The transformation from ‘thrifty accountant’ to
‘independent investor’?:
the changing role of Japanese women in financial
management under the influence of globalization
Naoko Komori
Sheffield University Management School
n.komori@sheffield.ac.uk
Paper to be submitted to the Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Accounting Conference,
Cardiff, July10-13th, 2012
Abstract
Recent years witnesses the changes in the role of Japanese women in financial
management at home. Since 2004, the Japanese government has made it economic
policy to encourage domestic households to invest rather than simply save their money.
This change in economic policy on the role of household helped to intensify women’s
involvement with finance and investment activities. This study seeks to explore how the
financial role of women has changed historically in Japanese society by examining the
social history of the traditional Japanese household (ie) and the changing relationship
between corporations, stock markets and households. Studying the Japanese context
enables us to recognize the interrelationship between the corporate (public) and
household (private) spheres rather than adopting the ‘separate spheres’ view of women’s
history (Walker, 2003; Rutterford and Maltby, 2006). The Japanese household may be
seen as the predecessor of the modern corporation, the latter being greatly influenced by
the logic of the former (Cooke, 1994; Mckinnon, 1984a). The examination draws on a
wide range of Japanese and English literature, including accounts of women’s history in
Japan, analyses of accounting and corporate reporting in Japan, socio-historical studies
of the Japanese household and Japanese enterprises, and studies of Japanese business
and management practice. The evidence from the Japanese context highlights that an
appreciation of the interrelationship between corporation and household is important for
understanding the role of accounting in the corporate governance process.
Key words: globalization; women; investment and finance; household; savings;
socio-cultural underpinnings
2
Introduction
Since the early 2000s, Japan has witnessed the increasing involvement of women in
investment and finance activities. The issue of finance has become a key concern among
Japanese women; one survey reported that ‘finance and money’ has become the primary
interest of women in Japan, pushing ‘health’ into second place (Nikko Cordial
Securities Co, 2005). As interest among women grows, companies, banks and securities
companies have been intensifying their efforts to attract more women investors. A
number of securities companies, in conjunction with the Tokyo Stock Exchange, now
hold investment seminars for women to promote their understanding of investment. In
the early 2000s, a number of large department stores and cosmetics companies started
holding women-only investor relationship (IR) seminars. In these seminars, the lectures
on how to build up an investment portfolio followed make-up lessons and wine-tasting
sessions. Although such movements have calmed down after the financial crisis, this
signifies the change in the relationship between Japanese women and financial
management.
The strong relationship between Japanese women and finance is not a new phenomenon.
Women in Japan have historically had a strong association with bookkeeping and
accounting at home, and household accounting practice has been a significant tool in
household management (Komori and Humphrey, 2000; Komori, 2007; 2012). Since the
pre-modern era, women in Japan have had control over the domestic economy. The
strong association between women and domestic accounting in post-war Japan is
closely linked to the government-defined social role of the household: to accumulate
3
savings that can be used to fund investment in industry. The recent strengthening of the
relationship between women and investment has been the result of not only a reaction to
the low interest offered by banks, but also a change in government policy with regard to
the social role of the household.
This paper explores the changing role of women in financial management, why women
have historically had such control over accounting and financial management in the
household, and how their role and position changed as Japanese corporations responded
to the challenges of modernization, industrialization and globalization (prior to the
financial crisis of 2008). By so doing, it seeks to give an understanding the significance
of women’s role as investors in the Japanese social and historical context.
Examination of the historical changes in Japanese women’s role and position in
financial management highlights the significance of the socio-cultural underpinnings
that have shaped the role and nature of corporate accounting in Japan. It enables us to
understand how these underpinnings have changed under the influence of globalization
and to assess how they might be further affected by the current financial crisis. The
significance of socio-cultural impact in shaping accounting practice has already been
emphasized by accounting historians (Carnegie, 1993; Carnegie and Napier, 1996; 2002;
Walker, 2008b), and greater attention is being paid to the study of accounting history in
local and indigenous contexts. A number of studies have highlighted how the
Anglo-centric domination of knowledge production in accountancy may have
perpetuated a distorted view of indigenous values and cultures (see for example, Graham,
2009). Although accounting researchers are increasingly calling attention to the
interaction between accounting and its social and cultural contexts, it has been stressed by
4
Japanese scholars that the discussion of the culturally idiosyncratic aspects of Japanese
accountancy has so far not been supported by well-founded evidence (Suzuki, 2007,
p.569). Given the strong relationship between women and accounting beyond the
corporate accounting arena in Japan, the examination of the changing role of women in
financial management will provide us a different angle to understand the nature of
accounting in the corporate arena and how it has changed as Japanese companies have
been transformed under the influence of globalization. In other words, the paper aims to
illuminate the nature of corporate accounting by introducing gender perspectives
currently marginalized in accounting history (Walker, 2008).
Modern companies in post-war Japan, with their group-orientated corporate operations,
can be seen as the natural heirs of the Japanese households (ie), which were essentially
‘community firms’ (Mckinnon, 1984; Cooke, 1994). In these community firms,
employee relations are formed not only on the basis of economic contracts but also on
psychological contracts that presuppose shared norms and interests between employer
and employee (Inagami and Whittaker, 2005). By promising employees life-long
employment, companies maximize the employees’ sense of loyalty to the company and
their commitment. The shared interest between employers and employees also defines
the mode of corporate governance in Japan; unlike the US and UK, where shareholders
are generally considered to own the company, Japanese companies are held by a range
of stakeholders, including employees, who are seen as having the governing influence.
However, it has been argued that as global activities increase and shareholder pressure
grows, this distinctive feature of community firms in Japan is changing (Inagami and
Whittaker, 2005; Jackson, 2005). The introduction of global accounting standards(ie.
5
consolidated accounting) has been a great impact on the group operations of Japanese
companies (Kikuya, 2001). By showing how women’s role and position in accounting
and finance have been transformed as the traditional Japanese household (ie) and its
relationship with the corporations have developed, this paper will offer a different
perspective on the nature of accounting in the corporate arena and the influence of
globalization on corporate governance in Japan.
The paper first examines the role and position of auditing in Japan discussed in the
current studies; this will help us to overview our existing understanding of accounting
and auditing in corporate arena. This will followed by the examinations of changing role
of women in financial management. The nature of the household in Japan and women’s
role in financial management are first examined by reviewing historical studies of the
position of women in Japan between the 11th and 15th centuries. It is generally
considered that women’s role in financial management was defined during this period.
