Economics, in the modern sense of the word, was introduced into Japan in the second half of the nineteenth century. However, Japanese thinkers had already developed, during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, a variety of interesting approaches to issues such as the causes of inflation, the value of trade, and the role of the state in economic activity. Tessa Morris-Suzuki provides the first comprehensive English language survey of the development of economic thought in Japan. She considers how the study of neo-classical and Keynesian economics was given new impetus by Japan's 'economic miracle' while Marxist thought, particularly well established in Japan, was developing along lines that are only now beginning to be recognized by the West. She concludes with an examination of the radical rethinking of fundamental economic theory currently occuring in Japan and outlines some of the exciting new approaches which are emerging from this 'shaking of the foundations.

Since the late-19th century, Japan has made remarkable strides in industrialization. Beginning with the economic vision of Miura Baien in the 18th century, and employing a detailed comparison with the West, this book delves into the economic thought of the scholars who played a pivotal role in Japan’s modernization process. The author takes Fukuzawa Yukichi’s theory of ‘civilization’ as the standard measure of Japan’s modernization and compares it with differing visions from various critics whose research focused on rural poverty and social problems, such as Maeda Masana, early socialists, Yanagita Kunio and Kawakami Hajime. Further, the book explores new liberalism (Ishibashi Tanzan, Fukuda Tokuzo) and Marxism (Yamada Moritaro, Uno Kozo) in the 1920s and 1930s. After discussing the dilemmas faced by economists during wartime (Takata Yasuma, Ryu Shintaro, Shibata Kei), the author concludes this intellectual history with the country’s post-1945 democratic reforms and their early demise. This book is valuable reading for students and researchers of Japan’s intellectual history. However, due to the book’s comparative perspective, as well as the universality of the modernization experience, it will also appeal to students and researchers of the history of economic thought and modern intellectual history.

Japanese scholars of economics present nine contributions addressing the development of economic thought and modernization in Japan, primarily over the last 150 years. The contributions begin with discussion of several currents of economic thought during the Tokugawa period, which represented the intellectual prerequisites of modern economic growth in Japan. Developments in the Meiji era, the interwar period, and economic thought after 1945 are then explored, followed by Marxian and non-Marxian approaches to economic development and the political economy, and an essay on the considerable influence of Adam Smith on Japanese economics during and after WWII. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

This ground-breaking book provides the first English-language survey of economic thought in modern Japan. Significantly, it offers both a detailed study of economic thought from 1600 to 1945 and a nuanced analysis of Western and Asian perspectives on the field of Japanese economic history. Expertly translated from Japanese and written by leading scholars in the field, this exciting study includes: * A novel approach to economic thought which contextualizes the core values of thinkers across the period * A comparative analysis of Japanese economic history which looks at the continuities across the Meiji divide * The extensive use of archival sources, many of which were previously unavailable in English A History of Economic Thought in Japan, 1600 - 1945 serves as a case study of how Western economic ideas spread to non-Western regions and interacted with indigenous ideas. It will therefore be of immense value to both scholars of economic thought and those seeking a deeper understanding of the moral, intellectual, and societal forces that shaped modern Japan.

This newly revised, clearly-presented text looks at Japan's economic history from the nineteenth century through to World War II. Working within a framework based on the theories and approaches of development studies, Francks demonstrates the relevance of Japan's pre-war experience to the problems facing developing countries today, and draws out the historical roots of the institutions and practices on which Japan's post-war economic miracle was based. New features include: * fresh theoretical perspectives * additional material derived from new sources * an increased number of case studies * fully up-dated references and bibliography. This broad-ranging textbook is both topical and easy-to-use and will be of immense use to those seeking an understanding of Japanese economic development.

Japanese economists began publishing scientific papers in renowned journals including Econometrica in the 1950s and had made their significant contributions to the sophistication of general equilibrium analysis by intensive use of a variety of mathematical instruments. They had contributed significantly to the transformation of neoclassical economics. This book examines how it became possible for Japanese economists to do so by shedding light on the "professional" discussion of the international gold standard and parity policies in the early twentieth century, the acceptance of "mathematical economics" in the following period, the impact of establishment of the Econometric Society (1930), and the swift distribution of theory-oriented economics journals since 1930. This book also includes topics on the historical research of the Japanese foundations of modern economics, the transformation of the economics of Keynes into Keynesian economics, Japanese developments in econometrics, and Martin Bronfenbrenner's visit to Japan in the post-WWII period. This book provides insight into the economic research done by Japanese scholars in the international context. It traces how, during the period 1900-1960, economics was harmonized with economics and a standard economics was re-shaped on the basis of mathematics thanks to economists' appetite for rigor and will help to contribute to existing literature.

Japan grew explosively and consistently for more than a century, from the Meiji Restoration until the collapse of the economic bubble in the early 1990s. Since then, it has been unable to restart its economic engine and respond to globalization. How could the same political–economic system produce such strongly contrasting outcomes? This book identifies the crucial variables as classic Japanese forms of socio-political organization: the "circles of compensation." These cooperative groupings of economic, political, and bureaucratic interests dictate corporate and individual responses to such critical issues as investment and innovation; at the micro level, they explain why individuals can be decidedly cautious on their own, yet prone to risk-taking as a collective. Kent E. Calder examines how these circles operate in seven concrete areas, from food supply to consumer electronics, and deals in special detail with the influence of Japan's changing financial system. The result is a comprehensive overview of Japan's circles of compensation as they stand today, and a road map for broadening them in the future.

This volume explores early-modern formations of economic thought and policy in a country widely regarded as having followed a unique, non-Western path to capitalism. In discussing such topics as money and the state, freedom and control, national interest ideology, shogunal politics and networks, case studies of the Saga Domain and Ryukyu Kingdom, Confucian banking, early Meiji entrepreneurship, and relationships between macroeconomic fluctuations and policy, the essays here deepen and revise our understanding of early-modern Japan. They also enlarge and refine the analytical vocabulary for describing early-modern economic thought and policy, thereby raising issues of interest to scholars of world history and economic thought outside of Japan or East Asia.

This ground-breaking book provides the first English-language survey of economic thought in modern Japan. Significantly, it offers both a detailed study of economic thought from 1600 to 1945 and a nuanced analysis of Western and Asian perspectives on the field of Japanese economic history. Expertly translated from Japanese and written by leading scholars in the field, this exciting study includes: * A novel approach to economic thought which contextualizes the core values of thinkers across the period * A comparative analysis of Japanese economic history which looks at the continuities across the Meiji divide * The extensive use of archival sources, many of which were previously unavailable in English A History of Economic Thought in Japan, 1600 - 1945 serves as a case study of how Western economic ideas spread to non-Western regions and interacted with indigenous ideas. It will therefore be of immense value to both scholars of economic thought and those seeking a deeper understanding of the moral, intellectual, and societal forces that shaped modern Japan.

Japan rose from the ashes of defeat in WW2 to become one of the world's leading economies. With economic reform again at the top of the global agenda, this book examines the lessons to be learned from Japan's economic recovery.