GLOSSARY
Check what the words mean.
A glossary for reading about public asset reuse and the social problems behind it. When applying a scheme, check the current source document and the terms of your own case as well.
- Digital Divide
The gap between those who can and cannot use information and communication technologies. It has a three-layer structure: access divide (device/connectivity), skills divide (operational ability), and outcome divide (differential benefits from digital use).
Find related articles →- Residential Land Tax Exemption
A tax provision that reduces property tax on residential land by up to one-sixth. Since demolishing a vacant house removes this exemption, it creates an economic incentive to leave deteriorating houses standing rather than clearing the land.
Find related articles →- Specified Vacant House
A designation under the Vacant Houses Special Measures Act for properties posing risks of collapse or sanitation hazards. Designated properties face graduated measures: advice, guidance, recommendation, order, and administrative subrogation.
Find related articles →- Management-Deficient Vacant House
A category established by the 2023 amendment to the Vacant Houses Special Measures Act. Refers to inadequately maintained vacant houses at risk of becoming Specified Vacant Houses. Properties receiving recommendations lose their residential land tax exemption.
Find related articles →- Cherry Picking
The practice of selectively presenting only favorable portions of data. By arbitrarily choosing time periods, subjects, or variables, diametrically opposite conclusions can be drawn from the same dataset.
Find related articles →- Confounding Variable
A third variable that influences both variables under study. Overlooking confounding variables leads to mistaking spurious correlations for causal relationships.
Find related articles →- Means Restriction
An approach to suicide prevention that physically limits access to specific methods of suicide. Examples include platform doors, pesticide regulation, and bridge safety nets.
Find related articles →- Means Substitution
The phenomenon where restricting one method of suicide leads to switching to another method. Meta-analyses across 62 countries confirm that complete substitution rarely occurs.
Find related articles →- Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT)
An experimental design that randomly assigns participants to intervention and control groups to test effectiveness. One of the highest-quality methods of evidence generation.
Find related articles →- Stress-Diathesis Model
A theoretical model proposing that suicide risk manifests at the intersection of distal factors (genetic vulnerability) and proximal factors (acute stress).
Find related articles →- Epigenetics
Changes in gene expression that occur without alterations to the DNA sequence. Environmental stress can rewrite gene switches through mechanisms such as DNA methylation.
Find related articles →- Candidate Gene Hypothesis
The hypothesis that specific genes are directly involved in mental illness or behavioral traits. Border et al. (2019) refuted the candidate gene hypothesis for depression in a large-scale study.
Find related articles →- Polygenic
A trait determined by the cumulative small effects of many genetic variants. Mental illness and suicide risk are highly polygenic.
Find related articles →- Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS)
A method that uses genetic data from hundreds of thousands to millions of people to comprehensively search for genetic variants associated with specific diseases or traits.
Find related articles →- 5-HTTLPR (Serotonin Transporter Gene Polymorphism)
A polymorphism in the gene involved in serotonin reuptake. S-allele (short form) carriers were thought to have higher anxiety, but this has been refuted by large-scale studies.
Find related articles →- Differential Susceptibility Hypothesis (Orchid-Dandelion)
The hypothesis that individuals with certain genetic predispositions are maladaptive in adverse environments but more adaptive in favorable ones. Also known as the 'Orchid and Dandelion' hypothesis.
Find related articles →- Genetic Determinism
The view that genes unilaterally determine behavior and traits. Considered scientifically inaccurate in modern genetics.
Find related articles →- Heritability
The proportion of phenotypic variation in a population attributable to genetic factors. It indicates the relative ease of environmental intervention in a particular society, not the immutability of genetic traits.
Find related articles →- DNA Methylation
A chemical modification where methyl groups are added to DNA molecules. One of the primary epigenetic mechanisms that suppresses gene expression.
Find related articles →- Internal Working Model
A mental representation of self and others formed through early attachment experiences. Functions as a lifelong template for interpersonal expectations, emotion regulation, and stress responses; secure versus insecure models produce markedly different relational patterns.
Find related articles →- FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
The anxiety or fear that one is missing out on rewarding experiences others are having. A concept increasingly studied in social psychology with the rise of social media, shown to correlate positively with anxious attachment.
Find related articles →- Upward Social Comparison
The psychological process of comparing oneself to others who are perceived as superior or more fortunate. Frequently occurs on social media and can lead to relative deprivation and lowered self-evaluation.
Find related articles →- Relative Deprivation
The subjective sense of injustice that one is not receiving what one deserves. Arising from comparison with others, it can form the psychological basis for hostility and aggressive behavior.
Find related articles →- Hostile Attribution Bias
A cognitive bias toward interpreting others' ambiguous actions as hostile. Associated with insecure attachment styles and relative deprivation, making aggressive responses more likely.
Find related articles →- Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
A motivational model proposed by Abraham H. Maslow, arranging five levels of need (physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualization) hierarchically. Attachment problems concern the safety (Layer 2) and love/belonging (Layer 3) levels — more fundamental than the esteem needs (Layer 4) often conflated with them.
Find related articles →- Evidence-Based Policy Making
An approach to policy making and evaluation based on objective evidence such as statistical data and research findings.
Find related articles →- Post-Normal Science
A framework in science studies proposed by Funtowicz & Ravetz (1993). In situations of high uncertainty, high stakes, and urgent decisions, normal scientific procedures alone are insufficient; knowledge co-production by an extended peer community (including citizens and stakeholders) is required.
Find related articles →- Logic Model
A framework that visually maps the causal relationships from inputs to activities, outputs, and outcomes of a program.
Find related articles →- Theory of Change (ToC)
A planning method that works backward from long-term social change goals to specify necessary intermediate outcomes and causal pathways of intervention.
Find related articles →- Collective Impact
A framework where multiple sectors (government, business, NPOs, etc.) collaborate under a shared agenda to address social issues.
Find related articles →- Social Return on Investment (SROI)
A social impact evaluation method that converts social, environmental, and economic outcomes into monetary values and expresses them as a ratio to input costs.
Find related articles →- National Income (NI)
The total income generated by a nation's economic activities. Calculated by subtracting capital depreciation and indirect taxes from GDP, then adding subsidies. Used as the denominator for Japan's national burden rate, though most countries use GDP, making Japan's figures appear higher for the same burden level.
Find related articles →- Non-Take-Up
The situation where eligible individuals do not access welfare benefits they qualify for. Japan's public assistance take-up rate is estimated at approximately 22.9%.
Find related articles →- Nudge
A technique that guides people's behavior in desirable directions by adjusting defaults and information presentation while preserving freedom of choice.
Find related articles →- Proxemics
The study of how humans perceive and manage interpersonal distance. Cultural anthropologist Edward T. Hall systematized four zones (intimate, personal, social, public) in 1966.
Find related articles →- Contact Culture
Cultural groups where physical touch and close interpersonal distances are common in communication. Includes Southern Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America, contrasted with non-contact cultures (Northern Europe, East Asia).
Find related articles →- Sensory Processing Sensitivity
A temperamental trait characterized by lower neural response thresholds to environmental stimuli. Found in an estimated 15–20% of the population and studied as the biological basis of Highly Sensitive Persons (HSP).
Find related articles →- False Consensus Effect
A cognitive bias where people overestimate the extent to which others share their beliefs, behaviors, and judgments. Named by Ross et al. (1977); a meta-analysis of 115 tests confirmed an effect size of r=0.31.
Find related articles →- Selective Exposure
The tendency to preferentially consume information consistent with one's existing attitudes and beliefs. A behavioral manifestation of confirmation bias, prominently observed in social media comment and news consumption.
Find related articles →- Metacognition
"Cognition about cognition" — the ability to observe and evaluate what you are thinking and why. Defined by Flavell (1979) and widely studied as a foundation for self-regulation, learning, and decision-making.
Find related articles →- Variable Ratio Reinforcement Schedule
A reinforcement condition where rewards are delivered at irregular intervals. Produces the most extinction-resistant behavior patterns and is a core concept explaining the addictiveness of slot machines and social media infinite scroll.
