Health and Chinese Beliefs: A Scientometric Analysis of Health Literature Related to Taoism and Confucianism.

Taoism and Confucianism both exited simultaneously as philosophies of living in dynastic China. Although there has been an increasing popularity in scientometric studies, religion and health (R&H) literature lacks a holistic evaluation investigating articles relevant to Taoism and Confucianism. All publications produced in Taoism and Confucianism literature and indexed in Web of Science (WoS) databases between 1975 and 2018 were included in this study. Database search on health and Taoism literature retrieved 199 documents from WoS databases. Main research areas were Psychology, Religion and Behavioral Sciences (24.121, 21.608 and 20.603, respectively). The USA ranked first with 38 papers followed China, Taiwan and the UK (n = 35, 20 and 6 documents, respectively). Hong Kong Polytechnic University from China was the most contributor institution in health and Taoism literature. A total of 448 documents were published in health and Confucianism literature between 1975 and 2018, and original articles covered 93.08% of all literature. China was leading country with 126 articles followed by the USA, South Korea and Taiwan (n = 97, 35 and 35 items, respectively). The most productive institutions were City University of Hong Kong (China), Karolinska Institute (Sweden) and University of Hong Kong (China). Researchers from developing and least developed countries should be encouraged to carry out novel scientometric studies in R&H literature.

Harmony Between Humanity and Nature: Natural Vs. Synthetic Drug Preference in Chinese Atheists and Taoists.

A commonplace observation across many cultures is that humans show a strong preference for natural items on drug choice in the medical domain. Despite an emerging line of psychological research on individual differences in the naturalness-is-better bias, few studies have focused on the role of religious beliefs. According to the core idea of Taoism, people should free themselves from selfishness and desire and behave in concert with the alternating cycles of Nature. Based on the findings regarding the positive relationship between connectedness to nature and naturalness preference, we predict that Taoists, who emphasize harmony between humanity and nature, should show a stronger naturalness-is-better bias than atheists on drug choice due to their higher level of natural connectedness. The results showed that both Chinese atheists and Taoists selected a natural over synthetic drug even though the safety and efficacy of the medicines were described as identical. More importantly, the naturalness-is-better bias is more pronounced in Taoists than atheists. These data suggest that religious beliefs related to individuals' connectedness to nature may moderate the naturalness-is-better bias in health decisions.

The Musings of a Family Therapist in Asia When COVID-19 Struck.

In response to the COVID-19 crisis in Asia, a family therapist in Hong Kong shares her experiences and reflections, both personally and professionally from an Eastern lens. From a state of shock and immobilization to moments of contemplation, she highlights her struggle with being caught between her Eastern roots and Western training, which has become more salient in facing COVID-19. While the latter pulls her toward a more problem resolution stance, the former pulls her toward a more accepting position. As a result, her therapy is shaped in such a way that she tends to raise more questions instead of providing answers.

En respuesta a la crisis de la COVID-19 en Asia, una terapeuta familiar en Hong Kong comparte sus experiencias y reflexiones, tanto a nivel personal como profesional, desde una perspectiva oriental. Desde un estado de conmoción e inmovilización a momentos de contemplación, ella destaca sus dificultades al sentirse atrapada entre sus raíces orientales y su formación occidental, que ha adquirido más importancia a la hora de enfrentar la COVID-19. Si bien la última la lleva hacia una postura más orientada a la resolución de problemas, la primera la inclina hacia una postura más aceptadora. Como resultado, su terapia está moldeada de tal manera que ella tiende a plantear más preguntas que a ofrecer respuestas.

Religion and Subjective Well-Being: Western and Eastern Religious Groups Achieved Subjective Well-Being in Different Ways.

Culture can moderate which variables most influence subjective well-being (SWB). Because religion can be conceptualized as culture, religious differences can be considered cultural differences. However, there have been few studies comparing how different religious groups evaluate SWB at any given time. This study is among the first to investigate this issue. The present study compared Buddhists, Taoists, Christians, and atheists. In addition to demographic items, 451 Chinese adults completed Chinese version of the Socially Oriented Cultural Conception of SWB Scale. Religious belief was distributed as follows: 10 % Christian, 20 % Buddhist, 25 % Taoist, and 43 % atheists. As predicted, the socially oriented cultural conception of SWB was found to be highest among Buddhists, followed in order by Taoists, atheists, and Christians. It was concluded that the various religious groups achieved SWB in different ways.

