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Analyzed data from research on Japanese high school students' attitudes toward learning English to investigate female students' more positive attitudes toward English learning. Girls' attitudes toward English were affected by a composite of Japanese social and educational elements (e.g., characterization of English as a woman-dominant choice at Japanese schools and women's marginalization in Japanese mainstream society). (Contains references.) (SM)

Provides a brief overview of Japanese high school students in terms of 1995 post-school destinations and types of jobs obtained. Describes the school-based job referral process that systematically regulates job distribution for high school graduates, including high school-employer networks and guidance for students in employment-related decision-making. (KS)

The high level of college admission of women in Japan is analyzed relative to changes in social and educational values, continuing evidence of gender tracking, persistent doubts regarding "appropriateness" of higher education for women, employment opportunities and related national legislation, and values held by Japanese women themselves about education and social status. Emergence of women's studies courses are also discussed. (Author/MSE)

Democratization of education in Japan is still recent, and women continue to lag behind men in higher education. However, women's expectations of social participation are increasingly higher, and in another 10 years women graduates of the mass stage of higher education will reach the age for influential decision-making positions. (JHZ)

The author describes the Japanese Equal Employment Opportunity Law of 1985 and assesses its impact on economic opportunities for Japanese women. She argues that two aspects of Japan's socioeconomic environment--the lifetime employment system and the labor supply pattern of Japanese women--diminish its likely impact. (Author/CH)

Discusses the status of women in contemporary Japan. Describes their role as mothers and homemakers, the obstacles they face in maintaining developing careers, and the discrimination they face in a patriarchal society. (Author/ABB)

Examines the role which women's study groups and writing circles have played in the education of women in Japan, China, and the United States. Serves as an introduction to a cross-cultural study of women's history in the three cultures. Points out that the course raises questions about the politics of women's education. (LS)

Reforming Japanese higher education will not be easy. Stagnant budgets, rigid seniority systems, and a conservative bureaucracy that fears losing control all stand in the way of change. A series of changes proposed by the former Prime Minister are discussed. (MLW)