Find related articles →- Doomscrolling
The compulsive consumption of negative news and content. The amygdala's threat-scanning and dopamine's information reward form a feedback loop, evoking anxiety and existential dread.
Find related articles →- Build Back Better
A principle that views disaster recovery not as mere restoration but as an opportunity to overcome societal vulnerabilities and build a more resilient society. Established as one of four priority actions in the 2015 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.
Find related articles →- Google for Nonprofits
A program offering nonprofits access to Google tools including Ad Grants (up to $10,000/month in search ads), free Google Workspace, and the YouTube Nonprofit Program.
Find related articles →- Google Ad Grants
A search advertising program within Google for Nonprofits that provides eligible organizations up to $10,000/month in Google Search ads. Requires maintaining CTR above 5% and CPC cap of $2.00.
Find related articles →- Click-Through Rate (CTR)
The ratio of clicks to impressions for an ad, calculated as clicks ÷ impressions × 100. Google Ad Grants requires maintaining an account-wide CTR of 5% or higher.
Find related articles →- Responsive Search Ads (RSA)
A Google Ads search ad format that allows up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions, with Google's machine learning automatically selecting the best combination for each search query. Ad Grants requires at least one RSA per ad group.
Find related articles →- Negative Keyword
Keywords set to prevent ads from showing for specific search terms. They block irrelevant impressions, helping maintain CTR. Essential for Ad Grants compliance with the 5% CTR requirement.
Find related articles →- Long-Tail Keyword
A specific search phrase of three or more words. Despite lower search volume, long-tail keywords tend to have higher CTR and conversion rates due to clearer search intent. Especially effective under Ad Grants' $2 CPC cap.
Find related articles →- NPO Corporation (Specified Nonprofit Activities Corporation)
A corporation established under the Act on Promotion of Specified Nonprofit Activities. It conducts public benefit activities in one or more of 20 designated fields and requires certification from the supervising authority. A minimum of 10 members is required for establishment.
Find related articles →- Non-Profit General Incorporated Association
A general incorporated association whose articles of incorporation ensure non-profit status. By meeting requirements under Article 3 of the Corporation Tax Act Enforcement Order, income from non-profit activities is tax-exempt.
Find related articles →- Consumer Price Index (CPI)
An index that comprehensively measures price changes of goods and services purchased by households. Published monthly by the Statistics Bureau of Japan, it shows price change rates relative to a base year of 100.
Find related articles →- Regional Price Parity
An index comparing regional price levels relative to the national average of 100. Calculated by prefecture and city in the MIC Retail Price Survey. Housing and food costs are the primary drivers of regional variation.
Find related articles →- Regressive Tax
A tax where the burden as a share of income falls more heavily on lower-income groups. Consumption taxes are considered regressive because lower-income households spend a larger share of income on consumption, though some argue they are proportional over a lifetime.
Find related articles →- Refundable Tax Credit
A tax credit system where the excess amount beyond tax liability is paid out as cash. Adopted in many countries to mitigate consumption tax regressivity, including Canada's GST/HST Credit and the US EITC. Japan began formal discussions on implementation in 2026.
Find related articles →- Real Wage
A measure of wage purchasing power calculated by dividing nominal wages by the consumer price index. Even if nominal wages rise, real wages decline if prices rise faster.
Find related articles →- Cost-Push Inflation
Inflation caused by rising supply-side costs such as raw materials, energy, labor, and logistics. Because it occurs without demand expansion, wages tend not to keep pace, eroding real purchasing power.
Find related articles →- Engel's Coefficient
The share of food expenditure in total household consumption spending. Generally higher at lower income levels, it serves as a living standard indicator. In Japan, it reached 28.6% in 2025, the highest in 44 years, driven by food price inflation.
Find related articles →- Child Penalty
The aggregate economic and social disadvantages incurred by having children, including wage losses (motherhood penalty), increased education and housing costs, and institutional disadvantages. Conceptualized in the Japanese context by Kaori Suetomi and Keita Sakurai.
