Journal of Socio-Informatics
Vol.12, No.1

Sep. 2019[Refereed Original Paper］
Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

Atsushi UDAGAWA[Translation］
Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the

Shell 2: Innocence
Naomi NEMURAMedia Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

Atsushi KOTERAThe Society of Socio-Informatics

Journal of Socio-Informatics
Vol.12, No.1

Sep. 2019◆CONTENTS◆[Refereed Original Paper］
Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

Atsushi UDAGAWA…   1[Translation］
Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the

Shell 2: Innocence
Naomi NEMURA…   14

Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

Atsushi KOTERA…   28Refereed Original Paper
Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings
in Japan
Keywords:
Google, platform, ranking, search engine, World Wide Web

Atsushi UDAGAWA, The University of Tokyo

Abstract
The ranking of search engine results is commonly encountered media in daily life. However,most users are unaware of how search engines rank websites or even that the results are ranked,
and trust that search engines arrange results appropriately. The purpose of this study is to clarify
the history of the discourse on media (i.e., search engines) used to find webpages in Japan by
analyzing articles in major Japanese personal computer magazines published during the Web 1.0
era. Consequently, this study clarifies that (1) the World Wide Web was originally considered asa “plaything” before becoming a tool for content searching, (2) tools for searching websites
altered from semantic directories to computational rankings, and (3) discourse explaining
computational technology gradually decreased resulting from a change in the search engine
environment from over-competition to monopolization. Through this historical process, searchengine rankings have become the major media for finding websites. This suggests that searchengine rankings as media have become black-boxed, and implicit trust in the rankings wasconstructed. This study contributes to understanding how digital platforms affect daily
communications by applying a media studies perspective.

1

Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

This

1. Introduction

UDAGAWA

event

indicates

thenecessityofresearching search engine rankings as media as
Ranking is one of the most popular formats inthey mediate how users select information. To

today’s media. Among the different ranking

tackle this issue, this study focuses on thetypes, search engine rankings are one of thehistorical texts of computer magazines as they

most frequently used (Battelle, 2005). In searchreflect the general interests of Internet users

engines, webpages judged to relate to the queryover time. This study aims to clarify the history ofare presented in the format of a ranking. Many

discourse related to how search engine rankings

users consequently check for their desired

became a major format of media in Japan bycontent by accessing the top result before moving

analyzing texts about search engines in major

to those underneath, and lower-ranked webpages

Japanese personal computer (PC) magazines

are unlikely to be selected and viewed. In thatpublished during the Web 1.0 era.

sense, the rankings are not just a format but also

2. Previous Studies

function as media that construct communication(Udagawa, 2019). This concept of media is based

Previous studies on rankings have mainly

on socio-media studies undertaken by Mizukoshi

centered on the field of the “sociology of valuation(1999; 2014).
It is common for search engine users toand evaluation” (Lamont, 2012). In these studies,consider only top-ranked content, and it seems

scholars have primarily focused on how rankings

the order of the search results is undiscerningly

can change the political-based perceptions oftrusted as a “black box.” Occasionally, issues

socialarise, and one example is the “curation media”

companies, and governments. For example,

incident known as “DeNA’s WELQ,” which was

Espeland and Sauder (2007) analyzed thewidely discussed in Japan in 2016. WELQ, arankings of American law schools from the

popular healthcare-focused website owned by the

viewpoint of how “public measures” of ranking

Japanese company DeNA, was found to havecan reconstruct social reality. They found thatpostedandrankings represent a common effort to control

inaccurate quotes, but was attracting many

institutions that are in the public eye and makevisitors as it was highly ranked on search enginesthem more accessible to outsiders. They also

using

enginedemonstrated that the interaction between

optimization.” This incident was considered ainstitutions and society causes two effects: 1) The

kind of “fake news” in Japan (Fujishiro, 2017).

“reactivity” of rankings, which is shaped by “self-

According to a DeNA Third Party Committee

fulfilling prophecies” (Merton, 1948); and 2) the(2017) report, DeNA’s main business goal was to“commensuration” of rankings, which transforms

acquire a high number of daily visitors, known associal recognition into measuring various objects“daily active users.” Acquiring the top position in

on a single scale (Espeland & Sauder, 2007).

incorrecta

medicaltechniquecalledinformation“searchorganizations,

such

as

universities,

the search engine rankings was DeNA’s only

These studies provide a useful perspective ofpriority, and its content’s veracity and quality

public organizations’ political theories regarding

were disregarded.

rankings and constitute functional analyses of2

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

rankings in an “audit culture” (Espeland &ranking as media rather than mere technology.

Sauder, 2007). However, they largely treated

Regarding the Japanese context, some studies

rankings as subordinate to social statistics andhave investigated Japanese Internet culture.

focused on the rankings of organizations. In

Hamano (2008) analyzed the Japanese Internet’sother words, they regarded rankings as tools forecosystem in terms of its structure using Lessig’s

evaluating(2006)

organizations.

Therefore,thesearchitecture

concept.

He

analyzedstudies omitted other forms of rankings, such as“2channel,” a popular textboard in Japan, andsearch engine rankings and the fact that the

pointed out that compared to blogs, it has a lower

ranking form itself constructs various forms ofcontrol of architecture. Barbora (2014) also

communication.

highlighted the importance of 2channel andAnother area related to the social construction

blogs in Japanese Internet culture. These studies

of search engine rankings is the study of the

focus

information society. There are many discourses

uniqueness, but there are few discussions about

regarding search engines and related platforms.

search engine rankings themselves and Google’s

For instance, Gillespie (2010) highlighted thatpenetration in Japan.

on

the

Japanese

Internetculture’s

the word “platform” has a political meaning,

Conversely, the present study uses an analyticalindicating that platform providers hold a neutral

perspective on the morphological history of

stance. In these studies, the role of ranking is not

media, distancing them from politics and power,

discussed; the researchers instead focus on theand avoiding technological determinism. Thispower held by platforms such as Google. These

position is consistent with Hamano (2008), in thatstandpoints overlap with the concept of code as

he does not attempt to “resist powers” but focusesarchitecture (Lessig, 2006). Lessig (2006) pointed

on the analysis of “design structure” to discoverout that “code” functioned as the power thatits diverse possibilities. This viewpoint overlaps

regulates people. These are also referred to aswith Innis’ (1951) and McLuhan’s (1964) media“societies of control” and can be considered asstudies and Mizukoshi’s (1993; 1999) socio-media

the power to bypass recognition of people andstudies.

regulate living environments directly (Azuma,

Mizukoshi (1999) points out that media are

2007; Deleuze, 1990).

present in society with multiple layers. In thisManovich (2001) notes that “new media”

study, “media” is defined as a multilayered

supported by digital technology are fundamentallyconcept that includes “format” as a model, which

different from previous media due to a mediatingrefers to how communication is organized aslayer called “software.” Manovich’s (2001) new

well as being “an object which mediates

media concept focuses on the disconnection ofcommunication”

media technology before and after digitization.

extension of this concept of media is close to that

However, formats of media like rankings appear

of “communication media” by Luhmann (1968).

commonly before and after digitization. It is

Therefore, in this study, the term “Rankings asimportant to consider a history of media before

media” emphasizes the aspect that the format

and after digitization as continual change. The

level of rankings generates communications suchpresent study aims to clarify the history ofas “top-ranked items are important.” The present
3(Mizukoshi,2014).

The

Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

UDAGAWA

study aims to overcome the simple understanding

things, but as users gradually abandon possiblethat “search engine is power” and considers why

alternatives, the chosen media become tools.

search engine rankings are historically and3. Methodology and Data

socially adaptive by regarding search engine
rankings as media.
(2019)In this study, articles on search engines anddemonstrated the importance of researching

the WWW published in popular general Japanese“rankings as media” by analyzing text on major

PC magazines were analyzed. General PC

PC magazines in the U.S. and clarified how

magazines were examined because the changing

search engine rankings became “black-boxed.”

discourse in these magazines represents the

However, this is only a discussion of discourse ingeneral interests of Internet users over time.

