Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is a research paradigm that linguistically addresses the prevailing social problems by opposing dominant ideological positions. Women's status in society appears to be fixed in division in that Women are so trained to think and live in parts that they cannot pull themselves together. Choosing Katherine Mansfield’s Bliss, the present study hypothesizes that man is portrayed as being superior, controller and dominant as opposed to the woman who is inferior, disadvantaged and devalued. This idea hints at the dialectic relation between language and social reality which constitutes the core of Norman Fairclough's model. The procedures followed in carrying out the present study consist mainly of two parts: the first focuses on the theoretical background in which a survey of past literature about CDA and feminism is done, the second part is the practical in which analysis of the chosen short story is conducted by adopting Fairclough’s (2018) model of analysis. Analyzing Bliss and examining the contrastive-analysis- results show that man is portrayed as the superior gender. The author uses specific terminologies and structures that distinguish men’s language, issues and concerns by exhibiting man as being dominant and powerful. Although on different dimensions, women's identity, power ideology and women's construction as man's other are textually realized in both cultures proving the issue that language is the carrier of ideologies and the recipe of life.

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The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between grit and self-esteem scores among university students taking welfare professional training courses in Japan and South Korea (Korea). The grit and self-esteem scores of 100 first- to fourth-year students at a Japanese university adopting a 4-year curriculum for certified social and care worker training and 100 first- to second-year students at a Korean college adopting a 2-year curriculum for social worker training were measured using the Japanese-version Short Grit Scale and Rosenberg’s Self-esteem Scale to analyze the relationship between the 2 scores, as well as differences between Japan and Korea. An anonymous online questionnaire survey was conducted using Google Forms, and 92 and 93 responses were obtained in Japan (valid response rate: 92.0%) and Korea (93.0%), respectively. There was a weak positive correlation between the grit and self-esteem scores, and both scores were significantly higher in Korea, suggesting the necessity of assessing the trainability of Japanese university students with lower grit and self-esteem scores. Future studies should examine whether these scores change as the school year progresses and whether grit and self-esteem scores improve with training.

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The world continues to struggle with the COVID-19 pandemic, and there is concern over the increase in the needs of older people for nursing care. In this study, the relationships of the “tooth condition” with mobility and cognitive function were investigated in 1,000 residents of 14 special elderly nursing homes. In those using well-fitting dentures, the percentage of those capable of independent indoor mobility was highest at 21.6%, and the percentages of those able to communicate (66.2%), understand routines (47.5%), state their own age (36.2%), remember recent events (45.0%), state their own name (85.7%), understand seasons (43.7%), and understand places (46.4%) were significantly higher than in those in other “tooth conditions”. This study clarified the relationships of the “tooth condition” with mobility and cognitive function, and maintaining an adequate “tooth condition” was suggested to contribute to the prevention of a condition requiring long-term nursing care.

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This study investigated support required by siblings of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) after this referred to as “peers.” We investigated words used by siblings for explaining school-aged peers and explored the siblings’ attitudes, which were different from the negative attitudes of people around their peers. We conducted an interview survey with adult siblings of ASD children and inquired about siblings’ perceptions about their peers, coping with questions about their peers, unpleasant experiences related to peers, and personal and environmental factors. The results indicated that supportive relationships between siblings and parents promoted siblings’ knowledge and understanding of ASD and helped them develop the language for explaining their peer’s condition to others. Moreover, positive experiences in environments that accepted their peers resulted in different attitudes to negative attitudes of others, regardless of support for siblings to manage negative experiences.

