The Evolutionary Explanation of What?

The paper examines evolutionary explanations of risk preferences. First, the paper argues that evolutionary psychology is ill-suited for explaining prospect theory risk preferences since the empirical evidence does not support the universality of the fourfold pattern of risk preferences postulated by prospect theory. Second, the paper argues that explaining prospect theory risk preferences by means of risk-sensitive foraging models is incomplete since this approach does not offer a rationale for the observed diversity in human decision making involving monetary gambles. Finally, the paper suggests adopting a wider perspective on evolutionary approaches to human behaviour that also takes into account the role of cultural processes in shaping risk preferences.

Minimal Categorical System and Predication Theory In Porphyry

The article considers some problematic aspects of Porphyry’s typology of Aristotle’s categories and the theory of predication. Minimal (_________) class of categories in Porphyry is revealed. The work has shed some light on the opposition between $\textit{explanation}$ and $\textit{description}$ (__________ / ___________) within the framework of ancient categorical logic. A fourfold pattern of predication theory in Porphyry is described. The study aims to illuminate the development of Porphyry’s predication theory towards the archaic doctrine of quantifiers. Particular attention is paid to Porphyry’s account of semantic relation between sets. The paper represents Porphyry’s nine kinds of class / item relationships. The article focuses on the awakening of academic interest to the logical heritage of Porphyry.

Daniel’s Four Kingdoms Schema: A History of Re-writing World History

Twice in the book of Daniel (chs. 2 and 7), a fourfold pattern summarizes the history of the world as a succession of gentile kingdoms that derive their sovereignty from Yhwh. This “four-kingdom schema” has proven to be one of the most influential time structuring devices of the past three millennia. This article uses “schema theory,” a tool developed in the modern discipline of psychology, to analyze the four-kingdoms schema. An overview of the reception history of this schema provides evidence for how and why it continues to function even in contemporary political discourse.

Decision making in the pre-development stage of residential development

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the rationality of the decision making of residential developers in Thailand. Exploring its implications in the residential development field, the researchers propose the famous prospect theory as the primary cause of developers’ incompetent decisions during the pre-development stage of residential development. Design/methodology/approach The methodologies used in this research include literature review, expert interview, and experimental questionnaire. Findings The results show that Thai developers exhibit all five aspects of prospect theory: loss aversion, fourfold pattern, bias from rare events, mental accounting, and preference reversals (PR); however, in contrast to previous literature, the researchers found that Thai developers always choose to receive gains, and usually make risky choices to avoid losses, even if the risk of loss is low. Moreover, status quo bias has a low influence on Thai developers: they tend to become attached to the areas they develop, but remain flexible in selecting a project type that fits the land. In addition, PR and the framing effect affect only some groups of developers. Practical implications This research provides awareness to professionals in the residential development field to make sound judgements, using Thailand as a case study. Originality/value This paper reveals the existence of the unproven prospect theory in the residential development field using an empirical study in Thailand as a case study.

The Fourfold Water Garden, a Renaissance Invention

The different combinations between the “classic” fourfold pattern and water in the garden have produced a high number of varied solutions since the distant past. However, during the Renaissance a new model emerges: a crossaxial garden with four basins arranged symmetrically around its center. The composite analysis of the related examples is addressed in this paper, which attempts to find an explanation for the different models as for the appearance of the contrasting solution at the same time in two different locations: the Villa Lante (Bagnaia, Italy) and the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo in El Escorial (Madrid, Spain).

Testing Ambiguity Models through the Measurement of Probabilities for Gains and Losses

This paper reports on two experiments that test the descriptive validity of ambiguity models using a natural source of uncertainty (the evolution of stock indices) and both gains and losses. We observed violations of probabilistic sophistication, violations that imply a fourfold pattern of ambiguity attitudes: ambiguity aversion for likely gains and unlikely losses and ambiguity seeking for unlikely gains and likely losses. Our data are most consistent with prospect theory and, to a lesser extent, α-maxmin expected utility and Choquet expected utility. Models with uniform ambiguity attitudes are inconsistent with most of the observed behavioral patterns. (JEL D81, D83, G11, G12, G14)