Secondly, the changing role of women in accounting and finance throughout the period
of industrialization and globalization. This is done by reviewing a wide range of
literature, including texts on business and accounting in Japan, and social studies of the
lives of Japanese women. The paper concludes by considering the implications of the
study.
.
1. The country of wonderland accounting: The role and position of auditing in
Japan
As the global development of business operations and capital markets has gathered pace,
accounting and auditing in Japan have been repeatedly criticized by international
6
investors, shareholders and practitioners. Auditing, in particular, has always been a
target for condemnation; auditors have been accused of sharing a mutual interest with
corporate management and allowing their judgments to be significantly influenced by
their reluctance to damage the client’s reputation (Mckinnon, 1984).
Studies of the accounting profession and auditing in Japan have identified the limited role
that they have hitherto played in the country. Some have argued that the concept of
independent auditing was not originally generated by internal demands but was imported
from the US after the war (Nakajima, 1973). Initially, the accounting profession was too
small to cope with an independent auditing system. In 1965, only one-third of the 3,800
CPAs in Japan were engaged in auditing – the majority did taxation work for smaller
companies (Mckinnon, 1984, p.24). The establishment of accounting firms was delayed
because it was initially prohibited for accounting professionals to operate under a single
corporate identity. This meant that auditing of the large, leading Japanese companies was
conducted on a very small scale, usually by no more than 10 assistant CPAs and their
clerical assistants (ibid, p.24).
One of the common explanations that the marginalized status of auditing in Japan as
arising from the cultural emphasis on ‘interdependence’ (Mckinnon 1984; 1994;
Mckinnon and Harrison1985). She based her argument on the work of Chie Nakane – a
Japanese sociologist who explored the nature of Japanese society and identified the
distinctive nature of Japanese social relationships. Rather than revealing a confrontation
in public and depending on a third party for its settlement, the Japanese set social value on
settling disputes internally (nai nai ni sumaseru), endeavouring to maintain harmony by
seeking genuine reconciliation among the competing interests (ibid, p.22). Some argue
that the interdependent culture is one of the major causes of ‘the poor state of actual audit
7
practice’, as instanced, for example, in accusations that auditors cut corners in their work
(Sakagami, 1999, p.341). Japan’s distinctive culture is also often employed to explained
the corporate behavior of financial reporting. The historical impact of Confucianism as
well as the strong cultural inclination towards group consciousness have been used to
justify corporate reporting practices in Japan such as income soothing and the emphasis
on long-term performance (Bloom and Solotko, 2003).
The marginalization of auditing could also be the result of the style of corporate
governance practised in Japanese business corporations. In recent business management
studies it has been suggested that the cultural emphasis on interdependence in Japan has
helped shape corporate governance through the prevalence of ‘integrated internal
governance and execution’ (Buchanan, 2007; Dore, 2005; Mckinnon, 1984). This is in
contrast to the Anglo-Saxon model, which is shaped by ‘the concepts of external
surveillance’ (Buchanan, 2007, p.28). The corporate governance model in Anglo-Saxon
countries places emphasis on monitoring mechanisms for external surveillance; measures
such as the presence of independent, external members on the board, recruitment from the
external managerial labour market, and shareholder activism have been developed to help
monitor and verify corporate activities (Yoshimori, 2005, p.455). In the Japanese
corporate governance model, in contrast, these independent, external monitoring devices
are taken over by insiders. For example, boards are likely to be comprised of a majority of
internally appointed executive directors who have worked in the company for many years
(Buchanan, 2007, p.28). The issues to be put at the board meeting will have already been
discussed in less official meetings (in a process called nemawashi); in practice, board
meetings are convened simply to approve these informally discussed agenda (Cook and
Sawa, 1998). The Commercial Code requires corporate statutory auditors (kansa-yaku),
8
who are not required to be certified public accountants (CPA), to oversee the
management and the board of directors. However, their appointment is decided by the
president of the company they are to monitor. Not surprisingly, the independence of
corporate statutory auditors has long been questioned.
The third key factor in the marginalization of auditing in Japan could be explained in the
way corporations are owned. The major businesses in Japan operate through a series of
intricate
corporate
networks
(keiretsu),
built
up
since
the
war
through
cross-shareholdings among banks, life insurance companies and business conglomerates
(zaibatsu). Within these corporate networks, the priority has historically been to create
stable and friendly relationships among member firms, while ensuring any risks are
shared equally (Nakatani, 1984). Most shareholders participate in the management of the
group at some level, and they have rarely questioned the quality of financial reports
(Mckinnon, 1994, p.197). On the other hand, banks, as the dominant creditors, have
historically played an important role as monitors of these firms; sharing a long-term
interest with the corporations, they have had direct access to internal financial
information and to the corporations’ directors (ibid, p.197). There was therefore been
little pressure from either shareholders or creditors to question and improve financial
disclosure practices, which helped to shape the quality of these practices that was
considered to be poor (Cook and Kikuya, 1992; Gray, 1988). This state of affairs has
changed under the influence of globalization, but the role of the Japanese government and
the interdependent relationship it has had with the accounting profession have made it
difficult for auditors to implement drastic changes in accounting practice and regulation.
Since the late nineteenth century, the government has pursued national goals of
industrialization and modernization with the aim of transforming the country from an
9
agrarian to an industrial-based economy (ibid, p.196). The zaibatsu have been regarded as
key to implementing this goal, so the government has been more concerned with
supporting them than with regulating them – the improvement of corporate reporting and
audit practices was a low priority for many years.
Previous studies have illustrated the macro-factors that have helped marginalize the role
and position of auditing in Japan: the cultural emphasis on interdependence; integrated
internal corporate governance; the composition of corporate ownership.
One significant imbalance in the studies of accounting and auditing in Japan is the lack
of a gender perspective – little attention has been paid to the experiences of women.
This is in marked contrast to accounting research in the West, where women’s role and
position as well as their experiences in accountancy is established as an important
research perspective in the study of accounting’s social role and significance. It must be
noted that there is a general tendency for gender studies to be marginalized in
accounting history (see Walker, 2008a); nevertheless, these studies have helped
illuminate the links between accounting and the broader social, historical and political
context within which it is located. A simple comparison with the development of
accounting research in Japan highlights the absence of this line of enquiry among
Japanese accounting historians. The introduction of gender and the examination of the
role and position of women in financial management may shed light on aspects of
accounting and auditing in the corporate arena which have so far not been illuminated.
