Abstract This cross‐sectional study developed a Japanese version of the Brief Ageing Perceptions Questionnaire (B‐APQ) and examined associations with intention and resistance to help‐seeking among older Japanese adults. A preliminary survey assessed face validity among 50 older adults in the Kanto region of Japan. Subsequently, 448 participants completed two anonymous online surveys to evaluate the scale's factor structure, reliability, and construct validity. Among them, 189 completed a follow‐up survey to assess test–retest reliability and construct validity. The preliminary survey supported the face validity of the B‐APQ. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a five‐factor structure with acceptable model fit. Test–retest correlations and internal consistency demonstrated satisfactory reliability. The hypothesized construct validity of the B‐APQ was supported, and the B‐APQ showed significant associations with both help‐seeking intention and resistance. These findings indicate that the Japanese version of the B‐APQ has acceptable psychometric properties for assessing perceptions of aging among older Japanese adults.
Abstract Joint action—the coordination of one's actions with others—is fundamental to social interaction. The joint Simon task has been widely used to study this process, revealing the joint Simon effect (JSE): faster responses on spatially compatible than incompatible trials, even though each actor performs a go/no‐go task. Although the JSE is often interpreted as evidence for shared task representation, similar effects have been observed in nonsocial contexts, raising questions about its underlying mechanisms. To distinguish JSEs arising from reciprocal interaction from those driven by one‐sided processes, we examined intra‐dyadic correlations in JSE magnitude as a potential marker of reciprocal co‐representation. Across two experiments, we tested whether two socio‐cognitive factors—the sense of power (high vs. low) and self‐construal (interdependent vs. independent)—modulate this alignment. While overall JSE magnitude did not differ across conditions, significant intra‐dyadic correlations emerged in the low‐power and interdependent conditions—contexts supposedly associated with greater social attunement. These findings suggest that intra‐dyadic JSE alignment may reflect reciprocal consideration between co‐actors and that this alignment is shaped by social factors.
Abstract Dohsa‐hou research has focused on clinical populations, leaving healthy elderly without acute conditions largely unexamined. This study investigated the impact of an eight‐week group‐based Dohsa‐hou training program (focused on standing and stepping) on balance and motor coordination in physically inactive older men. Thirty‐eight men (aged 65–75) from Tehran, Iran, were randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. Balance was assessed with the Berg Balance Scale and coordination with the finger‐to‐nose test. The experimental group completed 16 sessions of Dohsa‐hou exercises targeting posture and movement awareness. Results showed that the intervention was associated with significantly higher static and dynamic balance scores and lower coordination completion times (all p < .001) compared to the control group. The Dohsa‐hou method appears to be a promising, non‐invasive approach for enhancing motor function in older adults. Future research should explore the underlying mechanisms responsible for these improvements.
Abstract In recent years, the number of foreign visitors to Japan has increased rapidly. With this trend, bowing—a common greeting in Japan—is now frequently exchanged between individuals of different racial appearances. Previous studies have shown that three‐dimensional computer‐generated (3D‐CG) models performing a bowing motion are perceived as more attractive than those standing still. However, these studies have primarily used East Asian 3D‐CG models with Japanese participants, leaving unclear whether bowing similarly enhances attractiveness for individuals of different racial appearances. The present study examined the effects of bowing using 3D‐CG models representing European, South Asian, and African appearances compared to East Asian models, with both Japanese (Experiment 1) and United States (Experiment 2) participants. The results showed that Japanese participants perceived the bowing effect regardless of the models' racial appearance, while United States participants showed minimal to no bowing effect across all model types. Furthermore, experiments that independently manipulated the models' physical attractiveness (Experiments 3 and 4) confirmed that both Japanese and United States participants were similarly sensitive to physical attractiveness but differed in their response to the bowing action. These results suggest that bowing motions are interpreted consistently within each cultural population, regardless of racial and physical appearance.
Abstract This study examined the validity of the Japanese‐translated version of the single‐item subjective level of stress (SLS‐1), encompassing three studies. Study 1 tested the understandability of the item wording in a general population ( N = 120), which indicated that the wording of the Japanese‐translated version of SLS‐1 is generally understandable. Study 2 tested the face validity of the SLS‐1 among experts and non‐experts ( N = 20). The face validity indices supported its relevance to subjective stress and its importance, but not its essentiality. Study 3 tested the convergent validity and test–retest reliability of the SLS‐1 in another general population sample ( N = 524). The SLS‐1 showed a moderate positive relationship with the 14‐item Perceived Stress Scale, but failed to meet the pre‐registered criteria. The SLS‐1 showed the expected relationship with stress symptoms and well‐being, supporting its convergent validity, and showed good test–retest reliability. Although some indices did not meet the pre‐registered criteria, the SLS‐1 confirmed face and convergent validity as a measure of subjective stress.
