Publication archive

Vol. 26 of Prof. Kawai's Essay Series in Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru is Published

A new installment in Prof. Toshio Kawai's essay series, "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" was published in the October 2018 issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.

The theme of this month's essay is "Medieval Times and Dreams". 
 The previous essay discussed historical changes in the way dreams were interpreted. The theme of this month's essay is how dreams were understood in the medieval era. The medieval era is considered important because it preceded the pre-modern mindset and also helped form the basis of modern ways of being. The author observes that the stories and journals written during the medieval era show that dreams were shared with others and were connected to external reality. In contrast, people in modern times understand dreams as only existing inside one's kokoro.
However, the author also brings our attention to the fact that some people would manipulate others using dreams, while others would record their dreams in journals only when they were in trouble and wanted to rely on them. These trends indicate that dreams were seen as both directly connected with reality, and also regarded as an opposing force.



(Commentary:Hisae Konakawa Research Fellow)



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Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History (vol.26) "Medieval times and Dreams" by Toshio Kawai

 In the previous essay, examples from China were discussed to explain how dream interpretation has changed over time. In ancient times, dreams were directly connected to reality and were feared. They changed into something metaphorical and not scary, and even fun. This is universal, like the flow of history (e.g. the treasure ship from Japan). It also reminds us of the process by which children mature into adults. Some people report that the recurring nightmares they had as children became less frightening, and even something to look forward to, as they grew older.

(Excerpted from the essay )


https://www.minervashobo.co.jp/book/b377300.html

Vol.25 of an Essay Series by Prof. Kawai is Published in Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru

A new installment in Prof. Toshio Kawai's essay series, "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" was published in the September 2018 issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.


The theme of this month's essay is "Dreams and Historicity". 
The previous essay discussed dreams in which kokoro's layers of history can be experienced without excessive discomfort.

While kokoro's layers of history in dreams are seemingly unaffected by the changing times, he pointed out that people's perspectives on dreams changed over time.

Prof. Kawai asserts that the West, with its advanced science and technology, is not the only culture to have experienced historical changes in the perspectives of dreams, and discusses how dreams were regarded in Chinese classical texts and dream divination.
In ancient Chinese history and literature, there were no such things as "good dreams", and people were actually afraid of them. However, with time, people began to discuss dreams and to enjoy writing poems and sentences about the world of dreams. The author points out that a process of changing the perspective of dreams is "directly connected to a reality, and dreams are negative" is relatively universal, as it is also found in classical Japanese texts.

(Commentary by Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)



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Abstract

Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History (Vol. 25) "Dreams and Historicity"
Toshio Kawai

In my previous essay, I pointed out that the surreal phenomena of kokoro's layers of history - such as becoming another person, or transcending two worlds - seem unrealistic, but can be experienced in dreams. In this sense, it is in dreams that kokoro's layers of history can stay unchanged over time.

However, when consciousness changes, neither the content of a dream nor one's understanding of the dream stay the same. Along with changes in the perspectives on dreams, the significance of dreams has been decreasingly valued in the more scientifically inclined contemporary Western world. Romanticism and depth psychology can counteract this shift. (Excerpt from Vol. 25)

Research by Dr. Abe and Dr. Yanagisawa Reported on PsyPost and Psychology Today

Research by Mr. Ryuhei Ueda, Dr. Kuniaki Yanagisawa and Dr. Nobuhito Abe was reported onPsyPost (3/14/18), a psychology and neuroscience news website dedicated to reporting the latest research on human behavior, cognition, and society. It was also introduced in Psychology Today (7/11/18).


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Mr. Ueda was cited commenting on the research: "How we can maintain intimate romantic relationships is a very important topic in terms of evolution. However, there have been few studies which tried to investigate its neural mechanism."




『 Executive control and faithfulness: only long-term romantic relationships require prefrontal control 』


A paper by Ryuhei Ueda (Graduate student, JSPS research fellow), Dr. Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Dr. Nobuhito Abe et. al. was published in the Experimental Brain Research, Vol. 236.
Please see the Abstract below:

20180400_Abe_paper01.JPGUeda R, Yanagisawa K, Ashida H, Abe N (2018)
Executive control and faithfulness: only long-term romantic relationships require prefrontal control
Experimental Brain Research 236: 821-828


https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00221-018-5181-y


○Abstract
Individuals in the early stages of a romantic relationship generally express intense passionate love toward their partners. This observation allows us to hypothesize that the regulation of interest in extra-pair relationships by executive control, which is supported by the function of the prefrontal cortex, is less required in individuals in the early stages of a relationship than it is in those who are in a long-term relationship. To test this hypothesis, we asked male participants in romantic relationships to perform a go/no-go task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which is a well-validated task that can measure right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) activity implicated in executive control. Subsequently, the participants engaged in a date-rating task in which they rated how much they wanted to date unfamiliar females. We found that individuals with higher right VLPFC activity better regulated their interest in dates with unfamiliar females. Importantly, this relationship was found only in individuals with long-term partners, but not in those with short-term partners, indicating that the active regulation of interest in extra-pair relationships is required only in individuals in a long-term relationship. Our findings extend previous findings on executive control in the maintenance of monogamous relationships by highlighting the role of the VLPFC, which varies according to the stage of the romantic relationship.


Keywords : Monogamy fMRI Self-control Prefrontal cortex Romantic relationship

Research by Dr. Abe et al. Reported on PsyPost

Research by Dr. Nobuhito Abe, et al. was reported on PsyPost (8/11/18), a psychology and neuroscience news website dedicated to reporting the latest research on human behavior, cognition, and society.


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Dr. Abe was cited commenting on his research: "For many years, I have studied the neural basis of deception using a cognitive neuroscience approach." "More recently, I've focused on the neural mechanisms of decision-making on how people behave honestly or dishonestly. It is well known that psychopathic individuals lie chronically, I was really excited to examine what brain mechanisms are associated with dishonest decision-making of psychopaths." "The most important finding here is that higher psychopathy scores predicted decreased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) during dishonest decision-making. And this ACC activity was a significant mediator of the relationship between psychopathic traits and reduced reaction time for dishonest behavior."


This research paper entitled, "Reduced engagement of the anterior cingulate cortex in the dishonest decision-making of incarcerated psychopaths", was published in "Social Cognitive & Affective neuroscience" in July, 2018.



『 Reduced engagement of the anterior cingulate cortex in the dishonest decision-making of incarcerated psychopaths 』


 A paper by Dr. Nobuhito Abe et al. was published in Oxford University Press's Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (online) on July 3rd, 2018.

Psychopathy is defined as a personality disorder characterized by anti-social behavior and a lack of empathy and remorse. People with psychopathy are believed to lie chronically, yet little is known about the neural substrates of dishonesty in psychopathy.
In this study, we used a mobile MRI scanner to conduct functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study on incarcerated individuals in a North American correctional facility.
The results revealed that higher psychopathy scores predicted shorter reaction times for lying and decreased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) during dishonest decision-making. These findings are the first in providing evidence suggesting that psychopathic individuals behave dishonestly with relatively low levels of response conflict.

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Abe N, Greene JD, Kiehl KA (2018)
Reduced engagement of the anterior cingulate cortex in the dishonest decision-making of incarcerated psychopaths
Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience







こちらからも論文をご覧いただけます

Vol.24 of Essay Series by Prof. Kawai Published in Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru

A new installment in Prof. Toshio Kawai's essay series, "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" was published in the August 2018 issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.

The theme of this month's essay is "dreams and kokoro's layers of history".

In the introduction, various characteristics of the layers of history that were discussed in previous essays in the series are reviewed.

The author proposes that dreams make it possible for surreal phenomena to be felt and experienced, which may look like a manifestation of the layers of history.

Although dream interpretation has been common throughout various eras and cultures, the author points out that the knowledge required to understand dreams has been lost and that the significance of dreams is decreasingly valued in the more scientifically inclined contemporary world.

The author then discusses how modern depth psychology brought dreams back to the table for re-evaluation.

Jungian theory suggests that the unconsciousness that exists beyond individual experience emerges in one's dreams as images. As a result, in Jungian psychotherapy, dreams are highly valued as manifestations of the layers of history. The next few essays in the series will continue to discuss "dreams and kokoro's layers of history".



(Commentary:Hisae Konakawa Research Fellow)



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"Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" (Vol. 24)
"Dreams and Kokoro's Layers of History"
 Toshio Kawai 

Here are some of the characteristics of the layers of history that I have discussed previously in the series; One is taken over by an animal spirit or a spirit of the dead and as a result, the personality shifts completely. One comes to own a sense of animism, in which things have souls. One's soul can detach from the body and wander around the sky during an initiation. The Aristotelian logic (e.g. the laws of identity, contradiction and the excluded middle), which support our reality, are not applicable to the phenomena.
Thus, such experiences might be considered abnormal, pathological and surreal. However...




(Excerpt from Vol. 24)


Minerva Shobo Publisher's website
https://www.minervashobo.co.jp/book/b372968.html


Vol.23 of an Essay Series by Prof. Kawai Published in Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru

An essay in the series "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published in the July 2018 Issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.

This month's essay discusses how psychological dissociation intersects with "the layers of history". The previous two essays in this series were about the modern phenomenon of dissociation and dissociative symptoms. This month's essay discusses the works of Haruki Murakami and how they meet with "the layers of kokoro's history that have been repressed by modern consciousness".
The essay touches on the Jungian proposition that a "loss of big linkages" is currently occurring due to the loss of linkages between this world and another world, i.e., between reality and transcendence. Prevalent in the Murakami's writings, a motif of "individuals with dissociated consciousness being unable to connect with each other due to the fact that the world is dissociated."

Prof. Kawai sugests that it was Jung's intention to recover the lost linkages in modern times via imagery, and that it is important for us to relate ourselves to this dissociated world.


(Commentary in Japanese:Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)



20180700_Kawai_Minerva.JPGAbstract

Kokoro's forefront and the layers of history (Vol. 23)
"The intersection of dissociation and 'the layers of history'"
Toshio Kawai


The previous month's essay discussed how the modern phenomenon of dissociative disorder may be revival of the spirit possessions of pre-modern times. However, dissociation can also be seen as the repressed layers of kokoro's history resurfacing due to a weakened sense of control. Haruki Murakami depicts the intersection of dissociation's pre-modern and modern aspects of dissociation (or post-modernity) excellently.

(excerpt from the essay)


https://www.minervashobo.co.jp/book/b371954.html

A Paper by Dr. Ueda et al. Published in Scientific Reports

A paper by Dr. Ueda et al. was published in Scientific Reports.


Mindfulness meditation, which enhances one's health and sense of well-being, has gained attention in recent years. Mindfulness meditation is comprised of focused attention meditation (FAM), which involves sustaining selective attention moment-by-moment on a chosen perceptual object (e.g. sensations of breathing), and open monitoring meditation (OMM), which entails broadened, receptive attention to all experience without reactivity and judgment. Although the psychological mechanisms and neural bases underlying FAM overlap with those underlying attention have been extensively studied, little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying OMM.

To investigate these mechanisms, Dr. Ueda and Mr. Fujino (Graduate School of Education, Kyoto University), and their research colleagues used fMRI to examine striatal functional connectivity in experienced meditators during meditation.

Both FAM and OMM reduced functional connectivity between the striatum and the posterior cingulate cortex, which is a core hub region of the default mode network (DMN). Further, OMM reduced functional connectivity of the ventral striatum to both the visual cortex (which is related to intentional focused attention in the attentional network) and the retrosplenial cortex (which is related to memory functioning in the DMN). In contrast, FAM increased functional connectivity in these regions. These findings suggest that OMM reduces intentional focused attention and increases detachment from autobiographical memory. This detachment may play an important role in non-judgmental and non-reactive attitudes during OMM. These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying the contribution of OMM to the subjective senses of well-being and happiness.

The study was conducted using the MRI scanner and related facilities of the Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University.



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Masahiro Fujino, Yoshiyuki Ueda, Hiroaki Mizuhara, Jun Saiki, & Michio Nomura
Open monitoring meditation reduces the involvement of brain regions related to memory function
Scientific Reports DOI 10.1038/s41598-018-28274-4.







Click here to read the paper


Kyoto University website: http://www.kyoto-u.ac.jp/ja/research/research_results/2018/180702_1.html 


A Paper by Dr. Abe et al. Published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience

A paper by Dr. Nobuhito Abe et al. was published in Oxford University Press's Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (online) on July 3rd, 2018.


Psychopathy is defined as a personality disorder characterized by anti-social behavior and a lack of empathy and remorse. People with psychopathy are believed to lie chronically, yet little is known about the neural substrates of dishonesty in psychopathy.

In this study, we used a mobile MRI scanner to conduct functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study on incarcerated individuals in a North American correctional facility.

The results revealed that higher psychopathy scores predicted shorter reaction times for lying and decreased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) during dishonest decision-making. These findings are the first in providing evidence suggesting that psychopathic individuals behave dishonestly with relatively low levels of response conflict.


20180800_Abe_SocialCognitive.JPG
 









Abe N, Greene JD, Kiehl KA (2018)
Reduced engagement of the anterior cingulate cortex in the dishonest decision-making of incarcerated psychopaths
Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience






 https://academic.oup.com/scan/advance-article/doi/10.1093/scan/nsy050/5048611 

A Chinese Translation of Prof. Kawai's Book, Reading Haruki Murakami's "Stories" as a Textbook of Dreams, Published

A Chinese translation (simplified characters) of Prof. Toshio Kawai's book, Reading Haruki Murakami's "Stories" as a Textbook of Dreams, was published in China in April 2018.

The book interprets Murakami's works, including the best-seller 1Q84 (Shincho Sha Publishing, 2009) via dream analysis.

Since its initial publication in 2011, the book has received public attention as a Jugian critique of Murakami's novels.

The book was previously translated into Chinese traditional characters and published in Taiwan in December 2014.

Other books by Prof. Kawai have been published in various countries such as Jung: Reality of Souls (Kodansha Publishing, 1998), which was published in China in 2001.

An excerpt of the Chinese translation of Reading Haruki Murakami's "Stories'"as Textbook of Dreams in Chinese is available at Books.com.tw and via other online bookstores.

(Commentary in Japanese by Hisae Konakawa)


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A Lecture by Prof. Kawai Published in Sand Play Therapy Research, Vol. 30

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A lecture given by Prof. Toshio Kawai at the 2017 Japan Association of Sand Play Therapy Conference was published in Sand Play Therapy Research, Vol. 30.





Table of Contents:
Introduction
1. Sand play therapy in Japan and its development
2. Sand play therapy and children's mentality
3. Unique characteristics of Japanese sand play
4. The soul of things: All things have the Buddha nature
5. The mandala and nature
6. Internalization as miniaturization
7. Symbolism as an empty segment and the performing arts





The theme of the lecture was "Japanese sand play therapy in the world: Its traditional background and possibilities"


It has been pointed out that many Jungians in Japan are different from Jungians in the rest of East Asia. Japanese Jungians perceive images as they are, but Jungians in China and Korea draw interpretations of images from symbolism. The lecture focuses on the characteristics of sand play therapy in Japan and its traditional background.


