More and more social surveys are conducted online now than ever. Therefore, we investigated a method, planting instructed response items (IRIs) in a survey, to eliminate inattentive respondents as a necessary screening. Two web surveys were conducted; there were four IRIs in study 1 (n=2,490) and three in study 2 (n=2,000). The objectives were twofold; finding an appropriate number of IRIs in a web survey and finding the differences between the two groups, the original and the screened data, categorized by IRIs. In study 1, of the respondents who passed the first three IRIs, 1,935 out of 2,490 were considered attentive; the rest (555) were eliminated from the data analysis based on the response tree analysis. The two groups were compared on the quality-of-life scale with 24 items, with all re-spondents and only the attentive. The difference in mean scores between the two groups was statisti-cally significant. Still, the difference was minor because of the shared respondents, 1,935 respondents between the two groups. The item characteristic curves from the 2-parameter logistic model were com-pared between the attentive (n=1,935) and the inattentive (n=555) respondents. The differences were distinctively visible, and the decision to eliminate 555 respondents was supported. In study 2, the birthday was asked and used to calculate the age. Then, the calculated age was checked by comparing the provided age by the web survey company. The rates of correct responses increased monotonically with higher levels of attentiveness. We conclude that evidence indicates IRIs function well for detecting inattentive respondents. We also tentatively recommend that three IRIs in a survey work well to detect inattentive respondents. Finally, the treatment of the respondents with the gray-zone attentiveness was discussed.

View full abstract

Various theories have been proposed regarding the origin of the Nebuta Festival held in the Tsugaru region. Among them, the theory that Tamuramaro Sakanoue started it during his conquest of Emishi and that warlord Tamenobu Tsugaru started it during a Bon Festival event in Kyoto have been rejected because the historical backgrounds do not match. Since many of the festivals held in Japan are thought to have originated in Kyoto, I investigated the people and processes that brought Kyoto culture to Tsugaru. As a result, It was found that the story featuring Tamuramaro Sakanoue was replaced by the rule of the Tsugaru region by Tamenobu Tsugaru, and that his vassal Yasunari Hattori brought the lantern event from Kyoto, which may have brought the nebuta to Tsugaru.

View full abstract

This study examined the possibility of the Sotogahama route in Dazai's novel Tsugaru through field research. Tsugaru is a novel by Dazai, who was asked by a publishing company to write a novel about his travels in the Tsugaru region where he was born and raised. In particular, we were able to confirm that the episodes of his visit to Sotogahama and the places he visited could lead to an un-derstanding of Dazai and the region. However, Dazai's travels in Sotogahama are not well known, and there are no tourist programs that allow visitors to re-experience Dazai. There is an urgent need to develop programs that allow visitors to experience of Dazai`s travel and the unique characteristics of Tsugaru.

View full abstract

This paper sheds light on the figure of Aldo Leopold (1887-1948), who had articulated a vision of the Land Ethic and touches on aspects of Leopold as an educator that have until now been largely unknown in Japan. Leopold became a professor at the University of Wisconsin in the U.S. in 1933 and taught courses on game management, producing 26 graduate students by 1948. This paper explores Leopold’s stance as a faculty member who established democratic relationships with his graduate students and earned their respect and trust. It also elucidates how his courses featured unique content that could not be found elsewhere and used carefully crafted materials. Leopold’s pedagogical goal was to foster observational skills that allow individuals to consider the natural world in relation to their own experiences by going beyond developing a partial and mechanical understanding of existing knowledge and data. Educational programs in Japan have been said to be overly focused on knowledge acquisition, and it may be necessary for them to be fundamentally re-examined. Leopold’s pedagogy is one that transcends the times and various disciplines, and it may offer us many hints today in this regard.

View full abstract

The forum was held to report on the results of the four-year "Redesigning the Society based on Depopulation and Shinkansen Line" project. The main themes were the use of the JR Tsugaru Line, immigration and settlement policies in various parts of Aomori Prefecture, promotional activities re-lated to jobs and immigration in Yamagata Prefecture, local employment programs for international students at Kanazawa University and Shinshu University, and the population trends in Hakodate City. A discussion was also held in Hachinohe City, which celebrated the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Tohoku Shinkansen Line.

View full abstract