This study examined how native Japanese speakers and Chinese learners of Japanese as a foreign language (JFL) process classifier-noun agreement involving short- and long-distance dependencies. Using a maze task, participants read sentences in which classifiers agree locally either with the subject noun or with a distant object noun. Native speakers showed faster reaction times for short-distance dependencies and a significant slowdown at the verb region under long-distance conditions, but no difference at the head noun, indicating anticipatory processing using verb cues. In contrast, Chinese JFL learners showed slower processing at both the classifier and following noun regions, but faster responses at the head noun in the long-distance condition. This suggests a bottom-up, non-predictive strategy, with resolution occurring only when the head noun is encountered. These findings highlight a key difference in real-time sentence processing: Native speakers engage in predictive integration, while JFL learners rely more on reactive parsing.
This study aimed to adapt the 8-Item Growth Mindset Scale into Turkish and evaluate its psychometric properties through a three-stage study. In Study 1 (M age = 29.84 years, SD = 11.2 years) and Study 2 (M age = 29.26 years, SD = 11.7 years), involving 1,344 participants, a one-factor structure was confirmed with high internal consistency (alpha = .87, omega = .87) through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Furthermore, convergent validity, predictive validity, and test-retest reliability were examined. Study 3 with 590 participants aged between 18 years and 67 years (M age = 27.68 years, SD = 10.8 years) further ensured the linguistic proficiency and cultural representativeness of the scale in the Turkish context. Findings support the Turkish version as a reliable and valid tool for assessing growth mindset in adults. The findings have implications for practice, particularly for the development and evaluation of growth mindset-based interventions in educational and clinical settings. The study contributes to the growing literature on growth mindset assessment in diverse cultural contexts, complementing prior work in Japanese samples.
Despite a long-standing consensus on the positive impact of conscientiousness on life outcomes, its association with obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms remains controversial. This ambiguity complicates evidence-based approaches to the prevention and intervention of OC symptoms. While conscientiousness is generally considered protective, excessively high levels may pose psychological risks, suggesting a potential curvilinear relationship with OC symptoms. This study examined the curvilinear relationships between conscientiousness and OC symptoms, with additional consideration of neuroticism and perfectionism. Data from 781 adults (388 males; 22.88 +/- 3.19 years) were analyzed. Following data standardization and preliminary correlation analysis, we employed linear and quadratic regressions, two-line tests, and polynomial regression analyses. Results revealed both linear and curvilinear relationships between conscientiousness and OC symptoms. Notably, the orderliness facet of conscientiousness showed robust positive associations with washing, neutralizing, and ordering symptoms. Furthermore, findings regarding neuroticism suggest that moderate indulgence and reasonable levels of emotional expression may be adaptive. These findings extend curvilinear research on conscientiousness and outcomes beyond the organizational domain, highlighting the importance of balance in conscientiousness and neuroticism for mental health.
The concealed information test (CIT) is an effective tool for detecting hidden crime information in suspects. In practice, the CIT assumes the examinee in a sitting position. However, a different posture, such as standing, can expand the applicability of the CIT. A different posture comes with physiological changes, but enables us to examine novel indices, such as body sway. We investigate how a sitting and a standing posture affect the CIT. We subjected participants to a mock crime-like scenario, followed by a CIT examination while sitting and another CIT examination while standing on a force plate. Standing was associated with an increased baseline heart rate (HR), but there was no difference for skin conductance level. Skin conductance and HR could effectively detect concealed knowledge in both conditions. Body sway measures could not detect concealed knowledge better than chance, but exploratory analyses suggest further examination is warranted. We discuss the practical potential for extending the use of the CIT to the standing position and possible explanations for the null findings on body sway.
The beneficial role of social relationships in the well-being of older adults has been well documented. However, little is known about how social interactions contribute to well-being in very old adults aged 80 years and above. This study examined between- and within-person associations between social interactions and affect in very old adults' daily lives. Fifty-seven community dwellers (age 82 to 86 years) responded to a daily diary questionnaire regarding whether they had direct and indirect social interactions with others and how frequently they felt positive and negative affect in the evenings over 7 days. At the between-person level, older adults who directly interacted with others more frequently reported higher levels of positive affect than those who did less. At the within-person level, on days with direct social interactions, older adults reported higher levels of positive affect than on days without such interactions. The within-person association between direct social interactions and positive affect was more evident in older adults living alone than in those co-residing with others. The findings suggest that daily face-to-face social interactions may enhance the daily well-being of very old adults, particularly those with limited social relationships.
