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The article reflects on the issue on plant science in Korea. It reveals that the theory on country's scientific focus was not transparent to the people involved in the research. It presents an analysis with the participation of top ten countries including Northern America, Europe, Japan, and Australia. It succumbs that the countries in Asia are smaller than those mentioned above with respect to research publication other than Japan. It explains that Korea and China have increased the number of papers being published annually which out put is equaled with Brazil.

This paper demonstrates that when one new job is generated by attracting a new business in the tradable sector in a local economy, a significant number of additional jobs are created in the nontradable sector when labor mobility is high. However, these multipliers disappear when labor mobility is low. This paper confirms that regions with higher labor inflow have larger multipliers. Furthermore, the spillover effect of agglomeration economies in the tradable sector is significantly positive on the nontradable sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which editor discusses papers on topics including effect of unconventional monetary policy in Japan impact of quantitative easing monetary policy (QE) and effects of U.S. monetary policy which were presented at conference held at in Tokyo, Japan on March 5, 2015.

Global corporate restructuring often involves U.S. and Japanese alliance partners in interlinked portfolio choices. This paper develops theory and propositions that study U.S. and Japanese restructuring as a process of strategic choice, and introduces the concept of the restructuring profile. Japanese-U.S. strategic linkages create choices in the form of a call option on portfolio reconfiguration for the Japanese firm, and a put option on financial restructuring for its U.S. partner. While Japanese competition forms an initiating force for U.S. restructuring, it also offers a source of capital for that purpose--a unique situation in which the Japanese firm is a part of both the problem and the solution in its U.S. partners restructuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incorporating systematic evidence with clinical expertise is a key element in the quest to improve quality of care and patient outcomes. The evidence supporting skin‐to‐skin contact in the first hour after birth is robust and includes significantly improved outcomes for both mother and infant. This paper compares available iterative data about newborn behaviour in the first hour after birth to further describe the observable behaviour pattern and to provide clinical insight for further research. Although the evidence for positive outcomes through skin‐to‐skin contact are robust, there is a dearth of research specifically focused on clinical practice. The methodology considers the four available data sets that used Widström's 9 stages, which consists of studies from Japan, Sweden, Italy and the United States, examining the parameters of each stage across settings from around the world. This research provides an expanded understanding of the timing of the newborn's progression through Widström's 9 observable stages. We found that newborns in all four data sets began with a birth cry and continued through the remaining stages of relaxation, awakening, activity, rest, crawling, familiarization, suckling and sleeping during the first hours after birth and consolidated the data into a Sign of the Stages chart to assist in further research. The evidence supports making a safe space and time for this important newborn behaviour. Clinical practices should encourage and protect this sensitive period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the design of the "Akari" exhibition of sculptor Isamu Noguchi. The Mayor of Gifu had enlisted his help to revive the industry of paper lantern making. Noguchi designed a metal frame which allowed his "Akari" to be freestanding rather than just suspended. He then designed lanterns which were produced and sold in Japan and the United States.

Lists several articles to be published by the "Journal of Metamorphic Geology." "Metamorphic Evolution of Garnet-Bearing Ultramatic Rocks From the Gongen Area, Sanbagawa Belt, Japan"; "Liquid Compositions From Low-Pressure Experimental Melting of Pelitic Rock From Morton Pass, Wyoming"; "Exhumation Rates and Age of Metamorphism in the Sanbagawa Belt: New Constraints From Zircon Fission Track Analysis."