2. The nature of the household and women’s role as financial managers in the
pre-modern era
In his study, based on late nineteenth century Britain, Walker found that women were
10
actively involved in an accounting function in which the boundary between the public
and private was obscure (Walker, 2003). Similarly, in the Japanese household (ie),
which has historically played a ‘public’ role, accounting and calculative responsibilities
have been allocated to women.
Historians have been divided over the position of women in Japan in the pre-modern
period. Up until the 1970s, many researchers took the view that women occupied a very
low position within the patriarchal community (Akashi, 1987, p.131). Others claimed,
however, that the patriarchy had not been established at this stage in Japan’s history and
that women enjoyed equal status with men. Recent studies in women’s history in Japan
reject both perspectives, claiming that they are too simplistic and do not reflect the real
lives of women (ibid., p.132). Increasing efforts have been made by historians to
explore the real lives of women from different classes, periods, locations and
occupations1. These studies have highlighted that the role and position of women were
strongly linked to the nature of the Japanese household and its role in different historical
periods (Wakita, 1987; 1992; 2002; Wakita et al., 1987).
In ancient and medieval times (until the mid-14th century), farmers, fishermen and
merchants made up 80 percent of the population in Japan. The household as a social unit,
based upon the husband and wife partnership, did not become the dominant model until
the 10th century (Inuma, 1992, p.164). Many of the ancient agricultural villages were
organized along communal lines with the community determining issues such as
exchanges of work and marriage alliances for its members (Ueno, 1987, p.78). In these
villages, where the economy ran on a non-monetary basis, women had control over rice.
1
A notable work by Japanese women historians is Gender and Japanese History, Vol.1&2 by
Wakita, H., Bouchy, A. Ueno, C. (eds), (1999). This contains 30 articles highlighting the real-life
experiences of women from different historical periods, classes, locations and occupations.
11
In a context where rice functioned as a form of currency, ‘control over rice meant
control over the domestic economy’ (ibid., p.77). Women had responsibility for financial
management in both communal and household-based societies in ancient Japan. When
the female head of the household retired, the ritual of ‘the transmission of the ladle’
(Shamoji-watashi) was held. In this ritual, the power of the female household head was
symbolized by the ladle, which was used to serve rice. It signified that the female
household head had exclusive management of the distribution of rice; in other words,
that she was the manager of the domestic economy.
Since the beginning of the ancient period, the demarcation of gender roles was evident
within the household; male household heads (ie-gimi) were owners who were
responsible for productive activities and held rights over their employees, while female
household heads (ie-toji) were responsible for managing the domestic economy and
distributing the food among the members of the household (Akashi, 1987, p.141).
The woman’s role as manager of the domestic economy was further strengthened in
medieval times when the household became the prevailing social unit. In medieval
times, the household (ie) came increasingly to replace the community, establishing itself
as the unit that determined the social role of individuals. Women were allocated the job
of managing the finances of the household and their role was strongly linked to the
nature of the ie.
Unlike the Western concept of ‘family’, ie was not understood to mean a family-kinship
group linked by biological relationship to a common ancestor. Rather, it was understood
to be based on a set of positions or statuses (Kitaoji, 1971; Shimizu, 1987). It
12
represented ‘a personalized relation to a corporate group based on work’ and it
encompassed the major aspects of both social and economic life (Nanake, 1973). One of
the aspects of the ie was that it included more than just living members who perform a
variety of domestic, economic, political and religious functions; the dead were also
considered essential members (Shimizu, 1987, p.85). The household was recognized as
an independent entity separate from its living and dead members. Even if it ceased to
exist as a corporate body, losing its living members, it retains its nominal existence as a
named entity with its own origins and history.
The fundamental goal of the ie was household continuity, rather than the wellbeing of
individual members. Emphasis was placed on the preservation of household property,
occupation, reputation, and artistic or cultural capital (Kondo, 1990, p.122). Like a
corporation, in order to guarantee its organizational survival, it aimed to fill its key
positions in such a way as to maintain continuity. A number of strategies were adopted
to fill positions in the ie to achieve this; the most significant were the paired roles of
‘male and female household head’.
The paired male and female household heads played different roles in the household but
shared a mutual obligation to maintain its continuity. Men governed the household,
playing a central role in productive activities. On the other hand, women managed it,
supporting the productive labour in areas such as textiles and brewing, and managing
the domestic economy. Between the 10th and 11th century, when this paired partnership
of men and women was first established as the basic unit for the operation of the ie,
both male and female household head were deemed to have equal rights over the
household property. This was called fuhu douzai, which literally means equal property
rights between husband and wife (Tabata, 1987, p.59; Inuma, 1992, p.165). The
13
principle of fuhu douzai assumed the shared responsibility of both male and female
household head for the preservation of household property, and signified that not only
could the male household head control the property of his wife, but also that wives had
the right to control their husband’s property (Inuma, 1992, p.163). In this context,
financial responsibility continued to be allocated to women as an aspect of internal
household management, and the position of female household head was as significant as
that of male household head, which carried with it responsibility for the external
activities of the household.
Women’s role in financial management was also strongly linked to the fact that it was
they who would give birth to the next household head, making them crucial to
maintaining continuity (Wakita, 1992, p.12). Only one member of the family could be
the successor to the permanent members of the ie, while the non-permanent members,
including sons and daughters, had to leave at their marriage. Generally, the eldest son
(musuko) was chosen to be the successor, and his marriage was regarded as a way of
recruiting personnel (a new daughter-in-law, called yome) to the family. However, a
son-in-law might also be adopted as the next household head in order to maintain the
perpetuity of the ie. This was a very common strategy among wealthy farmers and
merchants in later years to enhance the family business; they could choose an able and
loyal man from among their apprentices or kinsmen to be the next manager, while
ensuring family property was inherited through their daughter (Ueno, 1987, p.78).
