Contents Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 Jana Krivec Analytical review of mindfulness-based educational programs -a missing linkage between humans and a modern world 000/00000000000. 107 Dagnosaw Demski Marking and crossing over invisible borders in everyday life ....0000..... 145 Luk Janura More responsibility for all!German Liberal Health Care Policy 2009-2013 00000000000000000000000000000000000000000 174 Dominika Czarnecka Emotive Figures. Evoking Emotions by Things in Public Space 0000/. 192 RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015, pp. 5-42. Analytical review of mindfulness-based educational programs -a missing linkage between humans and a modern world Jana Krivec School of Advanced Social Studies, Nova Gorica, Slovenia Corresponding authors e-mail: jana.krivec@fuds.si Abstract: Modern information society gives a big emphasis on high technology development that is supposed to facilitate our lives. However, it often seems that during this information and achievement driven process we left the harmonic development of human beings behind. Finding our inner selves is one of the crucial tasks in the modern, alienated world. This consequently leads us to better cognitive, emotional and social functioning, better mental and physical health, thus making us and broader society more optimistic, positive and happy. These are the goals of a new branch of science, called positive psychology. Within it, mindfulness is an approach that is recently gaining popularity. The first wave of mindfulness-based programs was for adults, while recent efforts have also targeted the well-being of children and adolescents. In this paper we present an overview of the current mindfulness-based educational programs dividing the existing programs into classes, taking into account their objectives, basic disciplines, age of the students, place of implementation and duration of the program. All programs and researches show that mindfulness is a proper way to develop a person and society that will be able to cope with modern world challenges, stay positive and healthy. Key Words: mindfulness, benefits, education, analysis Introduction .Br r. RrOoR RoOR r. OR Ron. I r.r Ron OR O oO to c.OOR O RoOR.. -Viktor Frankl Modern world, filled with information and technology is quick, demanding constant alertness and readiness to react. A person shaped by the new world has a big chance to develop stressful reactions which weaken the well-being. In general, people know this is so, but they are positive it cannot happen to them0until it does/ Acute reactions are not enough, to ensure a happy life. Prevention is needed. For this purpose a new approach has been developed, called positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on the positive attitude of humans toward their own lives. It is a shift from the traditional study of disturbing experiences suffered in life to the study of all that makes life worth living. Positive psychology assumes that it is not only the cure that is important for a healthy human mind, but also the prevention or better, striving toward growth of happiness in everyones lives, that prevents or heading off problems before they arise. Flourishing, in positive psychology, refers to optimal human functioning. It comprises four parts: goodness, generativity, growth, and resilience (Fredrickson, 2005). To achieve the goals of positive psychology one has to be alert of oneself. It means to be consciously moment-by-moment attentive to situational elements of an experience: i.e., thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and surroundings. The psychological approach dealing with it is called mindfulness (Zylowska et al., 2008). The aim of mindfulness is to feel the present moment; one learns to observe the arising and passing of experience. If we describe it with vivid illustration: it is like if we come out of a wild river (that represents our thoughts and feelings), sit on the shore and just nonjudgmentally watch the river passing by. These experiences and thoughts are not judged or thought about the challenge during mindfulness is to simply observe (Brown et al., 2007). The four key components of the ME program include: 1. Quieting the mindlistening to a resonating instrument (chime) and focusing on the breath 2. Mindful attentionmindful of sensation, thoughts, and feelings 3. Managing negative emotions and negative thinking 4. Acknowledgment of self and others. Formally, mindfulness is trained by meditation practices such as sitting meditation, or physical movement such as yoga or tai chi. These techniques help steady the mind and train its attentional capacity, while also increasing its breadth of focus. Practitioners are instructed to focus their attention on the present moment using an anchor, for instance, the breath/ When the mind drifts away, the focus is gently brought back to the present moment experience. The practitioner tries to simply observe his or her experience of the present moment without judging or modifying it (Zenner et al., 2014). Benefits of mindfulness practice include reduction of stress, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain (Brown et al., 2007). Public and scientific interest for mindfulness is growing, especially in the last decade (see Figure 1). Mindfulness has been applied to many different fields, but it is not until lately, that focus of positive psychology and mindfulness techniques moved to even deeper prevention into the education of children and youth, to foster their strengths and resiliency. Namely, recent years have witnessed a growing portion of school aged children experiencing a myriad of social, emotional, and behavioral problems that interfere with their interpersonal relationships, school success, and their potential to become competent adults and productive citizens (e.g. Greenberg et al., 2001). Figure 1. Growth in academic articles published on the topic area of mindfulness. Mindful education .C.Oo A r. BRr ANRROR rO SOnOo C... -Rose Pavlov, Founder and President of Ivy Child Childhood and adolescence are important formative developmental stages that lay the groundwork for well-being and mental health in adulthood. The evidence base for school-based programs that aim to promote well-being, support emotional and social learning and prevent mental health problems in adulthood is growing. Mindfulness shows to be a good counterbalance to the immense media and technology that children are exposed to and formal education should always consider the mental health and balance of children thus preventing disorders and fostering personal development and well-being in children. School is an appropriate setting for such interventions, since children spend a lot of time there and interventions can be brought directly to groups of children in areas of need as part of a preventive approach at little cost (Weare and Nind, 2011)/ Researches show that academic achievement, social and emotional competence and physical and mental health are fundamentally and multiply interrelated. The best and most efficient way to foster any of those is to foster all of them/ (Diamond, 2010, pp.789). Children need to learn to stop their mind wandering and regulate attention and emotions, to deal with feelings of frustration, and to self-motivate. Mindfulness based interventions (MBI) in schools are seen as an approach to tackle these challenges. As a result, various mindfulness programs for schools have been developed and applied within the past few years. In this article we present the current state of the art researches and programs of mindfulness in education under the umbrella of positive psychology and information society. Generally there are three ways in which mindfulness can be integrated in classrooms: indirectly (as the teacher develops his personal practice), directly (by teaching students directly), or combining both. We will describe the first two options in more details. 1. Students 2. Teachers 1. Students We have analyzed 47 mindfully based educational programs/studies. In Table 1 we describe some of their characteristics: age of children to which the program was applied, country of the application, type of school, program and its duration. In Table 2 we present the objectives of particular programs (marked with the sequential number from the first table). From Table 1 (see in atachement) we can see that mindfulness is by far most developed and spread in the USA, Western Europe, Canada and Australia follow. Programs and researches are rapidly growing in the last five years, not many date latter than the last decade. Thus, we may say that mindfulness is a modern approach that is getting more and more popular. This is so also because some of the programs are funded by celebrities (e.g. Goldie Hawn foundation). Most programs/researches are focusing on children in elementary school (aged 6-14, 30 programs/researches out of 47), following by high school students (aged 14-18, 23 programs/researches). Less interest is for college students (aged 18-24, 2 researches) and preschool children (less than 5 years, 4 studies). Results are expectable, since age 6-14 are most suitable for unlocking childrens potential and show them the way to happiness and wellbeing that they can treasure through their whole life. Most mindfulness programs last 4-8 weeks or for longer periods during the school year or semester. Shorter periods of time are not useful, since mindfulness is not a magic stick that would save the world and people living in it, but it is actually work on a personal development. Typically, sessions are from one to three times per week. In this case lessons are usually around 30-45 minutes long. If sessions are everyday, which is rarely, they last less (a few minutes). As for the content, programs use different mindfulness approaches focusing on specific trait such as stress reduction, breathing, attention, awareness, body scan, meditation etc. Some combine mindfulness with transcendental meditation, yoga, Tai chi or even music. The benefits of the programs described in Table 1 are shown separately in Table 2. From Table 2 we can see that the majority of the programs (29/47) outpoint improvement of some aspect of cognitive functioning as important benefit of mindfulness. Attention, concentration and academic performance are most obvious. Psychological improvements are mentioned as an important benefit of the mindfulness in most of the programs (35/47). They are divided in subclasses resilience is the focus of 26 of 47 programs, stress reduce is the focus of 17 of 47 programs and emotional issues (including decreased depression and anxiety, increased sense of calmness, relaxation, and self-acceptance, increased self-calming) are the focus of 14 of 47 programs. Benefits on the social field are mentioned in 23 of 47 programs. Physical aspect as a benefit of mindfulness is mentioned the least (5 times). If we combine the two tables we can notice, that mindfulness programs that are specifically based on stress reduction, do not especially point out attention and concentration improvement as a benefit of such training. Some of the programs include attention and concentration under improvement of broader executive functions or academic performance. Some researches (see Figure 2) state that, in the first stage mindfulness programs improve cognitive functioning and emotional regulation which then results in better students well-being, social competence and academic achievement. Figure 2. The School-Based Meditation Model Source: Waters et al (2015), pp.121 We agree that first one has to be mentally alert and has to control his/her own emotions in order to achieve better social competence, wellbeing and academic achievement. However, improved cognitive functioning and emotional regulation are just precondition for developing wellbeing, social competence and academic achievement. We think mindfulness techniques by themselves also directly improve wellbeing and social competence. Firstly, they reduce anxiety, improve optimism and hope. Secondly they improve empathy and better understanding of other people. Nevertheless, all the programs are designed to foster healthy habits through a variety of strength-based approaches focused on exercising mindfulness and positive psychology in every aspect of daily life. Most school-based interventions that we have mentioned so far are designed for students. But youngsters are not the only ones in school communities whose well-being needs to be nurtured and invested in. 2. Teachers Teachers are also the ones to ameliorate the stress involved in the teaching profession and the problem of teacher burnout/ The personal, societal, and financial costs associated with burnout are too high to ignore. Teachers perceptions of stress and their ability to cope with demands are implicated in burnout/ (McCormick and Barnett, 2011, pp/ 182) We will review 5 major mindfulness -based education programs for teachers: MindUp, MBWE, CARE, SMART and MBSR. MindUP is the program under the Hawn foundation (2015)/ It helps teachers to more easily manage the classroom, maintain an environment conducive to student learning and find greater professional and personal fulfillment while pushing student academic and personal success. Mindfulness-Based Wellness Education (MBWE) was created at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) in 2005 as a response to the increasing rates of teacher stress and burnout. It is taught in a 9-week (36 h) elective course. Modeled on the MBSR program, MBWE uses a wellness wheel as a framework to illustrate the principles and implication of mindfulness to teaching strategies such as reflective practice, professional identity, emotional competence and mindful listening. It applies the learning to the students themselves, as well as their pupils, parents, and their teaching colleagues. Evaluation of the MBWE program was completed and highlights two core learning objectives: mindfull teaching and pedagogy for well-being (Soloway et al., 2011). Garrisons professional development program for teachers, Cultivating Awareness and Resiliency in Education (CARE, 2015), runs in several sites in the US. It recently received a major grant from the U.S. Department of Educations Institute for Education Sciences (IES)/ The CARE intervention is based on the Prosocial Classroom model (Jennings and Greenberg, 2009). It helps teachers learn skills that can transform the classroom environment into one that fosters not only academic but also social and emotional development. The curriculum combines exercises for recognizing emotional patterns with contemplative practices such as mindfulness meditation. The course has been delivered in various ways and with different durations, the longest being a 5-day intensive retreat. Classroom instruction is supported by email and one to one phone mentoring and coaching (CARE, 2015). Stress Management and Relaxation Techniques (SMART, 2015) is a professional development program for primary and secondary education (K12) teachers and administrators, including the following three curriculum elements: (1) Concentration, Attention, and Mindfulness; (2) Awareness and Understanding of Emotions; and (3) Empathy and Compassion Training. The training consists of 11 sessions over 8 weeks, including two day-long sessions. Participants are assigned 1030 min of daily mindfulness practice. (Jennings et al., 2012) Last but not least, an 8-week adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program on educators showed effects on stress and wellbeing. Results suggested that educators who participated in MBSR reported significant gains in self-regulation, self-compassion, and mindfulness related skills (observation, no judgment, and no reaction). Significant improvements in multiple dimensions of sleep quality were found as well. These findings provide promising evidence of the effectiveness of MBSR as a strategy to promote educators personal and professional well-being (Frank et al., 2015). Table 3. Review of the benefits of 4 Mindfulness-based education programs for teachers. PO class Program objectives(PO) Program COGNITIVE Attention, concentration MindUP, SMART Think more clearly especially under pressure MindUP PSYCHOLOGICAL Increased self-efficiency, better work efficiency MBWE, CARE Increased self-esteem/self-confidence, self-awareness and self-control CARE, MBRS Increased sense of calmness, relaxation, and self-acceptance, Increased self-calming, decreased stress CARE, MBSR Increased emotional regulation CARE Experience greater job satisfaction MindUp Better mental health, well-being -in the classroom and into private life, optimism, joy MindUp, MBWE, CARE, MBSR SOCIAL Increased social skills and social compliance classroom participation Improve communication with students, parents and staff, inducing better behavior with students Mindup SOCIAL Increased work motivation SMART Increased social skills and social compliance PHYSICAL Empathy, more accurate perceptions of students Improve the overall classroom climate by infusing it with optimism and hope Helps to create a stronger, more vibrant school culture Mindup, CARE MindUp, CARE Better health, sleeping MBWE, MBSR From Table 3 we can see that most of the above mentioned programs help teachers to improve social skill, mental health and wellbeing and to better focus and concentrate. These are one of the most important traits for teachers in order to avoid burnouts, and to fulfill their class obligations as well as possible. A distressed, burnout teacher, with no focus and social skills is definitely not the one who should educate our children. A mindful and happy teacher on the other hand has qualities such as open minded curiosity, kindliness, empathy, compassion, acceptance, trust, patience, non-striving and empathy. He is a positive person, with good mental and physical wellbeing. Such a person can upgrade raw knowledge with all these characteristics, thus teach children in a better way and show them how to develop harmonically, so that they will not get lost in the modern technological society. Mindfulness benefits still have to be taken with caution The results of this review must be considered within some of methodological consider-actions. First weakness of most researches and programs is the fact that many of the published studies had evaluated the results in the pilot stage and have only considered the immediate effects of the program. Thus, although we can provide the conclusions above about the short-term benefits, there can be no firm conclusions drawn about whether the benefits are sustained over time. Secondly, the majority of the studies were unable to use random assignment due to specific year levels being used or particular student groups being targeted for the intervention. Therefore interpretation of many studies is limited due to the lack of an equivalent control group or the unreliable and preliminary effect sizes for controlled studies. Results are generalizable only to individuals who have the interest and ability to participate in a Mindfulness program. Next, the meditation programs have commonly been evaluated using student or teachers subjective self-report measures; thus, common-source bias is a concern. Last but not least, it is difficult to make judgements about which types of meditation are most effective with the current evidence available because there was no consistency used in the samples, designs and surveys. More fine-tuned research is needed to understand the optimal frequency with which students are best to practice meditation at school. Similarly, more research is needed to understand the optimal amount of time to spend meditating for each session. Nevertheless, Baer (2003) concludes that although the empirical literature includes many methodological flaws, mindfulness-based interventions may be helpful in the education as well as treatment of several disorders. Conclusion .T..R N Mro Hor. MOo O TO FOnRO. O r. POROrOR. -Rose Pavlov, founder of Ivy Child International This brief review shows that school-based mindfulness interventions are relatively new but address skills that are important for student wellbeing, and appear to be especially effective in reducing negative functioning. Mindfulness education enhances the very qualities and goals of education in the 21st century shaped by the positive psychology movement. These qualities include not only attentional and emotional self-regulation, but also prosocial dispositions such as empathy and compassion, self-representations, ethical sensitivity, creativity, and problem solving skills. They enable children to deal with future challenges of the rapidly changing world, ideally becoming smart, caring, and committed citizens (Mind and Life Education Research Network (MLERN), 2012). A mindful child grows up to be a person who fulfills three central positive psychology concerns: positive emotions, positive individual traits and positive institutions. One must not forget that a mindful education can only be properly implemented if the educators are properly trained and harmonically personally developed. The goals of education have always been contingent on the cultural context (Durkheim, 1956; Waters, 2015). Therefore we may say that a mindful person is armed with the necessary psychological equipment to fight the 21 century demands -information technology, uncertainty, stressful situations and self-alienation. To sum it up, mindfulness is firstly a gift to ourselves, and consequently to the broader public and social life in general. References Anand, U, & Sharma, M.P. (2011). Impact of a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program on Stress and Well-Being in Adolescents: A Study at a School Setting, Journal of Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2011, 7(3), 73-97. Arthurson, K. (2015). Teaching Mindfulness to Year Sevens as Part of Health and Personal Development. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 40 (5), 27-40. doi: 10.14221/ajte.2015v40n5.2 Available at: http://ro.ecu.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2605&context=ajt e Baer R.A (2003). Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: a conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology: Science & Practice,10,125143. Baijal, S., Jha, A. P., Kiyonaga, A., Singh, R., & Srinivasan, N. (2011). The influence of concentrative meditation training on the development of attention networks during early adolescence. Frontiers in Psychology, 2(153), 1-9. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2011.00153. Available at: http://www.amishi.com/lab/wpcontent/uploads/Baijaletal_2011.pdf Beauchemin, J., Hutchins, T. L., & Patterson, F. (2008). Mindfulness meditation may lessen anxiety, promote social skills, and improve academic performance among adolescents with learning disabilities. Complementary Health Practice Review, 13, 3445. doi:10.1177/1533210107311624. Bergen-Cico, D., Razza,R. & Timmins,A. (2015). Fostering Self-Regulation Through Curriculum Infusion of Mindful Yoga: A Pilot Study of Efficacy and Feasibility, Journal of child and family studies 23(7), 1024-1062. doi: 10.1007/s10826-015-0146-2 Biegel, G., and Brown, K. W. (2010). Assessing the efficacy of an adapted in-class mindfulness-based training program for school-age children: a pilot study. White Paper. Available online at: http://www.mindfulschools.org/pdf/Mindful%20Schools%20Pilot %20Study%20Whitepaper.pdf Black, D. S. & Fernando, R. (2014). Mindfulness training and classroom behavior among lower-income and ethnic minority elementary school children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23 (7), pp 1242-1246. Bluth, K., Campo, R. A., Pruteanu-Malinici, S., Reams, A., Mullarkey, M., & Broderick, P. C. (2015). A School-Based Mindfulness Pilot Study for Ethnically Diverse At-Risk Adolescents. Mindfulness 6 (1), 1 15. doi: 10.1007/s12671-014-0376-1. Available at: http://www.uvm.edu/~cdci/best/Broderick1.pdf Broderick, P. C., & Metz, S. (2009). Learning to BREATHE: A pilot trial of a mindfulness curriculum for adolescents. Advances in School Mental Health Promotion, 2, 3546. Broderick, P. C. (2013). Learning to BREATHE: A mindfulness curriculum for adolescents. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger. Brown, K. W., Ryan, R. M. & Creswell, J. D. (2007). Mindfulness: Theoretical foundations and evidence for its salutary effects. Psychological Inquiry, 18, 211237. doi:10.1080/10478400701598298. Campion, J., & Rocco, S. (2009). Minding the Mind: The Effects and Potential of a School-Based Meditation Programme for Mental Health Promotion. Advances in School Mental Health Promotion, 2, 47-55. CARE (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://www.care4teachers.org/ Desmond, C. T., & Hanich, L. (2010). The Effects of Mindful Awareness Teaching Practices on the Executive Functions of Students in an Urban, Low Income Middle School. Available online at: http://www.wellnessworksinschools.com/WWResearchReport2 010.pdf Diamond, A. (2010). The Evidence Base for Improving School Outcomes by Addressing the Whole Child and by Addressing Skills and Attitudes, Not Just Content. Early Education and Development, 21(5), 780793. doi:10.1080/10409289.2010.514522 Durkheim, E. (1956). Eduction: Its nature and role. In Education and Sociology (pp. 6190). New York: The Free Press. Flook, L., Smalley, S.L., Kitil, M.J., Galla, B,M., Kaiser-Greenland, S., et al. (2010). Effects of mindful awareness practices on executive function in elementary school children. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 26, 70-95. doi: 10.1080/15377900903379125 Flook, L., Goldberg, S.B., Pinger, L., Bonus K., Davidson, R.J. (2013). Mindfulness for teachers: A pilot study to assess effects on stress, burnout, and teaching efficacy, Mind Brain and Education 7(3), 182 195. Franco Justo, C., Manas, I., Cangas, A. J., and Gallego, J. (2011). Exploring the effects of a mindfulness program for students of secondary school. Int. J. Knowl. Soc. Res. 2, 1428. doi: 10.4018/jksr.2011010102 Frank, J. L., Reibel, D., Broderick, P., Cantrell, T., & Metz, S. (2015). The effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction on educator stress and well-being: Results from a pilot study. Mindfulness, 6 (2), 208-216. Fredrickson, B. L.& Losada, M. F. (2005). Positive Affect and the Complex Dynamics of Human Flourishing. American Psychologist 60 (7), 678686. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.60.7.678. Frenkel, M. O., Georg, A., Plessner, H., and Holt, D. V. (in press). Erste Ergebnisse zur AchrROOr O Sn.o. .8-R.. O TOO. .. J.oOn. [IOrOo RorR O. r. MO.oRR O Sn.OOoR .8-R. Training for Teenagers]. Galantino, M., Galbavy, R., & Quinn, L. (2008). Therapeutic effects of yoga for children: A systematic review of the literature. Pediatric Physical Therapy, 20 (1), 6680. doi:10.1097/ PEP.0b013e31815f1208 Greenberg, M. T., Domitrovich, C., & Bumbarger, B. (2001). The prevention of mental disorders in school-aged children: current state of the field. Prevention & Treatment, 4, 162. Huppert, F. A., & Johnson, D. A. (2010). A controlled trial of mindfulness training in schools: The importance of practice for an impact on well-being. Journal of Positive Psychology, 5, 264 274. doi:10.1080/17439761003794148 Ivy Child International (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://ivychild.org Jennings, P. A., & Greenberg, M. T. (2009). The pro-social classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 491 525. Jennings, P. A., Roeser, R., & Lantieri, L. (2012). Supporting educational goals through cultivating mindfulness: Approaches for teachers and students. In A. Higgins-D'Alessandro, M. Corrigan, & P. M. Brown (Eds.) The Handbook of Prosocial Education. New York: Rowman and Littlefield. Joyce, A., Etty Leal, J., Zazryn, T., Hamilton, A., & Hassed, C. (2010). Exploring a mindfulness meditation program on the mental health of upper primary children: A pilot study. Advances in School Mental Health Promotion, 3, pp.17. Kerrigan, D., Johnson, K., Stewart, M., Magyari, T., Hutton, N., Ellen, J.M., Sibinga, E.M.S. (2010). Perceptions, experiences, and shifts in perspective occurring among urban youth participating in a mindfulness-based stress reduction program. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice , 17 (2) , 96 101. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2010.08.003 Klatt, M., Harpster, K. Browne, E., White, S.,Case-Smith, J. (2013). "Feasibility and preliminary outcomes for Move-Into-Learning: An arts-based mindfulness classroom intervention." Journal of Positive Psychology, 8 (3), 233-241. Kuyken W, Weare K, Okoumunne O, Lewis R, Motton N, Burnett R, Cullen, C., Hennelly, S., & Huppert, F. (2013). Effectiveness of the mindfulness in schools program: A non-randomized controlled feasibility study.British Journal of Psychiatry, 203, 126-131. doi: http://doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.113.126649. Learning to BREATHE A mindful curriculum for adolescent (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://learning2breathe.org/curriculum/research Liehr, P. & Diaz, N. (2010). A pilot study examining the effect of mindfulness on depression and anxiety for minority children. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 24(1), 6971. doi:10.1016/j. apnu.2009.10.001 McCormick, J. & Barnett, K. (2011). Teachers' attributions for stress and their relationships with burnout. International. Journal of Educational Management, 25 (3), 278-293. Meditation capsules (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://www.meditationcapsules.com/ Meiklejohn J., Philips C., Freedman M. L., Griffin M. L., Biegel G., Roach A., Frank H., Burke C., Pinger L., Soloway G., Isberg R., Sibinga E., Grossman L., Saltzman A.. (2012). Integrating Mindfulness Training into K-12 Education: Fostering the Resilience of Teachers and Students. Mindfulness 3(4), 291-307.doi: 10.1007/s12671-012-00945 Available at: http://www.mindfulnesseveryday.info/pdf/WhitePaperMindfulness InEducation.pdf Mendelson, T., Greenberg, M. T., Dariotis, J. K., Gould, L. F., Rhoades, B. L., and Leaf, P. J. (2010). Feasibility and preliminary outcomes of a school-based mindfulness intervention for urban youth. J. Abnorm. Child Psychol. 38, 985994. doi: 10.1007/s10802-010-9418-x Metz, S., Frank, J. L., Reibel, D., Cantrell, T., Sanders, S., and Broderick, P. C. (2013). The effectiveness of the learning to breathe program on adolescent emotion regulation. Res. Hum. Dev. 10, 252272. doi: 10.1080/15427609.2013.818288 Mind and Life Education Research Network (MLERN). (2012). Contemplative practices and mental training: prospects for american education. Child Dev.Perspect. 6, 146153. doi: 10.1111/j.17508606.2012.00240.x Monshat, K., Khong, B., Hassed, C., Vella-Brodrick, D., Norrish, J., Burns, J/, & Herrman, H/ (2013)/ A Conscious Control Over Life and My Emotions. Mindfulness Practice and Healthy Young People/ A Qualitative Study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 52(5), 572577. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2012.09.008 MyRIAD: Mindfulness and Resilience in Adolescence (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the https://oxfordmindfulness.org/learn/myriad/ Napoli, M., Krech, P., & Holley L (2005). Mindfulness training for elementary school students: The attention academy. Journal of Applied School Psychology., 21 (1), 99-125. doi: 10.1300/J008v21n01_05 Available online at: http://www.haworthpress.com/web/JAPPS 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Nidich, S., Mjasiri, S., Nidich, R., Rainforth, M., Grant, J., Valosek, L., Change, W., & Zigler, R. (2011). Academic achievement and transcendental meditation: A study with at-risk urban middle school students. Education, 131,556564. Potek R. (2012). Mindfulness as a School-Based Prevention Program and its Effect on Adolescent Stress, Anxiety and Emotion Regulation. Doctoral dissertation, Available from UMI Dissertation Express (AAT 3493866), New York, NY. Powell, L. A., Gilchrist, M., & Stapley, J. (2008). A journey of self-discovery: An intervention involving massage, yoga and relaxation for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties attending primary schools. Journal Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, 13 (3), 193199. Raes, F., Griffith, J. W., Van der Gucht, K., & Williams, J. M. G. (2014). School-based prevention and reduction of depression in adolescents: A cluster-randomized controlled trial of a mindfulness group program. Mindfulness, 5, 477-486. doi: 10.1007/s12671-013-0202-1. Roughest San Francisco schools tamed through meditation (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/openforum/article/Meditationtransforms-roughest-San-Francisco-5136942.php#src=fb http://www.zmescience.com/science/psychology-science/roughestsan-francisco-schools-tamed-through-meditation-4325324/ Saltzman, A., & Goldin, P. (2008). Mindfulness based stress reduction for school-age children. In S. C. Hayes & L. A. Greco (Eds.), Acceptance and mindfulness interventions for children adolescents and families (pp. 139161). Oakland, CA: Context Press/New Harbinger. Schonert-Reichl, K. A., & Lawlor, M. S. (2010). The effects of a mindfulness-based education program on pre-and early adolescents well-being and social and emotional competence. Mindfulness, 1, 137151. doi:10.1007/s12671-010-0011-8. Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Oberle, E., Lawlor, M. S., Abbott, D., Thomson, K., Oberlander, T. F., & Diamond, A. (2015). Enhancing cognitive and socialemotional development through a simple-to-administer mindfulness-based school program for elementary school children: A randomized controlled trial. Developmental Psychology, 51(1), 52-66. Available at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4323355/ Semple, R. J., Reid, E. F. G., & Miller, L. (2005). Treating anxiety with mindfulness: An open trial of mindfulness training for anxious children. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 19, 379 392. Semple R.J., Lee, J., Rosa D., & Miller, L.F.(2010). A randomized trial of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for children: Promoting mindful attention to enhance social-emotional resiliency in children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 19, 218-229. doi:10.1007/s10826-10009-19301-y. Sibinga, E., Perry-Parrish, C., Chung, S. E., Johnson, S. B., Smith, M., & Ellen, J. M. (2013). School-based mindfulness instruction for urban male youth: A small randomized controlled trial. Preventive medicine, 57(6), 799-801. Sines, J. S. (2009). The Perceptions of Children Following Participation in a Yoga and Mindfulness Program: A Qualitative Study. Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the https://etd.ohiolink.edu/!etd.send_file?accession=osu1250100959& disposition=inline SMART (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://smart-ineducation.org/ Smiling mind (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://smilingmind.com.au/ So, K. T., & Orme-Johnson, D. W. (2001). Three randomized experiments on the longitudinal effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique on cognition. Intelligence, 29, 419440. doi:10.1016/s0160-2896(01) 00060-8. Soloway, G. B., Poulin, A., & Mackenzie, C. S. (2011). Preparing new teachers for the full catastrophe of the 21st century classroom: Integrating mindfulness training into initial teacher education. In A. Cohan & A. Honigsfeld (Eds.), Breaking the mold of preservice and in-service teacher education (pp. 221227). Lanham: R and L Education. The Hawn Fundation (2015). Retrieved June 11, 2015 from the http://thehawnfoundation.org/ Wall, R. B. (2005). Tai Chi and mindfulness-based stress reduction in a Boston Middle School. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 19, 23237. Warner, T. Q. (2005). Awareness and cognition: The role of awareness training in child development. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 17,4764 Waters, L., Barsky, A., Ridd, A. Allen, K. (2015). Contemplative Education: A Systematic, Evidence-Based Review of the effect of Meditation Interventions in Schools, Educational Psychology Review, 27, 103-134. doi: 10.1007/s10648-014-9258-2 Weare, K., and Nind, M. (2011). Promoting Mental Health of Children and Adolescents Through Schools and School-Based Interventions. Report of the DataPrev-Project. Available online at: http://www.dataprevproject.net/files/final_reports/WP3%20%20Final%20Report%20%20Promoting%20Mental%20Health%20of%20Children%20and% 20Adolescents.pdf Weare,K. (2013). Developing mindfulness with children and young people: a review of the evidence and policy context, Journal of Children's Services, 8 (2), pp.141 153. Williams, J.M.G. and Kuyken, W. (2012). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: a promising new approach to preventing depressive relapse. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 200 (5), 359-360. doi:10.1192/bjp.bp.111.104745, Available at: http://oxfordmindfulness.org/mbct/publications/ Wisner, B. L. (2013). An exploratory study of mindfulness meditation for alternative school students: Perceived benefits for improving school climate and student functioning. Mindfulness, 1, 1-13. doi: 10.1007/s12671-013-0215-9 Zenner, C., Herrnleben-Kurz, S. and Walach, H. (2014). Mindfulness-based interventions in schools a systematic review and metaanalysis. Frontiers in Pyschology, 5 (1), 1-20. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00603 Zylowska, L., Ackerman, D. L., Yang, M. H., Futrell, J. L., Horton, N. L., Hale, S. T., Pataki C, Smalley S.L. (2008). Mindfulness meditation training with adults and adolescents with ADHD. Journal of Attention Disorders, 11, 737746. doi:10.1177/1087054707308502. Figures and tables 132 | RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 Table 1. Review of the mindfully based educational programs/studies characteristics Seq Program name Country Est. Age of Type of Duration Type of mindfulness techniques used Nr. year students / students school level 1 Oakland- USA, 2010 elementary low-income, 5 weeks, 3 Mindfulness of the Breath, Body Scan, based Mindful Oakland school ethnic-minority sessions per week Mindfulness of Walking, mindfulness practices Schools program that help children pay attention, build empathy (Black and Fernando, and self-awareness, improve self-control, and 2014) reduce stress 2 Move-into-Learning USA 2013 third low-income, 8-weeks , 45 mindfulness meditation, yoga and breathing (MIL) (Klatt et al., graders at urban in the minute session, exercises set to music, and positive self 2013) elementary Midwest weekly expression through writing and visual arts. In school addition, the two classroom teachers led shorter, daily practice sessions that reinforced those skills. 3 Mindfulness USA 2013 high school low-income, half-hour, flexibly guided mindfulness meditation sessions, meditation for rural area at least twice per alternative school week for eight students, (Wisner, weeks 2013) 4 Mindfulness in Schools Program (MiSP), (Kuyken et al., 2013) United Kingdom 2013 12-16 years public schools weekly by trained classroom teachers nine scripted mindfulness lessons, 5 Attention Academy USA 2005 first to third children with 12 sessions over sitting, movement, and body-scan meditations Program (AAP), grade (5-8 high anxiety 24 weeks for 45 as well as relaxation exercises. (Napoli et al., 2005) years) min per session 6 Wall (2005) USA 2005 11-13 years public school 5-weeks modified mindfulness based stress reduction children (MBSR) intervention (sitting meditation and | 133 7 Semple et al. (2005) USA 2005 7-9 years urban 6-weeks, 45-min elementary per-week school, referred by their classroom teachers based on observed symptoms of anxiety 8 Semple et al. (2010) USA 2010 9-12 years children 12-weeks enrolled in a clinic-based remedial reading program 9 Innerkids program USA 2010 second and program at an 8-weeks, two 30 Flook et al. (2010) third grade oncampus minute sessions children university per week elementary school 10 Schonert-Reichl and Canada 2010 pre-and representative 10 lessons and Lawlor (2010) early schools of a three times daily adolescent diverse range students in of the 4th to socioeconomic 7th grades, status mean age=11 years mindful eating) with Tai Chi. manualized Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Children (MBCT-C) MBCT-C mindful awareness practices (MAPs) ME program -a classroom-based universal preventive intervention designed to foster children's positive emotions, self-regulation, and goal setting. Mindfulness meditation -four teachers delivered components: quieting the mind, mindful attention (to sensation, thoughts, and feelings), managing negative emotions and thinking, and acknowledgment of self and others. 