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New profiling research on hikikomori — prolonged social withdrawal lasting at least six months — challenges the common belief that it is mainly driven by fear of social judgment. A study of 400 Japanese adults found three distinct profiles, with the largest group showing severe daily impairment but no elevated social anxiety, raising doubts about whether anxiety-focused therapy reaches the people it is assumed to help.
In this episode:
- The largest group of withdrawn people (52%) showed no elevated social anxiety despite severe impairment — the 'overlooked majority'.
- Only about a third fit the classic picture of withdrawal driven by intense fear of social judgment.
- A smaller group is isolated but not especially distressed by it.
- The same withdrawn behaviour can rest on very different internal reasons.
- Why 'just go outside' is the wrong prescription, and getting the driver right changes the support.
- The findings are a self-reported snapshot, not proof of cause, and the 52% figure is not the share of all people with hikikomori.
Sources:
New hikikomori research identifies three distinct profiles of extreme social withdrawal — https://www.psypost.org/new-hikikomori-research-identifies-three-distinct-profiles-of-extreme-social-withdrawal/
Full episode page: https://fatsandsugars.com/help-or-hinder/three-profiles-of-extreme-social-withdrawal/
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Full episode page:
fatsandsugars.com