This paper aims to clarify the factors affecting problematic eating behaviors of female junior high and high school students using individual data from a survey conducted by the Benesse Educational Research and Development Center in 2009. The multinomial logit model was employed; its estimation results suggest that a student who fulfills the following conditions is more likely to exhibit problematic eating behaviors such as excessive binge eating and restrictions on eating to lose weight: 1) high frequency of eating dinner alone; 2) high frequency of eating convenience store or supermarket boxed lunches; 3) high frequency of visiting game centers, karaoke, family restaurants, and fast food shops after school; 4) dependence on friends; 5) low frequency of conversation with parents; and 6) complaints regarding general malaise.

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This paper empirically analyzes the role of community garders from both agronomy and interaction aspects. We conducted a hearing survey for all famers doing community gardens in Nerima. As a conclusion, it has emerged that community gardens plays multiple roles. From the point of view of agronomy business, community garders contribute to maintaining high profitability, saving and reducing labor force by reducing shipping labor, improving agronomy in terms of both profitability and labor efficiency, and securing younger farmers and successors by clarifying an agronomy vision of future. In terms of interaction, maintaining farming repeaters and generating fondness for gardens, developing supporters through accumulated relationships, promoting understanding of agriculture for community garden users and the neighborhood, and establishing a new sense of value regarding agriculture for farmers. In total and taking account of these roles, it is apparent that community gardens afford significant potential to spread in rural areas.

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This paper aims to reveal the roles of agricultural cooperatives in concluding contract deals between agricultural cooperatives and preserves manufacturers, which supplies all harvested apples for processing. The results are as follows. First, agricultural cooperatives have grasped farmer's behaviors, so that, manufacturers can save the monitoring cost for opportunistic behavior of farmers. Second, agricultural cooperatives have supplied other apples for manufacturers, so it is difficult for manufacturers to break an agreement of contract, regarding such elements as price, in order to maintain those transactions. Third, agricultural cooperatives enable attainment of economies of scales by assembly of apples and procurement of young plants. Fourth, agricultural cooperatives enable savings on transaction costs for recruitment of farmers and negotiation with each farmer.

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This paper examined the measures supporting “UI-turn” migration to rural areas. The policies that bring urban residents to migrate to rural areas have been led by the government. So “Kimino-Teiju-wo-Shiensuru-kai”, which is an intermediary organization in Kimino Town, has promoted such migration. Based on a questionnaire survey to migration in Kimino Town, we identified the following findings. First, about half percent of the total migrants are the young generations. Second, migrants who have taken careful measures as instructed by the “Kimino-Teiju-wo-Shiensuru-kai” have built good relationships with local residents. And third, migrants ask for help in the areas as follows: “looking for work”, “looking for house”, and “support of life”.

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This study illustrates the key role of small-scale farmer's markets. While many large-scale farmer's markets are established, the regional promotion base of small-scale farmer's market in the rural area where management of local shops is difficult due to progress of depopulation was considered in the case of the Otagawa farmer's market of Akiota town, Hiroshima Prefecture. In the Otagawa farmers market, reform has been advanced from 2015 on the basis of a management crisis. Through a hearing and questionnaire survey, we identified thoughts about the significance of the existence of the store and devised responses to local residents in terms of management strategy. It is suggested that focusing the day-to-day life patterns within the area and having social function to support it will lead to enhancing the significance of the existence of small farmer's markets.

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[in Japanese]

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This paper aims at analyzing fund procurement and operation of banks in Yingkou city, Liaoning Province, China. The results are as follows. First of all, in all banks of Yingkou City, the proportion of individual deposits in financing declined and the ratio of corporate deposits increased. However, the proportion of loans in the operation method declined. Second, according to the type of banks in urban areas, State-owned Commercial Banks have a high proportion of individual deposits in procurement and corporate lending in operation. Joint-equity Commercial Banks have strong relationships with corporations in terms of both procurement and operation, particularly in proportion of short-term lending to corporations. Third, banks in rural areas have a high proportion of individuals in procurement, and the proportion of individuals in rural areas is relatively high in comparison with banks in urban areas. Therefore, Rural Credit Cooperatives and the Postal Savings Bank of China play a significant role in providing funding to farmers.

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[in Japanese]

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The paper aims to clarify the impact of economic situations in childhood on dietary habits in adulthood using individual survey data conducted by the Institute of Social Science of the University of Tokyo in 2007. The quantitative results from multi-group structural equation modeling reveal that the economic situation in childhood affects dietary habits in adulthood to some extent. In addition, the impact of economic shocks in childhood has a significant negative impact on dietary habits, and women seem to be more sensitive to economic shocks in childhood.

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