e - Social Sciences

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Renáta Cenková - Lucia Jasinská(eds.)

Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference held on October 23 and 24, 2013 at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice

The presented proceedings, which are the outcome of the second edition of the international scientific conference "The Twilight of Media," organized by the Department of Mass Media Studies at the Department of Slovak Studies, Slavic Philologies and Communication, Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, examine current issues in the media landscape from several perspectives.

They offer a representative overview by experts in media from Slovakia and abroad on the current state, primarily of electronic but also partially print media, and on upcoming trends in their development. The proceedings are thematically diverse and address questions from the fields of media, aesthetics, value aspects of media messages, media effects, and, for example, the influence of specific genres and their representative texts on the recipient.

At the same time, they cover the area of current media law as well as ethical standards and requirements placed on the text by its author or other professional media workers.

Editors

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Zuzana Buráková

The English language study materials are intended for students of geography and general ecology at the Faculty of Science of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University. Their aim is to broaden communicative language competencies at an intermediate level of English proficiency, with an emphasis on the students’ field of study.

The individual chapters are based on the need for specialization within the various natural science disciplines and on preparing students to present their academic results not only at home, but also abroad. The study material contains a variety of texts, quizzes, exercises, maps, etc., which further illustrate the issues relevant to the field.

This material is intended to serve as a foundation for the future creation of even more precise materials needed for teaching specialized foreign language courses.

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Soňa Lovašová

In front of you is a textbook whose main aim is to introduce readers to the issues of methods, methodology, techniques, and research methodology in social work. The book is divided into four main sections, each arranged with a specific purpose. This arrangement is primarily based on the logical progression of the textbook’s content. The first part consists of chapters dealing with professional terminology, the development of social work methodology, and the classification of methods.

The second part focuses on research methods in social work, where the author devotes space to the methodology of social work research. The goal of these chapters is not to provide the reader with a comprehensive methodological minimum, but rather to orient them in the basic types of research and to demonstrate, step by step, how to create a research project. The third part presents an overview of the various forms of social work: social work with individuals, families, groups, communities, and society. Each of these chapters begins with a brief historical introduction to the topic. The final section of the textbook consists of chapters on working with aggression in social work practice and its various forms.

We believe that this textbook will be helpful to students in their studies and that its structure will appeal to readers.

Soňa Lovašová

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Ľubov Vladyková

The university textbook presents a panorama of ecological-ethical concepts - ecological ethics, as a possibility of cultural development and indicates the continuing search for relationships with the aim to recognize the importance of ethics and its influence on our understanding and our relationship with the natural world, including scenarios adequately reflecting human-nature interaction in all their complexity.

Special attention is paid to the question of internal evaluation of nature, human and non-human life, both at individual and holistic levels (biocentrism) and the value of physical elements of ecosystems (ecocentrism).

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Gabriel Eštok- Mária Hrehová- Jakub Bardovič (eds.)

Proceedings of the 3rd Annual Scientific Conference of Students and Young Researchers held on May 23, 2014, by the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice

On May 23, 2014, the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice hosted a conference entitled “Challenges and Perspectives of Domestic and Foreign Policy.” This was the third conference for students and young researchers organized by the Department of Political Science in cooperation with the civic association Res Publica. The event featured numerous young people interested in contemporary political issues, each presenting on a topic related to domestic or foreign policy. It can be stated that these presentations were of a high professional standard and stimulated discussion on the topics and problems raised.

The publication you are holding is a collection of scholarly works by students and young experts who focused on a variety of subjects. Some authors addressed issues of foreign policy, particularly the analysis of selected countries’ policies (Slovak Republic, USA), examined the Iranian nuclear program, or explored the possibilities of federalizing Ukraine as a solution to the emerging situation. Another contribution offered a perspective on foreign policy from the viewpoint of Slovak emigrants in Australia. Despite the wide range of topics addressed in the individual contributions, a common denominator can be found: the effort to highlight a particular problem or propose its solution, thereby contributing to the fulfillment of the ideal of democracy, the improvement of policy-making and functioning, and, above all, making the world a better place for all of us.

