Abstract
Self-perception of people with Down Syndrome (DS) was originally studied in the United States in 2011; this study indicated that 99% of people with DS are happy with their lives. In this study, we investigated self-perceptions of people with DS in Japan and compared the results to the previous study made in the United States. The participants (n = 300) were 12 years old or older and members of Japan Down Syndrome Society (JDS). The questionnaire was collected between 30 October 2015 and 26 November 2015. Of 96(32%) responses, 76 (97%) agreed they are happy with their lives. We found that most people with DS in Japan also feel positive about themselves and their lives. Along with the start of Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing in Japan, DS draws an attention from Japanese people because maternal age has been increasing. This has resulted in the growth of the number of prenatal tests marketed in Japan. Therefore, we expect our results to be relevant to genetic counseling for the couples considering prenatal tests or parents raising their children with DS so that they have a clearer image about life with DS and can better visualize their life plans.
Log in or create a free account to read this content
Gain free access to this article, as well as selected content from this journal and more on nature.com
or
References
Skotko BG, Levine SP, Goldstein R. Self-perceptions from people with Down Syndrome. Am J Med Genet Part A. 2011;155:2360–9.
Helliwell J, Layard R, Sachs J, eds. World Happiness Report 2015. New York: Sustainable Development Solutions Network; 2015.
Kitayama S. Cultural views of self and psychological processes [In Japanese]. J Social Psychol. 1995;10:153–67.
Jackson C, Cavenagh P, Clibbens J. Communication and self-esteem in adults with Down Syndrome. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2014;49:275–87.
Kumin L, and Schoenbrodt L. 2015. Employment in Adults with Down Syndrome in the United States: Results from a National Survey. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities. Jul;29(4):330-45.
NIPT Consortium Japan. http://www.nipt.jp/index.html (Accessed on 23 September 2017).
Health, Labour and Welfare Statistics Association. Journal of Health and Welfare Statistics. Tokyo: Health, Labour and Welfare Statistics Association; 2015. pp. 59–63.
Sasaki A, Sago H, Yoshihashi H, Yamada S, Miyake H. Current status of prenatal diagnosis in Japan 2013 [In Japanese]. Jpn J Genet Couns. 2015;36:56.
Acknowledgements
We are grateful to Dr. Brian Skotko for his collaboration on this entire work. We would also like to thank the members of the Japan Down Syndrome Society and their families for answering our survey and for their support of our research.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wakai, M., Takahashi, R., Higashigawa, S. et al. Self-perceptions from people with Down syndrome in Japan. J Hum Genet 63, 669–672 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s10038-018-0412-4
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s10038-018-0412-4
