Situations and cognitive appraisals in 'agari' experiences: Feature analyses of 'agari' experiences

The purpose of this study was to examine the agari' experiences in everyday life. 'Agari' is a Japanese noun (the verb form is 'agaru'), referring to broad experiences including stage-fright, choking under pressure, social an xiety, and so on. Based upon the self-reports of 452 subjects, we construct ed, in Study 1. a 52-items Features of-'Agari' Experience Questionnaire (FA EQ). In Study 2, another sample of 364 completed the FAEQ, and factor analy sis was performed. The analysis found six primary factors: Self insufficien cy, physical insufficiency, trembling, pressure, physiological response, an d awareness of others. A second-order factor analysis was performed on them , and two factors emerged: Self-reflection and awareness of self-importance . It may be therefore concluded that looking at the self leads to an 'agari ' experience. In addition, hierarchical cluster analysis divided twelve 'ag ari' situations into four clusters. The clusters were differentiated by two factors of FAEQ. It is suggested that eliciting situations and associated cognitive appraisals differentiated 'agari' experiences.