2012年11月30日 星期五

Family firms adopt an unusual approach to remain competitive

Family firms adopt an unusual approach to remain competitive



ANDREW CARNEGIE, a 19th-century tycoon, famously said that inherited wealth “deadens talents and energies”—one reason why he gave most of his fortune to charity. Business research tends to support the Carnegie thesis. Companies controlled by heirs often underperform competitors that have professional managers. Except, apparently, in Japan.

A forthcoming paper* in the Journal of Financial Economics finds not only that inherited family control is still common in Japanese business, but that family firms are “puzzlingly competitive”, outperforming otherwise similar professionally managed companies. “These results are highly robust and…suggest family control ‘causes’ good performance rather than the converse,” say the authors.
Japan boasts some of the world’s oldest family-run businesses, and many family firms—Suzuki, Matsui Securities, Suntory—break the rule of steady dynastic decline. So how do Japanese firms do it? The answer, says the paper, is adoption.

Last year more than 81,000 people were adopted in Japan, one of the highest rates in the world. But, amazingly, over 90% of those adopted were adults. The practice of adopting men in their 20s and 30s is used to rescue biologically ill-fated families and ensure a business heir, says Vikas Mehrotra, of the University of Alberta, the paper’s lead author. “We haven’t come across this custom in any other part of the world.” Though the phenomenon has been previously documented, its impact on a company’s competitiveness has not.

Japan’s sliding birth rate has created many one-child families, and although daughters can manage the company back-office, in Japan its outward face must still be male, says Chieko Date. She is one of several marriage consultants who help match ambitious young men and the marriageable daughters of business families.

If the meetings go well, the men agree to drop their own surname and are adopted by their new bride’s family, becoming both the head of the clan and of its business. Ms Date’s consultancy claims to have brokered 600 of these marriages, known in Japan as mukoyoshi (literally “son-in-law adoption”). Most of her clients are families who own small and medium-sized businesses. She says the union cannot be just a business transaction. If the couples do not like each other, both marriage and business will fail.

If they feel that nature has shortchanged them, some families will even bypass a biological son for an adopted one—a fairly common practice, says Mr Mehrotra. In theory, this gives family businesses access to the same-sized talent pool as a professionally managed firm would have, he writes, and may even induce a sturdier work ethic among biological children.
Frustratingly, the paper’s research stops in 2000. Mariko Fujiwara, a sociologist, says more Japanese parents are now willing to accept the end of the family line. But she adds that Japanese marriages will always have cultural and legal implications because the future of so many businesses depends on who takes them over.

* “Adoptive Expectations: Rising Sons in Japanese Family Firms”, by Vikas Mehrotra, Randall Morck, Jungwook Shim and Yupana Wiwattanakantang.

Japan's Kobe Beef

神戶牛

 日本語

維基百科,自由的百科全書


神戶牛肉,前端的一片更為高質
神戶牛日本黑色但馬牛的一種,因主要出產於兵庫縣神戶市而得名。神戶牛有獨特的飼養方式,而神戶牛肉則為日本料理中的珍饈,特性表現為口感上的柔韌、肥嫩以及外表所呈現出的大理石紋理。烹調方法多種多樣,可做壽喜燒涮食鐵板燒刺身
不僅在日本國內,神戶牛肉在以歐美市場為中心的海外地方的知名度也是相當高。在海外,「Kobe Beef」是世界最高級牛肉的代名詞。2009年美國媒體選出「世界最高級9種食物」﹐其中神戶牛肉魚子醬鵝肝白松露一同位列其中,排行第六。[1]

海外輸出

由於神戶牛的認定過程非常嚴格,每年僅大約三千頭牛能獲認定為神戶牛。因此神戶牛肉在日本牛肉市場僅佔0.06%,過去神戶牛在國內向來供不應求,故日本方面從未考慮對外輸出。
2012年,神戶牛肉業界組織鑑於神戶牛肉在本地銷售不理想,加上農作物關稅廢除等跨太平洋夥伴協議(TPP)的推動,決定首度向海外出口神戶牛肉。2012年2月2日首批共四頭神戶牛肉出口到澳門。[2]
日本神戶肉流動推進協議會亦計劃於2012年7月輸出神戶牛肉到香港。[3]

 Japan's Kobe Beef Bound for US
Wall Street Journal (blog)
Now, for the first time ever, when U.S. diners bite into a Kobe beef slider it just might be the real deal. As of Thursday, the first-ever shipment of the marbled delicacy was headed to the U.S., according to an industry group of Kobe beef producers.
See all stories on this topic »
Wall Street Journal (blog)

備註


《日本学》 编 者:北京大学日本研究中心 




《日本学》 编 北京大学日本研究中心 
 《日本学》第1—8辑(沈仁安主编),北京大学出版社,1989—1997年
 第1辑    北京大學出版社  1989

 第4辑    北京大學出版社  1995


 第7辑   北京大學出版社  1996

  《日本学》第9—10辑(沈仁安主编),北京,国际文化出版公司,2000年

 日本学第10辑北京:国际文化出版公司,2000年

第14辑   出版社世界知识出版社   出版日期:2008-4-1   定价:¥38.00 元
编辑本段内容提要   《日本学》是北京大学日本研究中心编辑的学术论文集。它的宗旨是,对日本进行综合研究,探索其与他国不同的特点,尤其是在民族性格、历史传统和深层文化 方面的特点。 科学的态度就是实事求是。按照某种主观意图去剪裁甚至曲解事实,这种削足适履式地为现实服务的方法,是不足取的。提供确切的事实和对事实的正确解释,是学 术发挥其社会效益的唯一正确途径。《日本学》坚持这一原则。 本书是《日本学(第14辑)》。
目录  中日文化比较带来的思考   日本古代文明的历史考察——与“海洋的日本文明”史观的商讨   中日文化交流五次高潮的特点   日本近现代佛教的发展与演变   中日家训特征之比较   试论古代中国人日本观的演变和特点   朱子学与近世中日韩三国的政治文化   幕末动荡社会中的信仰(续)   幕末明治初期的“宪法”与“国体”   徐光启的日本观研究   日本解决劳资纠纷和推进劳资关系和谐的举措——以劳动审判制度为例   日本选举研究:现状与展望   中国对日本新民族主义思潮研究述评(1995—2007)   日本中央政府高级公务员的选拔、开发与领导人才任用标准   后冷战时期日本的新民族主义思潮与国家发展战略:影响及局限性   战后日本新宗教参与政党政治的方式、动因及其认识   扩大战略互惠 谋求共同发展   以和制胜 引日入亚——在日本看胡锦涛主席第一任期的对日外交   日本对台湾政策的演变   环境合作与中日关系:新挑战与新机遇   编辑后记

2012年11月29日 星期四

Michelin Guide 米其林 日本


 2013米其林關東版 東京蟬聯美食之都

〔國際新聞中心/綜合報導〕「米其林指南」(Michelin Guide)28日公佈2013年日本關東版(見圖,法新社),以美食著稱的東京今年有242家餐廳贏得米其林星級肯定,連續第6年摘下美食首都榮銜。雖 然贏得3星評等的餐廳今年少了2家,東京的美食依舊「值得特別造訪」。

根據最新「米其林指南」,今年東京共有242間餐廳贏得星級肯定,不僅歐洲與日本料理知名餐廳名列其中,星級名單也不乏以鰻魚、蕎麥麵、串燒等平民美食出名的小食肆。東京約有16萬家餐廳,巴黎約有4萬家。該指南下月1日上市。

東 京贏得米其林三星評級的餐廳也是全球最多,雖然從去年的17間略減至15間,仍是3星餐廳最多的城市。獲得3星評級的東京各餐廳中,只有2家不是供應日式 料理,其中還有一家專賣河豚料理。米其林餐廳指南國際負責人艾里斯表示:「日本美食比以往更有創意、更有創造性。關東地區(東京附近)廚師廚藝一年高過一 年。」

在上個月公布的「米其林指南」日本關西版中,有12家餐廳獲得3星評等,比去年少了3家。
米其林1900年起首度出版美食指南,1920年代首推星級評等制,1星餐廳代表「非常好的餐廳」,2星代表「烹調絕佳,值得繞路前往」,3星代表「廚藝超凡,值得特別造訪」。



2010.10米其林青睞 日關西成美食之都
〔編譯林翠儀/綜合報導〕法國輪胎大廠米其林日前公布2011年日本關西版「米其林美食 指南」,高達12家餐廳獲得最高的三顆星評價,優於東京的11家及巴黎的10家,美國華爾街日報直接將關西地區封為「世界第一美食之都」,稱頌即便日本的 經濟影響力逐漸式微,美食卻在全世界廣泛流行。
2011年關西版米其林指南,除原有的京都及大阪兩大都市外,還新加入神戶地區,共有近 240家餐廳上榜,其中獲三顆星評價的美食餐廳,從去年的7家增加到12家。此外,書中首次以專門符號標註106家京都主營家常菜的料理店、豆腐皮料理 店、神戶的烤肉店等平價餐廳,這些餐廳標榜消費在5000圓(約台幣1900元)以內,即可享受美食,有別於米其林餐廳向來給人高價位的印象。
米其林新發行的2011年版指南,華爾街日報也以專文分析指出,日本關西三大城市的三星餐廳高達12家,高於東京的11家、巴黎10家、紐約5家、倫敦3家,可謂。
文 中還指出,日本經歷10年以上的經濟不景氣,外食消費量減少,業者為了促銷,一碗牛肉蓋飯只賣280圓(約台幣105元),但這並不代表日本人的胃口變差 了,各項美食節目仍是電視台的主力,女播報員一臉「好吃」的表情也絕非作假,所以東京有高達16萬家餐廳,而巴黎僅有1.5萬家。
報導也指出,部分評論家批評說,為數眾多的日本餐廳被評為三星級,主要是因為米其林的評審委員對日本料理缺乏了解,所以評選標準過低。對此,米其林反駁說,目前在日本的7位評委都是日本人。

日本發展核武之非 Japan's Nuclear Mistake。中日两国的极端民族主义者多数日本人将中国的崛起视为威胁 2009

 Japan's Nuclear Mistake
New York Times
Japan has repeatedly vowed never to develop nuclear weapons, and there's no reason to doubt that now. But there's more to worry about: reprocessing not only creates a tempting target for terrorists, it also sets a precedent for countries around the ...

