. The third addresses self-referential and self-verifying aspects of self-knowledge. The fourth explores modal properties, while the fifth highlights the self's necessary relationship to self-knowledge. The sixth emphasizes the environmental neutrality of basic self-knowledge, and the final version utilizes the self as a critical reasoner. I also support and revise these six versions with eleven general remarks.

Pragmatic competence, a fundamental component of language ability, involves understanding a speaker’s intended meaning through various communicative functions. Among these functions, speech acts such as refusals and complaints play a crucial role in everyday interactions, allowing interlocutors to convey information and perform social actions. This study examines the production of refusal and complaint speech acts by English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners, addressing a gap in previous research that has often overlooked the potential influence of learners’ language proficiency, social status, gender, and mother tongue. Through purposive sampling, 120 participants were selected to respond to 10 role-play scenarios designed to elicit refusals and complaints. The data were analyzed qualitatively to identify patterns in speech act production. The findings reveal that most participants favored indirect strategies when expressing refusals and complaints. Moreover, the study found no significant effects of language proficiency, sociocultural background, mother tongue, or gender on how EFL learners produce these speech acts. These results contribute to a better understanding of pragmatic competence in EFL contexts and suggest that these sociolinguistic factors may have less impact on refusal and complaint strategies than previously assumed.

Introduction: The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the relationship between moral development and wisdom through the mediation of moral intelligence and emotional intelligence. Material and Methods: The research method was descriptive and correlational. The statistical population included students of the University of Jyväskylä in the year 2024. A sample of 120 students was selected using a multi-stage cluster random method. The measurement tools included Webster's Self-Esteem Questionnaire (2007), Schering's Emotional Intelligence (1999), Lennick and Keel's Moral Intelligence (2005), and Graham's Moral Foundations (2007). The structural equation modeling method and Amos23 and SPSS22 software were used to analyze the data. Results: The results showed that the conceptual model of the study had an appropriate fit. Examining the coefficients of the effects of the research variables on each other, it seemed that moral development had a direct standardized effect coefficient of 0.53 on intelligence. Also, the standardized effect coefficients of moral development on moral intelligence were 0.51, moral development on emotional intelligence were 0.11, moral intelligence on intelligence were 0.32, and emotional intelligence on intelligence were 0.21. Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, attention to effective moral variables and appropriate moral education on the one hand, and the promotion of emotional intelligence and attention to social and individual well-being resulting from the proper functioning of this intelligence in individuals on the other hand, are essential for the development of various areas of human wisdom.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the fit of a structural model of death anxiety and self-acceptance based on psychological flexibility and differentiation, with the mediating role of self-compassion in the elderly. Methods and Materials: The research method was fundamental, descriptive, and correlational in nature. The statistical population consisted of all individuals aged 60 years and above residing in daily elderly care centers in Nowshahr and Chalous counties from February 2024 to August 2024 (N = 232). Due to the limited size of the population, a census method was used, and research questionnaires were distributed to all members of the population. Ultimately, due to damaged or incomplete questionnaires, data from 215 questionnaires were analyzed (n = 215). The research instruments included the Templer Death Anxiety Scale (1970), the Unconditional Self-Acceptance Questionnaire by Chamberlain and Haaga (2001), the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (Bond et al., 2007), the Differentiation of Self Inventory by Skowron and Friedlander (1998), and Neff’s Self-Compassion Scale (2003). Data analysis was conducted using SPSS version 26 and LISREL 8 software. Findings: Pearson correlation analysis indicated a positive and significant relationship between differentiation and self-compassion (r = 0.645, p < .01); a negative and significant relationship between differentiation and death anxiety (r = -0.411, p < .01); a positive and significant relationship between differentiation and self-acceptance (r = 0.700, p < .01); a negative and significant relationship between self-compassion and death anxiety (r = -0.352, p < .01); and a positive and significant relationship between self-compassion and self-acceptance (r = 0.846, p < .01). Path analysis revealed that the indirect path from differentiation to death anxiety through the mediating role of self-compassion was statistically significant (β = -0.629, p < .01). Furthermore, the indirect path from differentiation to self-acceptance through self-compassion was also statistically significant (β = 0.861, p < .01). Conclusion: Thus, the structural model of death anxiety and self-acceptance based on differentiation with the mediating role of self-compassion demonstrated a good fit among elderly individuals residing in daily care centers in Nowshahr and Chalous. These findings may serve as a basis for developing comprehensive therapeutic models to enhance psychological well-being among the elderly. Keywords: Death Anxiety, Self-Acceptance, Differentiation, Self-Compassion, Elderly.