Japanese Term Research Articles

The associations between self-rated autistic traits, social camouflaging, and mental health outcomes in Taiwanese anime, comics and games (ACG) doujin creators: an exploratory study

BackgroundDoujin (どうじん) is a Japanese term referring to a circle where people share the same interests, usually something that belongs to the Anime, Comics, and Games (ACG) subculture. Individuals who belong to it and create related works, known as ACG doujin creators, are usually described as socially awkward and at potential risk of isolation. In such a context, they may theoretically exhibit higher autistic traits and manifest camouflaging tendencies, which may consequently be associated with their mental health. Nonetheless, the impact of autistic traits and camouflaging on mental health in this subculture remains significantly underexplored.MethodsWe recruited 183 Taiwanese ACG doujin creators (age ranges from 18 to 41, 146 female and 37 male) via social networking platforms. Participants completed Chinese online surveys assessing socio-demographic information, doujin activities, past psychiatric history, the 35-item Version of Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ-35), Chinese version Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q-Ch), the General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Linear regression analysis was employed to examine the associations between the aforementioned scales.ResultsOur findings revealed that among ACG doujin creators, descriptively higher level of AQ-35 and CAT-Q-Ch than previous studies were found. Moreover, we observed a positive association between camouflaging behaviours and most AQ-35 subscales, with the exception of the mindreading subscale. Additionally, we identified that both camouflaging and autistic traits were significantly linked to higher PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores.ConclusionsThrough this study, we gained insight into the distinctive characteristics of autistic traits, camouflaging behaviours, and mental health among Taiwanese ACG doujin creators, as the associations between the factors mentioned above are divergent compared to previous research. This topic demonstrated that camouflaging is also associated with adverse mental health in a subculture group.

A Study on Plural Form of Japanese Terms for Self and Address Terms

A Study on Plural Form of Japanese Terms for Self and Address Terms

What Japanese Terms and Expressions Are Essential for the Tourism Industry in Lombok, Indonesia?

<p>Penelitian ini berfokus pada kebutuhan kemampuan berbahasa Jepang di kalangan profesional pariwisata di Lombok dan dampaknya terhadap interaksi dan kepuasan wisatawan. Meskipun secara umum staf pariwisata lokal mampu berbahasa Inggris, kemampuan berbahasa Jepang masih terbatas, sehingga mempengaruhi komunikasi dengan wisatawan Jepang. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan menggunakan grounded theory, melibatkan wawancara dengan informan kunci dan analisis data primer dan sekunder. Temuan menunjukkan bahwa sebagian besar profesional pariwisata di Lombok tidak memiliki kemampuan berbahasa Jepang yang memadai, yang menghambat komunikasi yang efektif dengan pengunjung Jepang. Bidang-bidang utama yang dibutuhkan termasuk terminologi yang berkaitan dengan pariwisata, fasilitas hotel, dan ekspresi budaya. Disarankan untuk mengimplementasikan program pelatihan bahasa Jepang yang ditargetkan untuk mengatasi kesenjangan dan meningkatkan kualitas layanan. Studi ini menggarisbawahi pentingnya meningkatkan kemampuan bahasa dan pemahaman budaya untuk meningkatkan kepuasan wisatawan Jepang dan meningkatkan tingkat kunjungan.</p>

Diabetic kidney disease: the kidney disease relevant to individuals with diabetes.

In individuals with diabetes, chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major comorbidity. However, it appears that there is worldwide confusion regarding which term should be used to describe CKD complicated with diabetes: diabetic nephropathy, diabetic kidney disease (DKD), CKD with diabetes, diabetes and CKD, etc. Similar confusion has also been reported in Japan. Therefore, to provide clarification, the Japanese Diabetes Society and the Japanese Society of Nephrology collaborated to update the corresponding Japanese term to describe DKD and clearly define the concept of DKD. In this review, we briefly described the history of kidney complications in individuals with diabetes and the Japanese definition of the DKD concept and provided our rationale for these changes.

The Performance of Kaizen Tasks Across Three Online Discrete Choice Experiment Surveys: An Evidence Synthesis.

