The Postwar Japanese System

The Postwar Japanese System
Author: William K. Tabb
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 423
Release: 1995
Genre: Japan
ISBN: 0195089502

A critical examination of Japan's recent economic success, which places the country's post-war "miracle" within a broader social and political framework. It argues that the political and social arrangements that allowed Japan to succeed are now eroding

Divisions of Labor

Divisions of Labor
Author: Lonny E. Carlile
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
Total Pages: 400
Release: 2005-01-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780824824563

Divisions of Labor positions the ideological and organizational evolution of the Japanese labor movement within the larger historical currents that shaped and organized labor globally in the twentieth century. Interspersing detailed narratives of Japanese labor history with analyses of parallel developments in Western European and international labor movements, Lonny Carlile shows how world views and labor movement strategies were shared across national boundaries and shaped in similar ways in the industrialized West and East. Beyond this, he highlights how in both Western Europe and Japan issues that had divided labor since the 1920s were central to the Cold War, which kept labor movements at odds with themselves internally in systematically similar ways. His book suggests that, to the extent that the historical courses of labor movements diverged, this was as much a uh_product of differences in geopolitical location as any inherent cultural or nationally specific ideological tendency. The volume’s approach brings to the fore an important new dimension to our existing understanding of post–World War II Japanese labor and political history by outlining the connection between the politics of Japanese labor and the structure and dynamics of global politics. In addition, by drawing out these parallels and similarities, it provides thought-provoking insights into twentieth-century labor movements in general. Divisions of Labor will be of interest not only to students and specialists of Japan and East Asia, but also to readers with a more general interest in labor history and politics, diplomatic history, Cold War history, comparative politics, and sociology.

Inside the Japanese System

Inside the Japanese System
Author: Daniel I. Okimoto
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Total Pages: 308
Release: 1988
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780804714235

Among the world's great industrial states, Japan is the newest, most dynamic, and most distinctive. Whether viewed as a model, a partner, or a threat, no country is more important or less understood. What are the central features of Japan's industrial system? What are the core institutions and practices that have to be understood in order to know how it functions? What sets it apart from other industrial systems, notably that of the United States? Is the Japanese system changing, and if so, how? These are the basic questions addressed in this volume, which presents in compact form the best thinking, the most stimulating arguments, and the classic interpretations of contemporary Japan. The book comprises 55 selections by economists, political scientists, anthropologists, business consultants, and others, which together give an unparalleled insight into the inner workings of the Japanese industrial system.

The Japanese Family System

The Japanese Family System
Author: Akihiko Kato
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 122
Release: 2021-08-13
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 9811621136

This book offers a new perspective and empirical evidence that are relevant for understanding changes in family structures, intergenerational relationships, and female labor force participation in the “strong family” societies and that also shed light on those in the “weak family” societies. Focusing on the stem family and the gender division of labor, presenting detailed quantitative evidence, and testing the theories on family change and gender revolution, the book provides a comprehensive examination of change, continuity, and regionality in the Japanese family system over the twentieth century. By analyzing data from a nationally representative life course survey with event history techniques, it investigates factors affecting post-marital intergenerational co-residence and proximate residence along with those influencing continuous and/or discontinuous employment of married women across the life course. In this way, it reveals the mechanisms underlying the stem family formation and those behind married women’s M-shaped employment pattern. It further explores regionality in the Japanese family system, applying a demographic mapping method to data from a nationally representative community survey and official statistics. The mapping analyses demonstrate persistent geographical contrasts between two types of living arrangements (single-household versus multi-household) in the stem family accompanied by two types of maternal employment (full-time versus part-time). They also reveal a historical correlation between traditional communal parenting systems and modern childcare services, linking past to present from the late nineteenth to the early twenty-first century.

