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Criminologists have despaired that modernization and crime are inseparable, but Japan has long been seen as an exception to the rule. In this book, the author finds that while it remains the case that crime reduction may come at some cost to individual autonomy, the "West" can learn from Japan to reduce the social harm of too much freedom. Instead of endless crime prevention programs through "social engineering," policy makers could pay more attention to sociological insights concerning responsibility, obligations and collective identities.
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Japan as a Low-Crime Nation Dag Leonardsen Japan as a Low-Crime Nation This page intentionally left blank Japan as a Low-Crime Nation Dag Leonardsen Lillehammer University College, Norway © Dag Leonardsen 2004 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2004 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin’s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan® is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 1– 4039–4111–4 hardback This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Leonardsen, Dag. Japan as a low-crime nation / by Dag Leonardsen. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1–4039–4111–4 1. Crime—Japan. 2. Crime—Sociological aspects—Japan. 3. Social values—Japan. 4. Japan—Social conditions—1945– I. Title. HV7113.5.L46 2004 364.952—dc22 10 13 9 12 8 7 11 10 6 09 2004042840 5 08 4 3 07 06 2 05 1 04 Printed and bound in Great Britain by Antony Rowe Ltd, Chippenham and Eastbourne To Maja This page intentionally left blank Contents List of Figures and Tables ix Preface xi Part I Theoretical and Methodological Clarifications 1. The Western Welfare Paradox. Or: Why is Japan an Interesting Case? The negative case of Japan The Western welfare paradox The failure of sociology? The end of the state? Right and left reactions Value conflicts between economy and society Have socio-economic values gained the upper hand in Japanese society? Organization of this book 2. Is Japan Really a Low-Crime Nation? A theoretical comment on comparative analysis: On emic and etic concepts and the social construction of crime The social construction of crime statistics Crime in the private sphere – how big is the iceberg? White collar crime – extensive but impossible to validate and compare What do statistics tell us? What do criminological scholars tell us? What does popular information on Japan tell us? Defining the field: narrowing the concept of crime Organized crime as a methodological challenge Economic