From

this

perspective,

Udagawa

the U.S. The present study focuses on illustratingThis study is a qualitative analysis as it

how search engine rankings are constructed in

describes the history of search engine rankings

Japan by analyzing the history of discourse on

by tracing the discourse on the WWW and searchmajor PC magazines in Japan, where no previous

engines in articles discussing changes in searchstudies have been conducted. By comparing thisengine technology. Unlike strict discourse

to previous analyses on U.S.-based magazines

analysis, the methodological viewpoint of this(Udagawa, 2019), the role of search engine

study focuses not only on the texts but also on the

rankings in society, regarding both their global

historical and social setting of technology. In thisubiquity and local differences, can be illustrated.

case, it is impossible to cover all of the relatedThis analysis is also expected to clarify how

historical materials completely, and it is difficult

rankings became major and “trusted” media for

to guarantee perfect objectivity of the description

finding websites in Japan, both historically andof history. Based on Hojo’s (2015) methodology,socially.

the argument in this study is a hypothesis

As a theoretical framework for this historical

proposal by abduction as an inference method forstudy, Mizukoshi’s (1999, 2014) generalized

determining possible causes from specific results“historical supplementary lines of socio-media(Hojo, 2015). As Hojo (2015) highlighted, limiting

studies” is referenced. This focuses on thehistorical analysis sources to specific texts duringhistorical construction processes of forms ofa specific time can increase the objectivity of themedia, considering the interaction between

selection of historical materials to a level that is

technology and society. According to Mizukoshi

reasonably acceptable by guaranteeing the(1999), when media establish institutional andcoverage in a certain range.

possible

A 13-year period was examined in this study:

alternatives are forgotten. Here, “Possible

from 1993, when Mosaic (the browser thatalternatives” refer to the variety of social

popularized the WWW) appeared, to 2005, whenapplications that were previously imagined or

the discourse on Web 2.0 (O’Reilly, 2005)

existed but later abandoned or forgotten. Further,emerged. For this study, this era is labeled “WebMizukoshi (1999) argued that media are regarded

1.0.”

industrial

positionsinsociety,Two Japanese magazines, Nikkei Paso-com

as “playthings” when they are recognized as new
4

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019(“paso-com” means “PC”) and Asahi Paso-com,

4. Results

were examined, which have a large circulation in
Japan and represent common Internet-related

4.1. The WWW as a “Plaything” (1993-1995)

discourse of the era. In order to trace the history

According to socio-media studies, new media

of ways to search and find webpages, all of theappear as “playthings” when first introduced

titles of the articles were reviewed and the(Mizukoshi, 1999). Accordingly, when the WWW

articles that included the phrase “kensaku

was first presented to the public, it was not(search)” or “kensaku engine (search engine)”

regarded as a tool for finding information but as a

wereconsummatory “plaything.”chosenfor

analysis,excludingadvertisements and flash news. Additionally,

In 1993, the Internet became a primary topic inarticles including the terms “Google,” “Yahoo,”Japan’s PC magazines. Initially, these articles

or other search engine names were used as

centered on the trends of advanced countries,

supplementary materials.

introducing newly developed technologies from

Nikkei Paso-com was launched in 1983 by

the U.S. For example, the September 15, 1993,

Nikkei Business Publications, Inc. Despite being

issue of Asahi Paso-com (pp. 104-109) discussed

sold through direct sales and not by general

U.S. Vice President Al Gore’s “information

bookstores, it maintains the largest circulation

superhighway” concept. The author of the article,

among

Yasuki Hamano, introduced the U.S. Internet at

generalPC

magazines

in

Japan

that time as follows:

consistently. The magazine provides a wide rangeof product comparisons and usage guides

This series of movements shows that personal

concerning the Internet, mainly relating to thecomputers are no longer independent frombusiness sector.

politics. The first politician to understand thisAsahi Paso-com was launched in 1988 by thewas Gore. Personal computers are about to be

Asahi Shimbun Company. From its inception, it

connected through both network cables andhas focused on personal computer use. This

politics, and we cannot return to the “hobbyist”
era. (p. 105)

includes product introductions and usage guides
for personal or hobby use of PCs and the Internet.

In 1993, Japan’s Internet penetration rate was

It also contains articles or essays related to the

only 0.4%, and that of PCs was 9.2% (Computer

information society.

Industry Almanac & eTForecasts, 2012). The

Major readers of these two magazines arearticle written by the “advanced” author regarded

different: Nikkei Paso-com is mainly for business“personal” computers as devices for hobbyists,

users, while Asahi Paso-com is for personal users.

individuals similar to hackers or geeks in the U.S.

Considering the above, this study attempts to(Levy, 1984; Nishigaki, 1997)

cover the general representation of the Internet

In early 1994, articles instructing ordinary

in Japan by analyzing both type of the two mostreaders on how to connect to the Internet

circulated magazines of the era.

appeared in Japan’s PC magazines. In Asahi Pasocom’s March 15, 1994, issue (pp. 118-119), Kenji
Muro described his experience of connecting to
the Internet in the U.S. and how to access5Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

Japanese-language content.

UDAGAWA

this stage was that users could publish their own

In October 1994, the monthly INTERNET

websites. In Asahi Paso-com’s March 1, 1995,

Magazine was newly launched and featured theissue (pp. 130-131), Muro described this situation

article “Gopher, WWW (World Wide Web)”; thisin the U.S. in the column “Create a WWW

article stated that “on the Internet, many sites

Server.”provide information. Gopher and WWW are

The important thing is that anyone can startsystemssuch

publishing, broadcasting, or start a businessinformation” (INTERNET Magazine, Octoberusing it. Japan still seems passionate about

1994, p. 48). Further, the WWW was described asbrowsing the WWW server using Mosaic, but“an information search system compatible within America, the conditions for creating new

multimedia.” Here, “information search” did not

WWW servers are in place. You can become anecessarily mean a keyword search, and in thesender. (p. 130)that

efficiently

searchforsame article, it was paraphrased with the term

Muro described how individuals could create a“surfing,” implying that simply tracing hyperlinks

WWW server. As Muro highlighted, one of theand finding content constituted “searching.” At

main factors behind WWW enthusiasm was thatthat time, “surfing” and “searching” wereeveryone could become a sender; in other words,

considered identical in Japan, as in the U.S.

the enjoyment of “playing on” the Internet was(Udagawa, 2019).

considered as similar to becoming a sender while

In Nikkei Paso-com’s September 26, 1994, issue

surfing.

(pp. 174-176), the article “Using Mosaic to Ride

As in the U.S., an individual home page boom

the Wave of the Internet” also described thesoon arrived in Japan. A Nikkei Paso-com special

WWW as “searching.” In this article, there wasissue, published on October 9, 1995 (pp. 186-

also a complaint regarding using the browser197), declared “the user-centered era has

Mosaic as a search tool:

arrived.”The Internet is a maze of chaotic information,

Using search software such as Mosaic anddepending on how you use an interface like

Netscape Navigator, a user can get bored

Mosaic, you can either find something useful“surfing the web,” which involved searchingor trashy. (p. 175)

the WWW. The most interesting thing about

At this point, there was already an implicit

the Internet is that you can easily sendassumption that a search that only involved

information to the world using home pages.

following a link in a browser was insufficient for(pp. 194-195)

discovering useful information. The development

The article then explained how to write HTMLof this social expectation can be considered acode; furthermore, it presented several websites

starting point for considering the function of

published by individuals. It also described thatrankings as media. It implies the pure pleasure of

empowering everyone to become a “sender”

surfing the WWW itself would be gradually lost

represents the Internet’s attractiveness.

when users attempted to avoid encounteringHaving a home page makes it possible for you

unexpected content.

to become the lord of your own nation in the

Another aspect of the WWW’s popularity atInternet world. A home page for introducing
6

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019other individual users’ home pages has also

web directories such as Yahoo! became popular.

appeared. It resembles a phone book that canThis contributed to transforming the chaotic

easily search unique, individual home pages soInternet environment (Dreyfus, 2001) into a

you can easily find personal home pages you

hierarchical, orderly network.

did not know existed. (p. 191)

However, this semantic approach gradually

The WWW during this era was characterized bybecame more difficult as the WWW space

many websites that introduced other websites

expanded, and the information amount increased.

through mutual links, called “link collections.”

