Yu Feng

As artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into welfare governance, concerns about its legitimacy and public support are emerging. Across four studies with Chinese participants (N = 1336), this research examines how decision-maker identity (AI vs. human) influences public evaluations of legitimacy and program support, and explores the mechanisms underlying these effects. Studies 1 and 2 indicated that when outcome information was absent, legitimacy judgments of AI and humans were similar, although support slightly favored human-administered programs. These differences were associated with perceptions of the decision-maker’s capacity to bear forward-looking moral and social responsibilities, rather than with perceived fairness or experience. However, these identity-based differences were not robust. They did not remain significant under conservative Holm–Bonferroni corrections and were attenuated when direct outcome (Study 3) or side-effect information (Study 4) was provided. Individual beliefs in machine heuristics and justice also moderated responses to AI and human decision-makers. These findings suggest that public responses to AI in welfare governance are conditional, rather than reflecting stable preferences or generalized resistance. They further highlight the role of perceived responsibility-bearing capacity in shaping acceptance and support in decision-making scenarios.

Philosophical practice, an art of living rooted in ancient traditions, is enriched by modern techniques such as individual counseling, Socratic group dialogues, and organizational consulting. Philosophical counseling, a key aspect of this practice, employs traditional philosophical frameworks and rational reasoning to address clients' concerns, distinguishing itself from psychotherapy while respecting individual autonomy. The growing Western interest in Asian philosophies also underscores a shared pursuit of wisdom, spirituality, and meaning. This paper examines the development, key features, and leading proponents of philosophical practice, its relationship with academic philosophy, and the tensions between their differing aims and methods. The outlook for philosophical counseling is promising, offering an alternative to medical approaches for existential issues and expanding its scope to personal guidance, conflict resolution, and life‐skill development. Its future trajectory hinges on societal trends toward secularization, the de‐medicalization of mental health, and the increasing recognition of philosophy's intrinsic practical value.

In the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence, virtual digital humans have emerged as powerful agents that blend digital simulation with human-like behaviors. This study evaluates how people perceive the moral status of virtual digital humans, rather than claiming their actual moral status. Specifically, we compare attributions of mind perception, free will, autonomy, and overall moral status among humans, virtual digital humans, and robots. Our findings show that while humans are widely regarded as complete moral agents and robots as having limited moral agency, virtual digital humans occupy an intermediate position—perceived as possessing partial yet incomplete moral agency. In particular, mind perception and free will are strong predictors of moral status, with autonomy also contributing though to a lesser extent. Mediation analyses confirm that these psychological factors either partially or fully explain the observed differences in moral status evaluations across groups. The study extends the discourse in moral philosophy by demonstrating how emerging digital entities are evaluated through public attributions ethically and by providing empirical input to the governance of them. These insights bear significant implications for public policy, industry practices, and interdisciplinary research in ethics and artificial intelligence.

Across three vignette-based experiments (N = 697) primarily involving young adults from China, our research systematically examines the moral judgments and perceived identity changes associated with technological implants, unveiling “naturalness bias” as a pivotal psychological mechanism influencing these judgments. Study 1 scrutinized the effects of physical enhancements via body implants, revealing a significant link between perceived low naturalness, negative moral judgment, and a reduced intention to adopt such technologies. Moreover, individuals who receive technological implants were perceived as more inclined toward immoral behavior, resulting in a considerable shift in identity perception. Study 2 confirmed these findings and introduced a control group of plastic surgery vignette to refine comparisons and enhance methodological rigor. Study 3 broadened the scope to include both emotional and cognitive enhancements via implants. It found that emotional enhancements were judged more critically regarding morality and naturalness, leading to greater perceived identity changes and higher expectations of immoral behavior compared to cognitive enhancements. Collectively, the current research provides essential insights into the ethical dimensions of transhumanist technologies, highlighting the profound moral considerations and identity implications of adopting such enhancements.

Environmental taxation is often seen as a necessary tool for promoting sustainability, yet its impact on employment remains a subject of debate. This study empirically examines how China's environmental protection tax (EPT) affects labor demand, uncovering distinct responses among firms of different sizes. Using a triple-difference approach, we find that environmental taxes lead to job losses primarily by increasing production costs, which, in turn, drive firms to either cut output or invest in greener technologies. Large firms tend to mitigate tax burdens by adopting cleaner production methods and improving efficiency, while small firms, facing financial constraints, often resort to reducing production, leading to more significant employment declines. Further analysis reveals that low-skilled workers bear a disproportionate share of job losses, raising concerns about social inequality. However, government green subsidies play a crucial role in cushioning the negative effects by helping firms transition to environmentally friendly operations without sacrificing jobs. These findings underscore the need for balanced environmental policies that support businesses in adapting to regulatory changes while minimizing labor market disruptions. This study not only highlights the unintended employment consequences of environmental taxation but also provides policy insights for fostering both economic stability and environmental sustainability.

