(1) Scaling, sampling and data analysis : a review
After the Second World War the methods of sociological researches in Japan were affected by those of American sociology. Most of Japanese sociologists mainly used the method of case study for sociological researches before the War, but they were not well acquainted with statistical methods. After the War Japanese sociologists had their great wish to develop sociology as an empirical science. They were interested in scaling, random sampling and data analysis in a word.
These sociologists constructed unidimensional scales in various studies such as social consciousness, social stratification and measuring the structure of rural community, etc. To improve good-poor analysis and Likert scale was suggested. Subsampling (especially probability proportionate sampling) was applied to large area surveys like a kind of a sampling survey of social stratification and mobility. Moreover, a panel survey was carried out for the study of election and a replicated sampling design was adopted in a survey of slums.
Sociological data are qualitative as well as quantitative. So, sociologists paid their attention to how to treat qualitative data. According to the development of computer and algorism, they utilized multidimensional scaling and other approaches, for example latent structure analysis, log-linear analysis and Hayashi's quantification methods, etc. Hayashi's quantification methods were systematically set up by C. Hayashi and his cooperators to clarify the interrelations among objects or items by the use of a score allocated to each category of qualitative items. In 1987 fuzzy quantification methods are shown by some experts of fuzzy set theory.
In short, Japanese sociologists laid the foundation of quantitative approaches for sociological researches in three decades after the War.
(2) A review of quantitative and mathematical approaches to the sociological researches of Japan since 1970
These approaches have mainly developed on the study of the social stratification and mobility especially concerning the data of the SSM survey since 1955.
The topics of these approaches are : 1) the problem of the consistency (or inconsistency) of the social stratification 2) the quantitative study of the social mobility and the analysis of the status formation process 3) the study of the use of the log-linear-model 4) the present condition and the prospects of the mathematical sociology in Japan.
The tremendous efforts have been made for the SSM survey and the analyses of these data. The multivariate analysis revealed a consistent trend of the social stratification of Japan, and further investigations were made as to the applications of various statistical models and how to use these models.
Yet in general, statistical or mathematical models have hardly generated and invented, and there have been few original studies (except for Yasuda's index) of quantitative and mathematical sociology in Japan. Accordingly, we hope for the 'originality', JAMS (Japanese Association for Mathematical Sociology), started in 1986, motto.

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In this issue, firstly, we examine the historical process of Japanese family research since the Second World War. Changes in the family research from the end of Second World War to the present fall roughly into four stages. The first follows the legal and institutional reforms carried out immediately after the war. At that period, the family research is concentrated to modernise the Japanese family. The second reflects the transformations in industrial structure and the rapid economic growth. At this period, the research persists with the analyses of inner structure of changing family. The third comes in the aftermath of rapid economic growth which profoundly altered family and individual values. And the family research is concentrated to analyse the social problems concerning family. The fourth reflects on Japanese family in transition and family research begins to grope what the Japanese family should be.
Secondly, we focus on the unique qualities of Japanese family research.
(a) We point out that the view of research is changing from macro perspective to micro perspective and again to macro perspective.
(b) We notice the empirical method.
(c) We discuss the subject of research-urban family-.
(d) We pay attention to the approach-structural-functional approach and developmental approach.
(e) We keep our eyes on the trend of research-the trend to exclude a value judgement.
(f) We watch the strong relationship with American sociology.
Thirdly, we attempt to make clear today's problems and themes of Japanese family research. We have to establish the structural, histrical, dynamic and critical view. We have to commit on the relationship between state and family. We have to create the fundamental theory that approach to the substance of Japanese family.

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This article examines and points out the key issues in the developments of the Japanese urban sociology, 1945-1980s. The key issues are analyzed further in studies of three major contemporary developments : (1) the transformation of the Metropolitan economics and social structure, (2) the new industrial and urban spaces (such as City Centers of “World City” Tokyo, contrasted with Osaka and others), (3) the decline and rebuilding process of the existing urban communities (especially, including the inner-city neighborhoods). Finally, this article presents the conceptual scheme that pioneers the theoretical research on the changing Japanese urban communities.
Contents : 1) Overviews, 2) The “theory-building” paths of the two leading urban sociologists, Eiichi ISOMURA and Eitaro SUZUKI, 3) The epoch-makings of the postwar Japanese urban sociology, 4) The central themes and prospects of the postwar urban and community studies-Phase I, 5) The central themes and prospects of the postwar urban and community studies-Phase II, 6) The continuity and discontinuity of the “Postwar Paradigm” concerning the urban and community studies, 7) Concluding remarks.

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After the 2nd World War industrial sociology started to study the social structure and function of the work place as the smallest unit of the enterprise, adopting the so-called human relations approach under the influence of industrial sociology in USA. Since then industrial sociology has enlarged the scope of study from the micro-level to the macro-level, i.e. enterprise organizations, trades unions, industrial relations and the industrial society as a whole.
Since 1955 Japan has exprienced the rapid economic development. It was thought at home and abroad that Japanese enterprises played an important role in the development. Japanese type of management has been long considered as an irrational type of management, compared with European and American management. However, the fact that Japanese management obtained exellent results changed the former viewpoint toward Japanese type of management. There have been a lot of discussions on Japanese type of management. For the time being, Japanese management has been adapted both for the institutional aspects, i.e. labour market, trades unions, governmental policies, culture of the society, and for the cultural patterns inside the organization, i.e. the seniority system, the consensual system of decision-making, the QC-circle activities, etc. However, the main characteristics of Japanse management will change if the fundametal belief toward managemental authority, aging of the personnel structure, internationalizing of the enterprise activities, etc. take place in the future.
Labour problems are relevant to the following sphares : working life and workers' consciousness, labour unions, and industrial relations. Considering working life, the study of quality of working life (QWL), or humanization of labour that commenced in Europe and partly launched into the socialistic countries has been recently worthy of our notice.
Finally there will be an important problem of investigating the impact of the recent technological change on our society. The influences of innovation called ME (mechanical electronics) revolution are found, not only in the sphare of production (factory automation) and office work (office automation), but also in the sphare of sales (using points of sales), mass-communication, administration, education, medical treatment, home (home automation), etc. Thus we will have to study the wide-ranging impact on the society. For that purpose it will be necessary that each discipline within sociology cooperates.

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Japanese mass communication studies were started to be influenced by the American mass communication studies after the second world war. I. Shimizu published “Social Psychology” (1951). The book was very influential to the early studies of mass communication. He argued the tremendous impact of mass communication on the modern society. That work was the Japanese theory of the mass society. Most japanese researchers of mass communication studies tried to seek the breakthrough of “Shimizu theory”. They warns against the tendency of overemphasizing mass media's effects and saw the active cognitive aspects of audience and personal communication networks as the source of the power of people's resistance against the power of a huge mass communication. These studies have produced the Japanese native perspective of mass communication process. That was a perspective which grasped the mass communication process including total social communication process as the multi-layered structure of conflicts and contradictions.
From '60 to' 70, Japanese mass communication studies of “audience research” were stagnated partly because at this time American empirical studies were dominated by the “limited effects” model. But the studies of media industry, production and making process of media content and freedom of journalists had accumulated many fruitful works.
From the end of '70 to the present time Japanese mass communication studies, especially “effects studies” have gradually revived the media sociology, influenced by American empirical approach which have proposed the “powerful effects” models; “agenda-setting function” model, “dependency” model and “spiral of silence” model and soon. And the critical approaches in Britain have also influenced Japaness mass communication studies. Now Japanese mass communication studies aim to create a new phase of studies at the modern information society.

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