The aim of this book is to evaluate accurately economic development mechanism and to extract valuable lessons from a comparison of the economic development of Japan and that of Germany. The book covers an extensive range of economic issues: (1) macro-economic factors: capital, labor, technology; (2) macro-economic policies: financial, monetary, industrial; (3) external shocks to both economies: oil crises, exchange rate fluctuations, environmental problems; (4) development processes of major industries: steel, chemicals, and automobiles. The analyses with this systematic and comprehensive approach provide useful insights for the general reader as well as guidelines for developing countries and for Eastern European countries in transition.

This book presents comparative research into the economic and industrial systems of Japan and Germany after the Second World War. Both Japan and Germany became "miracles" of economic development in the postwar reconstruction period, although their political, industrial, and corporate systems are quite different, as are the processes of development. The particular differences reflect the economic, social, and environmental backgrounds of the two countries. The aim of this book is to evaluate accurately the economic development mechanism and to extract valuable lessons from a comparison of the economic development of Japan and that of Germany.

After the devastation of World War II, Germany and Japan built national capitalist institutions that were remarkably successful in terms of national reconstruction and international competitiveness. Yet both "miracles" have since faltered, allowing U.S. capital and its institutional forms to establish global dominance. National varieties of capitalism are now under intense pressure to converge to the U.S. model. Kozo Yamamura and Wolfgang Streeck have gathered an international group of authors to examine the likelihood of convergence—to determine whether the global forces of Anglo-American capitalism will give rise to a single, homogeneous capitalist system. The chapters in this volume approach this question from five directions: international integration, technological innovation, labor relations and production systems, financial regimes and corporate governance, and domestic politics. In their introduction, Yamamura and Streeck summarize the crises of performance and confidence that have beset German and Japanese capitalism and revived the question of competitive convergence. The editors ask whether the two countries, confronted with the political and economic exigencies of technological revolution and economic internationalization, must abandon their distinctive institutions and the competitive advantages these have yielded in the past, or whether they can adapt and retain such institutions, thereby preserving the social cohesion and economic competitiveness of their societies.

Focusing on the post war reconstruction of the education systems in Japan and Germany under U.S. military occupation after World War II, this book offers a comparative historical investigation of education reform policies in these two war ravaged and ideologically compromised countries. While in Japan large-scale reforms were undertaken swiftly after the end of the war, the U.S. zone in Germany maintained most of the traditional aspects of the German education system. Why did Japan so readily accept ideas and values developed in the allied countries while Germany resisted? Masako Shibata explores this question, arguing that the role of the university and the pattern of elite formation, which can be traced back to the period of the formation of Meiji Japan and the Kaiserreich, created the conditions for differing reactions from educational leaders in each country; this had a decisive impact on the proposed reforms. By examining these reactions through a sociological, cultural, and historical frame, an explanation emerges. Japan and Germany under the U.S. Occupation will prove to be a valuable resource both to scholars of history and education reform.

A major addition to the literature on modern Japanese development, emphasizing the role of ideas and ideology.

Tests the understanding of basic economic concepts by high school students.

Gender, Growth and Trade examines the role of women as a flexible, contingent workforce in Germany and Japan. This unique comparative study of two of the world's foremost industrialized economies situates empirical results in the context of broader cultural concerns, considering issues such as market flexibility, unemployment, union policy and labour market institutions.