Vol.1,No.1 October,1985　

Title

Time series analysis of economic effect on political support

Author

Ken'ichi ISHII (University of Tokyo)

Summary

In this paper, relations from economic conditions to political support were investigated through time series analyses of aggregate level data. First, the auto-regression model was applied to the data in order to describe underlying processes of each dependent variable. Secondly, the cross-lagged correlation model was applied for identification of causal relationship beween economic conditions and political support. Thirdly, the non-recursive path analysis was used to analyze causal relationships among all variables used. It was found that (1) income has the direct effect on political support, (2) price has an indirect effect on political support and a direct effect on citizens' evaluation of economic well-being, and (3) government support is more susceptible to the economic conditions than support for the Government party.

Key words

time series analysis, economic effect, political support, auto-regression model, cross-lagged model

Title

The influence of appearance and self esteem on choice of a dating partner

Author

Yutaka MATSUI (Toyoko Gakuen Woman's Junior College)
Mariko YAMAMOTO (Tokyo Metropolitan University)

Summary

Male students differing in the degree of their self-esteem rated the impressions of ten female photographs and made a choice of their dating partner. The rating scales included 19 personality and appearance traits, liking scales, and the subjects' fear of rejection. Four factors emerged as a result of a factor analysis of the 19 personality and appearance traits: homeliness, physical attractiveness, liveliness, and individuality. The findings were as follows : (a) liking for females was not only determined by their physical attractiveness but also by their homeliness ; (b) subject's self-esteem did not influence whom they choose as his date ; (c) liking of the high self-esteem subjects (HSE) were influenced more strongly by the physical attractiveness of the female than the low self-esteem subjects (LSE); (d) only the LSE was attracted more to females with high individuality; (e) LSE's liking score was strongly influenced by fear-of-rejection score. These findings suggest that the matching hypothesis should take into account factors other than physical attractiveness, i.e. desirable personality traits judged from the appearance of the other sex and also the self-esteem of the subject.

Key words

physical attractiveness, interpersonal attraction, self-esteem, dating behavior, person perception

Title

The coping behavior of mentally handicapped and their families under the dual health care systems in Okinawan Islands

Author

Hideshi OHASHI (Tohoku University)
Sinsuke SAKUMICHI (Tohoku University)
Hiroko HORIKE (Tohoku University)

Summary

From social psychological point of view, we have approached the coping behavior of mentally handicapped and their families at the three neighbouring municipalities in Okinawan Island, where still flourishes the shamanism with indigenous faith healing system under the rapid infiltration of modern mental health care system. The main findings from the interview surveys administered to 203 patients and the intensive studies of 50 patients were as follows. (1) the six patterns of the coping behaviors. (2) the six factors influencing the coping behaviors: (a) complaints and behaviors of the sick person, (b) the attitudes of the sick person and his relatives toward the traditional culture, (c) sex and age norm, (d) physical and psychological distance to both health care systems, (e) the orientation by the agents in one system to the another, (f) the evaluation of the sick person and his relatives on the effects of the treatmet/healing. (3) the five stages of the reliance on the faith healing. Based on these findings and theoretical constructs, we examined three typical cases.

Key words

shamanism, shaman, faith healing, dual health care system, coping behavior

Title

Stereotyped images of nationalities by American and Japanese college students by means of "Super Matrix MDS"

Author

Yoshihiro KAWANA (University of Tokyo)
Bibb LATANE (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

Summary

In order to study commonalities and differences in the structure of stereotyped images of 15 nationalities held by Americans and Japanese, methods by which both nationalities and ascribed traits are represented in the same MDS space have been introduced. Among three "object-attribute MDS methods", "Super Matrix MDS method" proved to be appropriate for studying cognitive structure of images of nationalities visually, quantitatively and comparatively. A comparative study of stereotyped images of nationalities held by American and Japanese college students showed that the political and ideological aspect is salient for the American subjects and the productive and developmental aspect for the Japanese subjects. Hierarchical cluster analysis, multiple regression and discrepancy analysis of stimuli revealed similarities and differences of clustering of peoples in the world and of cognitive structures between the American and Japanese subjects.

Key words

national stereotypes, images of nationalities, Americans and Japanese, Super Matrix, MDS

Title

Analysis of decision making process in prosocial behavior

Author

Kazuhisa TAKEMURA (Doshisya University)
Osamu TAKAGI (Kansai University)

Summary

A method of monitoring information acquisition was used to examine directly the decision making process presumed to underlie prosocial behavior. Subjects simulated the process in which they selected a behavior from available behavioral alternatives which were expected to occur in a situation where donating was needed. In the early decision period, subjects employed search strategies designed to eliminate some of the available behavioral alternatives on the basis of only a few attributes such as behavioral costs. On the other hand, in the late-decision period, subjects employed search strategies consistent with the behavioral alternative-wise decision making process presumed to underlie both Fishbein (1967) and Schwartz & Howard (1980, 1981, 1982) models. Data also indicated that the decision making process, the search strategies and the cognitive importance of individual behavioral attributes, varied according to the decision making period. These results suggested that a prosocial decision making process model incorporating decision making periods was needed.

Key words

prosocial behavior, donating behavior, decision making process, monitoring information acquisition, information search strategy

Title

A tentative model of consumer's decision making in the hoarding panic

Author

Yukio HIROSE (Nagoya University)

Summary

This study proposes a tentative model of consumer's decision making in the hoarding panic and presents some evidence that in the present system of goods distribution the hoarding panic is triggered easily by less than 10% of total consumers. The toilet paper hoarding panic in 1973 in Kansai is divided into four sequential stages; precursor, outbreak, expansion, and termination of panic. Four categories of consumers, based on different decision making processes are hypothesized, corresponding with each stage. The early hoarding consumer begins to lay in a large stock from a self-reward maximization motive, anticipating the high rise in price of toilet paper by low credible rumor. The middle hoarding consumer acts by indirect support of the rumor from newspaper accounts. The late hoarding consumer rushes into hoarding from a defensive motive, strongly afraid of life without toilet paper. The no-hoarding consumer with enough stock is also dragged into the tragedy of commons, thus suffering from high price caused by panic.

Key words

panic, tragedy of commons, rumor, consumer category, decision making