Conclusions

Abstract

The growth of the Japanese economy over the twentieth century is one of the great success stories of our era. In a country beginning at a relatively low level of per-capita income, per-capita product rose at hitherto unheard-of rates over the seven decades 1900–70. During the duration of a single human lifespan, Japan emerged from a condition of relative economic backwardness to being one of the great economic powers. The key to her ability to achieve rapid growth in income per head was the growth in labour productivity, which, in turn, can be attributed to importing and adapting foreign technology (total factor productivity growth); to capital accumulation per worker; and to improvements in the capacity and willingness of the average worker to give effort and to learn the skills required to implement the new technologies. Ohkawa and Rosovsky (1973) advance the concept of the social capability to import and adapt foreign technology; they argue that Japan’s capacity rose during the course of the period 1900–70, generating a tendency towards acceleration in the growth rate of total factor productivity. In my opinion one of the chief ingredients of the social capability to import and adapt technology is the emergence and refinement of integrated segmentation in Japan.