The dynamic impacts of M&A on employment in Japan

This paper provides empirical evidence on the dynamic effects of merger and acquisition (M&A) on employment in Japan. The main contributions to the gaps in existing literature are: targeting employment effects of M&A, examining them by the deal type (merger and acquisition) and by the sector (manufacturing and non-manufacturing), tracing the effects in the long term, using large dataset with 9,880 sample firms and 2,530 M&A cases for the period from 1995 to 2008, and focusing on the case of Japan. Our main findings are: the “acquisition” with the key role of “extension and growth” proved to have positive effects in the dynamic terms on target firms’ employment, mainly in manufacturing sector with high labor productivity. On the other hand, the “merger” with key function of “consolidation” turned out to have negative impacts dynamically on post-merger firms’ employment, mainly in non-manufacturing sector with low labor productivity. The strategic implication might to be that the different employment responses to M&A events between manufacturing and non-manufacturing reflect the difference in labor productivity between them, i.e. the dual structure of Japanese economy.     

Sleep quality and stress in women with pregnancy-induced hypertension and gestational diabetes mellitus

BackgroundPregnant women with complications including pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) often experience disrupted sleep patterns because of activation of the sympathetic nervous system. These pathologies are aggravated by sympathetic nervous system activation and may be related to stress. The present study aimed to clarify the characteristics of and changes in sleep quality and stress in pregnant women with PIH and GDM during the second and third trimesters.MethodsWe enrolled 56 women in their second or third trimesters who were diagnosed with PIH or GDM. Participants completed questionnaires, including the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Secretory immunoglobulin A (SlgA) concentrations were measured as a biological indicator of stress.ResultsPSS scores and subjective stress parameters were significantly higher than those reported from previous studies of healthy pregnant women (15.2 points and 15.1 points for the second and third trimesters, respectively).Mean one-day values for SIgA were 168.3 and 205.7 μg/mL for the second and third trimesters, respectively. During the second and third trimesters, SIgA scores were higher than those reported for healthy pregnant women in previous studies. The PSQI component scores sleep disturbance (C5) and sleep duration (C3) in follow up case were significantly higher in the third trimester than in the second trimester.DiscussionThis investigation suggests that pregnant women with PIH and GDM experience higher stress levels than do non-pregnant women and healthy pregnant women. Further, our results indicate that sleep quality worsens during the third trimester compared with the second trimester.     

Life Environmentalism: A Model Developed under Environmental Degradation

The life environmentalism model, which emphasizes the lives and livelihoods of local communities, was developed in Japan on the basis of intensive field research in the Lake Biwa district. There were two opposing schools of thought when the model was created in 1984. One school recognized the benefits of untouched nature, relied on ecology as a science and was supported by ecological movements. We label this model natural environmentalism (the eco-system model). The other school of thought maintained that the development of modern technology could resolve environmental problems and was strongly supported by the administrators of the Lake Biwa district. We have called this modern technocentrism. After critiquing both ideas we propose a life environmentalism model, which focuses on matters of ownership, community organization and residents' consciousness using the concepts of common possession, iibun (group views) and life consciousness. The model is effective in densely populated countries such as Japan and China but it may not be useful in areas with a low population density. The differences between the basic ideas of this model and the other two models, especially the eco-system model, may provide hints on suitable ways to preserve the environment.     

Teaching Note—Teaching Intersectionality: Transforming Cultural Competence Content in Social Work Education

Intersectionality has been gaining momentum among social workers as a framework to allow a fuller understanding of the complexity of diverse social identities and the impact of social structures on power, privilege, and oppression. However, the application of intersectionality to teaching in social work education has been relatively absent in the literature. This article describes a 3-hour graduate-level classroom exercise designed to increase knowledge and proficiency of intersectionality. Critical self-reflections of the participants’ experiences are provided to illustrate the evolving growth and awareness that can result from the educational process using this framework. Examples and suggestions for reading assignments and classroom activities are offered. Implications for social work education and future directions are discussed.     