134 | RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 11 Beauchemin et al. (2008) 12 Zylowska et al. (2008) 13 Learning to BREATHE program (Broderick and Metz, 2009) 14 The Mindfulness In Schools Project (MiSP) (Weare, 2013) 15 /b (Stop, Breathe and Be) (Huppert and Johnson, 2010) USA USA, Boston USA United Kingdom United Kingdom 2008 1318 years 2008 >15 years, adolescents 2009 17-19 years (average age 17.4) 2012 12-16 years 2010 14-15 years private residential school for students with learning disabilities attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) private girls school in an American independent girls school public school boys in secondary school curriculum 5 to 10 min at the beginning of each class, 5 days per week, for five consecutive weeks 8-weeks, comprised of weekly 2.5-hr group sessions and daily at-home meditation practice six-session Integrated into school curriculum, checked after 2-3 months course 4 weeks, one lesson per week, mindfulness meditation MAPs intervention with psycho-education components to ameliorate self-esteem and self-regulation, MBSR-derived mindfulness program as part of health curriculum MiSP curriculum -involves learning to direct attention to immediate experience, moment by moment, with open-minded curiosity and acceptance. New skills are learned in a highly practical way, through experience of mindfulness practices and application in everyday life. stopping and breathing Learning how to recognize feelings by learning about body responses to emotions + mindfulness how to deal with anger, worry and other difficult feelings. Mindfulness themes are taught by | 135 16 David Lynch Foundation Quite time program USA, San Francisco 2014 teenagers public school 2 sessions a day, Inserted in a curriculum 17 Hawn Foundation, MindUp, The Hawn Fundation (2015) USA 2014 all school children all types of schools integrated into school curriculum 18 19 20 Saltzman and Goldin (2008) Joyce et al. (2010) Liehr and Diaz (2010) USA Australia Caribbean and Central American 2008 2010 2010 9-11 years with parents 1013 years mean age 9.5 years public school public school summer camp, minority and disadvantaged children 8-weeks, weekly 10 weeks 10 15inute classes for two weeks countries 21 Raes et al. (2014) Flanders the northern, Dutch-speaking region of Belgium. 2014 14-17 years public school during school hours for eight weeks, replacing religious studies, physical education, or another academic course, depending on the classs timetable. Each engaging images, video clips and objects such as snow globes to support understanding of busy thoughts come and go. Quiet Time program, which uses Transcendental Meditation techniques to help students focus and stay calm -students closed their eyes and focused their minds development of well-being traits using social, emotional, attentional and self regulation strategies, including mindfulness exercises. Increasing prosocial behavior and fostering emotional and social well-being. MBSR intervention-stress reduction program (Still Quiet Place) 14 mindfulness program interventions focusing on depression and anxiety. elements of MBCT and MBSR -guided experiential mindfulness exercises (e.g., mindfulness of breathing, breathing space, body scan), sharing of experience of these exercises; reflections in small groups, inspiring stories; psycho-education (e.g., stress, depression, self-care), and review of homework. 136 | RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 22 Mindfulness Education (ME) program (Schonert-Reichl, K. A., and Lawlor, M. S., 2010) 23 Razza et al. (2013) 24 Mindfulness Practice and Healthy Young People (Monshat et al., 2013) 25 Sibinga et al., (2013) 26 Ivy child international Canada USA, Boston Australia USA schools in North 2010 2013 2013 2013 2011 pre and early adolescents (4-7 grade) ave.11 years (6th grade) 1624 years 7th and 8th grade boys preschool children, public schools public schools, white and Asian race public school urban male school, application based, tuition-free middle school all types of schools mindfulness session lasted 100 minutes. daily lessons (three times a day) 1 school year implemented in English Language Arts (ELA) classes, three times per week for 4 min at the beginning of each ELA class. 6-weeks 12-week, once-weekly, 50-minute sessions campus programs, community students engage in mindful attention training mindfulness and yoga intervention. mindfulness training program MBSR using a combination of mindfulness activities including yoga, meditation, nutrition, art and | 137 program America, elementary, programs and Internationals South high school, events. All mindfulness-based America, adolescents programs are learning and Asia tailored to the specific needs of the diverse populations. Single day classes to long-term programs are offered, customized to the unique and diverse populations. 27 social and emotional Canada 2015 elementary suburban, SEL program: 12 learning (SEL) school predominantly lessons taught program (Schonert students, 4 middle-class approximately Reichl et al., 2015) and 5th community once a week, with graders (9 public school each lesson lasting 11 years) approximately 4050 min, Mindfulness: every day for 3 min three times a day 28 mindfulness-based USA 2010 adolescents urban public 8-week program stress reduction schools of instruction program (Kerrigan et al., 2010) music mindfulness and caring for others MindUp program + Social responsibility program mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR): (1) didactic material related to mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and the mind-body connection, (2) experiential practice of 138 | RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 meditation, yoga, and the body scan during group meetings and encouragement of home practice, and (3) group discussion focused on applications of mindfulness to everyday situations and problem-solving related to barriers to effective practice 29 Arthurson et al. Australia, 2015 11-12 years public school 9 weeks (July- several existing mindfulness program (2015) Adelaide September 2013), resources, including the Mind-up which was 45 minute class adapted to the specific Australian educational per week context, along with material from two Australian resources, Smiling Mind (2015) and Meditation Capsules (2015) 30 Galantino et al. USA 2008 Children (4th urban public 8 weeks body scan, meditation, breathing exercises, and (2008) and 5th schools Tai Chi graders) 31 Sines (2009) USA 2009 8-9 years public school 6-week program, yoga and mindfulness training (2nd grade) 45 minutes per week 32 Powell et al. (2008) United 2008 8-11 years young children 12 one hour Self-discovery program (SDP), interventions Kingdom with emotional sessions delivered involving massage, yoga and relaxation and behavioral over two school difficulties in terms public schools 33 A mindful project, United 2015 teenagers public schools 8-weeks .b mindfulness in schools program developed by funded by the Kingdom the Mindfulness in Schools Project as a Wellcome Trust Mindfulness Training (MT) intervention. The .b (Williams and program is based on the 8-week MBCT course Kuyken, 2012; MyRIAD: Mindfulness and Resilience in | 139 Adolescence, 2015) 34 Wellness Works in Germany 2010 10-12 years, urban public 3 months mindful awareness: focuses on both executive SchoolsTM program 6th grade, middle school, attention and executive control behaviors in (Desmond and low income. students. Hanich, 2010) 35 Meditacin Fluir Spain 2011 16-19 years compulsory 10 weeks (first Meditation practice and Flow, a meditation that program -Franco (1st/2nd secondary quarter academic focuses on the attention on the breath in the Justo research group year of high education from year), with area abdomen while repeating a mantra. program school) three public frequency of one school hour and a half session weekly. 36 Potek (2012) USA 2012 14-17 years two high 14-weeks Learning to Breathe program (Broderick, 2007) schools (one rural and one urban) 37 Frenke et al. (2014) Germany 2014 13-15 years public school 6 weeks mindfulness training 38 Metz et al. (2013) USA 2013 16 years suburban high Home practice Learning to BREATH program school 39 Anand and Sharma Bangalore 2011 14 years public school 3 months training stress reduction program (2011) India 40 Biegel and Brown California 2010 6-8 years elementary 5 weeks3 mindfulness-based activities: listening, (2010) USA school sessions a week breathing, movement, walking, eating, seeing, for 15 minutes per emotions, test taking, activities of daily living, session and lessons on the promotion of kindness and caring 41 Baijal et al. (2011) USA 2011 13-15 years public school 10 min, twice transcendental meditation daily 42 Campion and Rocco Australia 2009 5-18 years public school 1 year program in mindfulness, visualization, mantra, prays (2009) classroom 43 Mendelson et al. USA 2010 10 years urban public 12 weeks, 45 min school-based mindfulness and yoga 140 | RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015 (2010) schools session 4 days per intervention. week 44 Nidich (2011) USA 2011 6-7 grade public school twice daily 12 min transcendent meditation session, 3 months 45 So and Orme-Johnson Taiwan 2001 14-18 years public school 2min sessions, transcendential meditation (2001) twice daily, 6 months-1 year 46 Warner (2005) USA and 2005 5-11 years public school Integrated into transcendential meditation Canada school curriculum, 5 min, twice daily, ongoing > 1 year 47 Bluth (2015) USA 2015 adolescents ethnically 50 min, once a Learning to BREATHE diverse at-risk week, over one adolescents school semester Table 2. Presentation of the benefits of the above described program/research. PO class Program objectives (PO) Program / Research nr. Decreased ADHD behaviors 2, 9 specifically hyperactivity and 12 impulsivity 7, 10, 44 PSYCHO EMOTIONAL ISSUES 1, 3, 6, 26, 43 RESILIENCE Increased self-esteem/self-confidence 32, 27 24, 35 classroom participation, reduction of 1, 2, 32 16, 17, 47 suspension, motivation for learning Respect and care for others 1 17 Empathy and compassion 1, 26, 27 17, 24, 35 Enhanced school climate 3,32 (3) PHYSICAL Increased quality of sleep 6, 26, 30 (6) Decreased aches, pain, tiredness 13 Decreased psychosomatic 38 Legend: Third column is divided according to the school level first row are elementary school, second row is high school programs Numbers are indicating the program/research that is described in Table 1 Colors represent the frequency of the particular program/research objective (class) RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015, pp. 145-173. Marking and crossing over invisible borders in everyday life Dagnosaw Demski Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland Corresponding authors e-mail: d.demski2@gmail.com Abstract: The aim of the paper based on an extensive fieldwork in South-Eastern Lithuania is to show how and why the buried ethnic borders matter today, not only as a potential cause for conflict, but as another factor shaping multiple facets of everyday life and interactions. It shows the importance of collective memory, territory, language, religion, political changes and other factors for the construction of a contemporary ethnic identity. BS .SS onrOn. I Or OoS r. o... Rn.OOoR r. church, but also several other aspects of everyday life (celebration of festivals, telling of specific anecdotes, peculiar verbal ways of expression which provoke assaults on one another, often reflecting taboo topics (edges) in mutual encounters, and a variety of cultural incompatibilities). I focus not on the real history, but on images which can be seen through articulations of a local point of view; not the truth, but how it is/was perceived by people. On the sort of knowledge people had that had created this type of articulations. Keywords: everyday life, presence, recognizing invisible borders, ethnic borders, public space, spatial patterns, local hierarchies, narratives, South-Eastern Lithuania Power has principle not so much in a person as in a certain concerted distribution of bodies, faces, lights, games in an arrangement whose internal mechanisms produce the relation to which individuals are caught up (Foucault 1995: 202). ... community describes the arena in which one learns and largely continues to practice being social. It serves as a symbolic resource, repository and referent for a variety of OrOrOR. OrR UrOo.. (Cohen 1985: 20). The World War II ended in 1945 and left Eastern Europe divided into new territories. This way, the borders previously established in 1918 and preserved until 1939 became abolished. The new political landscape remained stable until 1990, when it was replaced after the collapse of the Soviet Union by the establishment of the independent states of Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. These political changes meant that some of the former republics were cut off from the collapsing Soviet Union; however, the boundaries remained intact, which means that they reproduced those of 1945. This is an empirical study of the relationship between the social and the spatial, in which I explore the history and present day of the Vilnius region as one of numerous representatives of the areas which experienced deep political shifts and relocations of their boundaries, both in the independent states, and within the Soviet Union itself. Thus, the formation of the Lithuanian-Polish borders underwent several crucial events: in 1918, 1939 and 1945. People living in the South-Eastern part of Lithuania remember (or want to forget) two sets of boundaries: the first from the period between 1918 and 1939, and the second from 1945 until today. These were long periods of time for the regions inhabitants, turbulent and full of movements of the people from Lithuania to Poland and the West, and from the East and the South to Lithuania (Buchowski 2005, 2006, Briedis 2009). One region which remembers the shifting borders and migrations of the people is (Dzukija, Wilenszczyzna) with the city of Vilnius. It is the region which experienced a tremendous immigration to Poland, and, on the other hand, the process of settlement of people from other parts of Lithuania and from the other republics of the Soviet Union. The land which until 1939 used to be mainly populated by Poles, with the minorities of Jews, Lithuanians and Byelorussians, was later to be Lithuanized during the years after the Second World War. The memory of different boundaries (1918 1991) survived, although it cannot be confirmed without a thorough research. In order to provide the most reliable statements possible, I performed some extended fieldwork from 2009 to 2013. The paper explores the importance of collective memory, territory, language, religion, political changes and other factors valid for the construction of a contemporary ethnic identity. The aim of the present paper is to demonstrate how and why the buried borders still matter today, not only as a potential cause for conflict, but as a yet another factor shaping the multiple facets of everyday life. It refers to the variety of former works concerning borders (Lamont, Molnar 2002), the ethnic border issues (Berdahl 1999, Curp 2006, Douglas 2012), and also to boundary as an emergent potentiality in which borders appear in spaces, practices and interactions unrelated to the traditional concept of borders, eg. a concept of border assemblage (Haggerty, Erickson 2000), and on the other hand (Deleuze, Guattari 1987) and Walters (2006). This study draws on the concept of everyday practices and functioning in the multiethnic area (see also Wimmer 2007, Delanty 2002, Young, Kaczmarek 2008). There are possibilities, first, of studying environmental connections across difference, second, of focusing on how people can use diversity, however the zones of former friction reappear also in changing events/ Following the way in which borders are defined as political borders, which politically/legally do not exist anymore but seem to appear in new forms and modes of social practices, I discuss everyday actions which can be regarded as social and cultural practices. The categories of space, place and landscape were discussed in anthropology broadly. Space is produced by attributing symbolism that fits the dominant world view. The category of place remains closely related to the category of space, and both of them are connected with the concept of cultural landscape/ Henri Lefebvre noticed that place is produced via lived relationships (Lefebvre 1991. 34). Being in a place is being in a configurative complex of things (Casey 1996. 25)/ The concept of cultural landscape is based on space defined from the point of view of man as a creator of values and it elaborated by various authors (Benediktsson, Lund 2010, Feld, Basso 1996). Space in contested territories was an object of discussion on cultural dominance (Hobsbawm 1992, Rose-Redwood, Alderman, Azaryahu 2008). An urban landscape usually reflects the past. It is no doubt, but culture continually co-produces in the everyday encounters and interactions and makes new and new interconnections across difference. Some aspects of the difference became invisible perceived through specific representations. In search of social actions indicating the invisible borders, I use the data from the interviews, focusing on the accounts about the various instances in which the individuals of different ethnic background deal with face-to-face situations where the boundary between them is visible, or when they somehow avoid an open confrontation across its line. It means that the area where new forms of former boundaries can be found covers everyday life practices. It is social because it marks a space of biographical experiences, and in this sense a space of relocating memories and places. To put it more strongly, the memories always have their spatial context. What seems to be the most meaningful is that the former spatial patterns, kept in memory, could find their reflection in the narratives and everyday practices. In a way people keep performing them in specific parts of public space, and in specific moments of time. By everyday practices I mean not only communication, use of the language, or attending the local schools and the church, but also several other aspects of everyday life, such as: celebrations of festivals, telling of specific anecdotes, peculiar verbal manners of expression which provoke people to assault one another, often reflecting taboo topics in mutual encounters and a variety of cultural incompatibilities. It can be referred to the idea of shared meanings (Hall 1997)/ I focus not on the real history, but on the images which can be seen through the articulations of a local point of view; not on the truth, but on how it is/was perceived by people. On the sort of knowledge which people had and which had created such a type of articulations. There are references to different periods of the past: the interwar period, the Soviet Union era and the independent states times/ The main data in the study were obtained from the interviews focusing on the narratives and everyday practices of people living in the region of Vilnius. The article draws on the fieldwork that was done mainly in the Vilnius region. I also took into account the local press and the Internet sources (delfi.lt, delfi.ru) and, therefore, the interviews provide only one of many links in the long chain of cross-references. Some issues manifest themselves in the networks of infrastructure and in the social practices. I investigate how, in what ways and on what ground they refer to the past, and how, in effect, they form a reality which is influenced by the former spatial/territorial divisions. This is an account of how both sides narrate about the past and the contemporary life. I included several statements typical for the period of 2009-2013, which might be interesting for the readers. In this sense, the borders are social and they manifest themselves on different levels of individual and social structures. They also persist in the social and cultural practices, and the identities underlining the differences. Another question is what holds all of them together. To go further let us introduce the main concept of old borders. They are understood as former borders, predominantly political, which do not exist anymore physically but seem to persist or re-emerge in various phenomena such as infrastructure networks or social behaviour. This phenomenon has found its place in the anthropological discussion. What is at issue here is the nature of culture and the place of these re-emerging borders in everyday social life. How do the old political boundaries relate to the contemporary social and cultural life? There are two general concepts: the material, historical borders, and, on the other hand, the everyday life which is based on symbolical issues. As anthropology turned to the use of symbolic reason, the issue of how community and belonging to it is marked and certified became a point of interest. According to Fredrik Barth (1969), a group transforms into a community by erecting boundaries, mostly symbolical. Anthony Cohen (1985) argued that a symbolical construct derives from the situational perception of boundaries. In this sense, the division of territory can be supported not just by the institutions of political, administrative or economic character, because when they disappear, some of communities still exist, and they essentially exist as worlds of meaning in the minds of their people. Both views can be regarded as imagined communities (Anderson 1983) or even invented traditions (Hobsbawm, Ranger 1983). These meanings are to be expressed as distinctive local social discourses that, on the symbolical level, can be recognized through a common body of symbols, shared values, and common behaviour. The conceptualizations of space and power were discussed thoroughly (Allen 1999). Understanding of a local community has to be situational, because it is a part of a broader social and cultural context. Boundaries become reinforced during certain periods of time, and fade during others. However, as Marc Aug would say, boundaries do not disappear (2010); instead, they shift, which proves that the process continues, though in an updated form. If boundaries are symbols through which localities, regions and states define themselves (Berdahl 1999. 