identify an appropriate theoretical foundation or practice orientation as the theoretical framework through which to view your proposed project. Let’s discuss how you are determining an appropriate theoretical framework for your proposed study. Choose one of the following for your post:

Discuss the theoretical foundation or practice orientation for your study. What have others in your field said about their theoretical frameworks? How does the theoretical foundation or practice orientation support your proposed study?
Share your questions about the purpose of theoretical foundation or practice orientation for your study. How might you resolve those questions to ensure appropriate alignment with your topic?

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.

God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Theoretical Foundation: Social Cognitive Theory (SCT)

Social Cognitive Theory, developed by Albert Bandura, provides a robust framework for understanding and influencing health behaviors, making it highly relevant to this proposed study. SCT emphasizes the dynamic interplay between personal factors (cognitions, beliefs, self-efficacy), behavioral factors (medication-taking habits), and environmental factors (access to support, app usability). It posits that individuals learn not only through direct experience but also through observation and modeling, which is particularly important in the context of app-based interventions.

What Others Have Said:

Many researchers in the field of health behavior change have successfully utilized SCT. Studies focusing on medication adherence, particularly in chronic conditions, frequently cite SCT as their theoretical underpinning. They often highlight the importance of SCT’s constructs, such as self-efficacy (the belief in one’s ability to perform a behavior) and outcome expectations (the perceived consequences of a behavior), in explaining medication-taking behavior. For example, a study by [cite a relevant study] used SCT to examine the factors influencing adherence to antihypertensive medication and found that self-efficacy was a significant predictor of adherence. Another study by [cite another relevant study] explored the role of outcome expectations in medication adherence and found that patients who believed that their medication would be effective were more likely to adhere to their prescribed regimen. These studies, and many others, demonstrate the established use of SCT in understanding and promoting medication adherence.

Theoretical Foundation: Social Cognitive Theory (SCT)

Social Cognitive Theory, developed by Albert Bandura, provides a robust framework for understanding and influencing health behaviors, making it highly relevant to this proposed study. SCT emphasizes the dynamic interplay between personal factors (cognitions, beliefs, self-efficacy), behavioral factors (medication-taking habits), and environmental factors (access to support, app usability). It posits that individuals learn not only through direct experience but also through observation and modeling, which is particularly important in the context of app-based interventions.

What Others Have Said:

Many researchers in the field of health behavior change have successfully utilized SCT. Studies focusing on medication adherence, particularly in chronic conditions, frequently cite SCT as their theoretical underpinning. They often highlight the importance of SCT’s constructs, such as self-efficacy (the belief in one’s ability to perform a behavior) and outcome expectations (the perceived consequences of a behavior), in explaining medication-taking behavior. For example, a study by [cite a relevant study] used SCT to examine the factors influencing adherence to antihypertensive medication and found that self-efficacy was a significant predictor of adherence. Another study by [cite another relevant study] explored the role of outcome expectations in medication adherence and found that patients who believed that their medication would be effective were more likely to adhere to their prescribed regimen. These studies, and many others, demonstrate the established use of SCT in understanding and promoting medication adherence.

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