The Dilemma of "Authentic Self" Ideology in Contemporary Japan

This paper examines dilemmas inherent in the pursuit of the modern ideology of "authentic self", which first emerged in the 1960s and is now widespread in contemporary cultures. The ideology is exemplified, in a religious scene, as "self-transformative" religions wherein seekers seek to transform themselves spiritually in order to realize their authentic, or "sacred" selves. Through an examination of Aum Shinrikyo, which began as a typical "self-transformative" religion but later transformed into a destructive cult, I will explain the intrinsic moral imperatives of the ideology of "authenticity". This study of Aum explores the introverted lifestyle and extreme desocialization, which resulted in obsession with the central guru, being legitimated by the ideology. This search for "authenticity" resulted in the members cutting themselves off from the reality of the world. The final analysis suggests that possible consequences of the endless pursuit of the "authentic self" are a "vacuum" self and a loss of empathy with other people. The ontological conditions created by this bring about potential destructiveness, either internal or external.     

Government Partisanship and Human Well-Being

This paper shows that the partisan composition of government is strongly related to the well-being of citizens, measured by the reported level of life satisfaction and suicide rates in industrial countries. Our analysis, using survey data of 14 nations between 1980 and 2002, shows that the presence of left-leaning parties in government is associated with an increase the level of individual life satisfaction. The relationship holds true even after controlling for the effects of macroeconomic variables such as gross domestic product, unemployment rates and government welfare policies. Our panel data analysis of 21 nations between 1980 and 2004 also shows that suicide rates decrease when a country experiences a shift to more left-leaning government. The increased presence of right-wing parties in government has a negligible effect on suicide rates.     

The future of financing for long-term care: the Own Your Future campaign

The purpose of this study was to examine the outreach effort and impact of a joint federal-state campaign, Own Your Future, promoting awareness and planning for long-term care (LTC) in the state of Washington. The study applied survey methodology to evaluate the extent of campaign dissemination, evidence of its impact on LTC planning behaviors, and barriers to purchasing private LTC insurance. A total of 3,198 survey responses from a randomly selected community sample and a Washington State employee sample (ages 51 to 71) were analyzed. Results indicated that the impact of the campaign was limited, both with respect to awareness of the campaign itself and to initiation of LTC planning behaviors. Quantitative data revealed a high prevalence of health-related problems (e.g., obesity, diabetes), inadequate knowledge of basic LTC-related information (e.g., cost, payers), and negative attitudes toward purchasing LTC insurance among respondents. Qualitative analyses suggested that respondents perceived significant problems related to affordability and accountability within the current LTC insurance industry. These possible barriers to the purchase of LTC insurance suggest targets to be addressed by policy makers seeking to find ways to offset the public costs of LTC.     

日本旅游目的地管理组织体系分析

围绕旅游目的地的研究是近些年旅游研究的热点。"旅游目的地"的概念一直在变化发展中,不同国家在其界定上也存在着差异,相应的在开发与管理上也有所不同。日本将"观光立国"作为基本国策,举全国之力推动旅游产业的发展,取得了明显的成效,但同时也存在着诸多问题。本文结合日本旅游目的地管理研究的历史与现状,对包括政府、民间旅游管理组织的框架体系及相应的工作和职能,进行梳理和比较,对现有管理组织存在的问题进行了分析,并提出相应的建议。并为中国旅游管理组织构架的完善和发展提供一些参考和借鉴。     

Unmet physical and mental healthcare needs of children with a history of familial homelessness and unstable housing

The objective of this paper is to examine whether children with a history of unstable housing, and more specifically homelessness, have unmet physical and mental healthcare needs. Further, this paper describes primary caregivers’ barriers to children’s healthcare. Data were collected from 6492 primary caregivers of children ages 0–17 years residing in five Dallas, Texas counties. Primary caregivers reported whether they previously experienced homelessness with their children, their children’s unmet mental and physical healthcare needs, and primary reasons for the unmet healthcare needs. Results suggest that children with a history of homelessness or unstable housing had increased odds of both mental and physical unmet healthcare needs. Prevention efforts should attempt to bridge resources for families who obtain housing but are still at increased risk for the long-term effects of homelessness exposure.     

Japanese Fathers of Preschoolers and Their Involvement in Child Care

We examine how relative resources, time availability, gender ideology, living arrangement, child‐care demand, and job satisfaction are associated with the levels of younger Japanese fathers’ involvement in child care for preschoolers. A theoretical model that includes these factors is tested using 1994 data collected from Japanese fathers and mothers with preschool children (N = 442 couples). We find that practical considerations such as fathers’ shorter work hours, mothers’ full‐time employment, fewer adults and more children in households, and younger ages of children are associated with higher levels of paternal involvement. Implications of these findings are discussed in light of attention to ways to encourage Japanese men's sharing of child‐care responsibilities with their wives.     

Finite sample comparisons of the distributions of the ols and gls estimators in regression with an integrated regsorad correlated errors

We compare the finite sample distributional properties of the OLS and GT,S mtinialors 11 a rcgrassior wilh arl inl,cgrd,ctl rcgrtssor ant1 corrctifical errors of the form of AR(1) and MA(1) processes. The approach is one of first deriving the joint characteristic function of the quadratic forms in the clefiriit,on of t,hc est,irrial,ors and then rurrierically inverting these 1.0 find the distributions. When the characteristic functions are intractable, Monte Carlo integration is employed. We find substantial differences in the finite jarriplc ditributiorls of OLS ant1 C:LS dthough lsynlptotically thee distributions are equivalent.