Humans, as compared to other species, have particularly protracted brain maturation. This imparts ongoing plasticity allowing substantial and sustained influence of the environment to modify of the genetically outlined blueprint of brain development. The maturational trajectory is heterochronous (non-linear changes over time) and highly variable among individuals supporting the favorability of the longitudinal design of this proposal. The brain is organized as hierarchically modular network with earlier developing primary modules (a subset of highly inter-connected brain components) giving rise to secondary modules (interconnected primary modules) and then tertiary modules, and so on. Each step of the process may have an age-dependent developmental window (i.e. sensitive period) in which environmental influences have enhanced influence. To date, surprisingly little is known about the specific timing of sensitive periods for different modules and effects, for good or ill, of specific environmental influences. As most mental disorders are conceptualized as resulting from deviations from the path of typical development with different illness deviating at different times or in different ways, greater understanding of these specifics is the key to more effective preventive and/or intervention measures. It is also a key for the optimization of healthy development. Thus, the potential impact of this well-designed, creative, and novel integrative study is vast. The synergies of the robotics, neurophysiology, psychosocial, and developmental model components are brilliantly conceived. Although ambitious, the scope of brain science study is needed to address these fundamental questions about early influences of brain development in health and illness. Youth and their families throughout the world will benefit from the insights gained from this unique and superbly designed integrative study.

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The purpose of this paper is to consider how to sociologically understand the relationship between neuroscience and views of adolescence. In contemporary Japan, the spread of neuroscience knowledge and technology has had various influences on Japanese society. In this paper, the process by which the spread of neuroscience knowledge and technology influences society is referred to as the “neuro-scientization of society.” This paper discusses the influence of the neuro-scientization of society on the relationship between neuroscience and views of adolescence. The following five results were obtained. First, to understand the relationship between neuroscience and views of adolescence, it is necessary to consider every usage of neuroscience knowledge. Second, a leading hypothesis is the idea that a social context promoting the neuro-scientization of society is the penetration of the concept of neoliberal subjectivity. Third, to consider the relationship between punishment and education for juvenile delinquents, it is necessary to examine what abilities should be socialized and the development capacity of these abilities. Fourth, to consider the relationship between the treatment of and education for juvenile delinquents, it is necessary to examine what actions are regarded as deviant and how neuroscience knowledge can be used against them. Fifth, to consider the relationship between the pre-control and post-control of juvenile delinquents, it is necessary to examine the changes in emphasis of these controls.

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The knowledge of brain science suggests that juveniles’ criminal responsibility is diminished. A series of case laws of U.S. Supreme Court adopt this knowledge. They have abolished death penalty and drastically restricted life imprisonment without parole against juveniles. Those backgrounds seem to be active collaboration among legal scholars, social scientists and brain scientists, the system supporting massive collaborative project, and permissive attitudes of the court for introducing empirical scientific knowledge to the justice system. Brain science encourages each state’s law reform for restraint of tough penalties against juveniles now, and might cause the whole reform of criminal sanctions against juveniles, or even the entire juvenile justice reform in the future. Brain Science makes the basic philosophy of juvenile justice transfer from mercy based on parens patriae to immaturity of juvenile decision making capacity, and consolidate the philosophy to separate juvenile offenders from adult. Even in serious crimes, we should mitigate sanctions proportionate to juvenile diminished culpability. There would be few concerns of abuse, as long as brain science goes no further than bolstering the knowledge of developmental psychology on adolescence as what it is. Juvenile justice system in Japan also should adopt the knowledge of brain science.

