Neuroeconomics is an interdisciplinary research program with the goal of building a biological model of decision making in economic environments. Neuroeconomists ask, how does the embodied brain enable the mind (or groups of minds) to make economic decisions? By combining techniques from cognitive neuroscience and experimental economics we can now watch neural activity in real time, observe how this activity depends on the economic environment, and test hypotheses about how the emergent mind makes economic decisions. Neuroeconomics allows us to better understand both the wide range of heterogeneity in human behavior, and the role of institutions as ordered extensions of our minds. The brain is the most amazing complex organ in known universe.The brain is a organ with most amazingly magic infinite potential. Neuroplasticity: Transforming the Mind by Changing the Brain.Neuroplasticity refers to structural and functional changes in the brain that are brought about by training and experience. The brain is the organ that is designed to change in response to experience.The decision theories can be categorized into three paradigms:the normative,descriptive and prescriptive theories.The decision processing have four steps:accumulation of sensory evidence,integration of sensory signals with reward expectation and prior knowledge,comparision of current reward expectation with that in prior experience,and the selection of behavioral response.

The purpose of this thesis is theory development. It begins by evaluating existing explanations of why states undertake humanitarian intervention. Realists argue that states only intervene when their national interests are at stake. Normative scholars argue that states are at times motivated to save foreign citizens. Neither approach adequately accounts for the pattern of post-Cold War state practice. Building from this conclusion, the thesis conducts research based on two propositions derived from an analysis of existing debates: that examining state motive holds promise for elucidating the weaknesses in current approaches and that studying state argumentation can provide insight into state motives. To better investigate state motives, a theoretical framework is developed to explain how motives translate into state decision-making and manifest themselves in state argumentation. By employing process tracing, argumentation analysis, and elite interviews, this framework is applied to three cases: Northern Iraq in 1991, Rwanda in 1994, and East Timor in 1999. Each case study constructs a theoretically informed narrative, assesses debates between states at the United Nations Security Council, and evaluates the consistency between state discourse and state practice. The cases are then used heuristically to identify opportunities for improving existing theory and developing new theory. This yields several conclusions. First, not only do states often possess mixed motives, but the humanitarian impulse also appears in some cases to have been a necessary condition for humanitarian intervention. Second, the norm of humanitarian intervention does not function as a general rule. Rather, it is a cluster of principles derived from just war theory and international law, but also connected to related norms about sovereignty, human rights, and self-determination. Third, state decision-making is a collective process structured by the prevailing post-Cold War institutional and normative context. The thesis concludes by outlining promising avenues of research for better understanding why states respond to some occurrences of mass atrocities and not others.

This thesis provides the theoretical groundwork for a 'virtue ethical' account of international political conduct. The project begins by investigating the distinct patterns of normative theorising within international scholarship, noting not only that moral philosophical foundations are unpronounced and interchangeable, but that even in this diminished capacity the influence of virtue ethical thought is limited and fragmentary relative to its competitors. Redressing this underrepresentation is thus dually motivated: developing a fresh perspective on important global issues, whilst also subjecting the theory to an atypical angle of scrutiny. Adapting virtue ethics to the international realm requires, most essentially, that we settle the level at which its concepts should be applied. Can the theory’s central focus on character be reconciled with the collective nature of global political interaction? Can we accurately ascribe virtues and vices to governments and states? These questions of group agency form the heart of thesis investigation. Beginning from abstract foundations, the possible justification for such ascriptions is sought in competing theories of joint action and attitude. The 'individualist' accounts of Searle and Bratman are ultimately rejected in favour of Gilbert's non-reductive 'plural subject' theory, and - presenting group-level accounts of intention, motivation, practical wisdom, emotion and disposition around her concept of 'joint commitment' - a general model of collective character is constructed. Allied to additional requirements of moral responsibility, this framework is then used to assess the virtue-capability of actual political bodies, considering the decision-making hierarchy of the United Kingdom as a case study for the modern state. Tracing the route of policy authorisation across cabinet, government and parliament, a sophisticated yet ultimately impermanent picture of group-virtue-ethical agency is established, in tension with the notion of enduring state liability. By shifting focus to the national level, it is argued that this fluctuating footprint of agency can nevertheless be unified, modifying Gilbert’s notion of a 'population joint commitment' to tie institutional virtue and vice to a persisting state identity. This provides a template for international character evaluation.

