When interests are not preferences: The cautionary tale of Japanese consumers

Comparative Politics

Volumn 31, Issue 2, 1999, Pages 187-207

  Vogel, Steven K ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 0039401914     PISSN: 00104159     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2307/422144     Document Type: Review

References (123)

1. I define "interests" as objective values (expected preferences) and "preferences" as subjective values (actual preferences). Thus, analysts would derive interests from theory or measure them by some objective criteria, whereas they would determine preferences from survey data, case studies, and/or some other form of empirical research.
2. See, for example, Robert H. Bates, "Area Studies and the Discipline: A Useful Controversy?," and Chalmers Johnson, "Preconception vs. Observation, or the Contributions of Rational Choice Theory and Area Studies to Contemporary Political Science," PS: Political Science and Politics, 30 (June 1997), 166-74.
3. See, for example, Robert H. Bates, "Area Studies and the Discipline: A Useful Controversy?," and Chalmers Johnson, "Preconception vs. Observation, or the Contributions of Rational Choice Theory and Area Studies to Contemporary Political Science," PS: Political Science and Politics, 30 (June 1997), 166-74.
4. Theories of rationality come in two variants: those that espouse a "thick" view of rationality in which the theory defines the substance of rationality (such as the maximization of votes, power, or economic welfare) and those with a "thin" view of rationality in which the theory merely stipulates that actors behave according to certain basic requirements of rationality such as internal consistency, logical reasoning, and a correspondence between means and ends. See Donald P. Green and Ian Shapiro, Pathologies of Rational Choice Theory: A Critique of Applications in Political Science (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994), pp. 17-19.
5. Examples range from how producer interests "capture" regulators in the United States, to how urban elites bias economic policy in Africa, to how internationalization redefines economic interests. See George Stigler, "The Theory of Economic Regulation," Bell Journal of Economics and Management Science, 2 (Spring 1971), 3-21; Robert H. Bates, Markets and States in Tropical Africa: The Political Basis of Agricultural Policies (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981); and Jeffrey Frieden and Ronald Rogowski, "The Impact of the International Economy on National Policies: An Analytical Overview," in Robert O. Keohane and Helen V. Milner, eds., Internationalization and Domestic Politics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996), pp. 25-47.
6. Examples range from how producer interests "capture" regulators in the United States, to how urban elites bias economic policy in Africa, to how internationalization redefines economic interests. See George Stigler, "The Theory of Economic Regulation," Bell Journal of Economics and Management Science, 2 (Spring 1971), 3-21; Robert H. Bates, Markets and States in Tropical Africa: The Political Basis of Agricultural Policies (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981); and Jeffrey Frieden and Ronald Rogowski, "The Impact of the International Economy on National Policies: An Analytical Overview," in Robert O. Keohane and Helen V. Milner, eds., Internationalization and Domestic Politics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996), pp. 25-47.
7. Examples range from how producer interests "capture" regulators in the United States, to how urban elites bias economic policy in Africa, to how internationalization redefines economic interests. See George Stigler, "The Theory of Economic Regulation," Bell Journal of Economics and Management Science, 2 (Spring 1971), 3-21; Robert H. Bates, Markets and States in Tropical Africa: The Political Basis of Agricultural Policies (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981); and Jeffrey Frieden and Ronald Rogowski, "The Impact of the International Economy on National Policies: An Analytical Overview," in Robert O. Keohane and Helen V. Milner, eds., Internationalization and Domestic Politics (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996), pp. 25-47.
8. For example, Daniel Little, "Rational-Choice Models and Asian Studies," Journal of Asian Studies, 50 (February 1991), 41-42, argues that analysts are justified in assuming that all people are interested in their material welfare.
9. Atul Kohli, "The Political Economy of Development Strategies: Comparative Perspectives on the Role of the State," Comparative Politics, 19 (January 1987), 233-46, criticizes economistic assumptions about "interests" in work on two other areas of the world, Africa and India.
10. Richard Samuels, "Consuming for Production: Japanese National Security, Nuclear Fuel Procurement, and the Domestic Economy," International Organization, 43 (Autumn 1989), 625-46; Takatoshi Itō, Shōhisha jūshi no keizaigaku [Economics with an Emphasis on Consumers] (Tokyo: Nihon Keizai, 1992).
