Psychological and neuroscience research on well-being and health in older age

Research Topic
Psychological and neuroscience research on well-being and health in older age

Lead Researcher
Ryusuke Nakai, Senior Lecturer, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University

Joint Researcher
Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Lecturer, Kobe University

Center Co-Researchers
Nobuhito Abe, Associate Professor, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University

Maki Terao, Researcher, Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University

Well-being and health are the subjects of various psychological and epidemiological studies. Within this area, especially in Japan, which is facing a super-aging society, there is a need to conduct objective research based on the measurement of biological information from elderly people who suffer from a decline in their subjective view of health.

However, few studies have comprehensively obtained and analyzed data on brain structure, brain function, and various biomarkers in relation to feelings of well-being and psychological tendencies in the elderly. This project aims to clarify the relationship between happiness, subjective view of health and biological data, such as brain function and inflammatory reaction, from the viewpoint of psychology and neuroscience, focusing on “neuroticism” which has attracted attention in recent years. Our study is expected to provide knowledge for elderly people to achieve long lasting “richness in kokoro”, leading to improvement in their Quality of Life (QoL).

2021/06/04