Law, Custom, and Morality in Japan
The Culture of Cheating on the Japanese National Railways
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2582286 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Paul H Noguchi (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1979 |
| Volume | 52 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 165 |
| Publication date | 1979-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Anthropological Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0003-5491 • E-ISSN: 1534-1518 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/3317645 |
| OpenAlex | W2320702141 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 6 |
Through the perspective of a situation ethics this paper deals with the phenomenon of Japanese commuters cheating on train fares. The question of the relationship between honesty and morality in Japan is raised as well as the linkages and conflicts between the legal and the cultural realms. The folklore which surrounds the cheating and the actual cheating patterns are explored along with a discussion of the apprehension and punishment of offenders. Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is argued that urbanization, industria!ization, and modernization are not the primary causes for such actions but rather that the explanation for the occurrence and persistence of this behavior is sought in an orientation which is basic to the Japanese world view. The paper concludes that a fluid system of customary rules continues to be influential in the daily lives of the modern Japanese despite the intrusion of law
Cheating · Morality · Political science · Sociology · Law · Names, Identity, and Discrimination Research · Psychology · Psychology of Social Influence · Social Psychology
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |