Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Social Equity in Japan

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Book cover Social Equity in the Asia-Pacific Region

Abstract

Suzuki examines the status of social equity in the context of Japanese culture and society. The concept of social equity has not been widely discussed or well understood in the field of Japanese public administration and politics. Although the term social equity has not been explicitly used, Suzuki identifies several policies and administrative practices in Japan that serve to address various dimensions of disparities among citizens. Regional disparity is one of these dimensions of social equity that Japanese public policy and politics have addressed and been most successful in solving in the last few decades.

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

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    Data are originally from Alesina et al. (2003).

  2. 2.

    The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication has promoted “multicultural coexistence” (tabunka kyosei), which aims at increasing awareness and understanding of different cultures, especially those of foreign residents, at the municipal or local level (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications n.d.). However, such policy initiatives have not been extensively pursued from the perspective of promoting equity among citizens with minority backgrounds.

  3. 3.

    See Shinohara (2017) and Suzuki and Avellaneda (2018) for information about gender in Japanese public administration.

  4. 4.

    The Third Basic Plan for Gender Equality, which entails a numerical target of women occupying 30% of the leadership positions, was already approved by the DPJ’s (Democratic Party of Japan) leader, Kan Cabinet (Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office of Japan n.d.) in December 2010.

  5. 5.

    Municipalities provide services which include social relief; the establishment and management of nursing homes for the elderly; elementary and middle schools; nursing insurance; national health insurance; urban design; construction and management of municipal roads, bridges, water, and sewerage; collection and disposal of general waste; fire-fighting operations; medical emergency support; and resident registration (MIC n.d.).

  6. 6.

    The author’s calculation using MIC (2018b).

  7. 7.

    See Suzuki and Sakuwa (2016), Suzuki and Ha (2018), and Yamada (2016, 2018) for information about municipal mergers in Japan.

References

  • Abe, H., & Alden, J. (1988). Regional Development Planning in Japan. Regional Studies, 22(5), 429–438.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alesina, A., Devleeschauwer, A., Easterly, W., Kurlat, S., & Wacziarg, R. (2003). Fractionalization. Journal of Economic Growth, 8(2), 155–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aoki, N. (2015). Collaborative Manpower Support for Restoring Hope in the Aftermath of the March 11 Disasters in Japan. In C. Brassard, A. M. Howitt, & D. W. Giles (Eds.), Natural Disaster Management in the Asia-Pacific: Policy and Governance (pp. 101–117). Tokyo: Springer Japan.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Aoki, N. (2017a). Inter-municipal Manpower Aid in Disaster Management, Japan. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–5). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aoki, N. (2017b). Who Would Be Willing to Lend Their Public Servants to Disaster-Impacted Local Governments? An Empirical Investigation into Public Attitudes in Post-3.11 Japan. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 24, 499–506.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aoki, N. (2018). Japan’s Bureaucracy in International Perspective. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–5). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ataka, Y. (2014). Chiiki kakusa mondai ni kansuru giron no doukou [Recent Trend of Discussion on Regional Disparity]. Graduate School of Economics, Faculty of Economics, Kobe University Discussion Paper, 1406.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bochel, C., & Bochel, H. (2005). Exploring the Low Levels of Women’s Representation in Japanese Local Government. Japanese Journal of Political Science, 6(03), 375–392.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bochel, C., Bochel, H., Kasuga, M., & Takeyasu, H. (2003). Against the System? Women in Elected Local Government in Japan. Local Government Studies, 29(2), 19–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cabinet Office of Japan. (2018). Heisei 30 nen ban: Danjo Kyodou Sankaku Hakusho [2018 White Paper on Gender Equality]. Retrieved from http://www.gender.go.jp/about_danjo/whitepaper/h30/zentai/index.html#pdf

  • Chiavacci, D. (2008). From Class Struggle to General Middle-Class Society to Divided Society: Societal Models of Inequality in Postwar Japan. Social Science Japan Journal, 11(1), 5–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chiavacci, D. (2010). Divided Society Model and Social Cleavages in Japanese Politics: No Alignment by Social Class, but Dealignment of Rural-Urban Division. Contemporary Japan, 22(1–2), 47–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dalton, E. (2017). Womenomics, ‘Equality’ and Abe’s Neo-Liberal Strategy to Make Japanese Women Shine. Social Science Japan Journal, 20(1), 95–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeWit, A. (2002). Dry Rot: The Corruption of General Subsidies in Japan. Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, 7(3), 355–378.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeWit, A., & Steinmo, S. (2002). The Political Economy of Taxes and Redistribution in Japan. Social Science Japan Journal, 5(2), 159–178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eto, M. (2010). Women and Representation in Japan: The Causes of Political Inequality. International Feminist Journal of Politics, 12(2), 177–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fox, W. F., & Gurley-Calvez, T. (2006). Will Consolidation Improve Sub-national Governments? World Bank Policy Research Working Paper (3913). Retrieved from http://www1.worldbank.org/publicsector/decentralization/decentralizationcorecourse2006/OtherReadings/FoxGurley.pdf