The continuity of the household was considered to be more important than gender. In
this context, women often succeeded to the household property if this was a way of
maintaining stability. Widows who outlived their husbands played a particularly
significant role in maintaining households and family businesses (Lebra, 1991; Inuma,
14
1992, Wakita, 2002). These widows were called goke, which before the 10th century
signified the heir who inherits household property (Inuma, 1992). The potential crisis of
continuity that occurred with the death of the male household head was often averted by
the goke, who took on the role and position of her husband, managing the household
finances and property and laying the foundation for her son’s succession as the next
household head (ibid., p.175). The presence of goke and their high status within the ie
system was one of the significant features of medieval Japan (Wakita, 2002).
3. The evolution of Japanese women’s role as financial managers
Tokugawa Shogunate Era (1603-1867)
Japan prepared for the coming of modernization under the Tokugawa regime. Following
Ieyasu Tokugawa, the establishment of a central government in 1600, the country was
governed by the House of Tokugawa for more than two centuries. During this time, the
country was cut off from any international contact except with China and the Dutch,
who were only allowed to retain commercial ties with one area in the south of Japan.
This isolation from foreign trade afforded the country the opportunity to set up a social
structure which subsequently enabled it to resist the unwanted elements in the wave of
Westernization which swept the country at the end of the nineteenth century.
A significant feature of the Tokugawa period was that there were critical differences
between the ruling samurai class and the other classes in terms of the position of
women. In the samurai class, which enjoyed the most privileged position in Tokugawa
society, there was a clear demarcation between the roles of men and women. Women
were kept out of the public sphere, which was dominated by men, remaining in the
backroom of the house (oku). In contrast to medieval times, women had no involvement
15
with economic activities or accounting work.
On the other hand, women in the commoner class, which was unaffected by Confucian
ideology, enjoyed a more significant role. Women in the merchant class, in particular,
occupied important positions as bookkeepers (Maxon, 1976) and financial managers,
running the business in the absence of their husband (Wakita et al., 1987).
In practice, merchant businesses operated using the dynamics of the household; there
was little separation between economic and non-economic activities. Although initially
established by kinship families (Yoshino, 1968, p.67), maintaining the business came to
be more important than preserving biological kinship, and households gradually started
to take in members who were not from the same family, where it would support the
business. Cognate inheritance was often observed among merchants’ and farmers’
families in contrast to the samurai class, where women were excluded from the family
succession. These practices resulted in significant changes in the nature of the merchant
class; in the Kyoto-Osaka region, in the western part of Japan, where business
proliferated in the pre-modern period, approximately one-third of the members of urban
households had no kin connection (Kondo, 1990, p.163).
The structures of the household and its dynamics, which defined the way the family
business was run, reflected the nature of contemporary business education, and the
position and significance of women in the merchant family. Merchant households were
built in two parts: the shop where the business was run, the mise, and the oku, the inner
space where the master and his wife lived. In the mise, two types of employees existed:
the apprentices who mainly came from related families and who were considered
members of the house, and other servants who came from outside the merchant family.
The young apprentices, called detchi, were boys who usually joined the household
16
around the age of ten and worked until around seventeen. They were engaged mainly in
housework and were not allowed to participate in the main work of the business. The
apprentices and non-kinship employees alike lived in the same residence with the
master and were members of the house whatever the kinship.
For detchi, there was no clear distinction between working hours and non-working
hours, and they were subject to the master at all times. The lack of demarcation between
work and life was an important aspect of their business education and training. While
living on the premises, young apprentices were expected to learn the informal codes of
business such as how to talk and bow, how to package and weigh, to discriminate
between good money and bad, safe customers and poor credit risks, and to appreciate
the sanctions against giving short weight or breaking guild agreements (Vogel, 1985)2.
After a long training period, the master of the family business would give an apprentice
a branch of the household, called ‘dividing the shop curtain’3. He would give the
apprentice capital and goods to set up shop and introduce him to the merchant guild to
guarantee cooperation from fellow merchants.
Bookkeeping and accounting practices in merchant business involved the participation
of these household members. Although the Western style of double entry bookkeeping
did not prevail in Japan until the later part of the nineteenth century, in this period,
merchants already had a ‘double-classification’ system of accounting (Mckinnon, 1994;
Ogura, 1982). The entries in the books for the day’s transactions were checked against
2
After a few years of service, a detchi would progress to a tedai and take a more active part in managing
the shop. If the tedai proved himself as a potential employee, he might progress to banto, head clerk, and
become the chief manager responsible for all the business.
3
The branch of the household given to a non-kinship clerk was called bekke. Another branch of the
household, called bunke, was given to blood-related kin.
17
corresponding entries in other books. When two corresponding entries were found, a
small red check mark was stamped next to each. This process of checking was generally
done every night and involved all the employees in a large-scale merchant business. The
female head of the household business was often involved in this checking of account
books, in addition to helping with the bookkeeping (Hayashi, 1987, p.158).
In this context, where business operated within the dynamics of the ie, skilful household
management was particularly valued in merchant families as having the potential to
enhance household prosperity. Thriftiness was particularly important, as is illustrated in
the instructions left by one merchant in 1610. Frugality was not regarded as the
feminine quality advocated by men, however(see Walker 1998); instructions on
household management and injunctions to practise frugality were often given to the
sons who were expected to take over the business.
With your own hands kindle the fire under the stove for breakfast and dinner, damping
the embers afterwards….Going out behind the house, collect all the bits and pieces of
rubbish: small lengths of rope should be cut up for mixing in cement…fragments of
wood or broken bamboo, even as small as half an inch, should be stored, cleaned, and
used as fuel for watch-fires;…when buying things for the first time…go out and buy for
yourself. Buy at the cheapest rates, and make careful note of the prices.
Afterwards…you will know whether the articles he (the servant) brings are too
expensive or not…Housekeeping may be said to be a matter of firewood, charcoal, and
oil…no matter what his calling, if a man does not take these troubles upon himself, he
can never run a household successfully…Scrape the bean-paste morning and
night…[Mix this together with bits of vegetable scraps and] give this to the
serving-maids for breakfast and dinner as a side-dish (Uno, 1991, p.33).
As in medieval times, the paired household heads enjoyed equal status, and the female
household head had substantial control after the master and the son who was the heir to
the business. In a context where the household was closely linked to its business, the
18
role of the female head of household was to keep the household in proper order and to
take care of the employees, who were considered crucial to the success of the business.