Taoism and digital inclusive finance.

To help investors understand the profound impact of Taoism in society, this study systematically evaluates its impact on digital inclusive finance and its mechanisms. Based on theoretical analysis, this study makes an empirical analysis based on Chinese city-level data from 2011 to 2019, in which the core explanatory variable "Taoism" encompasses the Taoist places of religious activity in each city, and the explained variable "digital inclusive finance" is measured using the Peking University digital inclusive finance index. The results of this study show that (1) the Taoist concept of inaction requires people to put aside selfishness and prejudice, and treat others fairly, rationally, and leniently, which is conducive to the development of digital inclusive finance; (2) the dialectical wisdom of Taoism inspires positive psychological capital, which is conducive to digital and traditional technological innovations and the development of digital inclusive finance; and (3) further research indicates that Taoism encourages Chinese-listed enterprises to actively fulfill their social responsibilities by promoting the development of digital inclusive finance. This study can help global investors understand China's traditional culture and capital markets and serve as the first step in exploring Taoist economics.

Understanding The Process of Taoistic-Informed Mindfulness from a Meadian Perspective.

In the recent years, mindfulness-based research has experienced a boom. Yet, the majority of those studies treat mindfulness in a positivistic way, thus solely as a variable. Within such a lens of inquiry, we ignore the theoretical and historical underpinnings of mindfulness that are still important, nowadays. For that purpose, I instance a theoretical and historical framework of mindfulness grounded within Taoism - relying on the notion of the polarity of life and wu wei (the principle of not-forcing) and try to bridge that focus with Mead's Social Psychology. By means of an autoethnography, I show that mindfulness-based activities such as meditation unfold the power of an individual to experience and own a new I which then acts in a new fashion upon the demands of the (social) environment (Me). In this process, a new personality is born that integrates wholistically the polar sides of life within himself/herself.

[Cognitive differences between Taoism and medical science in the location of "Jiaji"].

The differences in the cognition on the location of "Jiaji" between Taoism and medical science are summarized through literature searching. In the medical field, "Jiaji" is generally described as "Jiaji Xue (point)", which is considered as EX-B 2, while, in Taoism, it is expressed as "Jiaji Guan (pass)", focusing on the crucial parts of the body. Medical scholars lay their attention to the distance of "Jiaji" lateral to the spine, in which "Jia" (place on both sides) is mostly considered. In comparison, the Taoists emphasize the central axis on the back of human body expressed as "Jiaji Gu (bone)" and "Jiaji Sanguan (three crucial parts)", in which, "Ji (spine)" is the key. Due to the therapeutic purposes of acupuncture, medical scholars focus on the communication of "Jiaji" with the body surface ultimately. Based on the inner perspective of Taoism, "Jiaji" is connoted to be the three-dimensional structural space located deeply inside of the body. The cognitive differences in the location of "Jiaji" between Taoism and medical science reflect the discrepancy in the cognitive dimensions and approaches to the human body between them, which provide the references for the textual research of "Jiaji" in traditional Chinese medicine.

The Dialogical Self of Taoistic Dynamics: How scientists and practitioners can trigger the discovery of a harmonious self.

In the present paper, I relate the Dialogical Self Theory with the philosophy of Taoism. For that purpose, I instance the premises of Taoism such as that human being use open ideograms (signs and symbols) that grow constantly in their meaning, that the meaning of life can be only unraveled if the unity of opposites is integrated in one's worldview and that the human being listens to his natural intuition and does not force himself to do things (wuwei = effortless action which has its origins in Laozi's TaoTeChing). When those premises are applied to the Dialogical Self Theory, psychologists can help people to develop a harmonious self because the self is operationalized as an open system that is constantly in flux of meaning. Hidden I-positions might be shifted to the foreground while helping the human being to listen to a multitude of positions and to not act in a rigid fashion. In order for scientists and practitioners to use the insights of what I call the Dialogical Self of Taoistic Dynamics, I propose an open interview guide that could help people to realize their harmonious pluralistic self.