Editors

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Eva Žiaková

Proceedings from the Scientific Conference with International Participation held on November 27, 2015 in Košice

Stress is becoming a part of everyday life in developed societies, which negatively affects both the physical and mental state of individuals. The proceedings from the scientific conference with international participation, titled "Forms of Internal and External Factors in Coping with Stress from the Perspective of Theory and Practice in Social Work," are therefore dedicated to the issue of coping with stress from an interdisciplinary perspective.

It addresses the full spectrum of coping issues, ranging from the most internal, specifically defined factors of the C-system of coping in oncology patients, coping with burnout in helping professions, sociological contexts of oncological diseases, through the level of social support that provides individuals with space for managing stress, to the possibilities of coping with stressful situations in various areas of life.

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Lukáš Šutor (ed.)

Contributions in the field of psychology address current issues such as normative beliefs and attitudes regarding alcohol consumption, the characteristics of loneliness, questions of pupil personality and the perception of teachers’ interaction styles. They also consider hyperexcitability (excessive psychological excitability), research theorems on injustice, and fundamental concepts and their theoretical connections in the field of self-regulation research within the context of executive functions.

In philosophy, the authors focus on selected aspects of works belonging to major currents of world philosophy (Heidegger, Wittgenstein, Plotinus, Descartes, Patočka).

In literary studies (Slovak studies), the topics include modeling the theme of death in prose texts, the depiction of technological progress in space science fiction films, and the translation work of K. Strmeň, Návštevy (Anthology of World Lyric Poetry).

In the field of social work, the authors present contributions on current trends in preventing burnout syndrome in helping professions, the use of logotherapy in foster care, certain factors enabling the emergence, development, and spread of socially pathological phenomena (“cyberbullying”), religiosity and the value of human life, and an empirical analysis of the competencies of social workers in institutional care for people with intellectual disabilities.

The political science contribution analyzes selected institutions and documents within the European system of human rights protection, while the British and American studies paper examines the relationship between metaphor and metonymy in the interpretation of the meaning of new English compounds.

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Gabriel Eštok - Renáta Bzdilová - Jakub Bardovič

Proceedings of the 4th Annual Scientific Conference of Students and Young Scholars, held on May 14 and 15, 2015, by the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, in cooperation with the civic association Res Publica, are part of the project VVGS-2014-214. Title: The Electoral Census in the 21st Century.

This proceedings volume is the result of the fourth conference of its kind, which provides a platform for the young scientific community to meet and discuss political issues of the Slovak Republic as well as the international political scene. Once again, it can be stated that the discussion was stimulating and of a high qualitative level. The selection of topics reflects the interests of the young scientific community.

The resulting publication discusses and analyzes a wide range of diverse problems and issues that the young scientific community in Central Europe addresses in connection with citizenship and civil society. Topics such as civil society; the relationship between citizen and state; the hypersocial networked society; the potential of civil society in reducing corruption in public administration under the conditions of the Slovak Republic; barriers to political participation-the electoral census and its historical context in Slovak conditions; dual citizenship; protection of human rights in a democratic society; motherhood; the position of women in Islam or the status of Jewish women; protection of victims of crime; women in revolutions or the role of women’s civic associations in the context of the Ukrainian crisis; Chinese interests in the Arctic or the issue of labor camps and human rights violations-all enrich this publication with perspectives and analyses from young people with strong scientific potential.

Our common goal is to stimulate interest in the study of a wide range of societal issues and to contribute our perspectives to attempts at solving the topics raised.

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Jana Balegová

The textbook Lectiones grammaticae Latinae I is primarily intended for first-year students specializing in Latin Language and Literature at the Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice.

It was created out of the practical need to provide students with easy electronic access to the grammar material covered in the order in which it appears in the lessons of the Latin exercise book used in the course.

For this reason, it also includes grammatical topics that go beyond Latin morphology, which forms the main content of the grammar course in the first year of study. However, if necessary, it can also be used by students of other study programs that include Latin as part of their curriculum.

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Renáta Orosová - Zuzana Boberová - Emília Marcinová (eds.)

Proceedings of Abstracts from the International Scientific Conference, 12–13 September 2016

The international scientific conference is focused on issues of education and upbringing within primary, secondary, and higher education, as well as school institutions, from the perspective of the educator. Emphasis is placed on the current state and prospects of educators in educational practice, pedagogical and sociological aspects of upbringing in fundamental educational and upbringing institutions, as well as current aspects of pre-service teacher training.

The conference is intended for researchers, young university teachers, doctoral students, as well as professional and pedagogical staff, with the aim of presenting the educator-teacher, social pedagogue, and special pedagogue-from a contemporary perspective, highlighting their essential cooperation in relation to education, and stimulating discussion on current issues in the presented areas of upbringing and education within the context of the present situation in the school system.

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Ivica Hajdučeková

The collection of studies included in the monographic publication Spirituality in the (Re)interpretation of Works of Slovak Literature was created and matured gradually, over the course of more than ten years (2003–2015).

Some of the studies were part of the defended dissertation Compositional and Semantic Specifics of Slovak Interwar Prose (Prešov 2005), others originated within scientific research (grant) projects, but all were refined against the background of specifying selected methodological approaches. The studies were gradually published in academic journals and scientific anthologies both in Slovakia and abroad (precise details are provided in the footnotes as well as in the editorial note).

In the monograph, they are arranged according to the period of their creation, not publication, in order to preserve the genesis of the author’s scientific research profile. Their arrangement also secondarily respects the analytical-interpretative intersections into the poetics of specific texts. This is why the works on Slovak interwar literature are presented first, followed by those focused on the works of Slovak realists.

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Renáta Orosová - Zuzana Boberová

The university textbook "Pregraduate Teacher Preparation – Organization of Pedagogical Practice at UPJŠ" reflects the changes that have occurred in the pregraduate preparation of students of academic subject teaching in connection with the comprehensive accreditation in 2015. It is intended for students of the second level of university studies in the study programs of Academic Subject Teaching at the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science at UPJŠ in Košice. The aim of the university textbook is to provide theoretical foundations and methodological guidelines for the organization of all types of pedagogical practice carried out under the conditions of UPJŠ.

Preparation for the teaching profession has both theoretical and practical components. While theoretical academic preparation focuses on acquiring and developing knowledge, skills, and competencies in pedagogy, psychology, and the scientific disciplines of the teaching subjects, practical professional preparation is oriented towards preparing for the actual performance of the profession, i.e., the didactic aspect of the teaching process. A significant part of the practical preparation for the teaching profession is realized within the subject of pedagogical practice, which at UPJŠ takes four forms/levels – Observational pedagogical-psychological practice, Ongoing teaching practice, Continuous teaching practice I, and Continuous teaching practice II.

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Adriana Jesenková

The ethics of care offers inspiring ways to think about the relationships and connections we are part of. It provides a new and unconventional reading and understanding of human relationships, thereby enabling us to respond in new and appropriate ways to certain empirical challenges (Pettersen 2011, p. 51).

Just twenty-five years ago, thinking about care was associated with women’s decisions in the private sphere concerning their personal dilemmas and problems. Over the last two decades, advocates of the ethics of care have demonstrated that the ideal of care has the potential to regulate not only private behavior but also human interactions in general.

Today, ideas about care have the power to change how we evaluate personal relationships, professional conduct, public policy, international relations, and global issues. The relevance of the ethics of care in such a wide range of areas of life, many of which are characterized by mutual incompatibilities and conflicting interests, is conditioned by several factors. However, one of the most significant is the creativity and fruitfulness of the thinking of the representatives of the ethics of care, who develop ethical concepts, models, and methods capable of grasping and analyzing human relationships in all their diversity (Pettersen 2011, p. 52).

Compared to traditional ethical concepts and theories in moral philosophy, the ethics of care introduces radically different sets of models and normative concepts. Today, it is precisely feminist ethics of care that offers a critical reflection on care within the realm of moral philosophy, ethics, and social philosophy. The aim of this publication is to identify the concept, subject, approach, philosophical foundations and starting points, as well as the possibilities for applying the ethics of care as a specific moral approach and, at the same time, as a specific moral theory in the field of social science and humanities research.