In Japan, orthopaedics is one of the medical fields with the lowest proportion of women. This study analyses the change in gender diversity over the past decade and estimates the time required to achieve the 30% gender diversity goal, according to the critical mass in Japan in 2020. We investigated the demographic composition of orthopaedic surgeons in 2020 by age group, the gender ratio of the main clinical fields from 2010 to 2020, and estimated the time required for the bottom 10 (i.e., least diverse) medical departments in Japan to reach the proportion of 30% women. We used simple linear regression analyses to clarify the number of years. In 2020, the population pyramid of orthopaedic surgeons showed that those in their 50s were the largest component with 24.1%, followed by those in their 40s and 30s with 22.3% and 19.4%, respectively. The percentage of women orthopaedic surgeons increased slightly from 4.1% in 2010 to 5.7% in 2020. This means that to achieve the proportion of 30% women at the current annual increase rate, orthopaedics would require up to 160 years, cardiovascular 149 years, and neurosurgery 135 years. Contrary to the recent increase in the number of women physicians, there has been only a slight increase in the number of women orthopaedic surgeons over the past decade. Moreover, the number of young male orthopaedic surgeons has decreased. As current orthopaedic surgeons age and retire, Japan will soon face an overall shortage of orthopaedic surgeons. Issues that must still be addressed in Japanese orthopaedics include educating men and women about gender diversity and bias, changing stereotypes about surgical lifestyles, improving work-life balance, and diligent and collaborative efforts at both the individual and community levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To investigate the effects of gender discrimination in Japan's medical school admission process and to assess whether the situation has improved since the disclosure of such discrimination in 2018. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using secondary data from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. The proportions of male and female applicants vis-à-vis all successful candidates admitted from 2016 to 2021 were analyzed; four medical schools were found to be systematically guilty of discriminatory admission practices. Acceptance rate ratios (ARRs) were estimated, and difference-in-differences (DID) analysis was used to examine the differences in ARRs between the two groups—the 4 and 75 medical schools that were and were not reported, respectively—in the predisclosure (2016–2018) and postdisclosure (2019–2021) periods. Results: Female applicants were subjected to discriminatory admission practices at the four reported medical schools in the predisclosure period. However, postdisclosure, those four medical schools had higher female than male acceptance rates in all 3 years. DID analysis revealed a statistically significant estimated average treatment effect on the treated of 0.25148 (95% confidence interval [0.00455–0.49840]), indicating a 0.25-point increase in ARRs relative to the other 75 medical schools. Conclusions: Discriminatory practices against female applicants have decreased since the disclosure in 2018, with the acceptance rate of female students exceeding that of male students for the first time in 2021. In response to these findings, we propose recommendations to further promote gender equality in medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many areas of medicine, gender equality has not yet been fully adopted despite recent developments. The inequality of gender in various areas of medicine is still debated. In this study, we analysed the gender composition of the editorial boards of toxicology journals in the Science Citation Index‐Expanded (SCI‐E) databases and the factors affecting this composition. The genders of the participants were determined by the data obtained from the official websites of the journals in September 2023. We analysed the journal metrics and publisher properties using Mann–Whitney U, Fisher's exact, Chi‐square tests and Spearman's correlation coefficient. We used logistic regression analysis to reveal the independent factors related to gender parity. The representation rates of women were 28.62% on all editorial boards and 23.33% in editor‐in‐chief positions. The 'Neuroscience' (OR, 2.46 95%CI, 1.68–3.60, p < 0.001), 'Reproductive Biology'(OR, 2.05 95%CI, 1.22–3.42, p = 0.006) and 'Public, Environmental & Occupational Health'(OR, 1.49 95%CI, 1.18–1.88, p = 0.001) as a coverage category, the United States as a journal country (OR, 1.21, 95%CI, 1.04–1.40, p = 0.001), 5‐year‐IF≥3.6(OR, 1.54, 95%CI, 1.27–1.86, p < 0.001), 5‐year H index≥29 (OR, 1.23, 95%CI, 1.01–1.49, p = 0.037) were the independent factors for gender parity. However, 'Oncology' (OR, 0.08 95%CI, 0.01–0.55, p = 0.011), 'Biochemistry, Molecular Biology' (OR, 0.62 95%CI, 0.44–0.86, p = 0.005) and 'Pharmacology & Pharmacy' (OR, 0.69 95%CI, 0.59–0.82, p < 0.001) as a coverage category, Japan as a publisher country (OR, 0.52 95%CI, 0.35–0.77, p = 0.001), and Switzerland as a journal country (OR, 0.61, 95%CI, 0.46–0.81, p = 0.001) were related to gender disparity. Greater endeavours are needed to reduce gender discrimination in toxicology. Toxicology authorities should continuously improve existing policies by optimising the analysis of objective information to eliminate barriers for toxicologists in terms of gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With