One of the characteristics of sand play therapy is that it fits the psyches of children and clients with pre-modern psyches, both domestically and internationally. Additionally, the content of and changes in the sandbox are shared non-verbally and observable to both parties. Being able to touch things via sand play therapy provides children a sense of "being here". These are very important characteristics of Japanese sand play therapy.

Further, Japanese sand play therapy gives an impression of things as is being valued because the situation cannot be fully grasped via abstract interpretation.


In Japan, people operate under a belief that everything has a soul because of "kokoro's old layers". This is thought to be a reason why sand play therapy in Japan is unique.


It's been suggested that sand play therapy was widely adopted in Japan because it suits Japanese people, who express kokoro through nature, such as the miniaturized nature of ikebana and bonsai and religious pilgrimages that are undertaken to internalize nature. This lecture proposes that miniature sandbox play may include a sense of pilgrimage in it.

(Commentary in Japanese:Hisae Konakawa) 

A Paper by Dr. Abe et al. Published in Frontiers in Neurology

A Paper by Dr. Nobuhito Abe et al. was published in Frontiers in Neurology Vol. 9.


This study compared honesty levels between patients with Parkinson's disease and healthy controls, via an incentivized prediction task. Results found that Parkinson's participants were significantly more honest than healthy controls, when self-reporting predictions, with levels that were nearly identical to chance.


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Abe N, Kawasaki I, Hosokawa H, Baba T, Takeda A (2018)
Do patients with Parkinson's disease exhibit reduced cheating behavior? A neuropsychological study
Frontiers in Neurology 9: 378

 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fneur.2018.00378/full 


Abstract:
Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder characterized by loss of dopamine neurons. Since a seminal report was published in the early twentieth century, a growing body of literature has suggested that patients with PD display characteristic personality traits, such as cautiousness and inflexibility. Notably, PD patients have also been described as "honest," indicating that they have a remarkable tendency to avoid behaving dishonestly. In this study, we predicted that PD patients show reduced cheating behavior in opportunities for dishonest gain due to dysfunction of the dopaminergic reward system. Thirty-two PD patients without dementia and 20 healthy controls (HC) completed an incentivized prediction task where participants were rewarded based on their self-reported accuracy, affording them the opportunity to behave dishonestly. Compared with HC, PD patients showed significantly lower accuracy in the prediction task. Furthermore, the mean accuracy of PD patients was virtually equivalent to the chance level. These results indicate that PD patients exhibit reduced cheating behavior when confronted with opportunities for dishonest gain.






The Textbook, Hayao Kawai Special: Exploring the Structure of Kokoro by Prof. Kawai Was Published in the July Edition of NHK's Hyappun De Meicho ("100 minutes on a famous book") Series"

The Series Hyappun De Meicho (100 mintuets on a famous book) on NHK's E-TV host guest speakers to discuss famous books from various genres.

In the July's broadcast, Prof. Toshio Kawai will discuss "Hayao Kawai Special: Exploring the Structure of Kokoro".
He will trace the thinking of Hayao Kawai by discussing his writings "Introduction to Jungian Psychology", "Folktales and Japanese Kokoro", "Mythology and Japanese Kokoro", and "Jungian Psychology and Buddhism".
The textbook is a written discussion of topics presented in the TV broadcast. The themes of the four books are as follows: "Being present with the problems of Kokoro", "The origin and image of humans", "Folktales and the deep layers of mythology", and "What is "I "?".
(Commentary by Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)

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A Paper by Dr. Uchida et al. Published in Frontiers in Psychology

A paper by Dr. Yukiko Uchida, Dr. Matthias S. Gobel (former researcher at KRC), and Atsuki Ito (graduate student, Kyoto University) was published in Frontiers in Psychology.

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Abstract

Previous research has shown that leadership is signaled through nonverbal assertiveness. However, those studies have been mostly conducted in individualistic cultural contexts, such as in the U.S. Here, we suggest that one important strategy for goal attainment in collectivistic cultures is for leaders to self-regulate their behaviors. Thus, contrary to the previous evidence from individualistic cultural contexts, in collectivistic cultural contexts, leaders might suppress nonverbal assertiveness. To test this possibility, we assessed nonverbal behaviors (NVB) of Japanese leaders and members, and how they were evaluated by observers. We recruited Japanese leaders and members of university clubs and video-recorded them while introducing their club. Then, we coded their nonverbal rank signaling behavior. Finally, we asked a new set of naïve observers to watch these video-clips and to judge targets' suitability for being possible club leaders. Results of a multilevel analysis (level 1: individual participants, level 2: clubs) suggested that the more the club culture focused on tasks (rather than relationships), the more likely were leaders (but not members) of those clubs to suppress their nonverbal assertiveness. Naïve observers judged individuals who restrained from emitting nonverbal assertiveness as being more suitable and worthy club leaders. Thus, our findings demonstrate the cultural fit between contextual effects at the collective level (i.e., cultural orientation of a group) and the signaling and perceiving of social ranks at the individual level (i.e., suppression of nonverbal assertiveness). We discuss the importance of studying the cultural fit between the collective reality that people inhabit and people's psychology for future research in cultural psychology.

Ito, A., Gobel, M.S., & Uchida, Y. (2018). Leaders in interdependent contexts suppress nonverbal assertiveness: A multilevel analysis of Japanese university club leaders' and members' rank signaling.

Frontiers in Psychology, 9:723.doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00723






Read more: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00723/full

Q&A Guidebook for Dementia Care Specialists: Supporting Dementia Patients' Families and Caregivers. A Planning/Operation Guidebook (Chuo Hoki Publishing) Co-authored by Dr. Seike Has Been Published

To build communities that are hospitable to dementia patient, the families of dementia patients must be supported. However, there are various issues that complicate caregiving. These include increasing numbers of families who care for dementia patients, the 20,000 annual cases of reported elder abuse, the declining birthrate and aging society, increases in the number of households, commuter caregiving, long-distance caregiving due to double-income households and delayed marriage, and the difficulty of balancing caregiving and work. New ways of providing care should be discussed.

Support by specialists is critical, especially for dementia patients who are cared for at home. This guidebook will help caregivers gain information when they need help.


Chapter 1
How a specialist can encourage patients to see their doctor.
Chapter 2
How to support elderly caregivers.
Chapter 3
What to do when the care recipients refuse medical check-ups and day-service facilities.
Chapter 4
How to support families in mountainous rural areas where medical facilities are scarce and resources not readily available.


The index is useful for saving time finding answers to specific questions.

 You may download the guidebook here on the website of Ministry of Health, Labour, Welfare

 
 
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Objectives and how to use the guidebook
How the book was created
Chapter 1 family support methods by individual situations
Chapter 2 family support methods by caregiver's situations
Chapter 3 family support methods for when using care services
Chapter 4 family support methods for caregivers in communities
Index
Authors
Committees






The book, A Dementia Care Class: A Planning/Operation Guidebook (Chuo Hoki Publishing), Co-Authored by Dr. Seike Has Been Published

Dr. Aya Seike and Takashi Sakurai, M.D. (Center Director for the Center for Comprehensive Care and Research on Memory Disorders) wrote a book, A Dementia Care Class: A Planning/Operation Guidebook (Chuo Hoki Publishing).


The "New Orange Plan", a comprehensive strategy to promote dementia-related policies, offers information about regional activities and community resources that value the perspectives of people with dementia and their families. Various support efforts, such as Café Dementia, dementia care classes and Care Salon, have been implemented in local communities.

However, despite enthusiastically initiating such programs, certain obstacles can arise, such as:
-The operation cannot continue due to understaffing
-Membership become fixed (new members do not join)
-People who are interested in joining do not know where to start
-Participants lack confidence to continue the program

This book offers readers precise information about how to plan and operate sustainable programs.

Additionally, the book is written so that readers can skip around and go directly to their chapter of interest.

It is a book for readers from all walks of life, including: organizers of existing programs, people who want to initiate a new program and people interested in community building, and nursing and social work.

(Commentary by Dr. Seike, co-author of the book)


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A Dementia Care Class: A Planning/Operation Guidebook (Chuo Hoki Publishing).

https://www.chuohoki.co.jp/products/welfare/5657/

Essay Series "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" (Vol.22) by Prof. Kawai Published in the Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru

Essay series "Kokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" (Vol. 22) by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published in the June 2018 issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.

This month's theme is "dissociative disorder and modernity".
A question was posed in the previous month's essay: why is it that many of the types of dissociative disorder and spirit possession that were found in the 90s seem to have disappeared? This month's essay offers an answer to the question: it is due to fluctuations of the integration of kokoro.


Context for the increase in dissociative disorder included the initiation of people using usernames (nicknames) and multiple online accounts, which suggests that the continuity of personality became less important. The essay uses the revelation of their inner selves to the world by bloggers and Instagram users as examples of changes in people's consciousness.


One of the reasons why dissociative disorders appeared to decrease might be that people felt more accepted and less pathological to society in their various selves in various situations.
However, a weakened sense of integrity in personality might be another reason. Alternatively this weakened integrity might be reflected in the increase in developmental disabilities in which the lack of individuality leads to an inability to make choices.

(Commentary:Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)



20180600_Kawai_Minerva01.JPGKokoro's Forefront and the Layers of History" (Vol. 22) [Dissociative disorder and modernity]Toshio Kawai


A question was posed in the previous month's essay: why is it that many of the types of dissociative disorder and spirit possession that were found in the 90s seem to have disappeared? This month's essay offers an answer to the question: it is due to fluctuations of the integration of kokoro. A weakened sense of integrity in personality might be another reason.
・・・

 


(Excerpt from the essay)


The Publisher's website:
https://www.minervashobo.co.jp/book/b369912.html

A Lecture by Prof. Kawai Published in the Bulletin of Jin-ai University's Clinical Psychology Center

20180500_Kawai_lecture.JPGA lecture given by Prof. Toshio Kawai during the 11th "Meeting for a Deeper Understanding of School-aged Children" was published in the Vol. 13 of Jin-ai University's Clinical Psychology Center Bulletin.





Kawai, T. (2018) Developmental disabilities and atypical development in modern times. Jin-ai University Clinical Center Bulletin 13, 1-18


Table of Contents:

Lecture
1. Introduction
2. Modernity and the increase in developmental disabilities
3. Diagnostic history and the increase in developmental disabilities
4. Diagnoses of ASD and the increase in diagnosis
5. ASD and the subject of examination
6. ASD and psychotherapy: The origin of the subject
7. Social structure and the increase in clinical ASD
8. The tendency towards atypical development
Q&A/Feedback



The topic of the lecture was developmental disabilities and the tendency towards atypical development in modern times. There has been an increase in symptoms that resemble ASD and people exhibiting such symptoms, as well as tendency towards atypical development.
Weakened individuality changes in social structure and changes in awareness in modern times form the background for these increases.

Further, there is a view that sees the therapy and available resources for treating atypical development as resembling those used for ASD. While the points made by psychotherapy regarding ASD are accepted, the importance of facilitating independence was also discussed.

(Commentary in Japanese by Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)

Hayao Kawai: A Thinker, Co-edited by Prof. Toshio Kawai, Re-printed in Paperback

Hayao Kawai: A Thinker, which was co-edited by Prof. Toshio Kawai, has been re-printed in paperback.


Along with Hayao Kawai: A Clinician, which was published last month, a reissue of the book, Hayao Kawai: A Thinker has been released by Iwanami Shoten Publishers to commemorate the work of Hayao Kawai.


Having specialized in psychotherapy, Hayao Kawai drew from mythology and folklore in his numerous books on the essence of kokoro and the kokoro of the Japanese people.


Prof. Toshio Kawai highlights Hayao Kawai's role as a "thinker" in the book, capturing the depth of his thoughts in easy-to-read writings that extend beyond the framework of psychology.


In the book, Hayao Kawai's writing are analyzed and discussed by experts from various fields, such as Prof. Shinichi Nakazawa, Prof. Kiyokazu Washida, Prof. Norio Akasaka and Prof. Takeshi Yoro.

One change to this edition is the addition of "On Hayao Kawai's 'Folklore and the Kokoro of the Japanese'" by Prof. Masachi Osawa, who was awarded the 3rd Hayao Kawai prize in 2015. One other change is the addition of "Reading Guide: 10 books for learning about Hayai Kawai's thoughts".


In "The Hollow Structure and the Demon Child", Prof. Toshio Kawai cites Hayao Kawai's concept of "the hollow structure in Japanese mythology", which reflects the method of psychotherapy that he consciously used in his practice. According to Prof. Toshio Kawai, this "hollow structure" was the core of Hayao Kawai's philosophy of practice.


On the other hand, the fact that Hayao Kawai was also interested in "the demon child" and "re-reading Hiruko" reminds us that he embraced not only "the hollow structure", but also "the demon child who was forced out of the hollow structure". Along with such folk tales, the impact of Myoe, Kegon and Kegon philosophy on the formation of Hayao Kawai's core beliefs needs to be highlighted.


In the section, "Reading Guide: 10 books for learning about Hayai Kawai's focuses on introducing his thoughts via keywords, such as Jungian Psychology and psychotherapy, tales, Buddhism and children.


Further, because learning about his life and who he was as a person is crucial to discussion of his thoughts, the book also includes biographical information on Hayao Kawai, a series of his essays and interviews with him.

(Commentary in Japanese by Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)

20180500_Kawai_book3.JPG
Iwanami Shoten Publishers Hayao Kawai, A Thinker(Shinichi Nakazawa, Toshio Kawai) https://www.iwanami.co.jp/book/b358694.html

Hayao Kawai: A Clinician, Co-edited by Prof. Toshio Kawai, Re-printed in Paperback

Hayao Kawai: A Clinician, co-edited by Prof. Toshio Kawai, has been re-printed in paperback.


The book, Hayao Kawai: A Clinician was published in 2009, two years after Professor Hayao Kawai passed away.

To commemorate his 90th birthday, Iwanami Shoten Publishers have released a re-printed edition.

Changes to this edition include the addition of Prof. Toshio Kawai's lecture "Three reunions with Hayao Kawai" and the omission of part of Living Words, Moving Kokoro and some more technical studies.


In the introduction, Prof. Toshio Kawai discusses Prof. Hayao Kawai's clinical work.

To shed light on who he was as a clinician, the main part of the book discusses Prof. Hayao Kawai's commentary on his clinical cases and the experience of clinicians who Prof. Hayao Kawai saw during treatment.

The book also discusses Prof. Hayao Kawai's friendships with Shuntaro Tanikawa and Yutaka Sado. Prof. J.M. Spiegelman, whom Prof. Hayao Kawai saw as his first analytic therapist, discusses "depicting Hayao Kawai in clients' shoes" in his interview.


