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One of the proposals to meet the suffering ofa terminally ill person is the right to euthanasia. It has recently been approved in Canada and France. In ancient times euthanasia was understood as a condition of a man characterized by peace of mind, lack of fear, pain or suffering in the moment of dying. It was not until the late nineteenth century that the concept of euthanasia began to be understood as active help to the patient in liberating them from suffering by putting to death in a specialized clinic or hospital. Increasingly, in modern language, instead of euthanasia, such terms as liberation from suffering or as in the case of the document adopted by the French National Assembly sedation or action taken in the deep concern for the patient. The most important reasons leading to the acceptance of new legislation permitting euthanasia given by the author include secularization, dehumanization of the profession of a doctor who treats the patient as an object, loosening of family ties, globalization generating relativization of ethical standards and disregard for life.
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The article analysis „Bulgarian embroideries“ as a specific case of a construction and usage of the cultural heritage. The text presents the diversity of actors, active in the use of this heritage and aims to interpret the modes and practices for negotiating the relations between ethnic-national-global. The thesis is that „ethnic“ invades the national and the global at the same time, being constructed as „natural“ and non-political, and at the same time suitable to be transformed into a commercial commodity. Shortly, the text presents the „ethnic“ as an „assemblage“ and argues that in the process of constructing „cultural heritage“ conservative definitions of the world turn into public consensuses.
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The aim of this study was, through research of attitudes, to establish perception of loneliness and meaning of life of the elderly people who have the institutional and non-institutional support. The authors in the study started from the assumption that the attitudes of elderly people who have the institutional and non-institutional support does not have statistically significant difference in the perception of loneliness and meaning of life.The method of theoretical analysis and descriptive-analytic survey method was used from research methods. Short form UCLA Loneliness Scale (Allen and Oshagan, 1995) and the Purpose in Life test (Crumbaugh & Maholick, 1964) - adapted form of PIL test (Debats, 1996) were used from research instruments.The research sample consisted of 150 elderly people who use residential care as a form of support and 150 elderly people who live in their households and do not use the services of dormitory accommodation.The results of the research showed that elderly people living in their households show statistically significantly higher levels on a scale of loneliness than the elderly people who have institutional treatment. On the other hand, elderly people who have institutional social support show statistically greater values on the meaning of life scale than people living in their households. The variables sex and age were not statistically significantly associated with variables loneliness and meaning of life.
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Globalization is a process that has entered all pores of modern life, and it can be said that there is almost no individual who is not directly involved or affected by this process. The subject of this paper is the influence of the mass media and the means of modern communication on the further course of globalization. In the introduction, basic terms are defined and a brief historical overview of the emergence and development of globalization is provided. Then, the views of contemporary researchers in this field are briefly explained, and the views for and against globalization are outlined. The main part of the paper deals with the influence of the media on the spread of globalization. As the positive aspects of media development have been emphasized numerous times so far, this article highlights the negative impact of media on processes in the contemporary world. The article offers an overview of the development of the most influential platforms for global media influence and briefly explains and elaborates the relationship between the media and the culture of consumerism. The general conclusion from the research conducted, as well as from the monitoring of contemporary trends, is that the mass media will continue to develop, and that their impact on individuals and communities will continue to grow.
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The aim of this study is to present certain aspects connected with transformation of contemporary Polish families and to indicate threats to performing their functions. Systematic, economic, social and cultural transformations have influenced lives of people and families and new opportunities emerged to improve standards of living, change attitudes and lifestyles. Contemporary families are characterized by varied structure and dominance of non-productive families formed primarily on non-economic grounds, which control and plan birth of children. However, families are facing a number of challenges and threats that affect performing the basic family functions. High unemployment rate, poverty, violence and addictions are only part of the phenomena that negatively affect quality of living of Polish families. This study presents opinions of young people about transitions and threats concerning family functions.
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The aim of this article is to present methodological aspects of research on comforting language skills, evaluating the quality and sophistication of supportintended messages, and explaining key factors underlying the potential effectiveness of emotional support in case of “emotional conflicts”. Research proves that the core of support-intended message is “person centeredness”, defined as the ability to explicitly acknowledge and elaborate, legitimize the subjective perspective of a distressed partner [Burleson 2010]. Empirical operationalization of this concept underlies the development of hierarchical coding system for sensitivity of comforting strategies, which nowadays is one of the most popular tools to evaluate the quality of supporting communication. The main assumptions of this coding system have been presented, together with its structure and criteria of analyzing the potential comforting effectiveness. At the end, cultural stereotypes and misconceptions descending the quality of support-intended behaviours were addressed.