Taoism, bioethics, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The stress that the COVID-19 pandemic has placed on health systems internationally has forced difficult decisions concerning the rationing of medical care and has put the bioethical structures that inform those choices under scrutiny. Often, ethical approaches to pandemic circumstances center around utilitarianism, dehumanizing the treatment process and ignoring the plurality of other philosophical doctrines that inform non-Western bioethics, which could be of use in addressing the pandemic. This paper focuses on philosophical Taoism, as developed in the Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi, in order to suggest an alternative approach to medical care when medical capacity is limited, grounded in the concept of wu-wei, or inaction.

The Yin-Yang Definition Model of Mental Health: The Mental Health Definition in Chinese Culture.

It is a common aim of psychologists to construct a definition model with universal cultural applicability for mental health. These models can be divided into two types in terms of definition: One is the negative mental health definition model based on the absence of mental illness symptoms; the other is the definition model of positive mental health based on subjective feelings, such as happiness and social identity. However, neither of these definitions can properly explain Chinese people's understanding of mental health or how mental health is dealt with in Chinese culture. This paper proposes a Yin-Yang definition model of mental health based on the theory of personality of Confucianism and Taoism. This model not only properly describes the understanding of mental health in traditional Chinese culture, but also explains East Asian psychotherapy and mental health practices in the context of Chinese culture.

Soundscape Evaluation Outside a Taoist Temple: A Case Study of Laojundong Temple in Chongqing, China.

The unique architectural form and religious background of Taoist buildings can lead to a special acoustic environment, but there is a lack of research on the soundscape evaluation of Taoist buildings. Laojundong Taoist Temple was selected as the research site. The psychological and physiological responses of Taoist priests and ordinary people, and strategies for soundscape renovation were investigated by conducting field measurements, interviews, soundwalks, and audio−visual experiments. There was significant negative linear regression between the LAeq,5min and soundscape comfort (p < 0.01). The visual landscape comfort of ordinary people was notably correlated with landscape diversity (p < 0.01), whereas their soundscape comfort was markedly correlated with the degree of natural soundscape and audio−visual harmony (p < 0.01). The soundscape evaluation by Taoist priests was affected by their belief, activity types, social factors, and spatial positions. With the increasing proportion of the natural elements in the visual landscape in the temple, the acoustic comfort of Taoist priests and ordinary people significantly increased with the addition of bird sounds (p < 0.01). However, with the increasing proportion of Taoist scenes, Taoist music only significantly improved the acoustic comfort and heart rate of ordinary people (p < 0.01).

The Three Teachings of East Asia (TTEA) Inventory: Developing and Validating a Measure of the Interrelated Ideologies of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism.

Objectives: Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism have influenced societies and shaped cultures as they have spread across the span of history and ultimately across the world. However, to date, the interrelated nature of their impacts has yet to be examined largely due to the lack of a measure that comprehensively assesses their various tenets. Building on a conceptual integration of foundational texts on each ideology as well as on recent measure development work (much of which is unpublished), the current studies developed a comprehensive measure of these ideologies (the Three Teachings of East Asia Inventory; TTEA) and validated it across four languages. Methods: A combined sample of 2,091 online respondents (Study 1: 322 Chinese respondents, Study 2: 400 Japanese respondents, Study 3: 362 Taiwanese respondents, Study 4: 688 White Americans and 319 Asian Americans) completed 25-35 min online survey in their preferred language: English, Traditional Mandarin, Simplified Mandarin, or Japanese. Results: Exploratory Factor Analyses within a 122-item pool identified 18 stable dimensions across all samples. Measurement invariance analyses identified the final 61-items of the TTEA inventory (demonstrating reasonable invariance across all languages), confirming 18 individual tenet subscales that organize into four higher-order composites: Buddhism, Taoism, Restrictive Confucianism, and Empowering Confucianism. A shorter 36-item version of the TTEA inventory was also developed. The TTEA scales demonstrated (1) acceptable internal consistency, (2) discriminant validity, and (3) incremental predictive validity for current life satisfaction and vitality. Conclusions: The TTEA inventory offers one of the first comprehensive, multilingual measures that will allow cross-cultural researchers to examine the influence of three related Eastern ideologies on societies across the world.

[Relationship between DOU Han-qing of the Jin and Yuan Dynasty and Taoist].

