Building Policy Legitimacy in Japan

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-x

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2. Introduction: Policy Legitimacy, Unpopular Legislation and the Limits of Self-Interest

   1. Introduction: Policy Legitimacy, Unpopular Legislation and the Limits of Self-Interest

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 1-9

3. Theoretical Framework

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 11-11

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   2. Policy Legitimacy as a Determinant of Policy Outputs

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 13-35

4. Applications

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 37-37

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   2. The Politics of Consumption Tax

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 41-74

   3. The Politics of a Consumption Tax Increase

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 75-97

   4. The Politics of Electoral Reform

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 99-133

5. Conclusion

   1. Conclusion

      • Takayuki Sakamoto

      Pages 135-149

6. Back Matter

   Pages 151-213

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Why do politicians sometimes make unpopular or contested policies that could damage their electoral prospects? This is the question Sakamoto tries to answer. Political scientists have long claimed that political behaviour can be explained as actors' self-interested goal-seeking behaviour. But Sakamoto demonstrates that politicians sometimes show behaviour that goes beyond the narrow confines of self-interest and that 'policy legitimacy' is the factor that can preempt or override the forces of self-interest and makes possible the implementation of contested policies by using the case of Japan. This innovative study will be of interest to students of Japanese politics, legislative studies and of rational choice theory.

• Policy
• politics
• Rational Choice

'The argument is clearly and directly presented...the book is rich in interesting details...' - Journal of Asian Studies

• Nanzan University, Nagoya, Japan

  Takayuki Sakamoto

TAKAYUKI SAKAMOTO is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Faculty of Law, Nanzan University (Japan). He was also the recipient of Fulbright-Hays Dissertion Fellowship, University of California Institute on Global Conflict. His current research focuses on comparative political economic policy-making.

Policies and ethics