Compliance with International Standards: The EDIFACT and ISO 9000 Standards in Japan

International standards play an increasingly important role in the world economy. Research in the field of economics on standardisation has focused on addressing the question of how and in which situations standards should be generated. While this analysis is important, it tends to overlook the subsequent process of implementation, despite its importance for an appropriate standard setting. This paper uses empirical evidence from Japanese firms in order to identify the reasons why and under which conditions firms do not comply with international standards. The Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and Transport (EDIFACT) standard, which defines data exchange networks, and the ISO 9000 standard, which defines quality management processes, are the two case studies. I also draw comparisons to the implementation of these standards in Germany. I conclude that non-compliance with standards is a common phenomenon with specific, regional characteristics. At the end, I make preliminary conclusions about new ways of thinking about how international standards are set.