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This study aimed to clarify the information required by hospital nurses (HN), home-visiting nurses (HVN), and long-term care insurance facility nurses (LFN) for continuous home care support for community-dwelling older patients with heart failure (HF). Semi-structured interviews with HN, HVN, and LFN involved in HF nursing were used to collect empirical data during August 2019–March 2020. The interview data were organized as narratives about the information necessary for continuing home-care support for older patients with HF, and categories were generated by content analysis. A total of 13 categories were discovered. Among these, 6 were in common for HN, HVN, and LFN: disease management, medication management, activities, diet, family/supporters, and cognitive function. The other 7 categories included 1 in common for HN and HVN, hopes of the patient/family; 1 in common for HVN and LFN, anxiety/stress; 1 for HN, social resources; 1 for HVN, cooperation status of medical institutions; and 3 for LFN, sleep, defecation, and difficult behaviors. This study found that HN, HVN, and LFN had common information items determined necessary for continuous home care support for community-dwelling patients with HF, and each type of nurse also had different informational item requirements.

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This study explored the nature of peer support activities in Japan through the experiences of young Japanese peer supporters in a secondary school. Participants, aged 13 to 14 years, were drawn from a secondary school in Osaka, Japan. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and data were analysed using thematic analysis, aiming to explore their lived experiences of being peer supporters. Four main themes emerged from the peer supporters’ lived experiences; 1) Perceived generation gap, 2) Disconnection between training and practice, 3) Self-improvement, and 4) Cultural mismatch. These specific themes greatly assisted to explore the unrevealed children’s views and some critical issues of peer support practices in Japan, and also confirmed the findings of quantitative studies (prior studies). In conclusion, some practical recommendations (e.g. “new classification for Japanese style peer support”) for the peer support activities were suggested in terms of the findings.

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The purpose of this study was to develop a short program to improve emotional management abilities of nurse managers and verify its effectiveness. We conducted an interview survey of nurse managers (n = 11) and clarified the challenges perceived by them. We, then, developed a short program to improve emotional management abilities based on findings from the qualitative analysis of the interview survey responses and emotional intelligence, which is a measure of emotional management abilities. This program was tested on 78 nurse managers working in medical institutions in Japan, and its effectiveness was evaluated based on statistical analysis of scores of the emotional intelligence scale (EQS), Anger Arousal and Lengthiness Scale (AALS), and Japanese version of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (J-FFMQ) scores measured before, immediately after, and 1 month after the intervention. A total of 38 participants completed the questionnaire surveys at all the three time points. The “Situational” domain score of the EQS (p < 0.01), the “AALS total” score (p < 0.01), and the AALS “anger lengthiness” subscale score (p < 0.01) immediately after the intervention significantly differed from the respective scores before the intervention. The J-FFMQ scores showed significant improvements immediately after the intervention (p < 0.01) and 1 month after the intervention (p < 0.01). The findings of this study demonstrated the effectiveness of our program in improving mindfulness skills, which are crucial for effective emotional management, and prevent the persistence of anger in nurse managers in Japan, thereby indicating that it can be considered a practical program.

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The aim of this study aimed to examine the association between autistic traits and maladaptive behaviors in preschool children using child development support center in Japan. Thirty-two children using the services of “A” child development support center, in “B” prefecture in Japan, participated this study. The results showed that children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) tended to have fewer maladaptive behaviors than those without a diagnosis but other developmental problems. In addition, children with high autistic traits had more peer problems but fewer conduct problems and prosocial behaviors than those with low autistic traits. These results indicate the importance of early diagnosis of ASD and the usefulness of providing support based on autistic traits.

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This study aims to identify the prevalence of selective mutism (SM) in high school students and the level of support provided to them. We sent a questionnaire by post to 52 high schools in Akita Prefecture, Japan. The questionnaire asked if they had students who showed symptoms of SM, and, if so, to describe the type of support provided at the school for these students. Thirty-nine schools responded, reporting that 0.11% of their students showed symptoms of SM. Additionally, the schools reported they were providing student support focused on speech difficulties. The results found that the prevalence of students with SM symptoms in high school was similar to that in elementary and middle schools. Moreover, the results identified the need not only for support focused on speech but also the need to adapt the students’ environment to help alleviate their anxieties.

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