ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction The cultivation theory is a framework that describes how “entertainment narratives [influence] public perceptions about the world” (Dahlstrom, 2014, p. 13614). The main aim of entertainment programs is to gain profit, not represent the reality of the country or state depicted in a film or TV series. The individuals who are often exposed to such types of entertainment tend to share the expressed beliefs and values (Dahlstrom, 2014). This paper examines the influence of Western media (e.g. TV series, films, magazines, talk shows, etc.) on UAE millennials and their values (collectivism, restraint, power distance, masculinity/femininity, etc.). Since the UAE is a country that hosts a variety of cultures, nationalities, and ethnic representatives, the values and beliefs are also affected by these differences. According to Khamis and Nazzal (2014), the survey conducted in 2014 had shown that 57% of Emirati youth view traditional values as significant and meaningful; young adults point out that these values have to be preserved. At the same time, other teenagers and young adults (43%) agreed they were ready to embrace modern values (Khamis & Nazzal, 2014). Still, the influence of Western media and values it translates can be seen in the dress-code changes. One of the interviewees, an Emirati student, noticed that more women preferred not to wear the abaya and sheela (a scarf) and dress in the Western style both at home and in public (Khamis & Nazzal, 2014). Another respondent, also a student from an Emirati-Mexican family, noticed that although traditional values (such as family gatherings and religious celebrations) are to be preserved, Western values could also be adopted. For example, the respondent mentioned that she adopted different Western values “by being independent, and being able to drive on her own without a chaperone” (Khamis & Nazzal, 2014, p. para. 25). The respondents also addressed the issue of equal gender roles and the role of women and men in the UAE society. One of them noticed that modern values helped improve the communication and connection between men and women in the UAE, and significantly improved women’s liberalization and freedom (Khamis & Nazzal, 2014). All of the respondents were representatives of the millennial generation (teenagers or young adults). It should be noted that all of them agreed on the importance of traditional values but also stressed the positive impact of Western values on Emiratis’ beliefs and culture (Khamis & Nazzal, 2014). TV Series and UAE Millennials One should pay close attention to the impact of American TV series on UAE millennials, their self-image, and perception of life. Recently, the concerns were raised about a possible copycat behavior of UAE teenagers with regard to the popular Netflix show 13 Reasons Why. The series address the problem of rape, depression, and suicide in American teens, presenting the show’s protagonist as an example. The series are hugely popular among young people due to social media abuses th
In contemporary society the definition and the meaning of such well known concepts as friendship, love, attraction or communication is changing. New technologies implicate new means of communication and the concepts have to change themselves in order to correspond to new demands and traditions of the society. The process of the revaluation of the timeless values is not instantons and finite. We can only observe the understanding of a certain concept at the moment and try to understand occurring changes. The culture also reacts to the change in the human perception of that values, producing something new, or just trying to show us the change with the help of the existing means. Cinema is not an exception. Being one of the most popular genres of the culture it cannot but react on this process showing all the changes. Analyzing the modern cinematograph we can find good examples of that concepts and outline the reflection of the changes, occurring to them. The movie Crazy, Stupid, Love can be the good basis for outlining the peculiarities of that concepts ant its analysis. The main theme of that film is the human relationships and the problem of miscommunication in the family. The main characters Cal and Emily Weavers are on the edge of divorce because of the crisis in their longstanding relations. The problem is that they still love each other but do not understand the problems of the partner. The movie represents us different kinds of human relations and concepts. Friendship is one of them. It is the kind of an intimate relationship characterized by mutual sympathy, presence of common interests and desire to spend time together, “For this reason, love and friendship often get lumped together as a single topic; nonetheless, there are significant differences between them” (Helm para. 3). The integral attributes of friendship are social support, trust, respect, responsiveness and capitalization. There are some age related changes in the peculiarities of friendship connected with the differences in points of view of a child and an adult, but the main attributes remain the same. In the movie we can see the good example of that concept in the Cal and Jacobs relations. From the beginning of the movie it is rather difficult to call Jacob Cals friend. They have nothing in common and we can even watch Cals skeptical attitude to that young man. The difference in age leaves no chances for them to have common interests. Although, having noticed Cals poor state, Jacob wants to help him, showing one of the attributes of friendship – social support. He wants to pull Cal out of his depression taking him under his protection and giving some pieces of advice. Being just a pity for the unhappy middle-aged man, this relations become a true friendship. The uprise of the common interests and desire to spend time together makes them close to each other. With the development of this relations Cal becomes something important for Jacob and in the situation with Jacobs strong feelings it is Jacob, who needs Cals piece of advice and emotional support. The best approval of their friendship is Jacobs desire to punch David Lindhagen to take revenge for all C