11. Richard Samuels, "Consuming for Production: Japanese National Security, Nuclear Fuel Procurement, and the Domestic Economy," International Organization, 43 (Autumn 1989), 625-46; Takatoshi Itō, Shōhisha jūshi no keizaigaku [Economics with an Emphasis on Consumers] (Tokyo: Nihon Keizai, 1992).
12. See Kent E. Calder, Crisis and Compensation: Public Policy and Political Stability in Japan (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988); Mark Tilton, Restrained Trade: Cartels in Japan's Basic Materials Industries (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996); Brian Woodall, Japan under Construction: Corruption, Politics, and Public Works (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996).
13. See Kent E. Calder, Crisis and Compensation: Public Policy and Political Stability in Japan (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988); Mark Tilton, Restrained Trade: Cartels in Japan's Basic Materials Industries (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996); Brian Woodall, Japan under Construction: Corruption, Politics, and Public Works (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996).
14. See Kent E. Calder, Crisis and Compensation: Public Policy and Political Stability in Japan (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1988); Mark Tilton, Restrained Trade: Cartels in Japan's Basic Materials Industries (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996); Brian Woodall, Japan under Construction: Corruption, Politics, and Public Works (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996).
15. According to a 1995 survey, overall prices in Tokyo were 1.59 times higher than in New York, 1.52 times higher than in London, and 1.34 times higher than in Paris. Tokyo prices were especially high in food products (1.77 times higher than New York), clothing and footwear (1.93), energy and water (2.17), and rent (2.06). See Economic Planning Agency, Seikeihi chōsa ni yoru kōbairyoku heika oyobi naigai kakakusa no gaikyō [Purchasing Power Parity and the Domestic-Overseas Price Gap as Seen in Living Expenditure Surveys] (1996).
16. Chalmers Johnson, MITI and the Japanese Miracle: The Growth of Industrial Policy, 1925-1975 (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1982).
17. Many others have qualified the bureaucratic autonomy thesis or rejected it outright. See Seizaburō Satō and Tetsuhisa Matsuzaki, Jimintō seiken [The LDP Regime] (Tokyo: Chūō Kōronsha, 1986); J. Mark Ramseyer and Frances McCall Rosenbluth, Japan's Political Marketplace (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1993).
18. Many others have qualified the bureaucratic autonomy thesis or rejected it outright. See Seizaburō Satō and Tetsuhisa Matsuzaki, Jimintō seiken [The LDP Regime] (Tokyo: Chūō Kōronsha, 1986); J. Mark Ramseyer and Frances McCall Rosenbluth, Japan's Political Marketplace (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1993).
19. See Susan J. Pharr, Political Women in Japan: The Search for a Place in Political Life (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981); and Sumiko Iwao, The Japanese Woman: Traditional Image and Changing Reality (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1993), pp. 214-64.
20. See Susan J. Pharr, Political Women in Japan: The Search for a Place in Political Life (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981); and Sumiko Iwao, The Japanese Woman: Traditional Image and Changing Reality (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1993), pp. 214-64.
21. Mancur Olson, The Logic of Collective Action (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1965).
22. Stigler; for a brief review of this literature, see Steven K. Vogel, Freer Markets, More Rules: Regulatory Reform in Advanced Industrial Countries (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996), pp. 13-16.
23. Michio Muramatsu, Mitsutoshi Itō, and Yutaka Tsujinaka, Sengo nihon no atsuryoku dantai (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1986), esp. pp. 265-71; Patricia Maclachlan, "Turned Away at the Gate: The Politics of Postwar Japanese Consumerism," manuscript, 1997.
24. Michio Muramatsu, Mitsutoshi Itō, and Yutaka Tsujinaka, Sengo nihon no atsuryoku dantai (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1986), esp. pp. 265-71; Patricia Maclachlan, "Turned Away at the Gate: The Politics of Postwar Japanese Consumerism," manuscript, 1997.