This meant that surfing by relying solely on a

Although these can be considered prototypes of

network of hyperlinks occasionally resulted in a

web directories, they also connected individual

failure to obtain useful information. Paradoxically,

websites to create a network. Unlike web

this inefficiency led to the diminishing pleasure

directories, however, at this point, the purpose ofof surfing the Internet: if Internet users could

link collections was not to sort or rank content

only find unwanted information, they became

but to expand connections and communications.

unsatisfied.

As the above discourse shows, at this time, theThis situation was described in PC magazines

WWW was considered a “plaything” where users

in 1996. For example, in Nikkei Paso-com’s

surfed and published websites to enjoy mutual

September 22, 1996, issue (pp. 145-153), thecommunication, and its role as a tool forphrase “from surfing to searching” was coined.

effectively finding information was secondary.

The article introduction reads as follows:It is said that 10 million computers are now

4.2. 
From

SemantictoComputational

connected. Making the best use of thisSearching (1996-1997)

worldwide database is dependent on your skill

When media are in the process of expanding

level. Let’s introduce how to go one step

their role in society, there are many possible

further: to “net search,” which involves finding

alternatives. This occurred when media changes

information, differing from “net surfing,”from being a plaything to a tool (Mizukoshi,

which involves viewing a home page as is. (p.

1999).

145)

The WWW’s ability to allow everyone toHere, searching used as a tool is expressed as an

become a sender in addition to enjoying surfing

advanced-level skill. The article’s focus was

resulted in an information explosion throughcomparing various search engines, and it

website creation. Globally, since the mid-1990s,

coincided with the emergence of query-based

the number of Internet-connected servers has

search engines, which were called “robots.” As

doubled annually (Internet Systems Consortium,

Udagawa (2019) highlighted, articles comparing2018). Consequently, with the resultant flood ofseveral search engines were popular in U.S.

information, it became important to distinguishmagazines at that time, and similar interests

necessary and unnecessary information.

existed in Japan. However, many local search

In response, WWW searching transformed

engines could be used as possible alternatives in

into a screening of unwanted websites; further,

Japan, and major interest in search technologies

beyond the link collection of individual websites,

focused
7

on

how

well

Japanese-language

Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

UDAGAWAwebpages were indexed. Indeed, U.S. searchalternatives to rank webpages, and users wereengines, such as AltaVista, Lycos, and Excite,aware of the technological differences among

had weak technology for the processing ofthem.

natural languages other than English, and in

4.3. The Portal Era (1998-1999)

Japan, these were evaluated lower than local

In 1998, the “portal” concept was created;

search engines.
PC magazines evaluated these local search“portal” means “gate” or “door,” and implies aengines based on their indexing of webpages insingle entrance to a large enclosed space. In theJapanese; specifically, the number of indexes ofportal era of the Internet, users seemed to stop

Japanese pages was represented as the major“playing” on the WWW and considered it more as

differentiator. In Japan, there were searcha tool for finding information efficiently; it wasengines operated by companies such as NTT andthe beginning of uniting an interface andalso various search engines developed byeliminating the possible alternatives.

individuals and universities, such as Senri-gan,

The August 15, 1999, issue of Asahi Paso-com

ODIN, and TITAN. However, these local searchfeatured the article “How to Utilize Portal Sites”

engines did not index webpages outside of Japan.

that began with the following:

Therefore, users were forced to use both global

Portal means “main gate” or “front gate.” When

(U.S.-origin) and local search engines, depending

launching the Internet, the portal site is often

on the language of the content for which they

considered to be “the page displayed at thewere searching. In Japan, search engines werebeginning.” Many sites, including searchdiversified by the spaces or languages theyengines, aim to become “portals,” providing
services such as free e-mail. (p. 102)

indexed, a much more complex situation than in
the U.S. The abovementioned article compared

The article mentioned improvements in theboth Japanese and U.S. search engines in terms“search functionalities” of portal sites, stating,of differences in the variety of webpages and“they make it much easier to find desired orsizes of the indexes returned.

valuable information” (p. 103).
toPortals could be set as entrances, removing

understand the differences between the webpage

the necessity of directly accessing websites

groups indexed by each search engine and theseparately. This implies that by this time,user interfaces for searching. This meant users

comparing multiple sources of information had

were forced to independently determine whichbecome frustrating in terms of tool efficiency.

search engines, or even which webpages, mostUsers had become receivers by ceasing toclosely matched their objectives by comparing

publish information independently (as senders),

multiple search results. Thus, users did not

and the WWW had begun to be regarded as adepend on a single ranking of webpages provided

digital version of mass media. Mizukoshi (1999)

by each search engine; in other words, users

highlighted that these portal sites had becomeranked webpages semantically by referring todigital versions of newspapers, indicating that themultiple rankings of computational search engine

WWW had changed from media as networking

results.

“playthings” to media as broadcasting tools.

Furthermore,

There

users

were

were

still

requiredmany

possible8

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

In the U.S. at that time, Tim Berners-Lee, thedepend on one medium and were unaware of

inventor of the WWW, expressed concerns that

other technological options.

portals would limit the possibility to access any

After the creation of its beta version service incontent easily (Berners-Lee, 1999). In Japan, PC-

1998, Google gained the attention of U.S. PC

magazine readers voiced similar concerns. One

magazines,

article quoted responses to a questionnaire on

magazines began to introduce Google as a new

this topic, reporting that some users had createdsearch engine. In particular, after Google

their own portals through link collections tocommenced a Japanese-language service in 2000,

avoid depending on commercial portal sites.

it began to be compared with search engines for

and

from

1999,

Japanese

PC

These discourses implied that the ideal portal

Japanese websites. For example, Nikkei Paso-

should be an interface that can be accessed at

com’s special issue for New Year 2001 (pp. 91-

any time and provide all available content. In

115) featured the article “How to Utilize Searchreality, however, many existing portal sites at that

Engines” and specifically explained Google’stime were suspected of editing the results

PageRank technology in “Google Gathering

arbitrarily and guiding users to specific content

Attention and Stimulating Competitors.”

because of commercial intentions, such as foradvertisement

purposes.

thejudge relevancy based on the contents of web

neutrality of portal sites was distrusted. This

pages […] Google judges relevancy based on the

resulted in users preferring websites where

information contained in the links.” A detailed

there was no room for commercial-influenced

illustration of PageRank technology was also

semanticapresented, explaining that Google’s high-levelcomputational process where replicability was

search power was based on this PageRankguaranteed. This fostered the social expectation

technology.

editing

that

Consequently,

This article stated, “traditional search engines

insteadoperated

that portals could be replaced by computational

In the U.S., the relevancy of rankings became

programs or algorithms.

the most important factor for choosing searchengines (Udagawa, 2019). Conversely, in Japan, it

4.4. Google’s Penetration in Japan (1999-)

was more important that search engines be able

Suspicion of the arbitrariness of portals
fosteredtheaunifiedandto index all Japanese websites. This meant thatwebsite-selection

tool

that

ranking relevancy was evaluated based on searchafforded more trust. Consequently, through theresults for Japanese queries. At this time, Google

mutual interaction between this social demand

was not very advanced in this regard, comparedand the arrival of a technical innovation called

to traditional Japanese search engines.

computational

demandforto process the Japanese language precisely and“Google PageRank” (Page, Brin, Motwani, &In the same article of Nikkei Paso-com, the test

Winograd, 1999), ranking became a primary

results involving Japanese queries were reported,means of selecting websites and a substitute forand the number of search results was compared.

portals. Starting in 1999, media came to be fixed

Google processed Japanese queries, but theto a single ranking, and the previous possible

number of results was lower than those provided

alternatives disappeared, meaning users came toby “goo,” a popular Japanese search engine
9

Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

operated by NTT Resonant.
At

this

point,

although

UDAGAWAwebpages. Further, because it distinguished
PageRank’snatural rankings from advertisements, Google’s

technological merits had been widely describedalgorithm

in detail, goo was still evaluated higher in terms

reproductive process excluded any semanticof Japanese-language processing and coverage ofarbitrariness, such as commercial intervention.

Japanese websites. This implies that the websites

As a result, trust in Google increased, and users

Japanese users searched for were limited tobegan to depend only on Google’s rankings andthose in the Japanese language and that coverage

stopped comparing the results from multipleof Japanese websites was a primary factor

search engines.

arguedthat

itscomputational

regarding ranking relevancy. In a survey ofWhen Google became the sole search engine

search engine usage in Japan, included in the(or, at least, the primary option), the interests of2001 edition of the Internet White Paper, goo

users moved away from the technology toward(31.9%) was placed second, after Yahoo! (61.6%);

how to utilize Google fully. Consequently,

Google was ranked 11th (4.9%) (Internet

technology-based discourse decreased. This also

Association Japan, 2001). However, by 2003,

meant possible alternatives were forgotten, andGoogle surpassed goo and was in second placeranking as media became a tool. Google did not(46.2%); it then continued to increase its number

set out to be a black box, but users came to treatof users rapidly (Internet Association Japan,

Google as a black box on their own. This was2003). Given that Google’s index guarantees abecause many users who were searching forcomplete search of Japanese sites, its highcontent relevant to their interests had little desire

relevancy of ranking centralized its ability toto understand the technology or even to compare

operate as a portal.

multiple search results. Simply ranking websites

In the August 12, 2003 edition of Nikkei Paso-atcom (pp. 84-87), the article “How to Utilize aanacceptable

level

of

relevancywassatisfactory.

Search Site” introduced a basic method of using

Users now generally check ranked webpages

Google and methods of obtaining more specificin order, from top to bottom. This behavior isresults. The article only referred to Google as asupported by a belief that the algorithm processes“search site” and mentioned no other searchdevelopengines; further, there was only a brief mention

consistently, despite there being no guaranteeof Google’s technology, in contrast to the detailed

that the algorithm is invariant, and this typifies

explanations of PageRank that were provided

black-boxed ranking.

searches

computationallyandwhen Google had not been dominant.

5. Conclusion

Once Google demonstrated that it covered
virtually all of the websites in Japan, it rapidly
became the center of the WWW for Japanese

The media history of search engines andusers, as in the U.S. Consequently, other searchrankings described in this study can beengines, or possible alternatives including web

considered from two viewpoints: 1) The WWW

directories and portals became marginal. Google

transformed from a consummatory “plaything”

became the single interface for ordering all

to a tool for finding content, and 2) the major
10Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

media for finding websites changed from

reproducible ranking process.

semantic links to computational ranking.

When Google established its position as a

The research question of this article focused

unified gateway to the Internet and replacedon clarifying the history of discourse related toportals, possible alternatives in the form of otherhow rankings became major media used to findportals, including search engines, were forgotten.

webpages in Japan. Originally, search engine

Coupled with this, discourse on media forms was

rankings were not necessarily considered major

also abandoned, and today, most people use

media; surfing was how webpages were normally

Google as their sole search engine and only

found during the Internet’s early years, which

consider its first few listings. As the media forms

could be considered more akin to playing rather

were fixed and it became unnecessary tothan systematic information hunting. As thedistinguish Google from other search engines, it

number of webpages increased, users began towas unnecessary for users to be conscious ofdemand an efficient tool for finding theother media forms.

information they wanted. At this time (around

Further, trust in the ranking diminished the1996), as the use of various search engines wasnecessity to confirm the validity of Google’s

still the norm, comparisons of search engine

algorithms. This trust represents a social act

technologies were common in PC magazines.

of taking risks by over-utilizing available

In other words, when the plurality of this new

information, as Luhmann (1968) discussed. By

media meant searching was somewhat chaotic,

abandoning the confirmation of the efficiency ofor when users had more control over media

rankings, trust became black-boxed, and users

selection, media forms and technologies werebegan to accept the rankings undiscerningly.

heavily discussed. As Mizukoshi (1993, p. 280)

This process in Japan was almost the same as

highlighted, “tremors in media can awakenin the U.S. (Udagawa, 2019). Throughout themedia theory1 ”; the fluctuation of search engines

period studied in this research, much of theas new media might have raised interest in the

discourse regarding search engines and rankings

forms or the technologies of the media.

that appeared in U.S. PC magazines was also

However, shortly after its creation, Google

found in Japanese PC magazines. Indeed, many

demonstrated its ability to provide sufficiently

Japanese articles referred to U.S. PC magazine

high relevance and coverage of Japanese

articles, and the development of search engines

webpages to allow it to dominate all of the otherin Japan was directly influenced by U.S. events

search engines. Technically, a major factor is that

historically. This represents one unique aspect ofGoogle built a system that enhanced its self-

the Internet as digital media that can be expanded,

compliance accuracy by converting ranking fromregardless of geopolitical borders. It contrasts

an internal to an external factor. However, morewith the fact that pre-Internet media, such asimportantly, it suitably matched the social

newspapers, radio, and television, were notexpectations of search engines at that time. The

expanded in this way.

users desired a single interface that covered theIt cannot be concluded that the history ofalmost infinite space of the Internet and thatsearch engine rankings as media has beenorderedidentical in the U.S. and Japan, and cultural

resultsthrougha

computational,
11

Historical Media Discourses of Search Engine Rankings in Japan

UDAGAWAdifferences can be observed in Internet content.
In Japan, portals or search engines wereReferences

evaluated based on the coverage of local-

Azuma, H. (2007). Joho Kankyo Ronshu. Tokyo:

language webpages and many unique search

Kodansha.

engines that differed from U.S. search engines

Barbora (2014). Nihon no Net Culture Shi. In

were developed. In contrast, after Google was

Kawakami, N. (Ed.), Net ga Unda Bunka: Dare moable to cover Japanese-language content, its

ga Hyogensha no Jidai. Tokyo: Kadokawa.

position on the Internet became centralized.

Battelle, J. (2005). The search: How Google and its

This study clarifies that PC magazine discourse

rivals rewrote the rules of business and transformed

shifted from a technological comparison of

our culture. New York: Portfolio.

various search engines to how to utilize Google.

Berners-Lee, T. (1999). Weaving the web: The original

This implies that Google’s search engine

design and ultimate destiny of the World Widealgorithm became a black box and that mostWeb by its inventor. San Francisco: HarperOne.

users trust its rankings with no awareness of theComputer Industry Almanac & eTForecasts. (2012).

algorithm. In this regard, again, the process in

Computers-in-use forecast by country: Feb., 2012

Japan is almost identical to that in the U.S. Google

version. Incline Village: Computer Industry

has fixed its position as a media that regulates the

Almanac & eTForecasts.

behavior of both users and senders, and theDeleuze, G. (1990) Pourparlers 1972-1990. Paris:mechanism itself has been forgotten despite its

Éditions de Minuit.

importance in modern media environments.