  • Fukui, H., & Fukai, S. N. (1996). Pork Barrel Politics, Networks, and Local Economic Development in Contemporary Japan. Asian Survey, 36(3), 268–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gender Equality Bureau Cabinet Office of Japan. (n.d.). Summary of Third Basic Plan for Gender Equality (Approved by the Cabinet in December 2010). Retrieved from http://www.gender.go.jp/english_contents/about_danjo/whitepaper/pdf/3rd_bpg.pdf

  • Han, E. (2010). The Politics of the Growth of Regional Disparity in Japan. (3418055 Ph.D.), University of Southern California, Ann Arbor. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global; Social Science Premium Collection Database.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hatakeyama, T. (2013). Gappeigo no Shichouson ni okeru Shuhenbu no Kasoka no Kensho [Validation of Depopulation at the Periphery of the Municipalities after the Municipality Merger]. The Chiri Shiso, 54(2), 16–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ito, T. (2003). Chihou ni totte Kokudo no Kinkou aru Hatten toha Nande Attaka [The Idea of “Well-balanced Land Development”; How has it worked for the country of Japan]. Chiiki Keizai Kenkyu, 14, 3–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kobayashi, J. (2018). Social Inequality in Post-Growth Japan: Transformation During Economic and Demographic Stagnation. Social Science Japan Journal, 21(1), 136–138. https://doi.org/10.1093/ssjj/jyx049.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Komuro, N. (2003). Christianity and Ancestor Worship in Japan. Studies in World Christianity, 9(1), 60–68.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maeda, K. (2018). The Japanese Civil Service. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–9). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maruyama, M. (2017). Chiiki Kan Kakusa to Chiiki Kan Rentai no Kanousei [Inter-regional Disparity and the Possibility of Inter-regional Solidarity : Reconsidering the Heisei Municipal Mergers]. Trends in the Sciences, 22(10), 72–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matanle, P., Rausch, A., & The Shrinking Regions Research Group. (2011). Japan’s Shrinking Regions in the 21st Century: Contemporary Responses to Depopulation and Socioeconomic Decline. Amherst/New York: Cambria Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • MIC. (2014). Shichouson Suu no Hensen to Meiji Showa no Daigappei no Rokucho [Numbers of Local Governments and Meiji and Showa Great Merger]. Retrieved from http://www.soumu.go.jp/gapei/gapei2.html

  • MIC. (2018a). Kouiki Gyosei Shichouson Gappei [Municipal Cooperation and Municipal Merger]. Retrieved from http://www.soumu.go.jp/kouiki/kouiki.html

  • MIC. (2018b). Regional Statistics Database. Retrieved from https://www.e-stat.go.jp/regional-statistics/ssdsview

  • MIC. (n.d.). Chihou Koukyou Dantai Ga Ninau Jimu [Main Affairs That Are Handled by Local Governments]. Retrieved from http://www.soumu.go.jp/main_content/000088794.pdf

  • Milly, D. J. (1999). Poverty, Equality, and Growth: The Politics of Economic Need in Postwar Japan (Vol. 174). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Health Labor and Welfare. (2016). Josei Katsuyaku Suishinhou ni Motozuku Eruboshi Kigyo 46 Sha Nintei Shimashita. Retrieved from https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/houdou/0000123991.html

  • Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. (n.d.). Tabunka Kyosei no Suishin [Promotion of Multicultural Coexistence]. Retrieved from http://www.soumu.go.jp/menu_seisaku/chiho/02gyosei05_03000060.html

  • Nagase, N. (2018). Has Abe’s Womanomics Worked? Asian Economic Policy Review, 13(1), 68–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura, T. (1981). The Postwar Japanese Economy: Its Development and Structure (K. Kaminski, Trans.). Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Narula, S. (2016). Why Did Only 2% of New Fathers in Japan Take Paternity Leave Last Year? Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/why-did-only-2-of-new-fathers-in-japan-take-paternity-leave-last-year/

  • National Associations of Towns & Villages. (2008). Heisei no Gappei wo Meguru Jittai to Hyoka [Evaluation of the Great Heisei Consolidation]. Retrieved from http://www.zck.or.jp/teigen/

  • Nemoto, K. (2013). When Culture Resists Progress: Masculine Organizational Culture and Its Impacts on the Vertical Segregation of Women in Japanese Companies. Work, Employment and Society, 27(1), 153–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Och, M., & Hasunuma, L. (2018). Womenomics under Abe’s Leadership Signs of Feminisation of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party? Representations, 54(2), 177–193. https://doi.org/10.1080/00344893.2018.1443973.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2005). OECD Economic Surveys: Japan 2005. Paris: OECD Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2014). OECD Regional Outlook 2014 Regions and Cities: Where Policies and People Meet. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264201415-en

