What's Driving Brazil‐Japan Migration? The Making and Remaking of the Brazilian Niche in Japan

Abstract: Since the late 1980s the Brazilian population in Japan has steadily increased, despite the long‐term recession in the late 1990s. In this paper we will examine the mechanism of the constant increase of Brazilians in Japan, focusing on the institutional context of their incorporation into the Japanese labor market. On the demand side, Brazilians solved an acute labor shortage in the economic boom period, but long‐term recession and casualization of the labor market made them compete with other peripheral workers such as Japanese women and the aged. Thus Brazilians have been marginalized within the secondary labor market since the late 1990s. On the supply side, recruiting agencies and labor contractors established a “just‐in‐time” labor delivery system, which enabled “flexible staffing” in a highly fluctuating labor market. As a result, demand and supply for Brazilian workers is still on the increase. Working in Japan is getting less attractive for Japanese Brazilians but is more of a viable option for them, driving further migration from Brazil to Japan.     

Japanese Education in an Era of Internationalization: A Case Study of an Emerging Multicultural Coexistence Model

Abstract: Responding to the pressure of internal internationalization, some local communities and schools in Japan started to generate and practice a new philosophy known as “multicultural coexistence” (tabunka kyousei). Based on a long‐term ethnographic research in one of the most progressive multicultural communities and elementary schools in Japan, this paper elucidates the shape of an emerging “multicultural coexistence” education model in Japan and provides some implications for its further development. By focusing on returnee and newcomer students enrolled, the paper argues the transformation of school culture, which will be delineated as an interaction among different agencies at the school: “the margin”, “the top”, “the outside” and “the inner core”. From these ethnographic findings, the paper draws five main features of the emerging model—three that are positive and two that are potentially problematic:

• 1 community‐based school reform movement,
• 2 teachers as decision makers, learners, and cooperators,
• 3 students’ knowledge and experience as a shared resource,
• 4 country‐oriented approach in difference/similarity framework,
• 5 treating all differences equally same.

Referring to the critiques of multicultural education in the United States of America, the discussion suggests that the issue of social justice should be addressed more in the model by highlighting the issue of ethnicity in Japanese society. Changing teachers’ attitudes toward such direction is vital and the paper proposes that coherent set of institutional changes, which centre around social justice, are necessary to raise teachers motivation.     

The “male” privilege of White women,the “White” privilege of Black women,and vulnerability to violence: an intersectional analysis of Peace Corps workers in host countries

This article is an intersectional analysis of race, gender, and nationality in development work. Using interview, document, and observational data, I situate this inquiry in the context of US women’s work in the Peace Corps, an organization within a field marked by colonialism. I find that White women and women of color have similar and yet instructively different experiences of their gendered identities in field sites, because race and gender differently affect their identities and relative privilege abroad. Specifically, White women volunteers are often afforded some degree of “male” privilege because of their race (though their race may render them vulnerable to sexual violence), while some volunteers of color are afforded a degree of “White” privilege because of their nationality (although their race may also render them vulnerable to violence). However, because the Peace Corps does not challenge conventional race and gender privileges, it lacks the organizational orientation and capacity to effectively address safety and assault among its women volunteers.     

Racism without Races: Reflections on Racialization and Racial Projects

‘The metaphor of race is a dangerous weapon whether it is used for asserting white supremacy or for making demands on behalf of the disadvantaged groups...Treating caste as a form of race is politically mischievous; what is worse, it is scientifically nonsensical’. Andre Beteille (2004: 52) ‘…what is in fact “scientifically nonsensical” is Professor Beteille’s misunderstanding of “race”. What is mischievous is his insistence that India’s system of ascribed system of social inequality should be exempted from the provisions of a UN Convention whose sole purpose is the extension of human rights to include freedom from all forms of discrimination and intolerance – and to which India, along with most other nations, has committed itself” Gerald Berreman (cited in Thorat and Umakant 2004: xxv ) ‘The possibility that the current Indian Hindu-Muslim or upper versus lower-caste conflict may be, in a significant sense, a variant of a modern problem of “ethnicity” or “race” is seldom entertained…”racism” is thought of as something the white people do to us. What Indians do to one another are variously described as “communalism”, “regionalism” and “casteism” but never “racism”’. Dipesh Chakrabarty (1994: 145)     

Fabricating Japaneseness? The Identity Politics of Young Designers and Artists in Global Cities

The present study explores the identity politics of young Japanese designers and artists working across national boundaries today. It addresses the following research questions: (i) Do young designers and artists aim to produce works with “universal” appeal or strategically make use of “Japaneseness”? (ii) Do they develop new transnational identities or regard themselves as “Japanese”? and (iii) Who do they think has the power to label their works as “Japanese” in the art worlds? For this purpose, I conducted in‐depth interviews with professional designers and artists who have migrated from Japan to London, New York, or Paris. The results show that most designers and artists who were interviewed indeed aim to produce works with “universal” appeal, while only a few respondents attempt to strategically express “Japaneseness” in their works. However, regardless of whether they make use of “Japaneseness” or not, all respondents regard themselves as “Japanese” without developing new transnational identities. Even so, they do not search for or hold onto Japaneseness; but rather the media, as well as a certain part of the art world, persistently attempt to emphasize “Japaneseness,” due to the structure of the art world, where whiteness continues to be the “norm.” While designers and artists are increasingly oriented toward creating works with new forms and values through the transnational production system, gatekeepers and legitimators of the art world continue to fabricate “the nation” and reinforce boundaries of national culture.     

Representations of “the West,”“Japan,” and “the Periphery” in the Discourse of Lafcadio Hearn Studies

The purpose of this article is to analyze representations of “the West,”“Japan,” and “the Periphery” in the discourse of research on Lafcadio Hearn (“Hearn studies”) from pre‐war Japan. The nature and construction of nationality will be analyzed by examining where the representations of “the West,”“Japan,” and “the Periphery” intersected. During the 1900s, researchers in the field of Hearn studies recognized that “Japan” lacked—and thus sought—a universality similar to what existed in “the West.” The tone of the discourse shifted during the 1910s through 1920s however, and what came to be emphasized was “Japan's” peculiarity. By the 1930s through 1940s, “Japan” aimed to show to “the West” a new universality that was different from what existed in Europe and America. Yet simultaneously, in order to legitimize its representation of its self, “Japan” portrayed “the Periphery” as an object that was both excluded and absorbed or appropriated into that image. On the one hand, “Japan” received and internalized the Orientalist viewpoint of “the West.” In fact, “Japan” was always conscious of its self‐image as something to display to “the West.” On the other hand, in order to create that self‐portrayal, both a representation of “the Periphery” and a reflection from that same “Periphery” were essential. While representations of “Japan” were produced, reproduced, and reinforced through interactions with “the West” and “the Periphery,” the intersecting behavior of these three entities also points to a residual ambiguity in “Japan's” nationality. By analyzing the discourse in Hearn studies, this paper reveals how the interaction between “Japan” and the two others of “the West” and “the Periphery” helped construct and destabilize its nationality.     

System Theory as Global Sociology-Japanese Ramifications of Parsonian and Luhmannian Thought

This article explores various engagements of system theory with Germany and Japan, looking in particular at the theories of Talcott Parsons and Niklas Luhmann. Talcott Parsons based his sociological theory on the idea of a system of the values of a given society. Niklas Luhmann’s extended version was based on the idea of self-reproduction (or “autopoiesis”) of social systems within all modernized societies. Two studies have recently re-examined system theory on basis of its engagement with Japan: Günther Distelrath has subjected Parsonian theory on Japanese modernity to a structural revisioning in Die japanische Produktionsweise (1996); and Peter Fuchs has reconciled what he calls the “dividualism” of the Japanese psyche with the Luhmannian theory of functional differentiation in Kommunikation — Japanisch (1995). Distelrath critiques the Parsonian school of thought for giving Japan the status of a backward “follower” of the West. Fuchs, in contrast, endorses the universalist premise of Luhmann’s concept of society and makes Japanese “dividualism” the paradigm of effective modernization. Following on from Fuchs, I argue that system theory has the potential to overcome cultural limitations and become a global sociology. Its theoretical agenda in the twenty-first century includes the refinement of its concepts of the psychical system, the revision of its notion of the public and the mass media, as well as a systematic contribution to environmental protection and ecological communication in a functionally differentiated world society.     

