石井 悠紀子
Crying Situations and Internal States of Individuals with a High Crying Proneness
Yukiko Ishii
April, 2021
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to elucidate the crying situations and internal states of individuals with a high crying proneness. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants who were recruited from among those who easily shed tears in interpersonal situations. As a result, in addition to “loss,” “separation,” “empathic pain,” and “conflict,” which have been identified in previous studies, we identified new crying situations, such as “consultation with others,” “presence of others,” and “recovery of others,” indicating the diversity of crying situations. In “presence of others” and “recovery of others,” the existence of other-oriented crying in interpersonal situations other than art elicited tears was clarified. In addition, we examined the internal states of individuals with a high crying proneness when they cried, including the crying scene and the reactions of others. As a result, individuals who cried experienced negative emotions such as “I’m sorry for causing trouble,” “I’m ashamed of myself for crying,” and “I can’t control my crying” in response to others’ confusion and upset in the “conflict ” scene. On the other hand, the “consultation with others” scene showed that, when others showed understanding to the individual who cried or treated the individual as usual without showing any upset, the individuals who cried experienced positive emotions, such as they felt a sense of relief and they were able to change their mind.
