Development In Japan Research Articles

Japan's commercial development of the electron microscope

Americans have a picture of Japan as a country which, in the years after the Second World War, was able to produce only inexpensive and shoddy goods. This picture is not, however, entirely accurate. For example, the first electronic product exported from Japan to America after the war was not, as most suppose, the transistor radio but a highly complex research tool, the electron microscope. Today, Japan manufacturers the majority of the world's electron microscopes. How could a country cut off from the West's scientific research establishment in 1939 and in economic ruin in 1945 be competitive as early as the 1950's in producing such complex technology? This short article, based largely on an interview with two of the founders of one important Japanese microscope manufacturer (JEOL) gives a few clues. Rather than present a detailed history of the company, the author identifies seventeen factors that contributed to the company's success.

Learning from the Japanese: Japan's pre-war development and the Third World

Learning from the Japanese: Japan's pre-war development and the Third World

Japan's Development Assistance: A Comparative Analysis

Japan's Development Assistance: A Comparative Analysis

我が国石油開発政策の現状と課題 特に石油開発技術の研究開発，海外地質構造調査および国内基礎調査の在り方について

我が国石油開発政策の現状と課題 特に石油開発技術の研究開発，海外地質構造調査および国内基礎調査の在り方について

Thekakyo:Chinese in Japan

Abstract The Chinese language is traditionally found in the various Chinese communities located in the urban centres of Tokyo‐Yokohama, the Kansai region, and parts of southern Kyushu. Several bilingual (Japanese‐Chinese) schools serve these long‐term resident populations. The importance of the Chinese language in the transmission of knowledge from Continental Asia to Japan was crucial to Japan's development. Medicine, religion, poetry, food, art, clothes and design and other fields were conveyed through Chinese language texts. There is also a tradition of learning Chinese for commercial purposes; the systematic learning of Chinese as a modern language began in the Edo period. A recent trend in the composition of the kakyo or overseas Chinese there has been an influx of Chinese students, student‐workers and ethnic Japanese who have returned from China with their families. The latter phenomenon has prompted some town administrations, such as the city of Mitaka, in the suburbs of Tokyo, to initiate short‐te...

Beyond Product Cycles and Flying Geese: Regionalization, Hierarchy, and the Industrialization of East Asia

Product cycle theory as expressed in the analogy of flying geese has become a widely accepted way of conceptualizing industrial diffusion across East Asia. As the product cycle is repeated for increasingly sophisticated products, so, it is argued, the development trajectory of Japan will be replicated in a succession of sectors and countries. This approach fails, however, to capture the complexities of the contemporary regionalization of industrial production. East Asian industrial production should not be seen as a tightly coupled process in which the rise of national economies parallels successive product cycles. Rather than Japan's development trajectory being replicated in country after country, industrial diffusion has been characterized by shifting hierarchical networks of production and partial diffusion into diverse politicoeconomic contexts at differing historical junctures. It has also resulted in a triangulation of the region's trade patterns that has generated large imbalances in trade both within the region and between the region and the United States.

Planning for change: industrial policy and Japanese economic development, 1945-1990

What has been the role of government industrial policy in Japan's extraordinary post-war development? How has the role changed in successive phases of growth? What lessons can be learnt from this experience by other nations, be they in the West, or developing countries or economies in transition attempting to introduce competitive market structures? These are some of the main questions addressed in this absorbing and thorough study. Dividing the period into three main phases, the author shows that policy played a crucial role in the initial period of post-war recovery. It did so not by picking winners but by creating a stable base from which development could occur by spreading the cost of introducing market competition over time. In the succeeding high growth period, and more recently, Japan's industrial policy attempts only to promote the development of new technology, and smoothe the decline of sectors that are no longer globally competitive. That Japan itself no longer practices industrial policy on a wide scale is an irony little appreciated by those advocating the adoption of a Japan-style industrial policy elswhere.

Environment, Technology and The Japanese Experience: Lessons for Developing Countries from International Collaborative Research

During the post-World War II period, Japan experienced rapid industrializa tion and economic growth. This was, however, associated with severe envi ronmental pollution with occasionally catastrophic ecological and societal repercussions. Recent years have seen a significant shift in the country's environmental policies, and a cleaning up of the environment based on leg islative and technological innovations. Japan now considers itself a leader in environmental technology and endeavors to promote this role international ly. Lessons from research carried out under the auspices of the United Nations University point to the need to assist developing countries to invest in environmental protection in order to avoid the negative repercussions of economic growth associated with Japan's past development. It is also impor tant to encourage technology cooperation and capacity building based on the needs of the recipient.

The optimal degree of competition and dynamic efficiency in Japan and Korea

This paper is concerned with the neglected role of competition policy in East Asian development. Michael Porter considers Japan's development to have benefitted from intense competition among firms. By contrast. Caves and Uekusa criticize MITI's role in creating recession cartels and entry barriers, which are thought to have resulted in allocative inefficiency. This paper argues that competition policy in both Japan and Korea was oriented towards creating dynamic efficiency (the highest long term productivity growth rate). It did so by measures, operating at both the industry and firm level, which sometimes restricted competition and sometimes encouraged it.

Japanese-American Trade Conflict and Supercomputers

Much of the literature on Japan's political economy focuses on whether Japan has fundamentally similar institutions and goals as those of other major industrial nations or whether they are different in ways that give Japan advantages in international competition. Proponents of the so-called market explanation of Japan's rapid development see Japan as fundamentally similar to other western democracies in terms of having relatively open and transparent institutions and policies that on the whole support the free trade regime and focus on maximizing consumer welfare. 1 They argue that market factors such as high investment and savings rates and high quality labor have been the primary impetus spurring Japan's rapid development along with a good education system and an ability to absorb quickly foreign technology. According to this view, Japan's rapid economic growth and success in specific industries has occurred in spite of inefficiencies caused by government intervention and outdated remnants of the past, such as keiretsu, the industrial groups that reemerged

経済という山 技術という森 日本の経済発展と科学技術

経済という山 技術という森 日本の経済発展と科学技術

Japan's Different Trade Regime: An Analysis with Particular Reference to Keiretsu

Many claim that although formal trade barriers have been removed at the border, Japanese markets remain unusually closed because of non-tariff barriers. After describing Japan's development strategy and the debate over the sources of Japanese growth, we consider current trade barriers. Recent research has made some headway investigating the impact of one of the alleged “invisible” barriers. In particular, efforts have been made to test if the behavior of Japanese corporate groups, known as keiretsu, creates a barrier to trade. Finally we consider whether private sector trade restrictions warrant a public response; what, if anything, should be done about keiretsu?

Japan's military research and development: A high technology deterrent

Japan's military research and development: A high technology deterrent

The international impact of Japan's development

Japan's Global Reach: The Influences, Strategies and Weaknesses of Japan's Multinational Companies, by Bill Emmott. Century Business, London, 1992. xi+244pp. £18.99. ISBN 0–7126–4928‐X.

Techno-hegemony , and: Created in Japan: From Imitators to World Class Innovators , and: The Formation of Science in Japan: Building a Research Tradition (review)

176 SAISREVIEW in the world order (the latter being a particularly difficult task). Unfortunately, in explaining the various approaches towards maintaining international order, Von Vorys insists on taking the reader through a tour of world history. An extremely interesting tour, mind you, but do we really need to know how the Ch'in dynasty (221-209 B.C.) forged Chinese solidarity or that Alexander the Great "was a mamma's boy, somewhat like Churchill and FDR"? More important, however, is the completely surprising list of recommendations that Von Vorys comes up with for promoting constructive change in the Third World—specifically, for addressing ethnic tensions in Africa and Asia. He finishes the list with the admirable suggestion that the U.S. alter the substantive and geographic biases of its foreign aid program—less military aid and less of it to the Middle East. But he begins the list with the advice to maintain our covert operations capability and to build a global rapid deployment force! What ethnic conflict in Sub-Saharan Africa could possibly warrant the lives of thousands of America's youth? And whatever happened to the simple idea of boosting local Third World economies through trade liberalization measures? Does the description quirkily provocative make sense now? Von Vorys' writing style is brash and clever, and a selective reading ofAmerican National Interest will uncover a solid logical analysis ofthat most vexing of foreign policy tasks: basing policy on national interests. The subtitle had left this reviewer hoping to find some discussion of the dilemmas involved in matching virtue with power—dilemmas evident in the attempt to promote a consistent human rights policy, for example. Alas, there was little discussion of them. But Von Vorys is right to begin his preface with the statement: "What this country needs...is a great debate on foreign policy." In its unusual way, American National Interest adds to that debate. Techno-hegemony: By Taizo Yakushiji. Tokyo: Shuokoronsha, 1989. 267pp. 620 yen. (in Japanese) Created in Japan: From Imitators to World Class Innovators. By Sheridan M. Tatsuno. New York: Harper & Row, 1990. 295pp. $21.95. The Formation ofScience in Japan: Building a Research Tradition. By James R. Bartholomew. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989. 371pp. $36.00. Reviewed by Takuya Tasso, M.A. Candidate, SAIS. The origins of Japan's successful development of advanced technology is an attractive and common research theme for scholars concerned with economic competition between countries and about economic development. Some emphasize the ability of the Japanese to imitate Western science and technology while others focus on the original culture and traditions of Japanese society as possessing a delicate sensibility and penchant for invention. This debate between BOOK REVIEWS 177 the imitator-school and the creator-school is interesting to many people. Three new authors have joined the fray to present their own versions of these theories. Taizo Yakushiji's Techno-hegemony is a bold attempt to establish a general theory of national technological development. Sheridan Tatsuno's Created in Japan focuses on Japanese innovation, providing a new concept of creativity. Finally, James Bartholomew's The Formation of Science in Japan describes Japan's Westernization in terms of social change and technological development. The key to technological achievement seems to be the combination of vigorous imitation and originality based on factors inherent to the culture and traditions of Japan. Yakushiji has a B.A. degree in engineering from Keio University in Japan and a Ph.D. degree in international relations from MIT. He presents a general theory for national technological success, postulating that the international dynamics of "technological emulation" are the main cause of hegemony-transfer between major powers in modern history. According to him, techno-hegemons like the United Kingdom and the United States, which have succeeded in "technological emulation," grafted their inherent "something different" onto imported technology. For example, the British improved upon French technology for producing silk fabrics and the Low Countries' methods for making woolen fabric by utilizing know-how developed from the British cotton textile industry. As a second example, he cites the American development of a conveyor belt mass-production system, emulated from French and German automobile technology. Yakushiji argues that efficient imitation is essential for...

