Relationship between conscious and unconscious processes: Subliminal mere exposure effects for targets in a negative social category are moderated by similarity to self and stimulus

The effects of subliminal mere exposure on the assessment of the “Otaku” (“geek” or “nerd”) category were found to be maximized when a handful of atypical members (non-Otaku) were grouped with several typical members (Otaku). We examined whether similarity to self and stimulus (i.e., self-reported Otaku tendencies) moderated the mere exposure effect in relation to an Otaku target. Participants reported the degree to which they regarded themselves as Otaku. Participants were then exposed to stimuli with different contact ratios (70% Otaku, 30% Otaku, 0% Otaku, and control) following the procedure described in a previous study (Kawakami and Yoshida, 2013). Participants then reported their subjective impressions of an Otaku target. Participants who self-identified as Otaku evaluated the target more negatively on the explicit measure when exposed to a stimulus that mixed Otaku and non-Otaku. These findings indicate that participants who self-identified as Otaku exhibited an aversion to in-group members (“dozoku keno”). These patterns suggest that subliminal mere exposure effects for targets are moderated by similarity to self and stimulus. The unconscious and conscious processes of interpersonal cognition are discussed.本研究の一部は第11回ドリームチャレンジ賞（H29）研究費により行われました。本論文は，広島大学大学院教育学研究科心理学専攻に提出した平成29年度修士論文をもとに執筆したものである。本研究の一部は，日本社会心理学会第57回大会（2016年度）および中四国心理学会第72回大会（2016年度）で発表した。しかし，上記の学会発表では執筆者の不手際により，誤った分析結果を発表していた。再分析した結果が29年度修士論文および本論文の結果になる

Shift-and-Persist strategy research: recent findings, current challenges, and future directions

The purpose of this article is to clarify the findings of previous studies on the Shift-and-Persist strategy (S-P strategy) in a low socioeconomic status context, to introduce its theoretical models, and to make suggestions concerning the future direction of this research. First, we describe the relevant aspects of socioeconomic status and the harmful effects of low levels of socioeconomic status. Second, we describe the S-P strategy, which is a protective factor against the negative effects of socioeconomic status, and then review the findings of previous empirical studies. Third, we discuss three unconsidered issues regarding the S-P strategy in order to elaborate its theoretical model: 1) the external validity of the S-P strategy in Japan, 2) the impact of a stable and positive role model, and 3) how the S-P strategy effects the psychological benefits of low socioeconomic status during a threat. Finally, we offer suggestions for future research. It is highly possible that the S-P strategy will be a useful approach in various fields, so these issues should be clarified in future research

Past and Future of Conformity Research: The Need to Focus on Motivation

Conformity has been studied in social and evolutionary psychology for over half a century. These studies have led to the development of a number of theories that explain why conformity occurs. One such study, which has received particular attention in educational and developmental psychology, claims that conformity occurs because of adjustment. This study explains why adolescents conform to their peers more than to adults. However, the results of studies examining the relationship between conformity and adjustment have been inconsistent, and the validity of the theory has not been empirically demonstrated. The relationship between conformity and adjustment has been one of the sources of evidence for clinical interventions for problem behaviors, such as risk-taking, bullying, and sexual deviance in adolescents. Nevertheless, the validity of those interventions is questionable because the theory has not been proven. In order to solve this problem, it is necessary to examine and demonstrate the relationship between conformity and adjustment from a new perspective. This process is the first step in providing more valid and accurate clinical support for adjustment. In this paper, we examine in detail what perspectives should be considered in future conformity research

Effects of cognitive strategies on behavioral intentions towards strangers: A replication study in the United Kingdom

Previous studies have examined the effects of four cognitive strategies (defensive pessimism (DP), strategic optimism (SO), realistic pessimism (RP), and unjustified optimism (UO)) on cognitive and behavioral patterns in task-related situations. In this context, Shimizu, Nakashima, & Morinaga (2016) found that a tendency toward DP was associated with considerate and respectful behavioral intentions and provided insights into the functions of cognitive strategies in interpersonal contexts. This finding was replicated by Shimizu, Abe, & Nakashima (2020), who showed that UOs had less considerate and respectful behavioral intentions than RPs and SOs. In the present study, we attempted to examine whether the findings of Shimizu et al. (2020) could be replicated in a British adult population (N = 186) who participated in an online survey. Path analysis showed that the association between cognitive strategies and behavioral intentions was not replicated, although the model presented in Shimizu et al. (2020) was fitted (CFI = .99，RMSEA = .05，SRMR = .03). Differences in the functioning of cognitive strategies among participant age groups and cultures are discussed.本研究は，JSPS科研費（17J04187）の補助を受けて行われた

Application of the symbolic regression program AI-Feynman to psychology

The discovery of hidden laws in data is the core challenge in many fields, from the natural sciences to the social sciences. However, this task has historically relied on human intuition and experience in many areas, including psychology. Therefore, discovering laws using artificial intelligence (AI) has two significant advantages. First, it makes it possible to detect laws that humans cannot discover. Second, it will help construct more accurate theories. An AI called AI-Feynman was released in a very different field, and it performed impressively. Although AI-Feynman was initially designed to discover laws in physics, it can also work well in psychology. This research aims to examine whether AI-Feynman can be a new data analysis method for inter-temporal choice experiments by testing whether it can discover the hyperbolic discount model as a discount function. An inter-temporal choice experiment was conducted to accomplish these objectives, and the data were input into AI-Feynman. As a result, seven discount function candidates were proposed by AI-Feynman. One candidate was the hyperbolic discount model, which is currently considered the most accurate. The three functions of the root-mean-squared errors were superior to the hyperbolic discount model. Moreover, one of the three candidates was more “hyperbolic” than the standard hyperbolic discount function. These results indicate two things. One is that AI-Feynman can be a new data analysis method for inter-temporal choice experiments. The other is that AI-Feynman can discover discount functions that humans cannot find

内集団アイデンティティの重層的な変動メカニズムについての検討 : 社会的カテゴリーの相対的有意味性モデルの観点から <学位論文要旨>

Although previous research found that many factors facilitate in-group identification, past studies did not consider the interactive effects of intra-group and inter-group factors (e.g., ingroup social values). Therefore, my first purpose in this doctoral study was to explain in-group identification change from the perspective of comparative change of categories' meaningfulness. The questionnaire survey and The experiment supported the prediction that interaction with other in-group members and a high level of value synergistically promoted in-group identification and suggested a high level of context-dependent meaningfulness of inter-group factors. My second purpose was to develop this approach on a basis of multi-level infl uence processes among individual, interpersonal, group, social, and cultural factors. The minimal group paradigm and the longitudinal questionnaire survey focused on the effect of independent and interdependent self-construal, as an individual factor implying cultural-level differences, which present a threat to self-esteem from a personal task-relevant stress or interpersonal stress on in-group favoritism. For buffering threats to self-esteem, independents identify more than interdependents with the in-group. Moreover, the questionnaire survey allowed an examination of the effect of the in-group's social value as a sociallevel factor. The results showed that independents, who reported more threats to their self-esteem, identifi ed more with the in-group only when the ingroup's value was high. Interdependents showed less in-group identification, regardless of the ingroup's value. The results also suggested that such a multi-level approach enables a possible expansion from individual to cultural factors