This book analyzes the facial characteristics of animated characters, evaluates color and movement as basic assessments of animation, and gives a psychological evaluation of works and changes in topics over a creator’s lifecycle.

This book discusses how the themes raised by animation creators unfold according to the lifecycle theory from psychology and analyzes how GeGeGe no Kitarō, which has been made several times, displays similar lifecycle-like thematic changes.

Japanese animation often enjoys depicting “alter egos.” The psychological characteristic of Japanese animation presents a tendency toward “withdrawal,” while Korean anime, by contrast, emphasizes “interaction.”

This collection of English-language papers about Japanese animation is presented mainly by Asian researchers. Among them, Yokota (one of the editors) discusses the clinical psychology of Kihachirō KAWAMOTO’s “Hana-Ori” (Breaking of Branches is Forbidden) as a work representing the topic of midlife crisis.

This reference comments on the mechanisms of creating animation work from the perspective of ecological psychology, relying on concepts not generally mentioned in ordinary animation commentaries, such as affordance, texture, ambient light, and optical flow.

This reference develops the theory of the “emotional valley,” which holds that the main character in an anime tumbles into the world of unconsciousness after intense feelings. Then, the protagonist meets someone who will render aid and who has entered this unconscious world from outside. Finally, there will be an awakening and the main character will develop into a greater personality.

The author is a school counselor working on mental issues. He explains that he was able to use his understanding of the depths of anime to comprehend the feelings of children going through puberty, whom he met while counseling. This perceived connection made it easier for him to approach them.

The reference analyzes works directed by Hayao Miyazaki, which are often mentioned by anime-loving clients whom the author (a clinical psychologist) meets in clinical settings. The author seeks to draw nearer to the heart of puberty, revealing its characteristics.

This reference comprises papers on ten different fundamental topics. The first chapter, “Eizō shinriron (Anime saikorojī)” (Video Psychology (Anime Psychology)), explains the world of anime as the psychological development of “clothing, food, and shelter,” taking hints from early Toei Doga works.

The author discusses several manga and animation pieces’ relevance to 13 topics, such as identity, withdrawal, recovery from mental illness, self-harm, and life struggles, and he comments on mental issues from his lifecycle.