Similarities and Differences in Interoceptive Bodily Awareness Between US-American and Japanese Cultures: A Focus-Group Study in Bicultural Japanese-Americans

Abstract

Interoceptive awareness is the conscious perception of sensations that create a sense of the physiological condition of the body. A validation study for the Japanese translation of the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) surprised with a factor structure different from the original Englishlanguage version by eliminating two of eight scales. This prompted an exploration of the similarities and differences in interoceptive bodily awareness between Japanese and European Americans. Bicultural Japanese-Americans discussed concepts and experiences in the two cultures. We conducted focus groups and qualitative thematic analyses of transcribed recordings. 16 participants illustrated cross-cultural differences in interoceptive bodily awareness: switching between languages changes embodied experience; external versus internal attention focus; social expectations and body sensations; emphasis on form versus self-awareness; personal space; mind-body relationship; context dependency of bodily awareness and selfconstrual. The participants explained key concepts that present challenges for a Japanese cultural adaptation of the MAIA, specifically the concept of self-regulation lost in the factor analysis. In Japanese culture, self-regulation serves the purpose of conforming to social expectations, rather than achieving an individual self-comforting sense of homeostasis. Our findings will inform the next phase of improving the MAIA's cross-cultural adaptation.

A Pilot Feasibility Study of Reconnecting to Internal Sensations and Experiences (RISE), a Mindfulness-Informed Intervention to Reduce Interoceptive Dysfunction and Suicidal Ideation, among University Students in India

“…Non-university students are more likely to live with family and may not have as much privacy to engage in online treatment sessions as compared to university students. Moreover, the psychometrics of the MAIA have not been examined in an Indian sample, and there may be differences in interoception that are culturally influenced [ 63 ]. However, apart from the Not-Worrying subscale, which typically demonstrates the lowest reliability in other Western studies as well, the reliabilities for the MAIA subscales were good to excellent.…”

Examining Relationships Between Interoceptive Sensibility and Body Image in a Non-Western Context

“…This is problematic because measurement tools that have been originally developed in the West may not capture additional aspects of IS and body image that are specific to other cultural contexts such as Malaysia. Indeed, research on interoception and positive body image with different cultural groups appears to indicate that, while some core components of the constructs are communal, there are aspects that may be unique to specific cultural groups (Freedman et al, 2021; Swami, 2018). Future research could address this issue by qualitatively examining the ways in which the associations between interoception and body image are understood and experienced by Malaysian Malay adults.…”

“…Both constructs are essential components of personal identity and contribute to the regulation of human behavior (Cash, 2004; Damasio, 2010). However, interactions between the two constructs are complex because they are both multidimensional (Khalsa et al, 2018; Tylka, 2018), and because variables such as age, gender, and national and cultural context are known to interact with each construct independently (e.g., interoception: Chentsova-Dutton & Dzokoto, 2014; Freedman et al., 2021; Ma-Kellams, 2014; body image: Swami, 2015, 2018; Swami et al, 2010). To that end, the aim of the present study was to examine whether associations between interoception and body image that have been previously identified in Western samples can be replicated in a non-Western sample of Malaysian Malay adults.…”

Preliminary Rasch analysis of the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness in adults with stroke

“…The MAIA was intended to differentiate between experienced and inexperienced mind-body practitioners, to measure changes in participants’ outcomes after mind-body therapies, and to “differentiate between anxiety-driven hypervigilance and mindful attention styles” [6,11,40]. As such, the MAIA has been heavily utilized for body awareness training measurement in varied populations, but to the best of the authors’ knowledge, it has been used in only one previous observational study with adults with stroke [35,39].…”

“…The MAIA was intended to differentiate between experienced and inexperienced mindbody practitioners, to measure changes in participants' outcomes after mind-body therapies, and to "differentiate between anxiety-driven hypervigilance and mindful attention styles" [6,11,40].…”