The main aim of the master thesis Transformations of the evening news Události and regional news of ČT since 2007 to 2012 was to introduce news in context of normative theories, television news in context of Czech Republic, their development and current conditions. Theoretical frame of the thesis was political economy of communication, outlining the background of news production, and contributing to understand news issues. Essential part of the thesis was the combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis used as a tool for examining news objectivity at evening and regional news of public television Česká televize since 2007 to 2012, its development and differences between evening and regional news. Objectivity was researched through relevance and uncovering bias by visual balance and neutral presentation. It was found that evening news Události dedicate most of the time to foreign, occasional and political events, 35 % of news showed elements of siding, for example by dramatization, possible reality distortion and using expressive expressions. In terms of regional Brno's news Události v regionech it was found that the highest relevance was assigned to points of interest news and local news, 17 % of news showed elements of siding using mostly evaluative expressions. In case of evening news...

The work deals with topic of cultural relativism. The first chapter is concerned with concept of cultural relativism, its understanding, definitions, its connection with other conceptions of relativism, i.e. ethical and cognitive relativism. The second part concentrates on finding of philosophical roots, which became the fundamental presumptions for origin of cultural relativism, whereas the second part contains the chapter about history of cultural anthropology, which treats of establishment of cultural relativism as the one of the most fundamental concept of cultural anthropology. The third section foreshadows current debates dealing with cultural relativism. The critical perspective is applied to arguments and objections for or contra cultural relativism appearing in the work. And equally there is the treatise of role of cultural relativism in anthropological practises.

The thesis deals with the influence of media on social work. Emphasis is placed on the media and the ethical principles of mass communication. The aim is to explore the mechanisms that the media use to influence the recipients, which functions the media have in society, how we can classify recipients of media messages, what can influence the final form of communication, and whether the ethical principles of journalism and the ethical principles of social work have the same foundation so media can serve the fulfilment of the mission of social work. The work is divided into three parts. The first part focuses on the characteristics of the media, the public and media communications. The basic concepts of media studies are mentioned. The second part focuses on the ethics of the media. A normative theory of media behaviour is introduced and also why it is important that the media should be responsible for their behaviour and their messages and should be controlled by ethical instruments have e. g. in the form of Ethical Code of Journalists in the Czech Republic. The third part is more focused on social work and clarifies the relationship between media and social work. The last part includes current topics that fall into social work activities and which are widely publicized. The aim is to interpret the behaviour of the media in relation to social work.

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The following study about the economic performance of the Johannesburg’s small Internet service providers investigates the economic performance of the small Internet providers against the backdrop of regulatory conditions. The study departs from the view point that reports about previous studies have not given particular attention to the economic performance of the small Internet service providers and other impacting factors. The study employed the qualitative research approach with an aim of obtaining deeper understanding and internal view as reiterated by the respondents. The analysis presented follows a guide by Neuman (2006) which departs from the premises of themes or concepts. The results of this study provide a perspective of respondents and the conclusions drawn by the researcher. The study ends by providing suggestions and recommendations for future studies. Suggestions and recommendations provided at the end have been prompted by the results and experiences encountered during the study. / M.A. (Communication Science)

The thesis aims to address criticisms of cosmopolitanism that characterise it as an elite discourse, by exploring the role that it might play in Third World resistance movements. In doing so, it complicates the landscape of international normative theory, which has traditionally been mapped as a debate between cosmopolitanism and communitarianism. Part I of the thesis argues that cosmopolitanism and communitarianism can function as languages in which First and Third World states respectively justify exercises of power that impede the self-determination of Third World societies. These discourses of power frame the condition of postcoloniality, which might be understood – borrowing the terminology of International Society theorists – as an entrapment of Third World societies between 'coercive solidarism' and 'authoritarian pluralism'. A normative worldview committed to enhancing the scope for self-determination of such societies must be critical of the production of both external and internal environments that are hostile to the enjoyment of self-determination by Third World peoples. Part II of the thesis explores the political challenges of sustaining such a critique by studying four theorists of resistance who perceive themselves as manoeuvring between hostile external and internal environments. It analyses the political thought of Rabindranath Tagore and Edward Said, who were both leading figures of anti-colonial nationalist movements but also fierce critics of nationalism. It also studies the activism of two leaders in the field of 'anti-globalisation' protest – Subcomandante Marcos of the Zapatistas in Mexico and Professor Nanjundaswamy of the Karnataka State Farmers' Association in India – who struggle against both national elites and global capital. Part II concludes that if resistance in the condition of postcoloniality must grapple simultaneously with both a hostile 'outside' and 'inside', it must speak in mixed registers of universalism and particularity. Cumulatively, the thesis demonstrates that the language of common humanity operates in ways that are both oppressive and emancipatory, just as the language of community is a source of both repression and refuge. Normative theory that does not seek to hold both in tension fails the needs of our non-ideal world.