In "The three reunions with Hayao Kawai", Prof. Toshio Kawai recalls experiences of his father that he had during his college years, during his study abroad, and when he was editing his father's writing.

Additionally, Prof. Toshio Kawai talks about Prof. Hayao Kawai's core beliefs of "story" and "following the nature of things".

(Commentary by Hisae Konakawa, Research Fellow)

20180500_Kawai_book02.JPG

Iwanami Contemporary Paperback Hayao Kawai, A Clinician (Shuntaro Tanikawa, Toshio Kawai)
https://www.iwanami.co.jp/smp/book/b355587.html


Prof. Kawai's Essay Series Published in the May 2018 Issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru

Prof. Toshio Kawai's essay series "Kokoro's Forefront and Layers of History" was published in the May 2018 issue of Minerva Correspondence: Kiwameru.

This month's theme was "spirit possession and dissociative disorder".
Prof. Kawai points out that dissociative disorder was frequently discussed during the era of Freud and Jung in 19th to 20th centuries. Although interest in it seemed to have disappeared at one point, it picked up again in the 90' throughout the world, including Japan.
An epidemic of dissociative disorder seems to have appeared in recent years. It resembles the phenomenon of "spirit possession", but they are surrounded by completely different contexts. In pre-modern times, the cause of possession was seen as something outside of the individual, such as a fox or a spirit of the dead, whereas modern day dissociative disorder does not arise from such "layers of history" within a kokoro.
Then why did many of the types of dissociative disorder that were found in the 90' seem to have disappeared? This topic will be covered in the next issue.

(Commentary:Hisae Konakawa Research Fellow)


201805_Kawai_Minerva.JPG

"Kokoro's forefront and the layers of history" (21)

"Spirit possession and dissociative disorder" by Toshio Kawai

Previously in this series, I have written about psychosomatic and developmental disorders. In this section, I would like to focus on symptoms. Dissociative disorder includes depersonalization disorder, dissociative amnesia and dissociative identity disorder. The ICD-10 added hysteria (convertible disorder) to this category. Modern psychiatric medical diagnostic classification was established by Emil Kraepelin in 1899. Around the same time, Sigmund Freud began developing his psychoanalytic theories and techniques. This is how the framework for modern psychiatry and psychotherapy were developed...


[Publisher]
https://www.minervashobo.co.jp/book/b358533.html

Chapter 5 "Analytical Psychological Approach" written by Prof. Kawai Published in Introduction to Clinical Psychology: Fundamentals and Practice for Certified Psychologists

Chapter 5 "Analytical Psychological Approach" written by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published in Introduction to Clinical Psychology: Fundamentals and Practice for Certified Psychologists, Volume 3.
Starting this year, psychologist certification will require a national certification process. Chapter 5 of the textbook Introduction to Clinical Psychology, which was published in accordance with the new curriculum, was written by Prof. Kawai. This chapter discusses Jungian psychological theory, with an emphasis on the "self relationship" point of view.



2018_Kawai_paper01.JPG
Toshio Kawai(2018), Chapter 5, Introduction to Clinical Psychology: Fundamentals and Practice for Certified Psychologists, Volume 3 "Analytical Psychological Approach" Kazuhiko Nojima, Tatsuya Okamura(Editors), Tomi Publisher

遠見書房 書籍ページ
Amazon.co.jp 書籍ページ


A Paper by Dr. Abe, Dr. Yanagisawa, et. al. Published in the Experimental Brain Research

A paper by Ryuhei Ueda (Graduate student, JSPS research fellow), Dr. Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Dr. Nobuhito Abe et. al. was published in the Experimental Brain Research, Vol. 236.

Please see the Abstract below:

20180400_Abe_paper01.JPGUeda R, Yanagisawa K, Ashida H, Abe N (2018)
Executive control and faithfulness: only long-term romantic relationships require prefrontal control
Experimental Brain Research 236: 821-828


https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00221-018-5181-y


○Abstract
Individuals in the early stages of a romantic relationship generally express intense passionate love toward their partners. This observation allows us to hypothesize that the regulation of interest in extra-pair relationships by executive control, which is supported by the function of the prefrontal cortex, is less required in individuals in the early stages of a relationship than it is in those who are in a long-term relationship. To test this hypothesis, we asked male participants in romantic relationships to perform a go/no-go task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which is a well-validated task that can measure right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) activity implicated in executive control. Subsequently, the participants engaged in a date-rating task in which they rated how much they wanted to date unfamiliar females. We found that individuals with higher right VLPFC activity better regulated their interest in dates with unfamiliar females. Importantly, this relationship was found only in individuals with long-term partners, but not in those with short-term partners, indicating that the active regulation of interest in extra-pair relationships is required only in individuals in a long-term relationship. Our findings extend previous findings on executive control in the maintenance of monogamous relationships by highlighting the role of the VLPFC, which varies according to the stage of the romantic relationship.


Keywords : Monogamy fMRI Self-control Prefrontal cortex Romantic relationship

A Paper by Prof. Kawai Published in the 7th Issue of the Investigation of Arts and Principles of Body-Mind Transformation

An English Paper by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published in the 7th Issue of the Investigation of Arts and Principles of Body-Mind Transformation, led by Prof. Toji Kamada (Institute of Grief Care, Sophia University; Religious Philosophy and Folklore, Kyoto University).

This paper focuses on the Hua Yen sutra, the Kegon (in Japanese) of Mahayana Buddhism with the aim of discussing East Asian spirituality with reference to the Japanese contributors at the Eranos conferences.
Originating in West India, the Hua Yen sutra has been influenced by the meditation experiences of the Indian people and the Central Asian mysticism of "light".

Furthermore, the Hua Yen sutra was organized as a philosophy in China. The interpenetration of all things is the essential part of Hua Yen sutra, which is expressed in magnificent mandalas. The philosophy of the Hua Yen is distinct from alchemical "fusion" and "death and rebirth", and can add meaning to the Jungian concepts of "symbol", "archetype", and "synchronicity".

In Japan, the Hua Yen developed in the context of nature and art. In Japan, due to indigenous animistic beliefs, such as the concept of all things housing a deity, and the influence of Shinto, mandalas came to depict natural landscape. Traveling through nature on pilgrimages also became an important part of religious training in Japan.

The Japanese internalized nature by making it smaller and more aesthetic, for example, in Japanese gardens, Bonsai, Ikebana and the tea ceremony. This tradition may have contributed to the wide acceptance of Jungian psychology and sandplay therapy in Japan.

Report by Hisae Konakawa (Research fellow)


201804_kawai_paper02.JPGInvestigation of Arts and Principles of Body-Mind Transformation(The 7th Issue)


Toshio Kawai. (2018). Transformation of East Asian spirituality: with the reference to Eranos lectures. Investigation of Arts and Principles of Body-Mind Transformation, 7, 267-272.


〔Table of contents〕
1. Hua Yen sutra between nothingness and fullness
2. India and meditation
3. Central Asia and Light
4. Chinese philosophy and pragmatism
5. Japan: nature and aesthetics



You may read the annual research reports here: Investigation of Arts and Principles of Body-Mind Transformation

Paper by Dr. Uchida, Dr. Nakayama and Dr. Takemura et. al. Published in the Nov. 2017 Issue of The Japanese Journal of Psychology

 201802_Uchida Paper2.png

A paper entitled "Contingencies of self-worth in employees on medical leave due to mental health disorders" by Dr. Yukiko Uchida (KRC, Kyoto University), Masataka Nakayama (Carnegie Mellon University), Dr. Kosuke Takemura (Shiga University) and et. al was published in the Nov. 2017 issue of the Japanese Journal of Psychology.



This study investigated the personalities of employees on medical leave due to mental health disorders. Using contingencies of self-worth (CSW) as a metric of personality, it was examined whether the CSW of employees on medical leave due to mental health disorders matched the perceived values of their workplace relative to that of employees at work. Differences in CSW before and after taking medical leave were also examined. Thirty-six employees on medical leave and 133 employees at work participated in this survey study. Results indicated that three types of CSW (CSW for being superior, for having positive evaluation from others, for having autonomy) were higher in employees on medical leave than in employees at work. There was also a large difference between each type of CSW of employees on medical leave and the perceived values of their workplace, and all three types of CSW decreased after medical leave.


https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jjpsy/88/5/88_88.15066/_article/-char/ja

Paper by Dr. Uchida, Dr. Takemura and Dr. Fukushima Published in the Dec. 2017 Issue of The Journal of Agricultural Extension Research

201802_Uchida Paper1.JPGA paper entitled "The social capital of farming and fishing groups and extension officers' activities: Analysis of data from a survey of group leaders" by Dr. Yukiko Uchida (KRC, Kyoto University), Dr. Kosuke Takemura (Shiga University), and Dr. Shintaro Fukushima (Aoyama Gakuin University) was published in the December 2017 issue of the Journal of Agricultural Extension Research.  



The study investigated the relationship between the social capital of farming and fishing groups and the psychological well-being of individual farmers/fishers, as well as the roles of extension officers who promote the social capital of farmers/fishers.   The questionnaire survey conducted among leaders of farming and fishing groups showed that relationship of trust among group members was positively associated with the subjective well-being of both the leaders and group members. Additionally, the results suggested that the extension officers' assistance in building collaborative organizations among farmers/fishers was effective in solving problems, especially for farming and aquaculture groups. The roles of extension officers, who are a "third party" for the groups, are discussed.



Papers by Dr. Abe, Dr. Uchida, Dr. Ueda, et. al., Published in the Book Memory in a Social Context: Brain, Mind, and Society

1801memory.pngPapers by Dr. Nobuhito Abe, Dr. Yukiko Uchida, Dr. Yoshiyuki Ueda, and Dr. Masataka Nakayama (postdoctoral researcher) et. al. was published in Memory in a Social Context: Brain, Mind, and Society.


The studies in this book explore new perspectives on human memory and how it is linked to the mind, brain and society.


The papers by the researchers from Kokoro Research Center are listed below and sample pages can be accessed via the links below.


Kikuchi H, Abe N (2017)
Voluntary suppression and involuntary repression: Brain mechanisms for forgetting unpleasant memories, In: Memory in a Social Context: Brain, Mind, and Society, pp 147-164, T. Tsukiura, S. Umeda, Eds. Springer, Tokyo


This chapter reviews the current state of research regarding brain mechanisms underlying the active inhibitory control processes in mnemonic processing. Research has examined both the voluntary suppression and repression of memories in healthy participants and patients with dissociative amnesia. Results indicated that our memory system may be controlled by active forgetting processes through interactions between specific brain areas.


Nakayama, M., Ueda, Y., Taylor, P.M., Tominaga, H., & Uchida, Y. (2017).
Cultural Psychology as a Form of Memory Research. In T. Tsukiura & S. Umeda (Eds.). Memory and the Social Context. Tokyo: Springer Japan.


This chapter reviews prior research on the relationship between culture and memory. Research has suggested that there are cultural differences in memory encoding and recall, as well as influences cognition and attention. For example, the memories of East Asian people - relative to European Americans - focus more on relationships with others than they do on the self.


Springer
http://www.springer.com/jp/book/9784431565895


Amazon
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/4431565892

Paper by Dr. Abe, Dr. Yanagisawa et. al. Published in Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience

A Paper by Ryuhei Ueda (office assistant/graduate student/researcher, JSPS), Dr. Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Dr. Nobuhito Abe and colleagues was published in volume 17 of Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience.

The study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate whether implicit attitudes and executive control interact to regulate interest in extra-pair relationships.

The results indicated that monogamous relationships regulate amorous temptation affected by the combination of automatic and reflective processes.


1712abe_cognitive.pngUeda R, Yanagisawa K, Ashida H, Abe N (2017) Implicit attitudes and executive control interact to regulate interest in extra-pair relationships. Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience 17 (6): 1210-1220

https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13415-017-0543-7


○Abstract
Do we actively maintain monogamous relationships by force of will, or does monogamy flow automatically? During functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), male participants in a romantic relationship performed the Implicit Association Test (IAT) to evaluate implicit attitudes toward adultery and a go/no-go task to measure prefrontal activity implicated in explicit executive control. Subsequently, they were engaged in a date-rating task in which they rated how much they wanted to date unfamiliar females. We found that the individuals with higher prefrontal activity during go/no-go task could regulate the interest for dates with unattractive females; moreover, the individuals with both a stronger negative attitude toward adultery and higher prefrontal activity could regulate their interest for dates with attractive females, and such individuals tended to maintain longer romantic relationships with a particular partner. These results indicate that regulation of amorous temptation via monogamous relationship is affected by the combination of automatic and reflective processes.


Keywords : Monogamy fMRI Dual-process theory Implicit social cognition Self-control

Paper by Dr. Sato et. al. Published in Human Brain Mapping

A paper entitled "Gray matter volumes of early sensory regions are associated with individual differences in sensory processing." by Dr. Wataru Sato, Dr. Sayaka Yoshimura (Kyoto University, Graduate School of Medicine), et. al. was published in Human Brain Mapping.(2017)


1711sato_humanbrainmapping.pngYoshimura, S., Sato, W., Kochiyama, T., Uono, S., Sawada, R., Kubota, Y., & Toichi, M. (2017). Gray matter volumes of early sensory regions are associated with individual differences in sensory processing. Human Brain Mapping, 38, 6206-6217.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hbm.23822/full *with Authetication


○Abstract

Sensory processing (i.e., the manner in which the nervous system receives, modulates, integrates, and organizes sensory stimuli) is critical when humans are deciding how to react to environmental demands. Although behavioral studies have shown that there are stable individual differences in sensory processing, the neural substrates that implement such differences remain unknown. To investigate this issue, structural magnetic resonance imaging scans were acquired from 51 healthy adults and individual differences in sensory processing were assessed using the Sensory Profile questionnaire (Brown et al.: Am J Occup Ther 55 (2001) 75-82). There were positive relationships between the Sensory Profile modality-specific subscales and gray matter volumes in the primary or secondary sensory areas for the visual, auditory, touch, and taste/smell modalities. Thus, the present results suggest that individual differences in sensory processing are implemented by the early sensory regions. Hum Brain Mapp 38:6206-6217, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Paper by Prof. Kawai Published in the Journal of Analytical Psychology

A paper entitled "The Historicity and Potential of Jungian Analysis: Another View of 'SWOT'" by Professor Toshio Kawai was published in the Journal of Analytical Psychology.

The paper is based on the lecture he gave in March, 2017 as the respondent at the annual lecture of the Society of Analytical Psychology in England.


Prof. Kawai's lecture discussed the "social, scientific and professional challenges that are a result of Jungian psychology's "peculiar mixture of pre-modern content and modern psychic structure, which results in its weak and strong points," but can turn out to be new opportunities for Jungian psychology today and in the future."
He discussed these within the context of Andrew Samuels' contribution.


