Chikio Hayashi

Changes in belief systems, quality of life issues and social conditions over 25 years in post-war Japan

SummaryThe data, which are analyzed in the paper, are based on the continuing nation wide random sample surveys which have been conducted every five years over 25 years since 1953 in Japan by the Research Committee on the Study of Japanese National Character of the Institute of Statistical Mathematics. The importance of the changes in belief systems and ways of thinking is insisted. It is remarked that only the simple tabulations by various breakdowns and simple cross-tabulations among the 2 or 3 questions do not always reveal the changes of belief systems and ways of thinking. The statistical method of principal component analysis of categorical data, which is called theory of quantification of response pattern (quantification method III) and equivalent to Benzécris correspondence analysis, is effectively adopted to reveal them. The consistency and the features of change of them over 25 years in post-war Japan emerge. This paper also gives useful examples how to use the quantification method III.

Quantitative social research in Germany and Japan

Japan and Germany are two settings for the craft of sociology with a long tradition of the field, dating back to the late 19th century. And — contrary to international stereotypes — sociology was in both countries right from the beginning, at the same time, both theoretical/philosophical and empirical. Examples for Japan are the many studies of village communities, and for Germany Ferdinand Ton-nies’ quantitative studies of social correlates for differences in crime rates.

Note on multidimensional quantification of data obtained by paired comparison

This note is described as a supplement to the paper [1] published previously, to give remarks to which we must refer in applying our method to practical data obtained experimentally by paired comparison. In [1], we discussed the case where only m~js (the number of judges who judge 0 ~ O j) are known and the preference pattern by each judge between O~ and Or, i, j = l , . . , N, i r N being the size of objects (we call PPEJ), is not available. If PPEJ is available, it is not always advantageous to apply the method directly. In such a case, it is desirable to classify the judges into several groups, by using the information of PPEJs, so that within each group we find judges showing similar features (preference patterns) and that between different groups we find judges of different features, and then to apply the model B of [1] in each group. Thus we can reveal the group-difference through PPEJs and make an inference concerning the preference structure constructed by judges and objects. In grouping, it is useful to apply the e~t-type-quantification [2]. Let N N e~ be 5] Z a~j(k, l) where a~(k, l) means 1 when the k th judge and the i = 1 j = l

Time, Age and Ways of Thinking: From the Kokuminsei Surveys

F OR MORE THAN 20 years the Institute of Statistical Mathematics in Tokyo has been engaged in a continuing study of Japanese national character. We have conducted nation-wide sample surveys every five years, and recently we added a survey of Nikkeyin (persons of Japanese descent) in Hawaii. A wealth of material from these surveys .is .on hand, and portions of it have been published in Japanese. (The two basic reports,, Kokuminsei Chosa Iinkai 1961 and 1970, include English-language summaries; see also Hayashi 1973.) I wish here to draw on portions of this material in order to point up some apparent time and age trends in adult Japanese ways of thinking. We regard kokuminsei (&dquo;national character&dquo;) for purposes of our research as the way of thinking of a people. Operationally, it is the patterning of at-. titudes revealed in public opinion surveys. In our work we have been approaching Japanese national character in five main ways (for details see Ko-

Problems related to directory/exdirectory phone number: results from metropolitan area survey

For the aim to clarify problems related to directory/exdirectory phone number(D/E), the result of a random sample survey of the residents in metropolitan area(age: 18-69)by New AOR group in the Advertisement Bureau of Asahi Press was used and the950respondents for the question of D/E were used. With the information on actual state of D/E, the characteristics of persons with D/E were examined. In this study we focused on the problems of D/E and false response and examined the characteristics related to social interests and psychological aspects. The results by the Quantification Method III indicated that social interests of the respon dents were not correlated with their psychological aspects. The characteristics of persons with exdirectory phone number were younger, having lower education, aid-responsibility canon and much interest in mysterious and supernatural phenomenon, etc.. On the other hand, the charac teristics of persons with false response were highly related to psychological aspects.