Introduction Freedom has always been taken as one of the central values peculiar to human society. It preconditioned the formation of democratic states that cultivate this concept and consider it the fundamental idea for the further rise. At the same time, privacy can be viewed as a dimension of freedom as it means the ability to avoid undesired attention and remain free in actions. That is why the Constitution guarantees the right to privacy for all citizens regardless of their race, gender, or social status. Unfortunately, today, because of the sophistication of the modern world and international relations, the ideas mentioned above are often taken as inferior to the concepts of security and control. The use of surveillance or law enforcement cameras is viewed as an effective way to create a safe environment and protect citizens; however, it should be taken as a rude intrusion in individuals’ private life and invasion of the right of privacy. Background Proponents of the extensive use of surveillance systems emphasize the fact that the state and its citizens face multiple threats every day, and these cameras are the only way to guarantee protection. The central idea of this approach is the early detection of crime, monitoring of public locations to minimize risks, and search for suspects or criminals by using innovative solutions (Schuck 42). The fast evolution of technologies and their improvement mean the broad use of specific cameras that provide security services or police with an opportunity to trace people’s movements and remain informed about their actions. The effectiveness of this method in reducing crime remains disputable; however, there are multiple factors evidencing its unethical nature and the high risk of intrusion in the private life of people. Disregard of Civil Liberties The first argument against the use of law enforcement cameras is the disregard of basic civil liberties and the dangerous precedent that emerges due to this practice. Freedom and privacy are core ideas for the Western democratic society, and they form the mentalities of people. However, today, there is an attempt to reduce the importance of these aspects by employing the ideas of security and safety (Richards 1934). The state and authorities use individuals’ fears to introduce surveillance systems and make them an integral part of people’s lives. The disregard of this threat will create a precedent meaning that the fundamental rights of people can be infringed
Introduction Before delving into whether or not Yahya Haqqi is arguing for the reconciliation between binaries (i.e. East vs. West and religion vs. science) it is important to note the environmental influences that inspired “The Saint’s Lamp” in order to better understand what message Haqqi was trying to impart. During his literary career (spanning the late 1920s till his death in 1992), Egypt was at an impasse wherein the country was slowly opening up to influences of the global environment. This came in the form of the influx of western ideologies, medicine, and technology and how such facets clashed with the traditional ideals and cultural pragmatism that defined Egyptian culture at the time. From the article “People And History (2007), it was noted that when Egypt gradually “opened up” to the world, the influx of western influences was actually viewed by staunch traditionalists as being wholly negative since they confronted the traditional practices and religious observances that were the cornerstone of traditional Muslim culture within Egypt (People And History, 2-4). On the other end of the spectrum, there were also liberal elements within Egyptian society at the time that viewed the influx of western ideologies, medicine and technologies as being a positive influence on Egyptian society since it brought about “great leaps” in medicine, economic development and international trade which greatly enriched the local culture. It is in this morass of competing ideologies that the story “The Saint’s Lamp” is set. Through the short novella, Yahya Haqqi sheds light on the competing ideologies within Egyptian society and the value of traditions (Bell, 66-86). It is the belief of this paper that Yahya Haqqi is not trying to debunk western teachings nor is he emphasizing the need to be a staunch traditionalist, rather, the author is attempting to showcase the need to carefully apply western thinking and teachings while at the same time valuing the traditions that make us who we are. Understanding the Message of Yahya Haqqi One common misconception behind “The Saint’s Lamp” is the assumption that Yahya Haqqi is actually advocating for staunch traditionalism over scientific fact. This misconception is often made due to the ending of the story wherein Ismail utilizes the oil from the lamp in order to restore the sight of Fatima and then realizes the importance of the traditions that he had previously lambasted. People tend to assume that the failure of western medicine that Yahya Haqqi portrayed in this context is indicative of him stating that western teachings should not be utilized since traditional practices and religious faith are often more effective and more in line with the teachings that have existed within Egyptian society for hundreds of years (Bell, 66-86). According to Masmoudi, the misunderstanding over the intended messag