The purpose of the research was to examine the part a creative environment plays in creating the foundation for BPR efforts. A comparison between creative environments in US and Japanese companies was used to address the research question. The creative environment of each company was examined by looking at four categories of factors--people, process, output, and environment. These categories were used to organize and systematically analyze the data. In general, the researcher found that Japanese companies tend to adopt incremental business process improvement (BPI) rather than BPR. BPI is a way of life. Emphasis is placed on the 'group' rather than the individual. Since the group is emphasized, individual innovation and creativity is not generally nurtured by management. However, some Japanese companies are beginning to see the value of individual creativity. They are starting creativity training programmes for key employees. Nevertheless, it will take some time before a paradigm of individuality is generally accepted. Since US companies want to change quickly and radically to become more competitive, many are experimenting with BPR. However, a critical success factor of BPR is teamwork and cooperation. Although US companies have historically been very individualistic, teaming and nurturing is beginning to make its way into the culture of many organizations. Successful BPR hinges on changing to an environment conducive to change. Organizations that understand the importance of a change-oriented environment will have the best chance of success. It appears that US and Japanese companies are converging on similar paradigms of work. US companies are moving from "rugged" individualism to cooperation and teamwork. Japanese companies are moving from a group consensus paradigm to one that encourages individual creativity. Although US companies have a long way to go, it might be more difficult for Japanese companies. The culture in Japan is much more homogeneous. In addition, free flow of ideas has not been a part of the Japanese culture. Whether or not companies in the US embrace teamwork and individual creativity, the basic culture of the US has always been democratic and has encouraged free speech. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether the intertemporal elasticity of substitution (IES) for Japan possesses similar properties to that found for the United States in the literature. As the existing empirical findings are mixed, there is no clear consensus. This paper uses a model with both production and non-separability between nondurables and durables in order to control for possible factors that cause a bias in the IES. We present the empirical results, demonstrating that the IES is quite similar between the two countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At present, Japanese researchers conducting social surveys encounter several difficulties such as restricted access to official registers and a decrease in current response rates. These researchers may expect these difficulties to be solved by the survey techniques or methods developed outside Japan, such as computer-assisted interviews (CAI) and Internet surveys. It is unclear whether the numerous technical differences between survey methodologies developed in Japan and elsewhere imply the backward-ness of Japan or cultural differences. This paper discusses the potential of various recent survey methods, focusing on the culture and paradigms in Japan and the UnitedStates. First, this paper presents an overview of survey techniques, such as computer-assisted personal interviewing, Internet surveys, and mixed modes. Second, it points out the fact that the existence of the registers and different survey concepts might have created the different survey paradigms. In addition, reference is made to the linguisticdifferences between the US and Japan. The results indicate that survey research is more dispersed in Japan than in the US and that survey research adapted to the uniqueness of Japanese culture is not accumulated sufficiently, although such an accumulation is required. Finally, it is stated that not only surveys, but also the concept of methodology, is not very popular in Japan. Furthermore, the development of survey research in the US is likely to be related to pragmatism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This symposium includes papers that analyse a number of issues that are likely to play a key role in the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations. These issues are analysed from the perspective of US-Japanese economic relations. In these papers, the economic effects of the WTO negotiating options available to both countries are explored. A final paper examines the important issues raised by the free trade agreements (FTAs) that have or will soon be negotiated by the United States and Japan. Brief summaries of the papers are provided. With all the advantages that have accrued to Japan from the multilateral trading system, it is not surprising that for many years Japan, alone among the world's major economies, stayed aloof from regional trading arrangements. The very past success of the multilateral trading system has made further progress at this level far more complex and has pushed many countries, Japan included, to look to new and deeper regional trading agreements as a more productive path. But it should not be forgotten that while FTAs may be easier to conclude, their benefits are modest compared with what can be gained from a successful Doha Round, and the costs from new distortions imposed on regional trade can be very significant for some of the world's poorer economies. Every good reason remains for Japan to continue to wish to be a pillar of the WTO and of the new Doha Round. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper identifies similarities and differences in the emphases and patterns that U.S. and Japanese managers attribute to a set of 22 generic competitive methods. It highlights the different ways that Japanese and American managers combine these methods to form general business strategies. Using factor analyses and smallest space analyses, the study shows differences in business strategy patterns between managers in Japan and the U.S. Such differences reflect the organizing principles underlying the strategy approaches in U.S. and Japanese firms. The organizing principle underlying U.S. responses is the desire to find way to differentiate a firm from its competitors. In contrast, the organizing principle underlying Japanese responses is a desire to establish a comprehensive, stable and defensible position. The paper discusses the implications of these results for strategic management and suggests directions for future U.S. and Japanese comparative strategy research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tests the hypothesis that country-specific advantage embedded in firms of a particular nationality is