When faced with important decisions, individuals often receive advice from others. While previous research suggests that unsolicited advice is typically met with more negative reactions due to perceived threats to personal agency, little attention has been given to contexts in which individuals willingly relinquish their decision-making agency. This study explores decision-making in trade-off scenarios, where individuals must balance conflicting moral and self-interest goals. We hypothesize and find that unsolicited advice promoting self-serving choices facilitates the transfer of decision responsibility more effectively than solicited advice, leading to a preference for unsolicited advice. Furthermore, we show that this preference is moderated by the extent to which individuals emphasize moral identity symbolization and by the content of the advice. Our findings underscore the crucial role of the motivation to transfer decision responsibility in shaping responses to different forms of advice solicitation.

This paper applies Bo Mou’s Constructive-Engagement Strategy of Comparative Philosophy (CESCP) to explore philosophical practice as a novel paradigm that applies philosophy to everyday life. The study advocates for a transformative methodology that seeks truth through critical engagement, joint contributions, and diverse methodological tools, advancing the discipline towards a comprehensive world philosophy. Philosophical practice, characterized by its engagement with human experience and existential inquiries, integrates Eastern and Western philosophies to guide individuals in the art of living. It offers a philosophical alternative to psychological counseling, focusing on reasoning to address life’s challenges and ethical dilemmas. The paper examines the integration of Chinese philosophy, particularly Confucianism, into philosophical practice, highlighting its relevance for contemporary counseling. It discusses Confucianism’s impact on philosophical practice, advances in self-cultivation and gong-fu theory, and the holistic Confucian view of body-mind integration, contrasting it with some Western approaches. We conclude that the practical dimensions of Confucianism oppose Western theoretical philosophy but align with Western philosophical practice. By employing CESCP, this research enriches philosophical practice, integrating diverse philosophies while respecting each tradition’s context. The approach combines Eastern relational perspectives with Western analytical depth, enhancing philosophical counseling and contributing to a global philosophical dialogue. This fusion of horizons aims to foster cross-cultural understanding and develop universally relevant wisdom.

© 2016 Elsevier B.V.The evaporative-cooling roof is a popular passive energy conservation technique. This article presents a novel approach for modelling and analysing the influence of evaporation on roof thermal performance. A multivariate nonlinear model was developed for the prediction of the evaporation rate from porous tile. A computer program was then developed based on the one-dimensional roof unsteady heat transfer theory. Finally, the computer program and hourly weather data of Guangzhou, China, were used to analyse the impacts of evaporation and slope orientation on roof thermal performance. Evaporation beginning at 11:00 can reduce the external surface temperatures of a horizontal roof and 30°-inclined east-sloping and west-sloping roofs by up to 11.3, 10.7, and 9.8 °C, respectively, from those of a non-evaporative roof. This, in turn, can reduce the peak-hour internal surface heat flux. Additionally, with the horizontal roof, the reduction in the peak-hour heat flux can be doubled if the evaporative layer is frequently replenished with water.

Lipstick is one of the most commonly used cosmetics, which is closely associated with female attractiveness and influences people’s perception and behavior. This study aimed to investigate the impact of light sources, lipstick colors, as well as gender on the subjective assessment of lipstick color products from the prospective of color preference, purchase intention and sexual attractiveness. The correlation between color preference evaluations when applying lipstick on lips and on forearms was also explored. Sixty participants completed their visual assessment of 15 lipsticks worn by 3 models under 5 light sources, with uniformly sampled correlated color temperature (CCT) values ranging from 2,500 K to 6,500 K. The results indicated that the light source significantly influenced color preference and purchase intention, while lipstick color significantly impacted on sexual attractiveness. The interactions between gender and other factors were also observed and are discussed. Compared to men, women were found to be more sensitive to different light sources and hold different attitudes toward different lipstick colors under different CCTs. Interestingly, no significant correlation was found between lipstick color preference ratings on the lips and forearm, which conflicted with the commonly recognized way of lipstick color selection. These findings should contribute to a deeper understanding of the consumer attitude toward lipstick colors and provide a useful reference for lighting design in situations where cosmetics are specified, manufactured, retailed and generally used, both professionally and in the home.

