This study examined the naïve beliefs of Japanese citizens regarding the responsibility for raising children. An online survey of Japanese citizens over the age of 20 (n = 2,113) asked about their level of agreement with “family responsibility” and “societal responsibility” for childrearing. In addition, the relationships between these naïve beliefs were examined and consensus on the living necessities of preschool children was assessed using the What Children Need List (WCN). Results indicated that (a) people have a strong belief that child-rearing is the responsibility of the family, and this tendency is particularly strong among women and people with children, (b) there was a positive correlation between “family responsibility” and “societal responsibility” for child-rearing, (r = .49) and people recognize that both the family and society are responsible for child-rearing, (c) both “family responsibility” and “societal responsibility” were positively related to the number of agreed upon living necessities, and (d) agreement was highest among respondents who highly agreed both family and societal responsibility. Problems with attributing the responsibility of child-rearing to parents or families were discussed based on the results of this study.

　　The aim of this study was to examine husbands' cooperative involvement in child-rearing with their wives, wives' perceptions of this involvement, and the position of husbands in the eyes of their wives. In Study 1, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 mothers raising preschool children regarding their husbands' involvement in child-rearing, and the data obtained were analyzed using the KJ method. Results indicated that husbands were the most important and closest “co-parenting partners” for wives, and wives' expectations of their husbands tended to be maintained even when their husbands’ involvement in family matters failed reach the level expected by wives. That said, there were cases in which strong negative feelings toward the husband were generated.

　　In Study 2, cases of highly negative feelings toward husbands were identified based on the interview data from Study 1, and case studies were conducted. Results indicated that when husbands did not “accept their wives’ feelings” or they lacked “a sense of involvement,” wives felt that their expectations were betrayed, and a process of negative feelings toward their husbands as partners occurred. Particularly when there was no cooperative involvement by a third party other than the husband, the wife's expectations were focused on the husband, and her negative feelings toward the husband increased as she increasingly felt that her expectations had been betrayed. If, however, there was cooperative involvement from a third party other than the husband, wives' expectations of their husbands were dispersed, and the increase in negative feelings toward the husband and the deterioration of the marital relationship could potentially be curtailed.

　　The current results revealed that wives who are raising children are not only burdened by their family role itself but also have many psychological burdens, such as conflicts with their husbands who fail to reach the level of “co-parenting partners.” In order to reduce these burdens, husbands need to be “proactive” and “responsive” in their involvement in the family. In addition, support from society needs to be provided to reduce the burden on the family.

　　The purposes of this study were to map the experience of typically developing (TD) siblings of individuals with disabilities in taking on roles in their families and to examine further support for TD siblings. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 TD siblings of individuals with an intellectual disability, autistic spectrum disorder, or Down syndrome. Interview data were analyzed using a modified grounded theory approach. Adoption of family roles by TD siblings involved a process centered on the experience of “being constrained” by their families. In addition, results suggested that the more TD siblings play the role of “supporting family members,” the more tightly they were constrained by the families. Given that situation, some TD siblings “sorted out” their feelings by “looking back on their past” triggered by 1) “changes in material circumstances” and/or 2) psychological changes led to encounters with people who provided “emotional support.” Based on the current results, support for TD siblings has been discussed from three points of view: not expecting them to play an outsized role in the family so that they can spend their free time as they wish, to the extent possible; ensuring that they have the freedom to choose their own course in life; respecting them as individuals in relationships with various people, including other TD siblings.

　　This study investigated whether women's intimate relationships with their spouse or partner have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to before the pandemic. This study also investigated whether the change of relationships is affected by women's gender-role attitudes, employment status, and sharing of housework. An online survey was conducted with a sample of 547 women ages 20 to 60 years who lived with their spouse or partner from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (February 2020) to the present (September 2020). In one sitting, the participants retrospectively assessed their relationship with their partners before and during the pandemic. Their gender-role attitudes, employment status, and proportion of housework were also determined. Results indicated that women with more egalitarian gender-role attitudes had significantly lower scores for conflict during the COVID-19 pandemic. Women from single-income households had significantly lower scores for suppression during the COVID-19 pandemic. The proportion of shared housework before the COVID-19 pandemic affected scores for conflict during the COVID-19 pandemic. The women's intimate relationship with their spouse or partner during the COVID-19 pandemic was influenced by the state of that relationship before the pandemic. Routinely building a good relationship, egalitarian gender-role attitudes, and being employed were important factors for good intimate relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic.