Vol.3, No.6, 393-401 (2013) Open Journal of Preventiv e Me dic ine
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ojpm.2013.36053
The impact of a sense of belonging on lethargy and
career maturity
Fumihiro Omasu*, Yuiko Takahashi
Department of School Health, Graduate School of Education, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan;
*Corresponding Author:
Received 11 July 2013; revised 8 August 2013; accepted 15 August 2013
Copyright © 2013 Fumihiro Omasu, Yuiko Takahashi. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attri-
bution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly
cited.
ABSTRACT
In this study, the authors treated a combination
of psychological apathy and decreased motiva-
tion as a tendency to lethargy, and implemented
a survey into the tendency to lethargy demon-
strated by students, in order to study the impact
of a sense of belonging in the four relationships
between the student and the people considered
most likely to be interacted with during univer-
sity life—those with family, friends at university,
friends outside university and boyfriend/girl-
friend. In addition, the authors implemented a
survey and study that included additional cate-
gories relating to career maturity. The study was
performed on 250 university students, using an
anonymous questionnaire that graded responses
using criteria to measure a sense of belonging,
psychological apathy characteristics, areas of
decreased motivation, and career maturity. The
subjects were classified by the school year to
which they belonged, their gender, and whether
or not they had a boyfriend/girlfriend, and con-
sideration was given to the rela tionship between
psychological apathy, decreased motivation, ca-
reer maturity and a sense of belonging. In terms
of gender difference in regard to each of the
criteria, partially, the study indicated that male
students score significantly higher than female
students in terms of a sense of belonging, fe-
males score significantly higher than males for
decreased motivation in regard to classes, and
males score significantly higher than females in
relation to career maturity. No significant dif-
ference in scores was noted between males and
females in relation to psychological apathy. The
impact of a sense of belonging on psychological
apathy, decreased motivation and career moti-
vation was seen in the fact that across all cate-
gories, those students with a good relationship
with friends at university had a suppr essed level
of decreased motivation in regard to university
by the portions given in this docume nt.
Keywords: Sense of Belonging; Psychological
Apathy; Decreased Motivation; Tendency to
Lethargy; Career Maturity
1. INTRODUCTION
School maladaptation caused by lethargy, decreased
motivation and disinterest among students has long been
seen as a problem. According to a study of university
students who either put their studies on hold or left uni-
versity, or who were repeating a year of school [1], a
large number of passive reasons were given for putting
on hold or leaving studies. These passive reasons include
a reduction or loss of motivation in regard to study, in-
sufficient credits, and student apathy, all of which make
up a significant proportion of responses. There is no need
to debate the importance of support on a mental level.
Furthermore, among students with experience of repeat-
ing a year, the most common reason given for the re-
peated year was “I cannot find the motivation to learn”,
while the most common reason given by students giving
reasons related to their poor health was “Irregular life-
style” followed by “Mental concerns and anxieties”,
demonstrating the need for mental support among uni-
versity students.
Currently, absenteeism is the major problem with
school adaptation in junior high schools throughout Ja-
pan. It has been indicated that a sense of belonging in
each type of relationship has a positive impact on pro-
moting mental health and school adaptation among jun-
ior high school students, and it is clear that a sense of
belonging has a significant impact on absenteeism [2].

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394
For university students, results [2,3] have been published
showing that a sense of belonging has no relationship to
school adaptation, so that while the central problem of
school adaptation for junior high school students is ab-
senteeism, indicating an overall withdrawal from school,
the central problem of school adaptation for university
students tends to be student apathy, resulting in partial
withdrawal from school, and as such analyzing these in
the same study has been stated as insufficient. As stated
above, the fact that the central problem of school adapta-
tion for university students is student apathy can be as-
cribed to the particular situation in which Japan finds
itself. The current system by which Japanese students
move from school to university is increasingly dealing
with younger students, and becoming more institutional-
ized, and university students pass through this particular
system in order to enter university. As a result, as pointed
out by Shimoyama [4], the situation in which many
Japanese university students find themselves in their late
adolescence is a unique moratorium, which is qualita-
tively different to the classical situation of late adoles-
cence.
In this study, the authors implemented a survey into
the tendency to lethargy demonstrated by university stu-
dents, in order to study the impact of a sense of belong-
ing in the four relationships between the student and the
people considered most likely to be interacted with dur-
ing university life）—those with family, friends at univer-
sity, friends outside university and boyfriend/girlfriend.