Resumo: A música tradicional chinesa tem uma longa história, repleta de conceitos estéticos ricos e extensos. A integração da música tradicional e das ideias estéticas tem um impacto significativo na formação do sistema musical tradicional da China. Este artigo explora a influência interativa da música tradicional e das ideias estéticas, analisando as ideias musicais da estética tradicional chinesa, buscando promover a integração e o desenvolvimento da música tradicional e das ideias estéticas. Discute o conteúdo das ideias estéticas musicais do confucionismo, taoísmo e moísmo, bem como a posição das ideias estéticas na música tradicional chinesa. Ao combinar e analisar a literatura relevante, livros antigos e materiais históricos, é possível compreender a evolução histórica e a influência mútua da música tradicional e do pensamento estético. Os conceitos estéticos tradicionais não só desempenharam um papel importante no desenvolvimento da música chinesa, mas também na promoção do desenvolvimento da música chinesa, ao longo de milhares de anos de história. Na avaliação da interação entre a música tradicional e o pensamento estético, pode ocorrer uma situação em que o conceito seja demasiado simplificado. A relação entre a música tradicional e o pensamento estético é muito complicada, envolvendo muitas escolas, períodos históricos e regiões. Pode não ser capaz de cobrir totalmente todos os fatores de influência, se for resumido apenas pelo confucionismo, taoísmo e budismo. Sugere-se que a educação e a herança da música tradicional e das ideias estéticas sejam fortalecidas, na educação musical. Artistas musicais mais tradicionais e os teóricos da estética devem ser cultivados, a fim de poder transmitir a música tradicional e as ideias estéticas às gerações futuras e continuar a desenvolver-se e a inovar, na sociedade contemporânea.

An increasingly worrying trend is enterprises undertaking greenwashing rather than producing actual green products. When such greenwashing behaviours are exposed, green brand trust between enterprises and stakeholders may be damaged, resulting in stakeholders becoming suspicious of these supposedly green brands. Then, enterprises need to adopt several trust repair strategies to repair the damaged green brand trust. We investigated green brand trust repair from a green brand legitimacy perspective and found the following: (1) higher green brand legitimacy suggests the use of considered informational, emotional and corrective repair strategies. (2) Meanwhile, lower green brand legitimacy requires the use of timely informational, emotional and corrective repair strategies. Using the correct set of repair strategies may provide practical and effective approaches for enterprises to repair their brand trust.

We investigate how firms adjust corporate pension plans in response to economic policy uncertainty (EPU). Using a sample of US-listed firms, we find that firms increase pension underfunding levels when facing higher EPU. The result is robust to controlling for pension portfolio returns, discount rates, plan sizes, pension liability, numbers of employees, other macroeconomic factors, difference-in-differences and instrumental variable estimation, and additional evidence of pension risk-shifting. Further analysis reveals that financial distress and information asymmetry induced through EPU are the potential channels. The effect is stronger for firms having CEOs being excessively paid, using cash flow as a performance metric in CEO compensation, paying high dividends, and having short-term institutional investors, whereas the presence of unions, positive corporate culture, and social capital alleviate the effect. Notably, managers, not shareholders, appear to be the party reaping the benefits. Our findings suggest that firms may shift risk to employees in response to heightened uncertainty and institutional characteristics play a moderating role in this crucial business ethics issue.

Background and PurposeTranscranial direct current stimulation is an emerging non-invasive neuromodulation technique for focal epilepsy. Because epilepsy is a disease affecting the brain network, our study was aimed to evaluate and predict the treatment outcome of cathodal tDCS by analyzing the ctDCS-induced functional network alterations.MethodsEither the active 5-day, −1.0 mA, 20-min ctDCS or sham ctDCS targeting at the most active interictal epileptiform discharge regions was applied to 27 subjects suffering from focal epilepsy. The functional networks before and after ctDCS were compared employing graph theoretical analysis based on the functional magnetic resonance imaging data. A support vector machine prediction model was built to predict the treatment outcome of ctDCS using the graph theoretical measures as markers.ResultsOur results revealed that the mean clustering coefficient and the global efficiency decreased significantly, as well as the characteristic path length and the mean shortest path length at the stimulation sites in the fMRI functional networks increased significantly after ctDCS only for the patients with response to the active ctDCS. Our prediction model achieved the mean prediction accuracy of 68.3% after the nested cross validation. The mean area under the receiver operating curve was 0.75, which showed good prediction performance.ConclusionThe study demonstrated that the response to ctDCS was related to the topological alterations in the functional networks of epilepsy patients detected by fMRI. The graph theoretical measures were promising for clinical prediction of ctDCS treatment outcome.