3), then what can we say about a particular area? In this case, the former political and institutional boundaries seem to continue in the new common symbolic boundaries. The poetics of everyday life Approaching the question of collective identity through the narratives and practices of everyday interaction demands some explanation. Everyday life is the most relevant concept here. It is characterized by a status-bound social order: persons and things are differentiated according to their positions and roles in a symbolic system. Much of everyday practice in the society can be said to entail what local actors ordinarily bring to bear in everyday situations. They continue to make the familiar, commonplace activities of their everyday lives recognizable to themselves as familiar and commonplace. However, this everyday world also serves as a point of departure and return for occasional modifications of normal life during festivals: national and religious, public, official, mainstream, regional and observed by minorities. The skills of everyday life consist of day-to-day contacts. An encounter takes the form of an activity that is being modified in response to the expressions of the vis-a-vis party. This exchange of activities leads to the development of further forms of identity of one or both parties. The course of the encounter is then affected by many factors, from the mutual perception of the participants to the manners of narration adopted by all parties, to the interaction or the strategies used with respect to the other group. And they are manifesting themselves in the opinions and statements made regarding oneself and others. Such behaviour requires coping with ambiguities of events. The key is to fill in the information gaps through contact with another person. Everyday social life also forms a certain kind of relationship between all the actors. A space is created to reflect the division of dominance and the balance of power and to reveal the order of tradition. The relations between Poles and Lithuanians appear different in the light of the press and media accounts or official statements from members of various institutions and in the light of day-to-day encounters. In the media, which acted as an instrument of the government and ignored face-to-face communication, it is much more common to find confrontational statements that correspond to specific operational strategies. In day-to-day interactions, however, politics need not be manifested. My interest is in everyday life in the sense of familiar elements of culture which are re-enacted on a day-to-day basis. By constantly verifying meanings, the perception of everyday situations organizes the stage, reinforces the processes of division, continues and recreates existing arrangements in a new reality. The course of everyday interactions is a reflection of the prevailing and dominant world view that exists in the public space, and their analysis relates to the context of the situation, its time and place. Marking the invisible borders If former borders do not disappear, the first task is to locate them in the local space. Invisible borders cannot be easily recognized in contrast to material things or institutional entities. However, their remnants can be searched for in both public and private space as well. If we take for granted that the markers of the former boundary manifest as distinct expressions of cultural traits, which stir misunderstanding or even conflict, we have to recognize where this happens. Memory of the borders seems to be the main inventory. An example of this is the old photographs showing street signs in another language. Public places are those to which all residents have access. Public space, for instance: main streets and squares, government buildings and offices, churches with their changing language signs and histories, museum exhibitions which represent current ideas illustrated, become a stage for different social situations. Public space is occasionally an arena for this kind of appearance, and marks the affiliation to the dominant culture (Lawrence, Jani 2009, Hayden 1995, Huyssen 2003). Thus, the public space is where changes are crucial and evident. The issue of whose memories can be represented, where and how, is undercurrent in the paper. The city provides a universal space which is accessible to everyone, even though it is filled with monuments and street signs representing the official version of reality, and animated during public celebrations by people and messages which make references to history. On the city map, there are places which are more connected with Lithuanian, Polish or Russian identity. Encounters in the urban space follow similar unwritten rules, and members of minorities are generally pushed into a position preventing them from expressing themselves freely. When researching interactions, it is important to note that one is dealing with subjective judgments from people who interpret specific situations in a specific manner. Such views originate mainly in the awareness of the social actors, and are a consequence of the specific manner in which situations are interpreted and defined. Therefore, public space is where the invisible borders can be traced not in the substantial form, but rather in a symbolical, intangible or less tangible way/ Meetings take place on a stage-they are set within a space marked with meanings. From the ethnic point of view, situations are part of a multitude of day-to-day circumstances, and belong to the sphere of cultural experiences. Despite the fact that the space imposes specific conventions and rules which stem from power and dominance, it also provides a somewhat neglected but promising area in which sense and meaning are also created again and again. The manifestation of presence of representatives of both parties is a situational thing, and the unique nature of behaviour in such places shows who has taken control of the space. In the context of central or local government, the language of street signs is clear: the official language dominates the public space and represents the official discourse, whereas non-official languages find unofficial space for themselves/ Todays behaviour became attributed with a characteristic ethnic or cultural content. Apart from places, we can talk about special moments in local calendar which make expressions of former boundaries more visible: national days, regional and local festivals of different minorities, or several rituals that organize the calendars of the year. Another level of such a study is a way of performing actions in everyday life the choice of language in particular situations, dress code and physical appearance, greetings, specific gestures and manifestation of particular character traits. The language people choose also depends on the situation, and is imposed in public offices, schools and universities and, to an extent, in shops and hospitals. In the extreme cases, using a non-official language can bring unpleasant consequences. Old photographs showing people, architecture and street decorations, full of signs written in different languages and replaced monuments, demonstrate a certain continuity in the history of the city and the region. At the same time, they reflect the temporary nature of the citys decor and narration. in a broader sense, old stories are constantly being retold. The statements of the informants affirm that/ In the past [she\ knew which shopkeeper spoke Polish, and when she started hearing answers in it, she switched [the language] and continued speaking. It was fluid, once you talked this way, then in another way. In the 1990s, I had a feeling that speaking Russian was regarded as improper in the public space. After the separation of Lithuania from the Soviet Union, the Lithuanian press emerged, Lithuanian signs on the streets and in shops only, renaming of the streets. It was a syndrome of a young nationalism. At first, they were not so open, more focusing on preserving the Lithuanian movements, rather than anti-Polish. There was some reluctance if someone talked on street in a language different than Lithuanian, [there was] especially anti-Russian animosity. You could not speak Russian, it was not proper. It took two years before Polish language was received better than Russian. You could find menus in the Polish language in the restaurants, Lithuanian waiters tried to speak Polish, it was time of a tourist boom from Poland. It was a nice time, in general all were open to us. Then something happened, the menus in Polish disappeared, it was the first signal of changes, waiters stopped replying in Polish. Then the Russian press and the Russian TV returned. And the Russian language returned, and somehow anti-Polish sentiments returned. The Polish language started to disappear again. New bans on using it emerged like We dont speak Polish, because this is Lithuania/ (M7) (Vilnius 2012). The use of language, shifting from one to another, is one of significant markers of the boundary, not as a line. It appears in various local spaces. In certain situations, for example at a government office, there is no choice of language. However, in this clearly defined public space, there are situations and places where such choice is still available, especially during encounters. The above choice is often determined by the setting (unofficial or private) and the language in which the situation is initiated. When I come to the office and do business, whatever name-plate he wears, Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, I try to use the Lithuanian literary language. My doctor is Russian, so my grandmother explained that living here you have to know basic cultural phrases in all languages. She does not speak Lithuanian, but she is able to say things like thank you, have a nice day, when she recognizes a Lithuanian shopkeeper, in respect of language. If the shopkeeper is named Tatiana, I speak Russian. Why? Because I believe that languages different than the Lithuanian official [language] have right to exist in the public space. I dont shift to another language, I wait until he would change the language. In the beginning we talk in language in which we got to know the person, when it emerges that he is Polish or Russian you choose this language. No big difference. If the company is in majority Lithuanian speakers or a couple of them, and one Polish or Russian. I use Lithuanian. In other cases I speak Polish, trying to pronounce it clearly and understandably for a Lithuanian colleague or even translating a sentence if needed or expressing a thought in Lithuanian. You cannot leave him unclear beside conversation/ (E9) (Vilnius 2012). In this manner, a unique kind of etiquette is developed for navigating the city and interacting with friends and strangers of different origins. The standards of behaviour in the Vilnius Region are an expression of the general rules that determine how one should treat oneself and others when in their presence, face to face. The use of language is a sign of where boundaries emerge and disappear in everyday life encounters. Naturally, the foreigners who speak English or German can cross the boundaries inherent to being a speaker of Russian or Polish. The space of fixed language usage and these ones where a choice making of language is possible form an actual characteristic map of meanings Crossing over cultural and social borders A separate question concerns the situations where the line of division is being crossed. Apart from Polish places in Vilnius (churches, monuments, cultural institutions), intangible dimensions of reality manifest in behaviour. As Edmund Leach (1977) argued, the individuals spent their lives crossing socio-cultural boundaries. Hence, we can observe a difference between what people did as opposed to what they were supposed to do. It posits questions about what is going on across the boundaries. This kind of data can be taken from accounts that describe the everyday life encounters. We study phantom realities, other peoples creations and constructions of reality. We look at their culture, their rituals and festivals, their narratives. And we understand them as belonging to the world of the imaginary. As narrative, they seem to be fictive. We need to make the effort to understand the minds from other times. Our aim is to get into other peoples heads in order to perceive the universe as they understand it. I am not referring to any specific objective or cultural differences that would cause the two groups Lithuanians and Poles -to be classified separately, but rather to statements and forms of behaviour that arise from day-to-day situations which result from a dual perception of members of the other group. The categorizations are both based on, and a source of, contradictions, and attention is focused on contradictions rather than on seeking common characteristics or a certain kind of unity. Certain invisible boundaries determine whether individuals are categorized in one way or another, and there is one more category which also appears in this context: loyalty. The same individuals can be placed in either or both of these categories, and it can be assumed beforehand that such categorization will be determined by the circumstances, public space, and specific types of behaviour. In everyday interactions ethnic issues were the focus of attention in a number of specific elements: language of communication, expression or concealment of ethnic alterity, signs of respect or ritual profanation. A narrative presented by an informant reflects a certain reality which he or she is trying to make meaningful when constructing a statement. Consequently, one should not look for the objective truth, which may well be non-existent, but rather rely on meanings that the subjects ascribe to their personal experiences. A situation begins when mutual observation and communication occur. It is defined by the location and by specific contributions of the participants. When they act out roles associated with ethnic identity, such encounters become the object of my interest. A social play begins that combines various forms of self-presentation and concealment of elements which the subjects considered inconvenient (by exposing elements which may be useful in gaining greater influence over the further course of the encounter). The situation develops when exchange and mutual acceptance take place. Sometimes, the participants act as opponents, in which case they adopt an attitude that involves gaining an advantage at the expense of the other. Identity is the result of a synthesis of many individual testimonies concerning various perceptions of a group, and can be treated as a reenactment of a common matrix of opinions, convictions and emotions that exist among the members of that group. Celebration of being Lithuanian is a predominant theme for the actions that fill the public space. In my understanding, social roles are the rights and responsibilities assigned to a given social rank. During mutual interaction, the most important things are: showing respect to others and using the opportunity for self-presentation. This entails specific rules of conduct: responsibilities that determine ones moral obligation to behave correctly towards others and ones expectations concerning the behaviour of others/ If the expected signs of respect are not shown, this signifies rituals of profanation, which represent attempts to undermine the status quo and to change social roles, the balance of power and the extent of ones authority/ A story from 2009 exemplifies how the choice of communication language defines a situation. This situation involved two men in their thirties, one of whom had committed a traffic offence the previous day (he was probably speeding). They both lived in a small town inhabited mainly by Lithuanians, Poles and Russians, and spoke three communication languages on a day-to-day basis, fluidly switching between them as needed. The man in question was stopped by a police officer, a local Lithuanian familiar to everyone in the town/ What language did he speak? asked the mans friend/ Lithuanian, was the response/ Thats bad, it means official, continued the friend. The rest of the conversation will remain a secret. The language of the conversation becomes a determinant of the plane on which neighbours, friends and, most importantly, strangers interact. The choice of language in which a given conversation is initiated sets the framework for the situation. It depends on the assessment of all factors that matter. This framework is determined by the type of space (public or private) and the subject matter around which the interaction develops. Recognition by dress, distinct appearance and behavior An encounter starts earlier than direct interaction. Language is the most distinctive tool of everyday life in the public space. According to the informants there are a few more signs, less tangible, but still stressed by the interviewees. The nuances in appearance or dress are to be taken into account. This dimension is unrecognizable for outsiders; however, it was underlined by several informants. Everybody can be recognized by dress, though generally they dont differ much. However, after thorough glance on what they wear, what style, the way they talk, even gestures, you can spot small distinctions. I cannot give strict rules, anyway living here you can get an eye-view. Russian wears bazaar style, rich and kitsch, novyj russkij is wearing leather, Lithuanians dress in the richer shops (E3) (Vilnius 2012)/ It matters because following Goffman (1967) recognition of the other states the frames of possible encounter. The lines go along social and ethnic divisions. The informants point out the economical factors that make the framework/ Lithuanians look in fashion mostly, because of earning more money. For what else? You can see it in Russian schools, they buy clothes in the bazaars. Not because of it is cheaper, but tradition, of buying. And there are Turkish clothes, or else, not the same as in the shops from the main street. Lithuanians from smaller towns wear similar, doing shopping on their local small bazaars, too. In Vilnius Lithuanians belong to the richest class, Polish belong the lower class/ From the local point of view the marking the differences goes further than appearance, the behaviour also matters. Poles and Russians from working class and lower clerks, children of them seem more aggressive. The rich Lithuanians are more sensitive, they dont need do physical exercises/ Working class keep in their own circle/ Lithuanians attend parties (tusovka) more, often go to the clubs. They go party deeper, also Lithuanian girls. Polish girls stay home, I have to go///, 11p.m. and go home, never stay till morning time. If you have more money, you can show yourself in central places of Vilnius (Vilnius 2011)/ According to some statements, the social differences superimpose on the spatial divisions. Russians and Poles live in the suburban districts/ So they meet on the corridors, sit on the benches in front of the building (Vilnius 2011). These small differences can be used in the process of defining the framework of everyday interaction, and thus the way they cope with symbolical boundaries. The question of maintaining or crossing them symbolically returns everyday. Greetings, gestures and characters The next step after recognition of the type of other and thus after defining the framework of everyday encounter is action; the act of interacting. The way of starting interaction is crucial for the rest of it. Nevertheless, greetings belong to the phase of recognition and defining the framework of the situation. Lithuanians say sveika or slava, Byelorussians too. Mostly they shake hands shortly without any longer forms of shaking hands... No hugs and no kisses in greetings on the streets, perhaps in the family circle. Now everything got mixed, and we all live in the common city, so it can mean that youngsters greet each other in the similar way, anyway for Lithuanians more cordial greetings are impossible (M9) (Vilnius 2012). It shows multiple actors in public life and demonstrates that cultural categories can be localized and time bound. For some of the local people this is still a slight sign of difference/ Lithuanians are less open than Poles for the opposite opinion. In greetings Polish can hug, kiss, they have no thank you, thank you, they are cold. You cannot find something like saying good morning, good bye/ This is the difference (M4) (Vilnius 2012)/ The space of encounter and the type of person taking part in it mark the context and thus shape the way of the interacting with each other. Grandfather was in hospital, Lithuanian doctor greeted him and spoke with him in excellent Polish language, because he [grandfather] didnt speak Lithuanian/ Once Lithuanians had to learn Polish language too/ But when my mother started speaking to her [the doctor] in Polish, she immediately shifted into Lithuanian, why do you speak Polish, you know Lithuanian. And she forced my mother to talk in this language. The doctors tried to speak Polish to the older people. Young doctors apologized for not speaking Polish, and ask daughter to translate. Younger generation values multiculturalism (Vilnius 2012)/ Although stories are told and contested by various actors, they occur in a public frames governed by state promoting the official national culture in these years. The ethnic issues could be found in TV humour programs. Crossing over social and cultural borders means using various codes, understanding them and accepting them. People can go along ethnic lines or choose supranational communication. If they enter ethnic roles, a certain ritual interaction occurs. There are various types of such interactions. Situations involving open manifestation of minority ethnicity have been rare, the only exception being national holidays or other celebrations associated with the life of a minority community, school, or organization. The informants have provided descriptions of a variety of situations where ethnic origin was concealed. The choice of any of the above was determined, on the one hand, by the place of interaction (i.e. the street, government office, school, hospital, caf, or disco), and on the other hand, by the subjective manner in which a particular situation was defined. Maintaining borders Crossing or maintaining border is a choice and it depends on the context including actors, space and time or events they taking part in. Authorities, regional and urban, are the bodies disseminating of national narratives. These examples highlight the way of manipulating of contested histories. Maintaining old boundaries is represented by specific encounters. Within the context of constant social interaction, inadequate manifestation of ethnic presence in the public space results from emphasizing a subordinated position in the prevailing balance of power. Two old people are riding on the tram. A poor old woman keeps saying loudly in Polish how difficult life is, complaining about the country, the government, etc. An older man cannot take it any longer and attacks her in a stream of rude Lithuanian words. The hostile and aggressive, open and noisy quarrel lasts for ten minutes. Experiencing hostile behaviour in the public space elicits responses which the recipient interprets as unfriendly. This may stem from the fact that, in his or her definition of the situation, there is a predominant conviction that the offences he or she is experiencing result from being a member of a minority group/ A persons identity as a member of a minority (or a threatened majority) acts as a filter for interpreting the actions experienced by that person. Both types usually associate their negative experiences with their own position in the society or their membership in a threatened majority or threatened minority, since they too treat themselves in a similar manner. In the case of a minority member, this is made evident by the limited number of acquaintances or contacts in the society/ This, in turn, limits the persons ability to realize his or her aspirations, and therefore reinforces the need to spend time with members of that persons own group/ For a member of a threatened majority, this is evidenced by the experience of limited contact with members of the loyal minorities, which translates into the lack of loyal acquaintances and a limited knowledge of the matter (hence the need to rely on stereotypical representations). Both sides know what can hurt the other the most/ You can say. Go to Poland to where you came from or In your coat of arms there is a white hen, not an eagle/ Or White Polish, which means Byelorussians converted into Polish/ In the same way Go to emaitija, where you came from, to your little town/ What are you doing in Vilnius? Go back to your real little capital/ These are the most popular (E8) (Vilnius 2011). The everyday ritual of maintaining borders touches the most meaningful issues like the right of land, who was the first, who is local and who is the settler in the Vilnius region. Tell a Lithuanian. Vilnius is ours, he will be upset really/ This is the most upsetting saying/ And he will answer Tuslykstuslenkas (You disgusting Pole)/ However, this is among the friends/ They replies that Poles are wrong, doing wrong, working wrong/ Then dont have their own reply, they cannot find an equivalent to Vilnius is ours (E10) (Vilnius 2012). When you start speaking Polish language he wont answer in Polish, and usually he wont reply at all/ When you start English he can reply/ They understand Polish but they dont want to speak it/ Vilnius is ours this is the worst for Lithuanians. Tell them look at the names of people in the cemetery. There is no need to be together without conflict. For them the point is that always a Pole wants his small piece of land, of the street, of his house, and so on (Vilnius 2012). The difficult historical choices can also be used in defining the framework of the encounter. The most inconvenient topics for Lithuanians are their collaboration with Germans, and the massacre in Ponary forest. Some old Polish people protest against the decision of local administrative rule on the pavement in front of a church in Vilnius. They have banners with some slogans against the local rule. An older Lithuanian guy comes close and kicks one woman, bearing a banner, on her ankle. She falls down. Aggression and physical power was typical until about 20 years ago. Now it is vanishing slowly. All that shows that the reception of reality is largely influenced by notions which are sustained through a specific manner in which situations are defined and, consequently, reinforced through specific actions, thus recreating the existing local hierarchies. A young boy comes to a discotheque and speaking in Lithuanian opens his encounter with a girl/ Do you mind that I am a Pole? (Different reply options. Do you mind that I am a Lithuanian girl? Or. What are you doing here? Its not a place for you/ As one of the informant remarked. Its funny because its not always true, and if it were true it wouldnt be funny/ Each object, practice or belief has its own position in the social system and derives its specific meaning from its contrast with elements elsewhere in the system. The situational uses of language, the style of dressing, the type of handshake, all depend on the wider symbolic field. The interviews are full of updated remarks about local cultural and social landscape, for instance, that the Russians are quicker in everything than the Lithuanians, and they do not have positive opinion of the local Poles; the Poles are dominated, and do not know about their Lithuanian roots. They can be recognized by their first names, not by surnames. The Lithuanians express their opinion on the Polishness without content, although they see that the local Polish people can be formed, shaped and moulded, and the process of depolonization is continuing. Conclusion Even under the unifying frame of the state a community defines its collective identity by emphasizing differences. Perceptions express, first and foremost, the distance or lack of distance between the perceiver and the perceived. The elements that determine the identity of an individual and a group are the self-images of that group, which are never permanent and must be constantly reaffirmed. Reaffirmation (which supports coexistence) and profanation (which is used to emphasize boundaries and distance) are extreme performative acts, but there is also a broad range of intermediate types of behaviour in between. Should space be fixed? As Allen argued, the use of space also implies that space is controlled (territorialized) (1999: 250). Connecting the material and the social seems to come from the need for another form of a society-controlled life. Situations and their definitions serve to demonstrate ones social and local rank/ How is social rank measured? In an encounter, it can be gauged by the amount of space one occupies. Within that space, other narratives compete for room on the available channels which are not occupied by communication, and in the public space or outside of it. The language of the public space indicates authority, and authority depends on what most people are willing to accept and what they believe to be justified or appropriate. This creates an image of the public constructs of hierarchy in everyday interaction. Everyday encounters in the socially constructed space shape individual and collective awareness of the local actors, and mould their identity. As we can see in the narratives, selfness and otherness remain in constant motion, and the boundary between the two keeps shifting. Ethnic boundaries, supranational coexistence or searching of the genius loci these are separate levels of communication. The differences are minor, but they relate to disparate connotations and norms. Both derive different meanings from the experience of the same reality. Intensive migration processes, emigration of Poles, and settling of Lithuanians from other regions of Lithuania formed the base of the encounters. A lack of permanence felt subjectively to a certain extent by representatives of both sides creates uncertainties. The construction of ones own identity and the images of alterity involves at least several elements: self-image, the past, historical figures, models and aspirations, etc. The present experience, however, always takes into account the past and predicts the future; what merges the two into one is the common meaning. In this sense, during field studies, one only discovers the latest versions of everyday behaviour and narratives of encounters between Lithuanians and Poles. Consequently, one needs to look for new themes and non-traditional types of behaviour that result from mutual presence. On account of the above, the articles and arguments presented in the Lithuanian and Polish narration provide an opportunity to observe how the two sides perceived each other, how they presented themselves, and what expectations each of them had of the other. Now, one can find out whether they met with ceremonial understanding and acceptance, and whether the space they claimed was granted to them or not. Generally, the differences result from the existence of separate value systems. As it seems, while the Latvian-Polish discord was primarily rooted in the differences between Catholic and Lutheran faith and the lack of a uniform and cohesive value system, such dissimilarity does not exist in the case of the Lithuanian-Polish confrontation. In this instance, both nationalities share a common past and common experiences on various planes; where they differ is in the position they occupy and, therefore, in the resulting interpretation of reality. Distinct features of the Lithuanian ethnic relations include a certain harshness in mutual interactions as well as acrimony and pride (as reported by the informants). What can be heard in the interviews is that the former boundaries blur, especially in the territorial or settlement aspect. Vilnius as a capital city grows and appropriates surroundings/ In the Markucziai District in Vilnius there was an overwhelming number of Poles and Russians ten years ago. Now a number of Lithuanians living here rises. Many students settle in the city. The former boundaries blur more and more. People emigrate, some sell their lands, city grows, and the former boundaries blur (E9) (Vilnius 2012). We can observe the changing relationship between identity and space. The old model of belonging marked by the original place of birth is going to be replaced by making a community based on symbolical lines going across the spatial divisions. As on all boundaries, the Polish and Lithuanian relations have gone through various phases: collaboration, friendship, hostility, and opposition; there have been periods of growing closer and growing apart. Two problems weigh heavily on the image of the past. On the one hand, it is necessary to verify the narratives of superiority of the dominant culture over the local culture. On the other, there is a need to show a different version of history and local culture. The voices from 2009-2013 acknowledged some of these phases The most common type of self-presentation involved emphasizing differences between ones own group and the rest of people/ This was achieved by articulating fellow countrymens perseverance and steadfastness, and by presenting them as victims. Attempts to take control of the situation or exert force were exemplified by statements that involved subordinating others or imposing ones own point of view on them/ There emerges a set of predominant issues, including one that seems to be the most important in that respect, partially related to the unique situation of the Baltic countries/ The Lithuanians statements reveal a perception of reality characteristic for small nations, which forms a different type of cultural pattern and requires different means of coping with politics. This is particularly visible in Latvia, where a large percentage of the population is of foreign descent, but also in Lithuania, which (despite being internally homogeneous) observes that there is a problem at the intersection of the internal policy and the foreign policy. The ideas presented by Poles emphasized the superiority of Christianity over paganism, recognized the advantages and benefits of a culture imported from the outside, and encouraged openness to external influences. This demonstrates a different attitude, indicating that Poles in Lithuania identify with the part of Lithuanian tradition that adopted universal values from the outside world in the past and elevated them above domestic trends. These two interpretations of reality have been difficult to reconcile, and have resulted in the emergence of dual type Lithuanians or Lithuanian nationals. Familiarity is defined as belonging to the land, which emphasizes a certain kind of backwardness or presence of regional characteristics, hence the stories of Samogitians, Dzukijans and inhabitants of Auktaitija and Suvalkija. Is there a third option? Poles are not unanimous, hence the different terms that reflect different orientations and ideas: Poles, Vilniuks, Russophiles, or Lithuanized Poles. Switching between familiarity and alterity in the labelling of neighbours demonstrates that there is an interdependency despite the variability of the assigned meanings. When a society is integrated in terms of ethnic relations, its representatives act in a similar manner in many situations, since all members of the society shape everyday interactions with the other in a similar manner. Adjustment consists in conveying a specific, positive and attractive image of representatives of others, giving them the benefit of the doubt as regards their future actions. This is true from the standpoint of members of both the majority and the minority. Despite the above, the changes have elicited a sense of reconciliation with coexistence and interdependence, and have even encouraged young Lithuanians to discover their own multiculturalism in Lithuania. This is evident, for example, in the statements that appreciate the superiority of the multicultural Vilnius over the ethnically homogeneous Kaunas. The above is true, at least, at the level of interaction between people. In the media, the language of dominance and confrontation continues to prevail. There are visible similarities and tendencies to attribute similar negative traits to the other side. Both groups idolize the West and, to an extent, Russia. The difference is that Lithuanians also look up to Scandinavia, and Poles look up to Poland. Anyway, an idea of multicultural society seems to be what is coming into fashion now. Once again reminding Marc Aug idea that the boundaries do not disappear (2010), they shift, we can see how the former political borders found a new form in various everyday symbolical manifestations. The symbolical borders between Lithuanians and Poles maintained, on one or on both sides, a legitimate contemporary social inequality. The point of debate is who is at home; Lithuanians came here, they colonized Vilnius, Poles are at home. Territory matters, in a greater sense than in the case of migration. The political historical boundaries refer not to the virtual belonging. The land matters, especially in the view of a great number of Poles possessions and the fact that the growing city of Vilnius takes their land with no recompense to the former landowners, big and small, generally of Polish origin. The ways of imagining the local world were contested by some practices of everyday life. Metaphors, especially the spatial ones, are related to ideological views, and always highlight a view of a particular side. They represent normative struggles over spaces and borders. In the Lithuanian historical manuals the interwar period is still regarded as an occupation. They have not acknowledged the Polish contribution to the history and culture of this land. Vilnius is presented as a city of strangers (Briedis 2009), and the competing views on history have not found common ground yet. Tensions remain, and it can be interpreted as a question of former boundaries which still matter not on the political level nobody raises such issues but rather on the symbolical one, of acknowledging by all parties of everything positive they brought in to the common welfare and goodness of the region. References Allen, R.L. (1999). The Socio-Spatial Making and Marking of Us. Toward a Critical Postmodern Spatial Theory of Difference and Community.Social Identities, vol. 6, No 3: 249-277. Anderson, B. (1983). Imagined Communities. London. Aug, M. (2010). Nie-miejsca. Wprowadzenie do antropologii .OoOOnsRO.nO. Warszawa. Barth F (1969). Ethnic Groups and Boundaries. The social organization of culture difference , Oslo: Universitetsforlaget Benediktsson, K., Lund, K. A. (eds.) (2010). Conversations With Landscape, Ashgate: Farnham-Burlington. Berdahl, D. (1999). Where the World Ended: Re-Unification and Identity in the German Borderland. Berkeley. Briedis, L. (2009). Vilnius. City of Strangers. Toronto-Vilnius. Buchowski K. (2005). Szkice polsko-litewskie nsSoO O O.rS RtROsrO oORso oO.OO XX OO, Toru/ Buchowski K. (2006). Litwomani i polonizatorzy. Mity, wzajemne postrzeganie i stereotypy w stosunkach polsko-litewskich w pierwszej oO.OO XX OO, Biaystok/ Casey E. S., (1996). How to get from space to place in a fairly short stretch of time. Phenomenological prolegomena [in:] Senses of Place, (ed.) Steven Feld, Keith H. Basso (eds.), School of American Research Press: Santa Fe, pp. 53-90. Cohen, A.P. (1985). The Symbolic Construction of Community. Chichester. Curp, T. D. (2006). A clean sweep? The politics of ethnic cleansing in western Poland, 1945 1960. NY: Rochester. Delanty, G/ (2007) Peripheries and borders in a post-western Europe, Eurozine http://www.eurozine.com/articles/2007-08-29delanty-en.html Deleuze, G. and Guattari, F. (1987). A Thousand Plateaus, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Demski, D. (2014). Us and/or the Other: The Interdependence of Lithuanians and Poles from the Vilnius Region[in:] Middle Grounds, Ambiguous Frontiers and Intercultural Spaces (ed.) A;. Posern Zieliski, L/Mrz/ Pozna/ Douglas, R. M. (2012). Orderly and humane. The expulsion of the Germans after the Second World War. New Haven [Conn.]: Yale University Press Feld, S., Basso, K. H. (eds.) (1996). Senses of Place, School of American Research Press: Santa Fe. Foucault, M. (1995). Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. New York. Goffman, E. (1967). Interaction Ritual. Essays on Face-to-Face Behavior , Garden City NY: Doubleday. Haggerty K.D. and Erickson R.V. (2000). The Surveillant Assemblage, British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 51, Issue 4, pp.605 622. Hall, S. (1997). Representation. Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices, London. Hayden, D. (1995). The Power of Place. Urban Landscape as Public History, Massachusetts: Cambridge Mass: MIT Press. Hobsbawm, E. and Ranger, T. (eds.) (1983). The Invention of Tradition. Cambridge. Hobsbawm E. (1992). Nations and Nationalism since 1780: Programme, Myth, Reality, Cambridge University Press Huyssen A. (2003). Present Pasts. Urban Palimpsests and the Politics of Memory, Stanford: University Press. Lamont, M/, V/ Molnr/ (2002)/ The Study of Boundaries in the Social Sciences, Annual Review of Sociology, 28, pp/ 167-195. Lawrence D.B., Jain V. (eds) (2009). Critical Toponymies: The Contested Politics of Place Naming, Burlington: Ashgate Publishing Company. Leach, E. (1977). Custom, Law and Terrorist Violence. Edinburgh. Lefebvre, H. (1991). The Production of Space, Blackwell Publishing: Oxford. Rose-Redwood, R., Alderman D and Azaryahu M. (2008). Collective Memory and the Politics of Urban Space: An Introduction, GeoJournal, Vol. 73, Issue 3, pp 161-164 Walters W. (2006). Rethinking Borders Beyond the State, Comparative European Politics, Issue 4, pp. 141-159. Wimmer, A. (2002). Nationalist exclusion and ethnic conflict. Shadows of modernity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Young C., Kaczmarek S. (2008). The Socialist Past and Postsocialist Urban Identity in Central and Eastern Europe/ The Case of d, Poland, European Urban and Regional Studies, Vol. 15, issue 1, pp. 53-70. RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015, pp. 174-191. More responsibility for all! German Liberal Health Care Policy 20092013 Luk Janura Corresponding authors e-mail: januralukas@gmail.com Abstract : The paper deals with health care policy in Germany between 2009 and 2013 during the Second Merkel Cabinet. It examines particular reform steps and their impact using evidence from various sources (policy papers, magazines, newspapers) considering their relation to the original intension of the governing FDP presented as a liberal approach. The research shows firstly the volume of liberal aspects in the health care policy concerning particular key players in the system and secondly ponders their real impact from the perspective of patients independence (transfers between insurance companies, decisions about the type of procedures, etc.). Keywords : Health Care System, Liberal Health Care Policy, Zusatzbeitrag, GKV, FDP, Philipp Rsler Introduction According to most studies, a distinctive liberal health care policy can be defined. The aim of this paper is to explain what a liberal health care policy could mean/ Since liberal may take on different meanings depending on the geographical or political context (US, Europe, Germany), this paper uses the standardised concept prevalent in German literature. In contrast to a social democratic or a conservative one health care policy, a liberal health care policy is usually characterized by an increased influence of the insured persons compared to other key players in the system (state, insurance institutions, and health care providers). This opinion is briefly mentioned by Bandelow (Bandelow, 1998), repeated by Lauterbach (Lauterbach, 2009), or Czada (Czada, 2005) and broadly accepted by most authors nowadays (e.g. Funk, 2009). Despite general scepticism to define a liberal policy (Bandelow, 2006) this paper tries to describe at least some feautures. The question formulated by numerous authors is, what could be the measure of influence of particular players; in other words, which decision makes one of the players more influential than the others. From one point of view, it is necessary to focus on benefits. Broadly speaking, the higher the benefit is, or the less money patients are charged (gaining the same quality of health care), the more liberal the policy is, since it leaves him money for other fields. This approach seriously impedes the understanding. In my opinion it is much more relevant to focus on the second aspect of liberal attitude independence. In accordance with the neoclassical microeconomic approach (acknowledged by most liberal decision makers) every consumer prefers the freedom of choice anytime it is given, in order to choose the most beneficial option. Various fields, where freedom and social responsibility tend to clash and at the same time no significant financial aspect occurs (home births, vaccination), are not covered by this paper. Surely there are always some additional information costs, which may exceed the added value. Nevertheless, I am working on the premise that in comparison with other decision fields (housing, leisure time, etc.) patients still devote much less time to the health-related decisions (Braun, 2010: 142). Concerning patients expenses, there is no clear link between costs and quality. Various authors say that patients tend to protect quality, whereas employers usually fight for affordability. In this paper two facts are distinguished reforms steps in favour of someone and giving more financial benefits to someone/1 The only political power promoting a constituently liberal health care policy in the recent period has been the Free Democratic Party (FDP), being part of the governing coalition between 2009 and 2013. There are some studies evaluating the impact of reforms 2010 and 2011. However, so far no attempt has been made to examine the effect through the prism of liberal health care policy. The aim of this article is to assess particular reform steps of the FDP and their impact on patients. The main question is to what extent the liberal vision is put into practice and whether it generates more space for decision making and in fact more freedom and responsibility for patients. For this purpose three levels of analysis are distinguished in the paper the original intention inside the political party, which reflects the ideas and approaches of both the governing party and the individual (the Minister of Health Care), the necessary compromise in form of a coalition agreement depicting either the most important goals for the party or the points acceptable for the other party, and finally the tangible results of the policy in form of legislation. 1 Certainly the analysis is limited by the field of traditional, more or less evidence based medicine. In some cases less traditional approaches are mentioned. For the purpose of this paper the freedom of choice does not cover many alternative approaches, such as homeopathy, TCM, etc. On every level of analysis we have to distinguish between reform steps that are nominally in favour of one of the stakeholders and their real impact and justification. In some parts it is necessary to take other measures and circumstances into consideration. Since there is a solid basis for studying conservative or social democratic attitude towards health care policy throughout German history, this paper may enrich it with a missing component a description of liberal approach. However, due to limited sources the paper should rather present the way to tackle to problem. For a complete answer a more profound analysis would be necessary. However, it can be still based on one example. Much better results could be expected comparing two liberal governments or a government constituted by FDP and the Social Democratic Party. This analysis is based on various sources -official policy papers and announcements (more than 40 press releases), comments in various newspapers and interviews with key politicians, mainly on the radio interview with Philipp Rsler from 2010. Ideas inside FDP On 27 September 2009, the Free Democratic Party (FDP), led by Guido Westerwelle, gained 14.6 percent of the votes in the parliamentary election in the Federal Republic of Germany. It was an immense victory to become one of the parties to form the Government again after ten years in opposition. One of the government seats was passed to Philipp Rsler. He became the first minister in the history of FDP and there were other primacies he became the first federal minister born in Asia and the first federal minister ever who gained this position after he had stepped down as the leader of a government party. The expectations connected with his engagement were quite high, since the ongoing financial crisis kept affecting Europe and required a number of quick solutions. Even the Grand coalition from the previous legislative period broke the taboo and ended the existing principle the equal sharing of payments between employees and employers and in addition to this it reduced the rate on both sides (from 7,3 pct. to 7,0 pct. and from 8,2 pct. to 7,9 pct. respectively). The aim was to stimulate the labour demand currently suppressed by the high labour costs. Thanks to all these issues, the expected solution seemed to be unreachable and Minister Rsler himself repeatedly described the efforts to both save insured peoples money and increase the health care availability as a vicious circle (Rsler -Interview, 2010). However, FDP brought the generalised need for hope at the right time. Several issues worrying all stakeholders throughout the last decade should be tackled in an innovative way. The first level examined in this paper is, as mentioned before, is the FDP Electoral Programme 2009 (FDP Electoral Programme, 2009). It represents the broadest basis showing the core elements of the allegedly liberal reform. One of the cornerstones of the liberal electoral programme is the link between solidarity and personal responsibility. Apart from general statements more or less emphasizing these two values, eight key points should be pointed out/ The relevant section is titled Solidarity and individual responsibility instead of state medical care/ Firstly, the aim was to strengthen the competition between insurance companies. Obviously, this Government was not the first one to try to strengthen the competition, effectively resulting in better patient conditions. However, their main concern consists in the introduction of law enabling insurance providers to charge an additional fee (Kassenindividueller Zusatzbeitrag). It should allow providers to focus on different market segments on one hand, and on the other hand, provide more space for decision making among patients. Secondly, every individual should have the right to opt for an alternative therapy (after a discussion with the physician). In case this is not covered in the insurance, the procedure should be covered up to the level of the official equivalent. Thirdly, conditions for the introduction of electronic health insurance cards should be settled, as soon as the informatics reaches the appropriate level. This step should bring far more control over individual expenses. In connection with expense control, another measure was intended refund of expenses (Kostenerstattungsprinzip). On the other hand, the practice fee (Praxisgebhr) should be cancelled. Another important idea is clearly defined in the next articles. It states that the solidarity principle should be transferred as far as possible from the health care system to the sphere of social system, which implicates the liberal definition of health care system. Taking all these intended measures into consideration, we can observe a clearly liberal programme, working on very liberal assumptions and standards of political thinking. However, there are several points that emphasize solidarity instead of individual responsibility. The most obvious example is the way of funding in companies within accident insurance. This intension represents a very strong tendency to spread the burden between employers and employees. To get a more complex overview and to understand how much liberalism is present in the electoral programme, it has to be compared with the electoral programme of the winning party in the second election Christian Democratic Union of Germany and the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CDU/CSU) (CDU/CSU electoral Programme, 2009). A closer look at the document shows that the health care section is similar to the FDPs, yet it may differ in some reform steps. One of the differences is that CDU/CSU suggests introduction of supporting measures for strengthening competition among insurance providers, with focus on health care availability in the countryside. There is no mention of the possibility to introduce the Kassenindividueller Zusatzbeitrag and enable particular insurance providers to focus on various income groups or segments. After all, in the next campaign, where the CDU/CSU suggested the introduction of a moderate version of the additional fee, the intended Health Care Minister Hermann Grhe warned of a sharpened competition (Grhe, 2013)/ The alternative therapies and their financing as well as electronic health insurance cards are not objects of interest in the latter document. Although they express their intention to push for the motivation of insured persons to save money, there is no explicit goal, such as introducing the refund of expenses. In contrary, there are some identical parts of the programme, such as the emphasis on prevention and awareness. Both parties are also working on the premise that the freshly introduced Gesundheitsfonds is insufficient and mention the need to fix it. As a complicated and welcomed compromise, no political party had the intension to cancel it. To sum up, the Electoral Programme FDP 2009 contains more liberal aspects as defined at the beginning of this paper. FDP clearly devised more individually-oriented reforms and measures which facilitated more decision making space for individuals. Coalition Agreement 2009 For a deeper analysis it is necessary to examine to what extent the ideas and concepts from the FDP electoral programme were adapted to the Coalition Agreement (Koalitionsvertrag, 2009). Alternative therapies, electronic health insurance cards, refund of expenses and funding in companies are left out completely, whereas new priorities are set instead. From the measures in favour of insured persons, we can highlight three main objectives, as cited in the chapter 9.1 of the Coalition Agreement. The return from private health insurance back to the state health system (Rckkehr), which had not been treated before, became one of the priorities. It clearly shows the interest of both parties to lure wealthier people back to the state-run system, in order to preserve the hope for balance of the budget in the future. In order to ease entrepreneurs from the burden of quite high fees (7.3 pct. at the moment) and in order to strengthen domestic labour demand both parties shifted the burden rather towards patients and decided to fix the employers rate at this level (7.3 pct.) and for the future to make only the employees part flexible. The intention is clearly described in the document and so is the justification. The insurance costs must not impair the demand on labour/ However, a special commission for this purpose should be established. The availability of health care is defined more on the basis of the CDU/CSU vision than on any other suggestions. A substantial shift from the effectiveness in health care to its availability in the countryside is apparent. Moreover, the document states that some medical activities may be transferred to non-medical professionals. This illustrates the effort to alleviate the administrative burden. For a more profound understanding, it is worth mentioning that the opening sentence of Chapter 9.1 dealing with health care states that German Health Care system should be open to innovation/ The document foresees some steps in this direction, e. g. broadening the competence of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance (GKV-Spitzenverband). In the following part of the paper the particular impacts of Rslers reform are examined. In accordance with the most common definition, four pillars of the system are analysed one after another. This level of analysis shows the results which are clean and tangible, however, only a limited amount of liberal intension may be observed here. Insurance agencies The first key player to be analysed is insurance providers. It is necessary to mention first that a set of decisions had been made just before the new Government started to work. As of 1 January 2010 several directives entered into forced bringing a broader decision-making space for Insurance providers (BMG, 2009). According to the directive they were eligible to declare insolvency, regardless of the level they are supervised from. Until then only federal insurance companies had been authorized. Considering the frequency of insolvency proceedings in the Federal Republic of Germany, it seems to be (or at least it seemed to be at the time) a shift to a more autonomous behaviour of insurance companies. Besides the prolongation of several interim measures taken by the previous Government, the Federal Ministry of Health proposed a piece of legislation (approved by the Government on 24 February 2010) concerning the health insurance system. The interesting part of this legislation is dealing with the independency of insurance providers. From then on they were able to change the constitution of their management board (Verwaltungsrat) by carrying out a very simple change to their statutes (BMG, 2010-1). Due to the increasing frequency of cases of two merging insurance agencies of various types (typically Betriebskrankenkasse and Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse), this reform change had been strongly demanded by the Federal Joint Committee and acknowledged by health care providers (BDI, 2010). In addition to this, this legislation act moderates the payment conditions for inspection services (Prfdienste). In September 2010, there was a turning point in the relationship between Roeslers ministry and insurance agencies. The first news about the balance of payments of insurance agencies turned up in those days. Even though insurance agencies were still showing surplus of 1.1 billion euro, the administrative costs increased for the first time since 2008. Exactly this might have been the impulse of Rsler to reduce the amount of money wasted every year in this area. After a long discussion the Federal Government approved the legislation act dealing with financing of health insurance (GKV-FinG) on 22 September 2010, which primarily fixed the administrative costs on the level of previous year for the next two years. However, all other changes were carried out in favour of insurance agencies. Firstly, the legislation act cancelled the reduction of employers rate and returned to the level of 14/6 pct., which brought a slightly bigger burden back to insured persons. In addition to this, the employers part was fixed on the level of 7/3 pct/ leaving space for an increase only on the employees side/ Undoubtedly, this reform measure illustrates the intention to relieve insurance companies from tight financial conditions without burdening the German industrial base more than it is necessary. Moreover, the act was not approved unanimously, it required long-lasting debates, primarily between FDP and CSU, with the participation of CDU as mediator (Rsler-Interview, 2010). It is interesting that state ministers, representing local governments, were strongly against this proposal. The reason was that most of them were CSU nominees. There were also further reform measures showing the intention either to alleviate the unfavourable financial situation or to stoke the competitiveness of agencies. There are a few examples from the first group. Firstly, payments for additional services negotiated beyond regular payments (Mehrleistungen) were reduced by 30 pct. and for the coming years it should have been a matter of re-negotiation. Secondly, the value of payment unit for family physicians was reduced by 50 pct. for the year 2011 and by 25 pct. for the year 2012 with the exception of dentists in the new federal states of Germany, where the financial situation was extremely tight. It resulted in a row of protests among general practitioners. Rsler called this protest unfair against their patients/ Instead of calling for more solidarity he clearly stood for insured persons (FAZ, 2010-1). Finally, FDP limited other parts of family physicians financing; apart from payment unit (Punkt), all extra-budgetary and quantitative costs were fixed. The most important result of Rslers efforts was the correction of Zusatzbeitrag introduced, as mentioned before, by the Grand coalition four years before. In the previous years it gained only a limited efficiency, since the total extra fee paid by the insured persons could not exceed 37 euro a month. The fact that from 2011 onwards the charge might have been considerably higher, giving the insurance companies which decided to introduce Zusatzbeitrag much more space for creativity. The possibility to differ in price of the product was an essential component of marketizing of the sector. Needles to repeat that this part of the proposal was approved after a great deal of criticism from CSU and the introduction of social equalization (Sozialausgleich) setting another limit for payments followed soon. Nevertheless, some cases of difficulties turned up in the first months after entering into force and a number of patients became debtors (FAZ 2010-2). Again, the impulse for CSU to finally agree with the whole concept might have been the support by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research (FTD, 2010). To summarize the attitude of FDP towards insurance providers, at first, in a serious need, they cut off their administrative financing. Apart from it, insurance companies benefited from much bigger space for independent decision making. Another thing is, to which extent they were able to facilitate this room. The previous part illustrated how the financial sources of health care providers were reduced by the Government in 2010. Apart from this financial limitation, new obligations on the providers side were introduced. For instance every decision of the Commission of Hospital Hygiene and Infection Prevention at the Robert Koch-Institute (KRINKO) became legally binding after January 2012, which resulted in severe complications in some hospitals. It affected, above all, middle-sized hospitals with the capacity of over 400 beds. These hospitals were obliged to implement relatively strict hygiene measures, yet they were often lacking personnel (Focus, 2012). In contrary, patients benefited from this measure, since it helped to improve their ability to compare different hospitals. In fact, it was another step towards the autonomy of patients (BMG 2010-3). It is necessary to mention a process leading to more independence in creating Medical Care Centers (Medizinische Versorgungszentren). In debates about the followers of outpatient clinics (Polikliniken), in the former German Democratic Republic experts tend to criticise this concept due to lack of prevention from non-transparent financing. Moreover, the criticism was aiming at the limited decision-making scope on the patients side. This step exceptionally favours medical care providers (or at least some of them) at the expense of patients. Patients The last subject left to be examined is Patients (insured persons). Some benefits for them were presented above, others have to be explained. The next part should focus on innovations in the field of medication, where some conditions were obviously liberalised. Most of them are connected with prescription free drugs. Some commonly used drugs were made prescription free, e.g. some proton pump inhibitors (the latest generation of antacida) or pain relievers. The impact on patients comfort is doubtful (independence in usage and no need to visit doctor on one hand, misuse and higher risk of addiction on the other hand) (ARZTNEIMITTELBRIEF). The effort to compare the extent of newly introduced prescription free medication with the activities of other governments would utterly exceed this papers scope. However, FDP took the initiative and followed the path of further liberalising the market, sometimes even against other Coalition parties. In accordance with the opening sentence of the Coalition Agreement, FDP wanted to be open to innovations as much as possible and in August 2010 the Ministry of Health submitted a new legislation act dealing with the medication market (Gesetz zur Neuordnung des Arzneimittelmarktes AMNOG). In the recent decades everyone got used to the fact that total expenses of the statutory insurance steadily increase. The incomes increased more or less proportionally. However, the expenses on medication grew twice as fast total incomes in the last couple of years. The increase in 2009 and in the first quarter of 2010 was more than 5 pct. The same increase calculated only in innovative drugs reached 8.9 pct. whereas there was a slight decrease in generics (-2.1 pct.). It is necessary to describe the structure of medication expenses in 2009 to better understand the decision of the Ministry of Health concerning the focus on innovative health care. Although the share of pharmaceutical innovations on the amount of prescribed pills was only 2.5 pct., the share of innovation costs on total expenses on medication is over 25 pct. in the long term (BMG 2010-4). To sum up, there were clear practical reasons to concentrate much more on the situation in the field of innovations instead of seeking solutions for generics. The rebate for pharmaceutical companies was increased to 16 pct., which only resulted in rise in prices (BMG 2010-5). This piece of legislation positively affected insurance providers, whereas the patients accepted it with mixed feelings. This measure gave them a broader spectrum of innovative products, yet it was accompanied by higher prices in other groups of medication. Conclusion The results shown above illustrate the fact that in some aspects FDP introduced reform measures in favour of patients, though sometimes with doubtful impacts. However, with only one exception all measures taken by FDP resulted in more space for decision making and in fact in more independence as well. Some measures, such as high hygiene standards for some hospitals, influenced patients indirectly, bringing additional information for them. In some cases FDP carried out liberal health care policy towards insurance agencies. The limitation of financial resources connected with the permission to introduce Zusatzbeitrge shows the same principle as in the case of patients. It seems that independence and sovereignty are preferred to giving additional finance resources to particular key players. However, the tendency is much more apparent in case of patients. Concerning the defence of some reform steps, FDP paid much more attention to rhetorical expressions about patients welfare. In contrary, there are only very few intentions to stand up for insurance providers in Rslers explanations. The pillar benefiting at least is the health care providers, especially hospitals. Some cuts and restrictions caused severe problems to them. Like in previous cases, even health care providers sometimes benefited from more space for decision-making. Compared to the other governing parties, CDU/CSU, FDP promoted the most liberal health care policy in terms of independence. Even in the fields, where the original starting point of both parties was the same, FDP played the role of initiator and advocate of most reform steps, whereas the CDU was much more cautious. It would be too speculative to consider CDU less principled from this point of view. Their position can be explained through the prism of their mutual relationship with CSU. After all, the aim of this paper was not to come to the conclusion to which party CDU was closer. To sum up, FDP devised quite liberal health care policy in terms defined for the purpose of this paper. The reform steps described above might illustrate any other health care policy in a situation, when FDP gains the seat of the Minister of Health Care. As mentioned above, the extent of this analysis does not allow offering a definite solution and a convincing conclusion based on a robust research. It would be necessary to examine various sources media, internal documents, etc. to gain a more plastic picture. References: Bandelow, N. (2008) Gesundheitspolitik. Der Staat in der Politik einzelner Interessengruppen? Probleme, Erklrungen, Reformen. Opladen: Leske+Budrich Bandelow, N. (2006) Gesundheitspolitik: Zielkonflikte und Politikwechsel trotz Blockaden. In Schmidt, M., Zolnhfer, R. (Hrsg.) Politik in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland. Wiesbaden: Westdeutscher Verlag BMG bringt wichtige Gesetze auf den Weg. Berufsverband Deutscher Internisten. Retrieved from: http://www.bdi.de/mitglieder/rechtliches/ansicht/article/bmgbringt-wichtige-gesetze-auf-den-weg.html Braun, B., Marstedt, G. (2010) Gesundheitspolitik auf dem Prfstand. In Bcken, J., Braun, B., Landmann, J. (Hrsg.) Gesundheitsmonitor 2010, Brgerorientierung im Gesundheitswesen. Gtersloh: Verlag Bertelsmann Stiftung CDU/CSU Electoral Programme 2009. Retrieved from: https://www.nachhaltigkeit.info/artikel/bundestagswahlprogram m_cdu_csu_1267.htm Czada, R. (2005) Social Policy: Crisis and Transformation. In Green, S., Paterson, W. (Hrsg.): Governance in Contemporary Germany. The Semisovereign State Revisited. New York: Cambridge FDP Electoral Programme 2009. Retrieved from: http://www.fdp.de/files/565/Deutschlandprogramm09_Endfassun g.pdf FocusGesundheit 4/2012: 126 Funk, K. (2009) Gesundheitspolitik II Die liberale Gesundheitsreform. Das Liberale Institut Retrieved from: https://liberalesinstitut.wordpress.com/2009/11/06/gesundheits politik-ii-die-liberale-gesundheitsreform-2/ The Coalition Agreement between CDU/CSU and FDP, 2009. Retrieved from: http://www.cdu.de/doc/pdfc/091026koalitionsvertrag-cducsu-fdp.pdf The Federal Ministry of Health. Press release from 18/12/2009 Retrieved from: http://www.bmg.bund.de/ministerium/presse/pressemitteilungen /2009-04/aenderungen-zum-1-januar-2010.html The Federal Ministry of Health. Press release from 24/02/2010 Retrieved from: http://bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/presse/pressemitteilung en/2010-01/pressemitteilung-kabinett-stimmt-gesetzentwurfzu.html# The Federal Ministry of Health. Press release from 12/08/2010 Retrieved from: http://www.bmg.bund.de/krankenversicherung/arzneimittelverso rgung/arzneimittelmarktneuordnungsgesetz-amnog/hintergrundzum-gesetz.html. The Federal Ministry of Health. Press release from 24/09/2010 Retrieved from: http://www.bmg.bund.de/presse/pressemitteilungen/201003/pressemitteilung-gemeinsame-pressemitteilung-vereinbarungzur-bearbeitung-von-haertefallantraegen-zur-ausnahme-vomherstellerrabatt.html Wir Allen alle in die Verantwortung nehmen Interview with the Minister of Health Care P. Rsler on 24 September 2010 in DLF Gesundheit. Retrieved from: www.dradio.de/aodflash/player.php?station=1&broadcast=57967 Mindestens 30 euro Strafe, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 18. 8. 2010 Retrieved from: http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/wirtschaftspolitik/saeumig e-kassenpatienten-mindestens-30-euro-strafe-1597722.html Sumige Versicherte sollen Strafgeld zahlen. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 17. 8. 2010 Retrieved from: http://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/wirtschaftspolitik/zusatzbe itraege-der-kassen-saeumige-versicherte-sollen-strafgeld-zahlen11023102.html Grhe will mehr Wettbewerb unter Krankenkassen Retrieved from: http://www.merkur.de/wirtschaft/hermann-groehe-will-mehrwettbewerb-unter-krankenkassen-zr-4287744.html Rckenwind fr Rsler: Arbeitgeber rechnen Kopfpauschale schn. Retrieved from: http://www.ftd.de/politik/deutschland/:rueckenwind-fuerroesler-arbeitgeber-rechnen-kopfpauschaleschoen/50136109.html RSC, Number 7, Issue 2, May 2015, pp. 192-218. Emotive Figures: Evoking Emotions by Things in Public Space Dominika Czarnecka, Independent researcher Corresponding authors e-mail: d.czarnecka@hotmail.com Abstract: The text attempts to explain why some monuments situated in public spaces tend to evoke oOoo.R OrOOR. .Oo Or. Rn. ONonrR met with complete indifference. It discusses the issues of collective emotional experience, emotional dynamics in the context of changing social situations, r. .OR O. OrOOR. O.RrrOO UO. onuments. An important Ronr O. r. oSROR OR r. nOnor O. U.nS. O orOO rO Ur.O.R.. Keywords: agency, emotions, memory, monument, public space. Yevgeny paced in agitation Around the statues massive base And wildly gazed upon the face Of him who straddled half creation/ (0) And quivering with fury, raising His fist, as if compelled by some Dark force to blind, impulsive action, He hissed through teeth clenched in distraction: You 0 builder of grand schemes! (A. Pushkin) Introduction Not only encounters with other people but also direct confrontations with nonhuman phenomena can stir emotions and induce a person to undertake specific actions. This analysis focuses on mechanisms of evoking human emotions in confrontation with a precisely defined group of objects secular monuments situated in public spaces. The uniqueness of this type of things consists in the fact that people do not become emotionally attached to them as a result of using such objects over a prolonged period of time, taking possession of them, or staying in direct contact with them in private spaces perceived as isolated, safe and generally facilitating a freer and fuller expression of a diversity of emotions (see: Briggs 1976 (1970)). Monuments which are under discussion here are erected in open-access spaces which gather people characterized by different experiences, convictions or temperaments. The repertoire of social interactions taking place in public spaces is not only different from, but also more diversified than those which occur in private spaces. Thus, the type of space is meaningful from the point of view of emotional responses expressed by people and the ways in which these responses are manifested. It is also worth stressing that monuments do not belong to the category of small objects/ Statues are immobilized objects of significant sizes. They do not have any specific owners, they cannot be passed from hand to hand, exchanged or sold, which results in social interactions taking place around rather than through such objects/ The aim of this article is in no way to name or describe the variety of emotional responses which occur as a result of direct confrontation with monuments. It is rather an attempt to explain how it happens that these things are able to evoke human emotions, how these emotions become manifested, when and in which situations emotional dynamics take place, and why monuments evoke emotional responses in some people, while remaining completely indifferent for others. The following discussion pertains to emotional constructs within West European and North American traditions. Ambiguity of emotions Firstly, it is necessary to take a moment to consider the basic question without which any further discussion would be at the very least inconsistent and incomplete. Namely, what are emotions, actually? The issue lies at the root of the debate of the anthropology of emotions. An exhaustive presentation of the broad range and complexity of approaches in this area goes considerably beyond the scope of this paper. Solely for the sake of clarity of further argument it might be constructive to mention the variety of theoretical approaches resulting from arranging emotions around the dichotomies which organize them: body-mind, biology-culture, sensation-meaning. The theories which derived emotions from biology understood them as bodily and universal (e.g. Darwin 1959 (1872), Gerber 1985, Spiro 1984). The opposite pole was represented by the approaches within which emotions were shaped socially and were to be characterized by radical variability, belonging to a specific socio-cultural tradition and thus forming an aspect of cultural meaning (Briggs 1976 (1970), Geertz 2005 (1974), Lutz, White 1986: 408, quoted by Leavitt 2012: 62). Novel approaches, initiated in the 1980s, strived to transcend the earlier divisions. John Leavitt and many other scholars understood emotions as inseparable from thinking and feeling, and combining the individual with the societal (Leavitt 2012: 63; Harding, Pribram 2002: 411). I use the terms emotions and feelings interchangeably, although emotions is a term which suggests a state of being seized or overwhelmed, whereas feelings does not/ I understand emotions as a cooperation of the body with the image, the thought, the memory; a cooperation of which an individual is aware (Hochschild 2012: 213). Hence, emotions are embodied thoughts, inseparably connected with understanding that this concerns me, while this awareness is bodily perceptible (Rosaldo, quoted by Leavitt 2012: 78). When examining emotions, it is impossible not to notice their central feature. ambiguity/ The ambiguity of emotions is not just a matter of their nature, but is also reflected in the eventual ambiguity of their meaning. The latter, however, is partially overcome through their contextualization in emotional regimes1, which regulate their expression and create social expectations that determine the range of meaningful emotions for any given situation. Emotional regimes are possible because emotions are not merely physical episodes, but embody values (0) (Gonzalez 2012: 2) (although not every valuation is emotional). Emotions are effective means of communication and (0) as phenomena experienced and expressed by individuals, help to constitute communities in a number of ways (Milton 2005. 220)/ Embodiment of emotion, which takes place due to social interactions, requires the presence of relevant others who act as emotional agents/ Into this category not only human beings need to be included, but also animals, landscapes, objects, works of art. People are capable of forming what are evidently social relations with ==things<< (Gell 1998. 