ABSTRACT
The future of the Japanese electronics industry depends on how well Japan can loosen the grip of conformity and foster the liberation of grassroots energy for more diverse ends than the manufacture of end products. The transformation of society, particularly of people’s sense of value, is the most challenging agenda. In a centralized conformist society, people evaluate issues in light of the credentials given to them by the central authority. Cultural transformation cannot be accomplished by mere criticism, but only through cool analysis and adjustment of the operative social dynamics. A little stimulus to the existing system could generate permeating effects that would eventually transform the society. This viewpoint needs to be shared by people at all levels, from policymakers to individual engineers. The knowledge-based industry is where Japan must turn for the well-being of its aging population.
