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Although the Japanese economy was in shambles at the end of World War II, its growth performance has been spectacular during the past few decades. No less phenomenal was the unprecedented rapidity with which Japan moved through the final stages of its demographic transition. Over the last forty years, Japan has experienced a striking decline in its birthrate. This decline has occurred in parallel with rapid urbanization, industrialization, and socioeconomic development. How much have Japan's unique cultural factors been related to the fertility change? Robert W. Hodge and Naohiro Ogawa develop a detailed statistical model of determinants of fertility in modern Japan. They persuasively demonstrate that these same factors combined with others continue to affect Japanese reproductive behavior at the microlevel. Using a variety of statistical tools designed for cross-sectional and time-series analysis, the authors study, in the context of Japanese socioeconomic transformations, changes in key demographic variables such as cumulative fertility, desired family size, abortion, and contraceptive use. All of the statistical apparatus they employ is carefully explained, both in detail and in a step-by-step fashion. Rich in insights into Japanese society, this volume will be of interest to social and economic demographers, development economists, and Japan-area specialists.

Until the 1940s, social life in Taiwan was generally organized and given meaning through the family - marriages were arranged by parents, for example, and senior males held authority. In the following years, as Taiwan evolved rapidly from an agrarian to an industrialized society, individual decisions became less dependent on the family and more strongly influenced by outside forces. Social Change and the Family in Taiwan provides an in-depth analysis of the complex changes in family relations in a society undergoing revolutionary economic and social transformation. This thorough, interdisciplinary study explores the patterns and causes of change in various aspects of society, including education, work, income transfers, leisure time, marriage, living arrangements, and interactions with extended kin. Theoretical chapters enunciate a theory of family and social change centered on the life course and modes of social organization. Other chapters look at the shift from arranged marriages toward love matches, as well as changes in dating practices, premarital sex, fertility, and divorce. The authors bring together perspectives from sociology, demography, economics, anthropology, and history to provide a thorough and informative study of the many ways social and economic changes affect the family.