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This study explored multitasking among elderly drivers, whose cognitive function declines with age. Experiment 1 demonstrated that elderly drivers struggled more with simultaneous calculation and driving tasks compared to younger drivers. Experiment 2 analyzed individuals unaffected by multitasking and found that the elderly drivers in this group experienced more mind-wandering when driving alone. The findings highlight the unique challenges faced by elderly drivers in managing multitasking situations, providing insights into their cognitive demands and performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world surrounding us possesses temporally and spatially organized structures deriving from various physical laws. By leveraging these spatiotemporal structures of the external environment as prior information, the visual system compensates for uncertain and unreliable sensory information, facilitating efficient and adaptive perceptual processing. The serial dependence in visual perception refers to the phenomenon where the perception of current stimulus is biased toward previously seen stimuli, suggesting that the brain interprets a series of similar events occurring in succession as continuous events with the same origin. In this paper, we introduce our recent research on serial dependence and discuss its individual differences, and discuss how each individual acquires statistical information in the environment and to what extent they can utilize the acquired prior information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we tested the following hypotheses; Employees with higher Privileged Self (PS) would (1) feel more comfortable working from home than working from office, and (2) perceive the change from working-fromoffice to telecommuting as more positive. The participants were 146 single, living alone, aged 20-49, company employees, who were not working from home before the Corona disaster (January 2020) and were working from home 1-4 days per week at the time of the survey (October 2020). Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was performed with the difference score subtracting the comfort level of working from office from the comfort level of working at home as the response variable (N=133), and found that the higher the PS score, the larger the difference score, even after controlling for age, gender, and Interpersonal Sensitivity score. Next, a hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted using the perceived score of the change from working-from-office to telecommuting as the response variable (N=105), and similar results were obtained. These findings supported the hypotheses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to clarify the following two points based on a questionnaire survey in the context of failure in important academic tests. 1) The effects of achievement-related affections evoked at the time of failure on the subsequent coping behavior, and 2) the effects of daily social support on coping behavior, focusing on individual differences in gender and negative rumination traits. A total of 283 university students responded to the online survey. The affection of incompetence had a positive main effect on problem-avoiding coping behavior in men and a negative main effect on problem-solving coping behavior in women. Further, the affection of anticipation of punishment showed a positive main effect on both coping behaviors only in women. The evaluative support showed a negative main effect on problem-avoidance coping behavior in women. Furthermore, an interaction effect between negative rumination traits and social support was confirmed in men's problem-solving coping behavior. These findings indicate that the effect of social support on coping behavior differs depending on gender and negative rumination traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purposes of this study were to confirm the reliability and validity of the Circumstance Utilization Skills Scale（CPFOST）and to clarify the temperamental basis of the circumstance utilization skills in relation to the behavioral inhibition/activation systems（BIS/BAS）. Study 1 tested the reliability and validity of the CPFOST in 228 university students. As a result, the CPFOST had sufficient internal consistency and validity. In Study 2, the temperamental basis was examined in the circumstance utilization skills in relation to the BIS/BAS. Analysis of data from 145 university students revealed that BIS prevents the formation of circumstance utilization skills, while BAS may encourage the formation of circumstance utilization skills. In addition, the interaction effect of BIS and BAS was confirmed in the “interpersonal ties” skill in the circumstance utilization skills. These results suggest that that BIS/BAS are the temperamental basis for skills in circumstance utilization and suggest the need for career education and support considering such individual differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synesthesia is a phenomenon in which sensory inputs trigger additional percepts or cognitive processes. This article outlines a method to conduct psychological experiments with synesthetes. However, synesthesia is a subjective conscious experience possessed by only a small percentage of people, therefore, various difficulties arise when treating synesthesia as a subject of empirical psychological research. Consequently, we introduce definitions of synesthesia and the methods of objective measurement of synesthesia in psychological research proposed in previous studies. We further discuss various individual