The importance of the woman’s role in business was well acknowledged within
merchants’ families. The case of Jusan Mitsui, who married Takatoshi Mitsui, illustrates
the importance placed upon the wife by merchant families. Takatoshi was the first
master of Mitsui, one of the most prominent merchant families in Japan, which dealt in
clothing and finance, developing itself as a zaibatsu family in later years. Jusan played
an important part in personnel management and household management, discussing the
running of the business with Takatoshi while she prepared the breakfast of her retainers
(Hayashi, 1987, p.153). When there was trouble between the employees and Takatoshi,
she met the parents of the employees concerned. Takatoshi valued the contribution of
his wife and positioned her significance as equivalent to his own: ‘The wife is the god of
wealth as much as the husband. If the wife has bad intentions, the business will be
ruined. If she has good intentions, the business will flourish’ (Paulson, 1976, p.11).
Women household heads did not just play a supporting role to male household heads;
they often took centre stage if the male household head died or was incapable. Juhou
(1590-1676), the mother of Takatoshi, was actively engaged in the family business,
while her husband devoted his time to reading poetry, playing cards and art. Her talent
for business and client management was widely recognized, and subsequent generations
of the Mitsui family paid great respect to Juhou, calling her the founder of the Mitsui
business.
In merchant families of the Tokugawa era, women were called okami-san, which means
female proprietor, and not oku-san, which literally signifies wives who stay in the
backroom of the house (this is where the samurais’ wives were located). Bookkeeping
19
and accounting work was a central task for the women in merchant households.
Mine (1771-1828), the single daughter of a merchant in Wakayama in western Japan,
married a man, who at 21 succeeded to the household business. She engaged in
recording the flow of goods through the shop, bookkeeping and cross-checking the
accounts (Hayashi, 1987, p.158). She also supported her husband by welcoming visitors
and keeping a detailed record of the gifts they were given (including the type of gift and
its volume).
Women also played an important role in education in the merchant class. Unlike the
education given in the samurai class, which was over-burdened with theory, education
in the non-samurai classes aimed at teaching students practical skills such as reading,
writing and arithmetic as well as some practical wisdom (Dore, 1984, p.52). A number
of women worked in educational institutions called terakoya, which were built to
instruct children from the commoner class.
In Victorian Britain, accountancy skills were advocated as one of the ideal feminine
traits(Walker, 1998); the similarity was also found in merchant families in Japan.
Women who were capable of using precise and up-to-date methods to do the accounts
attracted male attention and marriage proposals (Maxon, 1976). In a novel written by
Ihara Saikaku (1642-1693), who was the great novelist of the Genroku period
(1680-1770) and widely read among the commoner class, the reader is given an
instructive depiction of an ‘ideal wife’.
Night and day for three years his wife diligently performed many tasks which married
life required of her, carefully spinning raw-silk thread by hand, supervising the weaving
of cloth by her servant woman, looking after her husband’s personal appearance,
burning as little fuel as possible for economy’s sake, and keeping her expense accounts
accurate and up-to-date. In fact, she was just the sort of woman any townsman would
20
want in his home (ibid., p.90).
The periods of modernization and industrialization (Meiji and Taisho periods: 1868 to
early twentieth century)
The modern period began with the defeat of the Tokugawa regime in the middle of the
nineteenth century and the establishment of the Meiji Government in 1868. After
isolating itself for more than two centuries, the country opened up commercial and
diplomatic contacts with Western countries. In the course of the Meiji Restoration, the
Meiji Government made a series of social and political reforms, encouraging
industrialization and the increasing of national power in order to ‘catch up with the
West’. The national aim of promoting industrialization was called fukoku kyohei. This
literally means rich country, strong army; the government took initiatives to make the
country an industrially advanced nation and build up its military power to enable it to
defend its independence. A number of economic, legal and social reforms were
embarked upon under the aim of transforming Japan from an agrarian to an
industrial-based economy. The government imported Western technologies, including
double entry bookkeeping, and modern industries were set up, which eventually
developed into zaibatsu. These large-scale modern industries were the foundation of the
remarkable industrial progress made during the last decade of the 1800s and the early
1900s.
The business environment and legal framework for external reporting were also
reorganized. The family business, the type of business organization prevalent in the
Tokugawa era, came to be regarded as limited, and the concept of joint stock companies
was introduced as a more rational form of modern business organization (Yoshino, 1968,
p.60). Even after the establishment of the stock market, the majority of zaibatsu,
21
corporate groups and finance conglomerates held shares mutually, and corporate
ownership was limited to corporations themselves rather than including external
shareholders. This led to low priority being given to corporate reporting (Mckinnon,
1994). These corporate groups were regarded as the successors to the traditional ie, and
it was widely felt that, since the shareholders were family members rather than outsiders,
there was little need for accountability (Cooke, 1994, p.44). As the stock market did not
function as a major source of finance for industry, banks became the major providers of
the long-term investment required for the rapid industrialization of Japan (Shiba and
Shiba, 1997, p.209). The Commercial Code introduced in 1899 was based on the
German Commercial Code, which was orientated towards creditor protection. Although
it formalized corporate reporting regulations in Japan, the financial reports prepared by
Japanese corporations were highly inconsistent both in quality and quantity (Fujita,
1966). However, there was no pressure from outside parties to improve the quality of
disclosure under the Code (Mckinnon, 1984, p.141). Under the national goals of
modernization and industrialization, the relationship between banks, corporate clients
and shareholders had been shaped so as to foster shared interests rather than conflicts.
The emergence of large bureaucratic enterprises brought critical changes in the nature of
business and consequently influenced the role of women in accounting and finance.
First, the large merchant houses from the Tokugawa period transformed themselves into
bureaucratic organizations, losing their inter-familial nature. The two parts of the
merchant household, the mise, where the business was run and the oku, the inner space
where the master and his wife lived, came to be separated. Accordingly, household
accounts came to be kept separately from the shop’s capital (Kondo, 1990, p.167). The
master of the house ultimately moved out and commuted to the shop. In large
22
enterprises, non-kinship apprenticeships created a distance between master and
apprentice. In some cases, the zaibatsu families totally withdrew from the management
of their enterprise and instead hired executives who were selected on the basis of
personal competence (Yoshino, 1968, p.86). As merchant businesses changed, women
started to lose the influential role they had previously enjoyed when business and
domestic life were both pursued on the same premises (Hayashi, 1992).
