Sometimes it can take an old model ...
'Sometimes it can take an old model,
to build a new one,
that makes the existing model obsolete.'
To borrow from Buckminster Fuller.
Resurgence & Ecologist, Sept/Oct 2020, Issue 322, p.33.
Hodges' model is a conceptual framework to support reflection and critical thinking. Situated, the model can help integrate all disciplines (academic and professional). Amid news items, are posts that illustrate the scope and application of the model. A bibliography and A4 template are provided in the sidebar. Welcome to the QUAD ...
'Sometimes it can take an old model,
to build a new one,
that makes the existing model obsolete.'
To borrow from Buckminster Fuller.
Resurgence & Ecologist, Sept/Oct 2020, Issue 322, p.33.
Posted by Peter Jones at 10:55 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: change , context , creativity , cross-curricula , development , ecology , frameworks , future , global , Hodges' model , ideas , innovation , integration , models , obsolescence , past , present , systems , thought , time
Submission Deadline: Thursday, 31 December 2026
Contemporary bioethics has developed sophisticated tools for ethical decision-making. Yet it often operates within assumptions that reduce life to physiological viability. Ethical questions are frequently treated as matters of procedure and consent. Meanwhile, patients and clinicians face questions that exceed these frameworks. What makes a life worth living? How does illness disrupt or reveal meaning? What forms of care support not just survival but existential coherence? These questions call for a deeper engagement between bioethics and the philosophy of existence.
Despite growing interest in person-centred care, conceptual tools for clinical evaluation remain limited. Frameworks for assessing philosophical sense-making and existential orientation are underdeveloped. The Philosophical Health perspective addresses this gap by going beyond physical and psychological health. It asks how we cultivate meaningful lives through bodily experience, self-understanding, relational belonging, engagement with possibility, purposeful action, and philosophical reflection. The concept draws on the ancient tradition of bios philosophikos. It proposes that healthcare should attend not only to pathology but to the philosophical dimensions of human existence.
This special issue creates space for exploring how philosophical health can deepen bioethical inquiry as an embodied ethics of the good life. It challenges reductive assumptions and fosters practices that support purpose and meaning in lives, even when disrupted by health challenges. We welcome transdisciplinary contributions from philosophers, bioethicists, clinicians, medical humanists, and social scientists. Topics include how philosophical frameworks enrich clinical practice, how healthcare shapes existential experience, how the 4E cognitive approach may inform bioethical theory, and how dialogical methodologies can be integrated into institutional contexts. The issue aims to rediscover bioethics as a genuinely philosophical and existential enterprise, that is as bios ethikos.
My source: Philos-L "The Liverpool List" is run by the Department of Philosophy, University of Liverpool https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/philosophy/philos-l/ Messages to the list are archived at http://listserv.liv.ac.uk/archives/philos-l.html. Follow the list on Twitter @PhilosL. Follow the Department of Philosophy @LiverpoolPhilos
Posted by Peter Jones at 10:55 am | PERMALINK
Labels: 4e-cognition , bioethics , call , concepts , dialogic , ethics , evaluation , frameworks , health , integration , methodology , methods , philosophical counselling , philosophy , planetary , practice , reflection , self , theory , transdisciplinary
'In other words, the current framework means that macroeconomic volatility is mainlined into policy volatility, which adds unnecessarily to economic uncertainty and makes good policymaking less likely. There is also a problem of asymmetry: when the forecast improves, any additional ‘headroom’ is typically treated as free money and happily spent. Yet when the forecast worsens, the rules tend to get changed or ‘gamed’: Chancellors of all political stripes have proved adept at promising future tax rises or spending cuts which are unlikely to be delivered, but which allow them to meet the letter of their rolling fiscal targets.
All this is to say, the current framework is not delivering good outcomes. It is not achieving sustainable public finances, it has limited credibility with financial markets, and it is not creating the conditions for good policymaking or for a high-quality public debate about the important issues at play. It seems likely that any framework, left in place for long enough, will start to create problems in practice, as unhelpful norms emerge and actors find ways to game the system. Just as the tendency of HM Treasury to fudge its forecasts in the 2000s was one reason for the creation of the OBR as a corrective mechanism, the dysfunction around the current framework necessitates a change in thinking and approach.'
