Globalization and the Humanities and Social Sciences

In this greatly changing world, academia is being exposed to the waves of globalization. If we look at the fields of the humanities and social sciences, we see that globalization is progressing to a certain extent in the social science fields; however, this is not the case in the humanities. The biggest factor is that problem awareness has not been established among researchers in the humanities regarding the ways in which problems in contemporary society, such as conflict resolution and sustainability, can be undertaken as issues within each of their own research areas.

Reflecting upon this, in the International Graduate Program in Japanese Studies (GPJS), we do not follow the traditional method in which each researcher protects his or her own academic field and only investigates that area. We put our focus on the discovery of horizontal relationships which cross fields, eras and regions. We aim to construct Japanese Studies and a platform which are suitable for a global society.

Japanese Studies Aims

Throughout its long history, Japan has been receptive to cultures from other countries which have come to the nation, and also developed its own unique culture. In that historical receiving and creating process lies the potential for the fusion of original culture, which can be made universal, and multiculturalism. This is something that people from around the world can understand.

Conventional Japanese studies research in Japan has been limited to domestic research in Japanese from the Japanese perspective. In Europe and the United States, it has been limited to Japanese regional and linguistic research from the Western perspective, and conducted mainly in English.

In the International Graduate Program in Japanese Studies (GPJS), by rediscovering unique values in Japanese culture, we aim to show a method which considers the chaotic world in a positive way. The new values will acknowledge others in the disparity between Japanese Studies viewed from Japan, and Japanese Studies viewed from the world, and become visible in the middle through constant communication.

Japanese Studies Research and Education fields

In the International Graduate Program in Japanese Studies (GPJS), we develop new research and education along the following two pillars: 1) Japanese Studies as regional research, 2) Japanese Studies as viewpoint and methodology.