Made available in DSpace on 2009-11-18T19:01:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacaopdf1.pdf: 1043836 bytes, checksum: 6ae64937eb15e2846fa0b189f6435d97 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / The choice of accounting standards capable of defining the recognition, measurement and publicizing of financial and economic information to the general public constitutes one of the accounting community¿s greatest challenges. So, the analysis of the Fundamental Principles of Accounting and of the Conceptual Structure of Accounting becomes relevant because of its direct relation to the normative process and because it represents the essence of doctrines and theories relating to the Science of Accounting. Each country¿s set of rules diverges when it comes to creating and evidencing Accounting Statements, and that¿s why the harmonization of the International Accounting Rules is becoming more important among accountants: as an answer to the world qualitative and quantitative demand for information. When managers, answering a great variety of incentives, manipulate or manage the disclosure of accounting information, they show that the management of accounting information begins to represent a purposeful intervention in the process of elaboration of financial and economic statements with the intention of obtaining some private benefit. In this context, Accounting Regulation performs an important function in the technical procedure of professionals in the area and in the development of practices convergent with international standards, which, in their turn, are already in force. The present study, which is exploratory and non-experimental, aims at presenting and analyzing the process of accounting regulation under the perspective of rules and of the choice of accounting practices as an answer by regulated entities on a tridimensional perspective. The establishment of interaction among diverse fields, through interdisciplinarity, aims at bridging the gap between the fields of law and accounting by articulating concepts and cognitive schemes in a process of mutual enrichment. The research concludes that it is possible to apply concepts from Miguel Reale¿s Tridimensional Theory of Law in the study of accounting regulation. / A escolha de padrões contábeis capazes de definir a forma mais adequada para o reconhecimento, mensuração e divulgação das informações econômico-financeiras ao público externo constitui um dos grandes desafios da comunidade contábil. Dessa forma, a análise dos Princípios Fundamentais de Contabilidade e da Estrutura Conceitual da Contabilidade se torna relevante pela direta relação com o processo normativo e por representar à essência das doutrinas e teorias relativas à Ciência da Contabilidade. Os conjuntos normativos de cada país apresentam divergências na forma de elaborar e evidenciar as Demonstrações Contábeis, motivo pelo qual a harmonização das Normas Internacionais de Contabilidade (NIC) vem ganhando importância no meio contábil, em resposta à demanda qualitativa e quantitativa de informações em âmbito mundial. Os gestores ao manipularem ou gerenciarem a divulgação de informações contábeis em atendimento a uma grande variedade de incentivos, demonstram que o gerenciamento da informação contábil passa a representar uma intervenção proposital no processo de elaboração das Demonstrações Econômico-Financeiras, com a intenção de obter algum benefício particular. Nesse contexto, a Regulação Contábil exerce importante papel na conduta técnica de profissionais da área e no desenvolvimento de práticas convergentes com os padrões internacionais que, por sua vez, já se constitui numa realidade. O presente estudo, de caráter exploratório e não-experimental, tem por objetivo apresentar e analisar o processo de regulação contábil sob o enfoque normativo e da escolha de práticas contábeis como resposta dos entes regulados, numa perspectiva tridimensional. O estabelecimento da interação de disciplinas diversas, por meio da interdisciplinaridade, visa romper o isolamento entre as disciplinas contábil e jurídica, articulando conceitos e esquemas cognitivos em um processo de enriquecimento mútuo. A pesquisa conclui que é possível aplicar as concepções advindas da Teoria Tridimensional do Direito, de Miguel Reale, no estudo da regulação contábil.