1711-kawaijap.png

Paper by Dr. Sato Published in BMC Research Notes

A paper by Dr. Wataru Sato entitled "Homeostatic states modulate unconscious hedonic responses to food " (co-authored with Sawada, R., Kubota, T., Toichi, M., & Fushiki, T.) 
was published in BMC Research Notes. The article is freely available online at the link below.


1711sato_bmc.pngSato, W., Sawada, R., Kubota, T., Toichi, M., & Fushiki, T. (2017).
Homeostatic modulation on unconscious hedonic responses to food.
BMC Research Notes, 10, 511.
https://bmcresnotes.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13104-017-2835-y


○Abstract
Objective
Hedonic/affective responses to food play a critical role in eating behavior. Previous behavioral studies have shown that hedonic responses to food are elicited consciously and unconsciously. Although the studies also showed that hunger and satiation have a modulatory effect on conscious hedonic responses to food, the effect of these homeostatic states on unconscious hedonic responses to food remains unknown.
Results
We investigated unconscious hedonic responses to food in hungry and satiated participants using the subliminal affective priming paradigm. Food images or corresponding mosaic images were presented in the left or right peripheral visual field during 33 ms. Then photographs of target faces with emotionally neutral expressions were presented, and the participants evaluated their preference for the faces. Additionally, daily eating behaviors were assessed using questionnaires. Preference for the target faces was increased by food images relative to the mosaics in the hungry, but not the satiated, state. The difference in preference ratings between the food and mosaic conditions was positively correlated with the tendency for external eating in the hungry, but not the satiated, group. Our findings suggest that homeostatic states modulate unconscious hedonic responses to food and that this phenomenon is related to daily eating behaviors.


○Keywords
Dutch eating behavior questionnaire (DEBQ) Food Hungry-full homeostatic states Subliminal affective priming Unconscious hedonic responses

Paper by Dr. Seike et. al. Published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

A paper by Dr. Aya Seike, Director Takashi Sakurai (The Center for Comprehensive Care and Research on Memory Disorders), and Dr. Kenji Toba (President of the National Institute of Longevity Medical Science, National Research and Development Corporation) et. al. was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society Vol. 64 (2016 March)

The study verifies the analysis of the effects of educational support programs for caregivers of people with progressive dementia.


1603seike_ronbun.pngAya Seike, Takashi Sakurai, Chieko Sumigaki, Akinori Takeda, Hidetoshi Endo and Kenji Toba (2016). Verification of Educational Support Intervention for Family Caregivers of Persons with Dementia. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 64 (3): 661-663
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jgs.14017/full ※with Authentication


Since 2012, the authors have provided an educational support program for persons with early-stage dementia and their family caregivers. It has been determined that information about the diagnosis and treatment of dementia is important for persons with early-stage dementia and their caregivers.[1] As the condition of the person with dementia worsens, behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia and increasing problems with activities of daily living (ADLs) can create greater care burdens for caregivers.[2] Dementia-related stigma[3]and confusion and anxiety about the unknown can exacerbate caregivers' burdens, so it was felt that caregivers needed coping strategies in addition to skills for managing dementia symptoms and ADL disorders. The aim of this research was to verify the effects of a trial program of educational support intervention for caregivers of persons with progressive dementia.

Prof. Hiroi's Paper Published in the Book The Intersection of Scientific Knowledge and the Humanities: Ethical Issues Surrounding iPS Cell Research

hiroi_ips.PNGProfessor Yoshinori Hiroi's paper was published in the book The Intersection of Scientific Knowledge and the Humanities: Ethical Issues Surrounding iPS Cell Research


The book, which was published under the supervision of the CiRA (iPS Cell Research Institute) Director, Professor Shinya Yamanaka and Kyoto University's Uehiro Research Division for iPS Cell Ethics, discusses ethical issues surrounding iPS cell research from the perspectives of natural science, and the humanities and social science. The publication of the book marks the 30th anniversary of the Uehiro Research Division.


The book consists of the following sections:
Introduction: "A special dialogue: Ethical issues surrounding iPS cell research" by Director Yamanaka and Professor Emeritus Susumu Shimazono (Tokyo University).
1. From the research site
2. From Kyoto University's Uehiro Research Division for iPS Cell Ethics
3. Applied ethicists at Oxford University
4. Humanities scholars in Japan
5. From governmental and international perspectives


Prof. Hiroi's paper "The effect of iPS cell research on the aging society: From the perspective of public policies is in part 5.


Amazon.co.jp

Paper by Dr. Sato et. al. Published in Scientific Reports

A paper entitled "Impaired detection of happy facial expressions in autism" by Dr. Wataru Sato et. al. was published in Scientific Reports (2017).

The study showed that the detection of happy facial expressions is impaired in individuals with ASD and high ATs, which may contribute to their difficulty in creating and maintaining affiliative social relationships.


sato_SR.pngSato, W., Sawada, R., Uono, S., Yoshimura, S., Kochiyama, T., Kubota, Y.,Sakihama, M., & Toichi, M. (2017). Impaired detection of happy facial expressions in autism. Scientific Reports, 7, 13340.
http://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-11900-y


○Abstract
The detection of emotional facial expressions plays an indispensable role in social interaction. Psychological studies have shown that typically developing (TD) individuals more rapidly detect emotional expressions than neutral expressions. However, it remains unclear whether individuals with autistic phenotypes, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and high levels of autistic traits (ATs), are impaired in this ability. We examined this by comparing TD and ASD individuals in Experiment 1 and individuals with low and high ATs in Experiment 2 using the visual search paradigm. Participants detected normal facial expressions of anger and happiness and their anti-expressions within crowds of neutral expressions. In Experiment 1, reaction times were shorter for normal angry expressions than for anti-expressions in both TD and ASD groups. This was also the case for normal happy expressions vs. anti-expressions in the TD group but not in the ASD group. Similarly, in Experiment 2, the detection of normal vs. anti-expressions was faster for angry expressions in both groups and for happy expressions in the low, but not high, ATs group. These results suggest that the detection of happy facial expressions is impaired in individuals with ASD and high ATs, which may contribute to their difficulty in creating and maintaining affiliative social relationships.

Paper by Dr. Sato et. al. Published in Brain Topography

A paper by Dr. Wataru Sato and Dr. Shota Uono et. al. was recently published in the journal Brain Topography. The study showed that putamen volume is negatively correlated with the ability to recognize fearful facial expressions.


1710brain_topography.pngUono, S., Sato, W., Kochiyama, T., Kubota, T., Sawada, R., Yoshimura, S., & Toichi, M. (2017). Putamen volume is negatively correlated with the ability to recognize fearful facial expressions. Brain Topography, 30, 774-784.
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10548-017-0578-7


○Abstract
Findings of previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychological studies have suggested that specific aspects of the basal ganglia, particularly the putamen, are involved in the recognition of emotional facial expressions. However, it remains unknown whether variations in putamen structure reflect individual differences in the ability to recognize facial expressions. Thus, the present study assessed the putamen volumes and shapes of 50 healthy Japanese adults using structural MRI scans and evaluated the ability of participants to recognize facial expressions associated with six basic emotions: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise. The volume of the bilateral putamen was negatively associated with the recognition of fearful faces, and the local shapes of both the anterior and posterior subregions of the bilateral putamen, which are thought to support cognitive/affective and motor processing, respectively, exhibited similar negative relationships with the recognition of fearful expressions. These results suggest that individual differences in putamen structure can predict the ability to recognize fearful facial expressions in others. Additionally, these findings indicate that cognitive/affective and motor processing underlie this process.


○Keywords
Basal ganglia, Emotion recognition, Fearful face, Structural magnetic resonance imaging, Putamen

Paper by Prof. Kawai et. al. Published in the Journal of the Japan Thyroid Association

A paper entitled "Thyroid hormones and mental illness" by Prof. Toshio Kawai and et. al. was published in the October 2017 of The Journal of the Japan Thyroid Association (Vol.8, No.2).


171018 kawai:TH.png


Mental illness, in particular depressive and anxiety disorders, frequently co-occur within thyroid diseases. Among the thyroid hormones, T3 relates closely to depression and anxiety because of its role in regulating serotonin and noradrenaline. In many cases, the symptoms of mental illness persist even after thyroid function has been normalized through treatment. These research findings suggest that psychosomatic approaches based on the bio-psycho-social medical model are important to treat thyroid diseases-related mental illness.

Paper by Dr. Abe et. al. Published in Scientific Reports

The research paper "Collaborative roles of TJDPC in Different Types of Behavioural Flexibility" by Dr. Nobuhito Abe et. al. was recently published in Scientific Reports.


In this study, brain functions underlying behavioural flexibility (e.g., shifting attention) were investigated using fMRI. Previous studies have suggested that flexibility is mainly promoted by the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). However, this study hypothesized that TPJ activity during diverse flexibility tasks also plays a role in stimulus-driven attention-shifting, thereby contributing to different types of flexibility. Thus the collaboration between DLPFC and TPJ might serve as a more appropriate mechanism than DLPFC alone. The results indicated that the TPJ plays a crucial role in flexibility, as the combined DLPFC/TPJ recruited during moral flexibility predicted flexibility in other domains of flexibility (e.g., economic, perceptual).


1710abe_SR.pngTei S, Fujino J, Kawada R, Jankowski KF, Kauppi J, van den Bos W, Abe N, Sugihara G, Miyata J, Murai T, Takahashi H (2017). Collaborative roles of temporoparietal junction and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in different types of behavioural flexibility. Scientific Reports 7 (1): 6415

http://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-06662-6 ※with Authentication


○Abstract
Behavioural flexibility is essential for everyday life. This involves shifting attention between different perspectives. Previous studies suggest that flexibility is mainly subserved by the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). However, although rarely emphasized, the temporoparietal junction (TPJ) is frequently recruited during flexible behaviour. A crucial question is whether TPJ plays a role in different types of flexibility, compared to its limited role in perceptual flexibility. We hypothesized that TPJ activity during diverse flexibility tasks plays a common role in stimulus-driven attention-shifting, thereby contributing to different types of flexibility, and thus the collaboration between DLPFC and TPJ might serve as a more appropriate mechanism than DLPFC alone. We used fMRI to measure DLPFC/TPJ activity recruited during moral flexibility, and examined its effect on other domains of flexibility (economic/perceptual). Here, we show the additional, yet crucial role of TPJ: a combined DLPFC/TPJ activity predicted flexibility, regardless of domain. Different types of flexibility might rely on more basic attention-shifting, which highlights the behavioural significance of alternatives.

Paper by Dr. Abe et. al. Published in Neuroreport

A research paper entitled "Automatic honesty forgoing reward acquisition and punishment avoidance: A functional MRI investigation" by Dr. Nobuhito Abe et. al. was published in the September 2017 edition of Neuroreport 2017 (Vol. 28, No. 14).


The research used fMRI to investigate the brain functions underlying honesty in decision making. This study used an incentivized prediction task in which participants were confronted with real and repeated opportunities for dishonest gain that would either lead to acquiring rewards or avoiding punishment. The results showed that honest decision-making when faced with opportunities for dishonest gain or punishment avoidance required no more effort in the prefrontal area than a control condition without these opportunities. This suggest that honest decision-making occurs automatically, irrespective of contextual motivations for dishonest gains or avoid punishment.


1710abe_neuroreport14.pngYoneda M, Ueda R, Ashida H, Abe N(2017). Automatic honesty forgoing reward acquisition and punishment avoidance: a functional MRI investigation. Neuroreport 28: 879-883
https://goo.gl/sYKwfv ※with Authetication


○Abstract
Recent neuroimaging investigations into human honesty suggest that honest moral decisions in individuals who consistently behave honestly occur automatically, without the need for active self-control. However, it remains unclear whether this observation can be applied to two different types of honesty: honesty forgoing dishonest reward acquisition and honesty forgoing dishonest punishment avoidance. To address this issue, a functional MRI study, using an incentivized prediction task in which participants were confronted with real and repeated opportunities for dishonest gain leading to reward acquisition and punishment avoidance, was conducted. Behavioral data revealed that the frequency of dishonesty was equivalent between the opportunities for dishonest reward acquisition and for punishment avoidance. Reaction time data demonstrated that two types of honest decisions in the opportunity for dishonest reward acquisition and punishment avoidance required no additional cognitive control. Neuroimaging data revealed that honest decisions in the opportunity for dishonest reward acquisition and those for punishment avoidance required no additional control-related activity compared with a control condition in which no opportunity for dishonest behavior was given. These results suggest that honesty flows automatically, irrespective of the concomitant motivation for dishonesty leading to reward acquisition and punishment avoidance.


○Keywords
functional MRI; honesty; prefrontal cortex; punishment; reward

Paper by Prof. Kitayama, Dr. Yanagisawa, Dr. Uchida and Dr. Abe Published in PNAS

The research paper "Reduced Orbitofrontal Cortical Volume is Associated with Interdependent Self-Construal" by Prof. Shinobu Kitayama, Dr. Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Dr. Yukiko Uchida, and Dr. Nobuhito Abe was published in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences).
The research used a neuroimaging analysis technique called Voxel-Based Morphometry (VBM) examine whether structural properties of the brain predict interdependent self-construal.
The results showed that interdependent self-construal is highest in people who have relatively low orbitofrontal cortical volume and are also high in object imagery.


 pnas.pngKitayama S, Yanagisawa K, Ito A, Ueda R, Uchida Y, Abe N (2017)
Reduced orbitofrontal cortical volume is associated with interdependent self-construal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 114 (30): 7969-7974
http://www.pnas.org/content/114/30/7969.abstract ※with Authentication


●Abstract
Interdependent self-construal refers to a view of the self as embedded in relationships with others. Prior work suggests that this construal is linked to a strong value placed on social obligations and duties. Interdependent people are therefore cognitively attuned to others and various social events in their surroundings while down-regulating their personal goals. In the present work, we examined whether structural properties of the brain predict interdependent self-construal. We performed a structural magnetic resonance imaging on 135 Japanese young adults while assessing (i) independent and interdependent self-construals and (ii) the degree to which individuals form vivid images of external objects (object imagery). The cortical volume of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) (a core cortical region responsible for value-based decisionmaking and, thus, inherently involved in personal goals and desires) inversely predicted interdependent self-construal. Further analysis found that the highest level of interdependent self-construal is achieved when those who are relatively low in the OFC volume are simultaneously high in object imagery, consistent with previous evidence that interdependence, as realized via obligation and duty, requires both the reduced self-interest and vigilant cognitive attunement to environmental context.