a motivation for international interfirm cooperation. A sample of domestic and international cooperative relationships formed by Japanese firms in the commercialization of biotechnology is used to identify factors which differentiate domestic from foreign partners. The findings support our hypothesis that country-specific advantage is a significant variable in explaining differences between cooperative relationships with partners of different countries. The results of this study indicate that interfirm cooperation has implications for the international competitiveness of both firms and nations in high technology industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An extensive body of literature explains features of the highly co-operative relationship between Japanese firms, particularly Toyota, and their supplier-firm network. The literature does not explore when these networks emerged or the factors conducive to their emergence. This paper uses transaction cost analysis and issues. It indicates that the networks emerged in the 1950s, and that the initiating factors were exogenous to the networks, centring on the unusual business environment that then prevailed in Japan. The analysis indicates why firms like Toyota gained an advantage over competitors in America. They were relieved of two major transaction costs: those linked to internalization and decomposed subcontracting. In addition, successful networks developed intragroup understandings that led to significant reductions in both interfirm co-ordination costs and direct production costs per unit of output. the paper questions the extent to which Toyota-type networks are prevalent in Japan. It questions the advantage that firms in America or elsewhere (even Japan) can gain from emulating Toyota practices such as unguarded subcontracting. It offers a different interpretation to standard business practices in firms like Toyota, such as relational contracting. It provides a basis for a reinterpretation of Japanese business history and the role of Japan Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper first asks whether the working of market forces in Japanese manufacturing industries is unique to them or similar to US counterparts. It is found that autoregressive profit equations for 376 Japanese firms over 1964-82 are on average similar to those for 413 US firms over 1964-80. The paper next asks whether the inter-industry pattern of profit adjustments in Japan is related to industry traits in a manner analogous to the US. In this case specific national differences between the two countries in the effects of imports, industry growth, and capital intensity on the profit adjustment process are found. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper uses a comprehensive and detailed bank‐level data set to study how the divergence of central bank balance sheet policy in the US vis‐à‐vis the euro area and Japan would affect the supply of international US dollar loans by global banks. Our empirical findings support the view that the contractionary effect of US monetary normalization on global dollar liquidity would be offset by an expansionary effect from continued supply of US dollar loans by euro area and Japanese banks. The net effect, however, is crucially dependent on the stability of global foreign exchange markets and investor perceptions of the default risks of global banks. Our findings show that there could be a significant contraction of the supply of international US dollar loans if and when the US monetary normalization coincides with a dislocation of the FX swap market and a rise of bank default risks. Our results are robust to alternative model specifications and different data sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims and objectives: To identify the current state of knowledge about the use of the sit‐to‐stand intervention with older people and to identify implications for further research. Background: Many older people experience mobility challenges which can negatively affect their well‐being. Physical activities are vital to improving or maintaining mobility. Although there is evidence that mobility challenged older people benefit from the sit‐to‐stand intervention, there is a need to systematically examine the state of knowledge about this intervention. Design: Scoping review using Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework. Methods: A systematic search of three databases was completed. Abstracts were evaluated for relevance using predetermined inclusion criteria. Studies that met the inclusion criteria had data extracted and were appraised for internal and external validity. Narrative synthesis was based on methods described by Popay and colleagues. Results: Of 3,041 papers, six studies met the inclusion criteria. Publications provided a range of sit‐to‐stand interventions with durations varying from four weeks to six months. The frequency of each intervention fluctuated from three to seven times/week with a duration of 15–45 min. Different professionals prompted the activity. Three themes were identified the following: (a) sit‐to‐stand activity as an intervention; (b) generalisability of findings; and (c) sustainability. Conclusions: Most of the studies reviewed indicated improvements in performance of the sit‐to‐stand activity and in motor function. However, issues with studies rigour do not allow us to make generalisations. Further research is needed to confirm the effectiveness of the intervention. Implications for practice: Healthcare providers are expected to offer evidence‐based patient care. This review details current knowledge about the sit‐to‐stand intervention with older people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on training and development ( T&D) policies and practices to explore how multinational companies ( MNCs) localise their human resources within their subsidiaries in a developing country. It uses qualitative research methods to examine three US and three Japanese MNCs operating in the automotive and fast-moving consumer goods ( FMCG) industry in Vietnam. The paper identifies both home- and host-country effects as significant factors in the transfer of MNCs' T&D policies and practices. Clear home-country effects are evident in rigorous attempts of both US and Japanese MNCs to transfer and implement formalised and centrally controlled training programs. Host-country effects manifest themselves in the instability of the institutional environment, weak associations among employers' groups, and fragmented bargaining practices that encourage employer and employee opportunism, particularly 'poaching' and 'job-hopping'. These lead to MNCs' hesitation to invest in T&D, and the lack of job rotation and a tendency to train 'specialists' rather than 'generalists' in the Japanese firms. The paper also discusses the interaction of foreign owned and indigenous firms in a very tight labour market at the highly skilled end that