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Mária Mičaninová

Scholars whose works constitute medieval philosophy were active as theologians, jurists, physicians, and sometimes even poets. Among them, there is hardly anyone who could be described exclusively as a philosopher.

For theologians and (religious) jurists, the primary source of their philosophical reflection was the Bible or the Qur’an. The second source was the philosophical heritage of the preceding antiquity, in which the figure of Aristotle and his commentators dominated. The Peripatetic legacy was complemented by followers of Plato in the long line of so-called Neoplatonic philosophy (e.g., Plotinus, Iamblichus, and Proclus), which in its beginnings developed within the environment of Hellenistic schools.

It is therefore not surprising that the main philosophical problem for medieval scholars was the relationship between theology and philosophy, or faith and reason, and, consequently, the relationship between theology and metaphysics. In the context of Christian thought, this was already discussed in the 2nd century, when some Church Fathers questioned the value of secular learning for those to whom the truth had been revealed by God.

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Tatiana Kimáková a kol.

Ethics, as the science of the proper realization of human potential in various areas of life, also extends into the environment. For understanding the ethical aspects in this field, a thorough knowledge of the individual components of the environment, as well as their impact not only on humans but on all living nature, is very important. Therefore, questions concerning the influence of the environment are increasingly at the forefront of interest from an ethical perspective, also in connection with existing legal norms.

The modern process of civilization is characterized by rapid development of science and technology. However, this development, while raising the standard of living on one hand, also brings negative side effects on the other. The result is the disruption of ecological, biological, and natural life conditions, especially in the areas of industrial centers. The development of individual branches of industry leads to the production of liquid, gaseous, and solid wastes, the emergence of harmful risk factors threatening various components of living nature, including humans. There may be increased bioaccumulation of hazardous chemical elements in organisms, which, through their effects, represent a potential risk also in terms of carcinogenesis and mutagenesis.

For this reason, an important role of society is to create conditions to prevent the release of emissions and to reduce their concentration to the lowest possible, socially and biologically acceptable level. The assessment of the biological effects of harmful substances is based on experimental and epidemiological studies. Knowledge of concentration and duration of exposure is crucial for applying dose-effect relationships and for determining the highest permissible concentrations of pollutants. The health of the population, as a universal value and a primary human right, represents a fundamental economic resource not only for the individual, but also for society as a whole.

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Silvia Farkašová Iannaccone a kol.

The history of ethics represents the search for a fundamental principle that would enable a person to distinguish between moral and immoral, good and evil, or right and wrong. The main issues are the motives, methods, and consequences of human actions.

The integrity of the medical profession emphasizes lifelong study and practice according to professional competence, and, last but not least, adherence to ethical principles and standards of medical ethics. Medical ethics and the related communication in the process of providing healthcare are becoming increasingly relevant topics. Communication between doctor and patient itself constitutes a very important part of the diagnostic process and treatment; it significantly contributes to the creation of a mutual relationship and, to a considerable extent, ensures patient cooperation.

The development of various information and network technologies allows for rapid communication even in medicine; however, a kind word and real contact with the patient, with an appropriate choice of verbal and nonverbal communication tools in personal contact, cannot be replaced by modern technology. The present era places demands on certain communication skills of the physician. Another ethical and legal issue is informed consent, which brings the patient’s active participation in the process of providing healthcare.

The presented publication provides basic information about medical ethics, communication in medicine in general, and communication skills in medical practice. Further chapters are devoted to the issue of informed consent, ethics, and the specifics of communication with selected groups of patients. We believe that this publication will clarify for the reader the basic ethical pillars and will be helpful for basic orientation in the issues of medical communication.

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Nikita Bobrova kol.

The concept of medical ethics is interpreted as both applied and professional ethics. As a bioethical discipline, it consists of three normative parts: biogenesis, biotherapy, and thanatology. From an ethical perspective, medicine is part of clinical bioethics; however, at the current stage, “evidence-based ethics” is still lacking.

In the context of standardizing health care, there is an excessive development of certain components of bioethics (such as ethical codes and the concept of patient autonomy), but also a reduction, especially of its clinical component (such as communication, thanatology, euthanasia, dysthanasia, and futile treatment). Current legislative efforts are leading to a reduction in the rights of health care workers, particularly in terms of corporate autonomy.

The fundamental task of medical ethics is the cultivation of medical professionalism, which is defined as the professional alignment of expert, ethical, and legal reasoning, and as a starting point for thinking in terms of values, with reflection on the bioethical space in clinical and professional practice.

Since society declares health as its priority, this priority should positively influence the entire health care system, and its basic idea should be a health care system based on a humanistic ethical paradigm with social and professional application.

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Iveta Cimbolákováa kol.

The premise “today’s research shapes the healthcare of tomorrow” expresses the importance of medical research and the reason for its pursuit. Scientific research and advances in biomedical sciences, as well as their application in medical practice and in the process of delivering healthcare, nevertheless bring new problems in the area of ethics.

Biomedical research itself requires the precise definition of hypotheses, which are tested both under laboratory conditions and on experimental animals. Although clinical studies on human subjects are expected to benefit individual participants and to advance fundamental biomedical knowledge, they also entail certain risks depending on the nature of the research. These risks must be minimized, and the experiment should be conducted freely while also taking place within specific measures to protect all involved-not only the test subjects, but also the researchers themselves.

The presented publication provides an overview of the general conditions and ethical principles of research involving laboratory animals and human subjects, the issue of professional and ethical assessment of projects, as well as fraud and the publication of results. At present, we are witnessing tremendous progress in molecular biological sciences, which brings ethical dilemmas also in the field of genetics. For this reason, one of the chapters is devoted to the latest findings in this area.

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Lívia Körtvélyessy

This university textbook explains to students enrolled in the course Linguistic Typology and Universals the basic terminology, theoretical approaches, and research methods. The textbook is divided into eleven chapters. Each chapter presents theoretical knowledge in an accessible manner, along with practical exercises aimed at developing students’ skills in the respective area.

The textbook covers the following topics: the subject and nature of linguistic typology, a brief history of this linguistic discipline, genealogical classification of languages, various approaches and main objectives of typology across different linguistic levels (phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon), as well as areal typology, complex issues of language universals, and the nature and essence of typologists’ work. Given the extensive research activities of linguists from the Department of British and American Studies at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, the textbook also introduces students to the results achieved by these scholars in this rapidly developing field of linguistics.

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Anna Tkáčová

The main topic of this publication is the Roma, their status, and life in Hungary, specifically in the Abov, Šariš, and Turnia counties in the second half of the 18th century, particularly according to the censuses conducted during the reign of Maria Theresa and Joseph II.

The work is divided into six chapters and fourteen subchapters. It contains three images, twenty-eight tables, and twenty-nine graphs. The introductory chapter deals with the state of research on the subject (i.e., the Roma in the second half of the 18th century) from 18th-century authors to contemporary authors who have dealt with or are still dealing with it.

In the first chapter, the author briefly mentions the Indian origin of the Roma, the social affiliation of the Roma ancestors, their departure from India, their migration until their arrival in Hungary, as well as the names given to the Roma by the surrounding world. It also mentions the first reports on the Roma in Hungary and in the territory of today's eastern Slovakia, as well as their status in Hungary until the first half of the 18th century. 

In the second chapter, the author touches on the life of the Roma in the Abov, Šariš, and Turnia counties in the light of archival materials from the second half of the 18th century and presents the administrative division of these counties during this period.

The third chapter discusses the royal decrees of the Enlightenment rulers Maria Theresa and Joseph II concerning the Roma and briefly describes the political situation and the resolution of socio-economic issues in Hungary in the second half of the 18th century.

The fourth chapter is devoted in detail to the censuses of the Roma in the Abov, Šariš, and Turnia counties during the reign of Maria Theresa and Joseph II, their objectives, characteristics, contributions, as well as their shortcomings, and presents the methodology of numerical and graphical processing of these censuses.

The fifth chapter contains a comprehensive graphical comparison and evaluation of the Roma censuses from all three counties. The overall findings about the life of the Roma in the Abov, Šariš, and Turnia counties are presented in the sixth, concluding chapter.

