The reality of a shrinking labor market as the population is aging and birthrate is declining in Japan, is asking for more female participation. Changing economic demands and working conditions is...Show moreThe reality of a shrinking labor market as the population is aging and birthrate is declining in Japan, is asking for more female participation. Changing economic demands and working conditions is leading to an increasing number of double-income families. It is creating variety in the gender roles and contributing to a new order. A study of ten qualitative interviews was conducted to examine the working conditions and experiences of working mothers in Tokyo. The case study shows that working mothers are facing three main challenges when trying to find a work-life balance: (1) time management, (2) high responsibility of work within the household and (3) working culture that impacts career. The case study of this thesis gives an insightful assessment of policies, what they do and do not address. Analyzing narratives and understanding how mothers approach their working situation and lifestyle is an important element in discussing the work-family balance to clarify remaining issues in working culture. It turns out that informal resources and strategies are important to overcome or deal with the challenges, as formal policies still seem to lack in addressing part of the core labor issues and remaining gender inequality.Show less
This thesis examines how Japan's declining birth rate and women's work-life balance are related, and how the government has responded to this in terms of policies.
Although racism and racial issues are not about the color of people’s skin in itself, the symbolic meanings given to color do determine who is affected by acts of discrimination and who is not. But...Show moreAlthough racism and racial issues are not about the color of people’s skin in itself, the symbolic meanings given to color do determine who is affected by acts of discrimination and who is not. But there is more to racism than it simply being about dark skin versus fair. Even among skin tone, variations that exist in terms color across the range of dark to fair, the type of discrimination faced by people differs. On a related yet deceptively different topic skin color is also strongly tied to beauty ideals. The focus for this thesis lies on the Japanese market. The question that is answered is: what does white skin stand for within Japanese society and is this beauty ideal of fair skin directly linked to a desire to emulate white people?Show less