Find related articles →- Motherhood Penalty
The phenomenon where mothers experience reduced wages, promotion prospects, and labor force participation due to childbirth and childcare. OECD studies show women's earnings drop 20–60% after the first child.
Find related articles →- Statistical Discrimination
A form of discrimination where individuals are treated based on statistical tendencies of their group rather than individual ability. When employers apply group-level tendencies like 'women are more likely to quit' to individuals, it reproduces gender gaps in hiring, placement, and promotion.
Find related articles →- Occupational Segregation
The concentration of genders in different occupations. Horizontal segregation refers to men and women working in different occupations, while vertical segregation refers to men dominating higher-level positions within organizations. A major structural driver of the gender wage gap.
Find related articles →- Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition
A statistical method that decomposes wage gaps into a portion explained by differences in observable characteristics and an unexplained portion attributable to discriminatory treatment. Independently proposed by Ronald Oaxaca and Alan Blinder in 1973, widely used in gender wage gap analysis.
Find related articles →- Care Reimbursement
The government-set price paid to care service providers under Japan's Long-Term Care Insurance system. Revised every three years by MHLW, it effectively caps provider revenue and thus directly affects staff wages.
Find related articles →- Treatment Improvement Allowance
An add-on to care reimbursement designed to improve care worker wages. In FY2024, three separate allowances were consolidated into a single 'Care Worker Treatment Improvement Allowance.' Providers must file wage improvement plans and meet career path requirements to qualify.
Find related articles →- Emotional Labor
A form of labor requiring workers to manage and suppress their own emotions while displaying organizationally appropriate expressions. Coined by sociologist Arlie Hochschild, it is prominent in care work, nursing, and service industries, and is a major contributor to burnout.
Find related articles →- Dormant Deposits
Bank deposits with no transactions for 10 or more years. Under Japan's Dormant Deposits Utilization Act (effective 2018), these funds are channeled to private-sector public interest activities through JANPIA as the designated fund distribution organization.
Find related articles →- Asset Management (Infrastructure)
A systematic approach to assessing infrastructure condition, predicting deterioration, and prioritizing renewal within limited budgets to optimally maintain facility functions. In water utilities, tracking pipe aging rates and replacement rates forms the foundation.
Find related articles →- Concession
A PFI method where the government retains ownership of public facilities while delegating operational rights to private operators. In water utilities, Miyagi Prefecture became Japan's first adopter in 2022.
Find related articles →- Pipe Aging Rate
The proportion of pipelines exceeding their statutory useful life (40 years for water pipes). As of FY2022, the national average reached 23.6%, projected to rise to approximately 69% by 2042 at the current replacement pace.
Find related articles →- Disability Pension
A public pension paid to individuals whose daily life or work is restricted due to illness or injury. It consists of Disability Basic Pension (Grades 1–2) and Disability Employees' Pension (Grades 1–3). Eligibility requires meeting three conditions: first medical examination date, premium payment, and disability status.
Find related articles →- First Medical Examination Date
The date of the first medical consultation for the condition causing the disability. It serves as the starting point for determining disability pension eligibility. A structural problem arises when medical records exceed the 5-year retention period, making proof difficult.
Find related articles →- Medical Model of Disability
An approach that views disability as an impairment of individual bodily functions, with medical treatment as the solution. Contrasts with the social model. Japan's disability pension certification criteria have been criticized for relying on this model.
Find related articles →- Relative Poverty
A condition where equivalised disposable income falls below 50% of the median (the poverty line). In the 2021 survey, the poverty line was ¥1.27 million/year. Unlike absolute poverty, it measures the gap from a society's standard of living.
Find related articles →- Working Poor
Workers whose income falls below the poverty line despite being employed. In Japan, single-parent households epitomise this structural problem: their employment rate is the highest in the OECD (86%) while their poverty rate is also among the highest (44.5%).
Find related articles →- Polypharmacy
The concurrent use of multiple medications, generally defined as 5–6 or more drugs. It increases the risk of drug interactions and adverse events, and is a major challenge in geriatric medicine.
