Taijin Kyofusho’s disorder is a very particular type of phobia, it is one in which one person is afraid to offend another in one way or another, whether through speech, out-of-place comments, gestures or even certain aspects of his body.
As impressive as this condition may seem, it remains a type of social anxiety described in the diagnostic manuals.
- It is quite possible that.
- Broadly speaking.
- This type of disorder is mainly associated with the Japanese personality.
As we well know, if there is one thing the Japanese are known for is their high sense of behavioral correctness, their absolute mutual respect and their careful and millimeter courtesy in their daily treatment, however, it should be noted that this kind of anxiety appears in any culture.
Behind Kyofusho taijin disorder is insecurity, it is she who creates this almost delusional obsession with showing absolute perfection every time a person is exposed to the public.
Their concern to look their best, for having the best attitude or the most developed treatment often leads them to doubt everything they do and say.
Fear of blushing, hesitating, saying something unsleek and even afraid to stink at some point: these are all small examples of the obsessions that make up Taijin Kyofusho disorder.
Taijin Kyofusho disorder has been first described in Japan, but in the Western world this type of phobia does not have a separate category, this is part of social phobias.
The disorder is the “disorder of fear of interpersonal relationships”. This type of social phobia has been first described in Japan and is not accidental.
In Japanese culture, the importance of the group in relation to the individual is often emphasized, as a result, this recurring anguish of offending others in some respects was soon described and labeled.
As we mentioned at the beginning, this type of phobia is not unique to the Japanese; however, for them, it is a well-known psychiatric syndrome, while in the West there is hardly any talk of it.
Still, is it included in the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders?(DSM-5), but not with its own category, simply as “Other specified obsessive-compulsive disorders and associated disorders”.
Let’s see what its most common features are
Although many say that Taijin Kyofusho disorder is basically a type of social phobia, it should be noted that there are small nuances that make it unique.
The Japanese diagnostic system states that this disorder can occur based on four very common subtypes, which make up a specific type of phobia.
On the contrary, the following aspects are also evaluated in the West:
It should be noted that, from a cultural point of view, kyofusho taijin disorder is very interesting, we know that the first treatments for this disease appeared in 1910 by the hand of Dr. Shoma Morita, at that time the therapeutic approach they used was:
Starting in the 1930s, this specialist changed his treatment in some respects, introduced group therapy as well as drug administration. Currently, Morita therapy is still used in Japan.
In the West, it should be noted that the strategy varies considerably, the reason is that we do not recognize kyofusho taijin as a separate disorder and it is treated in the same way as social phobia.
In general, exposure-based cognitive behavioral therapy is used, as well as working on aspects such as self-esteem and relaxation techniques.
However, it all depends on the uniqueness of each patient and whether or not other disorders exist, in any case we are faced with a type of phobia much better known to the Japanese than by most of us.