Sociological investigation into the type and development of informatization process

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Our research began with the investigation of the present state of informatization within Japanese organizations, mainly in the domain of treatment of data. In the year of 1997, we visited some major manufacturing industries in Japan, such as Sony, Toyota, Matsushita, and some department stores and had interviews with the key persons who were responsible for the informatization policies of those enterprises.In the year of 1998, we visited several times the above mentioned enterprises, and had interviews with many persons who were more or less responsible for the informatization thereof. We were given many materials and explanations, but we could not help feeling difficult to grasp the fundamental or essential characteristics of informatizations of those abovementioned enterprises, and of informatization of Japanese society in general.In the year of 1999, we thought we cannot make clear the essential points of Japanese enterprises and Japanese society, unless we change the field of investigation. So we decided to visit Sillicon Alley, New York, and succeeded in getting appointments with some organizations and some people concerned. Meeting with the EDC (Economic Development Corporation) staffs was very useful to clarify the characteristics of informatization processes of Japanese enterprises and Japanese society.