A Cross-Sectional Survey of Age and Sense of Authenticity among Japanese

Abstract

This study examined age differences on the sense of authenticity and its relation with mental health measured on the General Health Questionnaire. Participants were 963 Japanese (M age = 51.5 yr., SD = 19.5). Scores on the Sense of Authenticity Scale increased across age cohorts. Correlations of -.45 to -.75 were observed between the sense of authenticity and mental health in all age groups.

Japan Unified Protocol Clinical Trial for Depressive and Anxiety Disorders (JUNP study): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

“…Research in personality, social psychology, and positive psychology has suggested that authenticity can be conceptualized as a healthy type of self-esteem [ 101 , 102 ] and can serve as an indicator of positive functioning [ 103 ]. Its reliability and validity has been repeatedly reported among Japanese population [ 101 , 104 ].…”

Semiotic and Semantic Implications of “Authenticity”

“…These concepts were outside the scope of the preliminary report and could not be tested or controlled, but deserve to be noted. The interpretation of "authenticity" is one of the concepts on which the premises of the Ito, et al (2009) paper rests. Audience analysis and reception studies (Giannini, 1993) have demonstrated shifts in relevance among cohorts within the same culture.…”

“…Ito, Horikoshi, and Kodama (2009) conducted a pilot study to examine the concept in a heuristically homogeneous culture. They examined the quantitative level of authenticity among different age groups in such a culture.…”

Subjectivity and Environmental Influence in Relation to Sense of Authenticity

“…The original study (Ito, Horikoshi, & Kodama, 2009) measured sense of authenticity in a cross-sectional survey of age groups from 18 to 94 years old using the Sense of Authenticity Scale. Scores for sense of authenticity were significantly higher among elderly people than younger people in Japan.…”

“…He interpreted the results of Ito, et al (2009) in terms of the unique cultural experience of elderly Japanese people, but only specifically highlighted the circumstantial effect of occupation by the General Headquarters of Allied Forces in the postwar period. According to his interpretation, the higher sense of authenticity in the elderly sample could be attributed to "the disruptive semantic and semiotic effects" of that occupation.…”