Economic theory as political philosophy

I defend the integrity of the question of what the cognitive status of economic theory could amount to, and I argue that the theory is best understood as a compartment of formal political philosophy, in particular a species of contractarianism. This seems particularly apt as an account of general equilibrium theory. Given the intentional character of the explanatory variables of economic theory and the role of information in effecting choice, it is argued that economic theory is unlikely to secure the predictive power that would enable it to function as a factual instead of a normative theory.     

Elected in 100 milliseconds: Appearance-Based Trait Inferences and Voting

Recent research has shown that rapid judgments about the personality traits of political candidates, based solely on their appearance, can predict their electoral success. This suggests that voters rely heavily on appearances when choosing which candidate to elect. Here we review this literature and examine the determinants of the relationship between appearance-based trait inferences and voting. We also reanalyze previous data to show that facial competence is a highly robust and specific predictor of political preferences. Finally, we introduce a computer model of face-based competence judgments, which we use to derive some of the facial features associated with these judgments.     

Conquering Stereotypes in Research on Race and Gender

In responding to Epstein's essay "On Boundaries," we argue that the stereotypes that Epstein identifies as an ongoing component of racism served as the foundation of sociological scholarship a mere century ago. Today, we argue, it is the continued use of the term stereotype that serves as our "car window" and can hold us back from truly understanding race and gender. The use of the term stereotype is not (nor has it ever been) a useful analytic tool because the term invokes a individualistic and psychological argument where a sociological mechanism might be more fruitfully employed.     

Telling the Stories of Our Lives: An Interview with John Gilgun

In a novel, a book of short stories, a book of fables, and two books of poems, as well as in numerous on-line publications, John Gilgun has proven himself one of the best undiscovered secrets of contemporary gay letters. This interview, conducted shortly after Gilgun retired from thirty years of teaching English and creative writing, reveals how he construes his sexuality as an integral component of his creative vision; indeed, for Gilgun, gayness drives both his sense of content and style. Gilgun also offers advice to young gay authors about what they should read and what themes should inform their work.     

Assessing the Utility of Stochastic Employee Movements

This article illustrates the substantial effects employee movements (i.e., movements due to employee promotions, transfers, and separations) have on the value of a human resource intervention. Two methods for estimating differential employee movements are presented and their resulting utility estimates are contrasted and compared. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of each procedure are discussed as well as the value such information provides to organizational decision makers.     

Coaching Family Caregivers to Become Better Problem Solvers When Caring for Persons with Advanced Cancer

Family caregivers of persons with advanced cancer often take on responsibilities that present daunting and complex problems. Serious problems that go unresolved may be burdensome and result in negative outcomes for caregivers’ psychological and physical health and affect the quality of care delivered to the care recipients with cancer, especially at the end of life. Formal problem-solving training approaches have been developed over the past several decades to assist individuals with managing problems faced in daily life. Several of these problem-solving principles and techniques were incorporated into ENABLE (Educate, Nurture, Advise, Before Life End), an “early” palliative care telehealth intervention for individuals diagnosed with advanced cancer and their family caregivers. A hypothetical case resembling the situations of actual caregiver participants in ENABLE that exemplifies the complex problems that caregivers face is presented, followed by presentation of an overview of ENABLE’s problem-solving key principles, techniques, and steps in problem-solving support. Though more research is needed to formally test the use of problem-solving support in social work practice, social workers can easily incorporate these techniques into everyday practice.