Changes in the economic factors related to the households' lifetime income in the two lost decades : Evidence from Japanese Micro Data

本研究使用20世纪80年代以来的微观数据，对与日本家庭的终身收入相关的各种经济因素进行了调查。首先，日本雇佣制度的关键要素--论资排辈和终身雇佣模式正在被侵蚀，传统的雇佣制度已经开始瓦解。第二，一次性退休金的数额是企业规模和工人服务年限的递增函数，这与家庭的预期一致。所得估计值在估计期间内是稳定的。第三，她毕业那年的第一份工作状况，受到当时宏观经济状况的影响，对她未来的工作状况有着重要影响。随着时间的推移，这种影响逐渐减弱，并在十年左右有效地消失。如果她在毕业后一段合理时间内找到固定工作，这种影响也会消失。第四，高收入家庭可能会获得更多的资产转移。然而，在以家庭生命周期财富衡量财政实力时，代际转移对资产不平等的贡献似乎在数量上有限。

Employing micro data since the 1980's, this research has investigated various economic factors related to the lifetime income of Japanese households. First, the key elements of the Japanese employment system, namely the seniority-based wage and lifetime employment patters, are eroding and that the traditional employment system has begun to unravel. Second, the amount of the lump-sum retirement allowances is an increasing function of the firm size and the length of worker's service, and that is consistent with the households' expectation. The obtained estimates are stable during the estimation periods. Third, the first job status at her graduation year, which is affected by macroeconomic conditions at the time, matters significantly her future job status. The effect gradually declines over the years and effectively disappears around ten years. The effect would also disappear if she can secure regular employment within a reasonable time after graduation. Forth, higher income households are likely to receive larger asset transfers. However, the contribution of intergenerational transfers to asset inequality appears to be quantitatively limited when measuring financial strength in terms of households' life cycle wealth.