A Footnote to East African History

This article is by a District Officer in Uganda, seconded duringthe War to administration in Somalia. He regards the entry asinteresting because it does not appear in Sir Reginald Coupland'sstandard East Africa and its Invaders.     

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SELF‐CONTROL AND LANGUAGE: EVIDENCE OF A SHARED ETIOLOGICAL PATHWAY*

Converging lines of research suggest that self‐control and language may be inextricably linked. No empirical research has ever examined this proposition, however. We address this gap in the literature by analyzing a sample of twin pairs from a nationally representative data set of children. The results revealed three broad findings. First, diminished language skills were predictive of low self‐control both cross‐sectionally and longitudinally. Second, the covariation between language and self‐control was linked to both genetic and environmental factors. Third, after controlling for genetic influences on self‐control, language skills were predictive of variation in individual levels of self‐control. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Introduction

Abstract. The author recalls a distinction between philosophy conceived as "analytics of truth" and philosophy as "ontology of the actual." The latter might be seen as a diagnostics of our times. For this second type of philosophy questions of legitimation are prominent. According to the author, one can distinguish three main sources of legitimacy of beliefs and practices: religion, reason, and nature. Reason has been considered the most important legitimating ground as far as modernity is concerned. Nevertheless, it has never been very clear what reason as a source of legitimation amounts to. The author, finally, points to the fact that, in times of increasing menace to the biosphere, "nature"– metaphorically speaking – may set a standard for human laws.