Kaizen is a Japanese term for continuous improvement (kai ~ change, zen ~ good). In a kaizen task, a respondent makes sequential choices to improve an object's profile, revealing a preference path. Including kaizen tasks in a discrete choice experiment has the advantage of collecting greater preference evidence than pick-one tasks, such as paired comparisons. OBJECTIVE ANDMETHODS: So far, three online discrete choice experiments have included kaizen tasks: the 2020 US COVID-19 vaccination (CVP) study, the 2021 UK Children's Surgery Outcome Reporting (CSOR) study, and the 2023 US EQ-5D-Y-3L valuation (Y-3L) study. In this evidence synthesis, we describe the performance of the kaizen tasks in terms of response behaviors, conditional logit and Zermelo-Bradley-Terry (ZBT) estimates, and their standard errors in each of the surveys. Comparing the CVP and Y-3L, including hold-outs (i.e., attributes shared by all alternatives) seems to reduce positional behavior by half. The CVP tasks excluded multi-level improvements; therefore, we could not estimate logit main effects directly. In the CSOR, only 12 of the 21 logit estimates are significantly positive (p < 0.05), possibly due to the fixed attribute order. All Y-3L estimates are significantly positive, and their predictions are highly correlated (Pearson: logit 0.802, ZBT 0.882) and strongly agree (Lin: logit 0.744, ZBT 0.852) with the paired-comparison probabilities. These discrete choice experiments offer important lessons for future studies: (1) include warm-up tasks, hold-outs, and multi-level improvements; (2) randomize the attribute order (i.e., up-down) at the respondent level; and (3) recruit smaller samples of respondents than traditional discrete choice experiments with only pick-one tasks.

Do red and yellow flags indicate a danger zone?: Exploring Japanese university students’ beach safety behaviour and their perceptions of Australian beach safety signage

BackgroundCoastal drowning is a tragic regular occurrence in Australia, and in the decade 2012–2022, 455 overseas-born beachgoers drowned. Being one of the top five countries of international visitors who drown, Japanese tourists are an at-risk group. This study investigates Japanese university students’ knowledge of beach safety and their perceptions of Australian beach safety signage. MethodsThe present study conducted an online survey with 152 university students in Japan, comprising both closed and open questions. Although the survey was in Japanese, the signage terms used in the survey were in English as used in Australia. Descriptive analysis was conducted on the statistical data via SPSS and deductive thematic analysis was conducted on the open responses using Nvivo. Results90 % of them planned to visit beaches and 64 % would enter the water when or if visiting Australia. However, 60 % interpreted the safer supervised zone denoted by red and yellow flags as signifying a danger zone. Regardless of their English proficiency, almost none fully understood terms commonly used on safety and warning signs such as submerged objects, shore dump, shore break and rip currents, and 60 % of them didn’t know the Japanese term of rip currents, riganryuu. Visual icons were understood much better than these English terms. So what?This study explored a specific (i.e. Japanese) cultural perception and understanding of Australian beach signs beyond the scope of CALD communities. Future studies should continue exploring those of other cultures so Australian beach signs can be revised and improved based on scientific evidence.

An Analysis of Jargon used by Asian Comic Writers

This research aims to find out the jargon used by comic writers as a social group. This research was applying the qualitative descriptive method to collect data. The method used to analyze the meaning and function of jargon is descriptive analysis which is visible in each paragraph. Collecting data was carried out by finding out the jargon on Asian comics such as manga, manhwa, and manhua on the website. The results of this research show the meaning and function of jargon used by comic writers. Jargon is a variety of language which is used by certain social groups or professions and is not understood by other groups. Research regarding the use of jargon in Asian comics can be conclude that jargon is used by comic writers to describe their work. The jargon found is in the form of words, phrases, acronyms, and abbreviations. The function of jargon used by comic writers is to identify and describe the word. This research proves that the use of jargon is not only in other communities but also in the comic writing community. The weakness of this research is that some comics still use Chinese, Korean, and Japanese terms. This is because there are no equivalent English words that is suitable to describe it. The words are dantian, qi, and mana. Researcher hope this writing can be a reference for future researchers to do a researching in other aspects of comics relate with linguistics or language learning media. Keywords: Asian Comics, Comics Writer, Jargon, Language Variety, Sociolinguistic