The main finding of this research is that the regulation of the Roma was carried out with only minimally successful (from the rulers' perspective) results, as the affected Roma families continued to roam both during and after the regulation. They practiced so-called "hidden roaming."

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Zuzana Boberová

The aim of this university textbook is primarily to provide a comprehensive and systematic overview of the basic legislative documents related to pedagogical activities and the educational work of teachers in school practice. The textbook is primarily intended for students of academic teacher training programs, as well as recent graduates of teacher education who are beginning their teaching careers.

This publication is unique in that it does not focus on specific legislative documents and their descriptions, but rather presents the meaning and wording of various legislative documents in the context of key concepts of educational activities and typical school situations. The publication does not include the full text of cited paragraphs from laws, decrees, and ministerial guidelines, but only excerpts that are relevant to the focus and needs of the textbook.

In this way, we aim to help teacher training students and beginning teachers orient themselves regarding their rights and responsibilities as defined and delineated by school legislation, and especially to help them understand the basic legislative requirements placed on every teacher in school practice. This includes participation in the preparation of the school educational program, understanding the professional development of teachers, student assessment, approaches to students with special needs, as well as handling common school situations such as disciplinary measures, school accidents, ski training, or school events.

Given the scope of these areas, we have divided the topics into two publications according to their thematic focus.

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Soňa Gabzdilová

The educational system (schooling) is one of the most effective tools for shaping the young generation in any advanced society. Schools not only create the knowledge base necessary for fulfilling the demands of the economy and the social sphere, but they also shape the national and ideological identity of each member of society. The school plays a decisive role in forming positive values, but it can also become a breeding ground for xenophobia and racist attitudes. The school has an irreplaceable role in creating national consciousness, identification with one's own nation, its history, the heroic deeds of ancestors, and the meaning of its existence.

After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary, there were fundamental geopolitical changes in Central Europe. One of these was the creation of Czechoslovakia, a state founded on radically different principles than pre-war Hungary. The founders of the Czechoslovak Republic (CSR), the personalities who decisively determined the character of the political system in the newly established republic, did not belong to the privileged classes of the previous regime. Unlike Hungary, where political power was controlled almost without exception by the nobility, the elite in Czechoslovakia consisted of men who were radical critics of Austria-Hungary.

A fitting example was the most influential figure of interwar Czechoslovakia, President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. Despite his origins, Masaryk was perceived by both Czechs and Slovaks as the founder of the state, a legendary figure whose political and social influence far exceeded the powers of the presidential office.

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Ivica Hajdučeková

The development of this bilingual coursebook evolved as part of project KEGA Nr. 020UPJŠ-4/2013 headed by prof. PhDr. Ján Gbúr, CSc., and emerged from earlier research which had successfully analysed realist and modernist Slovak literature from a gender perspective. Based on initial interpretations which drew from philosophical, sociological and historiographical approaches, we were able to anticipate the issues which could be raised in other texts and thus establish a hypothesis for the subsequent literaryscientific research. Our research has also been influenced by the continually evolving nature of gender studies, and we have therefore decided to adopt a somewhat unusual approach in this coursebook and briefly examine some contemporary texts thereby creating an intentional shift in our timeline. The modern works of Z.Kepplová and U. Kovalyk have raised a number of interesting issues, and a study of the interwar work of M. Urban reveals further interpretations on the basis of gender. After this brief overview, we return to the main focus of the study: gender approaches to Slovak literature of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The study focuses on the complexity of male-female relationships in the work of both male and female authors of realist and modernist literature at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. Works by the founding generation of realism and late realism were analysed, with particular attention being paid to the fiction of M. Kukučín, J. Čajak, J. G. Tajovský, J. Jesenský, E. M. Šoltésová, T. Vansová, Ľ. Podjavorinská and B. S. Timrava. The works of H. Gregorová and Ľ. Groeblová were also studied as prime examples of Slovak literary modernism. 

We hope that this bilingual coursebook will allow realist and modernist Slovak fiction, and the Slovak national literary tradition in general, to receive wider critical renown beyond the borders of Slovakia and also to demonstrate its place in contemporary literary theory.

