The Demographic Challenge: A Handbook About Japan

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This Handbook explores the challenges demographic change poses to today's Japan. The first part provides the fundamental data involved, and the subsequent two parts address the social and cultural aspects of Japan's demographic change. Parts four and five are dedicated to the political, economic and social security aspects of demographic change. The Handbook brings together a group of international scholars of various disciplinary backgrounds to take issue with the world's fastest demographic transition. Topics include the dynamics of gender roles, images of age, policy formation, labour market structures, pension system, living arrangements, ethical values, and many more. Against the background of Japan's demographic change, the latest developments in these fields are being introduced, and whenever appropriate set into a context of historical and/or international comparison. This Handbook is the first comprehensive publication in English on Japan's demographic change.

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The Demographic Challenge: A Handbook about Japan The Demographic Challenge: A Handbook about Japan Edited by Florian Coulmas, Harald Conrad, Annette Schad-Seifert and Gabriele Vogt LEIDEN • BOSTON 2008 This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The demographic challenge : a handbook about Japan / edited by Florian Coulmas . . .[et a l.]. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 978-90-04-15477-3 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Population aging—Japan. 2. Japan—Population. 3. Demographic transition—Japan. 4. Population aging—Government policy—Japan. I. Coulmas, Florian. HQ1064.J3D45 2008 304.6’20952—dc22 2008006516 ISBN 978 90 04 15477 3 Copyright 2008 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands To Marga Dinkel, as a token of our appreciation for twenty years of unflagging service to Japanese Studies CONTENTS Acknowledgements ..................................................................... General Introduction .................................................................. xiii xv PART I Fundamentals of Japanese Demographics Introduction ................................................................................ Case in Point: The Last Japanese 1. Japan’s Population Growth during the Past 100 Years ......... Makoto Atoh 2. Fertility and Mortality ............................................................ Hans Dieter Ölschleger 3. Statistical Foundations of Population Projections ................. Ryuichi Kaneko 4. Regional Demographics ....................................................... Ralph Lützeler 5. Demographic Comparisons with Other Countries with the Emphasis on the More Developed Regions .......................... Shigemi Kono 6. History of Demography in Japan ......................................... Matthias Koch 3 5 25 41 61 81 97 PART II Social Aspects of Demographic Change Introduction ............................................................................... Case in Point: Parental Leave: Women and Men 7. Social Ageing and the Sociology of Ageing ......................... Sepp Linhart 8. C