Clipping and Blending Words in Japanese Internet Slang: Philosophical Perspective

Philosophy is a system of thought or rather a way of thinking that can be challenged. Philosophy is also a process, a way of searching for truth indefinitely. The philosophy of science, on the other hand, is a philosophical study that seeks to answer questions about the nature of science in terms of ontology, epistemology, and axiology. More than two decades ago, the world was stunned by a new technology known as the internet. As the internet matures into a technology that connects the world, the number of internet-related languages grows. Similarly, in Japanese, there are many words that were created and are related to the internet. There are special internet terms in Japanese that arose as a result of borrowing from English terms. There are also those that arise as a result of the word process. Some internet-specific terms, such as web or bug, are derived from English vocabulary that predates the internet. However, in Japanese, the term has been adapted into a new vocabulary related to the internet. This paper is designed to highlight the particular forming new words through the process of blending and clipping. This paper also intends to highlight philosophical aspects. It investigates the use of blend words and clipping in Japanese internet slang. In terms of internet in Japanese, the blending process consists of a combination of Japanese (wago) and English (gairaigo) words from different or the same word classes. Blends created from word which belong to the different words classes, the interpretation of their meaning generally involved straightforward process. Keywords: Clipping, Blending, Japanese, Internet slang

A New Dawn of the Samurai –The Insight of Kimeitsu no Yaiba’s Success and Comparing it with the Chinese Anime Industry

The Japanese Anime industry has grown wildly during the last few decades and has become one of the dominant forces in the media market in the 21st century. Among all the anime of Japan, one specific anime gained massive success in 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic started. The “Demon Slayer” (Kimeitsu no Yaiba) has defeated the well-known Spirited Away by Miyazaki Hayao and won the best-selling manga and movie of all time in Japanese anime-making history in a depression session of the industry. Its influence also went viral worldwide, especially in the younger generation, ages 10 to 20. The story of this anime is a traditional fairy tale of the brave saving the world, but the context of it is more Japanese-styled than others when the main characters are all samurai, and the villain is the “oni” (Japanese term for the monster). This study discovered several factors that contributed to Demon Slayer’s success from two perspectives: one is the usage of vital culturally represented elements, and another one is the shift made by the industry. This paper then discussed the anime industry in China. It used the “Nezha” anime to compare the existing inadequacies in the market and the possible ways to develop Chinese anime in an international market.

JUTSUNYM: INDEXICAL ALIGNMENT IN THE NAMING OF JUTSU IN COMIC, ANIMATION, AND VIDEO GAME SERIES

Studies on charactonym leave an underinvestigated field of moves or jutsu in Japanese. Characters in action comics, anime, and computer games are equipped with moves e.g. Goku with his iconic Kamehameha, Monkey D. Luffy with his Gomu Gomu no Pistol, and Spider Man with his Maximum Spider. We argue that these moves deserve their own umbrella in charactonym studies – we call it jutsunym. Though adopting a Japanese martial art term, jutsunym is not limited on Japanese media. Investigating a corpus of jutsu defining comic, anime, and game series through the lens of Smith’s Peircean names as signs and Rudnyckyj’s relevance of content and form which was later developed by Gerus-Tarnawecky’s theory in literary onomastics, we found that in naming a jutsu or a move, the authors tend to consider what we call as indexical alignment – an alignment between the names of the jutsu or the moves with narrative, mechanical, visual, and audial elements. Narrative elements align themselves with jutsu names through story and character, mechanical elements through connotative and denotative, visual elements through indicative and implicative, and audial elements through quoting and catchphrasing.

How many categories are there in crossmodal correspondences? A study based on exploratory factor analysis.

Humans naturally associate stimulus features of one sensory modality with those of other modalities, such as associating bright light with high-pitched tones. This phenomenon is called crossmodal correspondence and is found between various stimulus features, and has been suggested to be categorized into several types. However, it is not yet clear whether there are differences in the underlying mechanism between the different kinds of correspondences. This study used exploratory factor analysis to address this question. Through an online experiment platform, we asked Japanese adult participants (Experiment 1: N = 178, Experiment 2: N = 160) to rate the degree of correspondence between two auditory and five visual features. The results of two experiments revealed that two factors underlie the subjective judgments of the audiovisual crossmodal correspondences: One factor was composed of correspondences whose auditory and visual features can be expressed in common Japanese terms, such as the loudness-size and pitch-vertical position correspondences, and another factor was composed of correspondences whose features have no linguistic similarities, such as pitch-brightness and pitch-shape correspondences. These results confirm that there are at least two types of crossmodal correspondences that are likely to differ in terms of language mediation.

A Comparative Study of Indonesian and Japanese Classifiers

Abstract &#x0D; Classifiers belong to open class noun. All languages are naturally occupied with classifiers, yet the usage is various depending on how the language treats them. Japanese language, as an obligatory-classifier language, makes the classifiers compulsory, in contrast with an optional-classifier language, Indonesian language. Despite this, Japanese and Indonesian languages treat the classifiers syntactically and semantically similar. This article aims at revealing, both the semantic and syntactic differences and similarities between Japanese and Indonesian classifiers. The analysis shows that in terms of structure, Japanese and Indonesian classifiers are similar; however, each language demonstrates difference in classifier use. Japanese language has nineteen frequently used classifiers including two types which can replace others. They can change their form by fusing with its numeral adjective as in hitori (ichi-nin), ippiki (ichi-hiki), without affecting the whole meaning of the noun phrase. Indonesian classifiers cover of twenty-two optional types. Classifiers are often omitted in spoken form to avoid formality and some of them can also change their form by adding se- prior to the numeral adjective to indicate “one object” as in sebatang rokok.

A Survey of Changes in the Psychological State of Individuals with Social Withdrawal (hikikomori) in the Context of the COVID Pandemic

Background: The coronavirus disease (COVID) 2019 pandemic has been reported to have resulted in psychological disturbances. The Japanese term “hikikomori” refers to a state of preferring to stay at home. The COVID pandemic provided an opportunity to extend our current understanding of hikikomori by examining the psychological states of individuals who were in this state under lockdown, during which, paradoxically, their condition may have been adaptive. Methods: We administered a questionnaire to examine psychological changes among 600 people with hikikomori traits in Japan. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Subjective Stress Scale, and Stigma Questions for hikikomori were administered retrospectively at three time points. We also collected descriptive data regarding the participants’ coping strategies. Results: The participants’ sense of stigma regarding hikikomori was improved during the pandemic, whereas depression and anxiety worsened. The participants with ‘definite’ hikikomori (they met the diagnostic criteria) reported more severe depression and anxiety than those with ‘possible’ hikikomori. Their coping strategies were adaptive to the pandemic situation. Conclusion: Although the sense of stigma against hikikomori was improved and adaptive strategies were employed, the participants with hikikomori experienced a worsening of depression and anxiety during the COVID lockdowns. The improvement of stigma and the participants’ indoor adaptive coping strategies could not ameliorate the mental state of hikikomori. Therapeutic interventions should be considered in the future for definite hikikomori meeting the criteria.

Development of a lexicon of Japanese texture terms related to bakery products for a trained panel

Development of a lexicon of Japanese texture terms related to bakery products for a trained panel

Hikikomori: A Scientometric Review of 20 Years of Research

The Japanese term hikikomori was first used to describe prolonged social withdrawal in the 1990s. Since then, research across the world have reported similar prolonged social withdrawal in many countries outside Japan. This study systematically analyses the evolution of literature on hikikomori in the past 20 years to gain a better understanding of the development of the knowledge base on hikikomori since it garnered attention in Japan. Findings from the scientometric review indicate many perspectives on the etiology of hikikomori including cultural, attachment, family systems and sociological approaches. However, similarities with modern type depression, a novel psychiatric syndrome, have been proposed and there are signs of a recent paradigm shift of hikikomori as a society-bound syndrome rather than a cultural-bound syndrome unique to Japan. As research into hikikomori continues to grow, results from the review also highlight the need for a more universally shared definition of hikikomori in order to better consolidate cross-cultural research for meaningful and valid cross-cultural comparisons which can help to promote evidence-based therapeutic interventions for hikikomori.

Severe Hemolytic Anemia and Metabolic Acidosis at Birth with Glutathione Synthetase Deficiency and Progressive Neurological Symptoms on Follow-Up.

BACKGROUND Glutathione synthetase deficiency (GSD) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder caused by glutathione synthetase (GSS) gene variants that occur in 1 in 1 million individuals. The severe form of GSD is characterized by hemolytic anemia, metabolic acidosis with 5-oxoprolinuria, progressive neurological symptoms, and recurrent bacterial infections. This case report presents a male Japanese infant with severe hemolytic anemia and metabolic acidosis at birth caused by GSD, who developed progressive neurological symptoms on follow-up. CASE REPORT A Japanese male term infant developed severe hemolytic anemia and metabolic acidosis in the early neonatal period. We suspected GSD based on his symptoms and a high 5-oxoproline urine concentration. We began correcting his metabolic acidosis and administering vitamins C and E supplements. The patient required blood transfusion twice during the acute phase for hemolytic anemia. After age 1 month, he maintained good control of metabolic acidosis and hemolytic anemia. A definitive diagnosis of GSD was made based on high concentrations of 5-oxoproline in urine, low concentrations of glutathione and GSS activity in erythrocytes, and genetic testing. Several episodes of febrile convulsions were started at age 11 months, but none occurred after 2 years. At the last follow-up at age 25 months, metabolic acidosis and hemolytic anemia were well controlled, but he had mild neurodevelopmental delay. CONCLUSIONS This case report shows that GSD can present with severe hemolytic anemia and metabolic acidosis at birth, and manifest with subsequent neurological impairment despite early diagnosis and treatment. Therefore, a careful long-term follow-up that includes neurological evaluation is essential for patients with GSD.

Syntactic Features of the Japanese “-negau” and Korean “-himanghada” Sentence

This study examined the syntactic structure and characteristics of the sentence constructions using the Japanese term “-negau” and the corresponding Korean term “-himanghada.” The data for the study were extracted from “Syounagon” a corpus published by Japan’s National Institute of Japanese Language and Linguistics, and the example sentences were modified in a way that did not affect the study. Native Japanese and native Korean speakers assisted in determining the data’s sufficiency. The study’s results are summarized as follows. First, it is observed that the deep structure of the Japanese “-negau” and “-himanghada” sentence constructions are bi-clause structures in nature. These considerations were presented through the semantic domain and the phenomenon of honorific expression. Second, “-negau” and “-himanghada,” sentence constructions with a bi-clause sentence structure exhibit syntactic structures known as control and raising structures, depending on the functional characteristics of the sentence. The phenomenon of meaning interpretation of idiomatic expressions examined such conclusions. Third, the Japanese “-negau” and Korean “-himanghada” sentence constructions exhibit surface-level characteristics of the mono-clause sentence structure. This was suggested through the cleft sentence phenomenon that appears in the “-negau” and “-himanghada” sentence constructions. The results of the study, as described above, can be considered a universal characteristic that can be applied to other hopeful verb phrases found in Japanese and Korean.

