ABSTRACT
Japanese society has long been seen, particularly by Western observers (e.g. Cummings 1980) as an egalitarian society, with meritocratic philosophy and practices. Until recently, these images of Japanese society have been shared by most Japanese people as well. In various survey instruments designed to measure social stratification, the majority of people identify themselves as some variation of “middle class” (Naikakufu). Moreover, some studies (Tachibanaki 1998) show that the extent of income inequality through the 1970s and 1980s was much smaller than that found in other industrialized nations, such as the US or the UK. This data has led writers in both academic and popular literatures to define Japan as a “classless society” or “middle-class society” (ichioku sō chūryū shakai) (Murakami et al. 1978).