Introduction Since Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection was developed in 1859, and DNA was discovered in the first half of the 20 th century, multiple theories have emerged explaining the diversity of the human population. Over the years, these theories have been misinterpreted and exploited by politicians to support their ideas and establish the superiority of one race or nation over others. They have also influenced the common perceptions of race and diversity, giving rise to multiple biases. The purpose of this paper is to research how the origins of research findings that ask questions on the biology of a person’s behavior are often taken out of context and misrepresented to reinforce biases. Darwin’s theory and eugenics In 1859, the English naturalist Charles Darwin published the book On the Origin of Species that laid the foundation for Darwinism, a theory of evolution suggesting that all species arise and develop through natural selection. The theory became a much-needed voice amongst homologous explanations, opposing both creationists and supporters of other theories within biology. Answering critics, Darwin wrote, “It is easy to hide our ignorance under such expressions as the ‘plan of creation,’ ‘unity of design,’ etc., and to think that we give an explanation when we only restate a fact” (Darwin 453). His theory established a new revolutionary approach to the origins of life on Earth, and consequently, the origins of humans. In On the Origin of Species, Darwin does not address the subject of human evolution, but his later works apply his findings to humans and introduce the theory of sexual selection, on which human evolution is thought to be based. In the book The Descent of Man, and Selection about Sex (1871), he also touches upon the subject of race. Darwin claims that, although possessing different characteristics and hierarchy, different races have much in common and, most probably, have the same origin and cannot be regarded as distinct species. Darwin’s conclusions revolutionized biology and were used as a foundation in several subsequent theories regarding race and diversity. One of the most prominent and infamous hypotheses was a theory of eugenics developed by Francis Galton in the 1860s, which became the scientific basis for Nazi eugenics programs during World War II. It established a set of beliefs and practices aimed to improve the genetic quality of the population by excluding people and groups believed to be inferior and promoting those judged to be superior. The eugenics practices had profound effects on the population in the United States and Germany and led to the extermination of whole nations ( A Dangerous Idea: Eugenics, Genetics, and the American Dream ). Eugenics became the most illustrative example of how scientific discoveries aimed to provide explanations for diversity can be misrepresented and misused for political and ideological purposes to establish the superiority of one nation over others. The movie A Dangerous Idea: Eugenics, Genetics, and the American Dream (2016)
The level of growth and development has resulted to an increase in the technological knowhow and improvement of appliances. The search and presentation of information in websites has increased drastically over the past decades. Consequently, people are currently learning of the differences between websites. Some websites consist of shallow and unreliable information while others are educative and informative. This essay is aimed at analyzing the presentations of two individual websites relating to the fear of failure which is a topic in psychology. Fear of failure is a common subject in psychology and has been diversely researched on by numerous scholars (Knudson 1). Consequently, this essay evaluates the roles of research practitioners on how fear of failure generates and the significance of their research in the websites. The Department of Psychology from the highly-recognized universities has conducted numerous researches on the validity of information in websites. Various articles and website give illustration on the effects caused by fear of failure on the human brains. The first website is an article written by Knudson Tellman on the reasons behind the fear of failure (Knudson 1). The article issues a generalized reasoning on the adverse effects that causes human beings to have the fear to fail. Fear results to lack of personal achievement and attainment of set goals. According to research, fear of failure is experienced in all stages of growth. The fear to fail starts affecting people from childhood to their adulthood. Some people opt to drug addiction due to their increased fear of failing in their individual or corporate duties. The users of the recreational drugs tend to participate in unprotected sex, criminal gangs and societal challenges because few interact with the bad in society. Research shows that the adults have rational actions and attitudes towards decision making and thus the chances of adults making inappropriate decision become low. The author indicates in the article of the availability of fear to failure in every person. The website and article by Knudson gives a lot of examples to indicate the variations of the fear factor in all forms of life. The article contin