Resumen: Debido a varias razones históricas y realistas, el desarrollo de la teoríeorlsica de la mlsica en China se queda atrátrra cuanto al sistema de enseñanza, el contenido de la enseñanza y otros aspectos. Es una tarea importante para los trabajadores chinos de la misica revisar o complementar la teoríeorteorntar sica actual y los libros de texto relacionados, y luego construir un sistema de disciplina de la teoríeorla teordesica en China. Este artículo sintetiza las teoríeorreorr educacióducacirr las tehistoria de la m sica, la cultura musical, la morfologíorfolog, la otras disciplinas relacionadas, utiliza valores científicos, objetivos y racionales y conceptos holísticos y comprensivos, toma el desarrollo de la educacióducaciedteoríeoracieducacsica de China como objeto de investigaciónvesttoma la historia como espejo para seguir considerando y prospectar la construccióonstrusistema de disciplina de la teoríeorla teordesica de China. Los fundamentos de la mtsica china pueden dividirse, a grandes rasgos, en tres periodos: (1) desde principios del siglo XX hasta la fundacióundacita la blica Popular China; (2) desde ese momento hasta el periodo de reforma y apertura; y (3) desde el periodo de reforma y apertura hasta la actualidad. La teoríeor teord. La teord. evolucionóvoluciond. La teord. Lfundacióundaciond. Lblica Popular China a travéravulun proceso de aceptaciócepasiva y absorcióbsactiva, como puede observarse en el desarrollo de la enseñanza de la teoríeorla teorde la ene lasica china y sus materiales didrcticos. La teoríeor teora teordidiales dpropagórprincipalmente desde el palacio a la iglesia, luego a las escuelas y finalmente a la sociedad. Como resultado, la enseñanza de la teoría musical china evolucionóvprogresivamente hacia un sistema menor mayor como modo dominante, y los fundamentos de la mtsica china se desviaron gradualmente. Tras el establecimiento de la Repiblica Popular China, la investigaciónvestigaciina, lprofundizado, lo que ha beneficiado el crecimiento de la disciplina de la teoríeorla teorbásica, que ahora se dirige hacia la diversificacióiversifprofundidad. El desarrollo de la teoríeorla teorde la teor teor de la tecontado con la ayuda de varios music musicusieducadores musicales de diversos campos académicos y puntos de vista de la investigaciónvestimodelo ideal de la construccióonstruccdisciplina de la teoríeorla teorde la teoconcibe sobre la base del principio de “combinar la historia con la teoríeor la tpeinar el desarrollo de la teoríeorla teordesica en China. Este modelo fomenta la integracióntegraciteoríeorgracirasica tradicional y la teoríeora teorlsica moderna desde una perspectiva diacrónica, refuerza la unidad del padel pal pmundo en la teoríeorla teorsica bcsica desde una perspectiva sincrónica, y presta atenciótenciiaconnotacióonnotacitecnología en su conjunto.

Desire is an important philosophical topic that deeply impacts everyday life. Philosophical practice is an emerging trend that uses philosophical theories and methods as a guide to living a eu‐ daimonic life. In this paper, we define desire philosophically and compare different theories of desire in specific Eastern and Western traditions. Based on the Lacanian conceptual–terminological triad of “Need‐Demand‐Desire”, the research of desire is further divided into three dimensions, namely, the subject of desire, the object of desire, and the desire itself. The concept of desire is then an‐ alyzed from this triad and these three dimensions through different philosophical theories. This paper selects Buddhism as the representative of Eastern tradition, and Stoicism as the representative of the West, paying special attention to Stoicism’s “spiritual exercises” following Pierre Hadot. By exploring and comparing the Buddhist paths to liberation from suffering (i.e., the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path) and the two theoretical pillars in Stoicism (i.e., the notions of “living according to nature” and “the dichotomy of control”), practical guidance is then provided for un‐ derstanding and regulating desire in times of crisis. This understanding and regulation of desire constitutes a philosophical therapy for today’s troubles, particularly those caused by excessive or irrational desires.