a detailed historical analysis of postwar Japanese female employment, this article presents three underlying policy perspectives that shape the fact that women have less chance for high-quality employment despite the rising labor force participation rate. The three assumptions of women's role in policy-making are as follows: (1) women as housewives—dependent on males, do not earn a living salary and are thus marginalized in the labor market; (2) women as individuals pursuing gender equality should be treated without discrimination in the workplace; and (3) women as key drivers for economic growth can contribute to the solution to labor shortages. The postwar history of Japanese female employment is full of interaction among these three policy perspectives. Generally, it passes through phases of the dominance of the housewife perspective, the reformation from the equality perspective and the counterattack from the housewife perspective, as well as the mainstreaming of the economic actor perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since her debut in 2012, Fukazawa Ushio has become a critical voice in the Japanese literary scene, writing about social issues including hate speech against Zainichi Koreans, abuse of migrant workers, gender inequality, and misogyny. One of the significant aesthetic features of her work is the use of food and foodways to explore these issues. This article examines the short story collection The Matchmaker and the five-part food essay "When Yi Tongae Eats," focusing on their sensorial elaboration of Zainichi Koreans' experiences of discrimination and desire to belong, sitting both at the intersection of gender and ethnicity. Fukazawa's sensorial contemplation of the affective values associated with cooking, eating, and drinking, I argue, generates a sense of intimacy among characters and between text and reader that ultimately enables us to expand our understanding of the complexities of Zainichi Korean identity and their place in contemporary Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gender studies in the medical profession have revealed gender biases associated with being a doctor, a profession often regarded as more suitable for men. The path to gender equality inevitably involves deconstructing this masculinized assumption. Despite the decades-long expectation that ikumen–men who actively participate in childcare in Japan–would contribute to a change toward gender equality, Japanese society is still male dominated, and women suffer from a large gender gap. With the aim of exploring implicit gendered assumptions concerning being a caregiver and a doctor, the authors focused on the experience of individuals juggling the binary roles of a professional and a caregiver. Methods: The authors conducted subjectivist inductive research, recruited ten Japanese physician fathers through purposive sampling, and collected data through one-to-one semi-structured interviews between October 2017 and December 2018. The authors recorded and transcribed the narrative data, and extracted themes and representative narratives. Results: The study identified three themes about the reproduction and potential change of the gender gap: maintaining gendered assumptions of the medical profession without experiencing conflict, maintaining gendered assumptions of the medical profession while experiencing conflict, and deconstructing gendered assumptions of the medical profession through conflict. The authors found that these negotiations interplayed with the gendered division of labor between male doctors and their wives as well as the patriarchal family structure. Conclusions: The study revealed how gendered assumptions of the medical profession, as well as gender stereotypes and gendered division of household labor, were reproduced in the course of male doctors' negotiations when they became fathers. For male doctors to question their unconscious gender bias, the authors emphasize the importance of men gaining knowledge about gender stereotypes, and propose that educators create such opportunities. Moreover, the authors assert that increasing doctors' awareness of how masculinized assumptions implicitly interact with ideas of being a doctor—an aspect rarely discussed among medical professionals—is crucial for deconstructing the gendered normativity in the medical field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the fact that gender stereotypes may influence people's attitudes and feelings toward gendered robots, the present research conducted two questionnaire survey studies in Japan to investigate the relationships between expectations of gender assignments to robots and personal factors such as gender stereotypes and occupations. Study I aimed to clarify whether gender conceptions were actually related to feelings toward robots, as well as what factors affect these relationships. The results revealed that individuals with stronger gender biases had more negative attitudes in regard to the social influence of robots, and that correlations between negative attitudes toward interactions with robots and gender conceptions were age-dependent. Study II aimed to investigate what type of gender appearance was expected for nursing care robots. The results suggested that expectations of gender appearances were influenced by the participants' gender and relationships between their occupations and nursing care, as was anxiety regarding the robots. These results suggest that research on gender in human–robot interaction may promote the future realization of gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Japan has one of the world's most family‐friendly parental leave systems. However, a government survey conducted in 2020 found that less than 13 percent of male respondents exercised their right to take paternity leave, leaving the burden of child‐rearing to the mothers. Although Japan's Government has made parental leave a top priority, the effects on society are still modest. Work culture, labor regulation, and gender bias are some of the challenges in the imbalanced parenting problem. Solving a society‐related issue requires a holistic approach that considers complex multidimensional aspects. This paper uses the Unified Architecture Framework to model a Social Enterprise by investigating the Japanese parenting problem. We use the challenges and drivers identified in the Japanese case to explore viewpoints that place the human aspect of parenting together with business and policymaking. Lastly, we introduce the next parenting phase considering principles from Society 5.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent remarks by Yoshiro Mori, the ex-president of the Tokyo Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, have drawn international scrutiny on issues of gender discrimination in Japan, given Japan's dismal ranking in the Global Gender Gap Index. In this context, I examine the issue of gender discrimination in Japanese society, focusing on sports in Japan. Additionally, I provide three glaring examples of discrimination in sports that need to be addressed. The contempt for women in sports has been glorified in the guise of practicing 'tradition' and 'culture' and is justified through outdated rules. Thus, it is imperative to tackle this issue to achieve gender equality and the social advancement of women against the backdrop of rapid globalization. Hopefully, the consciousness of being in the global spotlight in the Olympic Games would act as a catalyst for Japan to usher in gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manzai, Japanese duo stand-up comedy, has a social aspect because it is based on social codes. This study focuses on ‘boyaki (blurting out) manzai’ in postwar Japan and analyzes its content from two perspectives (first, from the social context of then, and second, from the social context of now), in order to clarify its relationship with social norms. In boyaki manzai, the new culture (particularly the fashion and behavior of young women) that was introduced to the country after World War II was the subject of ridicule. However, the content of the manzai of then does not evoke laughter in the present social context. From the modern perspective, it is evident that the statements in boyaki manzai contain gender discrimination based on male-centric principles, and thus, it is sometimes perceived negatively. This study argues that the acceptable range of laughter changes with social norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Japan, many incidents regarding manga-like virtual agents have happened recently, in which critics have indicated that virtual agents used in public spaces are too sexual. Prior study defined this perception as "moe-phobia." In many cases, critics have pointed to agents' clothes. However, after verifying actual moe-phobia incidents, I hypothesize that these incidents are associated with not only the agents' clothes but also the situations in which they are used. I conducted an experiment with three factors and two levels to verify this hypothesis. The independent values were the agents' clothes, usage scenario, and the gender of the participants. The dependent values were the agents' trustworthiness, familiarity, likability, sexuality, and suitability as perceived by humans. I conducted the experiment with female and male groups and conducted a three-way ANOVA for each dependent value for each group. As a result, I observed a different tendency regarding the impression of the agents between female and male groups; however, both groups had the same tendency regarding the perceived suitability. The female and male participants judged the agents' suitability from not only their clothes but also the scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indeed, she elaborates her arguments around "three analytical sensibilities" (12): "the transnational historical study" (12), "the interdisciplinary study of sex, gender, and sexuality" (13) and the "flexible intersectionality" (14). She details in each chapter of Gender and Sexuality in Modern Japan the successes achieved by LBGTQ+ communities and feminists as well as by their allies, and concludes her book on a positive note. Cambridge, New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2022 ISBN: 9781108430722 (pbk); x +242 pp. reviewed by Flora Roussel A must-read-across disciplines and times From the Meiji period, which established the father figure as the centre "of both the family and household system (ie seido)" (3), through Article 14 of Japan's 1946 constitution, which declares gender, sexual, racial and social equality (7), to the #Me-Too movement of 2017, which culminated in the much publicised critique of Ito Shiori concerning Japanese legal institutions with regard to rape (1), Japanese society experienced deep transformations.[1] In , scholar Sabine Frühstück provides insightful accounts of how redefinitions of gender identity and sexuality have created new constellations in and alternatives to the traditional family, the job market, the media and the arts. [Extracted from the article]

