ABSTRACT
Psychology in the western sense of the word has roots in Japan that go back over a hundred years. The word "psychology" was translated by Nishi into Shinrigaku and has since been used widely, not only in Japan, but in China. In the Edo period, Ishida Baigan founded a school of Shingaku ("Heart Learning"), a conventional morality, which became a popular psychology among citizens at that time. In 1927 Matsumoto became the first president of Japanese Psychological Association and founded the Japanese Journal of Psychology. In 1905, the department of psychology at the Imperial University of Tokyo graduated the first seven psychology students in Japan. One of the most important events in the Showa period was the advent of Gestalt Psychology. Psychology has been no exception to foreign influences and has been confronted with rapid developments in American concepts, theories and methodologies, especially in the fields of social, applied, and clinical psychology.