25. Maclachlan, pp. 18-19. Also, Paul Pierson, "When Effect Becomes Cause: Policy Feedback and Political Change," World Politics, 45 (July 1993), 594-628.
26. On the history of the postwar consumer movement, see Shōhisha Dantai Rengōkai, Shōdanren sanjūnen no ayumi [A Thirty-Year History of Shōdanren] (Tokyo: Zenkoku Shōhisha Dantai Renrakukai, 1987); the five part series in Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū (September 1994 through March 1996); and Maclachlan. For a bibliographic review, see Hiroshi Hanzawa, "Sengo shōhisha undō kanren bunken kaidai" [An Annotated Bibliography of the Postwar Consumer Movement] Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 33 (June 1993), 49-60.
27. On the history of the postwar consumer movement, see Shōhisha Dantai Rengōkai, Shōdanren sanjūnen no ayumi [A Thirty-Year History of Shōdanren] (Tokyo: Zenkoku Shōhisha Dantai Renrakukai, 1987); the five part series in Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū (September 1994 through March 1996); and Maclachlan. For a bibliographic review, see Hiroshi Hanzawa, "Sengo shōhisha undō kanren bunken kaidai" [An Annotated Bibliography of the Postwar Consumer Movement] Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 33 (June 1993), 49-60.
28. On the history of the postwar consumer movement, see Shōhisha Dantai Rengōkai, Shōdanren sanjūnen no ayumi [A Thirty-Year History of Shōdanren] (Tokyo: Zenkoku Shōhisha Dantai Renrakukai, 1987); the five part series in Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū (September 1994 through March 1996); and Maclachlan. For a bibliographic review, see Hiroshi Hanzawa, "Sengo shōhisha undō kanren bunken kaidai" [An Annotated Bibliography of the Postwar Consumer Movement] Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 33 (June 1993), 49-60.
29. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (September 1994), 51-53; Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (December 1994), 34; and Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (September 1995), 30-37
30. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (September 1994), 51-53; Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (December 1994), 34; and Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (September 1995), 30-37
31. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (September 1994), 51-53; Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 34 (December 1994), 34; and Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (September 1995), 30-37
32. See Frank Schwartz, Advice and Consent: The Politics of Consultation in Japan (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998).
33. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (September 1995), 38-42.
34. Maclachlan.
35. Ibid., pp. 43-46. On strategies of protest, see Susan J. Pharr, Losing Face: Status Politics in Japan (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), esp. pp. 109-44.
36. Ibid., pp. 43-46. On strategies of protest, see Susan J. Pharr, Losing Face: Status Politics in Japan (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), esp. pp. 109-44.
37. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (September 1995), 24-27.
38. Akira Shōda and Fusako Kanamori, Shōhisha mondai o manabu [Learning about Consumer Issues] (Tokyo: Yūhikaku, 1994), pp. 83-100.
39. Maclachlan, pp. 181-82.
40. Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (December 1995), 38-47; Maclachlan, pp. 137-68.
41. Interviews 1994-96; Maclachlan, pp. 202-96.
42. Charles Goodhart, "What Is the Purpose of Regulating Financial Services?," manuscript, 1987, thus turns the theory of regulation on its head.
43. Interview, October 1994.
44. Margaret A. McKean, "State Strength and the Public Interest," in Gary D. Allinson and Yasunori Sone, eds., Political Dynamics in Contemporary Japan (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1993), p. 97.
45. Margaret A. McKean, Environmental Protest and Citizen Politics in Japan (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981).
46. Interview with Hatsuko Yoshioka, deputy secretary general, Shufuren, August 6, 1991. Kent Calder, Strategic Capitalism: Private Business and Public Purpose in Japanese Industrial Finance (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993), pp. 233-34, notes that in 1974-75 some consumer groups protested the failure of financial institutions to adjust deposit interest rates upward to compensate for high inflation, but they still did not advocate liberalization.
47. Interview with Hatsuko Yoshioka, deputy secretary general, Shufuren, August 6, 1991. Kent Calder, Strategic Capitalism: Private Business and Public Purpose in Japanese Industrial Finance (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993), pp. 233-34, notes that in 1974-75 some consumer groups protested the failure of financial institutions to adjust deposit interest rates upward to compensate for high inflation, but they still did not advocate liberalization.