In addition, it is believed that learning activities at uni-
versity equate to behavior that targets final career deci-
sions. For this reason, the authors assumed that there
must be a correlation between motivation in regard to
university life and attitude to career decisions, and
therefore added categories relating to career maturity,
with the objective of finding directions related to support
for students who demonstrate lethargy.
2. METHODS
The survey covered 250 university students (118 male
and 132 female). The average age of subjects was 20.4 ±
1.4 years (mean ± standard deviation). The survey was
implemented on all students during class hours, using an
anonymous questionnaire. In addition, it was distributed
and collected either directly or through acquaintances.
The criteria used for a sense of belonging were devised
by Ishimoto [2,3]. An overall sense of belonging com-
prised two factors, the “factor contributing to a sense of
intrinsic comfort”, which gives the sense that one can be
oneself, and the “factor contributing to a sense of one’s
own usefulness”, which gives the sense that one is
needed. The criteria for psychological apathy character-
istics and areas of decreased motivation were taken from
Shimoyama [5]. The criteria for areas of decreased mo-
tivation covered the three factors of “decreased motiva-
tion in regard to academic life”, “decreased motivation in
regard to classes” and “decreased motivation in regard to
university”. Career maturity was examined using the
criteria for career maturity [6] defined by the Japan Ca-
reers Guidance Association (Nihon Shinro Shido Kyo-
kai). This involved three criteria: “attitude of self-reali-
zation”, which expresses an awareness of aiming to real-
ize oneself via employment, “career planning”, which
expresses the extent to which the student is currently
engaged in practical activities with a view to future em-
ployment situations, and “career decisions”, which ex-
press the strength of decision-making in regard to the
type of employment hoped for in the future. Responses
were selected from five levels ranging from “Entirely
inapplicable (1 mark)” through to “Extremely applicable
(5 marks)”. The analysis was implemented based on
classification according to gender, and whether or not the
subject had a boyfriend/girlfriend. The gender difference
for each category was calculated as an average value for
each criteria, and the difference between average values
for males and females was compared using the Mann-
Whitney U-test, before its relationship to psychological
apathy, decreased motivation, career maturity and a sense
of belonging were subjected to multiple regression
analysis, with psychological apathy, decreased motiva-
tion and career maturity taken as objective variables, and
a sense of belonging as the explanatory variable.
3. RESULTS
3.1. Breakdown of Subjects
A total of 250 subjects were categorized according to
school year, gender and whether or not they had a girl-
friend/boyfriend (Table 1).
3.2. Gender Difference for Each Criterion
Tabl e 2 shows the average values and standard devia-
tion, as well as the results of comparison of average val-
ues between males and females, for a sense of belonging
in regard to relationships with family, friends at univer-
sity, friends outside university and boyfriend/girlfriend;
psychological apathy, decreased motivation in regard to
academic life, decreased motivation in regard to classes,
Table 1. Breakdown of subjects (no. of people).
Males Females
Has
boyfriend/
girlfriend
Does not have
boyfriend/
girlfriend
Has
boyfriend/
girlfriend
Does not have
boyfriend/
girlfriend
Total
42 76 66 66
118 132
250

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Table 2. Average values, SD and comparison between males and females for each (a) criteria among the group who had a boy-
friend/girlfriend; (b) criterion among the group without a boyfriend/girlfriend.
(a)
Overall (SD)
n = 108
Males (SD)
n = 42
Females (SD)
n = 66 M/F comparison
A sense of belonging 3.94 (0.10) 3.65 (1.05) 4.13 (0.91) P < 0.01
A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.89 (0.99) 3.51 (1.05) 4.13 (0.88) P < 0.01
Family
A sense of intrinsic comfort 4.16 (0.98) 4.19 (0.86) 4.14 (1.05) N.S.
A sense of belonging 3.70 (0.86) 3.62 (0.92) 3.74 (0.81) N.S.
A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.66 (0.84) 3.56 (0.89) 3.73 (0.80) N.S.
Friends at university
A sense of intrinsic comfort 3.83 (0.90) 3.88 (0.99) 3.80 (0.85) N.S.
A sense of belonging 3.90 (0.82) 3.92 (0.88) 3.89 (0.78) N.S.
A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.90 (0.79) 3.88 (0.87) 3.91 (0.75) N.S. Friends outside university
A sense of intrinsic comfort 3.94 (0.92) 4.10 (0.93) 3.83 (0.90) N.S.
A sense of belonging 4.19 (0.95) 4.15 (0.89) 4.22 (0.99) N.S.
A sense of one’s own usefulness 4.16 (0.97) 4.14 (0.89) 4.17 (1.03) N.S. Boyfriend/girlfriend
A sense of intrinsic comfort 4.32 (0.83) 4.19 (0.89) 4.41 (0.78) N.S.
Psychological apathy 2.91 (1.18) 2.93 (1.21) 2.89 (1.16) N.S.
Decreased motivation in regard to classes 3.00 (1.24) 3.18 (1.24) 2.88 (1.22) N.S.
Decreased motivation in regard to academic life 3.27 (1.09) 3.34 (1.16) 3.23 (1.05) N.S.
Decreased motivation in regard to university 2.42 (1.07) 2.34 (1.10) 2.47 (1.03) N.S.
Overall motivation 2.90 (1.21) 2.95 (1.25) 2.86 (1.14) N.S.
Self-realization 4.63 (0.64) 4.64 (0.69) 4.62 (0.60) N.S.
Career planning 3.56 (0.99) 3.48 (1.06) 3.62 (0.94) N.S.
Career decisions 4.06 (1.02) 3.83 (1.17) 4.21 (0.89) N.S.
Overall career 4.09 (0.99) 3.98 (1.10) 4.15 (0.92) N.S.
(b)
Overall (SD)
n = 142
Males (SD)
n = 76
Females (SD)
n = 66 M/F comparison
A sense of belonging 3.87 (1.01) 3.63 (1.08) 4.14 (0.84) P < 0.01
Family A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.81 (1.00) 3.57 (1.08) 4.09 (0.82) P < 0.01
A sense of intrinsic comfort 4.08 (1.01) 3.87 (1.08) 4.33 (0.87) P < 0.01
A sense of belonging 3.47 (0.91) 3.32 (0.91) 3.65 (0.89) P < 0.01
A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.42 (0.91) 3.27 (0.89) 3.59 (0.90) P < 0.01 Friends at university
A sense of intrinsic comfort 3.69 (0.90) 3.53 (0.94) 3.88 (0.81) P < 0.05
A sense of belonging 3.67 (0.92) 3.70 (0.88) 3.62 (0.97) N.S.
A sense of one’s own usefulness 3.62 (0.92) 3.67 (0.88) 3.56 (0.96) N.S.
Friends outside
university
A sense of intrinsic comfort 3.86 (0.92) 3.83 (0.87) 3.89 (0.98) N.S.
Psychological apathy 3.12 (1.19) 3.15 (1.19) 3.08 (1.19) N.S.
Decreased motivation in regard to classes 2.97 (1.36) 3.14 (1.40) 2.78 (1.28) P < 0.05
Decreased motivation in regard to academic life 3.34 (1.11) 3.37 (1.15) 3.31 (1.05) N.S.
Decreased motivation in regard to university 2.60 (1.09) 2.62 (1.10) 2.57 (1.09) N.S.
Overall motivation 2.97 (1.23) 3.04 (1.27) 2.89 (1.18) N.S.
Self-realization 4.61 (0.64) 4.55 (0.70) 4.68 (0.56) N.S.
Career planning 2.99 (1.10) 2.95 (1.16) 3.09 (1.03) N.S.
Career decisions 3.89 (1.04) 3.71 (1.11) 4.11 (0.91) P < 0.05
Overall career 3.84 (1.15) 3.74 (1.20) 3.96 (1.08) N.S.

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396
decreased motivation in regard to university and de-
creased motivation overall, attitude in regard to self-re-
alization, career planning, career decisions and careers
overall.
 In the group who had a boyfriend/girlfriend, a sig-
nificant difference was noted between males and fe-
males in regard to a sense of belonging within the
family, and a sense of one’s own usefulness, which is
a sub-criteria to the sense of belonging (P < 0.01 in
both cases). In the group without a boyfriend/girl-
friend, a significant difference was noted between
males and females in regard to a sense of belonging
within the family, and both a sense of one’s own use-
fulness and a sense of intrinsic comfort within the
family, which are sub-criteria to the sense of belong-
ing (P < 0.01 in both cases), and in regard to a sense
of belonging among friends at university, and both a
sense of one’s own usefulness and a sense of intrinsic
comfort within the family, which are sub-criteria to
the sense of belonging (P < 0.01 for a sense of be-
longing and of one’s usefulness, and P < 0.05 for a
sense of intrinsic comfort), with males scoring higher
than females.
 No significant difference in scores was recorded in
regard to psychological apathy characteristics, in ei-
ther the group with a boyfriend/girlfriend or that
without. In regard to decreased motivation, no sig-
nificant difference in scores was recorded in the
group who had a boyfriend/girlfriend, but in the
group who did not have a boyfriend/girlfriend, a sig-
nificant difference was noted between males and fe-
males (P < 0.05) in decreased motivation in regard to
classes, with males scoring higher than females.
 The group without a boyfriend/girlfriend demon-
strated a significant difference in score between males
and females in regard to career decisions (P < 0.05),
with females scoring higher than males.
3.3. Relationship between Psychological
Apathy, Decreased Motivation, Career
Maturity and a Sense of Belonging
Table 3 shows the results of multiple regression analy-
sis to demonstrate how a sense of belonging affects psy-
chological apathy, decreased motivation and career ma-
turity.
 A multiple regression analysis was performed on the
group with a boyfriend/girlfriend, using psychologi-
cal apathy, decreased motivation in regard to classes,
decreased motivation in regard to academic life, de-
creased motivation in regard to university and de-
creased motivation overall, attitude in regard to
self-realization, career planning, career decisions and
careers overall as objective variables, and a sense of
belonging, a sense of one’s own usefulness and a
sense of intrinsic comfort in regard to family, friends
at university, friends outside university and boyfriend/
girlfriend as explanatory variables. None of the indi-
cators showed up as significant predictive indicators
of psychological apathy. In males, only a sense of
one’s own usefulness in regard to the boyfriend/girl-
friend was a significant negative predictive indicator
for decreased motivation in regard to classes (P <
0.05). In females, only a sense of one’s own useful-
ness in regard to friends outside university was a sig-
nificant positive predictive indicator for decreased
motivation in regard to academic life (P < 0.01). In
both males and females, a sense of belonging in re-
gard to friends at university was a significant negative
predictive indicator for decreased motivation in re-
gard to university (both P < 0.01). In addition, a sense
of one’s own usefulness in regard to friends at uni-
versity was a significant negative predictive indicator
for decreased motivation in regard to university (P <
0.05), while a sense of belonging in regard to friends
outside university was a significant negative predic-
tive indicator for decreased motivation in regard to
university (P < 0.01). In regard to motivation overall,
both a sense of belonging and a sense of one’s own
usefulness in regard to friends at university were sig-
nificant negative predictive indicators in females
(both P < 0.05). In females, a sense of belonging in
regard to friends outside university was a significant
positive predictive indicator for careers overall (P <
0.01).
 A multiple regression analysis was performed on the
group without a boyfriend/girlfriend, using psycho
logical apathy, decreased motivation in regard to
classes, decreased motivation in regard to academic
life, decreased motivation in regard to university and
motivation overall, attitude in regard to self-realiza-
tion, career planning, career decisions and careers
overall as objective variables, and a sense of belong-
ing, a sense of one’s own usefulness and a sense of
intrinsic comfort in regard to family, friends at uni-
versity and friends outside university as explanatory
variables. In males, almost all categories showed up
as significant predictive indicators for psychological
apathy, with a multiple correlation coefficient of
0.4396 (P < 0.01). In females, a sense of belonging
and a sense of one’s own usefulness in regard to
friends at university were significant negative predic-
tive indicators, with a multiple correlation coefficient
of 0.4963 (P < 0.01). Among males, only a sense of
intrinsic comfort in regard to family was a significant
negative predictive indicator for decreased motivation
in regard to classes (P < 0.01). Almost all categories
were significant predictive indicators among males
for decreased motivation in regard to academic life,

F. Omasu, Y. Takahashi / Open Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (201 3) 393-401 397
Table 3. Results of a multiple regression analysis on the group (a) with a boyfriend/girlfriend (by gender), showing the relationships
between a sense of belonging, a sense of one’s own usefulness and a sense of intrinsic comfort to psychological apathy, decreased
motivation and career maturity; (b) Without a boyfriend/girlfriend (by gender), showing the relationships between a sense of belong-
ing, a sense of one’s own usefulness and a sense of intrinsic comfort to psychological apathy, decreased motivation and career maturity.
(a)
Family Friends at university Friends outside university Boyfriend/girlfriend
A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort
Males
Psychological apathy
Females
Males
(0.2069**) −0.4987*
Decreased motivation in regard to classes
Females
Males
Decreased motivation in regard to academic life
Females
(0.3595**) 0.5486**
Males
(0.6550**) −0.5501** −0.4269*
Decreased motivation in regard to university
Females
(0.5790**) −0.4013** −0.3707**
Males
Motivation overall
Females
(0.2754**) −0.3145*−0.4504*
Males
Self-realization
Females
Males
Career planning
Females
Males
Career decisions
Females
Males
Careers overall
Females
0.4794** 0.3161*
(Multiple correlation coefficient) All figures indicate standard partial regression coefficients **: P < 0.01 *: P < 0.05.

F. Omasu, Y. Takahashi / Open Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (201 3) 393-401
398
(b)
Family Friends at university Friends outside university
A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort A sense of belonging A sense of one’s own usefulness A sense of intrinsic comfort
Males
(0.4396**) 0.5079** −0.2602* −0.3696* −0.3751** −0.3303*
Psychological apathy
Females
(0.4963**) −0.3162*−0.5047**
Males
(0.2410**) −0.3860**
Decreased motivation in regard to classes
Females
Males
(0.3339**) 0.3882* −0.4298** −0.5382** 0.3067* 0.2646*
Decreased motivation in regard to academic life
Females
Males
(0.5504**) −0.4786** −0.3968** −0.2274* −0.2810*
Decreased motivation in regard to university
Females
(0.5840**) −0.3869** −0.2664* −0.4433**
Males
(0.3246**) 0.3797* −0.3213*−0.4257** −0.5184**
Motivation overall
Females
Males
(0.4686**) 0.4696** 0.4421**
Self-realization
Females
(0.3017**) 0.3374*
Males
(0.2572**) 0.3072*
Career planning
Females
Males
(0.2219**) 0.3252*
Career decisions
Females
Males
(0.3082**) 0.3990** 0.3837*
Careers overall
Females
Multiple correlation coefficient) All figures indicate standard partial regression coefficients **: P < 0.01 *: P < 0.05. (

F. Omasu, Y. Takahashi / Open Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (201 3) 393-401 399
with a multiple correlation coefficient of 0.3339 (P <
0.01). In males, a sense of belonging and a sense of
one’s own usefulness among friends at university and
friends outside university were significant negative
predictive indicators for decreased motivation in re-
gard to university, with a multiple correlation coeffi-
cient of 0.5504 (P < 0.01). Almost the same results
were noted for females, with a multiple correlation
coefficient of 0.5840 (P < 0.01). In regard to motiva-
tion overall, a sense of one’s own usefulness and a
sense of intrinsic comfort in regard to family, and a
sense of belonging and a sense of one’s own useful-
ness in regard to friends at university were significant
predictive indicators, with a multiple correlation co-
efficient of 0.3246 (P < 0.01). In males, a sense of
belonging and a sense of one’s own usefulness in re-
gard to friends at university were significant positive
predictive indicators for self-realization (both P <
0.01). In females, a sense of belonging in regard to
friends outside university was a significant positive
predictive indicator (P < 0.05). Only a sense of intrin-
sic comfort in regard to family was a significant pre-
dictive factor in males for career planning (P < 0.05).
No significant results were found for a sense of be-
longing in regard to either family or friends outside
university. In terms of career decisions, only a sense
of belonging among friends at university was a sig-
nificant predictive factor among males (P < 0.05). In
terms of careers overall, a sense of belonging and a
sense of one’s own usefulness in regard to friends at
university were significant positive predictive factors
in males, with a multiple correlation coefficient of
0.3082 (P < 0.01).
4. DISCUSSION
Broadly speaking, females scored higher than males
for a sense of belonging and a sense of one’s own use-
fulness in regard to family and friends at university,
while males scored higher for a sense of intrinsic comfort.
According to Yamanaka [7], there is a gender difference
in the behavior used to develop intimacy in relationships,
with females prioritizing joint activity in a range of areas,
while males prioritize shared activities and experiences,
thus leading to the assumption that it is easy for them to
feel the need for a sense of belonging among friends out-
side university. It is believed that these results reflect this
assumption.
No significant difference was noted between males
and females in terms of psychological apathy. In the fu-
ture, it will be necessary to consider that student apathy
is not something unique to males, but may also be ex-
perienced by females.
In regard to decreased motivation, the group without a
boyfriend/girlfriend showed a significant gender differ-
ence in scores for decreased motivation in regard to
classes. Decreased motivation in regard to classes is said
be a behavioral problem that originates with the lax life-
style attitude of a pleasure-seeking and problem-avoiding
personality [5]. The results of this study broadly lead to
the conclusion that males have a stronger tendency to
this than females.
In the group without a boyfriend/girlfriend, females
scored significantly higher than males in regard to career
maturity. It would seem that in general females are less
subject to pressure in regard to careers and employment
than males, but according to Kinjo [8], since females
have a higher desire for employment than men, and
greater anxiety about careers, they begin to think about
employment at an earlier stage, taking advice from others
around them and engaging in other practical activities. It
is believed that the results of this study reflect this situa-
tion.
A sense of belonging in regard to friends outside uni-
versity had a suppressing effect on decreased motivation
in regard to university in females among the group with a
boyfriend/girlfriend, and in both males and females in
the group without a boyfriend/girlfriend. There were also
indications that it has a suppressing effect on psycho-
logical apathy in males in the group without a boyfriend/
girlfriend. At the same time, there are indications that it
may promote decreased motivation in regard to academic
life in males, and that a sense of one’s own usefulness in
regard to friends outside university in the group with a
boyfriend/girlfriend, and a sense of intrinsic comfort in
regard to friends outside university in the group without
a boyfriend/girlfriend, may have a promoting effect on
decreased motivation in regard to academic life among
males. If we take “friends outside university” to mean
the relationships engaged in outside of class but within
university, for example in circle or club activities, it in-
dicates that decreased motivation in regard to university
life is suppressed because of a sense of belonging at uni-
versity. Being fulfilled in activities outside of class, such
as circle or club activities, increases satisfaction with
day-to-day life, making it harder to descend into psy-
chological apathy. At the same time, however, it is con-
sidered that once students find a sense of belonging
among friendships in circle or club activities, and feel
needed and intrinsically comfortable, they tend to be-
come more and more committed to activities outside of
class, with the result that their motivation in regard to
academic life decreases. Shimoyama [5], however, found
a negative association between decreased motivation in
regard to classes among male students and anhedonia
(lack of meaning), considered the central psychological
disorder behind pathological apathy, indicating that it
may include some healthy aspects. For this reason, it is
believed that among males without a boyfriend/girlfriend,

F. Omasu, Y. Takahashi / Open Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (201 3) 393-401
400
the awareness of a sense of belonging in relationships
with friends outside university can have a positive influ-
ence in terms of their mental health.
According to Kinjo [8], the greater the enthusiasm
with which female students engage in activities outside
of class (such as part time jobs and clubs), the less such
students experience a lack of information and confidence
in regard to careers, and it is believed that the more these
students feel intrinsically comfortable in their relation-
ships with friends outside university, and the more in-
volved they become with activities outside of class, the
more proactive they are in their behavior relating to ca-
reer decisions. According to Shimoyama [5], a tendency
to decreased motivation in regard to academic life among
male students has a negative association with their
“searching” attitude in regard to career decisions, as well
as a clear positive association with “delay” and “avoid-
ance”. In this study, results showed that a sense of intrin-
sic comfort in regard to friends outside university has an
effect on decreasing motivation in regard to academic
life, thus suggesting that decision-making in regard to
future career choice has been suppressed.