  中日两国的极端民族主义者/ 中资企业在缅面临日益增长的阻力

 2009.4.30

周三,日本首相麻生太郎开始对中国进行为期两天的访问。此前不久,麻生向靖国神社敬献了盆栽贡品。新苏黎世报认为,麻生首相"首次正式访华前不惜冒与中国发生争执的风险",有其国内政治原因:

"与麻生的自民党完全不同,目前日本的 反华声音占多数。民意调查表明,一半以上的日本人把这个庞大邻国的崛起视为威胁。但在当今的日本,比中国更不受人喜爱的是保守的执政党及其七个月来代理首 相职务的麻生。由于麻生最晚在九月份必须举行国会大选,看来他想通过右翼民族主义的民粹活动争取选民。他的前任小泉纯一郎在2001年至2006年执政期 间多次参拜靖国神社,在自民党选民中赢得了人心,但却使与北京的外交处于冰冻状态。
虽然麻生不敢对日本的最大贸易伙伴进行这样公开 的挑衅,但他的外务相中曾根弘文周一又开始刺激北京。他指责人民共和国不公布军费开支,实施'核战略'。他说,中国在继续使自己的核武库现代化,不采取任 何减少核武器的措施。'中国也没有公开有关其核武库的任何信息。'北京外交部发言人周二驳斥了这一批评。她说:'日本在这方面的指责毫无道理',中国支持 国际社会为裁军做出的努力。
不过,中国目前的反日情绪也很高涨。上周以来, 反映日本入侵南京的中国影片《南京,南京!》出人意外地取得了巨大票房收入。首映后五天内,这部历史史诗片就几乎全部收回了折合七百万欧元的制作费用。周 三,同样反映南京大屠杀历史的德国影片在中国电影院开始上映,与在德国的情况不同,它在中国也将成为票房成功的大片。"
朝鲜核问题是麻生与中国领导人的北京会谈议题之一。但国际社会更为关注的是朝鲜即将审判美国华裔女记者凌志美和韩裔女记者李爱娜一事。南德意志报了解到其中一些细节:
"朝鲜边防警察在3月17日逮捕了这两位电视记者,当时她们显然想在中国一侧拍摄边境。她们被分别用两辆汽车送到平壤,朝鲜媒体接着指责她们非法越境'进行敌对活动'。但是对现在宣布的这一指控,朝鲜没有提及任何详情。
这一案件使人想起不久前在伊朗以所谓间谍罪被判 刑八年的美国女记者萨贝里。与伊朗总统艾哈迈迪内贾德的做法相似,独裁者金正日也想在与美国新政府谈判时,手中握有一个具有媒体效应的抵押品。首尔东国大 学的朝鲜问题专家高玉桓说,对于平壤来说,这两名女记者就象'天上掉下的馅饼'。
这两名记者因深入诸多危机地区进行勇敢的调查报道而享有盛名。她们被捕前,曾制作了一部电视报道,反映了冒着生命危险、越过图门江界河的朝鲜难民命运。"
编译:王羊
责编:乐然
本文摘自或节译自其它媒体
不代表德国之声观点

2012年11月28日 星期三

いきの構造

 

  1. 松岡正剛の千夜千冊『「いき」の構造』九鬼周造

    www.isis.ne.jp/mnn/.../senya0689.ht... - Cached - Translate this page
    2002年12月27日 – ... 『「いき」の構造』草稿 ... いき」の構造』については、ぼくはあきらかに失敗の巻。 ... さきほどの春信云々を引きとっていうのなら、『「いき」の構造』には「意気地や媚態の霊化が粋なのである」と書いてあるところがあるのだが、春信のあの時代の ...
  2. いき - Wikipedia

    ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/いき - Cached - Translate this page
    九鬼周造『「いき」の構造』(1930)では、「いき」という江戸特有の美意識が初めて哲学的に考察された。九鬼周造は『「いき」の構造』において、いきを「他の言語に全く同義の語句が見られない」ことから日本独自の美意識として位置付けた。外国語で意味が近い ...
  3. 九鬼周造 - Wikipedia

    ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/九鬼周造 - Cached - Translate this page
    ヨーロッパの長期滞在の中でかえって日本の美と文化に惹かれていく自分に気づいていった彼は、帰国後、その洞察を活かして『「いき」の構造』(1930) を発表する。これは、日本の江戸時代の遊廓における美意識である「いき」(粋)を、現象学という西洋の哲学の ...

 

 

《粹的構造》【いきの構造】

 日文的"粹"應該是進入了台灣話的世界?

九鬼周造著,黃錦容/黃文宏/內田康合譯:《粹的構造【いきの構造】》(台北:聯經 ...粹的構造》出版於1930年,是九鬼美學的一個代表著作。

  • 作者:九鬼周造
  • 原文作者:Kuki Syuzou
  • 譯者:黃錦容、黃文宏、內田康
  • 出版社:聯經出版公司
  • 出版日期:2009年 


    名著《「粹」的構造》是分析日本傳統文化現象 ─ 「粹」(iki)的經典佳作  哲學家九鬼周造受到海德格解釋學的啟發,嘗試用柏格森與胡塞爾、海德格《存在與時間》的概念系統,以及用更鮮明、規格化的 解讀方式,指出「粹」的意涵為「普遍化的語言精神」,與具體事實性的「民族特殊個性的存在」。
      《「粹」的構造》的核心為戀愛論。九鬼以江戶末期深川地區的藝妓的特質為基礎,橫跨歌舞伎、清元、浮世繪、文樣等各藝術層面,勾勒出「粹」的理想。
      九鬼強調這是大和民族存在樣態的一種自我主張
      在江戶「色道」遊樂哲學中,所謂「粹」的虛幻美學意識的特質有三:
      對異性的 ─「媚態」
      江戶文化道德的理想氣概 ─「骨氣」
      放棄對命運執著所表現出來的漠不關心 ─「死心」
       日本明治維新以降,知識分子亟欲迎頭趕上西洋文明,這種強烈的危機意識,同樣顯現在本書作者哲學家九鬼周造的身上。《「粹」的構造》同時也是1930年 代日本思想家對現代主義的抵抗,即所謂的「近代的超克」。而九鬼的東洋同一性「帝國主義」的主張,也顯現出強烈的「慾望敘事」的特質。
       書中提到了「粹」周邊的日本文化本質與近代性,這顯然是九鬼意圖匡正當時逐漸被日本人漠然忽視與淡忘的錯誤,進而希望從日本傳統文化中重新發掘「粹」的美 學意識之源泉所在。《「粹」的構造》正是近代日本知識分子在面對西方文化所產生的焦慮感下,對母國文化的再詮釋與再解讀的產物。
    作者簡介
    九鬼周造(Kuki Syuzou, 1888-1941)
      日本哲學家
       父親為明治時期文部省官僚九鬼隆一。九鬼東京帝國大學之文科大學哲學系畢業後,1904年受文部省任命至歐洲留學八年。先到德國海德堡大學聆聽新康德 派?克特(Heinrich Rickert)的課程,接著到法國認識了柏格森(Henri-Louis Bergson),深切受其哲學思想的影響。之後再到德國馬堡大學留學,拜海德格(Martin Heidegger)為師,學習現象學。九鬼和三木清、和?哲郎都是日本最先受到海德格哲學影響的世代,對日本海德格思想的傳播立下不少功勞。回國後至 1941年去世前,長期擔任京都帝國大學文學部哲學科教授一職。教授笛卡兒(Ren? Descartes)、柏格森等法國哲學、近世哲學史、現象學等現代哲學。
      九鬼長期居留歐洲,深深發覺自己受到日本文化之美所吸引,回國後發表了《「粹」的構造》,發揮其敏銳的洞察力。此書試圖以西方哲學方法現象學,來掌握日本江戶時代遊廓狎妓之審美觀──「粹」的意義。
      九鬼的研究業績可分成三大類:
      (1)以《西洋近世哲學史稿》為代表的西洋哲學研究
      (2)以《偶然性的問題》為代表的偶然性的研究
      (3)以《「粹」的構造》為代表的日本文化的研究
      著名的京都哲學著作有《「粹」的構造》(1930)、《偶然性的問題》(1935)、《人類與實存》(1939)、《文藝論》(1941) 、《巴里心景》(1942)等。
    譯者簡介
    藤田正勝(Fujita Masakatsu, 1949-)
      日本京都大學畢業。德國波鴻大學研究所博士課程修畢,波鴻大學學術論文博士。現為京都大學文學研究科思想文化學專攻∕哲學.宗教學講座教授。著有《現代思想的西田幾多郎》、《現代思想的西田幾多郎》、《年輕的黑格爾》等書。
    黃錦容(1954- )
       日本筑波大學日本文學碩士,東吳大學日本文化研究所日本文學博士。現為政治大學日本語文學系特聘教授,擔任政治大學98年頂尖計畫「大眾文化與(後)現 代性:商品.女性.歷史記憶」研究團隊主持人。專業領域為日本近現代文學、女性文學研究。近年相關著作為〈□人未?友達以上-吉本□□□『□□□□』 □□□□□□□少□□身体性-〉(2009)、〈□□□□奪還-富岡多□子『動物□葬□』□□□□娘□□□物語-〉(2009)、〈禁錮與釋放:?藝妓的 情慾想像──□□芙美子《晚菊》與岡本可能子《□妓抄》」(2007)、〈日本文學研究議題趨勢:以《日本近代文學》為例〉(2006)。日本文學譯著有 島崎藤村《新生》(島崎藤村作品集1,麥田出版社 ,2004)。
    黃文宏
      1998年 獲德國弗萊堡大學哲學博士,現為國立清華大學哲學研究所教授。專長領域為現象學、詮釋學與京都學派哲學。近年來研究京都學派的著作為“The Internal Turn in Nishida Kitar?’s Logic of Place” (2009)、〈西田幾多郎□宗教的世界□論理-新儒家□宗教□□□比較□兼□□□〉(2008)、〈西田幾多郎與熊十力〉(2007)、〈西田幾多郎論 「實在」與「經驗」──以《善的研究》為核心〉(2006)。
    內田康(Uchida Yasushi, 1966-)
       日本筑波大學博士。現任慈濟大學東方語文學系助理教授。專業領域為《平家物語》等軍記物語之日本中世文學。最近學術著作有《文本的旅程-移動與變容中的 文學-》(花書院,2008)、歷史與文學會所編的《親與子的愛與恨》(勉誠出版,2008)(皆為共同著作)。論文有〈亡國的怪物──韓國的「不可殺 伊」傳說與日本傳說〉(韓國《翰林日本學》第13輯2008年12月)、〈作為偽史的「?」(怪鳥)傳說〉(日本《亞細亞遊學》118號、2009年1 月)等。

