Research on Priority Areas and Research on Optional Subjects

Aiming to Raise Our Presence as a Research Institution

Sophia University is working to strengthen research capabilities as a priority initiative in the research field. We have established a new grant called the “Sophia University Special Grant for Academic Research,” starting 2014 academic year. A major goal of the Sophia University Special Grant for Academic Research is to raise the presence of Sophia University as a full-fledged research institution by promoting our research activity in Japan and improving our ability to reach a wider audience internationally.

For this reason, the Sophia University Special Grant for Academic Research will distribute research funds with a focus on research that is innovative, original, and international, as well as interdisciplinary and organizational research activities that leverage Sophia University’s unique characteristics. The Sophia University Special Grant for Academic Research provides grants to fund two types of research activity: “Research on Priority Areas” and “Research on Optional Subjects”.

A research report on “Sophia University Special Grant for Academic Research” is available on “Sophia-R,” the website of the Sophia University Repository for Academic Resources

Research on Priority Areas

Taking into account the founding principles of Sophia University and our existing research system, we have established five research subjects for “Research on Priority Areas” based on our three main purposes, and we solicit and fund the research proposals that meet any of the five subject area requirements.

Research on Priority Areas and Research on Optional Subjects

Research on Priority Areas

Adaptation and Regional Regeneration

John WILLIAMS Professor

Advanced Research Project on Language, Education and Human Data Processing

Tomoharu SHIBUYA Professor

Comparative and International Education Research on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in Asia

Miki SUGIMURA Professor

Development of Highly Functional Bacteria Sensors and Elucidation of Molecular Recognition Mechanism Based on Supramolecular Nanostructures

Kazuhiro EMA Professor

Clarifying the Catholic identity of Catholic nursing colleges and visualizing educational practices based on this identity

Naoko TSUKAMOTO Professor

Development of highly conductive solid electrolytes using ionic plastic crystals and application to all-solid-state batteries

Masahiro FUJITA Professor

Research on Optional Subjects

A Study of Conflict Resolution in SubSaharan Folktales and Traditional Customs and There Pedagogical Applications

Atsuko NAGAI Professor

Interdisciplinary Study on Politics, Gender and Migration on Saudi Arabia

Namie TSUJIGAMI Professor

New Trends of Ecumenical Interactions within Buddhism: A Study of Globalization and Value Change in the Contemporary World

David Louis WANK Professor

Development of “Structural Biomimetics” by integrating synchrotron X-ray crystallography and cryoelectron microscopy

Jiro KONDO Professor

NMR and muSR study on the electron transfer channel in the sugar sensor with gold-nano particles

Takayuki GOTO Professor

Applications of neural networks to condensed matter physics

Tomi OHTSUKI Professor

Exploring the New Perspective of Midwifery toward Multicultural Symbiotic Societies through the Study on Traditional Postpartum Practice in Okinawa

Rie SAYAMA Associate Professor

The socio-historical factors of Japanese university students’ prejudice against “non-Western cultural others” and the possibilities of educational intervention: An interdisciplinary study of the cases of Muslim and Korean

Hiroko KUSHIMOTO Associate Professor

Humanitarian Crises in Asia and the “Responsibility to Protect”: From the Comparative Perspective between Japan and Other Countries/Regions

Masataka NAKAUCHI Professor

Research and development of novel plant transformation techniques using the atmospheric pressure glow plasma.

Nobuyuki KANZAWA Professor

Development of Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Materials for Next Generation Optical Devices

Yuko TAKEOKA Professor

Development of flexible thermoelectric materials suitable for body temperature power generation

Toshihiro NAKAOKA Professor

Research on Impact of Educational Exchange Programs Based on International Collaboration among Universities

Naoki UMEMIYA Professor

Study of comprehensive measures to prevent space contaminations

Hiroshi SAKAMA Professor

Examining the School Effects of Contemporary Catholic Education: Empirical Approaches to Educational Practice and Guidance Counseling in Japanese Catholic High Schools

Shinichi AIZAWA Professor