The hybridization of organizational culture in tokyo disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland (TDL), a licensed version of the American theme park which was re-made in Japan, is a unique cultural, organizational and consumerist junction where “Japan” meets “America.” Offering an ethnography of this meeting, I focus here on the appropriation of the “Disney Way” into TDL's socialization practices of hiring and training. TDL's organizational culture is divided between an American influence that relates to part-timers and a Japanese tradition that applies to regular workers. It is discussed how local culture facilitated the successful transfer of the Disney Way to Japan while also promoting a modification of specific elements.     

“Good Manner of Dying” as a Normative Concept: “Autocide,”“Granny Dumping” and Discussions on Euthanasia/Death with Dignity in Japan

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the two characteristics of the way the issue of euthanasia/death with dignity has been discussed in Japan, compared with the situation in Europe and the USA. The two characteristics are: (i) that the concept of “euthanasia” is sharply distinguished from that of “death with dignity” in Japan in that the former only refers to the killing of a patient by administration of a lethal drug while the latter refers to letting a patient die by withholding or withdrawing life‐prolonging medical treatments; and (ii) that the view that it is sinful to commit suicide is not as common in Japan as it is in the West. In order to clarify these characteristics, I examine the nature of suicide and murder in relation to the issue of euthanasia and death with dignity while briefly reviewing the history of the debates in Japan in order to see how the characteristic understanding of “death with dignity” has generated. I also clarify, by giving examples, the structure of those narratives with regards to the “good manner of dying,” which excludes from society the elderly and people with incurable diseases and ones with motor and intellectual disabilities. In the end, I describe how biopolitics functions in the current Japanese situation.     

Economic achievement of immigrants in Japan: Examining the role of country-of-origin and host-country-specific human capital in an inflexible labor market

The economic integration of immigrants is a salient social issue in Japan. Although the US immigration literature has stressed the importance of host-country-specific human capital over country-of-origin human capital for immigrants, previous studies in Japan have shown mixed results about the effects of these two types of human capital on the economic integration of immigrants. The mixed results might be because previous studies focused on only specific immigrant groups (with regard to nationalities, cities, and visa status), human capital variables, and dimensions of economic achievements in the Japanese labor market. The segmented nature of the Japanese labor market structure and immigration policies create different pathways to “economic achievements” of immigrants depending on the dimension of “economic achievements” studied. By conducting a nationally representative social survey of Japanese immigrants, we examined the association between the two types of human capital (i.e., country-of-origin and host-country-specific) and the three indicators of labor market success: employment status and firm size, occupational status, and income. Our results indicate that host-country-specific human capital in the form of higher education and language proficiency is important for all three indicators of economic achievement in Japan, while country-of-origin human capital in the form of higher education and vocational skills is transferable to some extent. Our results suggest that the significance of human capital in immigrants' economic success is determined not only by the structure of the labor market but also by immigration policies.     

How Can Three Questions on Modernity Be Answered? The World-System Theory and Japanese Experiences

This article addresses three questions on modernity. Can “the premodern” and “the modern” be differentiated in the historical process? If they can, what is the relationship between “the premodern” and “the modern”? And what will become of these relationships in the future? This article attempts to answer these questions by criticizing the world-system theory and considering some of the experiences of the modernization process in Japan. The world-system theory has tried to relativize social theories from advanced societies in the global perspective. However, the world-system, born during the long 16th century, was defined from the start as modern and capitalist. Therefore, logically this theory cannot adequately grasp the modernization process. To overcome this challenge, this article first accepts the differentiation between “the premodern” and “the modern” and defines modern society as one in which “the modern” is not exclusive but dominant. Second, this article turns to some of the Japanese experiences of “modernization”, particularly in industrial relations. This article asserts that a Japanese-style society tends to keep “the premodern” over a longer term and to replace “modern” relations with “the premodern” ones in management. The author defined this process as informalization. Third, this article stresses that since the late 1990s with globalization, informalization is no longer derived from original “premodern” relations, which are nowadays reproduced by capital. An example of this is the “black company.” This article notes, finally, that capitalism is likely to reproduce premodern forms for its duration.     