My source: Valentina Romei, IFS urges end to fixation on fiscal 'headroom', Financial Times, 19 February, 2026, p.3.
Images: IFS
Posted by Peter Jones at 6:04 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: budget , economics , equilibrium , finance , fiscal studies , frameworks , FT , good , government , headroom , long-term , metrics , outcomes , policy , report , rules , short term , time , trilemma , UK
From: Ulster University Open Research Conference 2026
Simms, V., Jacobs, N., Magee, J., De Ornellas, K., Mollik, E., Kernohan, W. G., Leacock, J., Akter, J., Sempey,
C., Beech, S. E., Naz Asif, R., Yap, L. K., & Miller, K. (2026, Jan 16). Ulster University Open Research
Conference 2026: Conference Speaker Abstracts. Ulster University. Advance online publication.
https://doi.org/10.21251/0d7780ce-ce97-468f-b5d5-69201ca90b20
Speaker: Professor George Kernohan
School or Department: School of Nursing and Paramedic Science Ulster University
Email: wg.kernohan AT ulster.ac.uk
The area(s) of open research talk relates to:
Practice as research; Open data/ Open code
Talk Title:
An example of open research sharing Hodges’ Health Career Model
Abstract:
This paper examines a blog post [see below, pj], “Thinking about a comprehensive framework for dementia,” as a case study illustrating the integration of open research practices within dementia palliative care research. The post introduces the Hodges’ Health Career Model— a four-domain conceptual framework encompassing biomedical, psychological, social, and policy perspectives— to articulate the multidimensional nature of dementia and inform care planning. As an openly accessible research communication, the blog contributes to transparent and inclusive knowledge exchange beyond traditional academic channels.
The blog exemplifies practice-as-research, translating conceptual development from theory into a form of scholarly exposition that invites engagement from practitioners, policymakers, carers, and people living with dementia. It forms part of a wider programme of work in which the research team openly documents methods, emerging findings, and reflections across scoping reviews, surveys, and service case studies hosted on the same platform. These materials complement peer-reviewed open access outputs, including open publications.
The project demonstrates alignment with open research principles through prospective protocol registration: the scoping review protocol is publicly available on PROSPERO. The team’s prior work on blogging as a mechanism for knowledge mobilisation strengthens the methodological coherence of using this medium to disseminate conceptual frameworks and preliminary insights.
Although the blog does not itself provide underlying datasets or analytic code, it outlines methodological approaches that could facilitate future open data practices, particularly in qualitative and mixed-methods research. Overall, the case illustrates a pragmatic and pluralistic adoption of open research methods across dissemination, protocol transparency, and public engagement, offering a model for enhancing accessibility and reproducibility in dementia palliative care research.
.
Title: “Thinking about a comprehensive framework for dementia”
Author: Professor George Kernohan
Date: 7 November 2019
Link: https://pallcare4dementia.com/thinking-about-a-comprehensive-framework-for-dementia/
Posted by Peter Jones at 7:50 am | PERMALINK
Labels: abstract , biomedical , blog , case study , comprehensive , conference , data , dementia , frameworks , Hodges' model , insights , methods , models , Northern Ireland , nursing , open access , open research , palliative care , practice , reflection
Despite decades of national and global strategies, persistent inequities in oral health outcomes, access, and service provision remain. Existing frameworks often fail to integrate clinical and behavioral factors with social, cultural, and political determinants. This study aimed to map and evaluate oral health frameworks using Hodges' Health Career—Care Domains-Model (HCM), a meta-framework that spans clinical, behavioral, sociological, and political domains. The goal was to identify conceptual gaps and opportunities for greater integration.
A structured scoping review was conducted using MEDLINE, CINAHL, EBSCO, and search engine Google Scholar (1995–2025) to identify oral health-related conceptual frameworks. Frameworks were eligible if they addressed oral health determinants, behaviors, policies, or interventions. Two reviewers independently screened records and analyzed full-text articles. Frameworks were categorized by theoretical orientation and mapped against the four HCM domains to identify patterns of emphasis or omission.
HCM proved useful for systematically comparing
frameworks and revealed consistent underrepresentation of political and
structural domains. It offers a practical tool for oral health
professionals, educators, and policymakers developing integrated oral
health models that align with equity, sustainability, and universal
health coverage goals.
S. Bettiol,
P. Jones,
H. A. Onyedikachi, and
W. G. Kernohan, “ Bridging Gaps in Oral Health Frameworks: Mapping With Hodges' Health Career - Care Domains - Model,” Journal of Public Health Dentistry (2026): 1–14,
https://doi.org/10.1111/jphd.70034
Posted by Peter Jones at 9:23 am | PERMALINK
Labels: bibliography , concepts , dentistry , domains , frameworks , gaps , global health , Hodges' model , hygiene , mapping , oral health , paper , policy , political , practice , research , scoping review , study , tools
Re: invitation to the ECVA 2026 conference: reminder ...
Established in 2022, the European Character and Virtue Association offers a forum for promoting research, training and networking in the field of character education. We bring together educational institutions in Europe and scholars from around the world, providing unrivalled opportunities for members to share best practices and shape European policies affecting higher education and research.
The 2026 conference of ECVA will take place in Trnava University, Slovakia, in cooperation with the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, University of Birmingham, the Private University College of Teacher Education of Christian Churches, and the Virtues and Values Education Center of Francisco de Vitoria University.
The Executive Board of the European Character and Virtue Association (ECVA) cordially invites you to attend the 2026 ECVA Conference in Trnava, Slovakia.
Conference Information
Trnava, Slovakia, 2026, 24th to 26th of June
We expect more than:
📍100+ researchers
🏫 40+ universities
🌍 20+ countries
🎤 60+ presentations & keynote addresses
📝 Submit your abstract and find all conference details at the link below:
👉 https://ecva-character.org/ecva-conference-2026
Deadline for Abstract Submission: 31st of January, 2026.
All abstracts will undergo a review process over the course of the following month. Once your proposal has been accepted, you will receive detailed information about registration, conference fee (275,- EUR) processing, accommodation options, and other necessary information.
Notification of Acceptance: 1st of March 2026.
Contributions that demonstrate high quality and close relevance to the main theme of the conference will be accepted for review in preparation for the next scientific monograph produced by the ECVA.
Warm regards,
Dr. Martin Brestovanský
(Trnava University, Slovakia)
on behalf of the ECVA Steering Group
Prof. James Arthur (Harvard University)
Prof. Verónica Fernández (Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Madrid)
Prof. Tom Harrison (Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtue, University of Birmingham)
Prof. Roland Bernhard (University of Teacher Education of Christian Churches, Vienna)
Prof. Claudia Navarini (Università degli Studi Europea di Roma)
Prof. Ines Weber (Paris Lodron Universität Salzburg)
Conference description
Bridging the Knowledge – Action Gap in Character Development
Moral education often assumes that ethical knowledge or cognitive competence alone will result in moral behaviour. Yet lived experience, philosophical reflection, and empirical research consistently show otherwise. A persistent gap exists between what individuals know is right and what they actually do—a phenomenon recognized since antiquity.
Aristotle observed that “we reason here not to know what virtue is, but to become good” (Nicomachean Ethics, 1103b), highlighting that moral reasoning is directed toward formation, not just information. Immanuel Kant similarly acknowledged that a person may clearly understand moral duty and yet lack the will to act accordingly, pointing to the human struggle between reason and inclination.
David Hume went further, arguing that “reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions,” insisting that moral knowledge without rightly ordered desires lacks the power to move us to action. And Martin Buber wittily adds: “The worst notorious liar in the classroom will write a brilliant treatise on the destructive power of falsehood”.
This enduring challenge – now referred to as the knowledge–action gap – remains a pressing concern across education, psychology, and the social sciences. Scholars have described related phenomena in various conceptualizations, such as the reason–action gap, attitude–behaviour gap, intention–behaviour gap, or the knowledge–attitudes–practice (KAP) gap. Each term reflects a common concern: knowing what is right does not reliably lead to doing what is right.
Bridging this divide is a complex task, compounded by the dynamic, deeply personal, and context-sensitive nature of character formation. Educational and behavioural sciences are increasingly turning to integrative approaches that go beyond cognitive instruction. Interventions such as moral sensitization, dramatization, habit training, and reflective practice are being explored to enhance the coherence between values and actions.
There is growing consensus that this so-called “gappiness problem” cannot be resolved through one-size-fits-all solutions (e.g., moral emotions alone or identity-based interventions). Instead, promising “multi-component” models are emerging that draw on diverse disciplines and methodologies to address the challenge.
Conference Goals
By bringing together interdisciplinary perspectives and diverse methodologies, the ECVA 2026 conference aims to deepen our understanding of the knowledge–action gap and to promote innovative, research-informed strategies for strengthening moral coherence and character development in real-world settings.
We look forward to welcoming those committed to advancing theory-informed practice and practice-informed theory in the service of ethical integrity and flourishing lives.
Previously: 'character'
Posted by Peter Jones at 8:00 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: action , bridges , case studies , character , conference , context , curricula , education , evaluation , frameworks , gaps , knowledge , methodology , models , morality , policy , practice , research , schools , teachers
psycho | bio |
| social | ? |
Posted by Peter Jones at 7:40 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: biopsychosocial , care , care architecture , domains , frameworks , health , Hodges' model , integrated care , international , L-shaped model , local , models , national , nursing , nursing theory , policy , political , politics , power , theory
Ack: © Johan Jarnestad /
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
'This morning’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry is one that’s been anticipated for several years now: it goes to Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto, Richard Robson of Melbourne, and Omar Yaghi of Berkeley for metal-organic frameworks.'
'So what’s a MOF? This goes back to the idea of “coordination chemistry”, a huge topic in the inorganic and metal-organic fields.'
'One astonishing characteristic is the amount of surface area locked away in these new materials: a MOF weighing one gramme can have an internal surface area the size of a football pitch^. MOFs are often likened to Hermione Granger's bottomless handbag in the Harry Potter books: a tiny exterior concealing a seemingly infinite interior. Rice University chemist Stavroula Alina Kampouri has called MOFs "magical sponges", describing them as "not just elegant crystals you'd admire under a microscope; they're an entire universe of structures, each like a miniature city of tunnels and rooms waiting to be filled."'
'This is not an ivory-tower sort of topic, though: the importance of these sorts of complexes cannot be overstated. They were the basis for the first Nobel awarded in inorganic chemistry (1913, Alfred Werner) and metal coordination is how the iron atoms in hemoglobin carry oxygen to the cells of your body to keep you alive, for starters. You can say the same thing about photosynthesis in plants, and about the actions of the many crucial enzymes in every living creature on the planet that have metal-ion centers in them. Outside of biology and biochemistry, the structures of minerals similarly cannot be understood without a knowledge of coordination chemistry.' | |||
Posted by Peter Jones at 9:32 am | PERMALINK
Labels: 3D , coordination , crystals , frameworks , inorganic , interior , materials , micro , nano , Nobel prize , organic , planet , research , scale , sciences , space , sponge , surface , volume
From: Francesco Calimeri, Mauro Dragoni, Fabio Stella on behalf of the
HC@AIxIA – Working Group on Artificial Intelligence for HealthcareHC@AIxIA + HYDRA 2025
International Joint Workshop of Artificial Intelligence for Healthcare (HC@AIxIA) and HYbrid Models for Coupling Deductive and Inductive ReAsoning (HYDRA)
Bologna, Italy, 25-26 October 2025
CALL for PAPERS
The workshop welcomes original research contributions, summaries of recent work, and work-in-progress studies on frameworks, applications, and methodologies for combining deductive and inductive approaches. It invites a wide multidisciplinary spectrum of researchers, industrialists, entrepreneurs, and healthcare practitioners: submissions are welcome from a range of stakeholders, including Computer scientists, health informaticians, and emergency medicine experts; Public health experts, epidemiologists, clinicians, etc.; National and international public health agencies; Epidemic intelligence systems providers; NGOs and Agencies; Industry and startups. Collaborations across disciplines will bridge the gap between theory and practice and foster actionable AI-driven solutions across diverse domains.
Continued ...