The emergence of large modern enterprises also helped to create a wide gap between
employers and employees and contributed to the new social class structure. Lacking the
skills and knowledge required to work with modern technology, traditional merchants
failed to become leaders in this new industrialization period. Even the zaibatsu Mitsui,
one of the most prominent commercial families, only managed to survive by adopting a
new mentality quite unlike that of the traditional merchants (Yoshino, 1968). Those
traditional merchants who failed to adapt themselves to the change formed the industrial
proletarian class, which constituted the majority of the workforce. On the other hand,
many of the new, innovative entrepreneurs in the Meiji era came from the samurai class,
who were encouraged by the government to become industrial leaders. The government
paid attention to the distinctive qualities of that class, such as education, a sense of
social responsibility and devotion to duty. These newly created businessmen were called
jitugyouka, ‘men who undertake a real task’, and were distinguished from the merchants
of the Tokugawa era. Thus, the new business model was an extension of the class
structure of the Tokugawa era; managers were mostly former samurai, and the workers
were drawn from the former commoner class (Yoshino, 1968, p.69).
In spite of the changes brought by industrialization, some traditional Japanese
enterprises persisted. The growth of modern industry was so rapid that it failed to
23
embrace all the pre-modern economic sectors (Saso, 1990, p.28). This led to a clear-cut
dichotomy between modern, capital intensive, technologically-based industry, which
was dominated by large enterprises, and the traditional industries made up of a large
number of small family businesses.
The dichotomy in business and industry was also connected with the dichotomy in
society and reflected the changing nature and role of the traditional Japanese household
(ie). The Meiji Government set out to create a family-state structure, merging the
individual family with state power and positioning the emperor as the great father. A key
step was to build a patriarchal family system through which the state could exercise its
power (Miyake, 1991, p.270). The Meiji Government rejected the practice of cognate
inheritance prevalent in the commoner class and limited the family succession to men as
was the case with the samurai class (Ueno, 1987, p.78). The traditional Japanese
household (ie) eventually came to be replaced by the patriarchal family system
instituted by the Meiji Government. In this family-state structure, the role of women
was to serve their men and to maintain the continuity of the Japanese patriarchal family
system. It was seen as important for women to manage the household accounting in
such a way as to accumulate savings which could then be used to fund the new
industries and develop military power (Komori, 2007). Women lost the power they had
had in the traditional household (ie), and the social function of household accounting
became to contribute to the nation’s savings.
However, many communities were beyond the reach of the state (Nolte and Hastings,
1991, p.153), and the majority of traditional agricultural villages were left unchanged.
In these traditional areas, women retained significant power and managed the household
businesses.
24
In her study of the role and position of women in agricultural households of the Meiji
era, Tanahashi (1995) highlighted that women played a crucial role in the financial
management of household businesses. Under the Meiji Civil Law, established in 1898,
women’s property rights were not recognized and women were even prohibited from
managing the dowry property. In promoting the family-state structure, the Meiji
Government used state propaganda (‘Ryosai Kenbo’) to define the ideal role of women
as good wives and wise mothers (Oki, 1987). However, in her study of the lives and
work of women in farming families in the Meiji era, Tanahashi stressed that the role and
position of women in practice were different from those legally defined and advocated
by the Meiji Government.
Sae (1867-1966) married the son of a landowner, who died when she was 32. After her
husband’s death, she managed the household business until her four-year-old son was
old enough to succeed to the business. She cross-checked her employees’ accounts book
against the corresponding entries in other books everyday, and made major decisions
regarding asset and land management and the selling price of rice, the main product of
their business. Externally, she was recognized as the representative of the household;
whenever there was a possibility that tax provisions would change, the mayor asked her
opinion as the major landowner in the village (Tanahashi, 1995, p.506).
War period and post-war Japan
Up until the Second World War, the traditional sector continued to exist: Japanese
society was split into two, with one part focusing on industrial development, and the
rest following the traditional business model. Even in the 1920s, Japan was
predominantly a country of family farms, family workshops, and family stores (Taira,
1970, p.3). Around 62% of women worked in small-scale family agriculture without
25
payment in the early 1920s; 62.4% of women worked in the primary sector, 16.3% in
the secondary sector and 19.5% in the tertiary sector (Kawashima, 1995, p.273).
When the war started, however, the war regime assumed control over the whole of
society. The Japanese government not only controlled the entire economy but also
initiated a number of policies to strengthen national unity and accumulate capital to
support military and industrial development. Savings goals were set by the government
for Japanese citizens: they were ordered to save first 8 million yen and then 23 million
yen. Women proactively responded to the role given them by the government, coming
together to share ideas and give mutual support in household accounting practices
(Komori, 2007).
Cooperation among neighbours was particularly emphasized as a way of enhancing
community spirit. Fujin no Tomo, one of the women’s magazines which had played an
important role in supporting women’s household accounting work since the onset of the
Meiji era, encouraged this community spirit by urging its readers to share their
household accounting problems with their neighbours:
Every household economy has its problems, whether big or small. We could all improve
our own household economies. We should not just be thinking how I can make ‘my
household accounts’ more efficient. We should be thinking how can we make ‘our
accounts’ more efficient (Fujin no Tomo, 1993, p.60).
Under the strict control of the war regime the differences between classes became less
clear and society as a whole became like the traditional Japanese ie, taking on the
household’s old role as the accumulator of savings for the nation.
The stock markets were also under the rigorous control of the government during the
war. The eleven stock exchanges in the country were unified into a single quasi-public
corporation, the Japan Securities Exchange (Shiba and Shiba, 1997, p.209).
26
The war regime set down the basis of the social structure which operated in post-war
Japan. After the defeat in the Second World War, the Allied Forces embarked on the
drastic reform of Japanese society, with the aim of rebuilding Japan as a democratic
country. The zaibatsu were dissolved and private regulation was promoted. This was
accompanied by the closure of the Japan Securities Exchange in 1945, followed by the
enactment of the Securities and Exchange Law and the introduction of external auditing
by Certified Public Accountants in 1948.
The break up of the zaibatsu also led to the emergence of independent shareholders.
When the Japanese securities market reopened after the Second Word War in 1949,
individual investors held more than 60% of all shares listed on stock exchanges. As
soon as the dissolution of the zaibatsu was ordered, the shares held by them were taken
away and distributed among the general public. However, this increase in independent
shareholders was soon to be replaced by cross-shareholdings among former zaibatsu
firms. Throughout the 1960s, companies increasingly sought stable relationships with
shareholders who would hold shares for the long term, in an attempt to prevent
unfriendly takeovers (Seki, 2005). Table 1 shows how the investors in Japanese shares
changed in post-war Japan.
Table 1. The distribution of share ownership in Japan, by type of shareholder
Shareholder
distribution
in 1950
1970
1980
1990
2000
2003
3.1
0.6
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.2
12.6
13.7
17.5
20.9
19.2
17.4
Pension Trusts
NA
0
0.4
0.9
5.5
4.5
Investment Trusts
NA
2.1
1.9
3.7
2.8
3.7
Japan (%)
Government
Local Government
Banks,
Trust Companies
27
Life and Causality Insurance
NA
13.7
16.1
15.8
10.9
8.0
Other Financial Institutions
11.9
3.4
3.8
3.3
1.4
2.1
Other Business Corporations
11.0
23.9
26.2
30.1
21.8
21.8
Foreign Shareholders
0.0
4.9
5.8
4.7
18.8
21.8
Individual Shareholders
61.3
37.7
27.9
20.4
19.4
20.5
Total
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
Source; Seki, 2005, p.378
Interdependent relationships were formed not only among corporations through
cross-shareholdings and among industrial groups of keiretsu, and but also between
corporations and auditors. The independence of auditors has always been questioned in
Japan (Mckinnon, 1984; Sakagami et al., 1999): professional auditors often have had
long term relationship with company directors or have been former employees of the
companies they audit (Mckinnon, 1984, p.25). What often puzzled people outside Japan
is the fact that auditors have rarely been sued for negligence, even though there have
been cases where accounts have been materially incorrect (The Accountant, 1991, p.9).
In the post-war period, the interdependent relationships between industry, business and
auditors were considered vital for the fostering of business development. Such a
position was reflected in the comment that the accountability expected in the West does
not exist in Japan (Kagel et al., 1988).
Interdependent relationships which support industrial development extend into the
social structure. In post-war Japan, most agricultural land has been sold off and young
28
people have gradually moved into the industrial sectors of the economy. These young
people have established their own families, typically made up of a single couple and
their children, in the cities. This new type of family has been described as the ‘Japanese
contemporary family’ (Kimoto, 1995a; 1995b; 1997) and it is now the prevalent family
model in Japanese cities. At the same time, housewives have become a key social group
in Japan4. As the household has lost its nature as a corporate entity and its productive
function, its function has become mainly that of reproduction.
Instead, Japanese companies have assimilated the corporate nature and productive
function of the ie (Ueno, 1994). The social structure in post-war Japan was constructed
in such a way that businesses play a central role in society. This Corporate Society
features strong gender demarcation, which places men as the core members of corporate
management and women in the domestic role, supporting the male corporate warriors.
These assumptions about gender roles are interwoven in the management practices of
Japanese corporations. A lifetime employment system generally applies to full-time
employees – overwhelmingly men – but not to the women who fill most part-time posts.
Both the seniority system and the acquisition of ‘intellectual skills’ (Koike, 1996) (the
skills encouraged in the business education) assume the life-long commitment of
employees, a commitment from which women are generally barred by their social role.
This leads to the extremely low representation of women in higher positions in the
corporate hierarchy. Only 10% of administrative and management positions in Japan are
occupied by women, while they fill 61% of clerical and related posts (Ministry of
Internal Affairs and Communication, 2005). The gender-biased nature of Japanese
4
The prevalence of housewives is a late development compared to Western industrialized nations,
where a large proportion of women were already housewives in the nineteenth century (Tanaka,
1995, p.305)
29
companies is making more women turn to the accounting profession as a way of
building an independent professional career and lifestyle (Komori, 2008)
On the other hand, in the Corporate Society, women have been expected to support
corporate activities from within the household. Japanese companies and the government
constructed the post-war Japanese family as a site for the reproduction of the human
resources that corporations need and to generate savings for corporate investment.
Companies have actively promoted the new urban lifestyle and the new family model to
people coming out of their villages to settle in the cities (Kimoto, 1997, p.11). The
government has taken the initiative in promoting savings, organizing study groups and
sending officers to different districts in Japan to spread the idea of lifestyle planning and
the importance of savings activity. This saving promotions movement led to the
establishment of the Central Council for Savings Information (CCSI) in 1952. Women
in Japan proactively responded to their public role of supporting corporate activities
through household accounting (Komori and Humphrey, 2000; Komori, 2007). Their
active involvement in household accounting and its tradition of detail and precision are
unique to the Japanese context.
Towards a ‘financial service nation’
Since the early 2000s, the relationship between women and investment activity has
become stronger in Japan. A number of securities companies, in conjunction with the
Tokyo Stock Exchange, now hold investment seminars for women to promote their
understanding of investment. Women investors are beginning to feature in the mass
media, not only in Japan but also internationally. In 2009 the Financial Times, for
example, ran a feature about Ms Watanabe, an active housewife speculator, while in
30
Japan an increasing number of books and articles have been published that talk about
the significance of investments for women and encourage their involvement. The
increasing involvement of women in investment activities signifies that the traditional
role of women in the household and their relationship with household accounting are
undergoing profound change.
The trend has been driven by the interaction between women’s demand for investment
activities and the supply from banks and business corporations eager to offer them such
opportunities.
Japanese women have shown a keen interest in investing in property as well as in stocks
and other financial products. A The first women-only IR seminar in March 2006 held by
one of the major banks, attracted applications from some 500 women for 180 seats.
Their growing interest in investment activities is not only a reaction to the hyper-low
interest offered by banks, but also reflects their demand for independence from their
traditional role in the household. This is also evident in women’s increasing awareness
of their entitlement to a share of the household assets. According to a study conducted
by the Institute for Research on Household Economics, approximately 46% of women
interviewed in 2000 felt it was important to protect their entitlement to joint assets; this
figure had increased to 80% by 2006 (Mihune, 2006). The growing awareness among
women of their entitlement to property ownership signifies a change in the gender roles
that have historically sustained the integrity of the Japanese household; old attitudes are
dissolving, with household members becoming more individual-orientated.
As interest among women grows, companies, banks and securities companies have
intensified their efforts to attract more women investors. These companies aim to
31
increase diversity among independent investors by attracting more women. Since the
end of the 1990s, Japanese banks and business corporations have focused on attracting
more independent shareholders and improving their relationship with these investors.