KEYWORDS: interdependence, orbitofrontal cortex, self-construal, voxel-based morphometry

Paper by Dr. Uchida et. al. Published in Frontiers in Psychology

A research paper by Dr. 1708uchica_tominaga.pngYukiko Uchida and the collaborating researchers, Hitoshi Tominaga, Yuri Miyamoto and Teruo Yamasaki were published in Frontiers in Psychology.
Previous studies have suggested that individuals in Japan are more likely to show holistic attention -a pattern of attention that incorporates contextual information into focal stimuli-than individuals from North American cultures. In this study, participants performed a musical duet either with another participant or individually with a computer. The results suggested that feeling negative affect while performing with another person (but not a computer) was positively correlated with having a holistic pattern of attention.


Read more:

Tominaga, H., Uchida, Y., Miyamoto, Y., & Yamasaki, T. (2017).
Negative affect during a collective (but not an Individual) task is associated with holistic attention in East Asian cultural context.
Frontiers in Psychology, 8:1283. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01283
http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01283/full

Paper Co-Authored by Prof. Yoshikawa Published in the Journal of Cognitive Psychology

A research paper by Lecturer Masato Nunoi and Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa was published in the Journal of Cognitive Psychology, Vol. 28, Issue 6.
This study investigated if the depth of stimulus processing influenced preferences for novel objects, and how long the influence of processing levels persisted. Results showed that stimuli that were processed more deeply were preferred over those that were processed more shallowly. It also suggested preferences persisted longer for information that was processed at a deeper level.


1612yoshikawa_journal.pngMasato Nunoi & Sakiko Yoshikawa (2016). Deep processing makes stimuli more prefereable over long duration. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 28, 756-763
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20445911.2016.1189917 ※認証有り


●ABSTRACT


The purpose of the current study was twofold. First, we investigated whether the type of stimulus processing (e.g. levels of processing) influenced preferences for novel objects. Second, we examined whether the influence of levels of processing on preferences was long lasting (e.g. longer than a day/week). Results showed that levels of processing affected preferences whereby more deeply processed stimuli were preferred over those that were shallowly processed. This effect was more robust for stimuli that were presented multiple times. Additionally, this levels of processing effect lasted for up to 6 weeks, suggesting stability in preferences for information that was more deeply processed. We discuss these results in terms of theories predicting the role of stimulus properties and exposure on the development of preferences.


KEYWORDS: Preference, levels of processing, delay

Dr. Kumagai Publishes Book Entitled Bhutan: Kingdom Aiming for the Happiness of its People

Dr. Seiji Kumagai's book, Bhutan: The Kingdom Aiming for the Happiness of its People, was published by Sogensha in July 2017.
1707kumagai_book.jpg

Ever since the Bhutanese King and Queen's visit in 2011, Japan has shown an increasing interest in Bhutan. In 2017, the Japanese Princess Mako of Akishino made news when she visited Bhutan.

Bhutan is well known as the country whose public policies aim not just for material prosperity, but also for the happiness of its people.
It's Gross National Happiness(GNH) policies have drawn attention from the UN. In Japan, those policies have had significant effects, inspiring nearly one hundred local governments to form "The Happiness League" which is centered in Tokyo's Arakawa Ward.
However, are the Bhutanese really happy? Do conflicts arise despite the country's Buddhist policies? How are they balancing such policies with the modernization of the country? Dr. Kumagai's book introduces various largely undiscussed realities of Bhutan that can be instructive for the future Japanese policies, such as the relationship between the economy and happiness, the leadership's way of implementing policies.

Paper by Dr. Ueda Published in "Psychiatric Therapeutics"

A research paper by Dr. Yoshiyuki Ueda and Researcher Masahiro Fujino was published in Vol. 32, No. 5 of the journal "Psychiatric Therapeutics". This edition of the journal focuses on "Mindfulness-Introduction and Progress in Psychiatric Treatment". The paper introduces the differences in the neural bases of two types of mindful mediation: intensive meditation and insight meditation. It also addresses the research outcomes and outlook for the future.
Fujino, M. & Ueda, Y. (2017). Reduction in Mind-Wandering and its influence on the Neural Bases of Intense Meditation and Insight Meditation. Psychiatric Therapeutics, 32(5), 645-650.


1706ueda_fujino.png

Abstract
One's sense of well-being declines when mind-wandering increases. Intensive meditation and insight meditation, two types of meditation that comprise mindful meditation differ in how they decrease mind wandering and Default Mode Network(DMN) activities. This article explains the concept of mindfulness and mind-wandering. It then uses Buddhist Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience to explain how intensive meditation and insight meditation reduce DMN activity and differences in the neural bases of these two meditations.
With intensive meditation, DMN activity increases by setting one's focus on a stimulus.
Insight meditation reduces the neural activity related to reaction and judgment in areas of the DMN related to memory in particular those related to the elaboration of memories with affect.
It is essential that the neural bases of insight meditation be investigated to better understand the relationship between mindfulness and sense of well-being.

Dr. Abe's Research Introduced in the English and Japanese Issue of "National Geographic"

Dr. Nobuhito Abe received both English and Japanese coverage in the June 2017 issue of the "National Geographic" in the article, "Why We Lie".
From common white lies to deception in educational background and identity to dishonesty in the world of politics and business, lying is a human trait.  This phenomenon has attracted many researchers across the world and throughout the ages. This edition addresses the history of human dishonesty, the reason why humans lie and "the science behind our complicated relationship with the truth" (National Geographic, June 2017)
The issue referenced Assoc. Prof. Abe's fMRI research on honesty and dishonesty that has shown that there is a close relationship between lying and reward processing in the brain.


1706abe_nationalgeo.pngWhy We Lie


 Psychologists Nobuhito Abe at Kyoto University and Joshua Greene at Harvard University scanned the brains of subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and found that those who acted dishonestly showed greater activation in the nucleus accumbens--a structure in the basal forebrain that plays a key role in reward processing. "The more excited your reward system gets at the possibility of getting money--even in a perfectly honest context--the more likely you are to cheat," ...


(Excerpt from the Article)


National Geographic
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/06/

Paper by Dr. Abe and Dr. Yanagisawa is published in "Social Neuroscience"

A paper by researchers, Ryuhei Ueda, Assistant Professor Kuniaki Yanagisawa, Associate Professor Nobuhito Abe and their colleagues, entitled, "The Neural Basis of Individual Differences in Mate Poaching" was published in the "Social Neuroscience Vol.12".
The study tested the hypothesis that individual differences in orbitofrontal cortex activity (a region implicated in value-based decision-making) are associated with partner preference that could lead to mate poaching. The study was conducted using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at Kokoro Research Center.


1706abe_social.pngUeda R, Ashida H, Yanagisawa K, Abe N (2017). The neural basis of individual differences in mate poaching. Social Neuroscience, 12 (4): 391-399
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17470919.2016.1182065 ※認証有り


●ABSTRACT


This study tested the hypothesis that individual differences in the activity of the orbitofrontal cortex, a region implicated in value-based decision-making, are associated with the preference for a person with a partner, which could lead to mate poaching. During functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), male participants were presented with facial photographs of (a) attractive females with a partner, (b) attractive females without a partner, (c) unattractive females with a partner, and (d) unattractive females without a partner. The participants were asked to rate the degree to which they desired a romantic relationship with each female using an 8-point scale. The participants rated attractive females higher than unattractive females, and this effect was associated with ventral striatum activation. The participants also indicated lower ratings for females with a partner than for females without a partner, and this effect was associated with parietal cortex activation. As predicted, the participants characterized by higher orbitofrontal activity demonstrated a greater willingness to engage in a romantic relationship with females who have a partner compared with females who do not have a partner. These results are the first to provide a possible neural explanation for why certain individuals are willing to engage in mate poaching.


KEYWORDS: fMRI, individual differences, love, orbitofrontal cortex, reward

 

Dr. Ueda's Co-Authored Research Paper Appeared in "Cognitive Science"

A paper by Dr. Yoshiyuki Ueda, Professor Jun Saiki, Professor Shinobu Kitayama, Professor Ronald A. Rensink, and their colleagues, entitled, "Cultural Differences in Visual Search for Geometric Figures" was published in the American academic journal "Cognitive Science" on March 25th, 2017. 


Article information:
Yoshiyuki Ueda, Lei Chen, Jonathon Kopecky, Emily S. Cramer, Ronald A. Rensink, David E. Meyer, Shinobu Kitayama, Jun Saiki. (2017). Cultural Differences in Visual Search for Geometric Figures. Cognitive Science.
DOI= https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.12490  ※with authentication


The international research team investigated how cultural background influences a person's ability to perceive visual differences between similar images.


The research paper also received news coverage on "EurekAlert!", an online, global news service operated by AAAS on May 23, 2017.
1706ueda_eurek.png


See the findings and more details in the link below:
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-05/ku-yds052317.php

Prof. Yoshikawa's new papers published in "Journal of Cognitive Psychology"

 Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa's new papers published in "Journal of Cognitive Psychology" vol.28.


1612yoshikawa_journal.pngMasato Nunoi & Sakiko Yoshikawa (2016). Deep processing makes stimuli more prefereable over long duration. Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 28, 756-763
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/20445911.2016.1189917


●ABSTRACT


The purpose of the current study was twofold. First, we investigated whether the type of stimulus processing (e.g. levels of processing) influenced preferences for novel objects. Second, we examined whether the influence of levels of processing on preferences was long lasting (e.g. longer than a day/week). Results showed that levels of processing affected preferences whereby more deeply processed stimuli were preferred over those that were shallowly processed. This effect was more robust for stimuli that were presented multiple times. Additionally, this levels of processing effect lasted for up to 6 weeks, suggesting stability in preferences for information that was more deeply processed. We discuss these results in terms of theories predicting the role of stimulus properties and exposure on the development of preferences.


KEYWORDS: Preference, levels of processing, delay

Assistant Prof. Ueda's new paper published in "Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics"

Assistant Prof. Ueda's new paper published in "Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics" in Nov. 2016.



1608ueda.pngYoko Higuchi, Yoshiyuki Ueda, Hirokazu Ogawa, Jun Saiki. (2016). Task-relevant information is prioritized in spatiotemporal contextual cueing. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics.


○Abstract
Implicit learning of visual contexts facilitates search performance-a phenomenon known as contextual cueing; however, little is known about contextual cueing under situations in which multidimensional regularities exist simultaneously. In everyday vision, different information, such as object identity and location, appears simultaneously and interacts with each other. We tested the hypothesis that, in contextual cueing, when multiple regularities are present, the regularities that are most relevant to our behavioral goals would be prioritized. Previous studies of contextual cueing have commonly used the visual search paradigm. However, this paradigm is not suitable for directing participants' attention to a particular regularity. Therefore, we developed a new paradigm, the "spatiotemporal contextual cueing paradigm," and manipulated task-relevant and task-irrelevant regularities. In four experiments, we demonstrated that task-relevant regularities were more responsible for search facilitation than task-irrelevant regularities. This finding suggests our visual behavior is focused on regularities that are relevant to our current goal.


DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3758/s13414-016-1198-0

Abe and Nakai's new paper published in "Neuroimage"

Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe and Research fellow Ryusuke Nakai's new paper published in "Neuroimage" Vol.133 June 2016.


1607abe_nakai.pngKajimura S, Kochiyama T, Nakai R, Abe N, Nomura M (2016)
Causal relationship between effective connectivity within the default mode network and mind-wandering regulation and facilitation
Neuroimage 133: 21-30
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811916002056


○Abstract
Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can modulate mind wandering, which is a shift in the contents of thought away from an ongoing task and/or from events in the external environment to self-generated thoughts and feelings. Although modulation of the mind-wandering propensity is thought to be associated with neural alterations of the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) and regions in the default mode network (DMN), the precise neural mechanisms remain unknown. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated the causal relationships among tDCS (one electrode placed over the right IPL, which is a core region of the DMN, and another placed over the left LPFC), stimulation-induced directed connection alterations within the DMN, and modulation of the mind-wandering propensity. At the behavioral level, anodal tDCS on the right IPL (with cathodal tDCS on the left LPFC) reduced mind wandering compared to the reversed stimulation. At the neural level, the anodal tDCS on the right IPL decreased the afferent connections of the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) from the right IPL and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Furthermore, mediation analysis revealed that the changes in the connections from the right IPL and mPFC correlated with the facilitation and inhibition of mind wandering, respectively. These effects are the result of the heterogeneous function of effective connectivity: the connection from the right IPL to the PCC inhibits mind wandering, whereas the connection from the mPFC to the PCC facilitates mind wandering. The present study is the first to demonstrate the neural mechanisms underlying tDCS modulation of mind-wandering propensity.

Associate Prof. Abe's new paper published in "Neuroscience"

 Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe's new papers published in "Neuroscience" Vol.328.


Ito A, Fujii T, Abe N, Kawasaki I, Hayashi A, Ueno A, Yoshida K, Sakai S, Mugikura S, Takahashi S, Mori E (2016)
Gender differences in ventromedial prefrontal cortex activity associated with valuation of faces
Neuroscience 328: 194-200

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306452216301324 ※認証有り


○Abstract

Psychological studies have indicated that males exhibit stronger preferences for physical attributes in the opposite gender, such as facial attractiveness, than females. However, whether gender differences in mate preference originate from differential brain activity remains unclear. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated the patterns of brain activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), a region critical for the valuation of faces, in response to elderly male, elderly female, young male, and young female faces. During fMRI, male and female subjects were presented with a face and asked to rate its pleasantness. Following fMRI, the subjects were presented with pairs of faces and asked to select the face that they preferred. We analyzed the vmPFC activity during the pleasantness-rating task according to the gender of the face stimulus (male and female) and the age of the face stimulus (elderly and young). Consistent with the results of previous studies, the vmPFC activity parametrically coded the subjective value of faces. Importantly, the vmPFC activity was sensitive to physical attributes, such as the youthfulness and gender of the faces, only in the male subjects. These findings provide a possible neural explanation for gender differences in mate preference.

Yanagisawa & Abe's new paper published in "Journal of Experimental Psychology: General"

 Assistant Professor Kuniaki Yanagisawa and Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe's new paper published in "Journal of Experimental Psychology: General".


Yanagisawa K, Abe N, Kashima ES, Nomura M (2016)
Self-esteem modulates amygdala-VLPFC connectivity in response to mortality threats
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 145 (3): 273-283
http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/xge/145/3/273/


○Abstract
Reminders of death often elicit defensive responses in individuals, especially among those with low self-esteem. Although empirical evidence indicates that self-esteem serves as a buffer against mortality threats, the precise neural mechanism underlying this effect remains unknown. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to test the hypothesis that self-esteem modulates neural responses to death-related stimuli, especially functional connectivity within the limbic-frontal circuitry, thereby affecting subsequent defensive reactions. As predicted, individuals with high self-esteem subjected to a mortality threat exhibited increased amygdala-ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) connectivity during the processing of death-related stimuli compared with individuals who have low self-esteem. Further analysis revealed that stronger functional connectivity between the amygdala and the VLPFC predicted a subsequent decline in responding defensively to those who threaten one's beliefs. These results suggest that the amygdala-VLPFC interaction, which is modulated by self-esteem, can reduce the defensiveness caused by death-related stimuli, thereby providing a neural explanation for why individuals with high self-esteem exhibit less defensive reactions to mortality threats. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Nakai & Abe's new paper published in "Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging"

 Research fellow Ryusuke Nakai and Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe's new paper published in "Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging".


Kajimura S, Kochiyama T, Nakai R, Abe N, Nomura M (2015)
Fear of negative evaluation is associated with altered brain function in nonclinical subjects
Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 234 (3): 362-368
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925492715301177


○Abstract
Social anxiety disorder (SAD), which involves excessive anxiety and fear of negative evaluation, is accompanied by abnormalities in brain function. While social anxiety appears to be represented on a spectrum ranging from nonclinical behavior to clinical manifestation, neural alteration in nonclinical populations remains unclear. This study examined the relationship between psychological measures of social anxiety, mainly using the Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (FNES), and brain function (functional connectivity, degree centrality, and regional betweenness centrality). Results showed that FNES scores and functional connectivity of the parahippocampal gyrus and orbitofrontal cortex and the betweenness centrality of the right parietal cortex were negatively correlated. These regions are altered in SAD patients, and each is associated with social cognition and emotional processing. The results supported the perspective that social anxiety occurs on a spectrum and indicated that the FNES is a useful means of detecting neural alterations that may relate to the social anxiety spectrum. In addition, the findings indicated that graph analysis was useful in investigating the neural underpinnings of SAD in addition to other psychiatric symptoms.

Associate Prof. Abe's new paper published in "Experimental Brain Research"

 Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe's new papers published in "Experimental Brain Research".


Mugikura S, Abe N, Ito A, Kawasaki I, Ueno A, Takahashi S, Fujii T (2016)
Medial temporal lobe activity associated with the successful retrieval of destination memory
Experimental Brain Research 234: 95-104
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00221-015-4415-5


○Abstract
Destination memory is the process of remembering to whom we tell particular things. Although recent behavioral studies have clarified the cognitive nature of destination memory, the neural mechanisms underlying destination memory retrieval remain unclear. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to determine whether the medial temporal lobe (MTL), a structure that has been implicated in recollection-based memory, is activated during the successful retrieval of destination information. During a study phase before fMRI scanning, the subjects told a series of facts to either a woman or a man. During fMRI scanning, the subjects were asked to judge whether each fact presented was old or new, and if they judged it as old, to indicate, including a confidence rating (high or low), whether the subjects had told that fact to either a man or a woman. We found that successful destination retrieval, when compared to failed destination retrieval, was associated with increased activity in the parahippocampal gyrus. We also found that the confidence level (high vs. low) for destination memory retrieval was associated with increased activity in another (posterior) region of the parahippocampal gyrus. The present study suggests that the successful retrieval of destination information depends highly on MTL-mediated recollection processes.

Associate Prof. Uchida's new papers published in "Japanese Psychological Research"

 Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's new papers published in "Japanese Psychological Research".


Boiger, M., Uchida, Y., Norasakkunkit, V., & Mesquita, B. (2016). Protecting autonomy, protecting relatedness: Appraisal patterns of daily anger and shame in the United States and Japan.
Japanese Psychological Research, 58, 28-41.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpr.12096/abstract


○Abstract
The present study tested the idea that U.S. and Japanese participants appraise anger and shame situations in line with the American concern for autonomy and the Japanese concern for relatedness, respectively. Sixty-five U.S. and 72 Japanese students participated in a 7-day diary study of anger and shame. Each day, participants reported their most important anger and shame incident and indicated whether they themselves or others were to be blamed (anger appraisals), and whether they focused on themselves or the opinion of others (shame appraisals). They also indicated whether they had experienced anger toward someone close or distant and whether their shame was publicly seen or privately felt. In line with the Japanese concern for protecting relatedness, Japanese compared to U.S. participants blamed themselves relatively more than others during anger situations with close others and focused on others rather than themselves during shame episodes that were publicly seen. Underlining the U.S. concern for protecting autonomy, Americans blamed others more than themselves during anger situations and focused more on themselves than others during shame situations.


Uchida, Y., & Oishi, S. (2016). The happiness of individuals and the collective. Japanese Psychological Research, 58, 125-141.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpr.12103/abstract ※認証有り


○Abstract
Happiness and well-being are often defined as internal feelings or states of satisfaction. As such, research on well-being has focused on the long-term happiness and life satisfaction of individuals. But recently, psychological researchers have also begun to examine the effects that group-level functions (e.g., nation-level economic status) have on happiness. The present article: (a) overviews measures of individual and collective happiness and the validity of these measurements; (b) explicates the role of culture in understanding the long-term happiness and life satisfaction of individuals; and (c) explores the possibility and importance of studying the happiness of collectives (e.g., work groups, organizations, cities, nations). We then discuss future directions for happiness research, proposing several methodological and theoretical areas for progress in: (a) cross-temporal analyses to examine historical changes; and (b) multilevel analyses to identify the units of culture that affect happiness. Additionally, this paper argues that policy-making and interdisciplinary approaches can make important contributions to happiness studies.

New paper by Associate Prof. Uchida and Research Fellow, Ogihara published

 The paper "Are common names becoming less common? The rise in uniqueness and individualism in Japan" ( Frontiers in Psychology ) by Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida and Research Fellow, Yuji Ogihara has published in Oct. 2015.


Yuji Ogihara, Hiroyo Fujita, Hitoshi Tominaga, Sho Ishigaki, Takuya Kashimoto, Ayano Takahashi, Kyoko Toyohara and Yukiko Uchida
"Are common names becoming less common? The rise in uniqueness and individualism in Japan"
Frontiers in Psychology, Volume 6 Article 1490 Published: 21 October 2015


http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01490/full
(Original Research Article / Open Access)

New paper by Prof. Funahashi and Research Fellow, Mochizuki published

 The paper "Prefrontal spatial working memory network predicts animal's decision-making in a free choice saccade task" ( Journal of Neurophysiology ) by Prof. Shintaro Funahashi and Research Fellow, Kei Mochizuki has published in Oct. 2015.


Kei Mochizuki, Shintaro Funahashi
"Prefrontal spatial working memory network predicts animal's decision-making in a free choice saccade task"
Journal of Neurophysiology, Published 21 October 2015


http://kokoro.kyoto-u.ac.jp/jp/news2/2015/11/1511funahashi-journal-of-neurophysiology.php
(Japanese article)

New paper by Abe, Otsuka, Nakai and Yoshikawa published

 The paper "Brain activation during visual working memory correlates with behavioral mobility performance in older adults" ( Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience ) by Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe, Research Fellow Yuki Otsuka, Research Fellow Ryusuke Nakai, Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa has published in Sep, 2015.


Kawagoe T, Suzuki M, Nishiguchi S, Abe N, Otsuka Y, Nakai R, Yamada M, Yoshikawa S, Sekiyama K (2015)
Brain activation during visual working memory correlates with behavioral mobility performance in older adults
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience 7: 186
http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnagi.2015.00186/full

New paper by Kotaro Umemura (research fellow) published

 The paper "Knowing the Unknown and Leaving Neurosis: Psychotherapy Using Dream Analysis for a Woman Who Wanted to Accept What She Could not Accept" ( ARCHIVES OF SANDPLAY THERAPY ) by Kotaro Umemura, Research Fellow has published in 2015.


Umemura, K. (2015). Knowing the Unknown and Leaving Neurosis: Psychotherapy Using Dream Analysis for a Woman Who Wanted to Accept What She Could not Accept. ARCHIVES OF SANDPLAY THERAPY, 28(1), 69-78.
(邦題:知らないことを知ることと神経症からの出立――認めたくない自分を認めようと来談した女性との夢分析を用いた心理療法)


○Abstract:
The pathology of neurosis is regarded as a problem of "knowing." Therefore, it is important for neurotic clients to know truly the unknown they are supposed to know in order to leave their stalled world. From this viewpoint, this paper examines the psychotherapy using dream analysis for a woman who wanted to accept what she could not accept. Not knowing what she should know enabled her to remain an innocent child in the psychological sense, but also prevented her from maturing and becoming independent. However, paradoxically, her neurotic structure was collapsed by the very neurotic act itself, and she was forced to contact the unknown and to undergo a transformation. With this change, she gradually let go her obsession to remaining innocent and spotless, and accepted the femininity that she had rejected. Finally, she terminated the therapy by resigning herself to a life with defects.

New paper by Abe, Otsuka, Nakai and Yoshikawa published

 The paper "A 12-week physical and cognitive exercise program can improve cognitive function and neural efficiency in community-dwelling older adults: a randomized controlled trial" ( Journal of the American Geriatrics Society ) by Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa, Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe, Research Fellow Yuki Otsuka and Research Fellow Ryusuke Nakai has published in Jul, 2015.


Nishiguchi S, Yamada M, Tanigawa T, Sekiyama K, Kawagoe T, Suzuki M, Yoshikawa S, Abe N, Otsuka Y, Nakai R, Aoyama T, Tsuboyama T (2015). A 12-week physical and cognitive exercise program can improve cognitive function and neural efficiency in community-dwelling older adults: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 63 (7): 1355-1363


○Abstract
Objectives To investigate whether a 12-week physical and cognitive exercise program can improve cognitive function and brain activation efficiency in community-dwelling older adults.


Design Randomized controlled trial.
Setting Kyoto, Japan.
Participants Community-dwelling older adults (N = 48) were randomized into an exercise group (n = 24) and a control group (n = 24).


Intervention Exercise group participants received a weekly dual task-based multimodal exercise class in combination with pedometer-based daily walking exercise during the 12-week intervention phase. Control group participants did not receive any intervention and were instructed to spend their time as usual during the intervention phase.
Measurements The outcome measures were global cognitive function, memory function, executive function, and brain activation (measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging) associated with visual short-term memory.
Results Exercise group participants had significantly greater postintervention improvement in memory and executive functions than the control group (P < .05). In addition, after the intervention, less activation was found in several brain regions associated with visual short-term memory, including the prefrontal cortex, in the exercise group (P < .001, uncorrected).
Conclusion A 12-week physical and cognitive exercise program can improve the efficiency of brain activation during cognitive tasks in older adults, which is associated with improvements in memory and executive function.

2 books by Prof. Becker published

Prof. Carl Becker's new books (written in Japanese) published in spring 2015.


1505becker_aisurumono.png1505becker_meisou.png


More information (Japanese article)

Associate Prof. Uchida's new paper published in "PLoS ONE"

Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's paper "How did the media report on the Great East Japan Earthquake? Objectivity and emotionality seeking in Japanese media coverage." has been published in "PLoS ONE" on 18, May 2015.


1506plos one.png
Uchida, Y., Kanagawa, C., Takenishi, A., Harada, A., Okawa, K., & Yabuno, H. (2015).
How did the media report on the Great East Japan Earthquake? Objectivity and emotionality seeking in Japanese media coverage. PLoS ONE, e0125966.
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0125966

"Psychologia, Vol. 57, No.4 (2014)" Published

"Psychologia, Vol. 57, No.4 (2014)" has been published in December, 2014.


1506psychologia.png Psychology basically focuses on psychological and behavioral mechanisms at an individual level, but it also needs to explore macro level and collective phenomena. Especially in social psychology and cultural psychology, researchers have investigated group process, organizational behavior, and the mechanisms of cultural/instuitutional effects on psychological functions. Among them, studies on regions and local communities have become more important than before. For example, after the severe damage from the Great East Japan earthquake, people in Japan found out the power of social networks in regional communities. However, we have not fully elucidated what constitutes the important component of "region," which is a rather obscure concept. Sometimes we can say it is a platform of community. We can also define it as geographical neighborhood that shares certain ecological contexts. To provide the current insight of regional studies more clearly, this special issue of Psychologia includes a collection of papers that conduct regional studies from a multidisciplinary approach, including psychology, anthropology, and action research.

("EDITORIAL: REGIONAL COMMUNITIES" by Yukiko UCHIDA and Kosuke TAKEMURA)


CONTENTS: Vol. 57, No.4 (2014) | Psychologia Website

Associate Prof. Uchida's new paper published in German academic book "Forschung fordern"

Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida and researcher Shintaro Fukushima's paper "Interdependently Achieved Happiness in East Asian Cultural Context. A Cultural Psychological Point of View" has been published in German academic book "Forschung fördern: Am Beispiel von Lebensqualität im Kulturkontext".


Uchida, Y., Ogihara, Y., & Fukushima, S. (in press). Interdependently Achieved Happiness in East Asian Cultural Context. A Cultural Psychological Point of View.
In G. Trommsdorff, & W. R. Assmann (Hrsg.), Forschung fördern. Am Beispiel von Lebensqualität im Kulturkontext . UVK Verlag., Germany.
http://www.uvk.de/buecher/alle/db/titel/details/forschung-foerdern-1/

○Abstract
Recent cultural psychological studies have suggested that there is considerable variation in how people feel and conceptualize happiness and wellbeing. Particularly in Japan, compared with European American cultural contexts where wellbeing is achieved through personal attainment or self-esteem, wellbeing is construed as balance and harmony and it is achieved collectively and interdependently. We will further discuss the cultural construal of wellbeing during globalization.

The book "Bhutanese Buddhism and Its Culture" by Associate Prof. Kumagai published

1412kumagai_book.jpgWe are pleased to inform you that Dr. Seiji KUMAGAI (Associate Professor, Uehiro Kokoro Studies, Kokoro Research Center) published the book "Bhutanese Buddhism and Its Culture" from Vajra Publications (Kathmandu).


Please check Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/9937623235/


Vajra Book Shop:
http://www.vajrabookshop.com/more_info.php?category_cd=39&product_cd=1838


○Bibliography
[Title] Bhutanese Buddhism and Its Culture
[Author] Seiji Kumagai
[Publisher] Vajra Books (December 1, 2014)
[Page number] 250 pages
[Language] English
[ISBN-10] 9937623235
[ISBN-13] 978-9937623230


○About the Book
With much of its old socio-cultural identity still intact, Bhutan attracts interest from many oriental scholars. Bhutan is also seeing a phenomenal growth in interest from many multi-disciplinary researchers who are adapting different political and economic frameworks in trying to understand the unique approach to development in this country that is best expressed in its national development philosophy of Gross National Happiness. This concept was first propounded by the Fourth King, His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck who believed spiritual development and environmental conservation must go hand in hand with material advancement in the country's journey to wellbeing and prosperity. Bhutanese Buddhism and Its Culture is a comprehensive introduction to the country's diverse Buddhist traditions, as well as its unique statecraft, monasticism and people's general way of life, all of which form the culture of the country. The publication of this book is a part of the initiative of the Bhutanese Buddhism Research Project (BBRP) based in Kyoto University to promote the academic study of Bhutan and enhance cooperation between scholars of different specializations and regions. Leading researchers on Bhutan have come together to work on this book which carries scholarly text and field based reports and papers on two major Buddhist schools in Bhutan, its pre-Buddhist religion Bon, and the popular culture of the people. It is hoped that the timely publication of this book will promote a greater understanding of the spirituality of the Bhutanese people today by analyzing historical precedents, and their concern towards the wellbeing and happiness of all beings.


