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This book explores not only how Japanese society is diversified and unequal, but also how diversity and inequality have caused people to divide into separate realities from which conflict and violence have emerged.

By exploring censorship in a number of different Japanese art forms ¿ from popular music and kabuki performance through to fiction, poetry and film ¿ across a range of historical periods, this book provides a striking picture of the pervasiveness and strength of Japanese censorship across a range of media; the similar tactics used by artists of different media to negotiate censorship boundaries; and how censors from different systems and time periods face many of the same problems and questions in their work. Taken together, the essays in this book demonstrate that censorship at every stage involves an act of human judgment, in a context determined by political, economic and ideological factors.

Using comparative studies and original research, this book discusses the extent to which the Japanese economy encourages entrepreneurship and innovation.

This book brings together leading economists and economic historians of Japan in order to examine a range of key issues concerning Japanese institutional and technological development.

This book provides an overview of contemporary Japan and the many considerable changes currently taking place in a wide range of fields, including the economy, business and technology, politics, governance and international relations, providing a much needed corrective to misplaced Western views that Japan is unable to change.

This book explores the discursive systems of cultural identities that regenerate the illusion of Japan as a homogeneous nation. Contributors from a variety of disciplines and methodological approaches investigate the ways in which Japan's homogenizing discourses are challenged and modified by counter-homogeneous message systems.

This book therefore seeks to study aging Japan in detail, investigating how social aging is affecting intergenerational relations. It analyses themes such as employment, parenthood, sexuality, and art, thus demonstrating how the younger generation can provide insights into the future of Japanese society more generally.

This book sheds light on historical developments and the current gender equality situation in Japan through the lens of women in science and technology. Drawing on data from interviews with government officials, scientists and educators, it demonstrates how the underrepresentation of women in STEM has been dealt with by national government.

In recent decades Japan has changed from a strongly growing, economically successful nation regarded as prime example of social equality and inclusion, to a nation with a stagnating economy, a shrinking population and a very high proportion of elderly people. Within this, new forms of inequality are emerging and deepening, and a new model of Japan as ''gap society'' (kakusa shakai) has become common-sense. These new forms of inequality are complex, are caused in different ways by a variety of factors, and require deep-seated reforms in order to remedy them. This book provides a comprehensive overview of inequality in contemporary Japan. It examines inequality in labour and employment, in welfare and family, in education and social mobility, in the urban-rural divide, and concerning immigration, ethnic minorities and gender. The book also considers the widespread anxiety effect of the fear of inequality; and discusses how far these developments in Japan represent a new form of social problem for the wider world.

This book shows the far reaching impact of the high treason incident for Japanese politics and society. Taking an interdisciplinary and global approach, it demonstrates how the incident transformed modern Japan in many and unexpected ways, and sheds light on the response of authoritarian states to radical democratic opposition movements elsewhere.

In the twenty-first century, the concept of internationalisation remains a crucial tool for understanding the dynamics of globalising processes. It draws attention to the dimensions of conscious action in inter- and trans-national phenomena, connecting globalisation with individualsΓÇÖ experience of everyday life. This book explores how internationalisation is imagined, discussed and operationalised in Japan and surrounding countries. The chapters focus on educational, leisure and cultural activities, fields which are often overlooked in favour of economic and political developments in the literature. The conclusion reflects on the concept of internationalisation and assesses how it is likely to develop in Japan in future, taking into account the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011.

This book addresses the transition from postwar to post-disaster literature and examines the rise of precarity consciousness in Japanese socio-cultural discourse. Recent natural as well as man-made cataclysmic events have dramatically changed the status quo of contemporary Japanese society. This radically new worldview has significantly altered the socio-political as well as literary perception of one of the world¿s former superpowers and in this book the contributors closely examine how Japan¿s new paradigm of precarious existence is expressed through a variety of pop-cultural and literary media.

This book examines five features of Japan¿s `Lost Decades¿: the speed of the economic decline in Japan compared to Japan¿s earlier global prowess; a rapidly declining population; considerable political instability and failed reform attempts; shifting balances of power in the region and changing relations with Asian neighbouring nations; and the lingering legacy of World War Two. To discuss the rebuilding of Japan, the authors argue that it is first essential to critically examine Japan¿s `Lost Decades¿ and this book offers a comprehensive overview of Japan¿s recent 20 years of crisis. The book reveals that the `Lost Decades¿ is not an issue unique to the Japanese context but has global relevance, and its study can provide important insights into challenges being faced in other mature economies. With chapters written by some of the world¿s leading Japan specialists and chapters focusing on a variety of disciplines, this book will be of interest to students and scholars in the areas of Japan studies, Politics, International Relations, Security Studies, Government Policy and History.

This collection brings together Japan specialists in order to identify key challenges in using Japanese popular culture materials in their research and teaching. It addresses issues such as the availability of unofficially translated and distributed Japanese material; the emphasis on adult-themes, violence, sexual scenes and under-age characters; and the discrepancies in legislation and ratings systems across the world. The contributors discuss the different ways in which academic and fan practices are challenged by local regulations and also suggest ways in which Japanese Studies as a discipline needs to develop clearer guidelines for teaching and research.

This book aims to address the dynamism of concepts of wide area public service in Japan. It advocates the use of flexible strategies to ensure service standards are best suited to each regional demand. This concept can be called ¿departure from uniformity¿. This book also examines the advantages and disadvantages of these shifts for the future of Japanese public policy, and suggests various strategies to prevent further complications; e.g. autonomous settlement zone.