48. Interview with ministry of finance official, February 1991.
49. Shōhisha Dantai Rengōkai, pp. 132-35; Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (March 1996), 55-56.
50. Interview with Hiroko Mizuhara, secretary general, Nisshōren, October 3, 1994. Also see Naokazu Takeuchi, Nihon no shōhisha wa naze okoranai ka [Why Don't Japanese Consumers Get Mad?] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1990); and Kanryō teikoku o utsu [Attacking the Bureaucratic Empire] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1997).
51. Interview with Hiroko Mizuhara, secretary general, Nisshōren, October 3, 1994. Also see Naokazu Takeuchi, Nihon no shōhisha wa naze okoranai ka [Why Don't Japanese Consumers Get Mad?] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1990); and Kanryō teikoku o utsu [Attacking the Bureaucratic Empire] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1997).
52. Interview with Hiroko Mizuhara, secretary general, Nisshōren, October 3, 1994. Also see Naokazu Takeuchi, Nihon no shōhisha wa naze okoranai ka [Why Don't Japanese Consumers Get Mad?] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1990); and Kanryō teikoku o utsu [Attacking the Bureaucratic Empire] (Tokyo: Sanichi Shobō, 1997).
53. AERA, Oct. 10, 1994, pp. 23-24.
54. Tokyo Business Today (March 1990), 40-43.
55. Most consumers familiar with the consumer groups' positions state that the groups represent their interests. In one survey, for example, 38.1 percent said the consumer groups represent their interests; 5.9 percent said the groups do not represent their interests; 10.0 percent were undecided; and 39.3 said they were not sufficiently familiar with the consumer groups' positions. See Institute of Policy Management, Keio University; National Institute for Consumer Education, Eastern Michigan University; and American Express International, Shōhisha kokusai kaigi [International Consumer Conference] (Tokyo: Institute of Policy Management, 1992), p. 183.
56. Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 21, 1988. Similar surveys appeared in Yomiuri, July 6, 1981, July 5, 1982, Apr. 4, July 5, 1983, June 16, 1986, Feb. 9, June 8, 1987, June 6, 1988, and Nov. 28, 1989.
57. Yomiuri Shimbun, Nov. 21, 1988. Similar surveys appeared in Yomiuri, July 6, 1981, July 5, 1982, Apr. 4, July 5, 1983, June 16, 1986, Feb. 9, June 8, 1987, June 6, 1988, and Nov. 28, 1989.
58. Nikkei Weekly (March 31, 1997), 7; and Prime Minister's Office, Nihonjin no shokuseikatsu to shokuryō mondai [Japanese Eating Habits and Food Supply Issues] (Tokyo: PMO, 1988). Thus, as Robert Bullock, "Rice Liberalization in Japan" (manuscript, July 1995), argues persuasively, one can not attribute the partial liberalization of the rice market in December 1993 to consumer pressures because consumers did not support it.
59. Nikkei Weekly (March 31, 1997), 7; and Prime Minister's Office, Nihonjin no shokuseikatsu to shokuryō mondai [Japanese Eating Habits and Food Supply Issues] (Tokyo: PMO, 1988). Thus, as Robert Bullock, "Rice Liberalization in Japan" (manuscript, July 1995), argues persuasively, one can not attribute the partial liberalization of the rice market in December 1993 to consumer pressures because consumers did not support it.
60. Nikkei Weekly (March 31, 1997), 7; and Prime Minister's Office, Nihonjin no shokuseikatsu to shokuryō mondai [Japanese Eating Habits and Food Supply Issues] (Tokyo: PMO, 1988). Thus, as Robert Bullock, "Rice Liberalization in Japan" (manuscript, July 1995), argues persuasively, one can not attribute the partial liberalization of the rice market in December 1993 to consumer pressures because consumers did not support it.
61. David Vogel, "Consumer Protection and Protectionism in Japan," Journal of Japanese Studies, 18 (Winter 1992), 119-54.
