Generational conflict and provisions for the elderly in Hong Kong: The relevance of position‐based interest and values

Respect for the elderly and hence the associated rights support a generational contract. Nevertheless, the case of the recent debate on the universal retirement scheme in Hong Kong has raised concerns about its strength. We identify relevant items from the sixth wave of the World Values Survey to explore the orientations of different generations toward others. The analysis shows differences between younger and older generations. Regression analyses show that values are not significant in explaining the differences, but various positions, including sex, marital status, and education, and perceptions of the elderly are relevant. Such differences across generations might weaken the generational contract and potentially engender conflicts as shown in the recent debate about the retirement scheme. We suggest short‐ and long‐term interest calculations, informed by their positions, play a more significant role in policy discussions and decisions, rather than simply appealing to values.     

二语情感抽象概念加工的具身认知研究

基于具身认知框架下的概念隐喻理论，对中国英语学习者抽象情感词加工的具身认知进行了实证研究。结果发现:（1）二语情感抽象概念存在“积极在上，消极在下”的垂直空间隐喻映射；（2）不同水平组对二语抽象情感词的加工成本存在不对称性；（3）中国英语学习者对不同效价的抽象情感词加工成本趋异。实验结果证明了情感抽象概念能够通过隐喻的方式建立与感知运动信息的联系，情感模拟对二语抽象情感词的加工具有促进作用。     

清人王源《左传评》重“奇”之义蕴抉微

"奇"是清代实学代表人物王源评点《左传》的关键词,在内容、形式评点中皆有体现。借助《左传》具体文本的评点,通过同类相联、正反对举的反复申述,王源将"奇"之内涵赋予"变""活""正"等多重意义,将传统的奇文观念"美文化",以奇诡、辞达、自然为奇文,使"奇"具备了多重文学批评的功能。身处易代,酷爱兵法,好奇人奇事奇文,一生坎壈,皆为王源尚奇批评生成之根源。对明清八股时文取士的不屑,对清初文坛亦步亦趋效法唐宋八大家的不满,使其《左传》奇文评点具备了不同时俗的意义,浸润了明确的针砭时弊与经世致用的色彩。王源《左传》评点之重"奇",在一定程度上彰显出中国古代文论的典型性特征。对此进行考察,可望为揭橥评点的阐释范式、话语体系等提供可行性研究理路。     

Rethinking mediated political engagement: social media ambivalence and disconnective practices of politically active youths in Hong Kong

Social media have been widely credited for facilitating young people’s political engagement, most notably by providing a conducive platform for political expression. There has been comparatively little attention, however, to the possible pitfalls for young people when they engage in politics on social media. In this study, we seek to redress the overemphasis on the strengths and connectivity of social media by attending to how young people negotiate their drawbacks and disconnectivity. Through in-depth interviews with young participants of Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement, we examine the choices and motives regarding mediated (non-)participation among a group of politically active youths. Our findings revealed that these young people’s social media ambivalence emerged from the major participatory experience. Despite their active and open informational sharing and political expression on social media alongside their in-person participation during the eventful protest, many young participants became wary of such expressive use owing to their perceptions of de-energization, disconnectedness, and disembodiment. Instead of completely withdrawing from political activities on social media, these politically inclined and technologically savvy youths embraced “disconnective practices” – passive engagement (lurking), selective expression (moderation and exposure-limitation), and offline participation (embodied collective action) – to avoid the overwhelming, fractious, and inauthentic conditions of mediated participation.     

Optimization problems for consecutive-2-out-of-n:G system

Abstract

This paper considers the optimization problems for a consecutive-2-out-of-n:G system where n is considered to be fixed or random. When the number of components is constant, the optimal number of components and the optimal replacement time are discussed by minimizing the expected cost rates. Furthermore, we focus on the above discussions again when n is a random variable. We give an approximate value of MTTF and propose the preventive replacement policy, respectively.     

孔子前儒学思想的萌芽

儒家学派的创建者是孔丘，儒学的核心思想是仁，而仁也是中华民族文化的核心。在孔丘之前儒学核心思想的仁学已经出现了萌芽，如公孙轩辕的‘以仁德服天下’，伊尹的儒学启蒙思想，以及周公旦的‘敬德保民’都对孔丘有着深刻的影响，所以我们认为孔丘的儒学是在前人理论的基础上建立而成的。     

The Development and Initial Validation of a Psychoanalysis Use/Non-Use Scale among a Sample of Hong Kong Helping Professionals.

ABSTRACT

This article reports on the construction and initial validation of the Psychoanalysis Use/Non-Use scale (PUNU) and the complementary Conflicts with Hong Kong Chinese Culture scale (CHKCC), developed for assessing the penetration of psychoanalysis among counseling professionals in Hong Kong. A total of 217 Hong Kong social workers, psychologists, and counselors were surveyed to assess the scales' internal psychometric properties. Factor analysis confirmed a four-factor structure for the PUNU, and a unidimensional structure for the CHKCC, with 17 and 9 items, respectively. Internal reliability of both scales was good and discriminative validity was supported by comparisons with background information. These scales could help to identify factors that affect the understanding of psychoanalysis among professionals and could be useful for educational purposes.     

Creating a positive emotional culture: Effect of internal communication and impact on employee supportive behaviors

The study surveyed 506 employees in the United States to test the effect of internal communication (i.e., corporate-level symmetrical and leadership-level responsive communications) on fostering a positive emotional culture characterized by companionate love, joy, pride, and gratitude. In addition, we tested the interplay between corporate internal communication and a positive emotional culture and its influence on supportive employee behaviors, specifically, organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and employee advocacy. Results indicated that symmetrical communication and responsive leadership communication cultivated a positive emotional culture in organizations. Such culture also fostered employee OCB and advocacy. Moreover, corporate symmetrical communication directly and positively influenced employee OCB. Finally, this study found that employee OCB positively affected employee advocacy. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings for public relations scholars and practitioners were discussed.