Attachment and amae in Japanese romantic relationships

Amae is a Japanese term that refers to an individual's inappropriate behaviour when he/she presumes indulgence from a significant other. The link between attachment style and amae has been debated, but few studies have examined this link empirically. This study examined the association of attachment style with amae behaviour in Japanese dating couples over a two‐week period. Results showed that for Japanese men, anxious attachment was positively associated with their amae behaviour, and in turn, with their increased relationship quality. Conversely, avoidant attachment was negatively associated with their amae behaviour, and in turn, with their decreased relationship quality.     

State-Supported Science and Imaginary Lock-in: The Case of Regenerative Medicine in Japan

Abstract

Regenerative medicine (RM) in Japan lays strong emphasis on a specific trajectory of its development, which deploys human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells as the primary sources for the technology. The technique to create these stem cells was developed in 2006 by a Japanese stem cell scientist, Shinya Yamanaka, and since its applicability to human cells was established about a year later, this new type of cells has become to be considered as a potential substitute for human embryonic stem cells. While the clinical value of these cells are yet to be confirmed, the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology decided to concentrate its support on iPS cells research and turned it into a national project. This decision reflected the state's vision of initiating the transition to a knowledge-based society, which was adopted in the 1990s to tackle the prolonged deflation in the country. As the research became intertwined with this policy vision, however, the Ministry came to see bringing its success as more important than ever, while other trajectories of RM were left underrated and largely unsupported. Industrial actors counteracted this situation and developed an initiative to recognize existing technical capability in the country, but its impact has been so far negligible. This indicates that the nation is locked in the particular trajectory of RM. Hence, this Japanese RM research enterprise presents an interesting case to understand how states' commitment may not only shape the course of scientific research but also reduce flexibility in technological development.     

Cross-ethnic assessment of body weight and height on the basis of faces

Previous research has revealed a strong relationship between mere visual facial cues and body weight. They can be exploited to validly judge the weight of the human body. We tested to what extent observers are able to judge body weight and height on the basis of same-ethnicity and different-ethnicity faces. Caucasian and Asian observers saw Caucasian and Asian faces and estimated the person’s weight and height – merely on the basis of greyscale photographs of the face. These height and weight estimates were influenced by ethnocentric specifics of familiar face proportion and face–body relationship. Own-ethnicity weight estimations showed higher accuracy than foreign-ethnicity estimations. Observers ignored the changed base-rate for weight of other-culture faces in a culture-egocentric fashion. Height judgments, in contrast, reflect a higher degree of sophistication. A bias toward the own, familiar body proportion was visible here, especially for Japanese observers—however, the height judgments showed that observers were able to incorporate the other-ethnicity height proportion to some extent.     

Trauma Recovery in Interprofessional Cross-Cultural Contexts: Application of an Ethical Framework

Research into the complex interactions of personal, professional, and interprofessional ethics is in its infancy. Where interprofessional decision making is made in cross-cultural contexts, ethical dilemmas multiply; inversely, research to guide judgments is sparse. This study sought to explore interprofessional ethical decision making within a project, which delivered Western trauma-recovery training to counselors in Palestine. A cross-cultural interprofessional ethical framework was adapted and later applied to project decision making. A case study is presented based on field note reflections. Researchers perceived the following to be important in addressing ethical decision-making dilemmas: defining interprofessional and cross-cultural language; long-standing relationships of trust; workers liberated from organizational agendas; democratized processes; and flexible structures. Recommendations are provided to help plan and evaluate interprofessional cross-cultural initiatives.     

Reconsidering the concept of theodicy in the context of the post-2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami

Has the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake given rise to theodicy in Japan? This question would puzzle many scholars of religion for two major reasons. First, theodicy has generally been regarded as an outdated concept, and it is rare to see a lively discussion of it in today's academia except for in theology. Second, typical theodicean questions are unlikely to be asked publicly in Japan, where less than 2 percent of the population follow monotheistic traditions. Despite these assumptions, this article not only reports that ‘apparently’ theodicean public discourses have emerged since the 11 March earthquake, but also attempts to employ the typology of theodicy to analyze them in a thought-provoking and critical manner. It argues that the post-3/11 Japanese voices, which regard the disaster as a divine punishment, use a reverse logic of traditional Western theodicy. Rather than signaling a sudden turn to monotheism, the voices are inclined to imply nativism.     

Parent‐offspring conflict in Japan and parental influence across six cultures

Previous research has demonstrated that parents and children often have conflicting mate preferences. The present research was conducted among 443 Japanese university students. Using an existing scale designed to uncover parent‐offspring conflict over mate choice, the results revealed that children perceived having a potential partner with traits connoting poor genetic quality as being more unacceptable to themselves, and having a potential partner with traits connoting low parental investment and cooperation with the ingroup as being more unacceptable to their parent. A number of sex differences emerged. The highest potential for parent‐offspring conflict existed between female offspring and their father, and female offspring also rated traits connoting low social status as being more unacceptable to their parents, particularly to the father.     

Spiritual robots: Religion and our scientific view of the natural world

Religion plays a powerful role in the formation of scientific theories. By comparing the goals and practice of robotics and artificial intelligence in the US and Japan, differences between the two countries can be traced to their religious environments. Christian expectations of cosmic purpose and hope for salvation in purified, unearthly bodies leads to US researchers' preference for artificial intelligence over humanoid robots, a desire to see cosmic meaning in the development of that intelligence, and salvation of human minds in virtual, non-biological bodies. In Japan, robots, which have been the subjects of ritual consecrations and religious transcendence, participate in a fundamental sanctity of the natural world. A positive outlook on being human promotes a preference for humanoid robots and a future in which robots serve human beings, who do not forsake their bodies for virtual lives. Divergent scientific strategies cannot be separated from the religious worlds of their practitioners.     

团体音乐辅导提高地震灾区初中生心理弹性的研究

目的：考查团体音乐辅导对提高地震灾区初中生心理弹性的效果。方法：选取心理弹性较低的地震灾区初中生22名,随机分入干预组和控制组,对干预组进行团体音乐辅导。结果：后测结果表明,与控制组相比,干预组被试的心理弹性及其相关因素指标均有显著改善;两个月后的回访结果显示,干预组被试得分与后测无显著差异,仍显著优于前测。结论：团体音乐辅导能够有效地提高地震灾区初中生的心理弹性水平,并具有一定的长效性。