differences among synesthetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, research on positive emotions has increased globally, including in Japan. However, the difficulties of experimentally eliciting positive emotions have not improved sufficiently. This article identified three difficulties faced by researchers when experimentally evoking positive emotions. These trends include (1) the significant influence of context, including individual differences; (2) the undifferentiated nature of different positive emotions; and (3) difficulties in measuring bodily responses to positive emotions, which are calm and inactive. To overcome these difficulties, I have proposed the potential of field studies in which researchers can observe spontaneous, positive emotions in daily life by citing examples of cosmetics studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated individual differences in responses to the new Schadenfreude Scale, which was named the Japanese Version of the Trait Schadenfreude Scale (J-TSS). In Study 1, the 54 items of the original scale were translated into Japanese, and a survey was conducted with Japanese undergraduates (n＝ 301). The items for the Japanese scale were extracted by item analysis and the content validity of the items was re-examined. Factor analysis indicated that the new J-TSS consists of two factors. The reliability of the J-TSS was confirmed, and each subscale was developed. In Study 2, a test battery consisting of the J-TSS and another scale was administered to two samples of university students (n＝183 and 184). The results of Study 2 corroborated the previous study. However, the precise validity of the scale was not established due to the procedure for examining the accurate expression of items in Japan. The future possibilities of J-TSS are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempted to develop a Representation Style Inventory (RSI) for measuring individual differences in the preference and experiences for object-visual, spatial-visual, and verbal thinking. On the basis of factor analysis, we obtained three factors in the questionnaire. A 10-item object-visual thinking scale assesses preferences and experiences for representing colorful, pictorial, and high-resolution images of individual objects or scenes; a 10-item spatial-visual thinking scale assesses preferences and experiences for representing schematic images and spatial locations of objects; and a 10-item verbal thinking scale assesses preferences and experiences for processing verbal information. Additionally, the RSI demonstrated acceptable internal reliability as well as construct and criterion-related validity. This study's results showed that the RSI is useful for measuring preferences and experiences for object-visual, spatial-visual, and verbal thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origin of imagery ability is an important issue that has not yet been clarified. This paper attempts to discuss, from two perspectives, the possibility that individual differences in imagery ability have innate bases. The first is an attempt to infer hypothetically the innate bases of imagery ability by referring to the findings from behavioral genetic studies for the characteristics of the imagery test scores' distribution, personality factors that relate to individual differences in imagery ability, and the mechanisms on which imagery ability is based. The second is an attempt in children to confirm individual imagery differences similar to adults and to infer the innate bases of imagery ability based on the findings in children that verify the predictive efficacy of imagery tests on cognitive tasks and events, and findings regarding how children respond to imagery tests. In this paper, imagery ability dimensions, that is, vividness, controllability, preference (imagery type), and absorption, are considered. Based on the findings from behavioral genetic studies, it can be inferred that imagery ability has innate bases in the following points: (a) Positive skews in the score distributions of vividness, controllability and visualization may indicate the universality of image generation. (b) Personality factors that relate to imagery traits have innate bases: temperaments (combination of neuroticism and version, and persistence), aesthetic sensitivity, repressive tendency/ego permissiveness for vividness, neuroticism for controllability, openness and self-transcendence for absorption, and also neuroticism for fantasy proneness. (c) Mechanisms on which imagery ability is based have innate bases: large capacity of visual working memory for vividness and preference, neuropsychological bases for vividness and imagery type, executive functions of working memory for controllability, encodings that correspond to imagery type for preference, and strong imaginative involvement and induction of relaxation for absorption. Based on the findings from developmental studies in children, it can be confirmed that individual imagery differences similar to adults have already become actualized in schoolchildren, which suggests the involvement of innate factors in a similar way to adults: (a) For all imagery ability dimensions, imagery tests have predictive efficacy for cognitive tasks and events in children, which contributes equally to adults in identifying mechanisms of imagery ability. (b) Children's responses to imagery tests are very similar to those of adults, especially with the following basic characteristics in common: the cross-modality characteristic of vividness, the loose associations between each of the dimensions, the positive skews in the score distributions of