Lifetime Commitment in Japan: Roles, Norms, and Values

This paper reexamines the extent and sources of "lifetime commitment"-the practice of working for one firm throughout one's work life-in Japan. Earlier analyses are modified by the introduction of (1) conceptual distinctions between lifetime commitment as role behavior, and two types of commitment to a firm: status enhancement and moral loyality; (2) Japanese and U. S. data on interfirm mobility; and (3) data from our own research in Japanese factories. On the basis of these conceptual distinctions and data, we conclude that, with regard to lifetime commitment, the degree to which Japan disconfirms theories of modernization and differentiation has been exaggerated.