Mental health, including widespread depression, a high suicide rate and institutionalisation, is a major problem in Japan. At the same time, the mental health care system in Japan has historically been more restrictive than elsewhere in the world. This book looks at the challenges of mental health care in Japan, including problems such as the institutionalisation of long-term patients in mental hospitals. The book discusses the latest legislation to deal with mental health care, and explores the various ideas and practices concerning rehabilitation into the workforce, the community and service user groups that empower the mentally ill. It goes on to look at the social stigma attached to the mentally ill in Japan and Britain, which touches upon the issue of counselling those with post traumatic stress after the recent earthquake.

In recent decades Japan has changed from a strongly growing, successful developing country with a high level of social equality to a country with a stagnating economy, a shrinking population and a very high proportion of elderly people. Within this, and especially since the crisis of 2007-09, new forms of inequality are emerging and deepening. These new forms of inequality are complex, are caused in different ways by a variety of factors, and require deep-seated reforms in order to remedy them. This book provides a comprehensive overview of inequality in contemporary Japan. It examines inequality in labour and employment, in welfare and family, in education and social mobility, in the urban-rural divide, and concerning immigration, ethnic minorities and gender. The book also considers the widespread anxiety effect of the fear of inequality; and discusses how far these developments in Japan represent a new form of social problem for the wider world.

The natural and man-made cataclysmic events of the 11th March 2011 have dramatically altered the status quo of contemporary Japanese society. While much has been written about social, political, economic, and technical aspects of the disaster, this volume represents the first in-depth exploration of cultural responses to the devastating tsunami, and in particular the ongoing nuclear disaster of Fukushima. It analyses examples from literature, poetry, manga, theatre, art photography, documentary and fiction film, and popular music. By scrutinizing various media narratives and taking into account national and local perspectives, it sheds light on cultural texts of power, politics, and space.

This book examines five features of Japan¿s `Lost Decades¿: the speed of the economic decline in Japan compared to Japan¿s earlier global prowess; a rapidly declining population; considerable political instability and failed reform attempts; shifting balances of power in the region and changing relations with Asian neighbouring nations; and the lingering legacy of World War Two. To discuss the rebuilding of Japan, the authors argue that it is first essential to critically examine Japan¿s `Lost Decades¿ and this book offers a comprehensive overview of Japan¿s recent 20 years of crisis. The book reveals that the `Lost Decades¿ is not an issue unique to the Japanese context but has global relevance, and its study can provide important insights into challenges being faced in other mature economies. With chapters written by some of the world¿s leading Japan specialists and chapters focusing on a variety of disciplines, this book will be of interest to students and scholars in the areas of Japan studies, Politics, International Relations, Security Studies, Government Policy and History.

This book sheds light on historical developments and the current gender equality situation in Japan, through the lens of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. It shows how a policy of gender equality in science and engineering has been introduced through the coordinated efforts of academia, scientific societies and the government, and how this has led to a slow but steady increase in female representation. It draws on data including extensive interviews with government officials, scientists and educators in Japan to provide a revealing case study on how the underrepresentation of women in STEM has been approached and dealt with by a national government.

This book addresses the transition from postwar to post-disaster literature and examines the rise of precarity consciousness in Japanese socio-cultural discourse. Recent natural as well as man-made cataclysmic events have dramatically changed the status quo of contemporary Japanese society. This radically new worldview has significantly altered the socio-political as well as literary perception of one of the world¿s former superpowers and in this book the contributors closely examine how Japan¿s new paradigm of precarious existence is expressed through a variety of pop-cultural and literary media.

This book provides a historically contextualized introduction to the dialogue between religion and psychotherapy in modern Japan. In doing so, it draws out connections between developments in medicine, government policy, Japanese religion and spirituality, social and cultural criticism, regional dynamics and gender relations. Religion and Psychotherapy in Modern Japan will be welcomed by students and scholars working across a broad range of subjects, including Japanese culture and society, religious studies, psychology and psychotherapy, mental health and international history.

This book presents an up-to-date analysis of the political parties that make up the Japanese party system and their impact on Japanese politics and government. It focuses on a central question: why Japanese politics and government has been so dysfunctional in the past two decades? With this question in mind, the chapters provide key background information on Japanese politics and political parties; discuss each of the major political parties that have governed Japan since 1955; and finally, examine the December 2012 House of Representatives elections that returned the LDP to power, and the differences between the First (1955-1993) and the Second Post War Party Systems (1993- ).

The book explores how internationalisation, a process affecting many countries throughout the world, is affecting Japan. The book considers how internationalisation is imagined, discussed and operationalised, both in Japan, and in surrounding countries; focuses in particular on educational, leisure and cultural activities, fields which are often overlooked in favour of economic and political developments; and concludes by assessing how internationalisation in Japan is likely to develop in future, taking into account the impact of the March 2011 earthquake.

This book presents a comprehensive overview of EU-Japan relations from 1970 to the present. It charts developments over the period, analyses key specific areas of importance to the relationship, and concludes by assessing how the relationship is likely to develop going forward. Throughout, the book discusses the factors on both sides which motivate the relationship, including Japan¿s concern to secure markets for its advanced industrial products, and the factors motivating current negotiations for a deeper and more comprehensive economic and cooperative partnership.

This book identifies variations amongst Japanese Studies academic communities in the Asia-Pacific and examines the extent to which relatively autonomous scholarship, intellectual approach or theories exist in the region. It also evaluates how studies on Japan in the region contribute to global Japanese Studies and explores their potential for formulating concrete strategies to unsettle Eurocentric dominance of the discipline.

Mental health, including widespread depression and a very high suicide rate, is a major problem in Japan. At the same time, the mental health system in Japan has historically been more restrictive than elsewhere in the world. This book looks at the challenges of mental illness in Japan, including deficiencies in health care such as the abuse of patients and the institutionalisation of long term patients in mental hospitals.