Recent Research Interests

　My research field is economic history and Japanese economic development from the ancient to the present by estimating/analyzing various economic factors, such as population, production, wages and prices. The ultimate goal of my work is to estimate Japanese Gross Domestic Product in the very long-run, using a historical national accounting approach. This is also linked to explain the deep historical roots of current economic issues in Japan. A main feature of my research is quantifying historical phenomena by constructing the database derived from various quantitative information written in historical documents. In the same way, however, I think it is important to understand the basic procedure on historical studies such as source criticism and reading skills of historical texts, books and ancient documents.

Selected Publications

 Osamu Saito and Masanori Takashima (2016). “Estimating the shares of secondary- and tertiary-sector output in the age of early modern growth: the case of Japan, 1600-1874,” European Review of Economic History, 20(3), 368-386.
 Motoi Kusadokoro, Takeshi Maru, and Masanori Takashima (2016). “The asset accumulation behavior of rural households in the post-Showa depression reconstruction period: a panel data analysis,” Asian Economic Journal, 30(2), 221-246.
 Kyoji Fukao, Jean-Pascal Bassino, Tatsuji Makino, Ralph Paprzycki, Tokihiko Settsu, Masanori Takashima, and Joji Tokui (2015). Regional Inequality and Industrial Structure in Japan: 1874-2008, Tokyo: Maruzen.
 Mari Onuki, Daisuke Murakami, and Masanori Takashima (2010). “Research on financial and monetary history based on the records of the Bank of Japan Archives,” Financial History Review, 17(2), 273-280.

Further Information

⇒Private Homepage

Kwansei Gakuin University Database of Researchers