Dominant Divisions of Labor: Models of Production That Have Transformed the World of Work

Dominant Divisions of Labor: Models of Production That Have Transformed the World of Work
Author: T. Janoski
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 101
Release: 2013-11-27
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1137370238

The past century of labor was definitively captured by theories like Fordism and Taylorism, or scientific managment, but how do we make sense of global production today? This short book takes a panoramic view of the candidates for the most succinct theory of the 21st century division of labor, including post-Fordism, flexible accumulation, McDonaldization, Waltonism, Nikeification, Gatesism and Siliconism, shareholder value, and lean production and Toyotism. Authors Thomas Janoski and Darina Lepadatu argue that lean production in a somewhat expanded version presents three variations: Toyotism (the strongest form), Nikeification (a moderate form with off-shored plants lacking teamwork) and Waltonism (the merchandising form that presses for off-shoring). While all three share strong elements of "just in time" (JIT) production and supply chain management, they differ in how teamwork and long-term philosophies are valued. This critical review of dominant established theories serves to inform subsequent research on the contemporary international division of labor.

Fairness and Division of Labor in Market Societies

Fairness and Division of Labor in Market Societies
Author: Hyeong-Ki Kwon
Publisher: Berghahn Books
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2004-10-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1789205816

Contrary to the explanations offered by the theory of non-reflexive, path-dependent institutionalism, the U.S. and the German automotive industries undertook strikingly similar patterns of industry modification under tough international competition during the 1990s, departing from their traditional national patterns. By investigating the processes of the U.S. and German adjustments, the author critically reconsiders the prevalent paradigms of political economy and comes to the conclusion that the evidence does not confirm the neoliberal paradigm. In order to better account for the recomposition of new market relations, which the author terms "converging but non-liberal" and "diverging but not predetermined" markets, he proposes an alternative model of "politics among reflexive agents," emphasizing different kinds of problem-solving practices among those reflexive agents. He argues that different forms and regimes of market are established in the process of recomposition, in which agents reflect upon not only market rationality but also upon their own institutions, creating new norms.

Global Diffusion of Human Resource Practices

Global Diffusion of Human Resource Practices
Author: John J. Lawler
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
Total Pages: 308
Release: 2008-06-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 076231401X

The competitive forces generated by globalization act to promote the cross-national diffusion of human resource management 'best practices'. This book contains papers from authors in Europe, Asia, Africa, and US who explore diffusion in a variety of national contexts.

The Transformation of the Japanese Economy

The Transformation of the Japanese Economy
Author: Kazuo Satō
Publisher: M.E. Sharpe
Total Pages: 440
Release: 1999
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781563247750

These readings address various aspects of the transformation of the Japanese economic system from one based on the government-business-bureaucracy triad to one which accommodates such changes as the further slowdown of growth, the rapid ageing of the population and structural changes.

Business Ethics: Japan and the Global Economy

Business Ethics: Japan and the Global Economy
Author: T.W. Dunfee
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 298
Release: 2013-03-09
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 9401581835

Business Ethics: Japan and the Global Economy presents a multicultural perspective of global business ethics with special emphasis on Japanese viewpoints. In contrast to the typical business ethics book written primarily from the viewpoint of Western culture and economy, the majority of the work is by Asian scholars, providing an historical overview of the religious, scientific and cultural phenomena which converged to create modern Japanese business ethics. Perspectives from socioeconomics, sociology, social contract and applied business ethics contribute to the analysis of moral issues. A new Japanese approach to moral science, Moralogy, is introduced and its implications for phenomena such as the Keiretsu system are explored. Concurrently, prominent Western ethicists explore the role of moral language and the implications of Kantian ethics and contractarian approaches for developing universal moral standards. Because Japan is an economic superpower, it is critical to understand the hidden economic culture, work ethic, and way of thinking in business. We must realize these are the results of an integration of historical factors, such as Shintoism, Buddhism, Confuctianism and modern Western science and technology. Business Ethics: Japan and the Global Economy provides philosophical and anthropological analyses of the Japanese economic mind, departing from previous stereotyped approaches. Theoretical discussions based upon social contract theory are presented in order to build ethical norms with cross-cultural activity for multinational economic activities. From such a universal stance, practical proposals are presented to transnationalize the Keiretsu system and other Japanese economic institutions.