These companies have been paying particular attention to female investors, whom they
consider more careful and serious, qualities conducive to long-term investment
relationships (Kawabuchi, 2005).
This is driven by the trends reflected in Table 1: the practice of cross-shareholding has
steadily declined, while the presence of foreign investors has grown significantly.
Cross-shareholding is criticized as inhibiting free movement of shares in the market
(Seki, 2005, p.379). Foreign direct investment has also increased, with foreign
companies acquiring considerable stakes in large Japanese firms such as Nissan and
Mitsubishi Motors. As the capital market has developed, driven by pressure from
international forces, banks have gradually lost their influence. Manufacturers that have
grown substantially as a result of successful operation in the international market are no
longer reliant upon bank finance. The bad loans accumulated in the aftermath of the
collapse of the bubble economy and the continuing recession has further damaged the
banks’ position. Japanese companies are increasingly overhauling their corporate
governance processes, introducing external boards of directors and stressing the
transparency of their corporate management.
Thus the involvement of women in finance is shaped by the mutually supportive cycle
between women and corporations; as women demand greater access to investment
opportunities and Japanese companies seek to attract more female investors.
The changes may be linked with the public economic policy of the Koizumi regime,
32
which aimed to rationalize the economy and finance by making it more transparent
under market mechanisms. In 2004, the Financial Service Agency set up a programme
they called, ‘Moving towards a financial service nation’ to reform the financial system.
Its aim was to establish an internationally attractive financial market by shifting
administration from the public to the private sector and encouraging people to engage in
direct financing using a diverse range of high-quality financial products (Financial
Service Agency, 2004). In this programme, the shift in emphasis of household finance
from ‘savings’ to ‘investment and asset management’ was aimed at revitalizing the
economy by mobilizing the huge savings currently frozen in banks offering close to
zero interest rates. The Central Council for Financial Information (CCFI) was set up in
2001, with the Bank of Japan working as its secretariat. The CCFI is playing a major
role in the disseminating of financial and economic information, running a wide range
of activities in schools and local communities to promote sensible financial and life
planning. The activities of women investors could be seen to have contributed to the
business corporations’ shift from group-orientated financing in a development that could
further enhance the transparency and diversity of corporate management.
Conclusions
This study explores the historical changes in the financial role women have played in
Japan, along with the changing relationship between corporations and households. The
historical development of the relationship between women and finance reveals the
dynamic links between corporate accounting and social development; these links have
not previously been highlighted in studies of corporate reporting and accounting in
Japan.
In explaining the nature of corporate accounting, reporting and auditing in Japan, a
33
number of studies have given their account from the point of view of a specific culture
and its distinctive nature of corporate governance. By tracing the changing women’s
role and position in financial management, this study highlights that the role of
accounting and auditing as well as corporate governance processes are linked to the
development of traditional Japanese households and the changes in social structure that
support corporate development.
Since ancient times, women have been the managers of the domestic economy in Japan.
Their association with finance has been strongly linked to the nature of the Japanese
household (ie). Their role as the mother of the future heir was considered central to
maintaining the continuity of the ie, while female household heads had an important
role in managing the finance and property of the household. This strong association
between women and finance continued in merchant households in the Tokugawa era,
where business and domestic life were pursued on the same premises and each
influenced the other. In a context where the dynamics of the household dictated the
forms and practices of business operation, the female household head (okami-san) held
a significant position, bookkeeping, managing accounts and taking care of employees.
The modernization and industrialization embarked upon by the Meiji Government at the
end of the nineteenth century helped spread the influence of the ruling elite or samurai
class, and helped to separate household and business operations. As the household was
reduced to a site of reproduction only, women lost the power they had had in the
traditional merchant house. They were absorbed into the patriarchal family system and
given the role of accumulating savings through frugal household accounting, which
could then be used to fund industry. But while women living in cities became oku-san,
like the women of the samurai class, many agricultural villages remained unchanged,
34
and a divide emerged between these two systems.
This division was dissolved by the war regime and a new social structure was founded.
The war necessitated a social structure that would integrate society and encourage the
nation to come together. While the men were sent to the battlefields, women worked
together to build up savings through their household accounting. The social structure
instituted by the war regime formed the basis of the Corporate Society in post-war
Japan, in which men were allocated the role of corporate warriors, while women were
asked to support corporate activities by accumulating savings through household
accounting. Thus the structure of the traditional Japanese household (ie) was extended
across post-war Japanese society, with companies assimilating its corporate nature and
productive function and households supporting their activities. The Corporate Society
also helped to shape the nature of accounting and auditing in the corporate arena; the
strong gender dichotomy in society helped to shape a male-dominated corporate arena
which led to insider-orientated corporate governance. The nature of the accounting
function in the corporate arena changed, was arguably reduced, as women’s social role
(as financial managers) was restricted within the household.
The recent involvement of women with investment activities could be seen as an
outcome of the intersection of changes in the corporate arena and changes in the
position of women within the household. As a result of the increase in foreign investors
and growing pressure from the global community, insider-orientated management
practices in Japanese corporations have been challenged, and greater emphasis is being
placed on corporate accountability to external parties. These changes will also redefine
women’s social role as the supporters of corporate activity; their increasing involvement
in investment activities will help enhance diversity within corporate management and
35
make accountability more important. At the same time, it must be emphasized that the
trend is partly inspired by women’s demand for independence. Increasingly, women are
seeking a life outside their traditional social role within the Corporate Society. The
number of unmarried women and the divorce rate are both climbing steadily in Japan,
bringing about increasing diversity in terms of women’s lifestyles, and the deterioration
of the interdependent relationship between men and women. As their involvement in
investment and finance grows, their changing role will inevitably affect the
interdependent cultural underpinnings of Japanese Corporate Society.
There has been a call for accounting research that investigates accounting and gender by
venturing beyond the “professional” frame of reference (Cooper and Taylor, 2000;
Walker, 2003; 2008). This study in particular highlights the importance of
understanding the historical development of the relationship between women and
accounting in different social and cultural contexts. In the Japanese context, where the
significance of women’s role is traditionally associated with the continuity of the
household, the inter-relationship between household and corporation provides an
important frame for considering its social and cultural underpinnings of the accounting
function in corporate arena.
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