Recent studies on optimism/ pessimism have developed scale for the construct. However, the structure of optimism and its relationship to these questionnaires has not yet been explained. In Study 1, we conducted a factor analysis of the Hopelessness Scale (HS), and the Life Orientation Test (LOT), respectively. In Study 2, to investigate the structure of optimism, we conducted a factor analysis for the subscales of the HS, the LOT, the Extended Attributional Style Questionnaire (EASQ) and the Cognitive Style Questionnaire (CSQ). Three factors in optimism were found; (a) optimism in the viewpoint toward the present and future, (b) the explanation factors for past positive events, (c) the explanation factors for past negative events. The structure of optimism corresponded to the developer's idea. Moreover, it was found that present and future optimism were closely related with the present subjective well-being (health). These results suggest the role of optimism as a stress modulator.

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The purposes of this study were to find cognitive-behavioral variables included in effort and distress dimensions of stress coping process, and to investigate the effect of each dimension on psychological stress responses. Subjects were 487 undergraduate students (275 males, 212 females), and were requested to perform a set of questionnaires on cognitive appraisal, coping, and psychological stress responses.
The result of factor analysis revealed that effort dimension was composed of “commitment”, “influence appraisal”, and “problem-solving focused coping”, and distress dimension was composed of “uncontrollable appraisal”, “threat appraisal”, and “avoidant coping”. The distributions of effort and distress scores suggested that the two are independent.
The relationship between effort-distress dimensions and psychological stress responses was investigated. The results of regression analyses revealed that effort and distress dimensions were positively correlated with psychological stress responses. Furthermore effort and distress scores were divided into two groups (high and low) and were compared with psychological stress responses. The results of ANOVAs revealed that high effort and / or high distress subjects were more stressful than others.
The results of this study suggested that effort and distress dimensions were useful for understanding various patterns of stress coping processes.

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It has been said that environmental and individual factors cause occupational stress. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of hardiness (commitment, control and challenge) as a personality trait that could keep health under stressful situation on psychological and physical stress responses in an occupational situation.
Nine hundred fifty five office workers were requested to complete a set of questionnaires including on work stressor, hardiness, psychological and physical stress responses.
The results revealed that there were high correlations between control and helplessness, and between control and depression-anxiety. The buffering effect of hardiness was found under physical stressor, that is those who showed high scores of hardiness expressed less stress responses under physical stressor. As for other stressors, no buffering effect of hardiness was found.
The result of this study indicated that hardiness is not always effective in stressful situation, and that the buffering effect of hardiness was different from stressor to stressor.

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The present study was to investigate the emotion and behavioral coping strategies in elementary school children, and the relationship between stress responses and social support. The survey about coping, and subjective symptoms and perceived social support were conducted with 712 (395 boys and 317 girls) upper level elementary school children. The results showed that: 1) Children frequently used emotional and behavioral coping strategies in stress situations. 2) Six coping strategies were found by factor analysis, i.e., problem solving, behavioral avoidance, distraction, seeking social support, cognitive avoidance, and emotional avoidance, 3) Children who frequently used behavioral avoidance showed the highest scores of stress responses, 4) Boys who chose emotional avoidance were easily tired and irritable. These results suggested that it is important for the health of school children to have emotional and behavioral coping strategies, and the approach / avoidance conceptualization of coping help to clarify the ways in which children cope. Finally, it is suggested that further research about the relationship with coping strategies and health in school children is necessary in order to develop stress management education.

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The purpose of this study is to clarify the relationship between obesity in five-year-old children and 1) their eating behavior, 2) feeding schedule and temperament in infancy, and 3) rearing attitudes of mothers. Mothers of 510 children answered questionnaires about children's eating behavior and rearing attitudes of mothers. We analyzed obesity from two points, the degree of obesity and two types of obesity, that is the “stable type” and the “progressive type”. The results suggested that the degree of obesity was related to the children's desire for eating, temperament in infancy. Concerning the type of obesity, the “progressive type” children had high accessibility toward foods. Further, the mothers of the “progressive type” girls tended to have more negative behavioral characteristics than the mothers of the “stable type” children. Thus, it is indicated that the characteristics of the degree of obesity were different from those of the type of obesiy.

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The purpose of this study was to investigate the transition of content and to infer views of health in “Health and Physical Education, ” the courses of study issued by the Japanese Ministry of Education.
The procedure used was content analysis. The samples were the curriculum standards stated in the courses of study for elementary school, junior high school and senior high school, issued seven to eight times after 1945 in each school type.
Results showed that in the elementary school curriculum standards, physical health accounted for the majority of content; in junior high school, environment; and in senior high school, social well-being. Therefore, it was also clarified quantitatively that these 3 categories were instructed in proportion to the level of school grade in order selectively. Furthermore, descriptions about relationship between mind and body increased in general over all school types every revised years.
It is deemed important to know individual views of health consciously because they form the basis of health attitudes and influence health behaviors or health practices. Nevertheless, present study could not find any points of view to help individual students know or establish their own views of health consciously in the courses of study.

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Relationships were examined between the health locus of control and the attitudes of nurses towards health education, including the factor of “value for health”. A representative sample group of 259 people (152 nursing school students and 107 employees) completed a questionnaire, which included a Japanese version of the Health Locus of Control (JHLC) scales, “value for health” measures, and questions investigating the attitudes of the people toward health education on diabetes. Results showed that family-HLC scores in particular were positively related to the “value for a patient's cognition” of health education. They also showed that supernatural-HLC scores were negatively related to the “guidance and explanation” and “value for a patient's cognition” of health education, but positive effects were found for the “value for social support” of health education. Family-HLC and supernatural-HLC indicate the dimensions concerned with emotional relationships between oneself and others. Therefore, in this research, these patterns suggested that the nurses' recognition of emotional relationships influenced their attitudes towards health education.

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The authors reviewed previous studies on the relationship between food choice and various psychological factors, considering theoretical and methodological issues on the previous literature. First, examining basic aspects about food preferences, the authors reconsidered related factors, such as geographical variables, sensation seeking and environmental factors, and discussed methodological problems. It is likely that geographical variables, such as age and sex, modified food preference, and that sensation seeking correlated with food preference. Additionally, it is possible that similarities in food preference and attitude between family members were not high enough to account for environmental factors, and that the stability of food preference was not unequivocal. Next, the authors reviewed the studies regarding links between attitude, belief, and perceived motive concerning eating behavior and real food choice, suggesting possibility that these cognitive variables influenced food choice. Third, considering relationships between dietary restraint and food choice, the authors suggested possibility that this variable may influence low caloric food choice. Finally, the future direction of the psychological studies on food choice was proposed.

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