Near Strangers: a transcultural analysis of individual humanitarian giving

The new issue of “Caritas et veritas” has just published an analysis of the Long Distance Adoption project. The text was co-authored by Pavlína Nalevanková and Jana Karlová. Pavlína is one of the first graduates of our Master’s program, the article is based on her (excellent!) master’s thesis, addresses the transcultural topic of interpersonal relationships ( as well as alienation), and tries to define the unwanted and unplanned “side” effects of well-intentioned efforts.

Near Strangers: a transcultural analysis of individual humanitarian giving (article in Czech)

The theoretical-empirical study focuses on the phenomenon of individual humanitarian donation through the Hradec Králové part of the Adoption at a Distance project. The central principle of the study is the transcultural concept (Burda), which, by linking a cultural and philosophical anthropological perspective with personalism (Clarke), seeks both to analyze in a horizontal sense – that is, to understand socio-cultural diversity – and to capture the vertical metaphysical dimension that transcends individual socio-cultural contexts. The social construction of reality (Berger and Luckmann) is used as a conceptual underpinning. Outlining deeper insights into donor motivations and project characteristics through grounded theory (Strauss and Corbin) draws on qualitative semi-structured interviews and participant observation. The study identifies aspects of non/contributing to the fulfillment of the project’s objectives, in particular, the issue of the non/existing reciprocal relationship between Czech donors and gifted Indian children, which is directly related to the non/unsuccessful efforts to cultivate openness to the ‘other’ and dialogue ‘despite’ differences.