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The similarities and differences in values between generations reflect both the stability and change of socio-cultural trends prevailing at a specific time point as well as developmental processes occurring across the life span. Intergenerational similarities in values may be the effect of value transmission within family or consequence of sharing the same socio-cultural context, since both these processes are difficult to separate. The aims of the study were: 1) to describe similarities and differences in values preferences between young women and their both parents; 2) to determine which values may be transmitted within families. Ninety nine women aged 19-25 and their both parents filled in the Schwartz’ Portrait Value Questionnaire [PVQ21, Schwartz 2003]. Comparing to older generation young women showed greater preference for achievement, hedonism, stimulation and universalism as well as less preference for conformity and tradition. To assess value transmission two methods measuring similarity between family members were used. According to correlation analysis values representing conservation (conformity, tradition and security) as well as benevolence and power were transmitted in families between women, while security and two values related to self-enhancement (power and achievement) were transmitted between fathers and daughters. According to comparisons of family dyads with pseudo family dyads only mothers and daughters were found to be similar in their preference for tradition, security and power.
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The contemporary education to the old age in the context of relations with the environment, the family and society constitutes the need, due to fully relevant conditions of the changing nature of reality, to open up to the problems connected with old age - their implied connotations and social consequences. That is, on one side, an attempt to more precisely define the functioning of the system of the elderly in the family and an indication of the role of the contemporary system of family and social support in relation to the living conditions and opportunities for seniors. On the other, it is an effort to underline the subject of organizing leisure activities for older people and highlighting the role of various institutions, organizations and Universities of the Third Age in the lives of these people. This bipolarity in an compact attempt to present the subject seems, in the opinion of its author, to be consistent with a contained reflection on the quality of life for seniors. Therefore, the importance of belonging to a group has been emphasized, the need for self-development and the objectives which the elder individual set itself. As a consequence of the problematic subject consistency, the effort was undertaken to present the psychological aspect of the relations with the environment and its impact on the life satisfaction of older people.
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Alcohol drinking in the mining environment is demonstrated by certain researches that were conducted in areas with this socio-economic profile. In this study we want to highlight the following aspects: the socio-cultural determination of alcohol consumption; the worship of alcohol as the expression of a popular culture; the motivation of excessive alcohol consumption through hard physical work that requires such a "therapy" for the recovery of forces; the negative influences of alcohol drinking on the family. This study is based on a socio-anthropological research performed in several stages. The methodological aspects are explained in the study based on the statistical results obtained by applying a sociological questionnaire to a sample of 843 subjects (active miners, all male). The study hypothesis is the following: difficult mining labour causes an increase in temptations to consume alcohol over the levels generally acceptable in the social environment. It is necessary to analyse the phenomenon of alcohol consumption because it has turned into a "cultural" pattern, hiding a reality with serious medical, family and social consequences in general. This survey aims at raising the awareness of community-level decision makers, but also at reducing alcohol drinking. Professional prevention campaigns are required, but they are still lacking. There are no specialists able to change the distorted collective perception of alcohol consumption, but they have to be trained and involved in a specific social work activity.
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Man is a social and a personal being, but is also a spiritual one. He does not live concerning himself only with material or problems, but try to understands his own existences, and the existence of the world. One issue that affects his existence on all these levels is the problem of evil. The problem of evil is pervasive an is not easy to discern or to tackle it accordingly, thought one should not allow himself to think evil consists in the wrong structure of society. Evil lurks moreover in the soul of man, but his soul exists and moves in society. And it is associated with the problem of liberty. Evil and liberty belong together. The sociology of Jacques Ellul, his sociological work and his theological, offer some insights in the matter at hand. The evil can be named according to hum the technological system, or le système technicien. This paper offers some insight in Ellul’s conceptions and adds some insights from other thinkers, so that it may become clearer what he means, and where the roots of this technological system or technological man lay. His views on technological society are true, and such things existence of explicit transhumanist theoretical positions, or the social changes that are imposed unto the societies today do attest his views.
