Browsing by Subject "Identity (Philosophical concept)"
Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item "All things work for good": the rise and fall of the Confederacy in the Southern Presbyterian mind(Texas Tech University, 2003-05) Thomas, Christopher MadocNot availableItem Architecture: a form of cultural expression reversing social degradation(Texas Tech University, 1988-01) Hernandez, MarbeliaNoneItem Identites fugitives au Canada, en France, et aux Etats-unis(Texas Tech University, 2004-05) Moreno-Herrera, José-FranciscoNot availableItem Is “social justice” justice? : A Thomistic argument for “social persons” as the proper subjects of the virtue of social justice.(2008-10-15T14:21:42Z) Lee, John R. (Richard), 1981-; Beckwith, Francis.; Church and State.; Baylor University. Institute of Church-State Studies.The term “social justice,” as it occurs in the Catholic social encyclical tradition, presents a core, definitional problem. According to Catholic social thought, social justice has social institutions as its subjects. However, in the Thomistic tradition, justice is understood to be a virtue, i.e., a human habit with human persons as subjects. Thus, with its non-personal subjects, social justice would seem not to be a virtue, and thus not to be a true form of justice. We offer a solution to this problem, based on the idea of social personhood. Drawing from the Thomistic understanding of “person” as a being “distinct in a rational nature”, it is argued that certain social institutions—those with a unity of order—are capable of meeting Aquinas’ analogical definition of personhood. Thus, social institutions with a unity of order—i.e., societies—are understood to be “social persons” and thus the proper subjects of virtue, including the virtue of justice. After a review of alternative conceptions, it is argued that “social justice” in the Catholic social encyclical tradition is best understood as general justice (justice directed toward the common good) extended to include not only human persons, but social persons as well. Advantages of this conception are highlighted. Metaphysically, an understanding of social justice as exercised by social persons fits nicely with an understanding of society as non-substantial, but subsistent being. This understanding of societal being supports certain intuitions we have about the nature of societal organization. In regards to social philosophy, an understanding of social justice as general justice exercised by social persons helps to account for the principle of subsidiarity and situate it properly within the domain of just acts. Consequently, the notion of social personhood helps to bring social institutions—considered per se, not as mere summations of individual persons—into the domain of justice.Item Psychosocial correlates of 12-step-based recovery from substance abuse(Texas Tech University, 1997-12) White, Joseph MichaelResearch on recovery from addictive substances is necessary to provide a more complete picture of the addictive process. The proposed research was developed to further expand the knowledge base regarding the process of recovery with respect to two potential components of that process: spirituality and identity. First, spirituality has been considered a key component of recovery by adherents of the 12-Step model of recovery but has not been empirically validated within that context. As a concept, spirituality has not been well understood by researchers and many professionals, has often been defined solely as religiosity, and has frequently been regarded with disdain and/or suspicion. In this study, spirituality will be operationally defined and tested as a predictor of recovery. Second, early experience with substance use has been found to interfere with (e.g., delay, block)adequate resolution of relevant issues of psychosocial development, especially the identity crisis. Inadequate psychosocial development may also interfere with a person's ability to understand and commit to spirituality. Poor resolution of the identity crisis, then, may directly influence recovery and indirectly influence the association between spirituality and recovery. Therefore, assessment of the fifth stage of psychosocial development (identity versus role confusion) will be addressed in this research. The primary focus of this study is to examine the empirical association of the concept of recovery with several dimensions of spirituality and identity and to determine whether recovery acts as an intervening variable between identity and spirituality.