The present study investigated the configuration effect of human capital, social capital, and psychological capital on job performance. The human capital questionnaire, social capital scale, psychological capital scale, and job performance scale were used to survey 458 employees. Results revealed that four antecedent configurations could achieve high task performance, and three antecedent configurations can achieve high contextual performance. The high job performance driving path was characterized by “all roads lead to Rome.” Human capital, social capital, and psychological capital affected job performance in the form of configuration, which reflected the asymmetric causal relationship.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of customers’ motivations (specifically young consumers) on online purchase intentions as mediated by commitment toward online fashion retailers. The survey method was used to collect data from Chinese respondents using a questionnaire. The convenience sampling technique was used to collect data from 275 respondents. Collected data were analyzed on smart-PLS using the structural equation modeling technique. Results of the study show a significant and positive impact of social empowerment and remuneration motivations on consumer commitment online purchase intention. Further results show that consumer commitment partially mediates the relationship between social empowerment, remuneration, and online purchase intention. This study contributes to the literature in the domain of consumer commitment by focusing on the underlying needs and motivations of consumers. The researchers have demonstrated a strong need to understand the dynamics of commitment due to its importance in affecting purchase intention. This study also has several implications that guide online retailers how to motivate consumers with social, remuneration and empowerment incentives to develop their intention to purchase online. Fashion retailers are suggested to gratify certain consumer motives to increase commitment. Specifically, among the three motives, empowerment motivation emerged as the strongest predictor of consumer commitment in social media environment. This study will help to the online brands to attract more customers by providing the motivation such financial, empowerment and socialization.

The relationship between professional ethical reflection and corresponding moral behavior is an important theme of moral psychology in recent years. Following Schönegger and Wagner’s research in German-speaking countries, through a replication-extension of the original US-based research carried out by Schwitzgebel and Rust, we aim at examining their results in the Chinese context. The previous researchers have shown that ethical reflection generally has no positive effect on moral behavior. A cross validation of this result was conducted in Chinese mainland, and three issues concerning Confucian virtues were added. Through reaching out to 4482 professors and collecting 368 responses altogether, we attempted to explore whether professional ethical reflection can influence normative attitude and the moral attitude-behavior consistency. Unfortunately, the results failed to show a statistically significant difference between ethicists and other professors on most of the moral issues, with the exception of paying academic membership fees and vegetarianism, wherein ethicists do express more stringent normative attitudes, and their moral attitude and self-reported behavior are statistically consistent. Notably, Chinese professors mainly expressed morally neutral attitudes toward the issue of eating meat, and they tended to believe that ethical reflection contributes to more and better moral behaviors.

Free will is one of the oldest and most debated topics in the history of philosophy. Both positivist philosophy and humanist philosophy considered the problem of free will to be the most difficult issues to untangle. In recent years, psychologists have begun to apply the methods of empirical science to study the psychological mechanism, impact and expression of free will. The general consensus is that free will is an illusion, but people still believe in its existence. Free will has been found closely related to moral responsibility, moral behavior, creativity, self-esteem and subjective well-being. Future research should define free will in more psychological sense, and to explore the generation mechanism and function of free will in everyday life. Theoretical and methodological advances are need to extend our understanding of free will and its psychological impacts to human being.

Growth mindset and grit have attracted much attention in educational research recently. Yet the underlying mechanisms that relate these variables to each other as well as to many other variables remain largely unclear. This study investigates the relationships among growth mindset, learning motivation, grit, and school engagement. We recruited a total of 1,842 students (884 males and 958 females) from third to ninth grade in a Chinese city. Results from the structural equation model analyzing the students’ responses showed that learning motivation partially mediates the relationship between growth mindset and grit, and grit partially mediates the relationship between learning motivation and school engagement. Specifically, intrinsic motivation and identified regulation of extrinsic motivation are positively associated with growth mindset, grit, and school engagement while external regulation of extrinsic motivation is negatively associated with the same three variables. Additionally, introjected regulation of extrinsic motivation is uncorrelated with these three variables. This study furthers the understanding of the underlying mechanisms through which growth mindset and grit positively impact education.

The indispensability argument for abstract mathematical entities has been an important issue in the philosophy of mathematics. The argument relies on several assumptions. Some objections have been made against these assumptions, but there are several serious defects in these objections. Ameliorating these defects leads to a new anti-realistic philosophy of mathematics, mainly: first, in mathematical applications, what really exist and can be used as tools are not abstract mathematical entities, but our inner representations that we create in imagining abstract mathematical entities; second, the thoughts that we create in imagining infinite mathematical entities are bounded by external conditions.