Posted by Peter Jones at 10:48 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: AI , artificial intelligence , call , deductive , domains , entrepreneur , frameworks , healthcare , inductive , Italy , logic , medicine , models , multidisciplinary , practice , reasoning , research , surgery , theory , workshop
'THE BEST BOOK I'VE READ IN THE PAST YEAR is a book on African philosophers, The Ink of the Scholars: Reflections on Philosophy in Africa, by Souleymane Bachir Diagne, one of our most brilliant thinkers. He challenges the idea that there isn't a philosophical framework to African societies. There are ideas around Africans being the great architects of hospitality and Diagne reflects on what the African approach to humanity is. What does it mean to be careful, mindful and caring? It's not just about welcoming people to your home or feeding them. Hospitality is carrying people, making people feel comfortable in your environment - it's intellectual and emotional. Everyone should read Diagne, full stop.' p.21.
Shocked: I have just read of Koyo Kouoh's passing - RIP.
Souleymane Bachir Diagne, & Jonathan Adjemian. (2016, May 23). The Ink of the Scholars: Reflections on Philosophy in Africa. CODESRIA Books Publication System. CODESRIA
https://publication.codesria.org/index.php/pub/catalog/book/40
See also: 'hospitality'
Posted by Peter Jones at 9:01 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: Africa , book , caring , comfort , conflict , emotion , frameworks , health , hospitality , humanity , ideas , ink , intellect , models , open access , peace , philosophy , political , scholars , thought
deadline for submissions: 30th September 2024
I) Examinations of various philosophical perspectives and frameworks for understanding disability, including the social model, the cultural model, the relational model and the capabilities approach.Intersectional analyses, which explore how disability interacts with, and impacts, other social categories such as race, gender identity, sexuality, and class, would be greatly welcomed. Furthermore, contributions could cover a wide array of historical and geographical frameworks, from Ancient Philosophy towards Contemporary Philosophy – not only from a Western perspective.
II) Ethical considerations concerning disability, such as questions related to autonomy, dignity, justice, violence, and the ethics of care.
III) Epistemology inquiries into how disability affects knowledge, perception, and cognition.
IV) Explorations of disability's influence on art, aesthetics, and the perception of beauty.
V) Discussions on disability rights, social policies, and disabled people’s participation or exclusion from citizenship.
VI) Phenomenological analyses of lived experiences, that include the embodiment of disability and the material encounters with the world. Philosophers’ first-person experiences and accounts would also be positively valued in this regard.
VII) Analyses of the role of disability in language, in the discursive realm, in the creation of meaning, and in the construction of metaphors, including the investigation of how philosophical language and theorization could contribute to ableism, disablism, and disabled’s people exclusion.
VIII) Investigation of disability through the lens of humanism and/or its critical stances (Anti-Humanism, Philosophical Posthumanism, Transhumanism, New Materialisms, and so on).
Information
Deadline for submissions: 30 September 2024
Publication of the Special Issue: July 2025
We anticipate that submissions will come both through solicitations and this open Call. Papers should be between 8000 and 10,000 words (including abstracts, footnotes, and references). Only papers in English will be accepted. For further information do not hesitate to contact the editors (brunella.casalini[at]unifi.it; chiara.montalti[at]unisalento.it).Posted by Peter Jones at 2:56 pm | PERMALINK
Labels: ableism , art , autonomy , call , capabilities , disability , disablism , ethics , frameworks , humanities , journal , justice , language , literature , philosophy , policy , post-human , quality of life , rights , sexuality
Born in Liverpool, NW England, UK.
Community Mental Health Nurse NHS, Part-time Lecturer,
Researcher Nursing & Technology Enhanced Learning
Registered Nurse - Mental Health & General
Community Psychiatric Nursing (Cert.) MMU
PG Cert. Ed.
BA(Joint Hons.) Computing and Philosophy - BIHE - Bolton
PG(Dip.) Collaboration on Psychosocial Education [COPE] Univ. Man.
MRES. e-Research and Technology Enhanced Learning, Lancaster Univ.
Live and work in NW England - seeking a global perspective.
The views expressed on W2tQ are entirely my own, unless stated otherwise.
Comments are disabled.
If you would like to get in touch please e-mail me at
h2cmng AT yahoo.co.uk
orcid.org/0000-0002-0192-8965-=<>=-