Find related articles →- Prescribing Cascade
A chain reaction where a drug's side effect is mistaken for a new condition, leading to additional prescriptions. One of the key mechanisms driving polypharmacy.
Find related articles →- Adverse Drug Event (ADE)
Any harmful reaction associated with drug use, including side effects, medication errors, and unintended health consequences from drug interactions. Falls, delirium, and renal impairment are common in the elderly.
Find related articles →- Social Prescribing
A practice where healthcare providers 'prescribe' participation in community activities and social resources rather than medication. Institutionalized in the UK NHS with link workers connecting patients to community resources. Gaining international attention as a loneliness countermeasure.
Find related articles →- UCLA Loneliness Scale
A psychological scale developed at UCLA to measure loneliness. Characteristically avoids using the word 'lonely' directly, instead indirectly assessing the lack of social connection. Adopted in Japan's national loneliness surveys.
Find related articles →- Representative Democracy
A form of democracy in which citizens make political decisions through elected representatives. Contrasted with direct democracy, it resolves the problem of scale while being based on the principle of popular sovereignty, though the gap between representatives and voters is a persistent challenge.
Find related articles →- Political Efficacy
The subjective belief that one's political participation can influence politics. Divided into internal efficacy (belief in one's ability to understand and participate in politics) and external efficacy (belief that government responds to citizens). A major determinant of voter turnout and political participation.
Find related articles →- Agnotology
The study of how ignorance is produced and maintained. Systematized by Robert Proctor in 2008. Analyzes the absence of knowledge not as a natural state but as a social product actively manufactured by industry, power, and institutions. The tobacco industry's manufacture of doubt is the canonical case.
Find related articles →- Epistemic Injustice
A concept proposed by Miranda Fricker in 2007, referring to injustice in the production and circulation of knowledge. It takes two forms: (1) testimonial injustice, where a speaker's testimony is wrongly discredited due to prejudice, and (2) hermeneutical injustice, where an experience goes unrecognized because society lacks the concepts to articulate it.
Find related articles →- Standard Monthly Remuneration
A graded classification of monthly earnings used as the basis for calculating social insurance premiums. Actual salary is mapped to grades 1–50 (for Employees' Pension), and premiums are calculated by applying the rate to the fixed amount for each grade. Revised annually in September based on the average of April–June earnings.
Find related articles →- Small Concession
A small-scale PPP/PFI initiative (typically under 1 billion yen) for revitalizing underused public properties such as vacant houses and abandoned schools. MLIT established a dedicated platform in 2024.
Find related articles →- Park-PFI
A system under Japan's Urban Parks Act that publicly solicits private operators to develop and manage revenue-generating facilities (e.g., cafés) alongside park facilities. Established by 2017 law revision with up to 20-year permits.
Find related articles →- Public-Private Partnership / Private Finance Initiative
An umbrella term for public-private collaboration in delivering public services and managing public infrastructure. PFI specifically leverages private finance for infrastructure, while PPP encompasses PFI plus designated manager systems and comprehensive outsourcing.
Find related articles →- Sounding (Market Survey)
A dialogue-based market survey conducted before public tender to gather private sector opinions and ideas on utilizing public assets. Used to pre-validate feasibility and appropriate conditions.
Find related articles →- Designated Manager System
A system under Japan's Local Autonomy Act that allows private operators and NPOs to manage public facilities. Introduced in 2003. In the MIC survey (as of 1 April 2024, 79,332 facilities) the designation period is five years for 77.1%, three years for 10.9%, and ten years or more for 5.7%; periods this short are cited as an obstacle to long-term investment.
Find related articles →- Knowledge Gap Hypothesis
A hypothesis proposed by Tichenor et al. (1970) stating that as mass media information increases, higher socioeconomic groups acquire knowledge faster, widening rather than narrowing the knowledge gap between social strata. A foundational theory showing that more information does not automatically reduce inequality.
Find related articles →- Matthew Effect
A concept of cumulative advantage named by Merton (1968), derived from Matthew 25:29 ('For to everyone who has, more will be given'). Originally describing recognition bias in science, it applies to education, information access, and economic inequality — initial advantages compound over time.