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Within two decades US supreme court ruled some remarkable decisions concerning the mitigation of juvenile sentences with adopting the new knowledge about the development of Brain Science and Neuroscience. And after those remarkable decisions many states revised their juvenile laws and practices toward the softened and mitigated juvenile sentencing. Though US supreme court ruled not only the decisions concerning juvenile sentencing but also the decision about the due process of law in the juvenile proceeding with reference to the medical findings and knowledge. J.D.B. v. North Carolina (2011) is the leading case that juvenile age must be included in the decision about the 　［in custody ］situation that Miranda v. Arizona (1966) found the objective requirement, police officers must give the caution about right to privilege against self-incrimination and right to counsel. Under the basic notion about ［juveniles are different from adults］, J.D.B. implicates that the essential of due process of law for juveniles is to complement the vulnerability of the cognitive regulatory system which proper to the juveniles. These implications must be referred even in Japan.

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Present Juvenile Act aims to rehabilitate juvenile delinquents by protective measures, which impose educations. However, it could be observed that some amendments made on Juvenile Act over last almost 20 years since 2000 intend to enhance requirements on criminal responsibility to juvenile delinquents. It derives from difference views whether considering juveniles, who are subject to juvenile justice system, qualitatively different from adult as they have high plasticity, or to the contrary, considering juveniles fundamentally same as adult in light of a continuity of juvenile and adult. The former is descried as ［Children View］ and the latter is ［Small Adult Outlook］. Recent developments of a brain science and a neuroscience have determined that a scientific conclusion is affirmative to ［Children View］; a prefrontal cortex that controls impulsive actions is gradually maturing up to late 20.s. However, a limbic system that controls emotions is enhanced growth from a pubescent that starts around 10 years old. Accordingly, teenagers intend to conduct risky behavior due to the mismatch of speed of growth of them. In the meantime, it has found scientific discovery that they are able to adapt themselves to environments. Therefore, it shall not be an ideal that a policy to require criminal responsibilities to juvenile delinquents in order for a rehabilitation of juvenile and a public safety. In this article, finally, it is reviewed that how to construe and apply the Juvenile Act are appropriate with considering some systems of the Juvenile Act in light of ［Children View］

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In recent years, much attention has been paid to desistance from crime and delinquency in Europe and North America. However, little empirical research has been conducted on desistance process in Japan. The purpose of the current study is to explore factors related to desistance from delinquency, using a sample of 103 male ex-inmates from juvenile training schools (JTSs) in Japan. Participants who had provided to provide written consent prior to the survey were followed thorough 1.5 year to 2 year after release from JTSs. Forty five juveniles (43.7%) recidivated while 58(56.3%) were free from crime and delinquency within the research time-frame. In comparison with recidivists, desisters showed significantly higher scores on positive cognitive factors such as confidence, hope, and goal-orientation. These findings were consistent with previous research and practitioners’ experiences. Despite some limitations, the present study is one of the first empirical researches focused on desistance process in Japan, and may add an important contribution to this field. Implications for criminal justice practice and directions for future research are discussed.

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This paper considers why Japan retains death penalty. Especially, this paper focuses on the ruling of the Supreme Court made under the new constitution (Constitution of Japan) on March 12, 1948 that held death penalty constitutional, and aims to provide understanding of the relationship between death penalty system (hanging) and views on ［Cruelty］ of those days, from the standpoint of the historical and social background (i.e.［Period and Circumstance］) during the Occupation. This paper analyzes the documents maintained at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland, papers written by then scholars of criminal law, recollection of Oppler, Alfred Christian, as well as articles of newspaper publishers, including the Asahi Shimbun and the Yomiuri Shimbun. The analysis has revealed that the ［Period and Circumstance］ under the Occupation constituted one of the elements that retained death penalty, rather than causing the country to miss opportunity to abolish death penalty as pointed out by previous studies. It has been a while since hanging became obsolete in the United States. In this point, the ［Period and Circumstance］ has considerably changed from those as of March 12, 1948, when death penalty was held constitutional. From said analysis, this paper has concluded that ［Period and Circumstance］ under which death penalty was ruled constitutional need to be reconsidered not only from the standpoint of study of law but from that of historiography and sociology.

