International and Area Studies Commons^™

This Sporting Life: Sports And Body Culture In Modern Japan, William W. Kelly, Atsuo Sugimoto

CEAS Occasional Publication Series

Yale CEAS Occasional Publication Series - Volume 1

Sports in Japan have long been embedded in community life, the educational system, the mass media, the corporate structures, and the nationalist sentiments of modern Japan. For over a century, they have been a crucial intersection of school pedagogy, corporate aims, media constructions, gender relations, and patriotic feelings. The chapters in this book highlight a wide range of sports, and together, they offer a significant window on to the ways that the sporting life animates the institutions of modern Japan.

Critical Success Factors For E-Commerce In Thailand: Cultural And Infrastructural Influences, Kittipong Laosethakul, William Boulton

WCBT Faculty Publications

The main purposes of this paper are to identify critical success factors (CSFs) for electronic commerce (e-commerce) in Thailand and explain the major influences behind these factors. Detailed case studies of nine e-commerce companies from different industries in Thailand were conducted. Results showed that social behavior and national culture, more specifically issues pertaining to trust and shopping behavior, were the major influences for the success of e-commerce in Thailand. The phenomenon could be partly explained by Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. Thailand’s infrastructure also played an important role in the success of its e-commerce development. The findings provide a framework to guide …

A Monetary Union In East Asia: What Does The Common Cycles Approach Tell?, K Sato, David E. Allen, Zhaoyong Zhang

Research outputs pre 2011

There is controversy about whether a monetary union is feasible in the East Asian region. Amongst the criteria for establishing a monetary union, most of the existing studies focus on the symmetric issue of fundamental shocks and the extent of correlations by applying the Blanchard and Quah (1989) structural vector autoregression (VAR) technique, which includes the firstdifferenced variables in the model and examines only bilateral relationships. When forming a monetary union, the member countries need to renounce their monetary policy autonomy. If shocks to respective economies are symmetric, the cost of relinquishing the discretionary monetary policy is likely to be …

The Whitening Of Brown Skins And The Darkening Of Whiteness, Elaine Laforteza

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

This paper draws on the interrelation of whiteness and Orientalism to provide a framework for examining the use of skin-bleaching lotions and soaps by some Filipino men and women. Through this focus, I investigate the ways in which skin-bleaching negotiates the "threatening" existence of brown flesh upon the contours of Filipino bodies and within the corpus of western(ised) nations. These threats are negotiated through the skin wherein various chromatic inflections of the flesh become processed as a part of or a threat to normative comfort zones. Skin-colour is thus the site of and for discursive construction and a domain of …

Taming The Dragon: China's Experience In The Wto Dispute Settlement System, Henry Gao

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

To many observers, a major challenge raised by China's accession to the WTO is whether the WTO dispute settlement system could cope with China, one of the major traders in the world with an economy that is halfway between a planned economy and a market economy. In this article, the author tries to answer this question by reviewing China's experience in the WTO dispute settlement system. Historically, the senior leadership in China attached disproportionate importance to the WTO dispute settlement system and preferred to avoid using the system. Thus, in the first four cases in which China was sued or …

Geography's Place In Higher Education In Singapore, Lily Kong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Unlike the other papers in this symposium, which deal with countries where there are large numbers of universities, and comparison can be made over time and across space of geography's place in higher education, this paper focuses on a country that was for a long time described as a 'one-university town': Singapore. What interesting story call there be when geography's presence in higher education is so circumscribed? In this paper, the author illustrates how geography's,fate in higher education in Singapore is closely bound up with developments in other parts of the world, not unlike the way in which the country's …

Phishing With A Poisoned Bait, Warren B. Chik

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article discusses the problem of dealing with electronic fraud and identity theft under the current Singapore criminal law.

The Bid Challenge Procedures Under The Wto Government Procurement Agreement: A Critical Study Of The Hong Kong Experience, Henry Gao

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

While there has been an extensive literature on the challenge procedure of the WTO Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) in general, as well as excellent country studies on the operation of the national challenge procedures of several key GPA Members, no such study has been conducted for Hong Kong yet. In the view of the author, even though Hong Kong has a relatively small procurement market, it combines the features of a clean and effective government and a highly internationalised procurement market, and thus makes an interesting subject of study. In this article, the author examines the efforts made by the …

Nationalism, Civilization, And Transnational Relations: The Discourse Of Greater China, William A. Callahan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This essay examines the interplay between nationalism and foreign policy in China—but with a twist. It seeks to loosen up analytical categories to expand from cultural nationalism to see how civilization constructs identity in national and transnational ways. It examines the limits of Chinese trans/nationalism according to the main Chinese expression of inside/outside—‘civilization/barbarism’—as it constructs Chinese nationalism and Greater China. The purpose is to both critically examine Chinese nationalism and to trace what our focus on the nation-state obscures: namely, transnational politics. Rather than recounting one master narrative of Chinese nationalism, the essay argues that civilization and barbarian define Greater …

Introduction, Theera Nuchpiam

Asian Review

No abstract provided.

Thailand And Cambodia After 1991: Cambodia As A New Interest For Thailand, Ukrist Pathmanand

Asian Review

Since the end of the Cold War in the mid 1980s, Cambodia's importance for Thailand has greatly increased. The range of Thai stakeholders in Thai-Cambodian relations has expanded. The national security sector, which used to dominate the relationship, has been reduced to a minor role, concentrating on narrow issues of border security. The state in general has adopted a collaborative role, focusing on securing and regulating supplies of immigrant labor. The private sector has taken the lead in developing contrast farming with state support. Thailand's two largest corporate groups, PTT and SCG, have launched ventures in Cambodia as key projects …

Thai Stakeholders' Perceptions Of Vietnam And Thai- Vietnamese Relations, Theera Nuchpiam

Asian Review

Vietnam is a rising star, attracting growing attention from the international community. Having registered steady economic growth rates during the past decade, it now assumes increasing regional and international roles. Even before Vietnam became a WTO member in January 2007, it had become a favorite site for foreign investment and launched into export-led development. Thailand is now taking great interest in Vietnam. This preliminary study of Thai stakeholders' perceptions of Vietnam indicates that, while there is some concern over competition from this rising neighboring country in trade, investment, and even in cultural activities such as sports, the Thai generally have …

Capital Characteristics Of Thai Elites In The Bangkok Period (1782-2007), Rungnapa Yanyongkasemsuk

Asian Review

Pierre Bourdieu described the production and reproduction of intellectual, economic, political, and bureaucratic elites in France using empirical evidence to analyze the relationship of capitals and the elites' position in the social field. He concluded that cultural capital was the most important factor, but that wealth was also essential and could be transformed into other forms of capital. Based on Bourdieu's approach, this paper describes the characteristics of Thai elites before the revolution in 1932 and those in the new political era. Elites in Thai society include members of the royal family, aristocrats, overseas Chinese businessmen, and intellectuals. The inheritance …

Irrigation Reforms In Rural Laos: A Study Of Farmers' Affordability, Arounyadeth Rasphone, Fumio Osanami, Takumi Kondo

Asian Review

This article examines the affordability of irrigation under irrigation reform schemes in rural Laos through a regression analysis of factors affecting the affordability under a scheme in Savannakhet Province. The ability to afford irrigation is influenced by seasonal conditions; social factors, especially the education level of the household head; market factors, especially the paddy price; and the size of landholding. Government should promote policies to increase the level of education in rural areas, improve the operation of the paddy market, and find ways to improve productivity to offset the declining availability of land.

Politics, Porn, Pisok: A Study Of Contemporary Minahasa, Indonesia, Philipp Borgs

Asian Review

Indonesia has been subject to huge changes after the fall of Suharto in 1998. Inter-ethnic and inter-religious problems that remained under the surface suddenly erupted and led to violent clashes between different groups in many parts of the Indonesian archipelago. Interestingly, North Sulawesi has not been subject to such incidents yet. Even though it has one of the highest numbers of Christians in Indonesia, the region remains stable and peaceful. This article analyzes this province with a focus on the districts of Minahasa. The ethnic Minahasans played a special role both during the Dutch colonial era and the early years …

Contributors

Asian Review

No abstract provided.

The Roma: During And After Communism, Florinda Lucero, Jill Collum

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Roma are an interconnected ethnic and cultural group that migrated out of India more than ten centuries ago. In the Czech Republic, they may have been present since the 15th century. Although relations within Czech lands began honorably, they quickly disintegrated into enmity and within a century Czechs could kill the Roma with impunity. Legislation restricting Roma movement came about in 1927 with Law 117: the “Law on Wandering Gypsies,” which stated that the Roma were now required to seek permission to stay overnight in any given location. In the run-up to World War II, parallel restrictions to those …

Totalitarianism: The Case Of Turkmenistan, Hayden Gore

Human Rights & Human Welfare

With the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, Saparmurat Niyazov, the former First Secretary of the Communist Party of Turkmenistan and self-styled “Turkmenbashi” (Father of All Turkmen), became the country’s first president, quickly fashioning Turkmenistan into one of the most repressive regimes in the world. Declared president-for-life after a dubious parliamentary election in which he selected all of the candidates, Niyazov has created a Stalinistic personality cult to glorify his image and to solidify his control over the state. His “reforms” have outlawed political dissent, marginalized ethnic and religious minorities, gutted the public health system, and enforced a campaign …

Managing Change In Asian Business: A Comparison Between Chinese Educated And English Educated Chinese Entrepreneurs In Singapore, Thomas Menkhoff, Ulrike Badibanga, Yue Wah Chay

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Against the background of the current rapidly changing business environment, the article examines the organizational change management behaviour of the owner-managers of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Singapore. The analysis of survey data is aimed at ascertaining whether there are any differences between Chinese and English educated small (ethnic Chinese) businessmen in terms of Change Management (CM), a dichotomy that is of great historical and politico-cultural significance in Singapore. The survey data show that there are indeed differences between the subgroups (eg with regard to the initiation of a more participatory people management style) but these variations turned …

Japanese National Identity And National Security, Christopher Gene Phillips

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This thesis examines the interrelation between national security and nationalism in Japan. Beginning from the stance of classical realism as put forth by Hans Morgenthau, the essay takes a "culturalist" view as its starting point. The culturalist view, in accepting the basic assumptions of classical realism as given, understands that all states act freely and rationally to maximize their interests, defined in terms of power. Power, as Morgenthau points out, is not a fixed concept, its definition being subject to the vicissitudes of time and culture. The culturalist model attempts to understand how each civilization understands power by examining its …

Globalization And The Deepening Indian-U.S. Partnership In An Age Of Entrenched Anti-Americanism, Geoffrey Kain

Publications

“One of the topics often debated in the larger context of globalization is whether or not globalization is fundamentally a new-colonialist/neo-imperialist force (this view might be regarded as the Noam Chomsky school), or whether it is better represented as more of an open-access, competitive landscape on a truly global scale (this view might be regarded as the Thomas Friedman school)…”

Changing Transitions To Adulthood In Vietnam's Remote Northern Uplands: A Focus On Ethnic Minority Youth And Their Families, Bussarawan Teerawichitchainan, Hac Van Vinh, Nguyen Thi Phuong Lan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Vietnam’s rapid economic growth has provided young Vietnamese new opportunities unheard of in their parents’ generation. This is, however, not the case for ethnic minority youth. Many of them are among the poorest, least healthy, and least educated. Ethnic minorities, who tend to live in remote mountainous areas, account for 15 percent of Vietnam’s 84 million total population and, according to a recent estimate, 61 percent of them are poor. Evidence suggests that despite recent efforts of the Government of Vietnam in promoting poverty reduction in remote areas, a majority of ethnic minorities have not yet experienced positive change, contrary …

Trauma And Community: The Visual Politics Of Chinese Identity In Sino-Japanese Relations, William A. Callahan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

With the coming of industry to Europe and European empire to the world, individual bodies took on a new role to represent the modern body politic in international space. [...]the Boy Scouts was established as a way of safeguarding the fitness not just of specific boys against venereal disease, but of safeguarding the general fitness of British imperial rule that was 'threatened' by miscegenational temptations in the colonies.2 2. Rather than producing and distributing positive role models of Chinese patriots like the Boy Scouts, the National Humiliation Gymnastics primer uses basically the same image to construct the community of China …

Contract Law, Chee Ho Tham, Pearlie Koh, Pey Woan Lee

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

No abstract provided.

An Unrecognized State In Foreign And International Courts: The Case Of The Republic Of China On Taiwan, Pasha L. Hsieh

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In the 1970s, Taiwan lost its United Nations seat, and most nations switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to the People's Republic of China (PRC). The loss of Taiwan's diplomatic recognition became a fundamental issue in judicial proceedings. Contrary to the PRC's claim, the article argues that, from the viewpoint of international law, Taiwan has never been succeeded by the PRC. The article explores the Taiwan question faced by foreign courts and finds that, albeit the lack of diplomatic recognition, the courts around the world have almost uniformly accorded Taiwan the status of state and this judicial recognition has risen to …

China's Participation In The Wto: A Lawyer's Perspective, Henry Gao

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

On 10 November 2001, China finally acceded to the World Trade Organization (WTO) after a marathon negotiation spanning 15 years. China's membership in the WTO raises interesting questions for both the WTO and China. For the WTO, the question is how to deal with China?a huge country of growing importance as a major global exporter and importer but is still in economic transition. For China, the question is how to implement the numerous obligations in the WTO accession package. This paper sets out by reviewing China's experience in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the WTO. It …

To Use Or Not To Use?: Poverty Mapping In Cambodia, Tomoki Fujii

Research Collection School Of Economics

No abstract provided.

Open Vs Sealed Bid Auctions: Testing For Revenue Equivalence Under Singapore's Vehicle Quota System, Roberto S. Mariano, Winston T. H. Koh, Yiu Kuen Tse

Research Collection School Of Economics

Using data from the auction of vehicle quota licenses in Singapore, we study if revenue equivalence holds when the auction format was switched from a sealed-bid format (May 1990 to June 2001) to an open bidding format since July 2001. Our econometric analysis indicates the change in auction format led to a change in bidding behavior. On average, the quota license premium under the open bidding format is about US$1000 (about 7.5% of the Category E license price in June 2001) lower, compared to the forecast level that would have prevailed if there had been no change in the auction …

Globalization, The Developmental State, And The Politics Of Urban Growth In Korea: A Multilevel Analysis, Yooil Bae, Jefferey M. Sellers

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article explores the politics of urban growth in a transitional society. Korea, which is experiencing rapid industrialization, urbanization and democratic transition exemplifies a set of conditions that may seem to favor the emergence of an urban growth politics and business-led growth coalition much like that found in urban areas at the time of industrialization, and still prevalent in much of the US and other western democracies today. Yet our multilevel case analyses show that the transformations in Korea as a late industrializer, late democratizer and late adopter of urban policy have helped to consolidate more restricted policies toward urban …

The Singapore Model Of Housing And The Welfare State, Sock Yong Phang

Research Collection School Of Economics

While Singapore is not generally regarded as a welfare state, the provision of housing welfare on a large scale has been a defining feature of its welfare system. The extensive housing system has played a useful role in raising savings and homeownership rates as well as contributing to sustained economic growth in general and development of the housing sector in particular. Few would dispute the description of Singapore’s housing policies as 'phenomenally successful' (Ramesh, 2003). Singapore’s economic growth record in the past four decades has brought it from third world to first world status (Lee, 2000), with homeownership widespread at …