Shogo Koyano's Answer to a Sociological Problem

of Social Sciences, Celebrating 77th Birthday of Professor Shogo Koyano

In Faculty

(Festschrift)

•

.r-Iito:

frokiwa University,

1993.

How to Intergrate Modern and Traditional Values: Shogo Koyano's Answer to a Sociological Problem Professor Koyano for His 77th Anniversary Gisela Trommsdorff Prof. Dr., University of Konstanz, Germany Professor Koyano's very special birthday is a much welcumed uppurtunity tu celebrate with him, to offer him my best wishes, and to make him be aware of the deep gratitude I owe to him.

I am very glad to have the special oppurtunity to

talk about tne impact Professor Koyano had on my japan related activities and I would like to look back on my relations with Professor Koyanu �ince more than fifteen years.

In 1972 I visited japan for the first time in my life.

I had just finished my

doctoral degree at the University of Manl1heim and was invited tu participate in the International Congress of Psychology in Tokyu which was urganized perfectly After the

and was carried out in a really overwhelming friendly atmosphere.

congress, I visited several historical places in japan, and I was impressed must uf all by the incredible co·existence of highly modern technolugy on the one hand and a very complex traditional culture, as represented nut unly in beautiful temples and shrines but which also included values of sincerity, interpersonal harmuny and trust, hospitality and warm interpersonal relatiuns on the uther hand. sure I had to come back in order to understand mure

of japan.

A�

I was very a'

matter of

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How to Integrate Modern and Traditional Values

fact, the next visit took place a year later when I was invited for the conference

support in difficult situations.

We did not only meet every time when I was

of the International Society of the Study of Time.

However, travelling to

visiting Japan but we also met abroad during several occasions of scientific

conferences c()uld only give a glimpse of an insight into Japanese culture.

meetings, e.g. during the International Congress of Sociology in Toronto, while

Therefore. Professor Kornadt from the University of the Saarland who was as

Professor Koyano was a member of the Executive Committee of the International

much fascinated by Japan, and myself planned to carry out a comparative study

Sociological Association, or during the International Congress of Sociology in

on aspects of socialization and social motivation; this included Germany and

Mexico City.

Professor Koyano also visited Germany several times.

We had a

Japan, as highly industrialized societies, and less modernized Asian cultures

lot of Japanese green tea together and also German wine.

(urban and rural populations of Bali and Batak people in Indonesia).

Koyano was invited for a lecture on value change in Japan at the University of

was supported by grants from the Volkswagen Foundation.

This study

We visited Japan

Once, Professor

Mannheim, where I was teaching before going to the Technical University in

regularly nearly every year in order to prepare and carry out this cross-cultural

Aachen in 1978.

study in cooperation with several Japanese and Indonesian collegues.

which made clear that Western people, including academicians need to know

The head

His impressive lecture was followed by long-lasting discussions

of the Japanese team was Professor Hayashi, the former President of the Kyoto

much more about Japanese culture and society before they may engage in discus­

University of Education.

sions on Japan.

During our endeavors tu study the Japanese socialization, culture and society, I ran across a publication of Professor Koyano.

"Sociological Studies in Japan:

Prewar, Postwar, and Contemporary Stages" (J 9(6).

For Western people, Japanese thinking and value system seem quite difficult to understand; and in some aspects they seem so unique and culture-specific.

This

Thi5 work fascinated me

gives rise to the question in how far theories established in the West can claim

so much that I wanted to meet Professor Koyano personally to discuss his studies.

universal validity when they have not been tested in non-Western cultures like

In the same year on our next trip to Japan, I really met Professor Koyano in the

Japan.

coffee shop of the Old Ginza Tokyu Hotel.

be quite

never forget.

This very impressive meeting I will

We found so many areas of joint interest and concern, including

comparative studies, topics of modernization and Japanese values.

Thereupon a

long-lasting friendship and continous mutual exchange began.

What occurs to be

"contradictory" from the Western point of view may

"natural" for Japanese, and the other way ruulll!.

This and further

discussions with Professor Koyano made clear to me that one cannot l1l1derstand social phenomenon such as social change and socialization by just starting from Western theorizing and sticking to the point of view of western thinkil.g.

This

was my impression since my first visit in Japan, and this was the reason to start Professor Koyano generously offered his experience and help in carrying out

and continue cross-cultural studies; this still motivates my ongoing studies on

our ambitious cross·cultural studies; on every meeting he gave me insight into

Japan while I now hold a chair in developmental and cross·cultural psychology.

Japanese thinking and he touk care of me like a father when I needed advice and

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How to Integrate Modern and Traditional Values

Professor Koyano very soon beca,ne an active member of the Japanese

questions and methods are concerned (Trommsdorff, 1989) _

We started from

cross-cultural research team and took the role of integrating the sociological and

socialization theories and paper-and pencil-tests; now we are including develop­

psychological perspectives in nur studies, especially focus.�ing on differences

mental, motivation and action theories to understand the process and function of

between modern and traditional Japanese socialization and thinking_

social motivation, and we are engaging in observation of interactions between

As an

expert in family, urban, and comparative sociology, Professor Koyano gave many

children and their mothers in experimental and natural settings.

valuable advice with respect to planning and organization during difficult stages of our project.

Professor Koyano gave many fruitful theoretical insights, and

organizational input.

He also was most helpful by introducing Professor Kornadt

During all the time Professor Koyano has contributed a lot to a more subtle understanding of Japanese thinking.

This was possible on account of the ongoing

and myself to several outstanding Japanese sociologists and institutions all over

exchange and discussions with a scholar who does weJl understand the Western

the country, and to thus alJowed for various and fruitful contacts_

point of view, too.

He also opened

Furthermore, Professor Koyano's deep knowledge of tradi­

the door to include Kanazawa in our study in order to complement inter-cultural

tional Japanese arts and his long-lasting contacts with important traditional

studies by intra-cultural comparisons_

artists and scholars allowed me to gain some impressive insight into the complex

Even though Japan is believed to be a

homogenous society, regional differences do exist and should not be neglected_

structure of Japanese culture and thinking.

At the same time, Professor Koyano

Professor Koyano thus has very substantially helped to improve our cross-cultura l

was weJl established in Western academia_

Professor Koyano was a member of

project, to solve problems in difficult situations and to encourage our work.

the Board of Directors of the Japan Sociological Society and he also served as representative in several research teams abroad (Nepal, Canada, Brazil, Indonesia,

Furthermore, Professor Koyano has given me tht, highly valuable chance to have been invited by the Japan Foundation for Promotion of Science to stay in Japan for a prolonged period of time.

This grant allowed me to carry out a

cross-cultural project on adolescent's perception of socializat ion and to start further projects on value change in Japan.

Without Professor Koyano's continu­

ous personal support I would not have been granted several more invitations to study in Japan durin� the past ten years.

The many highly valuable contacts

which Professor Koyano pro·;ided plus his personal inv()lvem ent, knowledge, and experience are a fundamental basis of my own Japan-re lated research, including the cros.