Using Japanese prefecture-level data for the years 1979 and 1996, I explore the extent to which inequality, age heterogeneity, and human capital have an effect upon neighborhood trust, which is ordinarily considered as a kind of particularized trust. The major findings are as follows: (1) Income...

In the present paper, the inverted-U shape relationship between growth and inequality found in Chen(2003), is reexamined. We decompose productivity growth into efficiency improvement, capital accumulation and technological progress and then ascertain their determinants by employing a fixed...

This paper examines the cubic form hypothesis and the flying geese pattern hypothesis of income distribution. We use time series data for the Gini coefficients of Korea for 1961-2006 and panel data calculated based on a household income survey for the period 1998-2003. We show; (1) The Korean...

It is shown that the evolution of modern developed societies results into reduction of the role of centralized governance as well as economic and political competition, whereas the role of collaboration mechanisms is growing. This process is supported by cultural changes: increasing trust,...

Sumo wrestling is a traditional fighting sport in Japan and has been popular since the 18th century (the Edo period). Using a data set for all sumo wrestlers in the post-World War II period, this paper investigates how wrestlers’ body mass index (BMI) is associated with their win rate and...

We develop a dynamic model for analyzing the programs of contractual savings for housing (CSH). We introduce concepts of stability as well as strong and weak stability of trajectories generated by CSH programs, and obtain the necessary and sufficient conditions that guarantee fulfillment of...

The great Hanshin-Awaji (Kobe) earthquake, which occurred in 1995, resulted in tremendous economic damage to the city of Kobe. Using individual-level data of Japan during the period 2000–08, I investigated the long-term impact of the earthquake on the happiness of surviving victims. After...

The Japanese General Social Survey was used to determine how individual preferences for income redistribution are affected by family structure, such as the number of siblings and birth order where individuals grow up. After controlling for various individual characteristics, the important...

The theory of reforms usually assumes that a designer aims to increase public welfare under existing constraints. In practice, however, initiators of reforms quite often proceed from false premises, and pursue political and-or self-interested goals. In this paper, we analyze an example of such...

This paper explores how a perceived tax burden is influenced by the degree that neighbors prefer income redistribution. Further, this paper investigates how the influence of neighbors is affected by the degree of interaction between neighbors. For these purposes, individual-level data and place...