title: The ins and outs of doctor-patient relations in Japan.
abstract: This paper analyzes doctor-patient relations in Japan from an interactionist perspective, based on interviews of medical personnel and patients and on participant-observation in a number of medical institutions. After describing Japanese categories of social relationships, the author shows how, by utilizing symbolic behavior, both doctors and patients attempt to manipulate the relationship to provide a desired degree of mutual reliance.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004358:Drug Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D007802:Language; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D012929:Psychological Distance