62. Ibid., pp. 130-37; and Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (March 1996), 52-53.
63. Ibid., pp. 130-37; and Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 35 (March 1996), 52-53.
64. See Gyōsei Kaikaku Iinkai, Hikari kagayaku kuni o mezashite [Toward a Bright and Shining Nation] (Tokyo: Gyōsei Kanri Kenkyū Sentaa, 1996), pp. 300-64; and Hiroshi Doihara, "Kisei kanwa no shinten to shōhisha no taiō" [The Progress of Deregulation and Consumers' Response], Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 37 (June 1997), 1-16.
65. See Gyōsei Kaikaku Iinkai, Hikari kagayaku kuni o mezashite [Toward a Bright and Shining Nation] (Tokyo: Gyōsei Kanri Kenkyū Sentaa, 1996), pp. 300-64; and Hiroshi Doihara, "Kisei kanwa no shinten to shōhisha no taiō" [The Progress of Deregulation and Consumers' Response], Kokumin Seikatsu Kenkyū, 37 (June 1997), 1-16.
66. Patricia Maclachlan, "Consumer Groups and Regulatory Reform in the United States, Britain, and Japan," paper prepared for the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, August 1995, pp. 27-28.
67. Fuji Research Institute, "Kisei kanwa ni taisuru shōhisha dantai no taiō" [Consumer Groups' Response to Deregulation] (July 1995).
68. Interview with Yohsiyasu Ohta, September 17, 1994.
69. See Takeuchi, Nihon no shōhisha, esp. pp. 210-13.
70. Yomiuri Shimbun, May 4, 1990.
71. Martha Derthick and Paul J. Quirk, The Politics of Deregulation (Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution, 1985), esp. pp. 40-45.
72. Economist, May 21, 1994, pp. 63-65; and Maclachlan, pp. 35-37.
73. Interview with Yoshioka.
74. George Fields, Gucci on the Ginza: Japan's New Consumer Generation (New York: Kodansha International, 1989), pp. 56-59.
75. Eikan Kyū, Okore shōhisha [Consumers, Get Mad!] (Tokyo: PHP, 1991), pp. 169-70; Sotohiro Kojima, Kakaku no shinri [The Psychology of Price] (Tokyo: Daiyamondo, 1986), pp. 194-219.
76. Eikan Kyū, Okore shōhisha [Consumers, Get Mad!] (Tokyo: PHP, 1991), pp. 169-70; Sotohiro Kojima, Kakaku no shinri [The Psychology of Price] (Tokyo: Daiyamondo, 1986), pp. 194-219.
77. Economic Planning Agency, Shōhisha dantai kihon chōsa kekka [Basic Survey of Consumer Groups] (Tokyo: EPA, 1997).
78. In a fascinating study of nuclear energy policy, Samuels, "Consuming for Production," argues that national security concerns plus market ideology explain industrial consumers' tolerance of high energy prices.
79. Sheldon Garon, Molding Japanese Minds: The State in Everyday Life (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1997), esp. chs. 4, 6.
80. Far Eastern Economic Review, Sept. 8, 1988, pp. 96-97; Economist, Sept. 21, 1996, p. 39.
81. Far Eastern Economic Review, Sept. 8, 1988, pp. 96-97; Economist, Sept. 21, 1996, p. 39.
82. Maclachlan, pp. 64-67.
83. According to Economic Planning Agency, "Shōhisha dantai kihon chōsa no kekka" [1996 Basic Survey of Consumer Groups] (1997), 34.3 percent of consumer groups have regular meetings with other civic groups to exchange views, 32.7 percent work on joint projects, and 20.2 percent make joint appeals to the government or corporations.
84. In recent years consumer cooperatives known as lifestyle clubs (seikatsu kurabu) have begun to run candidates for local office, promoting political participation with an emphasis on local issues. See Joyce Gelb and Margarita Estevez-Abe, "Political Women in Japan: A Case Study of the Seikatsusha Network Movement," paper prepared for the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, August 1996; and Iwao, pp. 242-64.
85. Kristen R. Monroe, Michael C. Barton, and Ute Klingemann, "Altruism and the Theory of Rational Action: An Analysis of Rescuers of Jews in Nazi Europe," in Kristen R. Monroe, ed., The Economic Approach to Politics: A Critical Reassessment of the Theory of Rational Action (New York: HarperCollins, 1991), pp. 317-52, argue that identity can explain altruism where rationality can not.
