Syosset High School senior Diane Choi has been named a finalist in the 2006 Intel Science Talent Search. As a Finalist, she is awarded a $5,000 college scholarship and will go on to compete further. The top scholarship prize to be awarded will be $100,000.

Choi is the second Syosset High School student to compete as a finalist in this competition. The first student was her older brother, Daniel, who went to Washington two years ago. Unlike her brother, who did laboratory research, Choi's research project was in the field of social science. The title of her report is "Measuring Passive Love: Amae and Japanese Uniqueness."

Before choosing her topic, Choi had read about the Japanese cultural behavior of amae, a term that is well known by the Japanese but does not have an English translation. She explained that the description she read "struck a chord" with her, and she decided to research whether this emotion-based behavior is indeed unique to the Japanese or if it can also be measured in the U.S. culture.

In conducting her research, Choi visited Japanese churches, social groups, and other organizations and interviewed approximately 70 Japanese adults. She also interviewed about 60 Americans and then analyzed how their answers compared between the two groups. Her conclusion supported the literature that had espoused that amae was significantly more common in Japanese culture than U.S. or other Western cultures.

Choi's research may be very useful for social scientists who seek to understand how culture influences behavior. In today's global community, there is an ever-increasing need to appreciate what motivates the actions of other cultures and to respect and accept that "different" should not be considered as wrong or inferior.

As an Intel Finalist, Choi will take an all-expense paid trip to Washington, DC, where she will give an oral presentation on her research project, and display a presentation board to explain her findings. She has until March to prepare for the trip, but in the same fashion with which she seems to approach all her work, she did not appear seem at all concerned about the extra effort that will be required.

"On behalf of the Syosset Board of Education and the entire District, we congratulate Diane on her award and wish her continued success," said Superintendent Dr. Carole G. Hankin.