This study reconsidered educational materials by analyzing educators' opinions regarding handmade manipulative materials (HMMs) for children with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities in Japan. Instead of concurring with the view that educational materials are static and inert products, the author adopted an agential realist perspective…

This paper discusses the noticeable nervousness of many US-based financial statement issuers in adopting IFRS. For contextual purposes, the paper provides an overview of the FASB/IFRS convergence so far and its probable future. A detailed review of convergence in accounting standards is explained through the respective standards for "Pensions…

In the past few decades, especially since the 2008-09 economic downturn, the faculty of American colleges and universities has undergone a far-reaching transformation. Multiple factors, mainly extraneous to the campus itself, are reshaping higher education, and as a result a reprioritizing of the internal allocation of resources is occurring. The…

Japan has the highest proportion of older adults in the world. Aging is not only an immediate personal issue but also a salient factor in crucial public policies, such as pensions, health, and long-term care. The Great East Japan Earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear power plant disaster of March 2011 has highlighted current and emerging issues of a…

As retiring personnel of Japan's private higher educational institutions (HEIs) take a large portion of the accumulated retirement funds at their career exit today, their younger colleagues are left with a bleak future with a quickly depleting reserve for their own retirement allowances. The fact that many insolvent organizations are on the verge…

The Chinese government conducted its first time use survey of the activities of Chinese individuals in 2008. Activities were classified into three broad types, maintenance activities, subsistence activities and leisure activities. Time use patterns were defined by an individuals' time spent on maintenance, subsistence and leisure activities each…

This study focuses on aspects of the Changing Academic Profession survey of 2007-08 that describe the place of faculty in their institutions. The authors examine the following aspects of institutional life: (1) the faculty role in institutional governance; (2) who evaluates their teaching and research; (3) the locus of their loyalties as between…

The circumstances arising out of Japanese pension plan practices are described. Recommendations are given. Appropriate preretirement education is recommended to assist Japanese workers who have long accepted the compulsory retirement system in planning for the future. (Author/CT)

Japan is experiencing the aging of its labor force. Despite the fear that this will have an adverse effect on the economy, studies conducted by management and economists indicate that demographic and retirement system changes are unlikely to lower productivity. (SK)

Discusses the rapidly rising rate of Japan's population and that country's attempts to secure and promote older worker employment. Such measures include using employment quotas, raising the retirement age, and advocating continued employment. (Author/CT)

Examines the dynamics of the aging process, the employment situation facing older Japanese workers, and changes in age-related employment and wage practices. (SK)

From 1965 to 1995, the United States, Germany, Japan, and Sweden all experienced a decline in the average age at which workers retire and an increase in the duration of retirement. Sweden and Germany particularly face elder dependency burdens, which may increase in the United States in the coming decade. (JOW)

Examines the advantages and disadvantages of partial retirement--the transitional period between full-time employment and complete retirement--including easing the transition, labor market effects, and financial implications for social security systems and employers. Reviews partial retirement policies in eight countries and concludes that there…

Japan's employment model has been that of "lifetime employment," especially for male college-educated workers. Under such a system, an individual becomes employed by a firm upon graduation and remains in its employ until retirement. (Author/SSH)

Having experienced traditional Japanese employment system, older Japanese adults are affected by workplace and socioeconomic changes. Two recent surveys of workers nearing retirement showed high work salience and considerable anxiety about retirement. (SK)