  • OECD. (2016a). OECD Regional Outlook 2016. Paris: OECD Publishing.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2016b). OECD Territorial Reviews: Japan 2016. Paris: OECD Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2017). OECD Economic Surveys: Japan 2017. Paris: OECD Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2018a). Gender Wage Gap (Indicator). Retrieved from https://data.oecd.org/earnwage/gender-wage-gap.htm

  • OECD. (2018b). Women in Politics (Indicator). Retrieved from https://data.oecd.org/inequality/women-in-politics.htm

  • Okano, K. H., & Tsuneyoshi, R. (2010). Introduction: An Interactive Perspective for Understanding Minorities and Education in Japan. In R. Tsuneyoshi, K. H. Okano, & S. Boocock (Eds.), Minorities and Education in Multicultural Japan (pp. 13–38). London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schoppa, L. (2012). Residential Mobility and Local Civic Engagement in Japan and the United States Divergent Paths to School. Comparative Political Studies, 46(9), 1058–1081. https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414012463896.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shinohara, S. (2017). Gender in Japanese Public Administration. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–5). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shinohara, S., Zhang, Y., & Riccucci, N. M. (2016). What Prevents Public and Private Workers in Japan from Recognizing Gender Inequality? International Review of Administrative Sciences, 84(4), 711–728.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Siddle, R. (2011). Race, Ethnicity, and Minorities in Modern Japan. In V. Bestor, T. C. Bestor, & A. Yamagata (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Japanese Culture and Society (pp. 150–162). New York: Taylor & Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Song, J. (2015). Japan’s Regional Inequality in Hard Times. Pacific Focus, 30(1), 126–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sugihara, Y., & Katsurada, E. (2002). Gender Role Development in Japanese Culture: Diminishing Gender Role Differences in a Contemporary Society. Sex Roles, 47(9–10), 443–452.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki, K. (2016). Politics of Municipal Consolidation. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–7). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki, K. (2017). Government Expenditure Cuts and Voluntary Activities of Citizens: The Experience of Japanese Municipalities. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration, 39(4), 258–275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki, K., & Avellaneda, C. N. (2018). Women and Risk-taking Behaviour in Local Public Finance. Public Management Review, 20(12), 1741–1767.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki, K., & Ha, H. (2018). Municipal Merger and Local Democracy: An Assessment of the Merger of Japanese Municipalities. Lex localis – Journal of Local Self-Government, 16(4), 759–784.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki, K., & Sakuwa, K. (2016). Impact of Municipal Mmergers on Local Population Growth: An Assessment of the Merger of Japanese Municipalities. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration, 38(4), 223–238.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Takahashi, S., Uriu, M., & Matsumoto, T. (2016). Shigaken ni okeru Heisei no Daigappei no Sougouteki Kenkyu [A Overall Study on Municipal Mergers of Heisei in Shiga Prefecture]. Ryukoku Hogaku, 48(4), 1373–1478.

    Google Scholar 

  • Teorell, J., Dahlberg, S., Holmberg, S., Rothstein, B., Khomenko, A., & Svensson, R. (2017). The Quality of Government Standard Dataset, Version Jan 17. Retrieved from: http://qog.pol.gu.se/data/datadownloads/qogstandarddata

  • Wooldridge, B., & Bilharz, B. (2017). Social Equity: The Fourth Pillar of Public Administration. In A. Farazmand (Ed.), Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance (pp. 1–10). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wooldridge, B., & Gooden, S. (2009). The Epic of Social Equity: Evolution, Essence, and Emergence. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 31(2), 222–234.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yamada, K. (2016). Crucial Decisions by Small Towns and Villages: Why Did Some Municipalities Choose to Merge but Others Did Not During the Nationwide Wave of Municipal Mergers in Japan? International Journal of Public Administration, 39(6), 480–491.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yamada, K. (2018). From a Majority to a Minority: How Municipal Mergers in Japan Changed the Distribution of Political Power and the Allocation of Public Services Within a Merged Municipality. Urban Affairs Review, 54(3), 560–592.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yokomichi, K. (2007). The Development of Municipal Mergers in Japan. Retrieved from http://www.jlgc.org.uk/en/pdfs/up-to-date_en1.pdf

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Public Administration, Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs, Leiden University, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Kohei Suzuki

Authors
  1. Kohei Suzuki
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kohei Suzuki .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Public Administration Program, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA

    Morgen Johansen

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Suzuki, K. (2019). Social Equity in Japan. In: Johansen, M. (eds) Social Equity in the Asia-Pacific Region. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15919-1_9

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation