The paper aims to assess the impact of local government's branding policy on a regional business network by means of a case study. The authors focus on the Sapporo Style project by the Sapporo-City Government. The project is a kind of regional branding policy that promotes goods and services provided by regional enterprises in Sapporo. The study depends on the academic framework of small-medium enterprise, SME, network analysis that focusing on network rent by Nishiguchi (2003). The framework is consists of four rents; reputation rent, formal coordination rent, embeddedness rent, and information sharing and learning rent. The prior researches shows that the latter two rents are closed within the existing members. The result of the case study suggests that a regional business network configured by the Sapporo Style project has different nature in terms of network rent analysis. Information sharing and learning rent is open for public and facilitates entries of new members into the network.

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This article aims 1) to introduce concepts of service-learning, and 2) to show whether service-learning encourages students and faculty to rethink about their learning and teaching, through an empirical study on a class at Service-Learning Center of Ryukoku University. Service-learning is a form of experiential education in which students engage in activities that address human and community needs together with structured opportunities intentionally designed to promote student learning and development. Two important concepts on service-learning are "reflection" and "reciprocity". Reflection is designed to foster learning and development of students. It is also structured to promote learning about the large social issues behind the needs to which their service is responding. Moreover it should include opportunities for participants to receive feedback from those persons being served, as well as from peers and program leaders. Reciprocity is the essential concept shared between the server and the person or group being served. Both the server and those served teach, and both learn. Through reciprocity, students develop a greater sense of belonging and responsibility as members of a larger community. An analysis in this article shows that students learn interests in their local community and self-determination, that faculty find difficulty of designing a class academically and occupationally, and that they are also provided opportunities to rethink their teaching method reflexisively by reflection of service-learning. Students recompose their internal intellectual spheres through a service-learning program, and they can study other classes self-directedly. Faculty rethink designing a class structured opportunities intentionally to promote student learning and development, in which they need to consider their institutes' mission. Moreover, service-learning has possibilities for changing and realizing their diploma policies. To do so, higher education institutes should have systems and strategies of supporting faculty who promote and engage service-learning, as well as Service-Learning Center of Ryukoku University.

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This paper examines the reason why Japanese contents, which are famous for their "coolness", realize both media-mix and diversity simultaneously in terms of industrial structure of contents in Japan. In the US, media-mix or multi use of contents are often accompanied by concentration of copyright to media conglomerates because it is presumed that horizontal integration is desirable for maximize revenue from. deployment of a content. On the contrary, industrial structure in Japan is horizontally separated one and media-mix is implemented by transaction between companies from various sectors of content industry such as an advertisement sector, distribution sector, and production sector. Addition to transaction between companies, the existence small, but numerous content production companies are the key factor to the creation of content diversity. Historically, "production commission system" has been formed as cooperative organization to invest jointly to deploy contents to many forms and to share risk and return. "Production commission system" has merit for the participants since it limits the risk to producet content by sharing related copyrights and revenue from deployment contents. For example, movie industry and also amine industry have expanded the use of "production commission system" about mid 80's. Recently,. some mobile contents productions adopted "production commission system" to make short drama clips for distribution to mobile terminals. This system is unique to Japan and the mechanism of media-mix through "production commission system" is yet to be examined.. This paper analyzed the amine series' data of "Television Drama Database" from 1950's to mid 2000s to examine the expansion of production of amine series and to figure out what are the characteristics of actual media-mix cases. The result shows that the number of amine series is increased twice at around mid 80's and mid 90's. There are two main reasons of the increase. One is the increase of the content distribution platform by advent of the satellite broadcasting system. Other reasons are widening of time zones to broadcast amine series to mid-night time zone and expansion of TV stations to produce amine series to UHF stations and local stations. By identifying the original work of amine series, there is tendency that the types of the original work are diversified in 90's in Japan. Furthermore, many kinds of media-mix are actively conducted among different forms of contents along with diversification of content distribution platforms. Utilizing "production commission system", content production in Japan enables both media-mix among various platforms and diversity of contents produced by small but creative companies. This would be the unique mechanism that sustains the coolness of Japanese content.

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This paper examines how the past experience of the disaster recovery remains in present society and influences present people's mind. We propose an alternative analysis that describes restorative lore of the experience of the disaster as a social function theoretically based on Social System Theory proposed by Niklas Luhmann, focusing on the only case the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake occurred at January 17, 1995. This leads on to three fractionated cases: 1) a nonprofit organization community, "HANDS" consists of bereaved families, 2) the community of storytellers narrating their personal experience to people in the memorial museum "the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Disaster Reduction and Human Renovation Institution", and 3) the community radio, "FMYY" organized as a tool of providing information the sufferers want to need to survive. These case studies show three different communities beginning with the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and keeping each ongoing activity have mutual function to hand down memory about the disaster to the coming generation in conclusion. In particular, functions are specified as five as follows: the communication to share and bequeath what the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake is, the communication about an earthquake, the communication about promoting policies about prevention of disasters, the communication of building a relationship and healing over distress in psychic system. This indicates that practical communities born of specific experience play an important role of shifting personal experience to the shared memory.

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Over the last few years, the situation of the regional medical environment has deteriorated markedly. This is a study of the contributing factors and their effects on the Regional medical environment. It looks at the current situation of regional medical coordination, co-operation between residents of the region, medical services and local government and potential improvements to the current situation. The ultimate goal of this study is to make improvements to the regional medical environment and services, and set up a framework for the study, enactment and improvement of medical informatics.

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A purpose of this study is to construct a model about the institutionalization of the organization by examining various studies on institutionalization of the organization. In an organization theory, the phenomenon about institutionalization of the organization is argued on in various studies. In this study, I deal with old institutionalism, new institutionalism, theory of organizational culture as a study about institutionalization. These theories approach the institutionalization of the organization by each theoretical interest. The old institutionalism is interested in managing the influence on organization caused by institutionalization. The new institutionalism is interested in the institutional isomorphism of the organization in the organization field, and they clarify the institutionalization of an organization caused by environment. The theory of the organizational culture pays attention to the culture factor in the organization. And those studies have the theoretical problems. The old institutionalism is interested in managing the influence on organization caused by institutionalization. The new institutionalism has a problem that an organization is passive excessively. In the theory of organizational culture, a dispute exists whether organizational culture is manageable. What each theory insists on seems to contradict it mutually. I examine the institutionalization process of the organization in the interaction level to solve such theoretical situation. Through those examination, I present an integrated institutionalization model. The institutionalization model is comprised of external environment, an organization purpose, formal structure, formal semantic system, a personal purpose, informal structure, informal semantic system and shows those relationships. The institutionalization model has some contribution about the institutionalization of the organization. Firstly the institutionalization model clarifies a process of the institution formation. Secondarily the institutionalization model unifies the sides of institutionalization that previous studies discusses partially. Thirdly an institutionalization model is to offer the theoretical basics to manage the institutionalization actively.

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This paper discusses job hopping (TIAO CAO) of the elite and its management through a case study of an enterprise in Contemporary China. Although the economic development of China has been extremely rapid, the social system has been inadequately maintained. Under such a social situation, the ratio of "Profit" and "Risk" leads to much for both of "Elite" and "Enterprise". Not only money but also the opportunity cost obtained by being in the enterprise is included in "Profit". Moreover, the part of a private life design of the individual is included in "Risk". In order to control "TIAO CAO", "Enterprise" should always consider giving the "Elite" proper "Profit". Also the "Elite" are always calculating "Profit" and "Risk" when changing their job. Thus, the "Elite" and "Enterprise" are always searching for the equilibrium point of "Profit" and "Risk" while sharing a social situation with each other. The "Elite" are not controlled by the "Enterprise". The "Elite" has a relationship with the "Enterprise" that has flexibility and retractability by the social act of "TIAO CAO". This case study presents one model of Enterprise Management in Contemporary China.

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The purpose of this study is to find reasons why more companies in Japan have issued Sustainability reports than in any other countries. First, ideas of existing studies are examined to find out if the recent trend that many companies have issued Sustainability reports have reflected the spread of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) management. Second, based on the idea of The New Institutionalism in Organizational Analysis, the assumptions about what led many companies to issue Sustainability reports are made. Third, to find the factors causing companies to issue these reports, those assumptions are verified. This study indicates that companies have issued the reports only because other companies have and society expects them to as well. Also, CSR management has not been established in Japan. In the end, other research questions are suggested in order to strengthen the soundness of this study.

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In this paper we focus on the methodological gap of a research program between social systems theory and systems sciences. Social systems theory by N. Luhmann focus on communication process as a macro social system. The macroscopic treatment of communication is recognized as a descent of the social research of collective representation by E. Durkheim. On the other hand the systems concepts such as systems boundary, self reference and social semantics are not shared between social systems theory and other systems theories. There exists a strong conceptual and methodological gap between them. In this paper we try to bridge the gap to reconstruct the social systems theory.

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In recent years, collaboration has become a widely adopted vehicle for corporations to address social issues. In this paper, collaborations that attempt to solve social problems are called "social collaboration". This paper focuses on such collaborations, especially collaborative strategy of corporate social business. A purpose of this paper is to discuss following two research questions: (1) why do corporations collaborate with other organizations when they attempt to address social problems, and (2) how do corporations manage partner relationships to make social collaborations more effective. First, this paper proposes the framework to explore such research questions based on interorganizational collaboration theory and previous studies on social collaboration. While the studies on social collaboration are increasing, these studies have little focused on the collaboration management. To address such issue, this paper adopts the process approach that focuses on developmental process of collaboration consisting of the three stages of formation, operation, and outcome evaluation. That is, key issues of collaboration management, such as partner selection, collaboration design, relationship management, and evaluation, will be examined through developmental process of collaboration. To understand these key issues pertaining to three stages of collaboration process would provide more systematic approach to make social collaboration effective. Next, this paper has conducted a case study on collaborative strategy of social business. The case is that N.I. TEIJIN SHOJI CO., LTD. and Peace Winds Japan (NPO) coproduce and co-sell social product that provides shelter to sufferers. The results show following two findings: (1) internal factors, such as complementary resource, compatible strategic purpose, and common social mission, can facilitate collaboration formation, and (2) corporations need to address comprehensively key issues of collaboration management to achieve successful social collaboration. Finally, some key implications for research on social collaboration and limitations of this paper are discussed.

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The purpose of this paper is to make clear the general pattern of transition of social organization structure. Until now, two academic genealogies of "the concept of an organizational life cycle" and "transaction cost approach", have presented some models of development of individual organization by analyses of business organizations. In these papers, there is the common stream that organizations begin with small simple organizations, form centralized hierarchies, and decentralize. This stream can apply to the transition of total society structure. We paid attention to this affinity, contrasted with individual organization and total society, and built the total schema of transition of social organization structure by the analysis of Japanese civilization history. Japanese civilization history has experienced three cycles of transition. First cycle comprises decentralized society of the former of the Ancient Ages and unified state of the later of the Ancient Ages. Second cycle comprises decentralized society of the Middle Ages and unified state of the Edo Ages, and is "armed lord period". Third cycle comprises decentralized society of the evening of the Edo Ages and unified state of the Modern Ages and the Present Ages, and is "nation-state period". As a result of the analysis of Japanese civilization history on the periodization above, we considered that the pattern of transition of social organization structure can be interpreted by "swinging model" of "centralization and decentralization" or "integration and dispersion", and could be drew the total schema as the following. 1. dispersed state (=unorganized stage) 2. confederacy form (=network organization) -1. headless confederacy form -2. chiefdom confederacy form -3. feudalistic confederacy form (transitional period from network to hierarchy) 3. integration form (=hierarchy organization) -1. centralized integration form -2. decentralized integration form -3. practical disrupt state (=evening of hierarchy organization) 4. re-formation of confederacy (=network organization) -1. reorganization from upper side (transitional period from hierarchy to network) -2. formation of confederacy by lower side (switch to next cycle)

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