results in a 'brain drain' phenomenon on human resource development ( HRD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to characterize the distribution of extreme returns for US, UK and Japanese equity indices over the years 1963–2000. In particular, the suitability of the following distributions is investigated: Normal, Frechet, Gumbel, Weibull, Generalized Extreme Value (GEV), Generalized Pareto and Generalized Logistic (GL). Daily returns were obtained for each of the countries, and the minima over a variety of selection intervals were calculated. Plots of higher moment statistics for the minima on statistical distribution maps suggested that the best fitting distribution would be either the GEV or the GL. The results from fitting each of these distributions to extremes of a series of US, UK and Japanese share returns supported the preliminary evidence that the GL distribution best fitted the data in all three countries over the period of study. The GL distribution has fatter tails than the GEV distribution; hence this finding is of importance to investors who are concerned with assessing the risk of a portfolio. The paper highlights the important finance implications and in particular the potential for underestimation of risk if distributions without fat enough tails are employed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In this paper, we are studying social identities within a cross-national framework as they are reflected in values regarding social institutions. We compare value items to infer similarities and differences between Japan and the US, but more importantly we analyze value configurations, using factor analysis, as an expression of underlying cultural expectations. We also argue that the way values are transmitted further defines the distinctive cultural basis of social identities. Using a unique data set, The Generations Survey, we propose to contribute theoretically and methodologically to understanding the role of culture in postmodern societies. Our research, based on identical national surveys collected in 1995, provides a systematic way to compare values in two countries. The research builds on and specifies existing ethnographic case studies and in-depth interviews around a variety of themes that shape social identities such as the link between family and work expectations, the role of ethical values in business, the importance of national identification, and the meaning of community involvement. The paper concludes by suggesting that despite homogenizing trends and surface similarities, cultural distinctiveness persists in the ways values cluster and is transmitted in the family, shaping the social identities of Japanese and US respondents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although rural residents often expect resource extraction to lead to local prosperity, much of the recent research finds that resource extraction is associated with poverty. This paper tests these results by examining whether the findings may be due to methodological factors such as the tendency to focus on extreme cases, particular extracting sectors, and certain periods of time. By comparing two localities that have followed very different developmental trajectories--the state of Wisconsin and Hokkaido Prefecture in Japan--during the period from 1970 to 1990, this paper addresses these issues. The results do not clearly support either the expectation that resource extraction will lead to poverty or that it will lead to economic prosperity. Instead, like a handful of studies on resource dependency, the results indicate that the relationship be-tween extraction and poverty is unique to location. Despite the many differences between the United States and Japan, the strongest correlates of poverty in each country involve the proportion of land in an area that is forested. Particularly because these results mirror the findings from the one previous study that included this variable, future research must give greater attention to this explicitly environmental variable, as well as examining some of the possible reasons for the relationship.

Cross‐country studies document a negative relation between corporate governance and cash holdings. In contrast, this relation is found to be positive in the United States. In this paper, we examine the case of Japanese firms. Using institutional ownership and cross‐shareholdings as the main governance variables, we show that better governance is associated with higher cash balances as in the United States. The reason is that better‐governed firms make better investment decisions. Their investments are not driven by excess liquidity and result in higher profitability and higher firm valuation. Overall, our findings indicate that management profligacy is a bigger concern to shareholders than management propensity to hoard cash because of risk aversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the numerous field studies on watersheds in temperate forests, little attention has been paid to differences in the seasonality of NO3‐ exports due to different seasonal patterns of precipitation. Factors that cause seasonal variation in NO3‐ exports include the biological conditions involved in the production of NO3‐ and the hydrological conditions of NO3‐ transport and storage. Previous studies described in this paper reveal that differences in the seasonal patterns of precipitation result in differences in the NO3‐ flux between sites in Japan and the Northeastern United States. In Japanese forests affected by the Asian monsoon and are subject to heavy rainfall and high‐flow conditions during the summer, the NO3‐ concentrations in stream water often increase during the summer growing season. This is a major difference from the typical decrease in NO3‐ concentrations that occur in summer in the Northeastern United States, which is not affected by monsoon conditions. In addition, the orogenically active geology differs in Japanese catchments from those in the United States and is composed of younger bedrock and steep topography in the former. It has been shown that the buffering capacity of stream water is higher in Japan than in the United States, resulting in that the degree of acidification of stream water due to the outflow of NO3‐ is also low in Japan. These comparisons with the United States serve not only to indicate the hydrological and biogeochemical uniqueness involved in the export of NO3‐ in Japanese forest catchments but also to provide a more universal understanding of the mechanisms underlying the differences. To elucidate these mechanisms clearly, a comprehensive database is required for both climatic zones that include the seasonality of nitrogen dynamics within the catchments and descriptions of the hydrological processes. Additionally, a process‐based model is needed, based on the results of a meta‐analysis using the database. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between money growth and inflation is a topic of debate among macroeconomists. This paper contributes to the empirical literature on the money‐inflation pass‐through using a Nonlinear Auto‐Regressive Distributed Lag model (NARDL) for three countries (the U.S., U.K. and Japan) over an estimation period spanning 1950Q1 to 2014Q4. This methodology allows for empirical tests of short‐ and long‐run asymmetric responses of inflation to both positive and negative shocks affecting money growth of three monetary aggregates (M1, M2, M0). The results reveal that inflation responds asymmetrically to monetary shocks in the long‐run for all three countries. Robustness tests are also undertaken by carrying out the Hatemi‐J (Empirical Economics, Vol. 43 (2012), pp. 447–456) causality test and splitting the sample period into two, before and after the financial crisis. The findings indicate the existence of a relation between money growth and inflation in the post‐crisis period only in the case of the U.K. When we use different break points, we find that the symmetric relationship more likely occurs in the post‐crisis period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the theory and method of the 'same‐phase power supply scheme', as declared in United States and Taiwan patents, a novel power supply method is proposed to reduce damage to users when the supply power is in shortage. This paper proposes using the equivalent model function blocks, as built by MATLAB/Simulink, for simulations of the probable line‐to‐line and single line‐to‐ground faults in a distribution system when the power supply mode is switched from 'normal' to 'same‐phase'. The simulation results prove that, when the power supply is switched to the 'same‐phase' power supply mode, all the short‐circuit fault currents are a little lower than that in the 'normal' power supply mode, and the maximum difference is less than 3%. Therefore, when the supplying power of the system is in shortage or the power distribution system has a short‐circuit fault between phase lines, the system can be directly switched to the 'same‐phase' power supply mode and can continue supplying power to the essential and basic loads for life‐support and people's livelihoods. © 2019 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the unique functions of corporate headquarters in diversified firms and reports on a survey of the structure and staffing of more than 600 headquarters in Europe, the United States, Japan, and Chile. It explores the extent to which corporate headquarters are contingent on size of the company, corporate strategy (corporate portfolio and corporate structure and policies), and governance system (ownership and regulation, and country of origin). The results confirm that factors in each of these areas are important determinants of the size and structure of headquarters. Performance data suggest that these findings are not merely descriptive but that corporate headquarters should be designed to fit the corporate strategy. Although the results are capable of alternative interpretations, analysis provides no support for the view that ‘lean and mean’ headquarters lead to better performance. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes factors that influence firms' choice of the organizational forms of strategic alliances. I consider arguments suggested by both the contractual and the competence perspectives. In order to distinguish empirically between them, I devote special attention to the role played by the similarity of partner firms' technological specialization. In the empirical section I consider a sample composed of 271 equity joint ventures, non-equity bilateral and unilateral agreements established between each other in the period 1983-86 by 67 North American, European, and Japanese enterprises from the world's largest firms in information technology industries. I examine the effects on the choicer of alliance form of a measure of firms' technological proximity based on patents count, while controlling for other variables that are usually considered in the empirical literature. The estimate of binomial and multinomial logit models support the competence-based argument that in technological alliances divergence in partners' technological specialization results in a higher propensity to use equity forms. Overall, the findings suggest that both the contractual and competence perspectives provide valuable complementary insights into the determinants of alliance form. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides a simple comparative analysis of Japanese and US trade with China. In recent years, Japanese exports to China had been growing faster than US exports, but Japanese imports from China had been growing more slowly. A large amount of US and Japanese exports were first shipped to Hong Kong, and then re-exported to China. In 1994, Japan's largest export item to China was general machinery, while US largest export item to China was transportation equipment. According to the rivalry index constructed in the paper, competition in 1994 between US and Japanese firms was most intense in the chemical goods sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how Peruvian migrants fare economically in two historically and culturally distinct host countries, Japan and the US, drawing upon a survey and interviews conducted in both countries. Peruvian migrants surveyed share similar socio-economic backgrounds and migrated to both countries for similar reasons roughly around the same time. Yet, over time, they achieved more occupational upward mobility in the US than in Japan. Japan has not done quite as well as the US in providing immigrants with occupational opportunities due to its less diversified immigrant labor market, limited entrepreneurship opportunities, and restricted modes of immigrant incorporation. Does it mean, however, that Peruvian migrants are less successful in Japan than the US? Although occupational mobility is a commonly used measure of social mobility, the definitions and meanings of 'success' are context-dependent. Peruvians in the US do experience more occupational mobility, but diverge more greatly in economic achievement amongst themselves. In Japan, on the other hand, while they experience little occupational mobility, they have had more economic equality with relatively stable and high wages. The paper examines Peruvian migrants' distinct economic trajectories over time, focusing on their occupational mobility. We conclude that occupational mobility matters, not necessarily because it accompanies higher income, but because it shapes migrants' aspirations. In the context where immigrants' destinations have become more diverse in the world, the paper provides insights into how immigrants 'make it' and what it means to 'make it' in recent destinations, such as Japan, in comparison to more traditional immigrant countries, such as the US. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: Estimated alcohol consumption from national self‐report surveys is often only 30–40% of official estimates based on sales or taxation data. Global burden of disease (GBD) estimates for alcohol adjust survey estimates up to 80% of total per capita consumption. This assumes that cohort studies needed to estimate relative risks for disease suffer less from under‐reporting than typical national surveys. However, there is limited evidence on which to base that assumption. This paper aims to assess the extent of underestimation of alcohol consumption in cohort studies concerning alcohol and mortality compared with official total consumption estimates. Design Comparisons of estimated per capita consumption from a comprehensive sample of cohort studies against official estimates by country and year. Participants: A total of 1 876 046 participants in 40 cohort studies from 18 countries on alcohol use and all‐cause mortality identified by systematic review. Measurements Alcohol consumption data from the cohort studies were converted into usual grams of ethanol per day and then to total age 15+ per capita consumption. Matched estimates were sourced from the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Health Observatory. Findings The cohort studies had mean coverages of age 15+ per capita alcohol consumption of 61.71% (ranging from 29.19% for Russia to 96.53% for Japan), after weighting estimates by sample size for within‐country estimates and by number of studies per country for the overall estimate. Regional estimates were higher for the United States (66.22%) and lower for western European countries (55.35%). Conclusions: Underestimation of alcohol consumption in cohort studies is less than in typical population surveys. Because some under‐coverage is caused by under‐sampling heavier drinkers, the current practice of uplifting survey estimates to 80% of total population consumption in global burden of disease studies appears to be appropriate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper focuses on two countries, Japan and the U.S., to test the integration of capital markets. In Japan, the enactment of the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law in December of 1980 amounted to a true regime switch that virtually eliminated capital controls. Using multifactor asset pricing models, we show that the price of risk in the U.S. and Japanese stock markets was different before, but not after, the liberalization. This evidence supports the view that governments are the source of international capital market segmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Downsizing and layoffs are an important mechanism for U.S. firms to cope with their strategic and economic environment. In contrast, the Japanese tradition of lifetime employment limits the ability of firms to employ layoffs as a strategic measure, relegating its use to conditions of financial distress. This paper provides the first comparison of layoffs in Japan and the United States and examines stock price reactions to layoff announcements in each country from 1990 to 1994. Agency theory and Aoki's cooperative game theory are employed to discuss differences in the governance structures of U.S. and Japanese firms and their implication for stock price reactions. Results show that layoff announcements trigger negative returns for both U.S. and Japanese firms. Specifically, layoff announcements of U.S. firms are associated with a negative 1.78 percent abnormal return, while layoff announcements for Japanese firms are associated with a negative 0.56 percent abnormal return. To better understand the impact of layoffs, this study examines the relationships between stock price reactions and various layoff characteristics (such as whether the layoff is proactive or reactive or whether the layoff is the first in the industry). Implications of the findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops a theory of how the size of the domestic market shapes firm competencies. Our theory implies that large markets are beneficial even if factors such as economies of scale or learning effects are absent. We validate by an international comparison of the performance of firms that provide engineering services to the oil and petrochemical industry. We concluded that, relative to the United States, the competitiveness of European or Japanese industries is greater in activities whose underlying competencies are not product specific and can be utilized across a variety of products. The benefits of large markets are greatest for activities based on product-specific competencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the determinants of the choice between two alternative methods of pooling similar and complementary assets: the merger/acquisition and the greenfield equity joint venture. Two theories of the determinants of that choice are tested on a sample of Japanese investments in the United States. The results show that equity joint ventures are preferred over acquisitions when the desired assets are linked to nondesired assets because the U.S. firm owning them is large and not divisionalized, when the Japanese investor has little previous experience of the American market and hence seeks to avoid postmerger integration problems, when the Japanese investor and the U.S. partner manufacture the same product, and when the industry entered is growing neither very rapidly nor very slowly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although knowledge spillovers between firms play a critical role in the evolution of technology, we know little about such spillovers. How does knowledge flow across company boundaries? How do industry characteristics and national institutions shape knowledge diffusion? To what extent do companies direct knowledge flows? This study seeks answers to these questions by examining knowledge sharing patterns in the semiconductor industry. The research shows that public sources of technical data play a larger role in knowledge diffusion in Japan than in the United States and in semiconductors relative to steel. By understanding the mechanisms and determinants of knowledge flows, company managers and public policy makers can influence knowledge diffusion more effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Porter has argued that the U.S. capital investment system is deficient relative to those in Germany and Japan and this has caused a decline in the competitiveness of U.S. corporations. He suggests the increasing importance of financial institutions has led to transient ownership which encourages firms to focus on the short term. This paper argues that the openness and diversity of opinion encouraged by the U.S. financial system has significant advantages and transient ownership is consistent with firms taking a long view. It is suggested that the competitiveness of German and Japanese corporations may he due to the managerial incentives made possible