Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus
Interest in kawaii-ness is growing day by day around the world. However, the relationship between the brain and kawaii-ness remains unclear. Previous studies have revealed how adults' brains respond to infants, but there is little research into the relationship between non-infant objects that h...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Acta Psychologica |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691824005419 |
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| author | Keisuke Kokubun Kiyotaka Nemoto Yuko Shiga Yuya Makizato Aya Komaki Yoshinori Yamakawa |
| author_facet | Keisuke Kokubun Kiyotaka Nemoto Yuko Shiga Yuya Makizato Aya Komaki Yoshinori Yamakawa |
| author_sort | Keisuke Kokubun |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Interest in kawaii-ness is growing day by day around the world. However, the relationship between the brain and kawaii-ness remains unclear. Previous studies have revealed how adults' brains respond to infants, but there is little research into the relationship between non-infant objects that have kawaii-ness and the brain, particularly its structure. Therefore, in this study, using data from 182 healthy men and women, including 90 participants from a toy manufacturer's fan community (TMFC), we analyzed the relationship between the adoption of kawaii-ness and the gray matter volume (GMV) of region of interest (ROI). The results showed that the adoption of kawaii-ness was significantly and positively related to the GMV of the putamen, insula, frontal gyrus (FG), and rectus in the TMFC sample in an analysis that controlled for demographic data. Of these, the significant relationships between putamen and FG and adoption survived multiple comparisons. This is the first study to clarify the relationship between adoption of kawaii-ness and brain structure. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-12f5dadcb62a44c08037786e2a3354b4 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0001-6918 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Acta Psychologica |
| spelling | doaj-art-12f5dadcb62a44c08037786e2a3354b42025-01-12T05:23:58ZengElsevierActa Psychologica0001-69182025-02-01252104663Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrusKeisuke Kokubun0Kiyotaka Nemoto1Yuko Shiga2Yuya Makizato3Aya Komaki4Yoshinori Yamakawa5Open Innovation Institute, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan; Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan; Corresponding author at: Open Innovation Institute, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, JapanSanrio Entertainment, Co., Ltd., Tama, Tokyo, JapanSanrio Entertainment, Co., Ltd., Tama, Tokyo, JapanSanrio Entertainment, Co., Ltd., Tama, Tokyo, JapanOpen Innovation Institute, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan; Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan; Institute of Innovative Research, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro, Tokyo, Japan; ImPACT Program of Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (Cabinet Office, Government of Japan), Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan; Office for Academic and Industrial Innovation, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan; Brain Impact, Kyoto, JapanInterest in kawaii-ness is growing day by day around the world. However, the relationship between the brain and kawaii-ness remains unclear. Previous studies have revealed how adults' brains respond to infants, but there is little research into the relationship between non-infant objects that have kawaii-ness and the brain, particularly its structure. Therefore, in this study, using data from 182 healthy men and women, including 90 participants from a toy manufacturer's fan community (TMFC), we analyzed the relationship between the adoption of kawaii-ness and the gray matter volume (GMV) of region of interest (ROI). The results showed that the adoption of kawaii-ness was significantly and positively related to the GMV of the putamen, insula, frontal gyrus (FG), and rectus in the TMFC sample in an analysis that controlled for demographic data. Of these, the significant relationships between putamen and FG and adoption survived multiple comparisons. This is the first study to clarify the relationship between adoption of kawaii-ness and brain structure.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691824005419Frontal gyrusGray matter volumeInsulaKawaii-nessPutamen |
| spellingShingle | Keisuke Kokubun Kiyotaka Nemoto Yuko Shiga Yuya Makizato Aya Komaki Yoshinori Yamakawa Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus Acta Psychologica Frontal gyrus Gray matter volume Insula Kawaii-ness Putamen |
| title | Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| title_full | Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| title_fullStr | Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| title_full_unstemmed | Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| title_short | Incorporating “kawaii-ness” into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| title_sort | incorporating kawaii ness into your life may increase gray matter volume in the putamen and frontal gyrus |
| topic | Frontal gyrus Gray matter volume Insula Kawaii-ness Putamen |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691824005419 |
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