Find related articles →- Information Poverty
A concept theorized by Chatman (1996) through small worlds theory. The information-poor exhibit four characteristics — distrust of outside sources, self-protective secrecy, risk aversion, and situational relevance — that isolate them from available information. A social-psychological mechanism of information exclusion distinct from physical access barriers.
Find related articles →- Open Access
The practice of making scholarly articles freely available online without restrictions. Launched as an international movement with the 2002 Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI). The author-pays Article Processing Charge (APC) model has become dominant, creating new inequalities through cost-shifting.
Find related articles →- Health Literacy
The ability to obtain, understand, evaluate, and apply health information. Nutbeam (2000) proposed a three-level model: functional (reading/writing), interactive (social skills for eliciting information), and critical (analytical assessment and autonomous use). A framework demonstrating that information availability alone is insufficient.
Find related articles →- Fiscal Capacity Index
An index measuring a local government's fiscal strength, calculated as the 3-year average of standard fiscal revenue divided by standard fiscal demand. Municipalities scoring 1.0+ are non-grant recipients. A fundamental metric for assessing fiscal capacity when selecting PPP/PFI methods.
Find related articles →- Change of Use
A procedure under Article 87 of Japan's Building Standards Act for changing a building's designated use. Confirmation application is required when the new use is a special building exceeding 200㎡. For existing non-conforming buildings, compliance with current standards (retroactive application) is required, with fire code and seismic standards creating major practical challenges.
Find related articles →- Kaigyo (Marine Industry)
An umbrella term for businesses that leverage the value and appeal of marine and fishing village resources to meet diverse domestic and international needs, generating local vitality, income, and employment. Institutionalized as 'Fishery Port Facility Utilization Business' in the 2023 amended Fisheries Port Act. Includes experience tourism, direct sales, dining, and aquaculture.
Find related articles →- Existing Non-Conforming Building
A building that was lawful when constructed but no longer meets current standards due to subsequent law revisions. Unlike illegal construction, continued use is permitted, but compliance with current standards may be required for extensions, renovations, or change of use. Pre-1981 buildings under the old seismic code are the typical example.
Find related articles →- Abandoned School
School buildings and grounds that have ceased to be used as schools, typically due to declining student populations or school consolidation. MEXT's Survey on the Utilization of Closed School Facilities tracks how many there are and how they are used. The survey as of 1 May 2024 counts 8,850 schools closed between FY2004 and FY2023, of which 7,612 still stand. The previous survey was as of 1 May 2021; it is not an annual survey.
Find related articles →- Surplus Classroom
A classroom not currently used as a regular classroom that, given the child population living in the school district, is not expected to be used as one within the next five years. MEXT's FY2025 Survey on the Utilization of Surplus Classrooms (as of 1 May 2025) counts 74,138 such rooms, of which 72,902 (about 98.3%) are in use. The largest single use is space for diverse learning and teaching methods (33,849 rooms), followed by special classrooms (12,590).
Find related articles →- Public Facility Operating Rights
A scheme under Japan's PFI Act that establishes operating rights for public facilities, transferring them to private operators while retaining public ownership. Central to the concession model, with applications expanding from large infrastructure (airports, water, toll roads) to small concession targets such as abandoned schools and old residences.
Find related articles →- Community Asset Transfer (CAT)
A UK framework for transferring publicly-owned assets to community organizations at reduced cost or for free. The 2011 Localism Act statutorily established the Community Right to Bid, covering schools, public facilities, parks, and other assets. While Japan's Small Concession scheme shares a similar direction, the UK CAT differs in codifying the transfer in statute.
Find related articles →- Traffic Violation Notification System
An administrative system for handling minor traffic violations through payment of fines rather than criminal proceedings, commonly known as the 'blue ticket.' Introduced for motor vehicles in 1968, its scope was expanded to include bicycles from April 2026. Payment of the fine avoids a criminal record, but non-payment triggers criminal proceedings.
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Efforts to ensure that people marginalized by poverty, discrimination, or disability can participate in and benefit from society. The counterpart of social exclusion.
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