Kyushu University Academic Staff Educational and Research Activities Database
List of Papers
Toshihide Kuroki Last modified date:2023.11.22

Professor / Department of Clinical Psychology / Department of Human Sciences / Faculty of Human-Environment Studies


Papers
1. Hiroaki Kubo, Hiromi Urata, Motohiro Sakai, Shunsuke Nonaka, Junji Kishimoto, Kazuhiko Saito, Masaru Tateno, Keiji Kobara, Daisuke Fujisawa, Naoki Hashimoto, Yuriko Suzuki, Yoko Honda, Tomohiro Nakao, Kotaro Otsuka, Shigenobu Kanba, Toshihide Kuroki and Takahiro A. Kato, 3-day intervention program for family members of hikikomori sufferers: A pilot randomized controlled trial, Frontiers in Psychiatry, 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.1029653, 13, 2023.01, Backgrounds: Hikikomori, pathological social withdrawal, is becoming a crucial mental health issue in Japan and worldwide. We have developed a 3-day family intervention program for hikikomori sufferers based on Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) and Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT). This study aims to confirm the effectiveness of the 3-day program by a randomized controlled trial.
Methods: This study was registered on the UMIN Clinical Trials Registry (UMIN000037289). Fifteen parents were assigned to the treat as usual (TAU) group (TAU only; Age Mean, 65.6; SD, 7.8), and 14 to the Program group (program + TAU; Age Mean, 67.9; SD, 8.6). This study was discontinued due to the COVID-19 pandemic; the recruitment rate was 36.3% of our target sample size of 80.
Results: Perceived skills improved temporally and stigma temporally worsened in the TAU group. Confidence decreased and attitude showed no change in both groups. Aggressive behaviors of hikikomori sufferers were significantly worsened in the Program group; however, no serious domestic violence was reported. In the TAU group, Avoidance and irregular life patterns were improved. Activity levels were worsened in both groups. Two participants (16.7%) in the Program group and one participant (7.7%) in the TAU group reported actual behavioral changes (e.g., utilizing support).
Conclusion: We could not draw general conclusions on the effectiveness of the program due to the study discontinuation. Nevertheless, this study indicates the necessity for revision of the program to improve family members’ confidence in engaging with hikikomori sufferers, with safer approaching by families..
2. Hiroaki Kubo, Hiromi Urata, Motohiro Sakai, Shunsuke Nonaka, Kazuhiko Saito , Masaru Tateno, Keiji Kobara , Naoki Hashimoto, Daisuke Fujisawa, Yuriko Suzuki, Kotaro Otsuka, Hiroho Kamimae, Yuya Muto, Takashi Usami, Yoko Honda, Junji Kishimoto, Toshihide Kuroki, Shigenobu Kanba, Takahiro A Kato , Development of a 3-Day Intervention Program for Family Members of Hikikomori Sufferers, Japanese Psychological Research, 10.1111/jpr.12368, 2021.08, Hikikomori (a severe form of social withdrawal) is a serious mental health issue. A family approach is the initial step to support hikikomori; thus effective family
intervention programs are warranted. We recently developed a 5-day family intervention program (120 min weekly) based on Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) and Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT). In the present study, we modified the 5-day program to a 3-day program (180 min fortnightly), and examined the effectiveness of the 3-day program using a single-arm procedure. Data of 23 parents (four fathers and 19 mothers; age = 62.0   9.1 years) were analyzed. Mental health conditions among participants themselves improved at the 4-month followup, but the confidence in hikikomori support declined and stigma toward mental health problems did not change. However, short-term improvements in perceived skills in approaching hikikomori sufferers were detected. Hikikomori sufferers’ actual behavioral changes, such as social participation or utilization of support, were also observed (six out of 20 hikikomori sufferers). Preliminary effectiveness was confirmed for the 3-day program. Further revision of the program and a validation study with controls are required..
3. Nakashima M, Inada N, Tanigawa Y, Yamashita M, Maeda E, Kouguchi M, Sarad Y, Yano H, Ikari K, Kuga H, Oribe N, Kaname H, Harada T, Ueno T, Kuroki T, Efficacy of group cognitive behavior therapy targeting time management for adults with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in Japan: A randomized control pilot trial., Journal of Attention Disorders, 10.1177/1087054720986939, J Atten Disord, Jan 20; 1087054720986939, Online ahead of print., 2021.01, Objective: Time-processing disorders in adults is a priority area for intervention. Time management program, which has been demonstrated to be effective in children with ADHD, has not been examined in adults. We anticipate the need for the development of specialized programs for adults. This is because it has been reported that time processing disorders have different patterns in childhood and adulthood. This study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic effect of a gCBT program focusing on time management for adults with ADHD. Method: Adults with ADHD were randomly assigned to gCBT (n=24) or a treatment as usual group (n=24). Outcome measures were masked clinically rated, self-reported, and family-reported ADHD symptoms. Results: The gCBT group significantly reduced ADHD symptoms on all measures. Conclusion: Interventions focused on time management have been shown to be effective not only in children with ADHD but also in adult patients..
4. Kubo H, Urata H, Sakai M, Nonaka S, Saito K, Tateno M, Kobara K, Hashimoto N, Fujisawa D, Suzuki Y, Otsuka K, Kamimae H, Muto Y, Usami T, Honda Y, Kishimoto J, Kuroki T, Kanba S, Kato TA, Development of 5-day hikikomori intervention program for family members: A single-arm pilot trial. , Helion, 6, 1, e03011, 2020.01, Backgrounds: Hikikomori, a severe form of social withdrawal, is increasingly a serious mental health issue worldwide. Hikikomori is comorbid with various psychiatric conditions including depression, social anxiety and suicidal behaviors. Family support is encouraged as a vital first step, however evidence-based programs have yet to be established. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is one of the most well-validated educational programs encouraging lay people such as family members, to support close persons suffering from various psychiatric conditions such as depression, anxiety and suicidal behaviors.
