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In recent years, there has been renewed interest in diversifying the understanding and discussion about the causes of depression to move beyond biomedical determinism—a view that biomedical factors are the ultimate cause of an individual's depression. There is increasing emphasis on diversity in how people seek to articulate the causes of depression to incorporate non-biomedical dimensions. Furthermore, the biomedical understanding of depression has been increasingly questioned due especially to emerging limitations in pharmacotherapy. These shifts encourage social analyses that explore what narratives as to the causes of depression are constructed and presented with relative plausibility in different contexts and why and how. By analysing published memoirs of individuals diagnosed with depression in Japan, this study aims to provide fresh insights into narratives around the causes of depression. It illustrates how memoirs portray depression and its perceived causes in characteristic ways in a nation that adopts Western diagnostic systems, biomedical therapeutics and other relevant technologies. I will show that 'burnout' is the dominant theme in the Japanese data, diverging from the predominantly biomedical narrative in Western societies. This burnout narrative depicts depression as the somewhat unfortunate but unsurprising result of overwork arising from individual active adaptations to structural features of the Japanese work culture. I argue that reasons, rather than causes, articulate the making of the burnout narrative by revealing the interplay between the structural and individual and ultimately enrich the understanding of depression. The paper concludes with a call for exploring the shifting relationship between illness and normalcy that the burnout narrative implies. I suggest that further studies could explore how the boundaries between normalcy and illness are enacted and re-enacted and to what avail through public discourse and through shifting diagnostic schemata in the context of different national norms and practices. • There are international differences in how depression is experienced and represented. • Biomedical explanations of depression are frequently documented in the literature. • This paper shows ways in which depression is explained in the language of burnout. • Burnout emphasises the interaction between the individual and the structural. • Distinguishing reasons from causes helps better understand burnout and depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile learning (m-learning) is gaining its importance in recent years. For libraries, it is inevitable to adapt to this trend and provide various information services and support for m-learning. This paper studies the m-learning usage of Library and Information Science (LIS) students, who will be the new blood for the library in future. In this paper, we invited 267 subjects from Hong Kong, Japan, and Taiwan to participate in our online survey. We found that LIS students from these regions do adopt communication tools and social media for m-learning. However, they less frequently use their smartphones for academic reading. Plus, they rely more on search engines for fulfilling their information needs instead of library resources. We also found that the lack of a mobile version of the library website constitutes a significant barrier in m-learning, but the lack of mobile apps is relatively acceptable by the respondents. The result of this study shows that there are no big differences in m-learning usage among the three regions, except that LIS students from Hong Kong are accessing the learning management platforms via their smartphones more frequently compared to students from Japan and Taiwan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stigmatization of children with disabilities at school is a culturally widespread social justice challenge. The paper is the second of a two-part series. In the first paper (Haight, Kayama, Ku, Cho, & Lee, 2016), we described the problem of stigmatization from the perspectives of experienced elementary school educators in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the US. In this paper, we focus on the solutions provided by these same educators; specifically, their perspectives on socialization practices to minimize stigmatization and support the development of self for children with disabilities and their typically-developing peers. We conducted cross-cultural analyses of individual, semi-structured, audio recorded interviews with 26 Japanese, 43 South Korean, 16 Taiwanese and 18 US educators, including school social workers. Educators from all research sites described socialization practices to support children with disabilities and their typically-developing peers. For children with disabilities, US educators focused on individualized support provided in private to minimize stigmatization. East Asian educators intentionally involved peers in supporting children with disabilities. For typically-developing peers, educators described cultivating empathy (Japan), providing formal disability awareness programs (South Korea), teaching moral values (Taiwan) and respecting individual differences (US). We discuss these socialization practices within educators' sociocultural-historical contexts. Educators' perspectives can be used to develop culture- and stigma-sensitive intervention programs for children with disabilities and their peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The stigmatization of individuals with disabilities is a widespread social justice issue. This paper introduces a study of disability, stigmatization and self for children with disabilities and their typically-developing peers. It is the first of two companion papers. It examines the problem of stigmatization from the perspectives of experienced elementary school educators practicing in diverse cultural contexts. We conducted cross-cultural analyses of individual, audio recorded interviews with 26 Japanese, 43 Korean, 16 Taiwanese and 18 US educators, including school social workers. Educators from all four cultural groups described disability and stigma as challenging children's development of self: children with disabilities may experience the self as isolated and inadequate, and typically-developing peers may experience the self as lacking culturally expected values of empathy and respect. Educators' understandings of children's experiences also were culturally nuanced. Educators