The 1.03 million yen ceiling and earnings inequality among married women in Japan

In this paper, we examine the impact of the `1.03 million yen ceiling,' a means-tested transfer scheme for secondary earners in Japan, on earnings inequality of married women. We find that the decline in earnings inequality among married women between 1993 and 2003 is attributable to the increase in the number of wives with low earnings and the decrease in the number of wives with zero earnings.Coefficient of variation, 1.03 million yen ceiling, Japan

The Function of Religious Language in the Media: A Comparative Analysis of the Japanese, German and American Newspaper Coverage about the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

When an incident or event in a certain region will be reported by the mass media in a different language, the choice of expressions, the perspective and aim of their message will differ. This study analyzes the news coverage of events related to the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in German, American and Japanese newspapers. It will aim to uncover expressional differences in the coverage on a similar topic reported in different languages. This research especially focuses on the use of religious language in the coverage, which in this paper refers to religious metaphors and symbols originating from a Christian context. Previous research shows that the use of religious language in the media, affects consumers mentally and emotionally. Based on that theory, this study compares how religious language is used in the coverage and tries to clarify the functions of religious expressions through a critical discourse analysis. The results show that religious language appears continuously in German and American news reports related to the disaster. Religious language is mostly used symbolically as well as metaphorically in order to illustrate the destruction caused by the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster, while at the same time conveying emotions such as the fear of the victims. It is also used to describe the difficulties, suffering and hope of the people in the disaster-hit area. Moreover religious language provokes emotions in the readers and makes it easier for them to understand the situation in Japan as well as the feelings of the disaster refugees.  A difference between the German and American news coverage was seen in the description of the situation at the nuclear power plant and the state of the victims in Fukushima and the Tohoku region. In Germany, religious language can change the viewpoint of and provoke emotions in the readers. It is also employed to emphasize domestic social and political problems related to German energy policy

Polymerized Laminin-332 Matrix Supports Rapid and Tight Adhesion of Keratinocytes, Suppressing Cell Migration

Laminin-332 (α3ß3γ2) (Lm332) supports the stable anchoring of basal keratinocytes to the epidermal basement membrane, while it functions as a motility factor for wound healing and cancer invasion. To understand these contrasting activities of Lm332, we investigated Lm332 matrices deposited by normal human keratinocytes and other Lm332-expressing cell lines. All types of the cells efficiently deposited Lm332 on the culture plates in specific patterns. On the contrary, laminins containing laminin ß1 and/or γ1 chains, such as Lm511 and Lm311, were not deposited on the culture plates even if secreted into culture medium. The Lm332 deposition was not inhibited by function-blocking antibodies to the α3 and α6 integrins but was inhibited by sodium selenate, suggesting that sulfated glycosaminoglycans on cell surface, e.g. heparan sulfate proteoglycans, might be involved in the process. HEK293 cells overexpressing exogenous Lm332 (Lm332-HEK) almost exclusively deposited Lm332 on the plates. The deposited Lm332 matrix showed a mesh-like network structure as analyzed by electron microscopy, suggesting that Lm332 was highly polymerized. When biological activity was analyzed, the Lm332 matrix rather suppressed the migration of keratinocytes as compared with purified Lm332, which highly promoted the cell migration. The Lm332 matrix supported adhesion of keratinocytes much more strongly and stably than purified Lm332. Integrin α3ß1 bound to the Lm332 matrix at a three times higher level than purified Lm332. Normal keratinocytes prominently showed integrin α6ß4-containing, hemidesmosome-like structures on the Lm332 matrix but not on the purified one. These results indicate that the polymerized Lm332 matrix supports stable cell adhesion by interacting with both integrin α6ß4 and α3ß1, whereas unassembled soluble Lm332 supports cell migration

The Relationship Among Autistic Traits, Metacognition, and Communication Skills in University Students

This study aims to investigate the relationship among autistic traits, metacognition, and communication skills. Three-hundred and nine undergraduate students completed the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ); the ENDCOREs scale, which measures general communication skills; and the Adults\u27 Metacognition Scale. We used Structural equation modeling to evaluate the hypothetical model. Autistic traits had a significant negative effect on metacognition and communication skills. Metacognition had a significant positive effect on communication skills. These results suggest that autistic traits negatively affected communication skills directly and indirectly via metacognition. Further, these results suggest that undergraduate students with autistic tendencies tend to have low communicative and metacognitive abilities. This study suggests that autistic students\u27 poor metacognition is a mediator of communicative difficulties.自閉スペクトラム症（Autism Spectrum Disorder, 以下ASD）傾向，メタ認知，コミュニケーション・スキルの変数間の関連を明らかにするために，大学生309名を対象にAQ, ENDCOREs，成人用メタ認知尺度を用いて調査を実施した。ASD傾向とメタ認知がコミュニケーション・スキルに与える影響を検討するために，構造方程式モデリングによる解析を行ったところ，ASD傾向からメタ認知とコミュニケーション・スキルに対して有意な負のパスが示され，メタ認知からコミュニケーション・スキルへ有意な正のパスが示された。このことから，メタ認知が低くなるとコミュニケーション・スキルも低くなり，ASD傾向の大学生が抱えるコミュニケーションの問題には，メタ認知が介在している可能性が示唆された

Venture into Cross-Cultural Psychology

A peer-reviewed book based on presentations at the XXIII Congress of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, 2016, Nagoya, Japan. (c) 2018, International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychologyhttps://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/iaccp_proceedings/1001/thumbnail.jp