A semiotic cultural psychology theory analysis of the signs ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’

Relevant to the emerging field of semiotic cultural psychology theory (SCPT), the present paper considers ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’ as semiotic and cultural psychology phenomena. Drawing on the semiotics of Saussure, Peirce, Jakobson, and Cousins, a semiotic dynamic ‘double-dyadic’ model of the signifier and the referent is proposed. For each ‘We’, ‘Us’, ‘I’ and ‘Me’, the COVID-19 global pandemic related cases are used to analyse and illustrate the signifier-referent model. Implications are drawn from the new model for the complex systems entailed in organizing self and culture. Finally, suggestions are made for testing the model.

“We-Diseases” and Dyadic Decision-Making Processes: A Critical Perspective

This is a critical perspective paper discussing the theoretical bases and methodological issues regarding dyadic decision-making processes in the oncological domain. Decision-making processes are of a central interest when one partner in a couple has cancer, and patients and partners make decisions together under an interactive and dynamic process. Given that, the attention in research is progressively shifting from patient and partner considered as individuals to a more holistic view of patient-partner considered as a dyad. The consideration of the dyadic nature of the decision-making represents a challenge from a theoretical and methodological point of view. The Interdependence Theory and the Dyadic Model of decision-making provide the theoretical bases to consider, respectively, the interdependence of the dyadic decision-making and the mechanisms affecting the couple-based decision-making. Dyadic processes require also an appropriate data analysis strategy that is discussed in the study as well. Conclusions of the present critical review suggest to develop a new line of research on dyadic decision-making in the oncological domain, testing the Dyadic Model presented in the study and considering the interdependence of the data with appropriate levels of analysis.

Linear Stochastic Dyadic Model

We discuss a stochastic interacting particles’ system connected to dyadic models of turbulence, defining suitable classes of solutions and proving their existence and uniqueness. We investigate the regularity of a particular family of solutions, called moderate, and we conclude with existence and uniqueness of invariant measures associated with such moderate solutions.

Experiences within the Family of Origin and Intimate Partner Violence: A Dyadic Model Analysis

Intimate partner violence may be influenced by family experience. This study aims to test a dyadic model verifying the relationship between events experienced in the family of origin and intimate partner violence. This study addressed 304 heterosexual couples using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2), and Family Background Questionnaire (FBQ). The analyses were performed using the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) and the structural equation model. Less intense violence was positively and significantly correlated with violence perpetrated by husbands and wives (r = 0.661; p < 0.01), whereas no correlation was found between severe violence and latent factors, excluding interdependence between the dyads. All the seven models presented satisfactory goodness of fit (CFI > 0.91; RMSEA < 0.08), except for the dimension “sexual abuse”. Therefore, the results reinforce that the events experienced in the family of origin influence intimate partner violence.

“Shift Linguals – Cut Word Lines”: Viral Topology and the Cut-Ups of William Burroughs

William Burroughs perceived the method of collage as a way towards a rebellion – an insurrection against the system of control inherent in language itself. In this article, a vision of language as a parasitic life-form presented by Burroughs in books such as The Ticket That Exploded and Nova Express is examined. The method of collage (or, as Burroughs calls it, the cut-up) is analyzed as an opportunity to tear down the oppressive structures of meaning self-reproducing themselves through our adherence to sociolinguistic rules. The very notion of struggling with parasites of meaning is connected with Roland Barthes’s conceptualization of myths as layers of meaning that envelop and parasitize signs in order to further their own agendas. I endeavor to reformulate Barthes’s dyadic model of myths into a triadic one (following Peircean semiotics), which I then relate to Jeffrey Elman’s text on language as a dynamic system, which allows for an in-depth perception of the way in which the parasite of language is described by Burroughs.

Toward a Theory of Concealment

Concealment, or withholding information from others, is of fundamental sociological interest. Yet, a general theoretical framework of concealment is missing from the sociological cannon. This paper specifies a model that builds upon, and moves beyond, existing accounts of concealment by emphasizing the desire for autonomy. I propose that desire for autonomy, and the subjective assessment of concealment as the best route to achieve autonomy, are necessary for individuals to attempt concealment. After specifying a dyadic model based on the concealer (ego) and the target of concealment (alter), I incorporate ego-alter power differentials as well as norms about privacy and concealment into a multilevel model of how concealment is initiated and maintained. The theoretical and empirical implications of this model of concealment are discussed.