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The research aims to examine the characteristics of stalking in terms of stalker-victim relationship and to examine the risk factors of intimate partner violence in break-up intimate relationship. On-line surveys were conducted among conventional sample of young women aged 18-39 who registered an internet marking research firm. In the preliminary survey (n=10000), 20.8% of the respondents reported more than one type of victimization of 4 stalking types such as following, intimacy seeking and dense telephone call and messages. In the main survey, stalking victims after intimacy relation break-up (n=121) are compared with victims of intimacy-seeking stalkers (n=153) and non-victims who experienced intimacy relation break-up (n=135). From 26 items of stalking victimizations, factor analysis revealed 6 factors of mental obsession, home-invasion, physical violence, over-contact using telephone and messenger, indirect invasion and approach. The victims of intimate relationship break-up experienced more mental obsession, home-invasion and physical violence than the victims of intimacy-seeking stalkers. Also, logistic regression revealed that verbal abuse and hyper-intimacy in intimate relationship are associated with stalking victimization after break-up. Implications in police intervention and primary prevention of stalking are discussed.

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This paper is trying to explore police work that was done with a suspect who molested a woman in a train station from the perspective of ［ethnomethodological studies of work］. I examined two kinds of police work that were persuading one suspect to come to a police station volunt a arily and interrogating him there. These kinds of police work are going in conversational interactions between police officers and a suspect. Although some studies have already suggested that police officers participate as a ［street-level bureaucracy］ in the interactions with the suspect, these were not based on actual conversational interactions. In this paper, I examined conversational interactions in an actual ［molestation case］ by police officers and a suspect at a police box and police station. By doing this, I tried to describe some patterns of police work which are accomplished ethnomethodologically. This examination pointed out two facts. Firstly, police officers at a police box ［persuade］ the suspect to follow them to a police station by making reasons for him. Secondly, the police officers in the police station interpreted the interactions between the suspect and the side with woman who insisted on that she was molested. These two observations suggest that there was a possibility that the police work brought about the difficult ［reality］ for the suspect.

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This study focused upon examination of effectiveness on the Conditioned Reflex Control Technique (CRCT) for mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use (ICD-10). The CRCT aims to control a series of reflex movement which administers the target actions. The authors presume that the CRCT has effectiveness for continuous participation in outpatient treatment by psychoactive substance use disorder patients and prevention for repeat use of illicit or controlled substances by them. The rationales for the above-mentioned hypothesis are, firstly, the CRCT has a clear purpose and construction for participation in the outpatient treatment, and also, participants will be able to realize its effectiveness when they have participated in it step by step. Therefore, the CRCT will motivate their continuous participation in the treatment. Secondary, the CRCT decreases the risk of repeat use of illicit or controlled substances through reduction of a series of reflex movement related to the triggers for stimulating use of psychoactive substances and making up an artificial circuit for prevention of the stimulations regarding substance repeat usage by the participants. The authors carried out two researches for the examination of the effectiveness of the CRCT and then analyzed output of the researches by statistical point of view. Although results of the research suggests that effectiveness of the CRCT for psychoactive sub stance use disorder patients, the authors think that further evidence-based researches should be carried out to obtain more concrete grounds for this method.

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The purpose of this paper is to explore the relation between desistance from delinquency and coping stigma, based on the narrative of those who have lived in rehabilitation facilities. In particular, we pay attention to inmate’s working life and social life in this paper. Previous research argued that recovering from the stigma is important thing through the process of desistance from crime/delinquency. However, previous research overlooked the effects of the stigma for inmates and the coping behavior about stigma. So this paper analyzed stigma by rehabilitation facilities inmate interview data. The findings are two. The first is behavior of against the stigma. Inmate made up for stigma by ‘effort’ and ‘taking a defiant’. The second is feeling of collective stigma about rehabilitation facilities inmate. Inmate who feel collective stigma, experienced rehabilitation facilities not only reinforcement stigma but breaking stigma. Through this paper, we found that the coping behavior about stigma linked desistance from delinquency.

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