vividness, controllability and visualization, and the normality of the absorption scores. The very expectation that behavioral genetic studies will be conducted on each dimension of imagery ability, and the need for research into individual imagery differences in young children and longitudinal studies are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The offensive subtype of Taijin Kyofusho (offensive TKS) involves the fear of offending others. While offensive TKS and social anxiety disorder (SAD) present similar pathology, the former is notably different from SAD in that the fear is other-oriented. However, few studies have investigated the individual differences that predict the symptoms unique to offensive TKS and SAD. The present study examined the behavioral inhibition/activation systems (BIS/BAS) and over-adaptation tendency as potential predictive factors using a questionnaire-based survey. In all, 274 undergraduates completed questionnaires measuring TKS tendency, social anxiety tendency, BIS/BAS, over-adaptation tendency, and depressive tendency. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the BIS/BAS was a unique predictor of SAD, whereas overadaptation tendency was a unique predictor of offensive TKS. Therefore, the results suggest that offensive TKS and SAD have different psychological mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to clarify the function of cram schools’ counseling support for students and parents from the cram schools' perspective and to investigate the relationship between providing counseling support and variations in cram school teachers' job satisfaction and exhaustion. Survey participants consisted of 440 cram school teachers. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that counseling support was divided into 3 functions: (a) providing care and support for students; (b) facilitating students’ communication with their parents; and (c) being empathetic towards parents. Furthermore, satisfaction was classified into impact on students and self-sufficiency, while exhaustion was classified into being busy and patient and failure to respond to student needs. Structured equation modeling found that cram school teachers who were satisfied with their impact on students provided more of the 3 types of counseling support mentioned above. In addition, cram school teachers who were exhausted by the failure to respond to student needs provided more care and support for students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The items of the Cognition of Lying Scale were developed based on the expectancy-value theory in terms of expectancy and the value of telling lies. A factor analysis of undergraduates’ responses indicated three factors: Cognition of negative aspects of lying (7 items), Cognition of the potential for lying well (4 items), and Cognition of the genetic determination for lying well (3 items). Studies 1 and 2 confirmed that the Cognition of Lying Scale is reliable and has construct validity. The relationships between the factors and the number of lies told on the previous day were examined in Study 3, which indicated that Cognition of negative aspects of lying was negatively correlated with the number of lies told on the previous day. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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People differ in how sensitive they are to justice or injustice, how easily they ruminate on injustice, and how strongly they feel justice-related emotions such as anger and guilt. This individual difference can be measured by the Justice Sensitivity Inventory (JSI; Schmitt et al., 2010), which is divided into four components: sensitivity to becoming a victim ot injustice, sensitivity to observing injustice, sensitivity to passively benefiting from injustice, and sensitivity to actively committing injustice. Each sensitivity has a different effect on various aspects of human behavior (e.g., cooperation) as well as mental and physical health. JSI is available in German, English, Chinese, and many other languages, but not in Japanese. This study (n = 453) aimed to develop a Japanese version of JSI (JSI-J) and a short version of it, examining their reliability and validity. They were coiifinned to be reliable and valid, except for some items. An effective usage of JSI-J and its short version will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent researches on single cell analysis have provided important results showing differences between the individual cells even in the same culture group. On-chip cell sorting techniques represented by the fluorescent-activated cell sorting (FACS) using microfluidic chips have greatly contributed to these analyses because of their remarkable high-throughput ability. Currently, the cell sorting faces to a chance of further leap with the aid of microfabrication technologies and microfluidic flow control technologies for constructing the high-throughput system. In this article, we give a commentary for the on-chip cell sorting from the sight of sorting methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The McGurk effect is a well-known illusion that demonstrates the influence of visual speech on voice perception（ McGurk & MacDonald, 1976）. This effect has robustness, but also diversity. In this paper, we review results of previous studies regarding two topics on diversity of the McGurk effect: cultural differences between Japanese and English speakers （e.g., Sekiyama & Tohkura, 1991; Sekiyama, 1994）, and the difference between individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder（ ASD） and neurotypical individuals（ e.g., de Gelder, Vroomen & van der Heide, 1991）. The differential gaze patterns toward a speaker's face between the cultures seem to account for the cultural differences of the McGurk effect, but not for the difference between neurotypical and ASD. Although further investigations are required to clarify why McGurk effect is weaker in ASD population, I argue that atypical multisensory integration in ASD population would be the most promising account currently available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multisensory studies have mainly focused on the manner of integration processes. We investigated learning mechanisms underlying the integration, and found that 3-minutes adaptation could establish a new multisensory relationship between arbitrary sounds and visual motion information even for the adults' brain. We also demonstrated the inhibitory aspect of multisensory interaction: Tactile or auditory stimulation could suppress the perception of visual stimuli. Furthermore, we showed that the manner of multisensory interaction differed depending on the degree of autistic traits among general population. These findings would contribute to further understandings of underlying mechanisms of multisensory interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have focused on “transportation into narratives,” conceptualizing narrative experiences through which readers are lost in the narrative world. In the current study, we translated two scales assessing narrative transportation: the Narrative Transportation Scale (NTS-J), developed by Green and Brock (2000), and a short form of the Narrative Transportation Scale (NTS-SF), developed by Appel et al. (2015). Studies 1 (N=920) and 2 (N=275) demonstrated that these scales not only have sufficient reliability but also a correlation with scales measuring imaginative involvement and literary response, suggesting criterion-related validity. Confirmatory factor analysis based on a one-factor model expected from previous studies revealed that the NTS-J had low goodness-of-fit indices. However, the same analysis of the NTS-SF showed better indices. Although the factor structure of the NTS remains to be investigated, the Japanese version of the NTS contributes to psychological research on reading narratives and empirical studies in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study developed a scale to measure the respect-related emotional traits (the Trait Respect-Related emotions Scale) for late adolescence and examined the reliability and validity. In study 1,368 university students completed the items of the Trait Respect-Related Emotions Scale and other scales of theoretically important personality constructs including adult attachment style, the “Big Five,” self-esteem, and two types of narcissistic personality. Factor analysis indicated that there are three factors of trait respect-related emotions: (a) trait (prototypical) respect; (b) trait idolatry (worship and adoration); and (c) trait awe. The three traits associated differentially with the daily experience (frequency) of the five basic respect-related emotions (prototypical respect, idolatry, awe, admiration, and wonder), and other constructs. In Study 2, a test-retest correlation of the new scale with 60 university students indicated good reliability. Both studies generally supported the reliability and validity of the new scale. These findings suggest that, at least in late adolescence, there are large individual differences in respect related emotion experiences and the trait of respect should be considered as multi-dimensional structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mindfulness is described as a process of bringing a certain quality of attention to moment-by-moment experience. Levels of attention functions have been suggested to predict individual differences in mindfulness. The present study examines how aspects of attention functions are associated with dispositional mindfulness. University students (N=74) completed the Attention Network Test (Fan et al., 2002) and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (Baer et al., 2006). The results of hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed an interaction between orienting attention and alerting attention which predicted mindfulness. Simple slope analysis showed that higher orienting attention was associated with higher mindfulness when alerting attention was low-level. On the other hand, higher orienting attention was associated with lower mindfulness when alerting attention was high-level. These results indicate that attention functions are predictors of mindfulness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working memory is a system for processing and storing information. The Reading Span Test (RST), developed by Daneman and Carpenter (1980), is well-known for assessing individual difference in working memory. In the present investigation, we used the Japanese version of the RST (Osaka, 2002) and analyzed individual differences in strategy use from the viewpoint of strategy type (rehearsal, chaining, word-image, scene-image, and initial letter) and frequency of use (used in almost all trials, in half the trials, or not used). Data from the participants (N = 132) were assigned to groups according to the scores, for the total number of words correctly recalled and the proportion correct. The results showed that the frequency of word-image strategy use differed significantly between high-scoring subjects (HSS) and low-scoring subjects (LSS). HSS mainly used word-image and chaining strategies, while LSS used rehearsal and chaining strategies. This indicates that HSS used both