86. Interviews, 1994-95.
87. Amartya K. Sen, "Rational Fools: A Critique of the Behavioral Foundations of Economic Theory," in Jane J. Mansbridge, ed., Beyond Self-Interest (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1990), pp. 25-43.
88. D. Vogel, pp. 146-51.
89. Japan Economic Journal, Feb. 6, 1988.
90. Jurō Hashimoto, Sengo no nihon keizai [The Postwar Japanese Economy] (Tokyo: Iwanami Shinsho, 1995), pp. 43-44.
91. S. Vogel.
92. Japan Economic Journal, Feb. 6, 1988.
93. Economic Planning Agency, Kokumin seikatsu hakusho [People's Lifestyle White Paper] (Tokyo: Ōkurashō Insatsukyoku, 1993), pp. 312-13.
94. Itō; Kyū; Yukio Noguchi, Nihon keizai kaikaku no kōzu [A Plan for the Reform of the Japanese Economy] (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1993); Iwao Nakatani and Hiroko Ōta, Keizai kaikaku no bijon [A Vision of Economic Reform] (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1994).
95. Itō; Kyū; Yukio Noguchi, Nihon keizai kaikaku no kōzu [A Plan for the Reform of the Japanese Economy] (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1993); Iwao Nakatani and Hiroko Ōta, Keizai kaikaku no bijon [A Vision of Economic Reform] (Tokyo: Tōyō Keizai, 1994).
96. Tony Freyer, "Antimonopoly Law and Deregulation in Japan during the 1990s: Meaningful Measures of Change?," manuscript, 1996, pp. 22-25.
97. Los Angeles Times, July 12, 1994, p. D6.
98. Leonard J. Schoppa, Bargaining with Japan: What American Pressure Can and Cannot Do (New York: Columbia University Press, 1997).
99. Interview, April 1996. The two primary organizations are the National Advisors' Association (zenkoku sōdannin kyōkai), affiliated with the Economic Planning Agency, and the Consumer Advisor and Consultant Association (shōhi seikatsu adobaizaa konsarutanto kyōkai). affiliated with MITI.
100. Interview with Nagayo Katō, April 22, 1996.
101. See Mark Schreiber, "Imports Start to Shake Japan's Consumer Markets," Japan Quarterly (January-March 1995), 33-43. Wholesale prices fell for five straight years, from 1991 through 1995, while retail prices have barely risen in the 1990s, falling 0.1 percent in 1995, for example, and rising 0.1 percent in 1996. Bank of Japan, Keizai tōkei nenpō [Economic Statistics Annual] (1997), p. 18.
102. See Mark Schreiber, "Imports Start to Shake Japan's Consumer Markets," Japan Quarterly (January-March 1995), 33-43. Wholesale prices fell for five straight years, from 1991 through 1995, while retail prices have barely risen in the 1990s, falling 0.1 percent in 1995, for example, and rising 0.1 percent in 1996. Bank of Japan, Keizai tōkei nenpō [Economic Statistics Annual] (1997), p. 18.
103. Institute of Policy Management, p. 195.
104. Shufu Rengōkai, Shufu no ishiki chōsa - kisei kanwa ni tsuite [Housewives' Survey on Deregulation] (Tokyo: Shufu Rengōkai, 1995), p. 12.
105. Milton Friedman, "The Methodology of Positive Economics," in Milton Friedman, ed., Essays in Positive Economics (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953); Kenneth Waltz, Theory of International Politics (New York: Random House, 1979), pp. 5-6. In contrast, George Tsebelis, Nested Games: Rational Choice in Comparative Politics (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), pp. 31-33, argues that theorists must be concerned with the realism of their assumptions.
106. Milton Friedman, "The Methodology of Positive Economics," in Milton Friedman, ed., Essays in Positive Economics (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953); Kenneth Waltz, Theory of International Politics (New York: Random House, 1979), pp. 5-6. In contrast, George Tsebelis, Nested Games: Rational Choice in Comparative Politics (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), pp. 31-33, argues that theorists must be concerned with the realism of their assumptions.
107. Milton Friedman, "The Methodology of Positive Economics," in Milton Friedman, ed., Essays in Positive Economics (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1953); Kenneth Waltz, Theory of International Politics (New York: Random House, 1979), pp. 5-6. In contrast, George Tsebelis, Nested Games: Rational Choice in Comparative Politics (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), pp. 31-33, argues that theorists must be concerned with the realism of their assumptions.
108. On the practical application of rational choice theory, see Monroe, ed.: Green and Shapiro: Tsebelis; Little; and Mansbridge, ed. On rational choice theory applied to Japan, see Chalmers Johnson and E. B. Keehn, "A Disaster in the Making: Rational Choice and Asian Studies," The National Interest, 36 (Summer 1994); Joseph P. Gownder and Robert Pekkanen, "The End of Political Science? Rational Choice Analyses in Studies of Japanese Politics," Journal of Japanese Studies, 22 (1996); and Leviathan, 19 (Fall 1996).
109. On the practical application of rational choice theory, see Monroe, ed.: Green and Shapiro: Tsebelis; Little; and Mansbridge, ed. On rational choice theory applied to Japan, see Chalmers Johnson and E. B. Keehn, "A Disaster in the Making: Rational Choice and Asian Studies," The National Interest, 36 (Summer 1994); Joseph P. Gownder and Robert Pekkanen, "The End of Political Science? Rational Choice Analyses in Studies of Japanese Politics," Journal of Japanese Studies, 22 (1996); and Leviathan, 19 (Fall 1996).
110. On the practical application of rational choice theory, see Monroe, ed.: Green and Shapiro: Tsebelis; Little; and Mansbridge, ed. On rational choice theory applied to Japan, see Chalmers Johnson and E. B. Keehn, "A Disaster in the Making: Rational Choice and Asian Studies," The National Interest, 36 (Summer 1994); Joseph P. Gownder and Robert Pekkanen, "The End of Political Science? Rational Choice Analyses in Studies of Japanese Politics," Journal of Japanese Studies, 22 (1996); and Leviathan, 19 (Fall 1996).
111. For example, Carol Lutfy, "The Docile Charm of the Japanese Consumer," Far Eastern Economic Review, Nov. 3, 1988, pp. 79-81; and Barbara Buell, "Japan's Silent Majority Starts to Mumble," Business Week, Apr. 23, 1990, pp. 52-54. To be fair, some journalists have produced more accurate analyses. John Marcom, Jr., "Why Japanese Consumers Don't Resist Import Rules That Force Up Food Prices," Wall Street Journal, May 4, 1982, p. 38; Susan Chira, "Diffuse Goals Set by Naders of Japan," New York Times, July 14, 1986, p. D10.
112. For example, Carol Lutfy, "The Docile Charm of the Japanese Consumer," Far Eastern Economic Review, Nov. 3, 1988, pp. 79-81; and Barbara Buell, "Japan's Silent Majority Starts to Mumble," Business Week, Apr. 23, 1990, pp. 52-54. To be fair, some journalists have produced more accurate analyses. John Marcom, Jr., "Why Japanese Consumers Don't Resist Import Rules That Force Up Food Prices," Wall Street Journal, May 4, 1982, p. 38; Susan Chira, "Diffuse Goals Set by Naders of Japan," New York Times, July 14, 1986, p. D10.
113. For example, Carol Lutfy, "The Docile Charm of the Japanese Consumer," Far Eastern Economic Review, Nov. 3, 1988, pp. 79-81; and Barbara Buell, "Japan's Silent Majority Starts to Mumble," Business Week, Apr. 23, 1990, pp. 52-54. To be fair, some journalists have produced more accurate analyses. John Marcom, Jr., "Why Japanese Consumers Don't Resist Import Rules That Force Up Food Prices," Wall Street Journal, May 4, 1982, p. 38; Susan Chira, "Diffuse Goals Set by Naders of Japan," New York Times, July 14, 1986, p. D10.