The challenge of keeping Japanese older people economically active

Japanese society faces serious problems due to population ageing. Both the number and percentage of people aged 65 years old and over are increasing. The ratio of those aged 65+ was 17.3 per cent in 2000, but the estimate of the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research is that the ratio will become 28.7 per cent in 2025 and will reach 40 per cent in 2050. This article consists of four sections. In the first the characteristics of issues associated with population ageing in Japan are discussed. The actual situations of employment and lives of older workers are introduced. The second section analyses government policies to address the ageing of the population. The Japanese government is trying to address the issue through encouraging older people to work longer. The promotion of efforts to extend longer working lives is discussed. In the third section a rehiring system and two cases of Japanese firms are described. Those enterprises are effectively employing older workers. Their experiences would be interesting for those planning to hire older workers. The last section discusses how to resolve challenges associated with population ageing. It is shown that continuous training is one of the most important ways of keeping older people productive.     

Statistical estimation errors of VaR under ARCH returns

In this paper we discuss some problems of existing methods for calculating the Value-at-Risk (VaR) in ARCH setting. It should be noted that the commonly used approaches often confuse the true innovations with the empirical residuals, i.e., estimation errors for unknown ARCH parameters are ignored. We adjust this by using the asymptotics of the residual empirical process, and propose a feasible VaR which, according to the spirit of VaR, keeps the assets away from a specified risk with high confidence level. Its meaningfulness in comparison with the usual VaR will be illustrated clearly by numerical studies.     

A modification of the Whittaker–Henderson method of graduation

This paper presents a modified Whittaker–Henderson (WH) Method of Graduation. After giving a closed-form solution, we show that it is of practical use because it provides not only a smoothed series identical to that of the WH graduation, but also an extrapolation beyond the sample limit of current data. In addition, we introduce two other penalized least squares problems and show that they provide the same results as those of the modified WH graduation.     

Relationship between state anxiety and success rate in game performance, coach's evaluation among Japanese university volleyball players

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between state anxiety and individual athletic game performance. The subjects were 54 male players of 4 teams (The average age was 20.5 (SD=1.09) years), who participated in the Kanto university men's volleyball league games in the spring of year 2010. The subjects were asked to respond to a Japanese version of the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), which was measured at 4 time periods (the day before, the day of game, just before the game, just after the game) for each of a total of 40 games (each team played 10 games). The results were as follows: (1) Relationships between state anxiety and success rate in game performance (spike, reception, block) showed different correlation depending on each game performance. (2) The group of players who performed well in games collected by coaches scored lower than the more badly-performing group in the score of state anxiety on the day of game and just after the game. (3) The temporal change of the score of state anxiety from just before the game to just after the game was different depending on whether they performed well or not in games.     

Sleep disturbance as a clinical sign for severe hypogonadism: efficacy of testosterone replacement therapy on sleep disturbance among hypogonadal men without obstructive sleep apnea

Objective: The present subanalysis of the EARTH study investigates the effects of one year testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) on sleep disturbance among hypogonadal men without obstructive sleep apnea.

Methods: Sleep disturbance was defined as three or more points in question 4 of the aging males symptoms (AMS) questionnaire. All participants completed the AMS scale, International Prostatic Symptoms Score (IPSS), Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM) and Short Form 36 (SF-36) health survey at baseline and after 12?months. Sexual symptoms were also evaluated based on three AMS subscores (Q15, 16 and 17).

Results: We identified 100 patients with sleep disturbance, of whom 48 (24 each in the TRT and control groups) were ultimately included for analysis. All SF-36 categories , AMS scale, IPSS and SHIM score subdomains were significantly worse in patients with sleep disturbance than in those without disturbance. Statistically significant differences in sleep disturbance, erectile symptoms, sexual desire and some domains of the SF-36 were observed between the TRT and control groups after 12?months.

Conclusion: Sleep disturbance may be one of the clinical signs for severe hypogonadism. Moreover, TRT improved sleep conditions, sexual function and quality of life among hypogonadal men with sleep disturbance.     

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.