Abstract
The aim of this research was to clarify how Japanese women cope with physical and mental affliction and distress when they experience stress, their social relations and assistance seeking behaviors leading to resolution, to consider the cultural attributes affecting the health of Japanese women, and make suggestions for nursing intervention. Semi-structured interviews were carried out and an analytic ethnography was conducted among 12 Japanese women. As a result, four core themes of social relations were extracted: unbalanced family life, distorted parent-child relationships that have longstanding effects, beneficial social interaction, and continuation of social relations wherein true intentions are not revealed. These are thought to be influenced by the Japanese culture of honne and tatemae (the contrast between a person's genuine feelings and the opinions they display in public ) as well as traditional roles of the sexes and marital companionship. As for assistance seeking behavior, three core themes were extracted: rational inhibitions about disclosing one's troubles, decision-making to resolve problems and active self-resolving of problems, suggesting that Japanese social values represented by the culture of shame have an influence.