すい【粋〔粹〕】
 

    常用漢字] [音]スイ(呉)(漢) [訓]いき
    まじりけがない。「生粋(きっすい)純粋
    質が良くすぐれている。すぐれたもの。エッセンス。「国粋精粋抜粋
    いき。「粋人無粋
    [名のり]きよ・ただ

東京馬拉松進入世界頂級賽事

Pregnancy takes on a new dimension: Japanese firm offers parents-to-be 3D ...
New York Daily News
Expectant parents in Japan who can't wait to show the world what their baby will look like can now buy a 3D model of the fetus to pass around their friends. The 3.6-inch resin model of the white foetus, encased in a transparent block in the shape of ...
See all stories on this topic »

New York Daily News
Japan anti-nuclear groups join forces ahead of poll
AFP
TOKYO — Anti-nuclear parties were coalescing into a new political grouping on Wednesday, as Japan's fragmented electoral landscape shifts ahead of next month's national poll. At least three recently-sprouted parties were readying to fold into (The ...
See all stories on this topic »



Japan's Spat With China Takes Big Toll on Tourism
Wall Street Journal
TOKYO—The well-heeled Chinese tourists that plied the boutiques of upscale Tokyo neighborhoods just a few weeks ago have all but disappeared. Fancy tour buses that once lined the streets of Ginza are being idled, and department stores are cutting ...
See all stories on this topic »

Wall Street Journal
Dyer: Nuclear madness
Salt Lake Tribune
After the loss of 10 million American lives in the Three-Mile Island calamity in 1979, the deaths of 2 billion in the Chernobyl holocaust in 1986, and now the abandonment of all of northern Japan following the deaths of millions in last year's ...
See all stories on this topic »
Japan's ruling party promises to phase out nuclear power
Phys.Org
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, who is also leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), announces DPJ campaign pledges during a press conference at the party's headquarters in Tokyo ahead of the general election on December 16.
See all stories on this topic »
 Japan puts reconstruction projects not linked to disaster zones on hold
Washington Post
TOKYO — Japan's government has suspended 35 projects included in a budget for reconstruction from the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami after criticism the spending was not directly related to recovery from the disasters. As much as a fourth of the 11 ...



東京馬拉松進入世界頂級賽事

東京馬拉松進入世界頂級賽事
東京馬拉松加盟頂級系列賽“世界馬拉松大賽”,成為歐美以外的首個入選賽事,經濟效果有望繼續擴大…

日本大選比拼“黨首力”

日本大選比拼“黨首力”
民主黨代表野田和自民黨總裁安倍將眾議院選舉定位為決定下一任首相的戰鬥,開始比拼“黨首力”……
日本民主黨競選綱領抗衡自民黨和第三極

日本民主黨競選綱領抗衡自民黨和第三極
日本民主黨公佈眾議院選舉的競選綱領,在外交安保等方面與自民黨和第三極勢力迥異。
日本未來黨成立 成為第三極兩大勢力之一

日本未來黨成立 成為第三極兩大勢力之一
日本未來黨匯集了70多位前眾議員和參議員,目前僅次於民主黨和自民黨。


日本選舉民主黨佔據資金優勢

日本選舉民主黨佔據資金優勢
日本維新會遇選舉資金難題,不但不給候選人資金支援,還要讓候選人向總部支付費用…


中日外交戰走向激烈

中日外交戰走向激烈
11月初在亞歐首腦會議上,約50個國家和機構的代表都不由得驚訝。在主席國寮國旁邊竟坐著中國代表…中日對立已經發展為捲入亞……

2012年11月27日 星期二

日本企業無法自行改變Woodford: Nothing has changed in Japan Inc. since Olympus saga Olympus 公司的l醜聞起



 日本Olympus 公司的諾貝爾經濟學獎者Robert Mundell醜聞

Nobel Economist Served on Olympus Board
Olympus added its first-ever outside directors in 2005, shortly before making four acquisitions that have engulfed the camera maker in controversy. Among the outside directors was Nobel-laureate economist Robert Mundell.



Woodford: Nothing has changed in Japan Inc. since Olympus saga

By Paul Armstrong, CNN
November 27, 2012 -- Updated 0820 GMT (1620 HKT)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • Michael Woodford fired as Olympus CEO after he exposed a $1.7 billion cover-up
  • Woodford was appointed as first foreign CEO when a local magazine broke news
  • Olympus shares lost around 80% of their market value in weeks after
  • Woodford: Case highlights the dysfunctionality of corporate Japan
Hong Kong (CNN) -- When CEO-turned-whistleblower Michael Woodford exposed a $1.7 billion cover-up of losses at Olympus, he was forced to flee from Japan, fearing for his life, as the scandal sent shockwaves through the country's tight-knit corporate world.
The 52-year-old Briton had barely settled in to his new role as the company's first foreign chief executive when he became aware of a potentially explosive magazine article.
FACTA, a local Japanese title with only nine staff, had published a detailed expose in July 2011 questioning exorbitant fees it claimed the camera and medical equipment maker had paid consultants for a 2008 acquisition deal. It also questioned extravagant purchase prices of three small companies.
"The company had bought three 'Mickey Mouse companies' for a billion dollars: a plastic plates company for microwaves, a cosmetics company -- a face cream company -- and a recycling company, but with no turnover," Woodford told CNN Tuesday, as his new book about the saga, "Exposure," prepared to hit bookshelves.
Former Olympus executives arrested
Ousted Olympus CEO makes comeback
Olympus issues an apology of sorts
"They then paid $700 million dollars in fees to somebody, we didn't know who, in the Cayman Islands. I begged and begged and pleaded 'don't treat me as a gaijin (foreigner), treat me as a colleague who cares about this company.' But they didn't listen, not one of the 14 (board members), including three non-executive directors."
Instead Woodford quickly found himself out of a job after he attempted to get some answers from then-Chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa and former Executive Vice President Hisashi Mori. The board voted unanimously to fire him from the post.
Shigeo Abe, publisher of FACTA, gave his own blunt assessment of why Olympus had selected what he called a "bottom-ranking foreign executive" from 25 candidates to be CEO in the first place. "Mr. Kikukawa's aim was to keep the fraud in secret under the foreign president because Mr. Woodford could not speak and read Japanese," he told CNN last year.
Woodford refused to go quietly, choosing instead to unleash a firestorm of publicity that would prove costly to the board and company itself. Kikukawa and several other board members were eventually forced to resign, while Olympus shares lost around 80% of their market value in the first weeks after news of the scandal broke.
A special audit of Olympus in December last year, led by a former Japanese Supreme Court judge, published a report that blasted Kikukawa's controlling style and the company culture that allowed losses to be disguised in dubious fees and overvalued payments for its acquisitions. "The management was rotten to the core, and infected those around it," the report said. The case also raised questions about the level of transparency in Japan Inc. when to comes to business practice generally.
In September this year, Kikukawa, Mori and another senior executive, Hideo Yamada, admitted filing false reports and inflating the company's net worth. The men could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of up to 10 million yen ($128,400), Japanese media reports have said.
Japan is losing it. The companies and country can't change ... It's desperately sad.
Michael Woodford
"It was an incredible story," said Woodford. "It illustrated the dysfunctionality of corporate Japan and the way the capital markets work.
"A month after I was dismissed, the share price of Olympus had fallen by 81.5% -- $7 billion dollars had been struck off the value of the company, yet the institutional shareholders in Japan would not offer one word of criticism of the incumbent board, or one word for the ex-president in support of him trying to expose this fraud."
But almost a year after he was forced out of the company he had served since the 1980s, Woodford says no lessons have been learned from the scandal by corporate Japan.
"Nothing has changed," he said. "The ruling party, the DPJ, at the height of this said they were going to put forward a recommendation that one non-executive director should be a minimum requirement under Japanese company law.
"In July of this year, the Ministry of Finance dropped that proposal, so out of the 1,600 companies on the Nikkei, over 1,000 don't have one outside director. What are they scared of? What does that tell investors who are looking at Japan?"
Woodford compared the success of South Korean electronics giant Samsung to that of ailing Japanese rivals such as Sharp, Sony and Panasonic -- all have their debts set at junk status.
"Japan is losing it," said Woodford. "The companies and country can't change. They just can't change themselves. It's desperately sad."

