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Taijin Kyofusho is a culture-bound syndrome which is prevalent in Japan.

Taijin Kyofusho or “anthrophobia” (which affects 10-20% of the Japanese population) have a fear of embarrassing other individuals to being embarrassed themselves. This syndrome includes symptoms such as embarrassment, displeased, repugnant, or offensive with their body parts while interacting socially with other. Physical symptoms include blushing, facial expressions, offensive body odors, appearing disheveled, etc. Taijin Kyofusho has been compared to Social Anxiety in America. Researchers have assumed that since individuals are being affected during social contact, then this has reason to be a social anxiety disorder. Taijin Kyofusho has been known to affect mostly young men. Taijin Kyofusho is alos known as shinkel-shitsu. It is interpreted in the Western Culture as a body dysmorphic disorder. There was a study completed in a community located in Kofu, Japan, involving 132 respondents. The form on interview used was a semistructed interview. The individuals completed questionnaires to complete this interview. The results discovered was that 9(6.8%) out of the 132 respondents had “taijin kyofusho” symptoms. During this study, the individuals who were discovered having the symptoms were older females. The researchers considered the data was relevant because of the small control group. Taijin Kyofusho in some ways resembles the Social Phobia listed in the DSM-IV diagnostic manual. Some of the symptoms include an intense fear that his/her body, its parts or its functions, displease, embarrass, or are offensive to other people in appearance, ordor, facial experssions, or movements.

Subtypes

Taijin Kyofusho is divided into four subtypes:

Shubo-jyofu: the phobia of a deformed body

Sekimen-kyofu: the phobia of blushing

Jikoshisen-kyofu: the phobia of eye-to-eye contact

Jikoshu-kyofu: the phobia of having foul body odor

Medication:

There have been two types of medication used to treat Taijin Kyofusho. Milnacipran (antidepressant) which increase serotonin and nonadrenaline levels, but more study is being done on this drug. Paroxetine (Praxil) has been effective in decreasing individuals from feeling offensive in social situations due to their appearance and body parts.

Treatment:

Some treatments for Taiin Kyofusho are psychological treatments which include relaxation training, cognitive restructuring, therapeutic intervention, etc. Masatake Morita developed Morita Therapy in the 1910’s. The therapy involves pragmatic guidance by accepting the patient’s exact symptoms and by attempting to express the individual’s energy about their concerns they were feeling, somatic symptoms, to the present. Morita Therapy consists of four stages. The first stage is bed rest; the patient does not have contact with anyone or anything. They are to realize that anguish will eventually lead to deliverance. The second stage provides the patient with the ability to be active and they are able to write their feelings in a diary or journal under therapist supervision. This stage helps to them express their feelings and experiences in words. The third stage allows the patient more freedom. They are allowed to take on more work with less guidance. The fourth stage includes lectures and meetings. The patients attend these lectures so they can find ways of moving on with their life and engaging in productive activities. The therapy provides proof that the answer to a problem might be just seriously thinking about it.

Symptoms of Taijin Kyofusho include feelings of inadequacy pertaining to attitudes, behavior, and physical characteristics in social situations. The understanding of this disorder is the key element in dealing with treatment. Treatments include relaxation training, systematic desensitization, cognitive restructuring, rehearsal, and skills training.

References: http://www.brainphysics.com/taijin-kyofusho.php

In the Japanese culture, diagnosis of Taijin Kyofusho depends on the content of the patients’ fear that they will embarrass or displease others. This disorder is classified into four subtypes: sekimen-kyofu (the phobia of blushing), shubo-kyfou (the phobia of a deformed body), jikoshisen-kyofu (the phobia of eye-to-eye contact), and jikoshu-kyfou (the phobia of one’s own foul body order). This article states that Taijin Kyofusho is not a culture-bound syndrome. The reasoning behind this is blushing is common social phobia, and phobia of a deformed body is a dysmorphic disorder. The other two listed can’t be classified to any of the diagnoses in the DSM-IV.

References: http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/160/7/1358

References:

Taijin-Kjofusho (TKS) is compared to social phobia. Social phobia is an anxiety in which individuals have a fear of emarrassing themselves. Whereas, Taijin-Kjofusho has a fear of embarrassing other people.

Tainin Kyofushohas four classification subtypes. Jikoshu-kyofu (phobia of smelling of one's own body), sekimen-kyofu (phobia of blushing), jikoshisen-kyofu (phobia of direct eye contact), and shubo-kyofu (phobia of physical disorders). According to the symptoms in the DSM-IV, there is only one of these subtypes that is considered to be a social phobia. With these findings some researchers are skeptical about Taijin-kyosusho being a culture-bound syndrome.

Eight sources

Patients who are affected with Taijin Kyofusho has a great concern of offending other individuals who they encounter. They are less concerned for themselves in certain situations.

A study using an antidepressants, Milnacipran, to treat TKS was completed during a 12 week period.

There was a research done on 132 people in a small city in Japan regarding symptoms of Taijin Kyofusho. the reason for this research was to see how many actually had symptoms of TKS.

A study was completed using paroxetine on 22 patients with TKS.

Taijin Kyofusho is a culture bound syndrome foreign to Western society and it also affects 10-20% of the Japanese population. This article would provide some statistics on what majority is affected by Taijin Kyofusho.

Cultures were compared to each other pertaining to social anxiety.

Signs of Taijin-Kyofusho syndrome

Taijin Kyofusho is also known as shinkel-shitsu. It is interpreted in the Western Culture as a body dysmorphic disorder.