Some European Perceptions of Japan's Work‐ethos in the Tokugawa Era: A Limited Survey of Observations from the West's First Encounters Offers Parallels to Today's

M. Shahid Alam

American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 1987, vol. 46, issue 2, 229-243

Abstract: Abstract. During the Tokugawa Era (1603‐1867), early European travelers from several nations encountered the work‐ethos of previously secluded Japan and recorded their observations in correspondence, articles and books. These perceptions are categorized under three headings, effort propensity, social efficiency capital and social rationality. Analysis of the construct thus achieved indicates that from this aspect the Japanese—in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries—appear to have been an industrious, efficient and disciplined people. These findings offer striking parallels to the observations in our contemporary literature. We shall not know how accurate these observations are until the economic and social historians supply more exhaustive evidence based on Japanese as well as European sources. But discrete use can be made of the information we now have.

Date: 1987
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