Hopes of Home Fade Among Japan’s Displaced 走?不走?大哉問 --福島県民「移住したい」34% 

Aizu-Wakamatsu Journal

Hopes of Home Fade Among Japan’s Displaced


Ko Sasaki for The New York Times
The community center of a temporary housing complex in Aizu-Wakamatsu, where some fled after last year’s nuclear disaster.

Ko Sasaki for The New York Times
Cleanup in Kawauchi, a village in Fukushima Prefecture. In Okuma, decontamination efforts have been slow to reduce radiation dosages.
The New York Times
Okuma’s town hall officials and about 4,300 of its residents relocated to temporary sites in Aizu-Wakamatsu.
The mayor of Okuma, a town near the Fukushima Daiichi plant that was hastily evacuated when a huge earthquake and tsunami crippled the reactors’ cooling systems on March 11, 2011, has vowed to lead residents back home as soon as radiation levels are low enough. But the slow pace of the government’s cleanup efforts, and the risk of another leak from the plant’s reactors, forced local officials to admit in September that it might be at least a decade before the town could be resettled.
A growing number of evacuees from Okuma have become pessimistic about ever living there again. At a temporary housing complex here in Aizu-Wakamatsu, a city 60 miles west of the plant, the mostly elderly residents say they do not have that much time or energy left to rebuild their town.
Many said they preferred plans that got them out of temporary housing but helped them maintain the friendships and communal bonds built over a lifetime, like rebuilding the town farther away from the plant.
“I was one of those who kept saying, ‘We will go back, we will go back!’ ” said Toshiko Iida, 78, who fled her rice farm three miles south of the plant. “Now, they are saying it will be years before we can go back. I’ll be dead then.”
Such feelings of resignation are shared by many of the 159,000 people who fled their towns after the earthquake and tsunami caused a triple meltdown at the Fukushima plant, spewing radiation over a wide area of northeastern Japan in the worst nuclear accident since the 1986 disaster at Chernobyl, in what was then the Soviet Union.
After first being reassured by the authorities that the accident was not so bad, then encouraged as the government began its costly decontamination effort, many evacuees are finally accepting that it may take decades, perhaps generations, before their town could be restored to anything like it was before the disaster.
“We all want to go back, but we have to face the obvious,” said Koichi Soga, 75, a retired carpenter who once worked on reactor buildings at the plant. “Look at the Soviet Union. They are still not back, right?”
Such sentiments have led to a very public loss of hope by the 11,350 displaced residents of Okuma, one of nine communities within 12 miles of the stricken plant that were evacuated.
After living in school gymnasiums and other shelters for about a month, Okuma’s town hall officials and about 4,300 of its residents relocated to temporary sites in Aizu-Wakamatsu, with most of the rest scattered as far as Tokyo, about 140 miles away. The mayor, Toshitsuna Watanabe, immediately began drawing up plans for returning to Okuma that called for a group to resettle a small corner of the town where radiation levels were relatively low. The settlers would then slowly expand the livable areas, decontaminating one street or building at a time, like colonists reclaiming a post-apocalyptic wilderness.
Last fall, the plan won de facto approval when Okuma residents re-elected Mr. Watanabe over a challenger who had called for building a new town at a safer location. Hopes were still high early this year when the Environmental Ministry began a decontamination program, with a budget of $4.8 billion for 2012 alone, that employed a small army of workers to scrape away top soil, denude trees and scrub down buildings in Okuma and other evacuated communities.
But the ministry said this summer that an experimental effort to decontaminate a 42-acre area in Okuma had failed to reduce radiation dosages by as much as had been hoped, leading officials to declare most of the town uninhabitable for at least another five years. That forced Okuma’s officials to change the target date of their “road map” for repopulating the town to 2022, instead of 2014.
“People are giving up because we have been hit by negative news after negative news,” said Mr. Watanabe, 65, who set up a temporary town hall in a former girls’ high school on a corner of Aizu-Wakamatsu’s six-century-old castle. “Keeping our road map is the only way to hold onto hope, and prevent the town from disappearing.”
Mr. Watanabe admits that his plan has a dwindling number of adherents. In response to a questionnaire sent to Okuma’s evacuees by the town hall in September, only 11 percent of the 3,424 households that responded said they wanted to go back, while 45.6 percent said they had no intention of ever returning, mostly because of radiation fears.
Hopes for a return took another blow in early November, when Environmental Ministry officials told Mr. Watanabe that they planned to build as many as nine temporary storage facilities in Okuma for dirt and other debris from the cleanup. Many evacuees said they did not want to go back if their town was to be used as a dumping ground for radioactive refuse.
At the temporary housing site, where prefabricated apartments stood in rows like barracks on a former soccer field, many evacuees said they had been allowed to return to their homes in Okuma wearing hazmat suits and masks on tightly monitored, one-hour visits to retrieve some belongings. Many said that as the months passed, it was becoming more difficult emotionally to think about spending the time and energy to rebuild.
“My house has become a playground for mice,” said Hiroko Izumi, 85, adding, “Every time I go back, it feels less and less like my home.”
Many others said the town needed to move fast to keep its relatively small number of working-age residents, who were already beginning to find jobs and start new lives in places like Aizu-Wakamatsu.
“If too much time passes, Okuma could just disappear,” said Harue Soga, 63, a health care worker.
For those who do not want to move back, Okuma drew up an alternative plan in September that calls for building a new town on vacant land safely outside the evacuation zone around the plant. The new town — including a town hall, fire and police stations and housing — would be built within five years.
Mr. Watanabe admits that he is now among a minority of former residents who are still determined to go back to the original Okuma. He describes an almost spiritual attachment to the land where his family has grown rice for at least 19 generations, and that holds the family graves that Confucian tradition forbids him to abandon.
“We have been living there for 1,000 years,” he said. “I have promised myself that one day, I will again eat my own rice grown on my ancestral farm.”


福島県民「移住したい」34% 被災3県世論調査 東日本大震災の発生から半年を迎えるのに合わせ、朝日新聞社は岩手、宮城、福島の3県で各県のテレビ朝日系放送局と共同世論調査(電話)を行い、震災に 対する見方や放射性物質への不安などを探った。このうち福島の調査では、放射性物質への不安から、3人に1人が「できれば移り住みたい」と答えた。
 原発事故による放射性物質への不安では「あなたや家族に与える影響について、どの程度不安を感じているか」と4択で尋ねた。「大いに感じている」は岩手32%、宮城34%に対して福島は54%に上る。
 福島県民だけに「放射性物質による被害を避けるため、県外や放射線量の少ない地域へ、できれば移り住みたいか」と聞くと、34%が「移り住みたい」と回答。中学生以下の子供がいる家庭では51%に及ぶ。

遠離核災與蕭條 日本人大逃亡


2011-09 天下雜誌 480期 作者:陶允芳

遠離核災與蕭條  日本人大逃亡 圖片來源:天下雜誌
輻射污染的陰影籠罩,加上經濟疲軟,危機四伏,日本人過往引以為傲的生活不再。為尋一處安樂淨土,日人開始災後大遷徙。
俄國大文豪托爾斯泰在《安娜.卡列尼娜》中寫道,「幸福的家庭都一樣,但不幸的家庭原因各不相同。」正好形容國際經濟現勢,也能解釋日人遠離家園的實況。
三一一震災後,日本人的生活出現天翻地覆的巨變:
‧從空氣、食物到飲用水的基本生活安全,處處充滿輻射污染疑慮。
‧節電限電,生活諸多不便,企業生產成本上升,就業環境惡化。
‧日圓空前升值加速企業外移,國內產業空洞化危機升高。
‧經濟成長趨緩、高齡少子化,消費低迷,增稅及債務負擔加重。
錯綜複雜的現象,歸結成一句話:日本人過去引以為傲的生活,已經一去不復返。
福島第一核電廠方圓三公里,測得放射線量推估一年高達五○八毫西弗,是安全標準的二十五倍,意謂著二、三十年內都不宜人居。
災民長期安置計劃尚無雛型,輻射污染在水裡土裡四處擴散,核廢料處理估計至少要十年,一想到連安全的生活基本條件都沒有保障,真的叫人寢食難安。
大遷徙 無奈上演
在消息曝光之前,焦慮的日本人早已開始為生命找出口。

或尋求無污染淨土,或從巨大生活壓力中解脫,或把握當下、實現夢想,大遷徙的戲碼一綱多本,同步無奈上映。
被迫撤離家園疏散到避難所的災民非自願遷移,不算。近則根留日本,從首都圈移往關西;遠則釜底抽薪,跨出國門。熱烈期待展開變色人生的第二部曲。

總務省公布今年三至五月人口移動報告顯示,從東京圈遷往大阪圈的人數增加一四.五%,遷往福岡增加二五.四%;五、六月舉家調職前往關西的比例,更是去年同月的兩倍。
遠離安全威脅,展開新生活,不見得人人都辦得到。具有帶得走的能力,成為這波調職的主流。若再加上流利外語、海外工作經驗,在國外就業市場也很吃香。
一名四十歲電腦繪圖員,原本在東京工作,震災後一週躲到沖繩避難,二個月後決定正式定居。
他的新家坐擁濱海景觀、垂釣休閒隨時可得、生活費減少四成,遠離東京,竟因禍得福,享受無輻射污染、低物價、高品質的意外人生。
提供海外留學、長住(long stay)、移民生活的各類諮詢及代辦安排
的業者及類似網站,如「全國鄉間生活指南」網站,及其他「日本脫出」為主題的網站,在核災之後,業務大增。
日企業 承受六重苦
老百姓自主出走,決策和行動比較單純;企業加快外移腳步,則牽涉更多複雜的商業利益考量。
《日本經濟新聞》調查指出,一百位受訪企業當中,包括東芝、三菱、豐田等在內的四成業者表示,為緩和日圓持續升值的衝擊,將擴大在海外的採購及生產事業。
擔負許多民眾生計的企業界,除了一般百姓所承受的「四重苦」,更沒有選擇餘地的加碼到「六重苦」——電力不足、日圓急漲、貿易自由化進展緩慢、稅賦沈重、排碳減量目標和勞動法規嚴苛等。
原子彈轟炸的殷鑑不遠,時隔六十六年,日本又陷入較當年更險惡更苦的煉獄,孰令致之?
「走?不走?大哉問(to leave or not to leave,that is the question)」。日本人有權利選擇要不要遠離家園,但或許更有權利要求政府,「還給我們一個能夠留在家鄉安居樂業的機會。」

聖誕老公公學校 表參道上的聖誕節





Japan school trains wannabe "Santa-sans"Share








TOKYO | Tue Nov 27, 2012 6:50am EST

(Reuters) - Magic tricks and straight answers are all part of being Santa in Japan - at least according to Tokyo's Santa Claus Academy, which trains St. Nicks in a country with little Christian tradition and a Christmas that's far more retail than religion.

On a recent weekend, 88 Santa wannabes packed the school in Tokyo's fashionable Roppongi district for a crash course in how to behave as "Santa-san," as the man in red is known in Japan.

"There are many children who don't believe in Santa Claus anymore," said Masaki Azuma, head of the school. "So I said to myself, 'Let's bring Santa Claus back.'"

The morning session began with Azuma training students in the mindset of being Santa Claus, such as not to reply to anything unless addressed as "Santa-san," along with teaching them magic tricks, which Azuma recommends as a good ice-breaker for often shy tots.

The rest of the session was devoted to answering the difficult questions that children have a habit of posing, such as "My house doesn't have a chimney and we also have a security system, so how will you be able to come in and deliver my present?"

The academy's answer is that Santa, whose job is to deliver presents no matter what, will find a way. Also, the home security system should recognize him and let him in.

After this, the students dressed in their Santa outfits to stroll streets in the busy Omotesando district, exchanging high fives with shoppers and occasionally stopping to pose for pictures.

"Not only were we able to attract attention, we also interacted and made each other's days," said Kazuko Iida, who visits local preschools and retirement homes during the Christmas season.

Despite nearing 70, Azuma has vowed to press on with his school, believing it has a key role to fulfill.

"Even as times change, Santa Claus is a figure that needs to live in the hearts of everyone," he said.

(Reporting by Kimiteru Tsuruta, editing by Elaine Lies)












■三少四壯集







表參道上的聖誕節 郭正佩/文  (20081223)










 如果不以「正統性」做為判斷標準的話,把東京排名為「全世界聖誕時節氣氛『最?烈』」的城市說不一定也不為過。況且,這位城市把這年末節慶時分商業氣息延長的本領,或許也沒有別的城市能夠比擬。

 莫約十月下旬開始,東京稍微能叫得出名字的建築物、主要街道、商家,就如排山倒海似掛上節慶燈飾,把街道照耀地彷如白日般明亮。(問題是本來其實已經很 亮了。)更了不起的是,這麼這麼掛著,居然可以一路從十月末,一路慶祝到隔年二月十四日西洋情人節。(說到「西洋」情人節氣氛,東京恐怕也可排名世界第 一。)

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 於是,新宿時代廣場附近(初到東京時有點啞口無言,這裡不止有時代廣場,還有一棟長得和帝國大廈幾乎一模一樣的大樓),架起如夢似幻的聖誕步道。對,後來還築起一次只讓一對情侶進入,拍照、聆聽聖誕音樂的鈴鐺小屋。

 於是,東京巨蛋附近出現亦如巨蛋形狀,直徑有六公尺寬覆天蓋地的彩色音樂燈飾。每隔十五分鐘左右,就像萬花筒般閃爍。還有長約一百公尺左右命名為「雞尾酒街」臨時架起的音樂燈光步道,漂亮是漂亮,走進其中,簡直像進入電動玩具場景嘛。

 然後是汐留Caretta廣場,在作曲家東儀秀樹的設計之下,轉變成所謂「藍色光波世界」。銀藍色大海主題燈光,令人聯想起廣重浮世繪畫作裡波濤洶湧海浪。聽著東儀先生譜的樂,好像站在大海中央。這樣可以和聖誕節聯想在一起嗎?雖然不是很確定,不過總之還有「說不定」能讓戀人們愛情加溫魔法的神祕午夜奇蹟會登場。

 澀谷車站旁MyCity百貨公司樹起巨大聖誕樹,附近道玄?、宮益?及公園通行道樹,也同時掛上約莫六十萬顆燈飾。最著名約會等待地點忠犬八公雕像,以及道玄?周圍,裝飾起為了「讓情侶們進入聖誕心境」的巨大心形燈飾。

 往明治神宮方向,有東京香榭大道之稱的表參道並木一路立著和風燈籠概念似燈柱,似乎有和巴黎香榭大道及紐約第五大道比美的意味。當然,古典和宗教氣氛畢竟比不上歐美城市,於是請來前衛燈光藝術家,為這城城市設計出摩登卻又融合日本味的街道裝飾。

 偶爾會看到模特兒、歌手之類的人,一旁跟隨帶著裝備的攝影師、導演,趁這時節拍攝出有濃厚冬日氣氛的影像、錄像。沿著裝飾起的表參道散步,不知不覺還真會有成為日劇裡主角的錯覺。

 六本木也在不遠處,比起表參道,聖誕時節六本木之丘一帶,似乎還更像巴黎香榭大道。銀白色流蘇般的燈飾,以「永遠.瞬間」為主題,掛滿六本木之丘旁大道樹梢。

 站在大道天橋上,能看到遠方亮著燈火的東京鐵塔。東京鐵塔黃橘相間和大道上閃爍的銀白色燈光互相映襯,如果此時天空中還飄著一點濛濛雨絲,倒還真有一點印象派畫作的感覺。

 也可以到丸之內大樓、惠比壽花園廣場、東京車站附近的帝國旅館走走。天色更暗,那麼,把最後一站定為東京鐵塔如何?雖然不像巴黎艾菲爾鐵塔般每個鐘點如星光般閃爍,靜靜待在幾乎沒什麼遊客的東京鐵塔腳下,觀賞因為聖誕節慶特別裝飾起的燈光花園,也有另一番風情。

 雖然各地聖誕節大抵和商業運作都有那麼一點關係,東京的聖誕節,卻緊密地和聖誕節之後其實還有將近兩個月之久的情人節結合得天衣無縫。看來,如果不像情 人節一般,找個「義禮」情人,約在掛滿「讓情侶們進入聖誕心境」心形吊飾的澀谷忠犬八公雕像,然後一起逛逛表參道、到新宿星光步道散步,站在情人鐘下許 願、到東京巨蛋走過「能讓愛的氛圍出現」的雞尾酒街、然後在汐留廣場等待具有「讓戀人感情加溫魔力」的午夜奇蹟,沒有情人在身邊的人這個時候待在東京,還 真不知該怎麼過才好。

2012年11月25日 星期日

日本的高員工流動率(三年內離職): 總平均 28.8%

Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012

EDITORIAL

Throwaway workers

Recently Japanese workers have been quitting their jobs in larger numbers. At the end of October, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare issued statistics on the percentage of new employees who resigned within three years of being hired. The average for all industries was 28.8 percent.
That figure suggests a massive shift in the basic nature of employment in Japan.
In education-related businesses, the percentage quitting within three years of being hired was even higher, at 48.8 percent. Hotel and food and beverage services industries lost 48.5 percent of new employees within three years, and retailing, 35.8 percent.
While those job sectors perhaps always had a certain turnover, the numbers suggest that the relation between employer and employee, their attitudes toward each other, and workplace conditions have all undergone a transformation in Japan.
Nowadays, many companies recruit at universities knowing full well that a certain percentage will quit within a short time. In 2011, only 62 percent of the graduating class found jobs. That means nearly 40 percent of young people lag in getting workplace experience early in their careers.
Combined with the high numbers of workers quitting in certain industries, the general level of work experience for young employees has decreased sharply.
Japan prides itself on high-quality customer service, but to keep standards high, young people need to develop those skills. Dealing with customers and colleagues, for example, requires significant experience and supervised practice. In some companies, training has become an expense they no longer can afford, especially when an increasing number of new employees quit soon.
It wasn't long ago that many company employees had only one entry on their resume. Young people these days may have handfuls of various positions, giving them broader but not necessarily deeper experience.
The main reason for quitting and changing jobs is surely overwork. Some companies either do not pay overtime adequately or fail to provide sufficient compensation for "extras" such as commission-based sales.
The presumption of lifetime, or even long-term, employment, is no longer a realistic one for many workers, and that makes their workplace more stressful, not less. Even when workers are selfless and self-sacrificing, loyalty to an employer depends on conditions and treatment.
The practice of working employees hard and then discarding them is not a viable one in the long run. Only those companies that do manage their employees by finding ways to train and handle them over the long term will find profitability.
Establishing a humane and positive workplace environment that keeps employees is not easy, but it is an essential task if the quality of employment is to improve for both employees and employers in the future.

