2026 Elvina's Blog

Sleep and Rest in Japan and the World When I think about Japan and sleep together, the first thing that comes to mind is the sleep debt crisis that Japan faces. It can be seen in various different ways such as Japanese people falling asleep in public spaces especially during commuting hours or break times. University of Tsukuba (2025) has estimated that Japan's economy is negatively affected due to disrupted sleeping habits amongst the working citizens - with an average of roughly six hours or less (Figure 1) from a survey conducted in 2024 by Nippon. This is mainly due to the high stress working or study life that Japan has adopted in its society and culture. Figure 1: Survey on the Daily Amount of Sleep Amongst Japanese people  (Nippon, 2024). In comparison to Malaysia, I personally think that it is similar mainly in terms of amongst students or the younger-aged people. Studies have shown that most students experience poor sleep due to academic pressure (Lakshme Shree et al., 20...

The Concept of Cultural “Self” Awareness The definition of cultural self-awareness can be defined in many ways, however it focuses on the knowledge of how culture has affected the self (Lu and Wan, 2018). This can refer to the ability to recognize and appreciate one's own cultural identity, biases, beliefs, and values, and the interaction with other people from different cultural backgrounds (Oxford Review, 2024). Another core concept that relates to cultural self awareness is the encounter of contrasting cultural experiences between native and host cultures or better known as "culture shock" (David, 1971). Meeting Others for The First Time Cultural awareness gives off the concept of "professionalism" and how humans present themselves to actively understand the basis of what may be respectful or disrespectful to others of a different background. This value leads to enhanced communication, more positive interactions and outcomes from other people (Taylor et al.,...