Introduction Diagnosing a problem is one of the most important stages in resolving issues affecting individuals in relationships and the issues facing the family. However, diagnosis does not take place without the application of certain models or theories. A therapist should employ a certain model or theory in diagnosing a problem affecting an individual in marriage or in a relationship. Theory refers to refined body of knowledge implying that it consists of concepts and ideas that have been applied successfully. In a family and marriage theory, practitioners apply certain theories in conducting their psychotherapy. These theories are very many implying that a therapist should decided on the best theory. In this article, three theories would be discussed in detail. They include solution based theory, structural, and emotional based theory. The major postulations of the theories will be discussed and personal view would be given. Solution Focused Theory Solution focused theory is a theory that is based on social constructionist principle. The theory posits that the main aim of the client is to achieve something rather than address all the problems facing him or her. In this regard, the therapist’s major task is to convene the wishes and the interests of the client in a most cost-effective way. The kind of therapy to be offered should not focus on the past at all because the patient is already aware of the past mistakes. The client is concerned with the present issues and the future solutions. The theory notes further that change is constant meaning that it will always be present in an individual’s life. The role of the therapist is to help the client mould a desired future by helping him retain some goals, drop others, and strive to achieve some that would be required to achieve the desired goals. The fact that the theory does not focus on the past makes it appealing to many people, including myself. The main aim of an individual is to prevent the past mistakes and focus on the future. The past should not be discussed because it cannot be changed. The client has an opportunity to change the future, but not the past. The theory explains clearly how change is brought about because it suggests that the main objective of the therapist is to advice the client on how to achieve the best results in the future using the experiences of the past. I str
The biopsychosocial approach requires healthcare professionals to recognize the role of social, psychological, and cultural factors that affect patients’ experiences and wellbeing. As a therapist, my role is to identify and address these psychosocial issues holistically and comprehensively to deliver quality care to patients. Physical therapists can offer evidence-based techniques that promote, rehabilitate, and prevent any factors that may influence patients during therapy. Negative social and psychological issues can lead to negative patient outcomes. The paper provides suggestions on the use of self-efficacy and imagery concepts to improve outcomes among patients experiencing demotivation and stress. Self-efficacy Self-efficacy is a social cognitive theory (SCT) posited to influence a patient’s behavior significantly. It refers to an individual’s capability to execute target behaviors (Williams and Rhodes 114). The theory postulates that individuals can be influenced to grasp and consolidate healthy deportments if motivated to learn. Furthermore, it indicates that these factors, although independent, will impact a person’s capability to perform desired behaviors (Al Ubaidi 2). There are three major mechanisms through which self-efficacy affects human behavior; they include affective processes such as cognition and emotion, expected outcomes, and perceived capability. Affective processes relate to an individual’s inspiration to execute appropriate actions. According to the self-efficacy theory, a component of SCT, an individual’s self-efficacy, reflects their drive to perform the desired behavior. According to Williams and Rhodes, a person’s potency is not about their capacity to perform a behavior (115). Rather, they can regularly commit to the desired deportment even during dissuading conditions (Williams and Rhodes 115). Through this conception, healthcare professionals can understand why individuals are prompted to perform the desired behavior. The theory also postulates that a person’s probability of executing a desired action or behavior will depend on their perceived capacity. This conceptualization relates to the belief that one can perform the required activity. Unless the patient acknowledges that he or she can produce appropriate behaviors, they will have minimal motivation to change or persevere during adverse circumstances (Al Ubaidi 3). Therefore, providers must promote an individual’s capability perception to improve health outcomes. The outcome expectation of an individual will also influence their probability of undertaking a behavior. For example, suppose one expects to lose weight after adopting a specific deportment; they will be motivated to take the actions to achieve the desired goals or outcomes (Al Ubaidi 3). A behavioral scientist should always strive to identify an individual’s outcome expectation for their habits. Example: Case The clients attending my exercise class typically complain of feeling demotivated to commit to my proposed routines. By targeting the core determinants of self-efficacy, I will attempt to improve their drive to comm