Choice of Workplace and Commuting Among Japanese Metropolitan Suburbanites in Northwestern Chiba Prefecture, Japan(Symposlum: The Diversification of Women's Work and Life in Japan: An Approach from Geography)

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to elucidate job-search behavior among Japanese metropolitan suburbanites by life course, generation and gender. Most first-generation suburbanites are from non-metropolitan areas. They constitute nuclear families who cannot expect the help of their parents living in non-metropolitan areas. Therefore, most husbands commute long distances; however, household responsibilities such as child-care and housekeeping tend to limit employment opportunities and commuting distance for wives. Many such wives leave their work upon marriage or childbirth. Once their children have enrolled in elementary school, they return to work, making their choices of workplace via social networks and/or advertisements. In contrast, among the generation of their children as second-generation suburbanites, the commuting distance of unmarried women tends to be longer than that of unmarried men. Their lifepaths are similar to each other due to the fact that they have grown up in metropolitan suburbs themselves. Many unmarried men begin to live alone after getting a job; unmarried women, however, are forced into long distance commuting from their parents' home because of the Japanese traditional idea that parents do not allow them to live alone. Moreover, means of searching for a job differ greatly by educational background in Japan. Therefore, choice of occupation and workplace also differs greatly by educational background, a tendency which is stronger in men than in women. As such, their job-search behavior differs according to life course choices at the various stages of life, which leads to differences in commuting.