by high growth rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past 4 years research teams from INSEAD (Fontainebleau), Boston University and Waseda University (Tokyo) have administered a yearly survey on the manufacturing strategy of the large manufacturers of the three industrialized regions of the world. In this paper the results for the 1986 survey are compared. One of the most striking results of that year's survey is the emphasis some of the more advanced manufacturers put on their efforts to overcome the trade-off between flexibility and cost efficiency. In particular for the Japanese respondents these attempts become clear. Europeans and North Americans are not yet seizing the opportunity to cut costs through rapid production and design changes, and are focusing more on traditional cost reduction programmes and the improvement of quality. This might mean that they are preparing the basis on which they can built to obtain added value from flexible automation. If this is the case then the Japanese are clearly ahead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the association between the use of advanced manufacturing practices and the choice of information and reward systems, and explores the impact of these choices on organizational performance. Although advanced manufacturing practices such as total quality management (TQM) have been widely adopted over the past decade, surveys indicate that most of these initiatives have not yielded significant economic benefits (e.g., Mathews and Katel [1992] and The Economist [1992]). Many accounting researchers charge that the poor performance of many new manufacturing initiatives is due in part to continued reliance on traditional management accounting systems that do not provide appropriate problem-solving data, performance measures, and reward systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How are multiple identities of Japanese people rank-ordered? Previous studies on multiple identities almost exclusively focus on people in the USA. Little is known about the structure of multiple identities of people living in other countries. Japan is a good comparative case because it has both similar and different social contexts than the USA. Analyzing a recent survey of a nationally representative sample of Japanese adults, I examine how multiple identities are rank-ordered by their salience among the Japanese. The results suggest that among ten identities, the most salient are the family-marital status identity, the occupational identity, and the national identity, while the least salient identities are social class, religious, and political identities. This identity rank-order differs from that found in a comparable study of Americans in that the rank-orders of national and religious identities are reversed. The observed patterns also seem to contradict an emerging line of cross-cultural research that suggests national identity is less important for the Japanese than for Americans. Overall, this paper empirically demonstrates the fundamental dictum of symbolic interactionism that self reflects society, and suggests the importance of specifying and examining country-level factors to study identity structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper identifies the types of shocks that affect the economies of Europe, the USA and Japan, and the transmission paths of those shocks between these countries. The identification of shocks is based on the Cointegrated VAR methodology. The categorization and interpretation of shocks are based on synthesis of theoretical studies on international business cycles and international policy coordination. We show that the Cointegrated VAR model is a valid choice and that it demonstrates good fit with the data-generating processes of the time series examined. We find that country-specific US permanent shocks transmit to Europe and Japan and, when positive, have a locomotive effect. The USA is not affected by the country-specific permanent shocks of Europe or Japan. The permanent shocks originating in Europe or Japan do not have a significant effect on the opposite country's growth rates. The model identifies one common symmetric transitory shock affecting all three countries. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a new approach that estimates the response of interest rates to inflation and the output gap at various points (quantiles) on the conditional distribution of interest rates. This offers an improvement on empirical estimates conducted only at the mean and also allows us to test the propositions that policy shows greater aggression to inflation in the reaction function in terms of a greater response coefficient as interest rates reach low levels, and increasing aggression as the lower bound is approached. We find support for the Taylor principle, a more aggressive response to inflation than under a Taylor rule, but no detectable evidence of increasing aggression as the zero lower bound is approached in the US and Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports laboratory experiments comparing arbitration behavior between and across two countries with extensive trade relations, the United States and Japan. Besides comparing disputes in both locations, we evaluate disputes between them. While we find nominal differences between the countries, we observe significant changes in both groups' behavior when facing someone from the other country. Specifically, Americans seek larger profits when facing a Japanese counterpart and Japanese subjects settle more frequently with an American counterpart. Our results suggest that the literature on bargaining behavior across cultures paints an incomplete picture of international comparisons by failing to consider bargaining interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proliferation of overlapping free trade agreements (FTA) in recent years has led to pair-wise hub-and-spokes (HAS) throughout the world. Being avid subscribers to FTAs, many countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including the United States, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Australia, have become trade hubs to their partners who are in turn relegated to spoke status. In this paper, we question whether being a hub is welfare optimal for a small and open economy such as Singapore compared to membership in a single bilateral FTA or a multi-member free trade zone. Within this context, we use a computable general equilibrium model to examine the welfare implications of the triangular trade relationship of the United States, Singapore and Japan. This is facilitated by the Japan–Singapore Economic Partnership Agreement, the USA–Singapore Free Trade Agreement, and a hypothetical USA–Japan Economic Partnership Agreement. The analysis is extended to incorporate ‘super-hub’ effects, that is, the spoke countries could be trade hubs in other HAS systems. Our experiment reveals that hub status