verbal and visual strategies, whereas LSS relied only on verbal strategies. The use of the word-image is important for effective retention of words in memory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effect of working memory on learning from texts. In Experiment 1, participants preformed a word clustering task involving key words from an explanatory text (pretest), and then read the text, which was presented sentence-by-sentence. Next, they performed a second clustering task (post-test), a problem solving task, and a reading span test (RST). The results suggested that the individual differences of the RST scores correlated with the scores for problem solving. In Experiment 2, the results suggested that the individual differences of the RST scores influenced the clustering performance at the level of the situation model when the text was presented all together. Moreover, the result of multiple dimension scaling suggested that the situation models of high-span readers reflected the structure of the text more than those of low-span readers. These results indicate that readers with high reading span scores construct coherent situation models of texts and make use of them for learning from texts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the cognitive dimensions used by individuals in judging work performance based on the individual scale methodology of Hayashi, Ohashi, & Hirooka (1983). The participants were fifteen undergraduate students and nine workers. First, the participants described the characteristics of eight high performers and eight low performers whom they had worked with. Second, from these characteristics, they selected twenty characteristics that they considered as determinants in judging whether performers are superior or inferior. Third, using an individual scale consisting of the selected characteristics, they rated sixteen high performers and sixteen low performers. Factor analyses were conducted for each participant's ratings on the individual scale. The results suggested that three or four dimensions were generally used in judging performers, although there were individual differences in the number of dimensions used. Undergraduate students judged performers using more cognitive dimensions than workers did. The contents of the cognitive dimensions were relevant to technical skill, work attitude, cognitive ability, motivation, interpersonal competence, leadership, and personality. Undergraduate students used fewer cognitive ability dimensions and more personality dimensions than workers used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More and more college students are turning to Web resources for gathering information for their report writing. Many of them, however, use websites inefficiently and seem unaware of their limitations. Existing Website evaluation tools show lack of effectiveness. Furthermore, at present there are only a few website evaluation tools developed in Japan. The purpose of this study is to introduce the process of making an evaluation scale for websites as information resources, and to examine the effectiveness of the scale. A literature review of previous studies has made it clear that evaluation criteria for websites have two main dimensions. They are: (1) information reliability and (2) accessibility to information. The former dimension consists of five sub-dimensions: authority, accuracy/objectivity, coverage, currency/stability, and purpose/audience. For each of the five sub-dimensions and the second main dimension, twenty evaluation items were chosen. A 20-item/6-point Likert-scale Website evaluation scale was then created. Effectiveness of the Website scale was examined using two experiments. In the first experiment, subjects were 110 Japanese college students and 5 specialists. The subjects assessed two kinds of Websites by using the scale. The two Websites were deliberately created so that their quality differed, one of a higher quality, and the other, a lower quality. The results of the experiment have shown the scale to possess a high level of stability, and that individual differences did not have significant effect in Website evaluation. The Website scale was found to be easy-to-use and suitable for most users. In the second experiment, subjects used in the experiments were 91 Japanese college students. The subjects went over the 60 items in the checklist for Website evaluation before and after assessing the Website using the Website scale. The results of the checklist taken before and after the evaluation of website were compared. The result also suggests that the student's consciousness in Website evaluation has risen, and essential skill in evaluating websites as information resources was acquired by using the Website scale. These findings have indicated that the Website scale is indeed an effective tool for persons who use websites as information resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated individual differences in the influence of anxiety on memory after acute stress. Students were assigned to a stress condition (n = 26) or a control condition (n = 26). A er completing an anxiety scale, the participants were exposed to either a stressor or a non-stressful task. Then they learned neutral, positive, and negative word lists of 10 words each, followed by a 15 min filler task and then a recall test. The results showed that recall performance for positive words was enhanced in the stress condition, but only for the high anxiety group. There was a different pattern of memory bias for the high anxiety group between the stress and control conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]