• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.303-320
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• 2021

Objectives: Although medical typologies based on indigenous biopsychological ideas have been described, their integrity has been questioned due to its theory-driven nature in categorization. Therefore, studies on the Sasang typology, a temperament-based traditional Korean medicine, are needed to examine whether it is possible to classify types of specific biopsychological profiles using data-driven analysis. Methods: Psychological measures of the Eastern Sasang Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) and Western NEO-Personality Inventory (NEO-PI) along with physical measures and Sasang types were acquired from 2,049 participants. Latent groups based on the SPQ and NEO-PI subscale scores were extracted using Latent Profile Analysis. Their psychosomatic features were then compared with those of Sasang types. Results: Three SPQ-based latent groups showed distinctive psychological and physical features consistent with those of Sasang types. However, four NEOPI-based latent groups presented only psychological features. Furthermore, SPQ-High and SPQ-Low latent groups demonstrated similar psychosomatic profiles to those of So-Yang and So-Eum Sasang types, respectively. Conclusions: This study illustrates that biopsychological profiles of Sasang types are supported by psychosomatic features of latent groups based on SPQ of Eastern psychology, signifying that the categorization of Sasang typology have acceptable validity and reliability.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.41-50
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• 1998

The purpose of this study was to identify the associations between Lee Je-ma Sasang Constitutions and C. G. Jung's Psychological Types. In addition, this information could also be valuable in clinical practices. The QSCC II(Questionnaire for Sasang Constitution Classification II) and MBTI(Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) was administered to 319 volunteer male soldiers($21.5{\pm}1.4yr$) in the army. The results were as follows; 1) Soyangin groups tended to be extroverted, sensing, perceiving types. 2) Soeumin groups tended to be introverted, sensing, thinking, perceiving types. 3) Taeumin groups tended to be extroverted, sensing, thinking types. 4) but, there were no Taeyang groups according to QSCC II. This results show that there are significant relationships between Lee Je-ma sasang constitutions and C. G. Jung's psychological types.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.110-121
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• 2010

1. Objectives: This investigation compares the eating behaviors across normal-weight male groups of different Sasang constitutional types. 2. Methods: We recruited 31 male participants aged 20-35 with BMI 18.5-23. The eating behavior was assessed using Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS), Bulimia Test Revised (BULIT-R), Korean Version of Eating Attitude Test-26 (KEAT-26), and Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ). 3. Results: 1) Assessments made by GSRS, KEAT-26, and BULIT-R were not significantly different across different Sasang constitutional types. (p<0.05) 2) The Soeum group showed significantly lower BMI and body weight compared to the Soyang and Taeeum groups. 3) The Emotional eating subscale of DEBQ differed significantly across different Sasang constitutional types. (p<0.05) 4) The Soeum group showed a significantly lower Emotional eating subscale score of DEBQ compared to the Soyang and Taeeum groups. 4. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that emotional factors could influence eating behaviors differently across different Sasang constitutional types, in which the Soeum type is less affected than the Soyang type by emotional states.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.32-37
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• 2015

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychological characteristics of the Sasang constitutions by using Braverman nature assessment (BNA). Methods: One hundred seventy-four students participated in this study, and among them, the 142 individuals who had clearly identified Sasang constitutional types were used for the analysis. Sasang constitutions and the Braverman temperaments of the subjects were determined by using a questionnaire for the Sasang constitution classification (QSCC) II and BNA, respectively. Body mass index (BMI) was used to compare the inclinations of the Sasang constitutions and Braverman temperament types. Results: Significant differences in Braverman temperament type existed among the Sasang constitutions (P = 0.042), and the relations between Soyangin and the dopamine type and between Taeeumin and the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) type were meaningful. Significant differences were also shown in the comparison with the Yin and the Yang constitutions (P = 0.017), and the post-hoc analysis showed a strong and significant relation between the Yang constitution and the dopamine type and between the Yin constitution and the GABA type. The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the independent t-test were conducted to examine the BMI and the degree of obesity among the Sasang constitutions and the Braverman temperament types. Concerning the BMI, Taeeumin showed a bigger BMI than the other constitutions (P < 0.001), but no significant differences in the BMI were observed between the Braverman temperament types. Conclusion: Soyangin has a close relationship to the dopamine type and Taeeumin has a close relationship to the GABA type. The correlation between two types were more clear when the Yin and the Yang types were compared to Braverman temperaments. These results may serve as a basis for identifying the psychological traits of Sasang constitutional types, especially in regard to the characteristics related to the four Braverman temperament types.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.36-64
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• 2019

Introduction The purpose of this study was to review thirty years of studies on psychological characteristics of Sasang types to delineate generalizable psychological theories pertaining Sasang typology. Methods Research articles providing psychometric characteristics of each Sasang types were extracted from five database written in Korean and English. Demographic features of the participants, clinical methods for the Sasang type classification, and psychological characteristics of each Sasang types were reviewed and summarized. Results A total of 59 peer-reviewed research articles were found to be published from 1991 to 2018, and the So-Yang and So-Eum Sasang type showed distinctive and contrasting psychological features. The overlap between Eastern and Western psychology in Behavioral Activation and Inhibition System was highlighted as for personality studies, but the anxiety as a pathological factor was not found distinguishable between Sasang types. Discussion The present systematic review provided insight on psychological perspectives of Sasang typology, and would be useful for establishing unique construct of Korean Psychology.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.32-42
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• 2012