18)/ However, this is not a case of a thing forming a social representation of a human being/ Only in certain contexts persons can be substituted for by objects. Agency can be invested in things, or can emanate from things in many different ways. Primary and secondary agents One of the key issues is related to whether (and how) things in this case, inanimate objects are able to evoke peoples emotions/ Ana Marta Gonzalez made a general observation that. (0) emotions have always revolved around objects/ Objects present themselves as carriers of emotions both in an ordinary way the admiration we feel when contemplating a painting, for instance and in a deeper way, when we associate personal experiences to that particular painting (Gonzalez 2012: 7)2. In this context, the concept of agency is of fundamental importance/ Essentially, agency is defined as capability to be the source and originator of acts, and agents are the subjects of action (Rapport, Overing 2000. 1)/ According to Alfred Gell, agency may be related to both people and things who/which are seen as initiating casual sequences of a particular type, that is, events caused by acts of mind or will or intention, rather than the mere concatenation of physical events. An agent is one who causes events to happen in their vicinity (Gell 1998. 16)/ These actions are caused by agents, by their intentions, not by the physical laws, although specific events which finally happen do not necessarily have to be intended by the agents/ According to Gell, agency can be attributable to things as well because in practice people attribute intentions to objects and images/ The idea of agency is a culturally prescribed framework for thinking about causation, when what happens is (in some vague sense) supposed to be intended in advance by some person-agent or thing-agent (ibid/. 17)/ The problem lies in the fact that prior intention may be attributed to the agent, who has a mind, and therefore, to a human being. Animals and material objects can have minds and intentions attributed to them, but these are always, in some residual sense, human minds, because we have access from the inside only to human minds (0) (ibid/. 17)/ As things by themselves cannot independently want something, cannot have intentions, they cannot be self-sufficient agents (only human beings can be those). Rather, the issue lies in the outcome of some process within which people struggle to realize their particular aims in other domains. In consequence, Gell suggested a distinction between primary and secondary agents/ Things are secondary or second-class agents/ Primary agents are intentional beings who are categorically distinguished from mere things or artefacts/ Primary agents use secondary agents to distribute their [own primary\ agency in the casual milieu, and thus render their agency effective (ibid/. 20)/ It is important to note that primary agents are not just those who produce objects, but also those who use or display them in different ways (Gell, quoted by Svaek 2007: 232). The concept of agency as related to objects, and in this case monuments, is relational and does not occur always but only in very specific social contexts, in particular social situations. Therefore, monuments as a special type of things may only act as secondary agents, and only in specific social contexts/ In this discussion, the concept of agency is connected with emotions. From the point of view of emotional agency it is not relevant what kind of monuments are capable of evoking peoples emotions, but how and in what situations they can do that and why this phenomenon only concerns a specific group of both monuments and their viewers/ It is also significant whose primary agency becomes effective in these circumstances. Ultimately, the effects are similarly not the discrete expressions of individuals will, but rather the outcomes of mediated practices within which people and things are implicated in complex ways. Bearing in mind the above findings, it seems advisable to consider the description of the mechanisms of evoking emotions by things, proposed by Maruka Svaek/ Objects may be experienced and imagined by people as subject-like phenomena only in given relations and social situations/ In this contexts inanimate objects are attributed with agency of a kind (cars, computers and many other items may appear as emotional agents)/ The alleged desires, or intentions of objects have an ability to evoke emotional peoples responses, while simultaneously the users are aware that in reality these objects are lifeless. Likewise, objects with which people form a connection over a long period of time, or which move in time or space, can be imagined and experienced as subject-like phenomena. Many years of travelling with a tattered backpack, evening rituals of sitting down in a favourite armchair they may be a reflection of an owners emotional attachment to things. Finally, inanimate agents may appear as emotional agents if they bring back the memories of what was related to emotional encounters in the past (a photograph of a loved one, a book with a personal inscription of a friend) (Svaek 2007. 231). Before a monument becomes erected The objects around which embodied thoughts occur are monuments3. And this by no means concerns only the admiration which people can feel in an ordinary way when contemplating a monumental sculpture. In certain situations the very undertaking of a discussion regarding the erection of a new monument excites strong emotions in the society4 (e.g. the abandoned project of a monument to the victims of Nazism in Owicim-Brzezinka in 1958 (Grzesiuk-Olszewska 1986), Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington in 1982 (Grant 2011), or current discussions concerning the erection of a new Warsaw monument to the victims of the plane crash in Smolensk5). In such situations, emotional agency is not connected with the monument-object, which does not exist as yet, but with the agents, who are human beings. The fact remains, however, that already in this first stage there may appear emotions which as complex combinations of what is experienced with what is discursive often function in the form of moral judgments expressed in the context of specific situations/ Undoubtedly, the majority of initiatives for monuments erection in democratic societies do not evoke an emotional response and people are indifferent towards new such structures. It is interesting, however, why some monuments, or even the very discussion on the subject of their construction, raises emotions all the same. Some of the monuments erected in the public spaces seem to be highly symbolic signifiers that transform otherwise neutral places into ideologically charged spaces (Whelan 2005. 63)/ These objects in the cultural landscape perform an important role in the legitimization of certain political regimes and social orders and in contributing to narratives of group identity6. Monuments, or even the very discussion about them, can both divide and unite people because within cultural limits each group interprets the symbols according to its own interests (Sax 1991. 205)/ No monument is able to fulfil the expectations of all members of the society, although it can meet the expectations of the majority. By creating spaces for memory, monuments propagate the illusion of common memory7 (Young 1993: 6). A discussion with regard to the erection of a new monument may be related to commemorating events/persons significant for the living (owing to personal memories, images, relationships with those who passed away)/ If an individual understands that this concerns me, their thoughts may become embodied/ Such an individual may respond emotionally and become strongly involved in a discussion regarding erection/stopping the construction of a new commemoration. One example may be the initiatives related to the funding of monuments to the victims whose relatives participated in the debate. Numerous emotional experiences, although felt by specific entities, turn out to be extremely stereotypical in their nature and are related to recurrent social situations and common definitions. Affective or perceptible associations, similarly as the semantic ones, are simultaneously collective and individual. They operate through common or similar experiences of the members of a group which lives in similar conditions, through cultural stereotypes of experience and through common expectations, memories and fantasies (Leavitt 2012: 83). Although the emotions are felt and interpreted subjectively, individuals experience them in specific social contexts. Hence, as well as symbols, monuments may be treated as ways to trigger and channel common emotions and associations for social purposes (Munn 1974, quoted by Leavitt 2012: 82). Therefore, the discussion on the subject of erecting an object may serve to induce and catalyze the emotions which are common for the members of a given memory community and which could not be manifested otherwise. Emotions appear as the means to communicate certain states, desires or fears. However, in every society different memory communities exist. A collective emotional experience concerns the members of a specific memory community, at the same time deepening the sense of separateness with regard to the representatives of other groups. The situation is different within non-democratic systems, where monuments are usually imposed on a top-down basis. Neither before nor after a new commemoration is erected is there a possibility for having a public debate. In the initial stage, then, the emotions are evoked by the imposition of the monuments construction, while the groups which hold the power officially ban the manifestation of emotions reflecting social discontent in the public space. Monuments past and present In the 18th century, le Chevalier de Jaucourt claimed that in every period of history, those who have governed people have always made use of paintings and statues, the better to inspire the feelings they wanted them to have, be it in religion, or in politics (quoted by Warner 1996 (1985))/ The above passage indicates that in the past the monuments were not neutral representations, that they reflected the power relations and inequalities in the public sphere. One of the functions of monuments was to inspire certain feelings (i/e/ neither all of them, nor the accidental ones) in those for whom they were constructed. Collective emotional experiences were exploited by the monumental art as tools in the (re)production of power relations by the ruling groups. Monuments appealed to connotative and emotional categories which were available to the recipients in the given time and place (which has not changed until the present day to any significant extent). Naturally, not all activities related to erecting, transforming, moving or demolishing monuments guaranteed specific, precise emotional responses, which resulted from the complexity and changeability of emotions themselves. Alternatives were always possible because (0) as in other hegemonic systems, the possibility of resistance is always present (Harding, Pribram 2002. 415)/ Numerous examples illustrating how these mechanisms operate in the context of monumental art may be found in relation to the history of Poland. In the 19th century, Polish territory was the most explosive region of the Russian empire8. Polish history provides an extreme example of national identification with (0) monuments/ In no other country was there such a unique sphere of struggle surrounding them, a sphere within which patriotic sentiments had to battle against the brutal violence of the partitioners (Tazbir 2000: 20). Emotional dynamics differed depending on the objects acting as emotional agents. The monuments which in the 19th century the enslaved nation considered to be Polish (e/g/ the column of king Sigismund III Vasa (1644)), evoked different emotional responses than these which were erected on the order of the tsar of Russia. Emotions were manifested in many different ways. The monument which was a tribute to the generals faithful to the tsar (1841), contemptuously called by the Poles the monument to disgrace, was repeatedly subject to attempts to blow it up. In an anonymous account of the ceremony of unveiling the monument, printed in Demokrata Polski (Polish Democrat) published in Paris, it was written that it forms an insult to the national feelings, which will, nevertheless, ricochet against the tsar and Russia, because the more often the people of Warsaw, the people of Poland will look at this monument an infinitely stronger will for revenge shall glow in their hearts (0) (quoted by Tazbir 2000. 26)/ On the very first night after its unveiling, the statue of Ivan Paskevich (1870) was smeared with wolf tallow, which attracted packs of ferociously barking dogs/ Under the monuments to disgrace people gathered for five minutes of hatred/ These formed a peculiar antithesis of a church service, black masses of national contempt (Tazbir 2000: 20). Some Poles avoided these objects so as not to have to look at them, some other purposefully walked by in order to be able to spit at them (Tazbir 2000: 16, 20). The monuments erected on the order of the partitioners were exaggerated reflections of the relations of power and subordination of the authority of the Russian tsar over the Poles. In this situation it was rather unlikely that the initiators of their erection would count on evoking positive feelings in the Polish society. Not without reason a special watch was established for guarding these monuments. Negative emotions could not be manifested officially, which absolutely did not mean that such emotions did not exist. The described behaviours of the viewers were an expression of emotional resistance. The monuments to Paskevich or generals faithful to the tsar as secondary agents not only distributed their (Paskevich, generals, the tsar) primary agency (whose main aim had been to discredit the previous order and propagate values accepted in the Russian Empire), but also served as a proof of enslavement of the Polish nation. They criticized Polish movements for independence and heroized service for the Russian tsar. This shows that objects can function as active agents, generating emotions and moral judgements. In the cases described here, they had a clear political subtext. A completely different social context came into being after the Second World War ended, when Polish communists began the construction of the monuments of gratitude for the Red Army on a mass scale and without social acceptance. Despite initiating a propaganda apparatus of huge proportions, the monuments sparked the resistance of a substantial number of Poles/ For many they were no symbols of liberation, as the official propaganda wanted, but symbols of a new occupation (more on the process of the mental transformation of monuments in: Czarnecka 2015). In the past, many monuments were imposed on the society by the political authority. Regardless of what separate individuals felt at that time, all the potential feelings were written into specific social situations changing over time. Every situation was accompanied by a stereotypical set of emotions, connected with a common or similar experience of the groups members. To what extent the emotions felt by individual entities were authentic and intense, remains a separate issue. In the period of Polish states non-existence, but also later, during communist rule, the imposed monuments played the role of secondary agents, distributing the primary agency of, for instance, their creators or representatives of political power. Paradoxically, the monuments were also successfully used by the representatives of the opposition to communicate their own passionate opinions/ Official rituals which took place around the statues were supposed to serve the purpose of conventional expression and experience of emotions desired by the authorities/ The rituals which took place in defiance of the official directives of the rulers focused different collective emotional experiences. They served, among others, to rechannel the social anger. Anger and resentment functioned as a moral judgement and as an attempt to change the current order and to set certain rules. These examples illustrate that objects can be used by different people to generate different types of emotional reactions. In democracy, monuments are not imposed by the authority and are not a reflection of the relations of subordination. They function as commemorations of the relevant others, icons of identity of the given communities, objects which add variety to the urban space, or provide tourist attractions/ Their majority is completely indifferent in peoples eyes, some may evoke excitement, admiration or joy, similarly to a typical close contemplation of a picture. This does not mean that emotional dynamics never appears, although in democratic systems emotional responses are expressed, as a general rule, during the stage of discussion on the subject of erecting a new monument, in which all interested individuals may participate (e.g. Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean Veterans War Memorial in Washington). The position of competing agents is equal, regardless of whether they are institutionalized entities or not. In the countries which, years after, regained their freedom and have undergone political transformation, the emotional dynamics may appear in relation to the monuments which were imposed in the past by the overthrown rule but still function in the public space/ If emotional experiences create and fix memories, it is also well established that memories generate emotions (Milton 2005: 219-220). Monuments as emotional agents Monuments, just like other inanimate objects, can be experienced and imagined by people as subject-like phenomena. Stone sculptures forming the images of living or long-since-dead figures can be experienced and imagined by the viewers as living persons, despite simultaneous, full awareness of their being solely inanimate casts. Owing to that, it sometimes seems to people that figures on the pedestals look at or smile at them/ Experiencing and imagining monuments as subject-like phenomena becomes particularly visible during the rituals of their public demolition/ Iconoclastic gestures often constitute visible signs of the viewers emotional experiences/ Public executions of sculptures are practiced during almost every violent political transformations (see Gamboni 2007 (1997))/ A typical scenario often includes hanging monument statues in front of a large audience which by no means remains calm during this type of spectacle9. When Benedykt Hertz in 1915 gave an account of removal of Muravyovs monument, which the Russians took with themselves leaving Vilnius, he wrote about hangman who faced the noose/ In 1989 in Warsaw the statue of Felix Dzerzhinsky was hanged, which event became engraved in the consciousness of Poles as one of the most important visual symbols of the fall of communism. In 1991 in Cracow, the statue of Ivan Konev was hanged, in 2003 the execution was repeated in the case of the statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad, and in 2014 the same fate awaited the monument of Vladimir Lenin in Kharkov. One of the eyewitnesses of demolishing the statue of the leader of the revolution stated. This is a true celebration/ We are as happy as on the New Years Eve! We have waited for this for over 20 years1. Emotional statements of the audience may also be manifested by iconoclastic gestures in other forms. For example, in 1991 the monument to Three Soldiers in wiebodzice (south-western Poland) was destroyed. The sculptural group was suspended on ropes, lifted and thrown against the ground. As the sculptures were undamaged, people began to break them, although they did not dare to harm one part of the sculptures the figures faces/ The author of the sculpture who was observing the scene of its public execution stated that the sculptures of the soldiers were tormented/ She described the contemporary reactions of the spectators who were against the demolition in the following way. [people\ were authentically crying when the sculpture was being knocked down, they were really <