如何防止職場精神病/日本精神病保健狀況 (書評: 50年來在既得利益團體下殊少進步)


如何防止職場精神病?

2012-11-14 天下雜誌 510期

韓國,連續第八年,居經濟合作暨發展組織(OECD)會員國自殺率第一。日本,十四年來,自殺人數年年破三萬。而台灣,企業員工罹患憂鬱症、過勞死和自殺事件也不算少。
日本早已成為各國勞動安全政策的學習典範。
去年底,厚生勞動省擬訂勞動安全衛生法修正草案,規定在二○二○年以前,所有企業都有義務,對員工進行精神狀況檢查,以確實掌握勞工精神健康狀態。
還在國會審議中的這項修正案,將原本僅五○%企業需要做的事,變成所有企業的義務。並把全國六百萬家中小企業,統統納入。
修正案明訂,企業實施每年一次員工健檢時,也得做精神壓力測試。厚勞省有一份包括疲勞、焦慮和憂鬱等項目的簡易壓力檢測表,供施測參考。
過去,厚勞省根據『下一代育成支援對策推進法』,規定員工人數在三○一人以上的企業雇主,必須向所在地的勞動局,提出「行動計劃」,營造讓員工兼顧工作與育兒的工作環境。
去年四月一日起,擴大到一○一人以上的企業,也比照實施。
到今年七月止,一○一人到三○一人的企業,有九六.九%、總計近七萬家,乖乖提出行動計劃。
這一連串措施,其來有自。
每年二六○○人自殺
日本因精神疾病請求職災補償的件數,從一九九八年的四十二件,到二○一○年,暴增為一一八一件。創歷來最高紀錄,十二年成長二十七倍。

厚勞省統計,日本每年因憂鬱、過勞而自殺的上班族,達兩千六百人。因此產生的醫療支出,及勞動力損失等社會成本,一年高達十一兆日圓(約四兆台幣),相當於台灣四分之一的GDP。
○六年起,日本政府施行自殺對策基本法以來,每年花上百億日圓防治自殺。自殺人數已逐年下降,顯示已見成效。
自殺率全球第一的韓國,精神健康對策,更普及社會各層面。
由於學校及職場,均面臨激烈競爭,導致壓力產生精神疾病的案例增多。韓國保健福利部,要求明年起,韓國民眾全面接受精神健康檢查,以便早期發現、及早治療。
一生十九次精神檢查
韓國『二○一一年精神疾病流行病學調查』顯示,一四.四%的韓國十八歲以上成年人,曾有過一次以上的精神疾病經歷。但其中,僅一五.三%,接受醫院治療或專家諮詢。
報導指出,未來韓國人從小學入學前開始到七十歲,總計一生當中,將接受十九次精神健康檢查。
除了憂鬱症是共同項目外,不同年齡層有不同檢查重點:幼兒和青少年側重注意力缺陷過動(ADHD)、網路成癮;青壯年則是壓力、自殺、酗酒;六十歲以上高齡者,重點在壓力、自殺傾向。
韓國實際的做法是,由國民健保公司,根據對象年齡郵寄問診表,受檢者填妥表格後寄出,由健保公司評估。

在台灣,有規模的企業,幾乎都會定期給員工做健康檢查,但都只管身體,不管心理。最近兩件職災認定案,暴露出勞工心理健康受到忽略的問題。(編按:立即檢測》你的心理健康嗎?)
去年十月,台塑化一名員工自殺,被勞委會鑑定為,執行職務所致之職業病。燿華電子一名員工,以罹患憂鬱症為由,申請精神疾病職業傷病給付,歷經波折,最終鑑定獲准。
勞委會勞工安全衛生處處長傅還然表示,○九年,勞委會修正發布「勞工保險被保險人因執行職務傷病審查準則」,及「工作相關心理壓力事件引起精神疾病認定參考指引」。將精神疾病納入職業病種類表,說明台灣已有機制可以引用。
比起日、韓,動輒每十萬人有二、 三十人自殺的高自殺率國家,台灣自殺率逐年下降,去年為一五.一人。自殺連續十三年名列國人十大死因,前年起退出榜外。
然而,勞委會職業疾病鑑定委員會,受理案件卻有增加趨勢。
今年迄九月底止,受理四十八件,創歷年同期新高。其中,因工作壓力引起的精神疾病或自殺案件,有十件,佔二一%。
傅還然表示,新版職業安全衛生法,增訂雇主促進勞工身心健康之義務。未來,臨廠醫護健康服務的企業,將由現行三百人以上,逐步擴大到五十人以上的企業。
若在立法院三讀通過,「會是蠻進步的法規,與國際相比並不遜色,」傅還然說。


奇美醫院精神科主治醫師黃隆正表示,根據去年以來,支援南科園區診所駐廠經驗,發現精神健康議題漸趨重要,但投入的資源卻很少。
黃隆正建議,未來健檢項目中,也該有一套心理篩檢,以建立個人基本身心健康資料。
一來,可以作為日後身心變化的數據參考。二來,可用來參考為員工安排適當職務,例如失眠者的輪班調整等。
黃隆正語重心長地說,以公共衛生的角度,心理健康檢查、心理衛生支援,也該視為員工福利。
「雇主應該體認到,這不是花錢,而是可以讓員工生產力增加,對公司是正向的,」黃隆正說。
勞委會傅還然也強調,雇主應調整心態,「面對問題、接受事實、妥善處理。」對這些有適應障礙、需要協助的員工,應給予適才適所的工作安排。
EAP降低離職率
目前,企業最常見的做法,就是實施EAP員工協助方案(Employee Assistance Program)。以成立專屬單位,或引進外援方式,提供工作、生活和健康等諮詢協助。
台北捷運、台積電、統一集團、IBM、台灣日立等企業都有類似措施。根據美國就業諮詢公司Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.的成本效益研究顯示,公司每花一美元在EAP上,可帶來三美元的成本節省效益。
 
以台灣IBM為例,○四年實施EAP以來,三年內,員工離職率從一○%降為八%。
奇美醫師黃隆正直言,除了企業雇主努力,政府應檢討法律面和執行面。從各層面促進,和國家競爭力息息相關的國民心理健康。


Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012

News photo

Shedding light on problems with Japan's psychiatric care


MENTAL HEALTH CARE IN JAPAN, edited by Ruth Taplin and Sandra J. Lawman. Routledge, 2012, 148 pp., $155 (hardcover)
This collection of seven chapters makes for grim reading because it details the miserable state of mental health care in Japan.
One key problem is the, "megadose culture in psychiatric care." Patients are kept sedated with massive doses of psychiatric drugs to pacify them, a situation partially due to chronic understaffing. According to these experts, this antediluvian approach fails to help these "quiet patients" and is symptomatic of wider problems.
There is a strong stigma attached to mental illness in Japan that discourages many people from seeking the help they need. But even if they do, the health care system does not cater to their needs and is skewed toward a high dosage, poly-pharmacy therapy that generates profits for the prescribing doctors.
Yayoi Imamura suggests that this problem stems from inadequate psychiatric medical education and the reimbursement system of national health insurance. These shortcomings contribute to relatively poor care (and outcomes) for patients.
Renaming the disease was undertaken to reduce the social stigma. According to Hiroto Ito, the 2002 shift in the term for schizophrenia from seishin bunretsu byo (disease of a split and disorganized mind) to togo shicchou sho (dysfunction of integration) "has been well accepted."
Perhaps, but as he and other authors acknowledge, awareness of mental illness in Japan remains low and overall public perceptions of mental disorders tend to be negative.
U.S. Ambassador Edwin Reischauer played an inadvertent role in the evolution of mental health care in Japan and a spike in social stigma. In 1964, a knife-wielding schizophrenic seriously injured Reischauer, prompting a mass media campaign highlighting the dangers poised by the mentally ill. As a result of this orchestrated public hysteria, the government introduced compulsory institutionalization. In addition, doctors were required to notify local police in cases where the patient might cause harm. In 1970, over 75,000 patients, mostly from lower income groups, were forcibly institutionalized, a figure that has dropped to 1,800 owing to concerns about patient's human rights and greater emphasis on outpatient care.
The media later became a force for reform as one Asahi reporter actually had himself committed and then reported about the mistreatment of patients.
More spectacularly, in a case that drew global attention, the media exposed gross violations and physical abuse at a mental hospital in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, causing injuries that led to death.
Subsequently, reforms have shifted care from hospitals to rehabilitation centers and more recently to communities, with greater emphasis on outpatient care and social integration. Despite some success with anti-stigma campaigns, however, a sensationalist media is ever eager to highlight violent crimes and speculate irresponsibly about the mental health of suspects, fanning prejudice and anxieties.
According to Hajime Oketani and Hiromi Akiyama, "no major step toward fundamental and radical changes has been taken for the past 50 years."
They argue that further reform is blocked by the Japanese Association of Psychiatric Hospitals, a private industry lobby group that zealously guards its beds and profits. As a result, dysfunctional practices in Japan's mental health care system persist.
Given the high number of suicides in Japan, annually over 30,000 since 1998, there is an urgent need to improve diagnosis and treatment of mental illness, but the authors find few promising signs that the government is effectively addressing this crisis. It is encouraging, nonetheless, that a user-centered movement on mental care services is emerging, providing mutual support, mobilizing pressure against discrimination and raising awareness about problematic practices. Yet there is a long way to go.
Although this book could benefit from better editing and translation, and in some places reads like a tedious official report, it contributes to our understanding of what is wrong and what needs to be done. But at this steep price, it is one for the libraries.
Jeff Kingston is the director of Asian Studies at Temple University, Japan campus.