○Table of Contents
-Foreword by Damcho DORJI (Minister, Ministery of Home & Cultural Affairs)
-Introduction by Seiji KUMAGAI

[Chapter 1. Nyingma School]
- Karma URA "Longchen's Forests of Poetry and Rivers of Composition in Bhutan: "The illuminating map - titled as forest park of flower garden - of Bumthang, the divine hidden land" composed in 1355 by Longchen Ramjam (1308-1363)"
- Akinori YASUDA "A Study of Rgyud bu chung Discovered by Pema Lingpa"

[Chapter 2. Drukpa Kagyu School]
- Gembo DORJI "The Lho-Druk Tradition of Bhutan: The Arrival and Spread of Buddhism"
- Karma URA "Monastic System of the Drukpa Kagyu ('Brug pa bka' brgyud) School in Bhutan"
- Thupten Gawa MATSUSHITA "Introduction to the Theory of Mahāmudrā by the Founder of Drukpa Kagyü, Tsangpa Gyaré Yeshe Dorje (1161-1211)"

[Chapter 3. Other Schools]
- Françoise POMMARET "Bon in Bhutan. What is in the name?"
- Seiji KUMAGAI "History and Current Situation of the Sa skya pa School in Bhutan"

[Chapter 4. Buddhist Culture]
- Lungtaen GYATSO "A Note on the Concept of Happiness and Prosperity"
- Akiko UEDA "Understanding the Practice of Dual Residence in the Context of Transhumance: A Case from Western Bhutan"
- Elizabeth MONSON "Alternative Voices: The Unusual Case of Drukpa Kunley ('Brug pa kun legs)"
- Riam KUYAKANON KNAPP "Contemplations on a Bhutanese Buddhist Environmental Narrative"
- Dendup CHOPHEL and Dorji KHANDU "Byis pa'i dpa' bo: The Dance of Youthful Heroes"

New paper by Yuki Otsuka (research fellow) published

The paper " High-performers use the phonological loop less to process mental arithmetic during working memory tasks " ( The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology ) by Yuki Otsuka, Research Fellow has published in Nov, 2014.


Otsuka, Y., and Osaka, N. (in press). High-performers use the phonological loop less to process mental arithmetic during working memory tasks, The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology.
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17470218.2014.966728#abstract


○Abstract
This study investigated the effects of three working memory components--the central executive, phonological loop, and visuospatial sketchpad--on performance differences in complex mental arithmetic between individuals. Using the dual-task method, we examined how performance during two-digit addition was affected by load on the central executive (random tapping condition), phonological loop (articulatory suppression condition), and visuospatial sketchpad (spatial tapping condition) compared to that under no load (control condition) in high- and low-performers of complex mental arithmetic in Experiment 1. Low-performers showed an increase in errors under the random tapping and articulatory suppression conditions, whereas high-performers showed an increase of errors only under the random tapping condition. In Experiment 2, we conducted similar experiments on only the high-performers but used a shorter presentation time of each number. We found the same pattern for performing complex mental arithmetic as seen in Experiment 1. These results indicate that high-performers might reduce their dependence on the phonological loop, because the central executive enables them to choose a strategy in which they use less working memory capacity.

Prof. Yoshikawa's article on "Jido Shinri"

 Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa's commentary article has published in the magazine "Jido Shinri (child psychology)" Dec.2014 issue.


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Read More ( Japanese article )

Associate Prof. Uchida's new paper published in "PLoS ONE"

Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's new paper "Social orientation and diabetes-related distress in Japanese and American patients with type 2 diabetes" has been published in "PLoS ONE".


"Social orientation and diabetes-related distress in Japanese and American patients with type 2 diabetes," Kaori Ikeda, Shimpei Fujimoto, Beth Morling, Shiho Ayano-Takahara, Andrew E Carroll, Shin-ichi Harashima, Yukiko Uchida, and Nobuya Inagaki, PLOS ONE, online October 15, 2014,
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0109323

The book "Spiritual Care" by Prof. Kamata and Prof. Becker published

New book "Spiritual Care" edited by Prof. Toji Kamata (written in Japanese) published by Being-Net-Press on Sep. 2014. Also Prof. Carl Becker is one of the co-authors of this book.


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More information (Japanese article)

Prof. Kawai and Ogiso ( JSPS Research Fellow/PD)'s new paper published in "Analytical Psychology in a Changing World"

Prof. Toshio Kawai and Yuka Ogiso ( JSPS Research Fellow/PD)'s each new paper has been published in "Analytical Psychology in a Changing World".


1408kawai_analytical_psychology.pngDescription:

How can we make sense of ourselves within a world of change?

In Analytical Psychology in a Changing World, an international range of contributors examine some of the common pitfalls, challenges and rewards that we encounter in our efforts to carve out identities of a personal or collective nature, and question the extent to which analytical psychology as a school of thought and therapeutic approach must also adapt to meet our changing needs.


The contributors assess contemporary concerns about our sense of who we are and where we are going, some in light of recent social and natural disasters and changes to our social climates, others by revisiting existential concerns and philosophical responses to our human situation in order to assess their validity for today. ーー


Analytical Psychology in a Changing World will be essential reading for Jungian and post-Jungian scholars and clinicians of depth psychology, as well as sociologists, philosophers and any reader with a critical interest in the important cultural ideas of our time.


http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415721288/


VIEW INSIDE THIS BOOK


2. Big Stories and Small Stories in the Psychological Relief Work after the Earthquake Disaster: Life and Death ーーToshio Kawai


11. The Red Book and Psychological Types: A qualitative change of Jung's typology ーーYuka Ogiso

New paper of Associate Prof. Abe published in "Journal of Neuroscience"

The paper " Response to anticipated reward in the nucleus accumbens predicts behavior in an independent test of honesty " ( Journal of Neuroscience ) by Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe has published in 6th Aug, 2014.


Abe, N., Greene, J.D. (2014) Response to anticipated reward in the nucleus accumbens predicts behavior in an independent test of honesty. Journal of Neuroscience. 34(32), 10564-10572.


Abstract
This study examines the cognitive and neural determinants of honesty and dishonesty. Human subjects undergoing fMRI completed a monetary incentive delay task eliciting responses to anticipated reward in the nucleus accumbens. Subjects next performed an incentivized prediction task, giving them real and repeated opportunities for dishonest gain. Subjects attempted to predict the outcomes of random computerized coin-flips and were financially rewarded for accuracy. In some trials, subjects were rewarded based on self-reported accuracy, allowing them to gain money dishonestly by lying. Dishonest behavior was indexed by improbably high levels of self-reported accuracy. Nucleus accumbens response in the first task, involving only honest rewards, accounted for ∼25% of the variance in dishonest behavior in the prediction task. Individuals showing relatively strong nucleus accumbens responses to anticipated reward also exhibited increased dorsolateral prefrontal activity (bilateral) in response to opportunities for dishonest gain. These results address two hypotheses concerning (dis)honesty. According to the "Will" hypothesis, honesty results from the active deployment of self-control. According to the "Grace" hypothesis, honesty flows more automatically. The present results suggest a reconciliation between these two hypotheses while explaining (dis)honesty in terms of more basic neural mechanisms: relatively weak responses to anticipated rewards make people morally "Graceful," but individuals who respond more strongly may resist temptation by force of Will.


Read overview ( Japanese article )

New paper by Yuki Otsuka (research fellow) published

The paper " Working memory of elderly adults " ( Japanese Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry ) by Yuki Otsuka, Research Fellow has published in May, 2014.


Yuki Otsuka(2014), Working memory of elderly adults. Japanese Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 5, 498-503

Prof. Yoshikawa and Associate Prof. Uchida's new paper published in "PLoS ONE"

Prof. Sakiko Yoshikawa and Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's new paper ( the first author: Kosuke Takemura ) "Roles of Extension Officers to Promote Social Capital in Japanese Agricultural Communities" has been published in "PLoS ONE".


Takemura, K., Uchida, Y., & Yoshikawa S (2014). Roles of extension officers to promote social capital in Japanese agricultural communities. PLoS ONE 9:
e91975. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0091975
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0091975


Read more ( Japanese article )


1405uchida_journal.png

Prof.Kawai's new book "Tono Monogatari" published

Prof. Toshio Kawai 's new book "Tono Monogatari" co-authored with Norio Akasaka, Migiwa Imaishi, Yasuhiro Tanaka, Takashi Okabe, Satoko Kawano, Tsuyoshi Inomata, Keiko Iwamiya and Hiroyuki Miura published in March 2014 by Iwanami.


Read more ( Japanese article )


The book featured in "Yomiuri Online" on Apr. 28. See article ( Japanese )


1404kawai_tohnomonogatari.png

Prof. Kamata's new book published.

Prof. Toji Kamata's new book "The Ultimate Guide To Sacred Sites In Japan" was published by Kadokawa Corporation.


140418kamata.png


Amazon co.jp

Prof. Kawai, Assistant Prof. Hatanaka and Researcher Hasegawa's new paper published in "Archives of sandplay therapy"

Prof. Toshio Kawai, Assistant Prof. Chihiro Hatanaka and Researcher Chihiro Hasegawa's new paper has been published in "Archives of sandplay therapy"26(3), 3-14. The paper is written about 9 cases of play therapy at the playroom of the Kokoro Research Center. It reported what changes are to be seen before and after the therapy for six months considered.


Read more ( Japanese article )


▽Website of The Japan Association of Sandplay Therapy
http://www.sandplay.jp/index_e.html

Prof. Kawai's new paper published in "Archives of sandplay therapy"

Prof. Toshio Kawai's new paper has been published in "Archives of sandplay therapy" (special edition). The paper is written about mind care activities after the earthquake in Tohoku.


▽Website of The Japan Association of Sandplay Therapy
http://www.sandplay.jp/index_e.html

New paper of Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe and Ayahito Ito (JSPS Research Fellow/PD) published in "Brain Research"

140326abe.pngThe paper "Dissociable neural systems for moral judgment of anti- and pro-social lying" authored by Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe and Ayahito Ito (JSPS Research Fellow/PD) has been published in "Brain Research" in Mar 2014.


Hayashi A, Abe N, Fujii T, Ito A, Ueno A, Koseki Y, Mugikura S, Takahashi S, Mori E (2014)
Dissociable neural systems for moral judgment of anti- and pro-social lying
Brain Research 1556: 46-56


○Abstract
Pro-social lying, which serves to benefit listeners, is considered more socially and morally acceptable than anti-social lying, which serves to harm listeners. However, it is still unclear whether the neural mechanisms underlying the moral judgment of pro-social lying differ from those underlying the moral judgment of anti-social lying. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the neural activities associated with moral judgment in anti- and pro-social lying. During fMRI scanning, subjects were provided with scenarios describing a protagonist׳s anti- and pro-social lying and were then asked to judge whether the protagonist׳s act was morally appropriate. The behavioral data showed that anti-social lying was mostly judged to be morally inappropriate and that pro-social lying was mainly judged to be morally appropriate. The functional imaging data revealed dissociable neural systems for moral judgment in anti- and pro-social lying. The anti-social lying, which was judged to be morally inappropriate, was associated with increased activity in the right ventromedial prefrontal cortex, right middle frontal gyrus, right precuneus/posterior cingulate gyrus, left posterior cingulate gyrus, and bilateral temporoparietal junction when compared with the control condition. The pro-social lying, which was judged to be morally appropriate, was associated with increased activity in the right middle temporal gyrus, right supramarginal gyrus, and the left middle cingulate gyrus when compared with the control condition. No overlapping activity was observed during the moral judgment of anti- and pro-social lying. Our data suggest that cognitive and neural processes for the moral judgment of lying are modulated by whether the lie serves to harm or benefit listeners.


See More Information ( "Science Direct" website )

Associate Prof. Uchida's paper overview published in Kyoto University website

140325uchida_kyodaihp.pngAssociate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's paper (co-authored with Yuji Ogihara) overview with the author comments and related information ( written in Japanese ) was published in official website of Kyoto University.


Read overview ( Japanese article )

Associate Prof. Uchida's new paper published in "Frontiers in Psychology"

1403005uchida.pngAssociate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's new paper "Does individualism bring happiness? Negative effects of individualism on interpersonal relationships and happiness" co-authored with Yuji Ogihara has been published in "Frontiers in Psychology" in Mar 2014.


Ogihara, Y., & Uchida, Y. (2014). Does individualism bring happiness? Negative effects of individualism on interpersonal relationships and happiness. Frontiers in Psychology, 5: 135.


○Abstract
We examined the negative effects of individualism in an East Asian culture. Although individualistic systems decrease interpersonal relationships through competition, individualistic values have prevailed in European American cultures. One reason is because individuals could overcome negativity by actively constructing interpersonal relationships. In contrast, people in East Asian cultures do not have such strategies to overcome the negative impact of individualistic systems, leading to decreased well-being. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the relationship between individualistic values, number of close friends, and subjective well-being (SWB). Study 1 indicated that individualistic values were negatively related with the number of close friends and SWB for Japanese college students but not for American college students. Moreover, Study 2 showed that even in an individualistic workplace in Japan, individualistic values were negatively related with the number of close friends and SWB. We discuss how cultural change toward increasing individualism might affect interpersonal relationships and well-being.


Read More ( "Frontier" website )

Prof. Funahashi's paper overview published in Kyoto University website

140303funahashi_kyodaihp.pngProf. Shintaro Funahashi's paper overview with the author comments and related information ( written in Japanese ) was published in official website of Kyoto University.


Read overview ( Japanese article )

Prof. Funahashi's review paper published in "First Author's"

140318funahashi.pngProf. Shintaro Funahashi's review of his new paper "Neural mechanisms of dual-task interference and cognitive capacity limitation in the prefrontal cortex" co-authored with Ken Watanabe was published in Japanese website "First Author's" on 18th Mar, 2014.


Read review ( Japanese article )

Prof. Funahashi's paper published in "Nature Neuroscience"

140302Funahashi_nature.pngThe paper "Neural mechanisms of dual-task interference and cognitive capacity limitation in the prefrontal cortex" by Prof. Shintaro Funahashi and Kei Watanabe was published in "Nature Neuroscience" online in Mar 2014.


Kei Watanabe and Shintaro Funahashi (2014), Neural mechanisms of dual-task interference and cognitive capacity limitation in the prefrontal cortex, Nature Neuroscience, doi:10.1038/nn.3667


Read more ( Japanese article )

Prof. Kamata featured in "Mainichi Shinbun".