variously described children with disabilities as experiencing a sense of not belonging [Japan], loss of motivation [South Korea], too much shame [Taiwan], and low self-esteem [US]. They variously described typically-developing children as challenged to show empathy [Japan], include children with disabilities in their peer group [South Korea], develop benevolence [Taiwan], and show respect for individual differences [US]. We contextualize educators' perceptions within their specific sociocultural-historical contexts. Our second paper will focus on solutions; specifically, educators' perspectives on how to minimize stigmatization and support the development of self for children with disabilities and their typically-developing peers. Together, these companion papers provide social workers with valuable perspectives for eliminating the stigmatization of children with disabilities in future generations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinical placement experiences are the cornerstone of nursing education and a body of literature indicates that belongingness is fundamental to students' learning when undertaking placements. However, little is known about Japanese nursing students’ sense of belonging and how it is influenced by their cultural values. The aim of this paper is to profile a study that: measured the extent to which Japanese nursing students’ experience a sense of belonging in clinical placements, and explored the factors that impact on and are consequences of that experience. A mixed methods design was used with quantitative data collected using the Belongingness Scale-Clinical Placement Experience and qualitative data collected using semi-structured interviews. Ninety-two third and fourth year students from a large regional university in Japan completed the questionnaire; of these six also participated in interviews. The results identified similarities and differences between this and other studies of belongingness. Supportive and welcoming clinical environments facilitated participants' belongingness and motivation to learn. However, the belongingness scores of this sample were lower than those in all other studies. This may be explained, in part, by the Japanese cultural values of “Uchi (insider) and Soto” (outsider), which pervaded the participants’ placement experiences and led to feelings of exclusion and alienation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite ongoing interest in cross-cultural differences in Internet privacy concern (concern over unauthorized third-party access to self-disclosures on the Internet), predictors of between-country variance in online privacy concern are yet unclear. This paper proposes a novel theoretical account from a socio-ecological perspective, focusing on the effect of societal levels of relational mobility (the degree to which individuals in a society have the freedom and opportunity to form and terminate interpersonal relationships) and general trust on online privacy concern. In low relational mobility Japan, where general trust in strangers is generally less adaptive, we hypothesized online privacy concern to be high. In contrast, in high relational mobility United States, general trust is also high, leading us to predict lower concern over privacy. We tested this hypothesis via a survey of SNS users in Japan ( N = 90) and the US ( N = 256). Results showed privacy concern on SNS was indeed higher in Japan than the US, and this difference was significantly mediated by relational mobility and general trust, in serial. We argue our findings underpin the importance of taking into account offline socio-ecological factors when approaching cross-cultural differences in privacy concern online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper presents the preliminary findings of gender difference in the perception of radiation risk in the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan. In-depth interviews were conducted with the residents of Fukushima and other parts of Japan in November 2011 and July 2012. Compared to mothers, fathers in general expressed less concern for radiation. Fathers prioritized their responsibilities as the breadwinner for their families and saw radiation risk as a threat to economic stability and masculine identity. As a result, mothers' health concerns were dismissed, and they were prevented from taking preventive actions. The social norms in the dominant institutions such as corporations and the government influenced men's perception of radiation risk. The findings illustrate the importance of sociocultural context in which meanings of health risk are constructed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper examines public relations (PR) functions in a large Japanese corporation as well as the PR role in the management function. The corporation under study is Kao Corporation, which is one of the largest Japanese consumer and industrial goods manufacturers. Information was collected from interviewing a PR manager of Kao Corporation. Evidence suggests that Kao''s PR department functions more or less like an advertising department. Press releases are placed in the media as paid advertisements. Kao''s PR uses a third-party endorsement to establish a new product''s credibility. The company has a participative corporate culture that allows the PR director to work closely with the top management. The idea of collaborative efforts between departments and the practice of being a socially responsible company suggest that Kao''s PR department uses a combination of communication models and Japanese management styles to project a good corporate citizen image. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Traditional and largely rural patterns of relationships seem to persist in Japan despite economic and political modernization. Infused within modern technology, ideology, and apparently modern organizational forms, one discerns the persistent, if not determining, influence of native values and social patterns. Following a genealogical approach, inspired by Nietzsche and Foucault, this paper goes beyond the opposition between universalist and multiculturalist models of modernization, in order to identify certain indigenous principles of social organization manifest in both "traditional" and "modern" social formations of Japan. The persistence of these basic principles, such as the 'frame orientation," and the emphasis on wa (harmony, peace), is traced through the historical process of Japan's modernization in various realms of social life — the economy, political life, and popular culture. e analysis recent structural shifts in Japanese society, while still affirming the principles of Japan's "alternative modernity," also implies that major changes in its basic organizing principles might be under way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown a robust association between schizotypy and mixed/ambiguous-handedness, but little is known about the universality of this relationship outside Western cultures. The present paper examines this issue in a sample of 413 Japanese students administered (in Japan) the Annett handedness questionnaire and a schizotypy scale (STA). Conventional analyses of current hand preference, using several indices derived from the Annett scale, mostly failed to replicate previous findings. However, there was a significant tendency for greater use of either hand in highly schizotypal males. Furthermore, a significant association between schizotypy and non-right-handedness was found—again only in males—after correcting for the effects of early switching of hand usage, presumed to be due to cultural pressure against left-handedness in Japanese society. These results were found to be highly convergent with findings previously reported for clinical schizophrenia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Ruth F. Benedict's The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (1946) remains perhaps the most influential English-language book on contemporary Japanese society and culture. The Chrysanthemum and the Sward has generated a large critical literature and has sold over 1.4 million copies in Japan. It would not be an exaggeration to state that benedict's book framed both American and Japanese -- and, by extension, global -- perceptions of Japan since the end of World War II. In this paper, I explore why her work found such resonance among the Japanese themselves to the extent that The Chrysanthemum and the Sword became something of an ur-text of the post-World war II Japanese discourse on the Japanese and on Japanese culture (Nihonjinron or Nihonbunkaron). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The purpose of critical thinking in safety-critical activities goes beyond checklists and standard procedures, as it is also experience-based. • Disempowerment of knowledge tends to upset the proactive and critical thinking of operatives and employees. • In the longer run, this can initiate a process of complacency or degeneration. This paper discusses the background and aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi accident, exploring safety culture in relation to three essential elements: (I) knowledge, (II) leadership (power), and (III) critical thinking. In my discussion, I establish links between safety culture and these key issues, advocating a long-term outlook on safety and risk management. These findings are based on case study analyses, involving evaluations of accident reports, dialogue seminars, and interviews with representatives of the nuclear community in Japan and Sweden. For the most part, the argument I will pursue is not concerned with what Japan could or should have done differently but the trials and hazards of our society. How, then, can we give the Japanese experience a broader significance? In safety-critical activities, we consider best practice the reliable response although its formulas may have to be modified to particular conditions and circumstances. In other words, there are tacit dimensions of knowledge related to professional activities that are vital to their overall quality. However, the impact of commercial pressures, formalization and the desire to measure, monitor, and control the culture and behavior of workers may force professionals to deprioritize their judgments. Also, disempowerment of knowledge tends to upset the proactive and critical thinking of operatives and employees. If we interpret this as a process of complacency or degeneration, we should consider possible counterweights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines a case of healthcare governance reform in a Japanese hospital to demonstrate how and why physicians may resist NPM ideals in healthcare. We find that the governance reform departed significantly from its idealized form. The intended structure of decentralized governance was ruptured by the CEO, with unanticipated consequences. The power of the medical school, arising out of the ikyoku system in the context of chronic shortages of physicians and the respect afforded to physicians by wider society, was played out in the hospital, with cost management taking a back seat. We find that the general patterns of interaction between and among key stakeholders in relation to accountability and the governance process are shaped by some form of verticality, monologues rather than dialogues, indirectness and silence rooted in Japanese cultural context. Cultural political economy approach guided us to examine both semiotic and extra semiotic features and their dialectical moments with key actors in assessing the limits of NPMs in non-Western contexts. • The role of healthcare professionals is crucial in execution of NPM reform in Japan. • Western centric governance reform departed significantly from its idealized form. • The power of medical school and the ikyoku shape the governance process. • Corporate board maintains harmony instead of seeking accountability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper aims to rethink creative city theory by analyzing urban regeneration processes in Japan through cultural creativity and social inclusion. The impact of Florida’s theory has led to the common misperception that cities prosper as people of the creative class, such as artists and gays, gather. However, attracting people of the creative class does not automatically make a creative city. Empirical analyses of Kanazawa City, clarify that the creative city needs a ‘culture-based production system’, a well-balanced system of cultural production and cultural consumption that takes advantage of accumulated cultural capital. This paper also examines Osaka City, where creative city policies failed to produce adequate results because they did not take root as a comprehensive urban strategy. However, in spite of these failures, a lively and inclusive grassroots movement has emerged around the creative city. This movement brings Osaka towards being a socially-inclusive creative city. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]