This article explores the narratives of a group of Japanese women who, to escape gender discrimination in regular employment, deploy their linguistic expertise in temporary employment as interpreters. Building on research that highlights women's investment dynamics into languages as an organising construct for their professional growth, this article argues that a category of Japanese women are increasingly turning to the 'foreign option' to mark their presence in the labour market for linguistic services as temporary workers, in a feminised industry where they feel gender equity is secured. Drawing upon in-depth interviews, this article uses the profession of interpreting as a key case for a micro-level ethnographic understanding of a temporary form of skilled linguistic work and women's aspirations. Adopting a critical approach to linguistic instrumentalism, it contributes to research by examining a small but ambitious segment of the Japanese female labour force, who – by mobilising rare communication skills – constructs an emancipatory turn from gender-stratified corporate structures. The study finds that interpreting, and the ethos of linguistic instrumentalism it carries, promises to informants a work–life balance and career growth. However, findings also show that informants' engagement with interpreting is not immune from gender stereotypes and occupational segregation, and thus remains a 'professional chimera'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sport is recognized as playing a relevant societal role to promote education, health, intercultural dialogue, and the individual development, regardless of an individual's gender, race, age, ability, religion, political affiliation, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic background. Yet, it was not until the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London that every country's delegation included a female competitor. The gender gap in sport, although closing, remains, due to biological differences affecting performance, but it is also influenced by reduced opportunity and sociopolitical factors that influence full female participation across a range of sports around the world. Until the cultural environment is equitable, scientific discussion related to physiological differences using methods that examine progression in male and female world-record performances is limited. This commentary is intended to provide a forum to discuss issues underlying gender differences in sport performance from a global perspective and acknowledge the influence of cultural and sociopolitical factors that continue to ultimately affect female performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender diversity in corporate governance is a highly debated issue worldwide. National campaigns such as "2020 Women on Boards" in the United States and "Women on the Board Pledge for Europe" are examples of just two initiatives aimed at increasing female representation in the corporate boardroom. Several European countries have adopted board quotas as a means toward achieving gender diversity. Japan has passed an Act on Promotion of Women's Participation and Advancement in the Workplace to lay a foundation for establishing targets for promoting women. This Article examines the status of women in positions of leadership in the United States, several major countries in the European Union, and Japan. We focus on the legal backdrop in each jurisdiction regarding gender discrimination and studies tending to demonstrate the economic benefits of gender diversity. We conclude that although important steps have been taken in the direction of narrowing the gender gap in all jurisdictions examined, progress has been slow and difficult across the board. The issue of too few women at the top will not be resolved until there is a wider acceptance that female leaders can benefit their organizations and contribute to social and economic progress. Moreover, the presence of women on corporate boards is valuable in and of itself and the status quo ought to be further challenged in international business. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are estimated to be more than 10,000 children in Japan that are without the legal identity usually afforded through household registration. These children are placed in an extremely vulnerable position with diminished security and inadequate access to fundamental services provided by the state. In many cases, this situation continues into adulthood where a lifetime of difficulties awaits. In this article, I survey the recent context to provide insight into the complex legislative environment and a glimpse into the lives of the unregistered. Further, I argue that Japan's problem of unregistered children (mukosekiji) has been a matter of legislation that favours patriarchy and normative notions of family, which, combined with systemic inadequacies, has failed to sufficiently address the situation. I further argue that, the specific conditions of Article 772 of Japan's Civil Code that creates this type of statelessness reveals the indiscriminate and random effects within the exercise of state power that run counter to the intended outcomes of population governance, social control and legal status in Japan. This research is particularly relevant given Japan's demographic decline and resistance to progressive immigration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analytical prism of gender contract is used in this article as a means to conceptualize the cultural construction of the idea of the heteronormative "ordinary" Japanese family, a construct that gained hegemonic dominance over the course of Japan's stable prosperous postwar period (1960s-1980s); and from there, for examining the strength of this normative "contract" against post-bubble economic and social challenges. To further challenge the potential changes in the corporate gender contract,—particularly against the corporate culture—the study purposely sampled the second group of male and female interviewees, who were related to the so-called ikumen movement, which calls for greater involvement of men in family life and a better work–life balance. These men and women were not only from younger age cohorts compared to the first group of women and men. They also mostly resided in dual-income households, unlike the first group whose households were mainly based on a male breadwinner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Japanese Equal Employment Opportunity Law of 1985, effective in April 1986, prohibits gender discrimination with respect to recruitment, hiring, promotion, training, and job assignment. The author describes the law and assesses its probable impact on the economic opportunities of Japanese women. She argues that two aspects of Japan's socioeconomic environment--the lifetime employment system used by large Japanese private firms, and the labor supply pattern of Japanese women--make it unlikely that the law will have a large impact on the economic status of women in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To assess the working styles of men and women working as surgeons in Japan. Methods: In July, 2014, the Japan Surgical Society invited all their members ( n = 29,861), through an internet campaign, to participate in a nationwide survey of surgeons. The items investigated in this descriptive study included demographic information and working styles, based on a questionnaire. Results: In total, 6211 surgeons participated (response rate 20.8%, 5586 men and 625 women). The largest age stratum was 40-49 years for men and 30-39 years for women. Overall, respondents identified their labor contract, including salary and work hours, as the highest priority for improvement. Women with children were more likely to be part-time employees, work fewer hours, and take fewer house calls/on-calls than their male counterparts. Moreover, women of all ages earned a lower annual income than men, irrespective of whether they had children. Perception scores for discrimination related to work and promotion were significantly higher among women than men ( p < 0.01 and p = 0.011, respectively). Conclusions: A significant difference in working style was observed between men and women working as surgeons in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voices began calling for the ordination of women in the Anglican-Episcopal Church of Japan (Nippon Sei Ko Kai) in the 1980s. This article examines the worldwide debates on this issue, along with the development of feminist theology, and the responses within Japan. It traces the arguments presented both for and against the ordination of women, and the process that eventually resulted in the actual ordination of a woman as a priest in 1998. This article looks at this issue in terms of a reformation of the structure of sexual discrimination that had been formed in the church in Japan, and how it was the start of a way to revive the church in its mission to truly spread the Gospel of Christ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The olive weevil, Pimelocerus perforatus（Roelofs）（Coleoptera: Curculionidae）, is a serious pest of olive cultivation in Japan. Although male and female adults of weevils are generally very similar, we established a simple method for discriminating the sex of olive weevil adults based on external morphology. We found that the first through fourth abdominal ventrites of the females were longer than those of the males, while the fifth abdominal ventrite was shorter. Moreover, the length of the lateral margin of the second abdominal ventrite was markedly different between the sexes. As a result, the ratio of the medial length of the fifth abdominal ventrite to the lateral margin length of the second abdominal ventrite was distinct between the sexes in both wild and laboratory-reared populations of P. perforatus, i.e., the ratio was larger than 0.60–0.65 in females but smaller in males. In addition to this characteristic, the structure of the medial part of the first abdominal ventrite differed between the sexes: it was depressed in the middle in males but inflated in the middle in females. Based on these morphological differences, males and females of the olive weevil were successively discriminated from each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is an account of a personal journey from a foreigner in Japan to a psychoanalyst. The complicated issues of my family and discrimination in my childhood made me need to think about myself and the human mind. Although I would become a psychoanalyst after psychiatric training, the training of psychoanalysis in Japan at that time was not so established that I had difficulties to find the way to get it. I describe a number of events through my trainings, which were psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the Japan Psychoanalytical Association, psychoanalysis at the Menninger Clinic and in the Japan Psychoanalytic Society, andAmsterdam Shock. Especially, Amsterdam Shock was a turning point for the Society to change training systems. And also, that was the point I had to decide how I would reorganize my life; to become an analyst or not. They set me onto a long road toward becoming an analyst, but the experiences on this long way and in my childhood have become bases as an analyst. I mention the issues of psychoanalysis and working as a psychiatrist in private practice under the national health insurance system. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]