Abstract

■ Unraveling the origins of the unique characteristics of Japanese society from a theoretical perspective.
■ Why does society take the form it does? Trust, exchange, employment, networks, discrimination, inequality—bridging economics and sociology, this book explores the mechanisms by which society emerges from individual choices. This book is a compilation of lectures the author taught for many years at the University of Chicago, a world-renowned center for sociology: "The Rational Foundations of Sociological Theory" and "Japanese Society."

"Those born and raised in Japan are prone to the misconception that their understanding of society, based on their experiences in daily life in Japan, is the same as that of any other society. In reality, various statistical data show that the characteristics of Japanese society's institutions and the characteristics of Japanese consciousness are often extremely unique and "outliers" on a global scale. ...This should not be broadly interpreted as "cultural differences." It is not a matter of cultural differences, but a matter of differences in the way society functions." (From this book)

Author’s Information

Ralph Lewis Memorial Distinguished Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago / Visiting Research Fellow at RIETI (Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry).

After graduating from the Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo in 1971, he worked at the Prime Minister's Office (1971-1978), received his PhD in Sociology from the University of Chicago (1981), became an assistant professor at the Columbia University School of Public Health (1983-1985), and an assistant professor and associate professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles (1985-1991), before becoming a professor at the University of Chicago in 1991. He has been a Visiting Research Fellow at RIETI since 2003. In 2020, he was designated a Person of Cultural Merit. Major works: *Event History Analysis*, Sage Publications, 1991; *Debate on Work-Life Balance in Japan* (co-editor, Nikkei Business Publications, 2008); *Diversity* (Toyo Keizai Inc., 2008); *Work-Life Balance: Empirical Analysis and Policy Recommendations* (Nikkei Business Publications, 2009); *Gender Inequality in the Workplace: Theory and Empirical Analysis* (Nikkei Business Publications, 2017)