Furthermore, being in a romantic relationship leads to
increased self-respect and a sense of day-to-day satisfac-
tion, not only reducing depression but also leading to a
sense of self-growth and self-sufficiency in the young
person as a result of being able to build satisfactory ro-
mantic relationships during adolescence. As a result,
achieving a sense of belonging within a relationship with
a boyfriend/girlfriend is believed to be effective in sup-
pressing psychological apathy [9,10]. Despite this, how-
ever long a relationship continues for, females continue
to have a sense of “relationship anxiety”, and to consider
that they have to fit their lives around the lifestyle of
their male partner, with the result that they have a
stronger sense of their lifestyle becoming disrupted than
males [10]. Although they have a sense of belonging in
their relationship with their boyfriend/girlfriend, they
constantly feel anxiety over whether or not the romantic
relationship is stable, even as the relationship becomes
deeper, and for that reason they invest so much energy in
their partner that they become unable to keep up with
other things, resulting in their lifestyles being disrupted
because they are trying to hard to fit in with their part-
ners. It is assumed that their motivation in regard to uni-
versity and academic life decreases as a result. It has
been shown that an awareness of “insecurity” or “worry”
in regard to a relationship with a boyfriend/girlfriend has
a correlation to poor mental health [11].
In this study, it was shown that the more males without
a boyfriend/girlfriend believe they are needed by their
families, the easier it is for them to fall into psychologi-
cal apathy. It would seem that having their existence ac-
knowledged by the family and feeling needed ought to
have a positive impact on mental health, but according to
research by Mouri and Sagami [12], a correlation has
been shown between male students’ sense that they are
restricted by their fathers, and factors for psychological
apathy. In other words, such results can be expected if we
consider that the sense of “being needed” is underpinned
by a latent sense of “being held back”. The breakdown of
the survey criteria used in this study do not make such
classification possible, and it is thought necessary to im-
plement a further survey in the future in consideration of
this point. Regarding the criteria for this survey, the defi-
nition of “friends outside university” was taken by some
subjects to mean friends in circle and club activities, and
by others to mean friends at their part-time job, etc.,
leading to differing results, and furthermore the criteria
in this study were simplified, thus leading to the conclu-
sion that further careful consideration of criteria will be
required in order to implement more accurate analysis.
This study indicates that a sense of belonging impacts
the tendency to lethargy in university students in a vari-
ety of ways, and also impacts career maturity, although
only partially. In particular, good relationships with
friends at university were shown to have a suppressing
effect on decreased motivation in regard to university. In
addition, in terms of a sense of belonging in these same
relationships, we saw that a sense of one’s own useful-
ness and a sense of intrinsic comfort had completely the
opposite effect. The authors did not reach any conclu-
sions regarding background factors and mechanisms in
this study, and as a result further more detailed consid-
erations will be required in the future, but the fact that
perfunctory responses to all students demonstrating a
tendency to lethargy will not only not solve said ten-
dency, but may in fact make the situation worse, should
be born in mind when offering support to such students.
It is believed desirable to implement support for students
with a tendency to lethargy that prioritizes suppression of
psychological apathy and decreased motivation in regard
to university. It is increasingly considered that the age at
which lethargy is expressed has been falling, and for this
reason it is hoped that future surveys of children and
school pupils will lead to consideration of optimized
responses and support for each of these groups.
5. CONCLUSION
The results of this study showed that good relation-
ships with friends at university can suppress decreased
motivation in regard to university, and that a sense of
belonging also has a partial impact on career maturity.
The study was implemented in regard to university stu-
dents, and consideration was given to the tendency to
lethargy shown by students. Recently, however, absen-
teeism and school adaptation have become serious prob-

F. Omasu, Y. Takahashi / Open Journal of Preventive Medicine 3 (201 3) 393-401 401
[6] Nihon Shinro Shido Kyokai (1999) Atarashii gakko
shinro shido no hyoka. Nihon Shinro Shido Kyokai,
Shinjuku-Ku. (in Japanese)
lems among elementary, junior and senior high school
pupils, much of which is attributed to lethargy. For this
reason, it is hoped that future surveys of children and
school pupils will be implemented, and such findings
will lead to the development of optimized responses and
support for each of these groups.
[7] Yamanaka, K. (1994) A study of early differentiation of
relatedness in relationship development among college
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Psychology, 34, 105-115. (in Japanese)
doi:10.2130/jjesp.34.105
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career decision-making self-efficacy, career indecision
behaviors, and career seeking behaviors. The Japanese
Society for the Study of Career Education, 27, 15-23. (in
Japanese)
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