In order to explore the culture factors of the construction of acupuncture theory of DOU Han-qing, the medical master of the Jin and Yuan Dynasty, the authors studied the relationship between DOU Han-qing and Taoist by collecting DOU 's life material. With manual retrieval, some ancient historical literature was obtained. Additionally, Yijing Huiyuan: Zhenjiu Yuanshu: Dou Taishi Michuan Mihua Zhenjing Qiongyao Baojian, written by WU Jia-yan in the Ming Dynasty, collected in Japan, was analyzed. It was found that DOU Han-qing's acupuncture and moxibustion was influenced by Suwen Wangpian: Cifalun, the Taoism medicine of the early stage of the Song Dynasty, as well as by Jiaojing Baxue, passed on by SONG Zi-hua, the hermit. DOU Han-qing had been in contact with FAN Zhi-ying of the Taoist, but there was no clear record relevant with medicine. Dou Taishi Michuan Mihua Zhenjing Qiongyao Baojian may be the compilation by Taoism medical master, on the base DOU 's acupuncture and moxibustion. There is a kind of mutual influence and mutual promotion relationship between DOU Han-qing and Taoist.

The Taiji Model of Self II: Developing Self Models and Self-Cultivation Theories Based on the Chinese Cultural Traditions of Taoism and Buddhism.

Based on the construction of the "Taiji Model of Confucian Self" that aims to explain self-structure, the progression of self-cultivation and the dominion of person-making in the context of Chinese Confucian culture, according to the ideas of Taoism and Buddhism, the present study develops the "Taiji Model of Taoist Self" and the "Taiji Model of Buddhist Self" and identifies four realms of Taoist self-cultivation and five realms of Buddhist self-cultivation. In light of the Taiji Model of Taoist Self, self-structure can be divided into the soft self (the Yin part) and the hard self (the Yang part). The Taiji Model of Taoist Self splits the process of self-cultivation into four realms: suren (vulgarian), xianren (solon), shengren (saint), and zhenren (immortal). The Taiji Model of Buddhist Self splits self-structure into the dusty self (the Yin part) and the pure self (the Yang part) and divides the process of self-cultivation into five realms: Humans and Heaven, Arhat, Pratyekabuddha, Bodhisattva, and Buddha.

Let Nature Take Its Course: Cultural Adaptation and Pilot Test of Taoist Cognitive Therapy for Chinese American Immigrants With Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

This report describes initial results from a multi-stage project to manualize and adapt an indigenous therapy, Chinese Taoist Cognitive Psychotherapy (CTCP), for dissemination in the United States context. Study aims were to (a) integrate cultural adaptation and implementation science frameworks to manualize and adapt the original intervention and (b) explore the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of the modified intervention, renamed Taoist Cognitive Therapy (TCT), in a sample of Chinese immigrants with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Incorporating bottom-up and top-down adaptation approaches, we involved Chinese American clinician stakeholders and experts in Taoist philosophy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and GAD to help identify cultural and contextual barriers and solutions to enhance treatment acceptability and implementation. Five treatment-seeking Chinese American immigrants (average age = 43.2 years) with a primary diagnosis of GAD completed 14-16 sessions of TCT. Two participants also had secondary diagnoses of major depressive disorder. Changes on primary measures of worry and anxiety were assessed for statistical and clinical significance using reliable change indices (RCIs; Jacobson and Truax, 1991) and comparisons to normative data. In this sample of patients with limited prior exposure to Taoism, results found evidence of feasibility and acceptability of the modified intervention, with strong endorsement of Taoist principles at termination. Statistically and clinically significant improvements in anxiety, worry, psychological inflexibility, and emotional avoidance were found only for the participants without comorbid depression. Results suggest that Taoist principles of acceptance and flexible adaptation to natural laws may be helpful to Chinese immigrants coping with anxiety. However, additional treatment modifications may be required to address the low self-efficacy and fatalism expressed among those with comorbid depression.