People may experience stress related to the demands and conditions of remote work. Remote work stress is a potential outcome of this experience, characterized by the psychological strain associated with working outside traditional office environments and assessed through the Remote Work Stress Scale (RWSS). In the current study, the RWSS was developed and validated for the first time in the cultural context of T & uuml;rkiye. The study included remote employees from various sectors. The average age was 36 years (SD = 8.33 years), with an average of 12 years of work experience (SD = 8.51 years). Participants worked an average of 42 hr per week (SD = 8.40 hr), including 22 hr (SD = 14.78 hr) remotely. The reliability and validity of the measure were examined through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The results supported a five-factor structure and indicated an acceptable model fit. The scale also demonstrated high internal consistency and meaningful item-total correlations. It has been determined that remote work stress is a distinctive phenomenon, and the Remote Work Stress Scale is a valid and reliable tool for assessing stress related to remote work in T & uuml;rkiye.
This study examines how anxiety, assessed through self-report and galvanic skin response (GSR), affects visual attention and performance during Chinese-Japanese sight translation. Forty-four graduate students completed sight-translation tasks while their output, eye movements, and GSRs were recorded. Linear mixed-effects modeling revealed that self-reported interpreting-related anxiety was a stronger and more consistent predictor of attention and performance than GSR across source-language complexity and directionality. Greater anxiety was linked to longer visit durations, more frequent saccades, and lower performance, particularly during Chinese (L1)-to-Japanese (L2) translation. In contrast, GSR exhibited limited associations with output quality and no stable effects on eye-movement patterns. Rather than indicating that physiological arousal is irrelevant, these findings suggest that self-reported anxiety and autonomic activation capture different facets of the stress experience and may operate at different levels of processing. The partial dissociation between the two measures further implies that some untrained interpreters might cognitively amplify stress beyond their physiological responses. Overall, the study highlights the need to integrate emotional awareness and self-regulation training with cognitive and linguistic skill development in interpreter education.
This study involves a pupillometric exploration of audiovisual correspondences. Three types of correspondences were examined: the brightness-pitch correspondence, the bouba/kiki effect, and the semantic congruency between spoken color names and pixel colors. Baseline-corrected pupil size was compared between congruent (e.g., presenting a speech "bouba" and a rounded visual shape) and incongruent ("kiki" with a rounded visual shape) conditions. A larger pupil size was expected for the incongruent condition than for the congruent condition because pupils dilate in response to difficult-to-process stimuli that require a high cognitive load. However, no differences were observed between the conditions for any type of correspondence (Experiment 1, passive observation). The absence of the congruency effect on pupil size persisted even when participants performed a pitch-classification task (Experiments 2A and 3) or provided subjective ratings of the match between the pseudowords and visual shapes (Experiment 2B). No reliable evidence was found to suggest that audiovisual correspondences induce pupillary responses. Audiovisual correspondences likely do not induce changes in cognitive load as strongly as those reflected in pupil size.
This study conducted a replication of Kay et al. (2005; Experiment 1), which investigated the activation of stereotypical inferences through system-threat manipulations, in Japan. According to system justification theory, individuals are motivated to justify the system when its legitimacy is threatened, leading to responses, such as activating stereotypical inferences. However, the effects of system-threat manipulations have been primarily demonstrated in the United States, and no studies in Japan have successfully shown these effects. This raises questions about the generalizability of the effects of system-threat manipulations. Two online experiments (N = 554) investigated whether, under system threats, individuals rate the association between targets (e.g., obesity) and causally related traits (e.g., laziness) more highly, and whether they also rate causally unrelated traits (e.g., sociability) more highly as a form of compensation in Japan. The Bayesian analysis revealed that, contrary to Kay et al. (2005), the predicted effects were absent in both of the current experiments. The results indicate the challenges of applying system-threat manipulations within the Japanese context.
In reasoning problems, people's logical judgments are often influenced by the believability of the conclusions. Research on conflict detection has revealed that conflict between belief-based heuristic responses and logical rules is typically detected, even in complex three-model syllogisms. However, previous studies have overlooked the figure effect. This study explores conflict detection in both preferred and nonpreferred figure three-model syllogisms. In the preferred figure condition, participants responded more slowly and had less confidence when they answered conflict problems incorrectly, compared to when they answered no-conflict problems correctly. In the nonpreferred figure, while response time suggests that conflict detection disappears, response confidence still reflects conflict detection. This indicates that participants could still successfully detect conflict even in the complex three-model syllogisms, supporting the "inhibition failure" view. The discrepancy between response time and response confidence requires further investigation.
