Waseda University

This course explores how economics influences labor markets in multiple ways, analyzing the basic model of the labor market, both demand and supply.  The course also explores how human capital and skills can influence wages and looks at actual problems occurring in the workplace and labor markets.

This course examines global economic history from 1500 to 1900 through a “polycentric” and “connected histories” framework, moving beyond traditional Eurocentric narratives. Rather than portraying Europe as the sole driver of economic change, the course highlights the role of Asian, African, and American actors in shaping the global economic order. The course is organized in four parts: (1) The polycentric world before European expansion; (2) Early connections that modified but did not destroy existing systems; (3) The multiple paths of the Great Divergence, and (4) The consolidation of an unequal world system. The course also integrates environmental and gender perspectives as essential analytical lenses. Key topics include Asian maritime trading systems, global silver flows, plantation economies, the industrial revolution, the Great Divergence debate, and systems of coerced and contractual labor.

This course provides an overview of contemporary Japanese politics via Public (Rational) Choice Theory which emphasizes major political actors such as voters, parliamentarians, special interest groups, and national bureaucrats. This class describes and discusses some of the basic aspects of Japanese politics, currently undergoing a drastic transformation due to societal changes and globalization. The course covers the following topics: Public (Rational) Choice Theory, along with its strengths and weaknesses; democracy in Japan; party politics; the electoral system and voting participation; Japan's population issues; Japan's defense and foreign policy; Japan's food and energy problems, and current topics in Japanese politics and foreign policy.