DEMOKRACIA • Stav – Kontexty – Perspektívy

E-book

Pavol Tholt

The work presented in the following text is an attempt to analyze Patočka's perspective on the emergence and essence of mathematical natural science in the 17th century. During this period, Patočka's attention was particularly drawn to Descartes' philosophy and Cartesianism, as well as the philosophies of Galileo, Bacon, and Leibniz.

Patočka himself devoted continuous and exceptional attention to these questions, as evidenced by several monographic works and numerous articles and studies he wrote on the subject.

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Renáta Orosová (výkonný redaktor)

Vedecko-odborný časopis Edukácia je zameraný na problematiku vzdelávania a výchovy v oblasti základného, stredného a vysokého školstva. Zreteľ kladie na súčasný stav a perspektívy edukačnej praxe, aktuálne aspekty pregraduálnej prípravy učiteľov, sociálnej pedagogiky, špeciálnej pedagogiky, ako aj pedagogické a psychologické aspekty výchovy v základných výchovných inštitúciách z pohľadu širokej pedagogickej verejnosti. Je určený vedeckým pracovníkom, mladým vysokoškolským učiteľom, doktorandom, ako aj odborným a pedagogickým pracovníkom, s cieľom prezentovať trendy v edukácii a vyvolať diskusiu k aktuálnym otázkam prezentovaných oblastí výchovy a vzdelávania.

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E-journal

Renáta Orosová (výkonný redaktor)

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The scientific-professional journal Edukácia focuses on issues of education and upbringing in the fields of primary, secondary, and higher education.

It emphasizes the current state and perspectives of educational practice, contemporary aspects of pre-service teacher training, social pedagogy, special pedagogy, as well as pedagogical and psychological aspects of upbringing in basic educational institutions from the perspective of the broader educational community.

It is intended for researchers, young university lecturers, doctoral students, and professional and pedagogical staff, with the aim of presenting trends in education and stimulating discussion on current issues in the presented areas of upbringing and education.

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E-book

Dušan Šlosár - Vladimír Lichner

This university textbook aims to provide readers with knowledge of the philosophical foundations, meaning, and purpose of mediation, based on research and analysis of mediators' activities. In countries where mediation services operate, their staff often include graduates of social work departments.

An individual approach to both the perpetrator and victim of a criminal offense requires knowledge and skills from social work, psychology, sociology, communication, and related fields tied to social work. The principles of social work apply not only in social policy and social care but also in justice. A mediator’s mission is to facilitate alternative resolutions to unlawful acts while preserving the purpose of legal proceedings as defined by valid legal norms. They fulfill this mission through specific methods of individual social work applied in the justice sector. The mediator’s focus extends beyond the current conflict to uncover related issues, activate parties to resolve disputes, and prevent new conflicts.

Special attention is devoted to the philosophical foundations of mediation in Slovakia. We provide an overview of mediators’ core activities and mediation types used to uphold justice in Slovakia. We analyze mediation goals, the roles of parties involved, and procedural steps. In applying mediation, we explore its potential and implementation in both legal and social work contexts.

As indicated, mediation cannot be understood solely as a specialized activity in criminal justice, as it has broader applications in non-judicial dispute resolution, such as family or community work, which are often overlooked by the public. The mediator’s approach to diverse target groups is grounded in theoretical frameworks. From this foundation, we derive activities expected of mediators in the future. Expanded activities arise from concrete situations encountered during mediation.

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Stanislav Hvozdík 

Obdobie staršej dospelosti je aj pre psychológiu príležitosť urobiť syntézu svojej prírodovednej tradície a filozofickej tradície. Psychológia sa takto môže lepšie napojiť na mentálnu prácu ľudí žijúcich toto vekové obdobie staršej dospelosti usilujúcich v rozličnej miere o  komplexicitu vo svojom živote. Psychológia môže pomôcť tomuto úsiliu, pretože celistvosť človeka je aj programom jej rozvoja. Publikácia rozpoznáva seniora  nie len ako objekt, ale aj ako subjekt usilujúci o svoju podmetovosť na jeho celoživotnej ceste. Priatie veku hľadá svoje optimálne vyjadrenie a je možné najmä v súvsťažností psychologického a spirituálneho vývinu človeka. Psychológia staršieho človeka objavuje starobu nie ako totalitu vyraďujúcu človeka  z cyklu života, ale ako obdobie výberu pre život dôležitých domén spojených s preladením do vnútra, ktoré doceňuje pokoj. V tejto optike sa selektujú veci a javy tak aby nerušili, ale harmonizovali. To nie je odmietnutie vonkajšieho, ale rozlíšenie kedy dáva zmysel. Staroba preveruje aj spoločnosť , verejnosť, ktorá by mala odrážať úroveň procesov starostlivosti o duševno. Aby svet urobilo užitočným pre človeka, ale je aj dôvodom ako to vyjadril Patočka samotnej starostlivosti o toto duševno. Pozícia starého človeka v spoločnosti je obrazom toho akú váhu spoločnosť prikladá duševnému životu ľudí. Publikácia prináša poznatky psychologickej povahy o tomto vekovom období a v špeciálnej časti informácie okolo pomáhania a poradenstva. 

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E-book

Zuzana Buráková - Petra Filipová

The canon of American literature has undergone constant revision with many authors who were long excluded from wider recognition now being accepted as significant figures. With the emergence of postcolonial and ethnic studies after the 1960s, the diversity of the literary canon has become greater than ever, and we can now see American literature as remarkably distinctive in this respect.

The question of how to define ethnicity and how far an immigrant should go to preserve their ethnic heritage have always been addressed by writers, together with larger issues such as the definition of national identity and national literature, and where we should draw the lines between local and global identities. We understand that a single course in American ethnic literature cannot hope to answer all these complex questions, but we firmly believe that discussing these questions in classes can help us to be more understanding and tolerant of ethnic diversity.

For this reason, the main aim of this textbook is to provide an interdisciplinary introduction to American ethnic literatures with an emphasis on their historical and cultural background, to expand students’ knowledge of American literatures and cultures at the master’s level and familiarize them with specific features of ethnic literatures in the contemporary USA. The textbook contains information on Native American, African American, Asian American, Jewish American, and Hispanic American literature, history and culture.

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E-journal

Juraj Schenk et al.

The scientific journal Sociálne a politické analýzy (Social and Political Analyses) serves as an interactive electronic platform for communication and the presentation (publication) of experts and their work in the fields of basic and applied research and analyses within sociological, psychological, political, and methodological contexts. It is a medium focused on intensively supporting research activities and analyses within an interdisciplinary framework, facilitating the exchange of experiences, fostering collaboration, and revitalizing the production of scientific work in this area.

The publication section of the journal offers space for works such as:

- Original sociological, psychological, and political studies and analyses in any areas of social life

- Methodological studies

- Research reports

- Studies from qualification theses Research and analysis projects

- Reviews

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Linda Babušík Adamčíková - Gabriel Koscelanský - Mária Petriková (eds.)

Proceedings of the VI. Annual International Scientific Conference of Students and Young Researchers organized on May 11–12, 2017 by the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Arts at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, the Department of Political Sciences and Public Administration at Uzhhorod National University, the Research Institute of Central Europe, and the Res publica Association.

Presented publication is an outcome from the international scientific conference for students and young scientists that took place on 11th and 12th May 2017 at the Department of Political science, Faculty of Arts, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice. The main aim of the presented is to bring up outcomes of research of young scientists and students from Slovakia, as well as from abroad.

This conference proceedings contains 19 papers in Slovak, Czech and English language. Papers are dealing with current issues of theory and practice of politics and international relations. We can find paper analyzing globalization, international terrorism, topic of EU or development of European states. The conference proceedings contents also papers regarding the far-right parties, role of women in  politics and integration migrants in Slovak republic.

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E-book

Vladimír Leško - Zlatica Plašienková (eds.)

Philosophical Proceedings Kant in the Contexts of Husserl's and Heidegger's Philosophy is a presentation of the results of the Second International Philosophical Conference, which took place on November 5-7, 2008 at the UPJŠ in Košice.

The conference was prepared by the Department of Philosophy and History of Philosophy, Faculty of Philosophy, UPJŠ in very close cooperation with the Slovak Philosophical Association at the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava. The structure of the presented proceedings was divided into three basic parts. The first part contains the papers that were presented at the conference and constitute a crucial part of the content of our proceedings. The individual papers are arranged in the order in which they were presented at the conference. The second part of the proceedings contains the speeches from the inauguration ceremony of the award of the honorary title of Doctor honoris causa to Milan Sobotka and Teodor Münz. In the third part, a photo-documentation is published in which the ceremonial academic act of conferring the honorary degree of Doctor honoris causa is captured. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

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Alexander Onufrák - Ján Ruman - Jana Šutajová - Peter Getlík

The presented textbook aims to introduce students to the issue of political extremism from various perspectives—namely, normative, historical, and discursive-empirical.

It addresses the significance and role of active citizenship, which, as one of several potential solutions, has the capacity to a certain extent to eliminate the rise of manifestations of political extremism in society by deepening democratic principles in practice.

The presented textbook is a direct output of the KEGA grant project "Innovative Model of Education Leading to Active Citizenship as a Prevention of the Rise of Political Extremism among Students" (014UPJŠ-4/2020). The principal investigator of the project is Assoc. Prof. Mgr. Gabriel Eštok, PhD. The project was carried out in the years 2020–2022.

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Barbora Linhartová - Peter Dubóczi - Dávid Gajdoščík (eds.)

Proceedings of the Xth Annual International Scientific Conference of Students and Young Researchers organized on October 1, 2021, by the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Arts at Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, in cooperation with the Institute of Political Science and Public Administration of the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin, the Institute of Social Studies of the Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies at Mendel University in Brno, the Department of Political Science of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Miskolc, and the Res Publica Civic Association.

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E-journal

Juraj Schenk a kol.

The scientific journal Sociálne a politické analýzy (Social and Political Analyses) serves as an interactive electronic platform for communication and the presentation (publication) of experts and their work in the fields of basic and applied research and analyses within sociological, psychological, political, and methodological contexts. It is a medium focused on intensively supporting research activities and analyses within an interdisciplinary framework, facilitating the exchange of experiences, fostering collaboration, and revitalizing the production of scientific work in this area.

The publication section of the journal offers space for works such as:

- Original sociological, psychological, and political studies and analyses in any areas of social life

- Methodological studies

- Research reports

- Studies from qualification theses Research and analysis projects

- Reviews

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E-book

Renáta Gregová

This textbook is designated for the students of translation and interpreting study programmes. The increase of linguistic competence in foreign language, but also in mother tongue is an inevitable part of the preparation of translators and interpreters. The low linguistic competence is often one of the reasons of the unsatisfactory quality of translation. The main aim of this book is to provide the material for the consolidation of linguistic terminology and for the improvement of oral and written utterances in the Slovak language.

Consequently, the textbook encompasses the theoretical and the practical part. The theoretical part summarizes the basic knowledge of language levels. In the practical part, there is the brief description of the selected orthoepic, morphological, syntactic, lexical and stylistic norms of the standard Slovak with the reference to the relevant literature offering deeper analysis of the given problem. Then practical exercises verifying the mastering of linguistic norms follow. At the end of the book, there is the little Slovak-English dictionary of the selected linguistic terms that may help students in their study of the English linguistics.

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E-book

Margita Mesárošová

Giftedness and creativity represent closely interconnected phenomena that attract attention in various contexts from the perspectives of different scientific disciplines. Psychologists have long been engaged in understanding giftedness and creativity, as well as in developing them through scientific methods, in order to provide valuable insights to educators, parents, students, and even policymakers, with the aim of fostering the potential of gifted and creative individuals.

This textbook offers information about the essence of giftedness and creativity, about model approaches used for their identification, development, and support, with an emphasis on psychological aspects. In addition to theoretical knowledge, the text also includes various types of exercises—self-discovery activities, activities focused on development, case study solutions, as well as questions and tasks for problem-solving.

The textbook is intended for psychology students and anyone interested in the issues of giftedness and creativity.

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E-book

Ján Šimko - Dušan Šlosár

The monograph is dealing with the issue of homosexuality and homophobia in the context of social work and it is divided into five chapters, which are devoted to individual fields of the tackled issue. The first chapter is describing the phenomenon of homosexuality in the society; the focus is put on human sexuality and sexual orientation. The following chapter is clarifying the formation of homosexual identity in connection to coming out and it describes its frequently utilized models. The third chapter is devoted to the concepts of heteronormativity and heterosexism in the social context.

Furthermore, the chapter is dealing with the formation of attitudes towards this issue from the point of view of religion and masculinity. Another chapter is describing homophobia as the result of heteronormativity, stereotypes and prejudice.

In the last chapter, the authors are introducing selected social work theories dealing with the homosexual minority, the approaches to LGBT+ community and suggestions towards elimination of homophobia within the social work environment.

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E-book

Eugen Andreanský

The presented monograph aims to critically map the understanding of the concept of possible worlds.

The first chapter describes the formation of the semantics of possible worlds, along with indicating some problems it brings, which were incisively revealed primarily by W. V. O. Quine. In the next two chapters, the work focuses on more modern views on the nature of possible worlds, with the main attention given to the dichotomy between the possibilist and actualist approach to the question of modalities, alongside which it is necessary to assess other distinctions (essentialism - anti-essentialism, realism - reductionism (or ersatzism or fictionalism), naturalism - non-naturalism, etc.). Increased attention in the work is specifically devoted to the possibilism of D. Lewis and the actualist concepts of S. Kripke, A. Plantinga, R. M. Adams, N. Rescher, D. Armstrong, and J. Hintikka.

An unconventional approach to the issue of possible worlds is captured in the fourth chapter. It is primarily dedicated to the significant concept of Jaakko Hintikka, which works with the notion of epistemic possible worlds and documents the inclination towards the modification and relativization of modal discourse. The conclusion provides an evaluation of the discussion that touches on the main problems associated with considerations of possible worlds.

In the presented monograph, some representative concepts of possible worlds, or possible individuals, are clarified, and the overall process is indicated from assessing possible worlds as ideal logical constructs through their relativization by separate domains of individuals for individual worlds and further through the relationship of attainability to financial, impossible, and non-standard possible worlds.

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