2012年11月24日 星期六

Radiation-proof robot still has long way to go


Radiation-proof robot still has long way to go
An uphill climb


ITSUO INOUYE / Associated Press
Toshiba Corp.'s inspection robot climbs stairs during a factory demonstration near Tokyo. It is designed to venture into off-limits areas of the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant.
 

Yuri Kageyama, Associated Press Posted: Saturday, November 24, 2012, 3:01 AM
YOKOHAMA, Japan - Toshiba Corp. has developed a robot it says can withstand high radiation to work in nuclear disasters, but it's not clear what the robot would be able to do if and when it got the go-ahead to enter Japan's crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant. The four-legged robot can climb over debris and venture into radiated areas off-limits to humans. One significant innovation, Toshiba said, is that its wireless network can be controlled in high radiation, automatically seeking better transmission when reception becomes weak.

But the machine, which looks like an ice cooler on wobbly metal legs, also appears to be prone to glitches. The robot took a jerky misstep during a demonstration for reporters, freezing with one leg in the air. It had to be lifted by several people and rebooted.

The robot was also notably slow in climbing eight steps, cautiously lifting its legs one by one, and taking about a minute to go up each step.

With obstacles that aren't as even and predictable as steps, such as the debris at the Fukushima plant, the machine may need as much as 10 minutes to figure out how to clear an object, Toshiba acknowledged.

And, if it falls, it will not be able to get up on its own.

Still, Tokyo Electric Power Co. said it might use the robot to inspect the suppression chamber of the nuclear plant where a devastating meltdown occurred after a mammoth tsunami slammed into northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011.

Toshiba began developing the robot with hopes it would prove useful in helping to decommission the plant. No human has been able to enter the highly radiated chamber since the disaster.

"We need this to go in and first check what is there," Toshiba senior manager Goro Yanase said last week.

It was unclear when a decision on the robot's use would be made, said Tepco, which operates the nuclear plant.

Although Toshiba showed top-notch robotics, what the machine might be able to do appeared limited in the face of the disaster's magnitude and complexity.

Japan boasts among the world's most sophisticated robotics technology, exemplified in the walking, talking human-shaped Asimo robot from Honda Motor Co. The inability of such gadgetry to help out with the Fukushima disaster was widely criticized.

Part of the reason is that robots, although suited for tasks such as greeting visitors at dealerships, are too delicate. Their wireless remote-controlled networks are not designed to endure high radiation. Honda has acknowledged Asimo would not have been able to withstand the environment at Fukushima, as some had suggested.



Yuri Kageyama Associated Press

The New Japanese Worker is Chinese

觀點

為什麼大批中國人來到日本工作

Koji Sasahara/Associated Press
日本東京,中國留學生參加中國企業舉辦的招聘會。

東京——這些天里,日本報刊亭的刊物上,充滿了尖銳、誇張、有時是民族主義的有關中國的標題。比如“中國威脅”、“中國的終結”、“中國:撤退或堅持到底”,等等。這類標題反映出一個衰落的國家對崛起的鄰國所表現出的焦慮。
然而,在沒有任何爭論或解釋的情況下,日本卻向中國移民敞開了雙臂,這種情況是前所未有的。日本依賴中國移民來填補就業,尤其是在服務業方面,而這 些工作機會曾一度留給當地人。在東京,似乎沒有人會為聽到中國人的口音,或在侍者或便利店店員的胸牌上看到了一個中國名字而驚訝了。
在日本為數不多的外國人口中,中國人的人數增加了。根據日本政府的數據,去年日本的中國人有67.4879萬,比來自其他任何國家的外國人都更多。根據日本法務省(Ministry of Justice)的數據,這個數字大約是1984年的10倍。
在日本經濟萎縮而中國經濟擴張時,為什麼有這麼多中國人跑到了日本,這個他們中許多人從小就不喜歡的、物價昂貴國家呢?在中日兩國關係惡化的情況下,又為什麼會有這麼多中國人留在日本呢?
在日本工作的外國人的比例依然不大,僅占所有就業人口的不到1%。但外籍勞動力構成比例的變化,體現了日本的勞工市場和民眾態度的微妙變化。
大多數中國人在日本工作是通過間接渠道,例如作為交換學生,或以職業培訓項目的名義。不願透露全名的韓女士是來自中國東北瀋陽的一名22歲學生,她 曾拒絕了一所中國大學的錄取,卻也從未打算來日本。她本來希望去美國留學,但那裡的學費超出了父母的預算,他們還擔心犯罪。日本離得近一些,更安全也更便 宜。此外,她的叔叔也已經在這裡住過多年。
在入學日本語言學校時,中國及其他國家的交換學生被允許每周工作28小時。但據一名日本政府官員告訴我,這一規定執行得很不嚴格,許多留學生打不止 一份工,工作時間上也超時。韓女士提到,有中國學生在教室里睡覺。她在東京的一家便利店裡做兼職工作,她的同事和老闆都是中國人。
韓女士仍希望能想辦法去美國或加拿大,而不少在日本打工的中國人會在日本待好幾年,在這裡拚命攢錢,然後回國。還有人來日本是為了嫁人,拿到日本護照。據日本政府的統計數據,在日本的中國人中約有58%是女性。
日本公司稱,他們正在僱傭更多外籍員工,尤其是中國人,使得他們的企業行為更加接近國際化,並且培養同時了解日本和中國兩地市場的員工。僱傭外籍員工有助於降低成本,這不僅是對東京等大城市的商店和餐廳而言,對於汽車和電子行業的製造商也是如此。
更重要的是,中國人已不僅限於在農村的工廠工作,現在他們還工作在大城市的一線服務行業。到處可見他們的身影,他們在餐廳中為政府官員和公司高管服 務,身着日本公司的制服。他們從事的這些工作,在20年前,基本上不會留給任何國家來的外國人。早在21世紀最初幾年,一名日本航空公司的高管曾告訴我, 日本的航空公司永遠不可能加入國際性航空公司聯盟,因為日本客戶有特殊的服務需求,並且不習慣接受外國乘務員的服務。
如果日本客戶現在願意接納更多外國人在零售商和餐館工作,為何不能接納外國人在其他服務行業工作,比方說護士和老年護理呢?
我的一名日本記者朋友認為,日本能夠允許更多外國人的進入,是因為這個國家還沒有對其移民政策進行過公開討論。一次坦誠的討論,只會喚醒那些反對移民的人,他說。
但也許已經到了該正視這個問題的時刻了。這個國家有將近四分之一的人口在65歲以上,其勞動力自1998年開始萎縮。這個國家應該做的,絕不僅僅是為做兼職的外籍務工者打開後門,日本應該打開前門,甚至是一些窗戶。日本應當給更多外籍務工者更多理由在日本安家落戶。
亞歷山德拉·哈尼(Alexandra Harney)是東京“國際關係協會”(Council on Foreign Relations)國際事務研究員。
翻譯:林蒙克