1. Objectives : This investigation compares the subjective appetite ratings across male groups of different Sasang constitutional types. 2. Methods : We recruited 36 male participants aged 20-36 with BMI 18.5-30. The subjective appetite ratings was assessed using VAS before and after standard meal.(6 time points : 30 Minutes Pre-prandial, Immediately before Meal, 15, 30, 60, 120 Minutes Post-prandial) 3. Results : In comparison of subjective appetite ratings between Sasang constitutional types, Soyang-type showed a pattern like high appetite, high hunger, low satiety, high 'how much I can eat', Soeum-type showed a pattern like low appetite, low hunger, high satiety, low 'how much I can eat', and Taeeum-type showed a pattern like low appetite, low hunger. 4. Conclusions : The results of this study suggest that the subjective appetite ratings could be different across different Sasang constitutional types.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.58-64
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• 2004

1. Objectives However there was a report that dyspepsia occurs more frequently in Soeumin, there has not been any clinical research if structural changes such as gastritis occurs differently according to Sasang Constitution. So in this research, we investigated to find out if there are differences in the degree and types of gastritis and gastrointestinal symptoms according to Sasang Constitution and gender difference. 2. Methods Subjects were 30 men and 38 women, who had visited Kyung-Hee Medical Center for physical examination and took gastroscopy and differential diagnosis of Sasang Constitution in March, 2003. We investigated the degree and types of gastritis and gastrointestinal symptoms. 3. Results and conclusions Gender difference han no relation with types of gastritis, but had significant relation with the degree of gastritis and gastrointestinal symptoms. But Sasang Constitution had no significant relation with the degree and types of gastritis and gastrointestinal symptoms.

• Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.101-110
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• 1999

In Sasang constitutional medicine, the classification of Sasang constitutional types (Tae-Yang, Tae-Eum, So-Yang, and So-Eum) is important for the treatment. There are some problems with the methods used for classifying Sasang constitutional types; old methods such as pulse-palpation are not considered objective and recent methods such as immunohematology are considered expensive, painful and time-consuming. To overcome these problems, a body measurement and finger prints analysis were performed. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the palm prints and the palm creases could be helpful in classifying Sasang constitutional types. Thus, we looked for characteristics of the palm prints and the palm creases according to Sasang constitutional types. Before analyzing the palm prints and palm creases, 760 Korean (465 males, 295 females) were surveyed using two kinds of questionnaires for classifying Sasang constitutional types. As there were no Tae-Yang individuals, we were only able to identify the characteristics of the palm prints and the palm creases for Tae-Eum (288 persons), So-Yang (193 persons), and So-Eum (279 persons) individuals. In this study, the terminal points of D, closed crease, and open crease seemed to be helpful in classifying Tae-Eum and So-Eum individuals. Terminal point 11 and closed crease were frequent in Tae-Eum individuals; whereas, terminal point 7 and open crease were frequent in So-Eum individuals. Therefore, the palm prints and the palm creases seem to contribute to the classification of Sasang constitutional types.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.304-314
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• 2005

The major concept of Sasang typology is that the disease susceptibility and drug response as well as physiological characteristics are presumed to be different depending on their Sasang types. Although characterizing fundamental basis of their traits are crucial in this research field, only pathological susceptibility and physical appearances were thoroughly studied. We evaluated their physiological characteristics by tapping psychological, physical and genetic traits of each Sasang types. After determining the Sasang type of one hundred three college students based on the Questionnaire for the Sasang Constitution Classification, the psychological, physical and genetic traits of each type were analyzed with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and genetic polymorphism test, respectively. Each of the Sasang types showed significantly different profiles (Generalized estimation equation, coef=11.88, z=2.13, p=0.033), and could be distinctively classified based on their MBTI scores (discriminant analysis Wilks Lambda=0.611, df=8, chi-square=36.7, p<0.001). Subjects with the So-Eum type (Introversion and Judging) and the So-Yang type (Extroversion and Perceiving) showed contrasting psychological features, however they had similar anthropometric characteristics. Subjects with the Tae-Eum type showed bigger Body Mass Index ($R^2$=0.22, df=4, 74, F=5.07, p=0.001) and body shape compared to others. Although there were no significant differences in G-protein beta-3 subunit polymorphism, angiotensin-converting enzyme polymorphism and Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymprhisms among groups with Sasang types, it was shown that the dopamine system could be one for genetic marker for Sasang typology. These results demonstrated distinctive and essential traits of Sasang typology using reproducible psychometric, anthropometric and genetic evaluations. We also found that the Sasang typology was a bio-psychological typology which could show trait-specific guideline for individualized medicine.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.86-95
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• 2009

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the difference of external appearance measurements in subjects of different regional lineages as subgroups within the Tae-eumin Sasang grouping. Methods: We chose 51 Tae-eumin subjects diagnosed by Korean Sasang constitutional medical doctors aided by voice analysis. The subjects were divided into two groups, the northern and southern lineages, by an expert on facial characteristics of the two lineages. We took pictures of their frontal and lateral views by Martin's method, measured projected length of face with the Facial Feature Measurement Program, and analyzed anthropometric facial differences between the northern and southern types. Results: Results show differences between the northern and southern types. First, the northern type of face has bigger measurements than the southern type on the frontal face. Second, the northern type of face has higher measurements of "height", which means distance from pupil to a specific measurement point, than the southern type on the frontal face. Third, on the frontal face, the northern and southern types have differences with respect to eyebrow, point of sellion, and eye. Fourth, on the side face, the northern and southern types have differences in lip, mandible and ear. Conclusions: We found our anthropometric facial measurements of the northern and southern lineages to be in accordance with previous literature. Knowledge of the differences between the northern and southern lineages can be a hint in constitutional diagnosis when differentiation is clinically confusing.