A Non-traditional View of Japanese Modernisation

Abstract

As someone concerned with changes in Japanese society since the Second World War I have been struck by the adaptability of Japanese society and by the capacity of its leaders to introduce new practices that quickly become ‘the Japanese way’. I am persuaded that many so-called Japanese practices, like permanent employment and quality control circles, are better understood as conscious efforts to respond to new problems than as reflections of tradition. Groups of government and business élites broader than current office-holders pay close attention to changing circumstances and become actively involved in the process of defining patterns of thought and organisation to respond to the needs of the society as a whole.