Theories on Modernization of Japan Today

Abstract When examining the issues related to the theories on modernization of Japan up until now, we can distinguish three extremely important trends of thought. I would like to refer to those three trends as the “Post War Theories” (P.T.), the “American Theories” (A.T.), and the “Beyond Western Theories” (B.T.). “P.T.” emphasize the importance of modernization as democratization, meanwhile the “A.T.” emphasize the importance of modernization as industrialization. In the “B.T.”, post-modern debate is included. In the context of Japan, modernization should be defined as a process which has two equally important elements: democratization and industrialization. It is a process that originated in the West, but was accepted by non Western countries mixing with their own traditions transforming and organizing the “World System”. Theoretical reconsideration on the subject of “acceptance” has crucial importance in this case. We need also to start from the pre-modern period as the initial condition for modernization. Concerning the Japanese pre-modern era, we need to analyze the “Ie” (household) system as a social structure, and worldly attitudes as a spiritual or value structure, and finally the bureaucratic system as the intermediate element of the above two structures. Edo (pre-modern) society was a compound of “Ie” and a bureaucratic system. Because the bureaucratic structure functioned by the very law of the period. the bushi warriors were expected to promote their abilities in judicature, administration, policy planning and decisions, and then they tended to become like modern bureaucrats in their characters. Peasant society also had a similar system as mentioned above. Japan's “Ie” existed as a certain social unit called “Ie-Kabu”. From that, Japanese “Ie” came to have a structure where families were bound within public control apparatus instruments. Thus the control mechanisms of the government effectively functioned down to the common people's level through this apparatus.     

Sociologization,Pedagogization, and Resociologization: Has the Post-war Japanese Sociology of Education Suffered from the Galapagos Syndrome?

When considering the trends in the Japanese sociology of education over the 70 years since the end of World War II, there have been several significant changes in the nature and social position of the sociology of education within the academic history of expansion and development. These changes can be further understood by focusing on: (i) the relationship between the sociology of education in Japan and research trends in Western sociology; (ii) the relationship between the sociology of education and pedagogy in Japan; and (iii) the relationship between the sociology of education and changes in Japanese society itself. This paper focuses on these three relationships to provide an overview of the characteristics and the future direction of post-war Japanese sociology of education. The keywords of this paper will be sociologization, pedagogization, resociologization, and the Galapagos syndrome. The post-war Japanese sociology of education has not suffered from the Galapagos syndrome. However, it is evident that it lacks transmission of research results to other countries. So, the future task for Japanese researchers in the sociology of education is to demonstrate the significance of their research on Japanese education to international sociology of education markets. To achieve a more generalized perspective and regain a sense of equilibrium within the Japanese sociology of education, a “resociologization” will be required for the sociology of education in Japan, though the Japanese sociology of education especially seems to be experiencing a pedagogization.     

Deprivation of Furusato: The damage faced by evacuees after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident

This paper considers the damage caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and the meaning of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident, and reflects on the evacuees' experiences over past 12 years. During this time, several lawsuits demanding the clarification of responsibility for the accident and compensation for damages have been filed against TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) and the Japanese Government. The “loss and transformation of hometowns (furusato in Japanese)” has become one of the key issues in these lawsuits. While the casees were being litigated, the mandated “evacuation designated zones” were gradually lifted. Even in the “Difficult-to-Return Areas” where annual integrated doses of radioactive substances are over 50 mSv and evacuation orders are still in effect, efforts are being made to lift the evacuation orders. Because they were forced to leave their places of residence, evacuees have claimed, “we lost oue furusato [hometown].” However, because they are able to return after evacuation orders are lifted, both TEPCO and the Japanese Government have insisted that “their furusato has not been lost” and “they cannot claim compensation for furusato damages.” In this paper, I call the irreversible and absolute damage caused by the nuclear power plant accident “the deprivation of furusato.” I look at furusato from three aspects: the relationship between people and nature, the connection between people, and notions of persistence and sustainability. Then, I discuss what kind of reconstruction is being promoted to respond to the deprivation of furusato and for whom.     

The White City: Race and Urban Politics

Urban regime analysis and growth machine theory offer critical tools to study power and inequality in cities. However, the field of urban politics has moved away from critically addressing race. I discuss these theories' potential contributions before suggesting scholars “bring race back” to urban politics in several key areas: studying “White urban regimes” in addition to Black urban regimes; examining how Whiteness factors into growth (and anti‐growth) coalitions; exploring how racial discourse shapes urban regimes; and accounting for the relationship between suburbs and “fringe cities” and the city, including suburban regimes.     

The Economic and Psychological Burden to Hospitals and Care Facilities of Accepting EPA Candidates in Japan

The Japanese government has encouraged the opening of the domestic market to foreign workers under the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) as a “special case” in order “to promote the trade relationship between Japan and the countries that sign the agreement” since 2008. According to the literature, the introduction of nurses and care workers is not at all economical. Many empirical studies indicate that the costs of accepting EPA candidates is crucial for accepting institutions. In this study, the authors developed a multiple regression model for the economic and psychological burden of EPA and evaluated the goodness of fit of the model by comparing hospitals and care facilities. The multiple regression analysis indicated a good fit model for hospitals, but not for care facilities. The authors speculate that there are some differences in management between hospitals and care facilities that should be considered in interpreting this phenomenon.     

The Context of Correctness: A Comment on Rushton1

According to Philippe Rushton, the “equalitarian fiction,” a “scientific hoax” that races are genetically equal in cognitive ability, underlies the “Politically correct” objections to his research on racial differences. He maintains that there is a taboo against race unequaled by the Inquisition. I show that while Rushton has been publicly harassed, he has had continuous opportunities to present his findings in diverse, widely available, respectable journals, and no general suppression within academic psychology is evident. Similarly, Henry Garrett and his associates in the L4AEE, dedicated to preserving segregation and preventing “race suicide,” disseminated their ideas widely, although Garrett complained of the “equalitarian fiction” in 1961. Examination of the intertwined history of Mankind Quarterly, German Rassenhygiene, far right politics, and the work of Roger Pearson suggests that some cries of “political correctness” must be viewed with great caution.     

Can Japan Become “A Society Attractive for Immigrants?” Identity,Gender and Nation‐States under Globalization in East Asia

Abstract: In 2003, the total fertility rate in Japan was 1.29. According to many predictions, if the current rate continues, the labor shortage will become critical. The Economic and Fiscal Policy White Paper, edited by the Cabinet Office ( Naikakuhu, 2003a ), stated “If we attempt to fill the lack by accepting immigrants in order to maintain the population of productive workers, we will need to accept 640 000 immigrants every year until 2050. It is necessary to make our country more attractive for foreign workers”. However, it is unlikely that more than 30 million immigrants will choose to live in Japan unless efforts are made to abolish xenophobia and to make qualitative changes that will change Japanese society so that it is more open to co‐existence. Moreover, Japan is not the only country that must worry about future declines in the work force and other countries will most likely start to attract foreign workers earlier than Japan ( Naikakuhu, 2003b ).     

“I” and Self-Consciousness in the Japanese Language and in Sociology

Abstract It is often said that the Japanese lack the firm consciousness of “self” namely, they yield to groups and are absorbed in an anonymous state. Some ascribe this to the Japanese language, in which the first and the second person are expressed by various pronouns (or, in many cases, are even omitted) in accordance with the relationships between persons. By contrast the Westerner's “I,” which is usually the only pronoun for the first-person, is rarely omitted. They conclude from this that the Japanese individual does not possess as clearly defined a conception of “self” as does the Westerner. Underlying this issue are the fundamental, interwoven questions of language and self-consciousness: does “self” really exist, and does the analysis of the I in language pertain to the first question? This paper discusses these questions by considering Wittgenstein's argument that “I” does not refer to self-consciousness: rather, “self” is a metaphysical reification of “I.” These problems concern sociology, in which the “subject” of action has been the focal point of methodological arguments. I will show that Meadian interactionism and critical theory are deeply rooted in the metaphysical, subjectivist understanding of “I,” while ethnomethodology offers a perspective which overcomes both subjectivism and objectivism for studying communication.     

Young Adult Daughters' Relationships With Their Fathers: Review of Recent Research

In “Something More”: The Meanings of Marriage for Religious Couples in America, Dollahite, Hawkins and Parr (2012) present a qualitative study that includes interviews with religiously observant married couples to investigate marriage. The current paper reviews the aforementioned study with respect to its trustworthiness, through dependability, credibility, confirmability and transferability, to encourage the elevation of qualitative work in our field. We discuss a number of challenges in the study design, methods, interpretation, and conclusions. In sum, our reading of the study left us wanting “something more” scholarly rigorous for the field of marriage research and qualitative work.