The effects of an improved residential nursery on the development of young Japanese children

The author, acting both as a researcher and a staff member, intervened at the residential nursery to facilitate the development of the children. The main goal of the intervention was to establish attachment relations between infants and their caretakers. The living environment of the institution simultaneously improved with the home-like atmosphere of small group care. Children's developmental status was examined before and after the intervention. The improved organization of the nursery was significantly correlated with the social (fear of stranger) and verbal (single word; first sentence) development of infants. This study showed how to facilitate normal development in children by improving residential nursery life. The results of two follow-up surveys in family-like residential nurseries, conducted independently in Germany and Japan, showed that early negative family experiences may be offset by favorable influences later in life, even at institutions. These findings suggests that quality of substitute care and family-like conditions, rather than residential care itself, may be the more important influences on children.     

Correlations for number of sunspots, unemployment rate, and suicide mortality in Japan

We studied the correlations among sunspot numbers, business cycles, and suicide mortalitites. Based on data from Japan between 1971 and 2001, a significant negative correlation between sunspot numbers and unemployment rate was found, R= -.17. The correlation between suicide mortality and unemployment rate was positive for males (R=.46) and negative for females (R =-.69). Both are statistically significant. The hypothesis that variation of sun activity may affect the economy and the unemployment rate and hence increase the male suicide mortality is raised.     

Correlations for Adolescent Resilience Scale with big five personality traits

Currently, individuals tend to encounter many unavoidable, painful events and hardships in the process of growth and development. To lead one's life adapting to these social conditions, it is necessary to maintain one's mental health even while experiencing challenging events; in other words, resilience is required. This study of 130 undergraduates focused on the Adolescent Resilience Scale which assesses capacity for successful adaptation despite challenging or threatening circumstances and examined correlations with scores on the Big Five Personality Inventory. A significant negative correlation of -.59 (p<.001) was noted for scores on the Adolescent Resilience Scale and the Neuroticism dimension of the Big Five Personality Inventory, accounting for 35% of the variance, and positive values with the Extraversion, Openness, and Conscientiousness dimensions (rs= .37, .40, .48, accounting for 14, 16, and 18% of the variance, respectively. Personalities of adolescents who have psychological traits leading to resilience may be partially predicted using these results.     

Effects of voluntary activation on neuromuscular endurance analyzed by surface electromyography

The purpose was to examine the relation between voluntary muscle activation and neuromuscular endurance of individual subjects based on the pattern of surface electromyography (EMG). The voluntary muscle activation was estimated from the relation between voluntary force and tetanic force superimposed on the voluntary force (twitch interpolation technique). 14 male subjects (10 regular exercisers and 4 sedentary; 21-29 years old) were divided into a High Voluntary Activation group and a Low Voluntary Activation group. A significant positive correlation of .72 (p<.01) was found between maximum voluntary torque and voluntary activation. A fatigue test was conducted during isometric contractions of 60% and 20% maximum voluntary torque. The endurance time was significantly longer for the Low Voluntary Activation group than the High Voluntary Activation group. The mean power frequency of voluntary EMG obtained from the vastus lateralis muscle decreased consistently whereas the average rectified value increased. The final change of mean power frequency relative to the initial value was significantly greater in the 60% Fatigue task than in the 20% Fatigue task. For the 60% Fatigue task, the final change of mean power frequency and average rectified value relative to the initial value was significantly greater in the Low Voluntary Activation group than in the High Voluntary Activation group. These results suggest that the individual differences in voluntary activation determine the neuromuscular performance usually evaluated as maximum voluntary torque and endurance time and that the voluntary activation may depend on the daily exercise.     

Perceived depth in the 'sieve effect' and exclusive binocular rivalry

An impression of a surface seen through holes is created when one fuses dichoptic pairs of discs, with one member of each pair black and the other member white. This is referred to as the 'sieve effect'. The stimulus contains no positional disparities. Howard (1995, Perception 24 67-74) noted qualitatively that the sieve effect occurs when the rivalrous regions are within the range of sizes, contrasts, and relative sizes where exclusive rivalry occurs, rather than binocular lustre, stimulus combination, or dominant rivalry. This suggests that perceived depth in the sieve effect should be at a maximum when exclusive rivalry is most prominent. We used a disparity depth probe to measure the magnitude of perceived depth in the sieve effect as a function of the sizes, contrasts, and relative sizes of the rivalrous regions. We also measured the rate of exclusive rivalry of the same stimuli under the same conditions. Perceived depth and the rate of exclusive rivalry were affected in the same way by each of the three variables. Furthermore, perceived depth and the rate of exclusive rivalry were affected in the same way by changes in vergence angle, although the configuration of the stimulus surface was held constant. These findings confirm the hypothesis that the sieve effect is correlated with the incidence of exclusive rivalry.     

Relative contributions of goal representation and kinematic information to self-monitoring by chimpanzees and humans

It is important to monitor feedback related to the intended result of an action while executing that action. This monitoring process occurs hierarchically; that is, sensorimotor processing occurs at a lower level, and conceptual representation of action goals occurs at a higher level. Although the hierarchical nature of self-monitoring may derive from the evolutionary history of humans, little is known about this cognitive process in non-human primates. This study showed that the relative contributions of kinematic information and goal representations to self-monitoring differ for chimpanzees and humans. Both species performed aiming actions whereby participants moved a cursor to hit targets. Additionally, a distractor cursor was presented simultaneously, and participants discriminated the cursor under their control from the cursor not under their control. The results showed that chimpanzees found it difficult to determine whether they were controlling the distractor when it moved toward the target, even though the distractor's kinematics and the participant's actions were dissociated. In contrast, humans performed efficiently regardless of any overlap between the presumptive and observed goals of the action. Our results suggest that goal representation, rather than motor kinematics, is the primary source of information for self-monitoring in chimpanzees, whereas humans efficiently integrate both dimensions of information. Our results are consistent with evidence showing species differences during imitation of others' actions, and suggest that humans have evolved the cognitive capacity to monitor motor kinematics in a more flexible manner than have chimpanzees.     

Utility of habituation-dishabituation procedure for comparative cognitive studies of Callithrix jacchus and Aotus spp.: preliminary assessments

The utility of the habituation-dishabituation procedure was examined in the common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) and the owl monkeys (Aotus spp.). The same movies were repeatedly shown to monkeys during an habituation phase, followed by a test phase during which monkeys were presented with a different movie. The time monkeys spent looking at the movie gradually decreased during the habituation phase and then significantly increased when they were presented the new movie. The limited findings indicate that these monkeys were sensitive to the habituation-dishabituation paradigm, suggesting that this procedure might be used to assess cognition and perception.     

Influence of vision and static stretch of the calf muscles on postural sway during quiet standing

The purpose of this experimental study was to evaluate the effects of vision and stretching of the calf muscles on postural sway during quiet standing. Under pre-stretch conditions, participants stood on a force plate for 30s and the sway of the ground reaction force center of pressure was recorded. The following postural sway variables were calculated off-line: sweep speed, sway speed, standard deviation, maximal mediolateral range, maximal anteroposterior range, mean mediolateral position and mean anteroposterior position. For post-stretch conditions, participants stood quietly on a device that was utilized to impose a static 3 min ankle joint dorsiflexion stretch. Immediately thereafter, participants moved onto the force platform where postural sway parameters were again recorded. Randomized eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions were tested in both cases. Results showed that postural sway significantly increased due to stretch (sweep speed, sway speed, standard deviation, maximal anteroposterior range, mean anteroposterior position), as well as eye closure (sweep speed, sway speed, standard deviation, maximal mediolateral range, maximal anteroposterior range). The interaction between stretch and eye closure was also significant (sweep speed, sway speed, standard deviation, maximal mediolateral range), suggesting that there were only minor increases in postural sway after stretch under the eyes-open condition. It was suggested that stretching of the calf muscles has the effect of increasing postural sway, although this effect can be greatly compensated for when vision is included.     

Involvement of IP3 receptors in LTP and LTD induction in guinea pig hippocampal CA1 neurons

The role of inositol 1, 4, 5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs) in long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) was studied in CA1 neurons in guinea pig hippocampal slices. In standard solution, short tetanic stimulation consisting of 15 pulses at 100 Hz induced LTP, while three short trains of low-frequency stimulation (LFS; 200 pulses at 1 Hz) at 18-min intervals or one long train of LFS (1000 pulses at 1 Hz) induced stable LTD in both the slope of the field EPSP (S-EPSP) and the amplitude of the population spike (A-PS). Bath application of 2-aminoethoxydiphenyl borate (2-APB), an IP3R antagonist, or of alpha-methyl-4-carboxyphenylglycine (MCPG), a wide-spectrum metabotropic glutamate receptor antagonist, during weak tetanic stimulation significantly increased the magnitude of the LTP in both the S-EPSP and A-PS. Three short trains of LFS or one long train of LFS delivered in the presence of 2-APB or MCPG did not induce LTD, but elicited LTP. Based on these results, we conclude that, in hippocampal CA1 neurons, IP3Rs play an important role in synaptic plasticity by attenuating LTP and facilitating LTD.     

Characteristics of Telephone Crisis Hotline Callers with Suicidal Ideation in Japan

Hotline callers do not always have suicidal ideation and previous studies have noted that the rate of such callers is limited. Crisis hotline counselors must be able to identify high‐risk callers in order to provide appropriate support. This study investigated the characteristics of Japanese crisis hotline callers in 2012 (N = 541,694) and is the first to analyze crisis hotline data for all parts of Japan over 1 year. About 14% of the callers had suicidal ideation and 6% had a history of attempted suicide. The odds ratio for suicidal ideation among those with a history of attempted suicide was 15.5. The suicidal ideation rate was much smaller compared to previous studies in other countries. There is a psychological barrier that must be broken for high‐risk people to use support hotlines. In addition, attempted suicide is a strong exclusive predisposing factor for death due to suicide; therefore, counselors should pay careful attention to callers with a history of attempted suicide. The characteristics of Japanese crisis hotline callers and the features of suicidal ideation revealed in the present study are expected to be useful in developing telephone crisis hotline strategies.