From Custom to Right: The Politicization of the Village in Early Meiji Japan

In 1874 Itagaki Taisuke and other critics of the newly established Meiji government submitted a petition demanding a popularly elected national assembly. This is said to be the origin of the Liberty and People's Rights Movement (jiyū minken undō). Around the same time a number of local political leaders intensified their campaign for the creation of village assemblies. Although the demand for local autonomy in the early Meiji period was both deep-felt and widespread, only a few scholars, notably Neil Waters, have diverted their attention from Itagaki and other political activists and thinkers at the center. An examination of Meiji local politics is nonetheless essential to understand Japan's modern political development.

Child Psychiatry in Japan

Japanese society strongly influences the mode of presentation of child mental health problems, both in terms of protective factors and pressures inherent in Japanese child-rearing practices. Recent changes in society associated with Japan's rapid economic development are affecting the mental health of children and families. Currently there is concern about levels of school refusal, bullying, suicidal behavior, and delinquency.

Politics and Productivity: How Japan's Development Strategy Works

Politics and Productivity: How Japan's Development Strategy Works

Collaboration or Conflict? Foreign Aid and U.S.-Japan Relations

THE JANUARY 1989 announcement that Japan's ODA (Official I Development Assistance) disbursements would probably supersede U. S. foreign aid totals had been expected for at least two years. Ever since 1985, when Japan's aid doubling plans (begun in 1977) were boosted by the dramatic appreciation of the yen it was inevitable that the day would come when Japanese foreign aid superseded that of U.S. foreign aid, especially as the U.S. aid program was facing severe budget limitations. Japan has traveled a long road in a short time. Within days of the government's announcement that Japan would be the largest donor, Japanese television was reminding viewers that only twenty-five years ago the Shinkansen (bullet train) had been built just prior to the Tokyo Olympics as a World Bank project. The television programs also mentioned thatJapan was the second largest recipient, after India, of World Bank assistance at that time. In fact in 1990 Japan will finally be taken off the World Bank's borrower list by paying back its final installment. In other words in twentyfive yearsJapan had gone from being one of the largest receivers of foreign aid to becoming the largest donor of foreign aid. This change from recipient to the world's largest donor of foreign aid has also been mirrored in the overall U.S. -Japan relationship. Whereas twenty-five years ago Japan had a net trade deficit with the United States, today it enjoys an approximate $50 billion surplus. In 1964Japan's Self-Defense forces had a minor regional role in the Pacific but in 1988 Japan's defense budget appeared to be the third largest in the world after that of the U.S. and the Soviet Union. In part, Japan's rapid development is of course a direct result of America's calculated foreign policy following World War II. One of the underlying tenets of that policy was to create conditions for the promotion of economic development and democracy and by doing so to prevent, or at least minimize, the advance of Soviet-sponsored communism. Now,

Development, Growth, and the Long RunThe Economic Development of Japan: A Quantitative Study. Ryoshin Minami

Ryoshin Minami, the author of The Economic Development ofJapan: A Quantitative Study, the book with which this review article is concerned, is with the Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, and a leading figure in research on Japanese economic growth.1 A protege of Kazushi Ohkawa-Japan's Simon Kuznets-who retired in the early 1970s, Minami is also a standard-bearer for the group of economists informally known as the Hitotsubashi Group. From 1950 to the mid-1970s, this group devoted its organized efforts to the compilation and publication of the estimates of long-term economic statistics (LTES). Earlier results of this group's work were edited by Ohkawa and published in Japanese in 1955. The expanded and revised English version of this publication long served as the standard data base for the analysis of Japan's long-term economic growth until superceded by 14 volumes of LTES, which were published at varying intervals in the course of the 1960s and 1970s.2 Minami himself edited or coedited three of the LTES volumes.