The aim of the present study is to reveal the potential mediating role of alexithymia in the relationship between psychological distress and internet addiction. This research was conducted on a sample of 625 participants (M = 24.53; SD = 6.84), and 446 were female (71.4%). They filled out a questionnaire designed to assess psychological distress, internet addiction, and alexithymia. Our results reveal the direct relationship between psychological distress and internet addiction, as well as the mediating role of alexithymia. These findings emphasize the significance of alexithymia as a critical mediator in the development of internet addiction, suggesting that difficulties in identifying and processing emotions may exacerbate internet addiction. Individuals with alexithymia often struggle with emotional awareness and regulation, which can lead to a greater reliance on online environments to manage their emotional discomfort. This can further reinforce maladaptive behavior patterns, making it increasingly difficult to address the underlying psychological issues and leading to a cycle of emotional isolation and dependency on the internet. The theoretical and practical implications of the present work are discussed.
The effectiveness of the psychological interventions for patients with inflammatory bowel disease varies across studies and lacks consistency. This study aimed to explore the challenges perceived by patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and those with ulcerative colitis (UC) in remission during their daily lives as well as uncover their coping strategies through both exploratory and qualitative analysis. A free description survey was conducted on the selected group of patients with CD and UC who attended the outpatient clinic at a specialized hospital in Japan. As part of the data analysis, discussions were held among the researchers specializing in health psychology, nursing, and medicine, and the results were classified and quantified into four groups for each condition using the Kawakita Jiro method and the Quantification Theory Type III. Cluster analysis using category scores confirmed that the results could be classified into four groups. The problems and coping strategies of each group, commonalities, and differences between the diseases and future challenges are discussed.
Political candidates running for office often use nondisclosure to avoid taking explicit positions on contentious issues to maintain broader appeal. While selecting noncommittal responses (e.g., "prefer not to answer") in public surveys may be intended to display impartiality, it remains unclear how voters actually interpret such ambiguity. Modeled after the structure of a real-world candidate survey, this study examines whether noncommittal responses lead voters to infer that candidates hold minority opinions rather than remaining neutral. Participants (N = 97) evaluated these survey responses from candidates, where one candidate selected "prefer not to answer" while others endorsed a clear stance. The results showed that non-disclosing candidates were consistently inferred to hold minority opinions, suggesting that rather than preserving neutrality, choosing not to answer may reinforce perceptions of concealing an unpopular stance. The findings provide insights into how voters interpret political ambiguity and highlight the potential limitations of nondisclosure as an electoral strategy for candidates seeking public office.
This study explores the cultural pervasiveness of the two-dimensional construct of agency and communion by developing a Japanese version of the Agentic and Communal Values Scale (ACV-J, and its short version, SACV-J) originally developed by Trapnell and Paulhus (2012). The translation process involved translating the items into Japanese, validating the translation through preliminary studies, and back-translating into English, after which the original authors confirmed its accuracy. Participants comprised 541 Japanese university students. The results of factor analyses utilized to validate the two-factor structure of the (S)ACV-J incompletely supported the two-factor structure. Correlations between agency, communion, and four criterion measures (BIDR-J, BSRI, IPIP-IPC-J, and DTDD-J) confirmed the convergent and discriminant validity of ACV-J, with some cultural variations noted in the agency dimension. As predicted, gender differences were identified for items agency and communion, yet the observed tendencies were inconsistent with those reported in the previous study. The validity of ACV-J and the SACV-J, the pervasiveness of the two-dimensional construct, and the advantages of investigating gender perceptions with the ACV-J and the SACV-J are discussed.
In academic settings, publication pressure or the demand for high publication output in prestigious journals is significantly linked to negative mental health outcomes and may lead to questionable research practices. The Revised Publication Pressure Questionnaire (PPQr) was developed to assess these pressures globally; however, this questionnaire has not been adapted to the unique academic environment in Japan. In this study, the Japanese version of the PPQr (PPQr-J) was developed and validated in a sample of 272 researchers from various Japanese institutions. The translation and cultural adaptation methods used adhered to established guidelines. The internal consistency and test-retest reliability were assessed using Cronbach's alpha and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). We then conducted exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to validate the factor structure. Correlations with existing scales, including burnout indicators, the Survey Work-Home Interaction Nijmegen, and the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire, were examined. The EFA revealed a four-factor model based on stress, attitude, resources, and discretion that consisted of 17 items. The PPQr-J demonstrated acceptable to good internal consistency and moderate to good test-retest reliability, with ICC for the subscales ranging from .499 to .752. CFA supported the four-factor model with a moderate fit. Significant correlations with existing scales confirmed the validity of PPQr-J. This study confirmed that PPQr-J is a reliable and valid tool for assessing publication pressure among Japanese researchers, with "discretion" added as a new element.