140313kamata_mainichi.pngProf. Toji Kamatawas featured in Japanese newspaper, "Mainichi Shinbun" on 13th Mar, 2014. He commented on the article which was written about deterioration in manners of the people in the places called "Power Spot".


For more introduction ( in Japanese )

Prof. Kawai featured in "Kyoto Shinbun"

140301kawai_kyoto.pngProf. Toshio Kawai was featured in Japanese newspaper, "Kyoto Shinbun" in 1st Mar, 2014. In the long interview "My keyword, Kyoto", Kawai named Kyoto "the city of soul" and explained the characteristics of the city of Kyoto from the perspective of psychologist.


Read more ( in Japanese )

Prof. Kawai's article published in "Shincho"

140311kawai_shincho.pngProf. Toshio Kawai's new essay "Dream as an interface in Haruki Murakami" was published in the March 2014 issue of "Monthly Shincho".


Read More ( Japanese Article )

Prof.Kamata's new book "Song and Religion" featured in "Tokushima Shinbun"

140218kamata_tokushima.pngProf. Toji Kamata's new book "Song and Religion" featured in Japanese local newspaper, "Tokushima Shinbun" in 18th Feb, 2014.

Read more ( in Japanese )

Prof. Kamata featured in "Taimatsu Tsushin"

140310kamata_taimatsu.pngProf. Toji Kamata was featured in journal "Taimatsu Tsushin" issued by Zenrinsha on 10th Mar, 2014. In the long interview, Kamata talked about the story of his new book "Song and Religion".


Read more ( in Japanese )

Prof. Kamata's column published in "Tokushima Shinbun"

140301kamata_tokushima.pngProf. Toji Kamata's column was published in local newspaper "Tokushima Shinbun" on 1st Mar, 2014. In the article, Prof. Kamata appreciate Mao Asada who played and attracted attention in figure skating Winter Olympics. He described the similarity of Asada and Miyamoto Musashi, hero in Japanese history.


Read more ( Japanese article )

Associate Prof. Uchida's new papers were published

140207uchida_jounalhappiness.png The paper "Changes in hedonic and eudaimonic well-being after a severe nationwide disaster: The case of the Great East Japan Earthquake" and "Interdependent Happiness: Theoretical Importance and Measurement Validity" by Yukiko Uchida, Associate Prof. has been published by Springer in Aug 2013 and Jan 2014.


Uchida, Y., Takahashi, Y., & Kawahara, K.
Changes in hedonic and eudaimonic well-being after a severe nationwide disaster: The case of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Journal of Happiness Studies, DOI 10.1007/s10902-013-9463-6
Abstract


Hitokoto, H., & Uchida, Y.
Interdependent Happiness: Theoretical Importance and Measurement Validity. Journal of Happiness Studies, DOI 10.1007/s10902-014-9505-8
Abstract

The paper " Psychological Characteristics of the NEW-FFI and the Tree Drawing Test in Patients With Thyroid Disease " by Chihiro Hasegawa, Research Fellow was published

IMG_6542.jpg The paper " Psychological Characteristics of the NEW-FFI and the Tree Drawing Test in Patients With Thyroid Disease " by Chihiro Hasegawa, Research Fellow (Uehiro Kokoro Studies) co-authored with Prof. Toshio Kawai et al in "Psychologia vol.56 No.2, June 2013".


C.Hasegawa, K.Umemura, M.Kaji, N.Nishigaki, T.Kawai, M.Tanaka, Y.Kanayama, H.Kuwabara, A.Fukao, & A.Miyauchi(2013) Psychological Characteristics of the NEW-FFI and the Tree Drawing Test in Patients With Thyroid Disease. Psychologia, 56(2), 138-153


『Psychologia』(Psychologia Society, Kyoto, Japan)Web site

Associate Prof. Uchida's new book "The Exploration of Happiness" published

130911uchida.png Associate Prof. Yukiko Uchida's new book, "The Exploration of Happiness: Present and Future Perspectives (Happiness Studies Book Series)", co-authored with Dr. Vinai Norasakkunkit (Minnesota State University) and Dr. Shinobu Kitayama (University of Michigan) has been published by Springer in Apr. 2013.


Uchida, Y., Norasakkunkit, V., & Kitayama, S. (2013).
Cultural constructions of happiness: Theory and empirical evidence.
In A. Delle Fave (Ed.), The exploration of happiness: Present and future perspectives. Springer.pp.269-280.


This specially selected collection of landmark work from the Journal of Happiness Studies maps the current contours, and the likely future direction, of research in a field with a fast-rising profile. This volume, which inaugurates a series aiming to explore discrete topics in happiness and wellbeing studies, features selected articles published in the Journal of Happiness Studies during its first decade, which culminated in an 'impact factor' in 2011. As the introductory work in the series, it provides readers with a vital overview of the prominent issues, problems and challenges that well-being and happiness research has had to overcome since its appearance on the scientific stage. The journal's very success evinces both the high scientific quality of the research covered, and the steadily growing interest in a subject that draws responses from a vast range of epistemological aiming points, taking in economics, sociology, psychology, philosophy, education and medicine.


(About this book)


"The Exploration of Happiness" : Amazon.com

"The Exploration of Happiness" : Springer

Associate Prof. Abe's two papers were published

 Associate Prof. Nobuhito Abe's two papers were published.


Abe N, Fujii T, Suzuki M, Ueno A, Shigemune Y, Mugikura S, Takahashi S, Mori E (2013)
Encoding- and retrieval-related brain activity underlying false recognition
Neuroscience Research 76 (4): 240-250


Ogura K, Fujii T, Abe N, Hosokai Y, Shinohara M, Fukuda H, Mori E (2013)
Regional cerebral blood flow and abnormal eating behavior in Prader-Willi syndrome
Brain and Development 35 (5): 427-434


 Those papers' abstracts and outlines are available online. Please see the links below.


Science Direct: "Neuroscience Research Volume 76, Issue 4"
Science Direct: "Brain and Development Volume 35 Issue 5"

The paper "Social Workers Can Use Sense of Coherence to Predict Burnout of End-of-Life Care-Givers (Research Report from Japan)" by Prof. Becker was published in British Journal of Social Work

130614becker.png 
Social Workers Can Use Sense of Coherence to Predict Burnout of End-of-Life Care-Givers (Research Report from Japan)
Kazuko Hiyoshi-Taniguchi, Carl B. Becker, and Ayae Kinoshita
British Journal of Social Work (2013) 1-15 doi:10.1093/bjsw/bct086, May 30, 2013


Abstract:
Social workers are deeply involved in supporting elder persons' home care-givers, who frequently border on burnout or nervous breakdown. Since social workers cannot fully assist every family caring for frail elders at home, it is valuable to pre-identify those care-givers in greatest need of social work support. Previous research suggests that care-givers' sleep interruption is a major factor in their sense of burden, but this alone proves inadequate to discriminate those in need of extra social work support. We hypothesised that care-givers' Sense of Coherence (SOC) was the major factor in their sense of burden. With co-operation of social workers in rural and urban Japan, we surveyed care-givers' SOC and sense of burden. Our study of 177 family care-givers showed that a high SOC substantially mitigated their sense of burden, while care-givers with low senses of meaning felt more burdened. This suggests that social workers should administer a simple SOC test to home care-givers in order to predict those care-givers most needful of social work assistance during End-of-Life (EOL) home care. Moreover, if social workers could elevate home care-givers' SOC through social support or programmes of exercise or meditation, this might reduce home care-givers' sense of burden, ultimately reducing burnout, neglect and abuse of homebound elderly.


The paper "From Dual Personalities to Reflected Adult Consciousness in the Psychotherapy of Dissociative Identity Disorder: The Dialectic Movement between Fake and Real" written by Assistant Prof. Chihiro Hatanaka was published.

Hatanaka,C(2013)From Dual Personalities to Reflected Adult Consciousness in the Psychotherapy of Dissociative Identity Disorder: The Dialectic Movement between Fake and Real Archives of sandplay therapy, 25:3 pp75-90 (The Japan Association of Sandplay Therapy)
Abstract: In contrast to conventional approaches in which it is important to treat the cause of the dissociative symptom, this case of dissociative identity disorder is distinctive in the paradoxical process. Although the child personality of the patient (alter personality) was thought to be a kind of fake, it has been kept in therapy. The process in which her child personality had been one-sidedly exaggerated and emphasized dialectically led the patient to internalize the dissociated personality and have a self-relationship in the end.

The paper "The 2011 earthquake in Japan: Psychotherapeutic interventions and change of worldview" written by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published.

130411spring_kawai2.png130411spring_kawai.pngToshio Kawai (2013) "The 2011 earthquake in Japan: Psychotherapeutic interventions and change of worldview", Spring 88: Environmental Disasters and Collective Trauma, pp47-60.
ISBN: 9781935528425
Abstract: In the face of earthquake disaster both material support and psychotherapeutic intervention are necessary for individual victims. Here I would like to address a third dimension: psychology of the earthquake from a global point of view. Although Japanese people are rather used to natural disasters, the 2011 earthquake brought about such unprecedented damage that it fundamentally shocked their existing worldview. In face of unexpected damages caused by the tsunami and the ongoing danger from the nuclear power plants, people no longer trust technology and the words of politicians and scientists. Unsatisfactory interventions and explanations after the disaster evoked more suspicion. In this sense, not only those in the stricken areas but the whole of the Japanese people were deeply touched by the disaster.
  Jung believed that peoples' worldview and global psychology can be studied and changed through individual psychotherapy. In his concept of the collective unconscious the collective dimension can be found in the individual psyche. If this is the case, our psychological relief work with the victims of the earthquake can shed light on the changes in the worldview.

The paper "Personal or interpersonal construal of happiness: A cultural psychological perspective. International Journal of Wellbeing" written by Associate Prof. Ukiko Uchida was published.

130228uchida_journal.pngUchida, Y., & Ogihara, Y. (2012). Personal or interpersonal construal of happiness: A cultural psychological perspective. International Journal of Wellbeing, 2(4), 354-369. doi:10.5502/ijw.v2.i4.5


Abstract: Cultural psychological research reveals considerable variation in how people construe happiness and experience subjective wellbeing. This paper identified substantial cultural differences in (1) meanings of happiness, (2) predictors of happiness, and (3) how social changes such as globalization are related to happiness. In European-American cultural contexts, happiness is construed as including experience of a highly desirable and positive emotional state defined in terms of a high arousal state such as excitement and a sense of personal achievement. Moreover, individual happiness is best predicted by personal goal attainment and high self-esteem or self-efficacy. In contrast, in East Asian cultural contexts (i.e., those found in Japan), happiness is construed as including experience of both positive and negative emotional state. Happiness is defined in terms of experiencing a low arousal state such as calmness and interpersonal connectedness and harmony. Furthermore, individual happiness is best predicted by relationship harmony and emotional support from others. While people maintain traditional cultural norms, some societies and organizations are under pressure from globalization and this might affect happiness. We examined how cultural change affects wellbeing, especially focusing on current Japanese contexts where individuals have experienced an increasing shift toward individualism and have experienced a large national disaster. Cultural psychological perspectives regarding happiness provide important contributions to psychological science and society at large.

The book "Buddhist Care for the Dying and Bereaved" was published. Two chapters were written by Prof. Carl Becker and Dr. Mari Sengoku.

130107becker_sengoku.pngBuddhist Care for the Dying and Bereaved
(Editors)Jonathan S. Watts, Yoshiharu Tomatsu
Wisdom Publications, Somerville, MA USA
Pages: 312
Publication Date: November 27, 2012


Book Description
Since its beginning, Buddhism has been intimately concerned with confronting and understanding death and dying. Indeed, the tradition emphasizes turning toward the realities of sickness, old age, and death--and using those very experiences to develop wisdom and liberating compassion. In recent decades, Buddhist chaplains and caregivers all over the world have been drawing on this tradition to contribute greatly to the development of modern palliative and hospice care in the secular world at large. Specifically Buddhist hospice programs have been further developing and applying traditional Buddhist practices of preparing for death, attending the dying, and comforting the bereaved.

Buddhist Care for the Dying and Bereaved contains comprehensive overviews of the best of such initiatives, drawn from diverse Buddhist traditions, and written by practitioners who embody the best of contemporary Buddhist hospice care programs practiced all over the world today.

Contributors include Carl B. Becker, Moichiro Hayashi, Yozo Taniyama, Mari Sengoku, Phaisan Visalo, Beth Kanji Goldring, Caroline Prasada Brazier, Joan Jiko Halifax, and Julie Chijo Hanada.

Amazon.com

The review "Neuroimaging studies of false memory: a selective review" written by Dr. Nobuhito Abe was published.

Nobuhito Abe (2012)
Neuroimaging studies of false memory: a selective review
Psychologia 55(2): 131-145

Abstract
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This article reviews neuroimaging studies that have attempted to distinguish between true and false memory retrieval. It also reviews neuroimaging studies that have measured neural activity during encoding and addresses the question of whether the encoding-related neural activity predicts subsequent memory distortions. Finally, there is a brief discussion from the cognitive neuroscience perspective about whether the memory distortion reflects deficient cognitive processing or is a by-product of adaptive cognitive processing.
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"Psychologia"
http://www.educ.kyoto-u.ac.jp/cogpsy/psychologia/

The paper "The Red Book from a pre-modern perspective: the position of the ego, sacrifice and the dead" written by Prof. Toshio Kawai was published.

2012-08-27.pngKawai, T. (2012), The Red Book from a pre-modern perspective: the position of the ego, sacrifice and the dead. Journal of Analytical Psychology, 57: 378-389. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-5922.2012.01976.x

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Keywords:
active imagination;the dead;ego;Japan;Jung;pre-modern;vision
Abstract: This paper tries to investigate The Red Book from a pre-modern point of view especially with reference to a Japanese cultural and clinical perspective. In spite of overwhelming contents from the unconscious, the position of the ego is remarkable as a formal aspect throughout The Red Book. The ego manifests itself as a stable observing agency which results in clear images. In the case of Japan, visions are historically rare because of the much more vague position of the ego. While in Liber Primus the ego manifests itself via suffering and tragedy, in Liber Secundus it has more distance and humour, and takes the form of comedy. Mythological images are internalized as fantasy in Liber Secundus. So the rebirth of God does not need to be performed literally but by way of internalization, which is the origin of Jungian psychology. In its substantial aspect, the references in The Red Book to pre-modern cultural images of sacrifice and redemption of the dead are impressive. The sacrifice may suggest that the numinous cannot be experienced as ritual and symbol but necessitates direct violence and sexuality.
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This paper is here.

The paper "An eye-like painting enhances the expectation of a good reputation" written by Dr. Kai Hiraishi was published.

Oda, R., Niwa, Y., Honma, A., & Hiraishi, K. (n.d.). An eye-like painting enhances the expectation of a good reputation. Evolution and Human Behavior, In Press, Corrected Proof. doi:10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2010.11.002