A-posteriori: knowledge, understanding or justification derived from sensory experience. “After the fact”, dependent on sense experience. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in partnership with Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems: Oxford, 2004-11.   

A-priori: knowledge, understanding or justification derived independently of sensory experience. Derived independently of sense experience e.g., 2+2=4. Truth by definition and tautological deduction is the mathematical model, but presuppositions are often falsely assumed a-priori. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III,… Read More

Advocacy for health: A combination of individual and social actions designed to gain political commitment, policy support, social acceptance and systems support for a particular health goal or programme. Reference: Report of the Inter-Agency Meeting on Advocacy Strategies for Health and Development: Development Communication in Action. WHO, Geneva, 1995 Such action may be taken by… Read More

Aesthetic: In general, aesthetic refers to the human capacity to sense and intuit the world around it. The aesthetic is thus the domain of affective response to, as opposed to active cognition of, the surrounding world. As used here, the aesthetic relationship to nature is opposed to the instrumental control over nature; aesthetically conceived, the… Read More

Aesthetics: philosophy of art and of the aesthetic experience. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in partnership with Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems: Oxford, 2004-11. 

Agent-relative: A standard philosophical term signifying individual choice as in “agent-relative ethics” which standardly assumes that choice-agency is restricted to individual persons. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in partnership with Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems: Oxford, 2004-11. 

Agnosticism: doctrine according to which human reason is incapable of demonstrating either the existence of divinity or the non-existence of divinity. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in partnership with Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems: Oxford, 2004-11.   

Agrarianism: social, political and philosophical movements recommending equitable distribution of land, agrarian reform and/or bucolic life. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in partnership with Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems: Oxford, 2004-11. 

Alienation: In Marx, the state of being dominated by one’s own vital, creative capabilities, as a consequence of forms of social organizationin which reified powers like money rule over human needs. Source: ‘What is Good? What is Bad? The Value of All Values across Time, Place and Theories’ by John McMurtry, Philosophy and World Problems, Volume I-III, UNESCO in… Read More

Alliance: An alliance for health promotion is a partnership between two or more parties that pursue a set of agreed upon goals in health promotion. Reference: new definition Alliance building will often involve some form of mediation between the different partners in the definition of goals and ethical ground rules, joint action areas, and agreement on the form of… Read More