114. For example, Carol Lutfy, "The Docile Charm of the Japanese Consumer," Far Eastern Economic Review, Nov. 3, 1988, pp. 79-81; and Barbara Buell, "Japan's Silent Majority Starts to Mumble," Business Week, Apr. 23, 1990, pp. 52-54. To be fair, some journalists have produced more accurate analyses. John Marcom, Jr., "Why Japanese Consumers Don't Resist Import Rules That Force Up Food Prices," Wall Street Journal, May 4, 1982, p. 38; Susan Chira, "Diffuse Goals Set by Naders of Japan," New York Times, July 14, 1986, p. D10.
115. The New York Times, July 5, 1993, p. 1.
116. The New Republic (April 18, 1994), 9-10.
117. Okimoto, p. 36; also, Hugh Patrick, "The Economic Dimensions of the U.S.-Japan Alliance: An Overview," in Daniel Okimoto, ed., Japan's Economy: Coping with Change in the International Environment (Boulder: Westview, 1982), pp. 168-69, 194n34.
118. Frances McCall Rosenbluth, Financial Politics in Contemporary Japan (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1989).
119. Motoshi Suzuki, "Gōriteki sentaku shinseidoron ni yoru nihon seiji kenkyū no hihan-teki kōsatsu" [A Critical Review of Rational Choice New Institutionalist Research on Japanese Politics], Leviathan, 19 (Fall 1996), 86-104, argues that much rational choice work on Japan, including that of Ramseyer and Rosenbluth, defines individual preferences too much in terms of narrow material interest.
120. Rosenbluth, "Internationalization and Electoral Politics in Japan," in Keohane and Milner, pp. 137-56. Similarly, Ramseyer and Rosenbluth, pp. 55-57, suggest that LDP leaders tried to appeal to urban consumers in 1990 by allowing banks to issue credit cards (as opposed to debit cards or charge cards). Yet they provide no evidence that consumers desired this change, conveyed this preference, or had any impact on the decision whatsoever. In fact, consumers were highly ambivalent about the introduction of credit cards and expressed no preference on this regulatory change. See Shufu Rengōkai, "Shufu no ishiki chōsa" hōkokusho - shōhisha shinyō ni tsuite [Housewives' Survey on Consumer Credit] (Tokyo: Shufu Rengōkai, 1983); and Institute of Policy Management et al., Shōhisha kokusai kaigi.
121. Rosenbluth, "Internationalization and Electoral Politics in Japan," in Keohane and Milner, pp. 137-56. Similarly, Ramseyer and Rosenbluth, pp. 55-57, suggest that LDP leaders tried to appeal to urban consumers in 1990 by allowing banks to issue credit cards (as opposed to debit cards or charge cards). Yet they provide no evidence that consumers desired this change, conveyed this preference, or had any impact on the decision whatsoever. In fact, consumers were highly ambivalent about the introduction of credit cards and expressed no preference on this regulatory change. See Shufu Rengōkai, "Shufu no ishiki chōsa" hōkokusho - shōhisha shinyō ni tsuite [Housewives' Survey on Consumer Credit] (Tokyo: Shufu Rengōkai, 1983); and Institute of Policy Management et al., Shōhisha kokusai kaigi.
122. Rosenbluth, "Internationalization and Electoral Politics in Japan," in Keohane and Milner, pp. 137-56. Similarly, Ramseyer and Rosenbluth, pp. 55-57, suggest that LDP leaders tried to appeal to urban consumers in 1990 by allowing banks to issue credit cards (as opposed to debit cards or charge cards). Yet they provide no evidence that consumers desired this change, conveyed this preference, or had any impact on the decision whatsoever. In fact, consumers were highly ambivalent about the introduction of credit cards and expressed no preference on this regulatory change. See Shufu Rengōkai, "Shufu no ishiki chōsa" hōkokusho - shōhisha shinyō ni tsuite [Housewives' Survey on Consumer Credit] (Tokyo: Shufu Rengōkai, 1983); and Institute of Policy Management et al., Shōhisha kokusai kaigi.
123. For example, Frieden and Rogowski offer a useful first step in understanding how internationalization affects domestic politics by specifying how economic theory would lead us to believe it might redefine interests and then complement this step with an analysis of institutions.