Skip to main content
Log in

American influence on Japanese human geography: A focus on the quantitative and GIS revolutions

  • Published:
GeoJournal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Japanese geography has been greatly influenced by American academia since the Second World War. The first wave was the quantitative revolution, which occurred at the end of the 1950s. Sophisticated analytical techniques and fine spatial models were introduced to Japanese geography and used in empirical studies, especially in the field of urban/transportation geography in the 1970s. The second wave was the new geography in the 1980s, including behavioral, radical and humanistic approaches. The third wave was the GIS revolution in the 1990s, which has been promoting a problem-solving approach focusing on policy matters. In this paper, I discuss how American geography has impacted on the development of Japanese human geography during this half century.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Berry B.J.L. and Marble D.Y. (eds), 1968: Spatial Analysis: A Reader in Statistical Geography. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs.

    Google Scholar 

  • King L., 1969: Statistical Analysis in Geography. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kubo S., 1980: Recent trend in geographical information processing. The Human geography 32: 328–350 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Masai Y., 1962: Notification in techniques of recent American human geography: Its status in the methodology of geography. Journal of Geography 728: 111–118 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Matui I., 1932: Statistical study of the distribution of scattered villages in two regions of the Tonami Plain, Toyama Prefecture. Japanese Journal of Geology and Geography 9: 251–266 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Murayama Y., 1991: Spatial Structure of Transport Flows. Kokon-Shoin, Tokyo.

    Google Scholar 

  • Okuno T., 1969: Quantitative methods in the Univ. of Chicago and the Northwestern Univ. through their geographical research papers. Geographical Review of Japan 42: 719–724 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sugiura Y., 1987:Ackerman and “social establishment” of American geography: rethinking the quantitative revolution. Geographical Review of Japan 60 (Ser.A): 323–346 (in Japanese with English abstract).

    Google Scholar 

  • Takeuchi K., 2000: Reform after the second world war and geography. Geographical Review of Japan 73 (Ser.A): 248–250 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tezuka A., 1988: Innovation and tradition. In: Nakamura K. and Takahashi N. (eds), Introduction to Geography, pp. 168–191. Kokon-Shoin, Tokyo (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Yagasaki N., Saito I. and Kanno M. (eds), 2003: American High Plains: Formation and Sustainability of a Global Food Producing Region. Kokon-Shoin, Tokyo (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Yeates M.H., 1968: An Introduction to Quantitative Analysis in Economic Geography. McGraw-Hill, New York.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Murayama, Y. American influence on Japanese human geography: A focus on the quantitative and GIS revolutions. GeoJournal 59, 73–76 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:GEJO.0000015447.54402.0c

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:GEJO.0000015447.54402.0c

Keywords

Navigation