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Previous research has indicated that, reflecting East Asians’ holistic attentional style, they are likely to emphasize more somatic symptoms and perceive their internal visceral states less accurately as compared with Westerners. Based on these findings, comparing representative samples of Americans and Japanese participants, this research examined whether somatosensory amplification would vary across cultures. Moreover, by controlling confounding factors, including neuroticism and chronic disorders, the possibility that the association between somatosensory amplification and negative affective states differs across cultures also was tested. The results showed that Japanese exhibit higher somatosensory amplification than do Americans. In both cultures, as neuroticism and the number of chronic disorders increased, negative affective states also increased, leading to higher somatosensory amplification. Whereas negative affective states completely mediated the paths of neuroticism and chronic disorders to somatosensory amplification in the United States, such mediation was partial in Japan. Moreover, the association between somatosensory amplification and negative affective states was weaker in Japanese than in Americans., ファイル公開：2020-03-01

Cultural influences on the body image of 133 female and 99 male Japanese adolescents aged 12–18 years (M = 15.9, SD = 1.2) were compared to those of a databank of 1233 female and 1149 male adolescents also aged 12–18 years (M = 14.9, SD = 1.5) from five cultures – Chinese, Malaysian, Australian, Tongan, and indigenous Fijian – surveyed previously using identical body image measures (Fuller-Tyszkiewicz et al., 2012). Japanese adolescents reported the highest levels of body dissatisfaction despite possessing among the lowest body mass index (BMI) and also reported among the highest levels of media influence on their body image. Subsequent path analyses revealed that for Japanese adolescents cultural identification with modern Japanese values were associated with increased body dissatisfaction, and that this association was mediated by level of media influence. These results highlight the importance of cultural influences, as well as individual differences in cultural values, in shaping Japanese adolescents' body image.

We administered a paper-and-pencil questionnaire to 133 female and 99 male Japanese high school students 13–18 years old (M = 15.9, SD = 1.57) from the Kansai area to examine cultural influences on their body image and body change behaviours. Our aim was to ascertain the independent and combined influences from traditional Japanese, modern Japanese, and Western values. Cluster analyses identified four ‘acculturative’ groups: ‘anti-modern’, ‘traditional’, ‘pro-modern/anti-traditional’, and ‘pro-Western/anti-Japanese’. Pro-modern and pro-Western adolescents were most dissatisfied with their bodies, and pro-Western adolescents were also most likely to attempt weight loss. The results demonstrate the value of assessing cultural interactions in Japan along three dimensions.

Chinese participants were found less likely to social loaf when working in groups than did North Americans. This result was attributed mainly to the collectivism and individualism characterizing Chinese and North Americans, respectively. However, this explanation does not address how Chinese people's social loafing tendency may vary across situations. If Chinese participants are concerned about their relations with coworkers, they should be more likely to conform to the performance level of their coworkers. This prediction is in opposition to effort dispensability, which is usually found among North Americans, whereby individuals adjust their effort in reverse to that of their coworkers. Consistent with our prediction, findings from three studies revealed that Chinese participants tended to conform to the performance level of their coworkers when their performance is made public (vs kept anonymous) and when they have high (vs low) relational concerns. These findings have implications for unpacking nuanced cultural influences on behaviours.

The authors conducted two studies to examine the relationship between attributional style, locus of control, and academic achievement. Using the scales developed by the first author (Park, 1995), the first study compared the attributional style and locus of control of honor students (those who received scholarship) with those who were on academic probation. The results indicated that compared to students on academic probation, honor students were more likely to score higher on internal locus of control and lower on external locus of control. They were more likely to attribute their success to effort and the influence of other people. For failure, the honor students were less likely to attribute their failure to a lack of ability and lack of support from significant others. The second study examined the relationship between the locus of control and academic achievement among three samples: Korean, Korean-Chinese, and Chinese university students. A 40-item locus of control questionnaire and background information section containing sex and self-reported academic grade were administered. The results showed that the Korean sample had the highest internal locus of control score and the lowest external locus of control score. The Korean-Chinese sample, in contrast, scored highest on external locus of control. These results are consistent with past research investigating the cultural influence upon the individual’s locus of control. Furthermore, as found in the first study, a significant relationship was found between locus of control and academic grade. For the Korean sample, students with higher academic grades scored higher on internality and lower on externality. For the Chinese sample, students with higher academic grades scored higher on internality. There were no significant differences for the Korean-Chinese sample. Interpretations and implications of cross-cultural and within-sample findings are discussed.