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Ján Juščák - Milan Darák

 The aim of the monograph was to analyze and address the issue of educational systems within children's and youth organizations, with an emphasis on those focused on the age category of children up to 15 years.

The starting point was an analysis of the current state of the educational environment in terms of the systemic nature of education and the basic categories of the educational system. The collected available materials on the educational systems of selected (most representative) children's and youth organizations in the Slovak Republic were subsequently processed according to a unified methodology and using generally accepted pedagogical terminology.

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Ján Juščák - Milan Darák

The aim of the monograph was to analyze the pedagogical possibilities of educational systems within children's and youth organizations, with an emphasis on those targeting the age group of children up to 15 years.

The starting point was an analysis of the current state of theory and practice in children's and youth organizations, with the intention of describing prevailing trends in their development and activities. This publication closely follows the previous monograph (Juščák, J. – Darák, M.: 2015), in which we processed, according to a unified methodology and using generally accepted pedagogical terminology, the collected available materials on the educational systems of selected (most representative) children's and youth organizations in Slovakia. Through a subsequent comparison of the obtained empirical data on educational systems, we aimed to identify their similar (identical) as well as specific (distinct) elements as a basis for establishing categorization criteria for their classification.

The culmination of our efforts was an attempt to characterize a children's organization as an educational institution, describing its characteristic features, functions, aims, content, principles, and educational methodology.

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Soňa Šnircová

This textbook has been designed as supporting material for the postgraduate course on modern trends in European literature. It focuses on the presentation of five modern literary modes of writing: the realistic mode which was brought to its prominence by the nineteenth-century Realist movement; the stream-of-consciousness and ‘absurdist’ modes which were developed in the context of modernism; and the magical realist and metafictional modes which are associated mainly with postmodernist literary trends. Each mode is represented by a well-known text which demonstrates the formal aspects of each mode and deals with the thematic concerns typical of the literary movement that influenced its production.

The textbook adopts an interdisciplinary approach, placing the chosen literary texts into the historical, philosophical and cultural contexts that shaped their characters, and thereby providing the background knowledge necessary for a deeper understanding of their formal and thematic aspects.

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Mária Ganajová

The current teaching of chemistry has its specific problems. On one hand, due to the shift of the focus of chemistry curriculum towards theoretical content, the difficulty of chemistry material has increased, and in connection with this, students' interest in chemistry has decreased.

The lack of student interest in chemistry is mostly supported by the opinion that it is precisely chemistry that significantly contributes to the deterioration of environmental quality. On the other hand, we live in an era where we encounter chemical products practically everywhere. It is necessary to learn the basics of chemistry as well as possible, which makes the question of increasing interest in chemistry education and improving its effectiveness very relevant. State educational programs have been introduced into Slovak schools as a foundation for the creation of school educational programs. These emphasize not only acquiring a certain amount of knowledge but also the development and enhancement of key and specific competencies of students, preparing them for lifelong learning and their application in life.

Therefore, increasing attention is being paid to one of the fundamental didactic tools for raising student activity in teaching, and thus improving the effectiveness of chemistry education – learning tasks. From both theory and practice of chemistry teaching, we know that learning tasks, questions, examples, exercises, etc., are among the important components of every teaching lesson. Learning tasks are applied in all phases of teaching – in the motivational phase, the phase of acquiring knowledge, the phase of consolidating knowledge, and the phase of checking the acquired knowledge. It is therefore clear that every teacher will sooner or later find themselves in a situation where they will have to select learning tasks from textbooks, workbooks, collections of problems and examples, or create them themselves.

This scientific monograph is intended for educational specialists and chemistry teachers, aiming to familiarize them with examples of various types and forms of learning tasks and the basics of their creation in chemistry. It can also be helpful for them in preparing certification works focused on test creation and their statistical evaluation.

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Gabriel Eštok - Mária Hrehová - Renáta Bzdilová (eds.)