Methods: We newly developed an educational program for family members of hikikomori sufferers mainly based on MHFA and 'Community Reinforcement and Family Training (CRAFT)' with role-play and homework. As a single-arm trial, 21 parents (7 fathers and 14 mothers) living with hikikomori sufferers participated in our program with five once-a-week sessions (2 h per session) and six monthly follow-ups, and its effectiveness was evaluated using various self-rated questionnaires.
Results: Perceived skills toward a depressed hikikomori case vignette, stigma held by participants, and subscales of two problematic and one adaptive behaviors of hikikomori sufferers were improved throughout the sessions and follow-ups. In addition, positive behavioral changes of hikikomori sufferers such as improved social participation were reported by participants.
Limitations: Single-arm design and evaluation using self-rated questionnaires are the main limitations of the present study.
Conclusions: Our newly developed program has positive effects on family members in their contact and support of hikikomori sufferers. Future trials with control groups are required to validate the effectiveness of this program..
5. @本村啓介、黒木俊秀, カテゴリー対ディメンジョン, 精神科治療学, 34, 1115-1122, 2020.11.
6. The end of the DSM era and the rise of pluralism in psychiatry.
7. Aita C, Mizoguchi Y, Yamamoto M, SeguchI Y, Yatsuga C, Nishimura T, Sugimoto Y, Takahashi D, Nishihara R, Ueno T, Nakayama M, Kuroki T, Nabeta H, Imamura Y, Monji A., Oxytocin levels and sex differences in autism spectrum disorder with severe intellectual disabilities., Psychiatry Research, 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.12.139, 273, 67-74, 2018.12, There were few reports of oxytocin (OXT) concentrations of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) patients with severe intellectual disabilities. We measured serum OXT concentrations in 79 hospitalized patients with severe intellectual disabilities (16-60 years old, 50 males and 29 females, 54 ASD patients) and investigated the associations between serum OXT concentration, symptom scores, sex differences, and autism spectrum disorder. There were no significant effects of diagnosis, severity of intellectual disabilities, and total score of the Japanese version of the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC-J), the Childhood Autism Rating Scale-Tokyo Version (CARS-TV), and the Japanese version of the Repetitive Behavior Scale-Revised (RBS-R). However, there were sex differences in the correlations between OXT concentrations and subscale scores in the ASD group. The male ASD group (n = 39) showed negative correlations between RBS-R Self-injurious and Sameness subscale scores and serum OXT concentrations. In the female ASD group(n = 15), CARS-TV Nonverbal communication subscale scores and RBS-R Compulsive subscale scores were seen to positively correlate with serum OXT concentrations. These findings suggest that OXT functions differ in males and females with severe intellectual disabilities and that OXT partly affects autism and related to some of the repetitive behaviors and nonverbal communication, in ASD patients with severe intellectual disabilities..
8. Toshihide Kuroki, Current viewpoints on DSM-5 in Japan., Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 70, 9, 371-393, 2016.09.
9. Threshold of Application of Antidepressant Drugs for Treatment of Depressive Disorder.
10. Forensic mental health and DSM: The meta-structure of DSM-5 and clinical utility of psychiatric diagnosis.
11. Toshihide Kuroki, A placebo-controlled, double-blind study of the efficacy and safety of aripiprazole for the treatment of acute manic or mixed episodes in Asian patients with bipolar I disorder (the AMAZE study)., World Journal of Biological Psychiatry, 2013.04.
12. Yamada H, Kuroki T, Nakahara T, Hashimoto K, Tsutsumi T, Hirano M, Maeda H, The dopamine D1 receptor agonist, but not the D2 receptor agonist, induces gene expression of Homer 1a in rat striatum and nucleus accumbens, Brain Research, Vol. 1131, pp88-96, 2007.02.
13. Nakahara T, Kuroki T, Hondo H, Tsutsumi T, Fukuda K, Yao H, et al, Effects of atypical antipsychotics versus haloperidol on expression of heat shock protein in the discrete brain regions of phencyclidine-treated rats, Mol Brain Res, 73: 193-197, 1999.01.
14. Nakahara T, Kuroki T, Hashimoto K, Hondo H, Tsutsumi T, Motomura K, et al, Effect of atypical antipsychotics on phencyclidine-induced expression of arc in rat brain, Neuroreport, 11: 551-555, 2000.01.
15. Guo Y, Kuroki T, Koizumi S, Abnormal illness behavior of patients with functional somatic symptoms: relation to psychiatric disorders, General Hospital Psychiatry, 23: 223-229, 2001.01.
16. Kuroki T, Dai J, Meltzer HY, Ichikawa J, R(+)-8-OH-DPAT, a selective 5-HT1A receptor agonist, attenuated amphetamine-induced dopamine synthesis in rat striatum, but not nucleus accumbens or medial prefrontal cortex, Brain Research, 872: 204-207, 2000.01.
17. Kuroki T, Meltzer HY, Ichikawa J, 5-HT2A receptor stimulation by DOI, a 5-HT2A/2C receptor agonist, potentiates amphetamine-induced dopamine release in rat medial prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens, Brain Research, 972: 216-221, 2003.01.