Syntactic Features of the Japanese “-negau” and Korean “-himanghada” Sentence

This study examined the syntactic structure and characteristics of the sentence constructions using the Japanese term “-negau” and the corresponding Korean term “-himanghada.” The data for the study were extracted from “Syounagon” a corpus published by Japan’s National Institute of Japanese Language and Linguistics, and the example sentences were modified in a way that did not affect the study. Native Japanese and native Korean speakers assisted in determining the data’s sufficiency. The study’s results are summarized as follows. First, it is observed that the deep structure of the Japanese “-negau” and “-himanghada” sentence constructions are bi-clause structures in nature. These considerations were presented through the semantic domain and the phenomenon of honorific expression. Second, “-negau” and “-himanghada,” sentence constructions with a bi-clause sentence structure exhibit syntactic structures known as control and raising structures, depending on the functional characteristics of the sentence. The phenomenon of meaning interpretation of idiomatic expressions examined such conclusions. Third, the Japanese “-negau” and Korean “-himanghada” sentence constructions exhibit surface-level characteristics of the mono-clause sentence structure. This was suggested through the cleft sentence phenomenon that appears in the “-negau” and “-himanghada” sentence constructions. The results of the study, as described above, can be considered a universal characteristic that can be applied to other hopeful verb phrases found in Japanese and Korean.

Prolonged Social Withdrawal During Adolescence: Transdiagnostic Syndrome or a New Psychiatric Entity?

The Japanese term Hikikomori is used to describe a clinical condition in which young people present a prolonged social withdrawal and isolation. Hikikomori syndrome represents an emergent worldwide phenomenon but is still poorly reported and often misdiagnosed. This study investigates and describes an Italian hikikomori adolescent group. Socio-demographic and psychopathological profiles and the relationship between hikikomori and psychopathological conditions were analyzed. No gender difference, a medium-high intellectual level, and no correlation with socioeconomic status were highlighted among the clinical group. The relationship between social withdrawal and social anxiety was significant while no correlation was found with depressive symptoms. The presence of Hikikomori syndrome was also significant in Italian adolescents, suggesting that hikikomori is not a culture-bound syndrome related to the Japanese cultural context, but rather a syndrome occurring in the upper-medium class.

Provocation: prolonged maturation of beer is of unproven benefit

Approaches to brewing are suffused with dogmatic insistence that certain techniques are unequivocally linked to the delivery of quality products. Amongst these belief sets is the perseverance with prolonged maturation (or ‘conditioning’) times post-fermentation. Historically the justification for these lagering techniques was to allow settling of solids, carbonation, flavour maturation and removal of chill haze entities. As science and technology have advanced it is unequivocally the case that solids and chill haze precursors can be dealt with in short order and without the need for lengthy treatments. &#x0D; Equally it is perfectly possible to deliver specified levels of carbonation without the need for all the carbon dioxide to be introduced via yeast action. However, there remain many who feel that the nature of carbonation differs depending on which approach is taken. Herein lies one of the research areas that the author proposes. The perception of carbonation is not primarily due to bubble release on the palate, but rather is through the detection of carbonic acid. Is there a difference in the availability of this form of the gas depending on the mode of carbonation and to what extent does the adsorption of the carbonic acid on polypeptides in the beer have a role to play? &#x0D; In terms of flavour, the advocates for lagering insist that there needs to be a handling of vicinal diketones, acetaldehyde, and hydrogen sulphide. However, all of these can be controlled through attention to primary fermentation. Then, the proponents for maturation insist that there is a desirable release of non-volatile materials into beer, which substances supposedly benefit the balance and mouthfeel of the lager. These include amino acids and nucleotides. It seems to this author however that the likeliest explanation for the greatly increased levels of these materials and of pH is autolysis of yeast. This, together with the disadvantageous impact of increased free amino nitrogen and higher pH on aspects such as biological stability, flavour stability and foam, should convince any brewer that there is a sound argument for avoiding the prolonged contact of beer with yeast. Indeed, a metabolomic approach to studying changes in non-volatile substances under conditions where there is little or no autolysis, revealed no detectable changes in any entity. &#x0D; The author is open to being convinced that there are yet unidentified materials that are developed (whether through the action of viable yeast or by yeast autolysis) as beer is stored, substances which can be proven through sound organoleptic investigation to benefit the flavour of beer. Perhaps the Japanese term kokumi is what we are looking for here: ‘rich taste’. This is believed to be afforded by γ-glutamyl peptides and, inter alia, these are to be found in yeast extracts. Herein lies the second experimental approach that the author recommends for pursuit.