Collection of contributions from II. year of the Student Scientific Conference held on May 17, 2013 by the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Pavel Jozef Šafárik in Košice

The collection was created on the basis of an event with a thematically defined and political science, perhaps the most frequently discussed issue of democracy. I would add that the event was also attended by doctoral students of other fields of study, who analyzed the topic of democracy from positions other than political science. I very much welcomed the fact that a contribution from the legal issues of the European Union appeared in the proceedings. Enriching the collection is also a contribution from international political issues, which sheds light on democratic rules applied in territory other than European. Other contributions focus on various aspects of the creation of a democratic political environment in Slovakia and the European Union, while several sympathetic attempts at non-traditional perspectives on the development of civil society, public and party politics appear in them.

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Daniel Dobiaš

The work deals with the evolution in theory and practice of democracy, open society and humanism which is marked by dichotomy of its own progressive and regressive features. Civilization trajectory of human reality, the implementation strategy thought overlaps through a reality in the form of freedom, solidarity and human rights, formulation of normative ideas of man and his/her nature, rationalistic universalism and voluntaristic individualism created preconditions for the political background of modern societies which established democratic order with rules allowing to dispose with freedom to which the individual, as a rational being, is authorized. Moreover, the perspective of awareness of ambiguity and paradoxical content of individual parameters of democracy, open society and humanism, ideologically shaped and fixed by worldviews of economic and political elites, from our point of view, is a mirror image of how those conditions differ from the standard assumptions formulated in theory. 

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Ján Juščák - Renáta Orosová - Zuzana Nováková

Proceedings of the International Scientific Conference February 5 -február 2014 6, 2014

Conference proceedings of abstracts is one of the outputs of the international scientific conference entitled Education 2014: Contexts of education in the current perspective held 5 to 6 Feb 2014 at University of Pavol Jozef Šafárika in Kosice. This conference focused on the issues of education and emphasizes the current state and prospects of educational practice, topical aspects of undergraduate teacher training, health psychology in educational practice, as well as pedagogical and psychological aspects of education in primary educational institutions in view of the broad educational community. It was aimed for scientists, young university teachers, PhD students as well as experts and teachers, to present trends in education and to stimulate discussion on topical issues presented in the field of education.

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Soňa Lovašová a kol.

Violence in the workplace has been a problem that has received attention for fifty years. Client violence is one of its forms. These are cases where the aggressor is a person coming to an institution to use its services. Client violence affects all helping professions. This monograph deals with the specifics of client violence in social work.

In addition to theoretical outputs, it also offers research results conducted on a sample of 1170 respondents, frontline workers in selected entities providing services in the social field in Slovakia. The monograph represents a summary of three years of work by eight experts. Each author contributed within their area of expertise and brought a different perspective to the issue. The main aim was to bring a variety of views on the issue and attempt to combine them into a cohesive whole. Thus, a monograph was created that contains interesting theoretical foundations included in six theoretical chapters, starting with the introductory chapter on the position of client violence in the area of workplace violence.

The following chapters address the risk and riskiness of social work, ethical aspects, the personality of the social worker, and risk areas of social work. The research chapter presents the research project to the reader and three subchapters of findings processed in tables and described in detail.

The final part of the monograph deals with prevention and group work. An important part is also the appendices, which include a questionnaire battery, a program implemented for social work students, and a proposed program for workers in the social field.

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Soňa Lovašová (ed.)

Proceedings of the Scientific Conference with International Participation held on November 28, 2014, in Košice

Social work is among the helping professions that can be considered highly risky from various perspectives. The clientele utilizing social services is very diverse, often consisting of individuals in extreme life situations. It is typical for help to be sought only when the client is at rock bottom. Along with other factors, this can lead to the emergence of various risky situations. The proceedings were created within the framework of the VEGA task No. 1/0332/12 titled Analysis of Selected Risk Factors of Client Violence in Social Work with an Emphasis on Prevention of Client Violence and Preparation of Social Workers - National Mapping of the Occurrence of Client Violence Against Social Workers in Slovakia. The thematic focus of the proceedings is broader, as client violence is only one of many risks in social work. In the proceedings, the reader will find 52 articles that address the riskiness of social work from many perspectives. They offer an interesting overview of theoretical foundations as well as research findings. The numerous thematic contributions indicate that the issue of risk in social work is highly relevant and that attention is paid to it in both theory and practice.

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