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The aim of the following article is to illustrate and to highlight specific semiotic tendencies in Nikolai Gogol′s "Zapiski sumasšedšego". To begin with, thematically relevant connections between communicative acts such as speaking, writing and being silent, as discussed by the narrator himself, are presented. The main part of this paper focuses on the practice of writing itself and the implicit relation between the writer and the written. Finally, an analysis closely linked to the theory of Jacques Derrida provides some findings that may be helpful for a more thorough understanding of this complex and accurately constructed piece of literature.
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Interview with Jaroslav ŠVELCH by Alexandra Kukumbergová
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Nowadays, the most expansive factor which determines the various aspects of human life are social communicators. Among them there is a consistent dominance of television for decades. This social mean of messaging, being a common utility good has changed its status, in recent times. It seems that from the electronic device intended for remote receiving the moving images, it became an inalienable part of the family – often its binder. What’s more, a new feature that TV performs, fully enables parents to entrust essential pedagogical - educational process of youngest members of the family. This means, more than once, many hours of child’s mindless contact with animation movies. At that time, uncontrolled by the parents and guardians, contents of animation are received and assimilated by the child (unconditionally-E. M.) influencing the evolution or changes in the personality, attitudes, and behaviors. The phenomena that occur in the sphere of child’s personality under the influence of the assimilation of media content, just encompass the educational scope. This means that childhood is the most important period of human development and an essential part of pedagogical and educational process where our personality and character, our attitudes and behavior and action are shaped. Hence, pedagogical intervention becomes necessary to contemporary content of animation,which is easy to receiveon the one hand promotes hedonistic behaviour patterns and mass culture, on the other “(...) does not provoke to work on yourself, (...), rather adulate the recipient, confirming him to the belief that he/she has the right to do what he/she wants” [Bobrowska 1999, pp. 67–73].
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Article: Interactivity of Mass Media to the Activity of the Child at School and Outside It, is an attempt to show, from one side, roles which in contemporary reality are performed by publishers, on the other to arouse awareness of defined threats of communicated contents which are exerting influence on family functioning and the education process. It also means the simultaneous effort taken in order to formulate positive, as well as pejorative influences of mass media on conducts of the child with the simultaneous suggestion for parents and carers, with regards to the conducts essential to the safety of their charges. The present time of the 21st century constitutes the standardized conglomeration saturated with the ideology of global order. Everything strives for progress and connected permanent profit as well as fast (immediate) effects of decisions and actions, forms circumstances in which media fill child’s free time which is often free of parental supervision. In consequence, contemporary childhood, appears to be the peculiar developmental period, in which mass publishers dominate and play the decisive part. Shifting the educational accent results in polarization of social roles cause that with the consent of adults children become media helots.
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This articles tackles the issue of the importance of a father for his family, particularly own children. It provides a small historical description of changes that occurred within families from the prehistoric times until the postindustrial era, whereas the second part of the article provides an attempt to examine and compare children’s and parents’ opinions on the role of the father in a contemporary family, stressing his importance. The sample research was carried out amongst pupils of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd primary school grade. The conclusions that have been drawn might come across as surprising, nonetheless, it is worth to refer to more expanded research to seek the answer to the question on father’s role from the period of childhood to the phase of becoming independent.
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Functioning of the family of a person addicted to alcohol brings many unwanted situations at home. Such family environment is endangered in many spheres of emotional and social life. Emotional tides grow weak, the dialogue between members of the family and the person addicted distinguishes. Many families, and especially children in them suffer mentally because of the lack of meeting emotional and social needs and disturbed relationships in the family. The structure and social roles of the members of the family with alcohol problem are also endangered.
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Sociocultural changes that have occurred in the contemporary world cause changes in lifestyles and ways of spending leisure time. This problem is particularly important from the pedagogical standpoint since it substantially affects young generations who follow the models from a variety of sources. However, the strongest effect on the forms of activity and development of recreational behaviours in leisure time is from family. Contemporary children and young people are overloaded with school duties, extra-curricular activities to increase knowledge, private lessons that prepare for attractive university courses and they often have to work. This negatively affects the amount, organization, content and forms of spending leisure time, which is the precondition for proper psychophysical and social growth of children.
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