Chinese Taoist Cognitive Therapy for Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety in Adults in China: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Chinese Taoist cognitive therapy (CTCT), a culture-oriented psychological therapy for Chinese mental well-being, has been proposed for decades. However, the evidence for its effects is unclear. This study aimed to systematically assess the effect of this therapy on symptoms of depression and anxiety in Chinese adults. Methods: Relevant studies were searched from major electronic databases through November 2018 without language limits. Several search terms used include "anxiety" OR "depression" AND "Taoism" OR "Daoism" OR "Chinese Taoist Cognitive Therapy." A total of 11 clinical trials focusing on CTCT were included in this meta-analysis. Random-effects meta-analytical models were conducted. Heterogeneity and publication bias were also explored. Results: Eight clinical trials for 580 subjects were included. The majority of these studies explored samples with depressive symptoms. Overall, CTCT significantly reduced depressive symptoms with a small positive effect (SMD = 0.16, 95% CI: -0.36-0.68). Medium-to-large effect sizes were observed across individuals with clinical or non-clinical depression and chronic physical diseases (SMD = 0.70, 95%CI: 0.27-1.13 and SMD = 0.72, 95%CI: 0.09-1.35, respectively). However, the effectiveness for anxiety symptoms remains debatable. Conclusions: Our findings hold promise that CTCT can help reduce depressive symptoms in Chinese adults, including patients with chronic physical diseases and clinical or non-clinical depression. Our findings may be generalized to Chinese communities in other countries.

Bruno's Score.

Many of our experiences in hospice and palliative care medicine are challenging. We support dying patients and their families as they struggle with the transition from life to death and continue to support those in mourning. Many times, in America, it is difficult to even appreciate a glimmer of spiritual grace as our patients die. We easily remain stuck in the material and distance ourselves from the spiritual. Some exits are quite graceful, however. I present the case of an exceptional person, who enjoyed an exceptional life and had an exceptionally graceful dying process and death, in hopes that his story may encourage other healers as much as he inspired me. Bruno was a composer and cognitive musicologist, whose art forms of light and music simultaneously move and challenge virtually all the people and other artists he interfaced with and taught, including his talented wife and family, his friends, his acquaintances, his students, his colleagues, and his deans. He embodied theories as diverse as mathematical strange loops, continually paradoxical/recursive illusory art, contrapuntal fugues, and artificial intelligence. Bruno's spirituality was uncommonly profound. It spanned and interconnected many eclectic faith traditions, theologies, and philosophies, including Taoism, Greek mythology, distributed cognition, mathematics, and Tibetan Buddhism. It resonated strongly with Zen and Christian mysticism. Some of Bruno's being and transformation to nonbeing was obvious; some of it was inscrutable.

Beauty, ugliness and the sublime.

Jung and Freud had very different ideas about the nature of analysis. This paper begins by exploring how Jung's gnostic approach, with its goal of individuation, is deeply informed by Buddhist and Taoist principles. His pluralistic, relational model regards truth as subjective and co-constructed with the patient. In contrast, Freud's secular methodology has objective truth as its goal. His classical psychoanalysis is a form of reality testing where the analyst claims to know the painful, singular, objective reality which the patient tries to evade. The theory of aesthetic development (see Piaget 1951, Baldwin 1975, Parsons 1980, Housen 1992, Harris Williams 2010) proposes that artistic appreciation is linked to human development. The paper looks at how the apperception of beauty, related to both truth and meaning, acts as an indicator and facilitator of individuation in the clinical encounter. This is illustrated by a clinical case study. Through empirical research, support is given to the argument (Bollas 1978, Meltzer 1988) that our early experience of the feminine/maternal plays a central role in developing an aesthetic capacity. The experience of the sublime in analysis is examined and portrayed as a means by which aesthetic development may be reignited and narcissistic isolation shattered.

Cognitive differences between Taoism and medical science in the location of "Jiaji" / 中国针灸

The differences in the cognition on the location of "Jiaji" between Taoism and medical science are summarized through literature searching. In the medical field, "Jiaji" is generally described as "Jiaji Xue (point)", which is considered as EX-B 2, while, in Taoism, it is expressed as "Jiaji Guan (pass)", focusing on the crucial parts of the body. Medical scholars lay their attention to the distance of "Jiaji" lateral to the spine, in which "Jia" (place on both sides) is mostly considered. In comparison, the Taoists emphasize the central axis on the back of human body expressed as "Jiaji Gu (bone)" and "Jiaji Sanguan (three crucial parts)", in which, "Ji (spine)" is the key. Due to the therapeutic purposes of acupuncture, medical scholars focus on the communication of "Jiaji" with the body surface ultimately. Based on the inner perspective of Taoism, "Jiaji" is connoted to be the three-dimensional structural space located deeply inside of the body. The cognitive differences in the location of "Jiaji" between Taoism and medical science reflect the discrepancy in the cognitive dimensions and approaches to the human body between them, which provide the references for the textual research of "Jiaji" in traditional Chinese medicine.