This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Ryback, D. Articles by Miki, Y. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Japanese Psychology in Crisis: Thinking Inside the (Empty) Box

Atlanta, Georgia

Akira Ikemi

Kobe College in Osaka, Japan

Toru Kuno

Sanno Junior College Jiyugaoka in Tokyo

Yoshihiko Miki

Osaka University

In part because of the information revolution, Japan is experiencing a crisis in culture. Because it is more sensitive to culture than other approaches, humanistic psychology may have much to offer in this time of crisis, particularly because of the Japanese value of inner privacy. Tomoda has explored ways of translating Rogers’s approach into a Japanese context of Zen, including the use of renku, a form of poetry collectively written by members of a group exploring their process in "a vague atmosphere of togetherness." Another approach to bridging the East/West gap is explored in Naikan therapy in which an empathic therapist visits the client who sits and meditates on the dynamics of his or her personal relationships during a weeklong retreat. In the end, it is thinking inside the box, contrary to Western contemporary values, that seems to make humanistic psychology work for the Japanese, whose aesthetic values have persevered through the ages.

Journal of Humanistic Psychology, Vol. 41, No. 4, 124-136 (2001)
DOI: 10.1177/0022167801414008


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?