This book compares between Japan and Finland to offer a fruitful platform for the study of the similarities and differences in economic and societal development.

Part 1: Introduction 1. Comparing Japanese and Finnish Economies and Societies - Longitudinal Perspectives, Jari Ojala, Yasushi Tanaka, Toshiaki Tamaki, and Jari Eloranta 2. Longitudinal Comparative Historical Analysis: Challenges and Possibilities, Pavel Osinsky and Jari Eloranta Part 2: Welfare Societies 3. Two Paths to Building a Welfare Society: The Development of Work and Family-related Policies in Post-War Finland and Japan, Maare Paloheimo, Kota Sugahara, Tadashi Fukui, and Merja Uotila 4.Higher Education Systems and Labour Market Outcomes in Japan and Finland, 1950 - 2010, Anu Ojala, Yasushi Tanaka and Olli Turunen 5. Military Spending in Japan and Finland: From Warfare to Welfare State, Jari Eloranta and Yasushi Tanaka Part 3: Macroeconomic Policies 6. Macroeconomic Thinking and Policymaking in Post-War Japan and Finland: The Role of Keynesian Macroeconomics, Toshiaki Tamaki and Timo Särkkä 7. Energy Supply and Regulation, Park Seung-Joon and Esa Ruuskanen 8. The Financial Crisis of the 1990s in Finland and Japan, Kari Heimonen, Shigeyoshi Miyagawa and Yoji Morita Part 4: Trade and Industry 9. Finnish-Japanese Trade Relations from Protectionism to Free Trade , 1919 - 2010, Juha Sahi and Kazuhiro Igawa 10. Growth of an Industry: A Comparison of Paper Industry in Japan and Finland, Pasi Sajasalo and Kazuhiro Igawa Part 5: Concluding Remarks 11. Concluding Thoughts on the Finnish-Japanese Comparison, Christopher Lloyd

Yasushi Tanaka is a Professor of Economics in the Faculty of Economics at Kyoto Sangyo University. He is a labour economist with particular interests in human capital theory, OJT, cooperative education, and economic inequality.

Toshiaki Tamaki is a Professor of Economic History at Kyoto Sangyo University, Faculty of Economics. He specializes in economic history of early modern Europe.

Jari Ojala is a Professor of Comparative Business History at the University of Jyväskylä, Department of History and Ethnology. He specializes in maritime and business history.

Jari Eloranta is a Professor of History at the Appalachian State University, USA, and Adjunct Professor (Docent) of Economic History at the University of Jyväskylä. He specializes in comparative economic and business history, especially 19^th and 20^th century government and military spending and conflicts.