generates positive welfare gain and is the highest Singapore can get from the trade configurations considered. Meanwhile, Japan loses more than the USA when both are relegated to spoke status. These findings prove to be robust under different market structures and production technologies, deeper economic integration, ‘super-hub’ effects, as well as uncertainty in the key model parameters and the extent of trade liberalisation shocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An exchange rate between two currencies can be materially affected by shocks emerging from a third country. A US demand shock, for example, can affect the exchange rate between the euro and the yen. Because positive US demand shocks have a greater positive impact on Japanese interest rates than on euro area rates, the yen appreciates against the euro in response. Using quarterly data on the United States, the euro area and Japan from 1981 to 2006, this paper shows that the third-currency effects are significant even when exchange rates evolve according to uncovered interest parity. This is because interest rates are typically set in response to output and inflation, which are in turn influenced by other exchange rates. More importantly, third-currency effects are also transmitted to the actual exchange rate through the expected future exchange rate, which is, in a multi-country set-up, influenced by third-countries' fundamentals and shocks. Third-currency effects have a stronger impact on the currency of a relatively more open economy. The analysis implies that small open economies should avoid strict forms of bilateral exchange rate targeting, since higher trade and financial openness work as a force intrinsically amplifying currency fluctuations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With China's share in global trade increasing rapidly, some argued in 2002-2003 that China was exporting deflation to other countries as it was dumping cheap goods in mature markets. Later, others argued that China was causing sharp increases in global prices. This paper uses several econometric techniques to assess the extent of the link between inflation rates between China and the USA and Japan. Only limited empirical evidence at the aggregate level is found for consumer price inflation in China leading to price changes in the USA and Japan. However, there is some evidence that inflation in the USA has an impact on Chinese inflation. The results seem consistent with the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan being concerned about inflation and, hence, adjusting policy such that inflation shocks have no significant effect on overall inflation. Recent Chinese price rises are unlikely to have a material effect on the USA or Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes empirical income distributions and proposes a simple stochastic model to explain the stationary distribution and deviations from it. Using the individual tax returns data in the U.S. and Japan for 40 years, we first summarize the shape of the income distribution by an exponential decay up to about the 90th percentile and a power decay for the top 1 percent. We then propose a minimal stochastic process of labor and asset income to reproduce the empirical characteristics. In particular, the Pareto exponent is derived analytically and matched with empirical statistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the formative years of biotechnology, ‘star’ bioscientists possessed intellectual capital of extraordinary scientific and pecuniary value. In America and Japan, 35 percent of star bioscientists became involved with firms in commercialising their discoveries (a crucial determinant of success) versus 7 percent in Europe. Did star involvement come at expense of scientific progress? No, the publication rate of these ‘involved stars’ increased very significantly whilst actively involved with firms. Furthermore, citations per article were unchanged or significantly increased; so quality was maintained. Top academic scientists and firms working together led to faster commercial and scientific progress – a truly virtuous circle. Durante los años formativos de la biotecnología, los bioinvestigadores “estrella” acumulaban un capital intelectual de extraordinario valor científico y pecuniario. En América y Japón, el 35 por ciento de bioinvestigadores “estrella” se involucraron con empresas en la comercialización de sus descubrimientos (determinante crucial del éxito) comparado con un 7 por ciento en Europa. ¿Fue este involucramiento a costa del progreso científico? No, la tasa de publicación de estos investigadores estrella aumentó muy significativamente mientras que estaban activamente involucrados con dichas empresas. Es más, el número de citas de sus artículos no cambiaron o aumentaron significativamente, y por tanto la calidad se ha mantenido. Los investigadores más eminentes y las empresas punteras trabajando juntos nos llevan más rápidamente al progreso comercial y científico – un círculo virtuoso verdadero. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Machine tool (MT) production is at the centre of most durable goods manufacturing and is in many ways, an indicator of a country's industrial prowess. Over the past three decades, the machine tool sectors of Japan and the United States have followed distinctly different trajectories. This paper compares and contrasts the performance and characteristics of the MT industries of both countries, with particular attention paid to several embedded differences in each country's manufacturing conditions at various levels. Once the world leader, the US MT industry is in a period of decline, despite signs of a rebound during the 1990s. Japanese MT producers continue to be among the world leaders in terms of both sales and technology, in the face of a recent domestic economic slowdown well over a decade long. The paper concludes with a discussion of the industry's future prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses a bivariate GARCH framework to examine the lead-lag relations and the conditional correlations between 10-year US government bond returns and their counterparts from the UK, Germany, and Japan. We find that while mean and volatility spillovers exist between the major international bond markets, they are much weaker than those between equity markets. The results also indicate that the correlations between the US and other major bond market returns are time varying and are driven by changing macroeconomic and market conditions. However, in contrast to the finding that the benefits of international diversification in equity markets evaporate during high-stress periods, we find that the benefits of diversification across major government bond markets do not decrease during periods of extremely high bond market volatility or following extremely negative US and foreign bond returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]