The New Japanese Worker is Chinese

观点

为什么大批中国人来到日本工作

TOKYO - These days Japan's newsstands are filled with shrill, hyperbolic and sometimes nationalistic titles about China. "The China Risk." "The End of China." "China: Withdraw or Stay the Course." Such headlines reflect the anxiety of a declining nation that fears its rising neighbor.
东京——这些天里,日本报刊亭的刊物上,充满了尖锐、夸张、有时是民族主义的有关中国的标题。比如“中国威胁”、“中国的终结”、“中国:撤退或坚持到底”,等等。这类标题反映出一个衰落的国家对崛起的邻国所表现出的焦虑。
And yet, without debate or comment, Japan is opening its arms to Chinese immigrants as never before, relying on Chinese workers to fill jobs once reserved for locals, especially in the service sector. No one in Tokyo seems surprised anymore to hear a Chinese accent or see a Chinese name on the name tags of waiters or convenience-store clerks.
然而,在没有任何争论或解释的情况下,日本却向中国移民敞开了双臂,这 种情况是前所未有的。日本依赖中国移民来填补就业,尤其是在服务业方面,而这些工作机会曾一度留给当地人。在东京,似乎没有人会为听到中国人的口音,或在 侍者或便利店店员的胸牌上看到了一个中国名字而惊讶了。
Among Japan's small foreign population, there are now more Chinese - 674,879 as of last year, according to Japanese government data - than people from any other country. That's about 10 times as many Chinese as were here in 1984, according to the Ministry of Justice.
在日本为数不多的外国人口中,中国人的人数增加了。根据日本政府的数据,去年日本的中国人有67.4879万,比来自其他任何国家的外国人都更多。根据日本法务省(Ministry of Justice)的数据,这个数字大约是1984年的10倍。
Koji Sasahara/Associated Press
日本东京,中国留学生参加中国企业举办的招聘会。
Why have so many Chinese wound up in Japan, an expensive country many of them are raised to dislike, with an economy that's shrinking while China's is expanding? And why are so many staying, given worsening relations between the two countries?
在日本经济萎缩而中国经济扩张时,为什么有这么多中国人跑到了日本,这个他们中许多人从小就不喜欢的、物价昂贵国家呢?在中日两国关系恶化的情况下,又为什么会有这么多中国人留在日本呢?
The number of foreign workers in Japan remains small: They account for less than one percent of all workers. But the changing composition of the foreign workforce reveals a subtle evolution in Japan's labor market and popular attitudes.
在日本工作的外国人的比例依然不大,仅占所有就业人口的不到1%。但外籍劳动力构成比例的变化,体现了日本的劳工市场和民众态度的微妙变化。
Most Chinese workers come through the back door, as exchange students or under vocational training programs. Han (she asked that I not use her last name), a 22-year-old student from the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang who turned down a place at a Chinese university, said she never intended to come here. She had hoped to study in the United States. But tuition there was beyond her parents' budget, and they worried about crime. Japan was closer, safer and cheaper. Plus, her uncle had lived here for years.
大多数中国人在日本工作是通过间接渠道,例如作为交换学生,或以职业培 训项目的名义。不愿透露全名的韩女士是来自中国东北沈阳的一名22岁学生,她曾拒绝了一所中国大学的录取,却也从未打算来日本。她本来希望去美国留学,但 那里的学费超出了父母的预算,他们还担心犯罪。日本离得近一些,更安全也更便宜。此外,她的叔叔也已经在这里住过多年。
When they enroll in a Japanese language school, Chinese (and other) exchange students are also entitled to work 28 hours a week. But the rules are poorly enforced, a Japanese government official told me, and so many students hold more than one job and work longer hours. Han talks of classrooms of sleeping Chinese students. At the Tokyo convenience store where she works part-time, her colleagues and bosses are Chinese.
在入学日本语言学校时,中国及其他国家的交换学生被允许每周工作28小 时。但据一名日本政府官员告诉我,这一规定执行得很不严格,许多留学生打不止一份工,工作时间上也超时。韩女士提到,有中国学生在教室里睡觉。她在东京的 一家便利店里做兼职工作,她的同事和老板都是中国人。
Han is still hoping to find her way to the United States or Canada, but some Chinese workers in Japan stay for a few years, save aggressively and go home. Others come here to find a husband and get a Japanese passport: About 58 percent of the Chinese living in Japan are women, according to Japanese government statistics.
韩女士仍希望能想办法去美国或加拿大,而不少在日本打工的中国人会在日本待好几年,在这里拼命攒钱,然后回国。还有人来日本是为了嫁人,拿到日本护照。据日本政府的统计数据,在日本的中国人中约有58%是女性。
Japanese companies say they are hiring more foreigners, particularly Chinese, to bring their practices closer to international norms and cultivate employees who understand both the Japanese and Chinese markets. Hiring foreigners can help keep down costs, not only for stores and restaurants in cities like Tokyo, but also for manufacturers in the automotive and electronics sectors.
日本公司称,他们正在雇佣更多外籍员工,尤其是中国人,使得他们的企业行为更加接近国际化,并且培养同时了解日本和中国两地市场的员工。雇佣外籍员工有助于降低成本,这不仅是对东京等大城市的商店和餐厅而言,对于汽车和电子行业的制造商也是如此。
More significant still, Chinese workers are not confined to working in factories in rural areas; now they're in front-line service-sector jobs in big cities. They're out in the open, serving politicians and executives in restaurants, wearing the uniforms of Japanese companies - generally doing jobs that two decades ago would have rarely been left to foreigners from any country. Back in the early 2000s, one senior Japanese airline executive told me that Japanese airlines would never join international alliances because Japanese customers had special service needs and didn't feel comfortable being served by foreign flight attendants.
更重要的是,中国人已不仅限于在农村的工厂工作,现在他们还工作在大城 市的一线服务行业。到处可见他们的身影,他们在餐厅中为政府官员和公司高管服务,身着日本公司的制服。他们从事的这些工作,在20年前,基本上不会留给任 何国家来的外国人。早在21世纪最初几年,一名日本航空公司的高管曾告诉我,日本的航空公司永远不可能加入国际性航空公司联盟,因为日本客户有特殊的服务 需求,并且不习惯接受外国乘务员的服务。
If Japanese customers are now willing to accept more foreigners working for retailers and in restaurants, why not in other service roles, like nursing and elderly care?
如果日本客户现在愿意接纳更多外国人在零售商和餐馆工作,为何不能接纳外国人在其他服务行业工作,比方说护士和老年护理呢?
A Japanese journalist friend argues that Japan has been able to allow more foreigners in because it hasn't openly debated its immigration policy. A frank discussion would only awaken immigration's opponents, he says.
我的一名日本记者朋友认为,日本能够允许更多外国人的进入,是因为这个国家还没有对其移民政策进行过公开讨论。一次坦诚的讨论,只会唤醒那些反对移民的人,他说。
But it may be time to face the issue squarely. A country where almost one-quarter of the population is over 65 and the workforce has been shrinking since 1998 must do more than open its back door to part-time foreign workers. It should throw open the front door and maybe even a few windows. Japan needs to give more foreign workers more reasons to build their lives here.
但也许已经到了该正视这个问题的时刻了。这个国家有将近四分之一的人口在65岁以上,其劳动力自1998年开始萎缩。这个国家应该做的,绝不仅仅是为做兼职的外籍务工者打开后门,日本应该打开前门,甚至是一些窗户。日本应当给更多外籍务工者更多理由在日本安家落户。
Alexandra Harney is an international affairs fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations based in Tokyo.
亚历山德拉·哈尼(Alexandra Harney)是东京“国际关系协会”(Council on Foreign Relations)国际事务研究员。
翻译:林蒙克

2012年11月23日 星期五

日本女性進職場 : 經濟倚靠

女性進職場 日本經濟救世主

〔編譯張沛元/法新社東京23日電〕日本國會將於下月改選,以男性為大宗的候選人正忙著承諾如何解決日本經濟困境;他們鮮少論及女性,孰不知能為日本經濟解套的秘密武器,正是女性。
日 本人口老化,但支撐老年人口的勞動力卻逐年減少,以致社福支出居高不下與稅收基礎萎縮;廣納移民或許能增加勞動力,但日本對此毫無興趣。如此一來,部分觀 察家認為,拯救日本經濟的答案,或許在於讓更多日本女性投身職場。國際貨幣基金(IMF)主席拉加德就說,若有更多日本女性加入職場,將可拯救長期低靡的 日本經濟。

高盛2010年的一份報告估計,日本女性勞動力比例(現為6成)若與男性相當(現為8成),日本國內生產毛額(GDP)將能躍升 15%。目前70%日本女性會在第一胎後離職,僅65%女性擔任需大學學歷工作。此外,日本政府數據顯示,各行各業女性薪資為男性6成,部分原因在於不少 職場女性為兼職人員;3600家立案企業中,女性管理高層僅佔1.2%。

日想成長 須縮小性別差距
日 本性別差距甚大,在世界經濟論壇(WEF)的年度全球135個國家性別差距報告中名列101。日本顧問公司ewoman總裁兼首席執行長佐佐木香織指出, 性別議題在日本遭到漠視;日本在二戰後,靠一群特定男性佔據政經媒體界高位而強盛數十年,這種男人小圈圈現象分享相同價值,所制定的決策也無人挑戰;但正 因為無法適應挑戰,終致日本過去20年來停滯不前。

佐佐木說,日本男性必須了解到,縮小性別差距已不再僅是女權議題,而是涉及企管與成長策略;奧林巴斯與東電等醜聞纏身的大企業,其資深管理若能更為多元,也許就能把危機處理得更好,畢竟多元是危機管理、創造產品或設計服務的關鍵。

東京中央大學家庭社會學教授山田昌弘更直指,問題癥結並不在於日本若要變好就得靠女性,而是日本若想要生存下去,就需要讓女性投入職場,以及了解到女性勞動 力所帶來的經濟利益。山田說,除非有更多女性工作以及有自己的收入,否則根本無法成立家庭;女性若不投身勞動市場,政府稅收也不會增加。



山田 昌弘(やまだ まさひろ、1957年11月30日 - )は、日本社会学者中央大学文学部教授東京都北区出身。専門領域は家族社会学・感情社会学ならびにジェンダー論。
東京学芸大学助教授だった1999年平成11年)、成人後や学卒後も親と同居し続ける未婚者を「パラサイト・シングル」と命名し話題に。一躍その名を知られるようになる。近年では新書『「婚活」時代』の中で、白河桃子と共に「婚活」という造語を考案・提唱し、流行させた。

 Masahiro Yamada (山田 昌弘 Yamada Masahiro?, born November 30, 1957) is a Japanese sociologist known for coining popular sociological terms like "parasite singles" and "gap-widening society"[1] (格差社会 kakusa shakai?). A graduate of University of Tokyo, he now teaches at Tokyo Gakugei University as professor.