DeNA

Third

Party

Committee.

(2017).

Chosa

This study’s findings focus on search engines

Houkokusho [Curation Jigyo ni Kansuru Ken].

and rankings as media in Japan, which has not

Retrieved Jan 25, 2019, from http://v3.eir-parts. net/

been discussed in previous research and presents

EIRNavi/DocumentNavigator/ENavigatorBody.asp

an important viewpoint of the complication ofx?cat=tdnet&sid=1450400&code=2432&ln=ja&disp=

digital media. It represents a first step in

simpleunderstanding

theconstructionofdigitalDreyfus, H.L. (2001). On the Internet. Oxford:

platforms by reconsidering the black-boxing of

Routledge.

search engines and rankings from the perspective

Espeland, W.N., & Sauder, M. (2007). Rankings andof media studies.

reactivity: How public measures recreate socialworlds. American Journal of Sociology, 113, 1-40.

Note

Fujishiro, H. (2017). Net Media Haken Senso: Nise

1. This translation refers to a work by Zahlten

News wa Naze Umaretaka. Tokyo: Kobunsha.
Gillespie, T. (2010). The politics of ‘platform.’ New(Steinberg & Zahlten, 2017)Media & Society, 12, 347-364.

Acknowledgement

Hamano, S. (2008). Architecture no Seitaikei: Joho

This study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant

Kankyo wa Ikani Sekkei Sarete Kitaka. Tokyo:

Number JP18H03343.

NTT Publishing.
Hojo, H (2015). Rekishi kara Riron wo Souzou Suru
Houhou: Shakai Kagaku to Rekishigaku wo Tougou

12Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019Suru. Tokyo: Keiso Shobo.

extensions of man. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Innis, H.A. (1951). The bias of communication.

Merton, R.K. (1948). The self-fulfilling prophecy. The

Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

Antioch Review, 8, 193-210.

Internet Association Japan (Eds.). (2001). Internet

Mizukoshi, S. (1993). Media no Seisei: America Radio

Hakusho 2001. Tokyo: Impress.

no Dotaishi. Tokyo: Dobunkan.

Internet Association Japan (Eds.). (2003). Internet

Mizukoshi, S. (1999). Digital Media Shakai. Tokyo:

Hakusho 2003. Tokyo: Impress.

Iwanami Shoten.

Internet Systems Consortium. (2018). Internet

Mizukoshi, S. (2014). Kaiteiban 21-seiki Media Ron.

domain survey, July 2018. Retrieved Jan 25, 2019,

Tokyo: Foundation for the Promotion of the Openfrom

University of Japan.

https://ftp.isc.org/www/survey/reports/

current/

Nishigaki, T. (1997). Shiso to Shite no Paso-com.

Japan Audit Bureau of Circulations. (1993-2005).

Tokyo: NTT Publishing.

Zasshi Kosa Report. Tokyo: Author.

O’Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0? Retrieved Jan 25,

Lamont, M. (2012). Toward a comparative sociology

2019 from http://www.oreilly.com/ pub/a/web2/of valuation and evaluation. Annual Review ofarchive/what-is-web-20.html

Sociology, 38, 201-221.

Page, L., Brin, S., Motwani, R., & Winograd, T. (1999).

Lessig, L. (2006). CODE version 2.0. New York: Basic

The PageRank citation ranking: Bringing order toBooks.

the web. Stanford InfoLab. Retrieved Jan 25, 2019,Levy, S. (1984). Hackers: Heroes of the computerfrom http:// ilpubs.stanford.edu:8090/422/1/1999-

revolution. New York: Anchor Press/Doubleday.

66.pdfLuhmann, N. (1968). Vertrauen: Ein Mechanismus

Steinberg, M & Zahlten, A (2017). Media Theory in

der Reduktion Sozialer Komplexität. Stuttgart:

Japan. Durham: Duke University Press.

Enke.

Udagawa, A. (2019). Kensaku Engine Ranking no

Manovich, L. (2001). The language of new media.

Media Shi: Paso-com Zasshi ni okeru Kensaku

Cambridge: The MIT Press.

Engine Hyoushou no Bunseki. Journal of Mass

McLuhan, M. (1964). Understanding media: The

Communication Studies, 94, 131-149.

13

Translation
Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in theFilm Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Keywords:
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, posthumanism, body schema/image, social constructionism, networks
and interactions with others

Naomi NEMURA, Nihon University, College of Economics

Abstract
Before attempting to conceptualize the body schema/image in the film Ghost in the Shell 2:
Innocence, which is directed by Mamoru Oshii, this study compares the film with European andAmerican cyborg films. Based on this comparative review, it is concluded that the film intends to
avoid the return to humanism in the postmodern condition where the theoretical and ideologicalskepticism has arisen, and such thought of the film is called posthumanism.
Next, this study analyzes what kind of body schema/image is created by posthumanism. In thefilm Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, the bodies of dolls are interpreted as artificial constructions.
The body schema/image constitutes the underlying theme of the entire film, and the bodies ofdolls are exactly the representations of human bodies. In other words, the film reveals that theunderstanding of the body is socially constructed, and such social constructionist perspective of
the body frees us from the mystique attached to ‘human bodies’ as organic unity.
Furthermore, according to the body schema/image in the film Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,‘the construction of the body’ is not merely an abstract concept but has boundaries defined inconcrete conditions and also this construction can only have the contingent foundation: ‘the body’
can be constructed by networks and interactions with others different from but constituent of
oneself. In addition, this understanding of the body may be connected with the concept of respect
for others that cannot be understood or valued by humanism.

14

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

Kusanagi3 suggests that the investigation of the

1. Introduction“ghost” is going toward a new stage (Nemura,
To use the argument presented by Gilles

2014). On the other hand, Oshii regards Ghost in

Deleuze and Félix Guattari as a reference

the Shell 2: Innocence as a ‘body theory’ (Oshii,(Deleuze and Guattari, 1991) , we can consider

2004: 35-39). When considering all these points,

that art actualizes possibilities of the world

explaining the body schema/image in Ghost inthat are concealed when things are organized

the Shell 2: Innocence can be conceived as notusing certain methods and that philosophy

only the key to understanding the “ghost” butconceptualizes them. Then, we can grasp suchalso the entire work itself. However, few

art as a type of “social information” that actualizes

discussions on exploring body image/schema at

the world’s possibilities. Furthermore, as an

the center have been conducted, and the bodyattempt to decode it and to conceptualize to ainterpretation in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocenceclear form of knowledge, such philosophy can be

has not been fully clarified. Thus, this paper

positioned as one field of “social informatics.”

attempts to analyze the body image/schemaThis kind of grasping of “social information”

shown in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence and puts

means expanding the range that is treated byforth new knowledge and develops understanding“social informatics.” That is, it becomes possible

about the work.

1

to put various cultural activities into range.

This paper first explores the underlying

In contemporary cyberculture, there are more
and

more

trendsinterpretations
environment

toactualize

thought of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence through‘body’2

a comparison with other cyborg films. Then, thiscreatedbytheelectronic

study conceptualizes the body schema/image in

which

we

find

ourselvesthe film. Based on that, this analysis adds an(Zylinska, 2002; Dovey and Kennedy, 2006;

ininsight about the connections between the body

Brians, 2011). Based on the argument of Deleuzeinterpretation and the “ghost” concept.

and Guattari, such attempts seen in contemporary

2. Summary of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocencecyberculture may be regarded as the art in thesense of presenting the hidden possibilities of
the world. Then, the philosophy as an attempt

The setting is the year 2032, and the coexistence

to conceptualize such art can be understoodof people, cyborgs, and robots has progressed.

asstudies.

Meanwhile, there is frequent terrorism occurring

Furthermore, it is possible to understand thein various places. Batou, a complete cyborg4, is akinds“socialmember of Public Security Section 9, known as

information” and to consider the cyberculture

the “Mobile Armored Riot Police,” which cracks

studies,down on such terrorist crimes.

indispensableoftocyberculture

cyberculture
which

decodetrends
the

as

above

“social

One day, Hadari gynoids, female-shaped

information,” as a field of “social informatics.”
In this regard, this paper analyzes the film

androids constructed by the company Locus

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004), directed bySolus, begin to slaughter their owners and self-

Mamoru Oshii. In the final scene of the prequel

destruct. While such incidents continue to occur,

Ghost in the Shell, the protagonist, Motoko

a consignment inspector of Locus Solus is15

Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA

murdered, which appears to have been done as

and save the trafficked girls. However, this plan

revenge for the death of a yakuza boss killed by a

was exposed, and thus, the yakuza serves the

Hadari. To investigate the yakuza family’s

consignment inspector to avenge the yakuza

relationship with Locus Solus, Batou and his

boss.

partner, Togusa, attack the family. These

3. Posthumanism as the Underlying Thought

conspicuous moves spur Locus Solus into action.

of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence

They hack Batou and cause him to act recklessly
to obstruct the investigation.
Batou, who has believed that not many people

As mentioned in the introduction, this paper

can hack him in that manner, becomes suspicious

explains the body schema/image seen in Ghostof his old war buddy Kim. Batou and Togusa

in the Shell 2: Innocence. This is a science fiction

head toward Kim’s mansion after learning his

film in which the protagonists, who are in awhereabouts from an informant. Batou andcondition where human faculties have been

Togusa encounter a hacking attack by Kim.

transformed through technology (in other words,

However, they capture Kim, breaking out of thethey are cyborgs), live in a setting in the neartrap with the help of both the word inscribed

future. We can unobjectionably categorize thisupon the Golem’s brow and the watchword forfilm as a “cyborg cinema,” defined by Sue Short6

the reunion with Kusanagi “2501”5.

as “a focus on the intersection between humanity

Batou and Togusa use Kim’s e-brain to infiltrate

and technology” (Short, 2011 ix) (when this term

Locus Solus’s factory ship. When they do so,

is used in Short’s definition below, quotation

Hadari gynoids on the production line start a wild

marks will be used). In that sense, viewing

attack all at once. Batou is surrounded andShort’s study of “cyborg cinema” sheds light ontrapped by the group of Hadaris. However, he is

the underlying thought of Ghost in the Shell 2:

saved by Kusanagi, who has seized control of one

Innocence by comparing it with other films. Thus,of the Hadaris. Kusanagi and Batou get theby using Short’s discussion for clues, this section

Hadaris’ attack under control and arrive at theattempts to explore the assumptions upon which

truth.

the world of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence is

Locus Solus has been using the yakuza tobased.

traffic young girls and “dubbing” their “ghosts”

3-1. Humanism of “Cyborg Cinema”

into the gynoids. In past animal experiments of“Ghost dubbing,” scientists could mass-duplicate

As far as Short’s discussion goes, theinferior copies. However, since it was proven thatcharacters in science fiction films as fictional

the original brain would be destroyed, thecyborgs symbolize an unavoidable “postmodern

technology was banned. In this case, thecondition,” that is, a situation in which modern

consignment inspector revised the ethic code of“humanity” is faced with certain crises (Short,

Hadaris and was responsible for the Hadaris’

2011:163). According to Short, the characters areattacks. The trafficked girls and the consignment

given the role of revealing the fact that various

inspector thought that if they could cause violent

theories and ideologies are only partially effective

incidents with Hadaris, someone would comeand the foundations on which they stand are16

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

unstable (Short, 2011:192).

cyborgs are evaluated in accordance with the

Let us look at the examples of Blade Runner

degree of resemblance to humans, which, at the(Ridley Scott, 1982; Director’s Cut, 1992; Finalsame time, leads to a re-evaluation of the value ofCut, 2007) and Total Recall (Paul Verhoeven,“humanity” (Short, 2011: 197).

1990; Remake: Len Wiseman, 2012), both of

For example, in Total Recall, through thewhich are based on original works by Philip K.

battle, Quaid comes to realize who he is. The

Dick.

postmodernist

director of the 1990 version says that in the lastskepticism about the various theories andscene, he tries to express that those events tookideologies that generated trust in modern

place in Quaid’s dream8. However, since thehumanity is expressed through the uncertainty

scene does not explicitly describe this, it isof the characters’ identities or of the world in

possible to think that Quaid has verified hiswhich those characters live.

identity and relation to the world by asking who

In

these

films,theFor instance, in Blade Runner, Rachael is a

he is (Short, 2011: 196). Furthermore, Quaid’s“replicant” (i.e., an android with an organic body)

objective changes, that is, to rescue the people ofin whom the memory of Dr. Tyrell’s niece has

the colony9. In Blade Runner, Roy Batty, thebeen transplanted. She visits the protagonist,

leader of a renegade replicant group, saves

Deckard, in an attempt to find out whether she is

Deckard, who was hired to kill him.

a replicant. Although Deckard lies and tells her

These characters are perceived not as “passivethat she is not a replicant, Rachael perceives

victims,” but as “active agents” (Short, 2011:

herself to be a replicant and then disappears. In

197). Moreover, going beyond self-assertion,

the director’s cut and the final cut, Deckard isthey are depicted as subjects with collective

depicted to be a replicant himself. In Total Recall,

responsibility (Short, 2011: 198). Thus, while thethe protagonist Quaid is a character who isimage of cyborgs in the film that Short calls

troubled by some dreams. He visits the Recall“cyborg

Company and tries a machine that implants

skepticism toward “humanity,” that is to say,

manufactured memories. After that, he ishumans’ ability to understand themselves and themysteriously attacked7. When he manages toworld and their ability

return home, his wife also attacks him. He is thenresponsibility, we can see this image functioning

informed that his memories about his marriage

to restore our trust in such “humanity.”

cinema”isburdenedtowithshoulderdeep

socialhave been implanted in him. He then begins to

3-2. G host in the Shell 2: Innocence Avoids

take action to find out who he really is.

the Return to Humanism

However, in these films, re-evaluation of“humanity” under a doubtful gaze is anotherAs noted in the science fiction films brought up

important element. This is because “in a period

by Short, the cyborg representation symbolizing

where virtually every concept is now subject tothe crisis of modern “humanity” returns to thetheoretical cross-examination and dismissal,”frameworksuchhumans’ ability to understand themselves and thecinema“conceives

andcorroboratesofhumanismthat

re-evaluates

humanity’s potential for intellectual growth andworld and their ability

ethical responsibility” (Short, 2011:199). The

responsibility. However, what about Ghost in the17

toshouldersocialPosthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA

Shell 2: Innocence? First, let us look at thethe reality, created by human awareness, isfollowing conversation between Kim and Batou

recognized in the “cyborg cinema” mentioned inabout breathing a soul into a doll through “ghost

the previous section. In that sense, Ghost in the

dubbing”:

Shell 2: Innocence belongs to the “cyborg cinema.”
However, in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, we

Kim: That would mean replicating humans bycannot see the position of trying to reconfirm thebreathing souls into dolls. Who’d want tovalue of modern “humanity” by bringing it to

do that? The definition of a truly beautiful

cyborgs. In this film, the resolution of the incident

doll is a living, breathing, body devoid ofdoes not lead to an acknowledgment of humana soul. “An unyielding corpse, tiptoeing

characteristics apparent in the “cyborg cinema”;

on the brink of collapse.”in other words, it does not lead to humanism. Let

Batou: Or reduced to a raved body with an

us look at the scene in which Batou and Kusanagi

e-brain…like you.

rescue the young girl who instigated this incident:

Kim: The humans is no match for a doll, in its
form, its elegance in motion, its very

Batou: Didn’t he consider the victims? Not the

being. The inadequacies of human

humans... What about the dolls endowed

awareness become the inadequacies ofwith souls?

life’s reality... Perfection is possible only

Girl: But...But... I didn’t want to become a doll!!

for those without consciousness, orKusanagi: “We weep for the birds cry, but notperhapsendowedwithinfinitefor the blood of a fish. Blessed are those

consciousness. In other words, for dolls

with a voice.” If the dolls could speak, no

and for gods.

doubt they’d scream, “I didn’t want tobecome human…”

In the dialog between Kim and Batou that
follows these lines, it is implied that animals are

Here, these thoughts cannot be incorporated

also equal to dolls or to gods.

into humanism that praises humans’ ability toThen, Kim says, “Shelley’s skylarks areunderstand themselves and the world, and theirsuffused with profound instinctive joy. Joy weability to shoulder social responsibility. In thishumans, drive by self-consciousness, can neverscene, returning to humanism is rejected and theknow. For those of us who lust after knowledge,

line of thought that tries to evaluate others on theit is a condition more elusive than becoming

basis of those humanities is avoided. Such caregodhood.” In these dialogs, they display a strong

toward non-human existence does not originate

disgust toward the act of breathing human soulsin sympathy arising from similarities as regards

into dolls. This is because Kim thinks that the“humanity.” What we can see in the words ofstate of human beings, in particular, the “human

Batou and Kusanagi is respect, which refers to theawareness,”“theacceptance of others different from forms of

inadequacies of human awareness become

existence articulated by humanism. Care for non-inadequacies of life’s reality.” This kind of doubt

human existences in Ghost in the Shell 2:

toward human awareness and the uncertainty of

Innocence can be conceived as being based onisinadequate

and

that

18

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019respect for different things and not on sympathy

ponder, and act, upon the acknowledgment thattoward similar things. Thus, we can say that thelife forms have messy, intertwined histories”

incident comes to a close in Ghost in the Shell 2:(Nayar, 2014: 31). That is, according to Nayar,

Innocence through demonstrating respect for“critical posthumanism” is an ethical position thatdifferent existences which cannot be appraised

opposes the human hierarchization of life forms,

by humanistic values.

for the reason that “such ranking has inevitably

Furthermore, in the last section of Ghost in the

resulted in exclusionary practices directed at

Shell 2: Innocence, there is a scene with Batou

particular life forms, races, and groups.”

and his dog in which Batou is looking at a girl doll

Furthermore, this project argues for the

being held by Togusa’s daughter. In the previous

awakening of responses and responsibilities toscene, Togusa’s daughter appears and receives

others and differences. The stance to avoid

the doll as a gift from Togusa. The contrast

placing “humanity” at the center of value and to

between the girl and the doll brings to mind therespect toward others in Ghost in the Shell 2:

conclusion of the preceding incident. In this

Innocence corresponds to the “ethical project” ofscene, Batou is looking at the doll. We will look at

Nayar’s “critical posthumanism.”

this in the next section but, in Ghost in the Shell 2:

4. Body Schema/Image in Ghost in the Shell

Innocence, Kusanagi is hinted at through a girl

2: Innocencedoll or through a bird, or otherwise appears as a
gynoid. She never manifests in a human form.

Next, this section explains the body schema/

These things may also suggest that respect for
fully

image shown in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,

articulated by humanism is the underlying

continuing to accept that the thought referred tothought of Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence.

as posthumanism is the underlying thought ofdifferent

existences

that

cannotbe

In this paper, we refer to the stance that rejects

this film. However, when we wrestle with thisthe return to humanism (in the sense of praising

theme, we encounter a methodological difficulty.

humans’ ability to understand themselves and the

In analyzing Ghost in the Shell, a phenomenologicalworld and their abilitysocialmethod developed by Ingrid Richardson andresponsibility) and demonstrates respect for

Carly Harper on the basis of arguments byothersas

Maurice Merleau-Ponty was adopted (Nemura,

posthumanism. Posthumanism in this sense is a2014). In this method, the concept of the “bodypoint worthy of special attention in Ghost in theschema” or “body image” asks us to “set aside

Shell 2: Innocence, and on that point, we can think

our prejudices of both science and commonof this film as clearly differentiated from thesense” and to “reflect on the consciousness of“cyborg cinema” brought up by Short.

lived experience” (Richardson and Harper, 2002:

with

their

own

to

shoulderheterogeneity

This sense of posthumanism is in reference toonline). Furthermore, the body understanding

Pramod K. Nayar’s “posthumanism,” or to bethat is not caught by the image of both “science”

precise, Nayar’s “critical posthumanism.” Whenandexplaining this, Nayar argued that “criticalphenomenological notion of the “body schema”

posthumanism is an ethical project that asks us toor “body image” includes “the concept of a19“commonsense”

means

that

the

Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA‘fictional’ or symbolic mapping of the body”

the concept of the “suppression apparatus” and(Richardson

online).

argues that the body has already ceased to

Accordingly, this paper regards such concept asfunction as a suppression engine by beginning tovalid for studying cyberculture, which means

function as a “variable” (Sato, 2004). However, invarious cultural activities related to electronicthese discussions, the phenomenological method

technology, and attempts to analyze the nature ofwith the acceptance of posthumanism is not

Kusanagi’s bodily experience based on the

adopted. Considering this situation, this paper

phenomenological method.

will present knowledge about Ghost in the Shell 2:

andHarper,2002:

However, in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,

Innocence that has not been obtained in otheraside from the scenes in which she rescues Batou

arguments up to now.

(i.e., at Kim’s mansion and on the Locus Solus

4-1. The Constructionism of the Body Shownfactory ship), Kusanagi is depicted as an absent

by the Dolls

being. Certainly, it is conceivable that Kusanagi’s
absence, which is different from her in Ghost inFirst, let us focus on the scene before thethe Shell, indicates the body schema/image of

opening credits. Here Batou faces a gynoid that

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence. Nevertheless, it ishas just killed its owner and a police officer in alargely impossible to explore Kusanagi’s bodily

dark passageway. After grappling with Batou, theexperience based on her lines. Furthermore,

gynoid tears open its own chest while saying,although the climax of Ghost in the Shell 2:“Help.” Batou shoots the gynoid with a shotgun

Innocence, in which Kusanagi appears on theand destroys it.

Locus Solus factory ship in the form of a doll (i.e.,

The gynoid attempts to self-destruct before

gynoid), presents the dolls as a very important

being shot, and in this process, it reveals that its

motif; the dolls are not depicted in the form thatbody is comprised of mechanical parts. In thisallows for the phenomenological analysis. The

scene, it could have been possible to depict things

dolls never describe their own bodily experience.

in the following order: a gynoid with an intact

Accordingly, this paper employs a somewhat

Japanese doll exterior, the shooting, followed byirregular phenomenological method of describing

the gynoid in small pieces. In fact, however, thisand interpreting the body schema/image implied

scene preceding the opening credits describesby the dolls, though they do not speak of their

the gynoid that tears its own skin and emphasizesown

the fact that the gynoid’s body is artificiallybodilyexperience,

based

on

variedconstructed.

information.
As mentioned in the introduction, few previous

The body image as artificially constructedstudies have focused on the body schema/image

segues into the background scene of the openingof Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence. To the best

credits. In this scene, we see the manufacturingofaprocess of a gynoid, from “artificial cells to thepsychoanalytical approach and states, “the bodymyknowledge,

Tamaki

Saito

tries

construction and assemblage of robot body

begins to become an imperfect armor, andparts” (Brown, 2010: 15). It implies that themultiplies as a frame” (Saito, 2004). Furthermore,bodies of the dolls are artificially made; that is,

Tetsuya Sato adopts an analytical method using

they are thoroughly constructed. This type of20

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019body schema/image must be a rehashing of thebe considered that this strong protest against thebackground scene of the opening credits in Ghost

ideal of the perfect body was inherited fromin the Shell, which suggests that Kusanagi’s body

Bellmer.

is artificially constructed. While connecting to

4-2. Doll Bodies=Human Bodies

Ghost in the Shell, this scene of the birth of thegynoids can be thought to present the body

The next point to be examined is theschema/image, which runs through the entire

relationship between doll bodies as artificiallyfilm.

constructed and human bodies. Ghost in the Shell

Oshii’s inspiration for the doll motif came from

2: Innocence is sprinkled with lines representing

Hans Bellmer’s ball-jointed dolls (Bellmer, 2011).

doll bodies as the motif with relation to human

The dolls in the aforementioned scenes clearlybodies.

show visual influence from Bellmer’s works.

First, when Batou and Togusa visit the lab of

However, the influence seen in Ghost in the Shell

Haraway, a police forensic specialist, Haraway

2: Innocence does not stop at the visual level.

says the following: “Unlike industrial robots, theBellmer attempts his doll experiments as

androids and gynoids designed as ‘pets’ weren’t“corporeal anagrams” (Brown, 2010: 39), in

designed along utilitarian or practical models.

which a body resembles a sentence, that

Instead, we model them on a human imagine, andismantles it into its component letters, and that

idealized one at that. Why are humans soreconstruction is repeated. In that experiment,

obsessed with recreating themselves?” Batou

Bellmer’smachinic

says, “Descartes didn’t differentiate man fromhybridities set against the most banal of everyday

machine, animate from inanimate. He lost his

setting and tableaux, conveying ‘gruesome

beloved five-year-old daughter and then named ascenes of everyday life’” (Brown, 2010: 40-41).

doll after her, Francine. He doted on her. At least,

Furthermore, the emphasis on the grotesquethat’s what they say…” Furthermore, in theand uncanny aspects is none other than anscene at Kim’s mansion, Kim says, “That’s why“artistic resistance to the Nazi social regime anddolls haunt us. They are modeled on humans.

its cult of the perfect body” therein (Brown, 2010:

They are, in fact, nothing but human. They make43).

us face the terror of being reduced to simple

dolls

are

“monstrous

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence seems tomechanisms and matter. In other words, the fearemphasize the depiction of the process ofthat, fundamentally, all humans belong to theassembling the dolls in the shape of a girl, rather

void.”

than the image of the reconstructed body itself.

Each of these lines guides us toward seeing

However, it is possible to say that the interest indoll bodies as human bodies. That is, in Ghost inthat

anagramthe Shell 2: Innocence, doll bodies are nothing but

perspective of disassembling the components

the expression of human bodies. If that is thecomposing the body. Moreover, the sight of acase, it is concluded that constructionism of doll

gynoid tearing itself to pieces can be seen as abodies, clarified in the previous section, represents

resistance against the ideal of beauty of

constructionism of human bodies.

processhasinherited

the

Kim’s

“adolescent girls” (Brown, 2010: 47), and it can
21

above-mentioned

line

shows

an

Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA

understanding of doll bodies as human bodies and“2501” shows up, the figure of a bird appears forthis understanding attempts to reduce bodies toa moment. This scene can be read as implicitly

thematter.

showing that Kusanagi has changed her form to

Nevertheless, this line does not seem to assume

that of a bird. When heading toward the factory

the existence of a physical substance that should

ship after escaping from Kim’s trap, the figure of

be called the human body in that material world.

a bird that seemed to guide Batou can also be

world

of

mechanisms

andCertainly, Kim’s line: “Further, Science,

thought to be suggestive of Kusanagi.

seeking to unlock the secret of life, brought about

If these scenes express that Kusanagi’s bodythis terror. The notion that nature is calculable

appears

inevitably leads to the conclusion that humans,

perspective that grasps the body as constructed

too, are reducible to basic, mechanical parts,”

assumes that the material world is the incessantly

followed by Batou’s line: “The human body is acontinuing phenomenon, and that the body would

machine which winds its own springs. It is thebe rather absent there. Thus, as mentioned

living image of perpetual motion,” gives us anpreviously, Kusanagi’s absence itself becomes animpression of assuming the human body as aimportant key for understanding the body

physical substance. However, In Ghost in theschema/image in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence.

Shell 2: Innocence, the protagonist, Kusanagi, is

Oshii states the following in a talk with Takashi

an absent being in most scenes. Her absence canTachibana: “Such a thing as a created by thebe thought to imply that she is embodied throughhuman brain, the body as an illusion. Aside from

our interpretation. This is indicated by the scenes

this, perhaps there is no such thing as a final,

at Kim’s mansion in which Batou and Togusa

original existence of an inherent human body”

manage to escape from Kim’s trap. In those(Takashi Tachibana and Oshii, 2006). We canscenes, Kusanagi’s existence is shown throughalso read this statement as being based on thehints in the sights depicted, and her body starts toaforementioned body schema/image. Such ancome to the fore through the interpretations ofunderstanding of the body can be considered tothose watching the scene.

be based on social constructionism. When taking

throughourinterpretations,theFor example, a girl doll playing with cards andthe standpoint of social constructionism, alla dog doll jump into the vision of Batou andrecognition and description is made within our

Togusa when they first enter Kim’s mansion. The

social relations and is grasped as being mediatedgirl doll does not explicitly state that she isby our interactions (Gergen, 2009, 2015)10.

Kusanagi. However, the girl doll is a “guardian

Therefore, all of our bodily recognitions andangel,” and Batou’s “guardian angel” could be

descriptions is understood as not existingnone other than Kusanagi. In the third scene incompletely away from the grasp of our cultural

Kim’s mansion, the fact that the number “2501,”

dimension.

which the girl doll leaves behind, is the password

When Ghost in the Shell is analyzed, we can see

for the reunion of Batou and Kusanagi provides

the thought that the awareness of I as a human is

us with another hint that the girl doll is abased on the body’s organic components and thatmanifestation of Kusanagi.

the greater the body’s organic integrity is, themore certain the humanity is (Nemura, 2014),

Just before the scene in which the number
22

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019with reference to Angus McBlane’s argument“contingency” (Laclau, 1990). As argued by(2010). In contrast to this, in Ghost in the Shell 2:

Judith Butler and Donna Haraway, there can be

Innocence, it is not possible to acknowledge thenothing but “contingent foundations” in such a

privilege of human bodies as organisms . This isconstruction (Butler, 1992; Haraway, 2003).

11

because,socialFurthermore, we can consider that theconstructionism, the notion of the body as anwhenstartingfromnetworks and interactions with others create theorganism is constructed by our grasping and“contingency” that constructs the body. In theunderstanding to sort machines from humans

factory ship scene, it is clear that Kusanagi’s

and animate things from inanimate things. When

body is constructed in her relationship withadopting a perspective that grasps the body as

Batou. If we consider that Kusanagi’s existence isconstructed, the human body as an organism

suggested in the girl doll and the bird at Kim’s

cannot be regarded as being in a special position

mansion, we can also see in these scenes that thethat assures the awareness of I as the proof ofrelationship with Batou constructs Kusanagi’s

being human.

body. Kusanagi is always constructing the body

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence releases us fromin connection with Batou.

the mystique of the human body as an organism.

Then, in the scene in which Batou and Togusa

That is, if we assume the social constructionist

escape from Kim’s trap, as suggested by Togusa’s

perspective, the main theme of the film is to castline of “That I’ll never cut it as your partner,”

doubtsKusanagi and Batou are depicted as indispensable

on

the

essential

andexceptional

supremacy of the human body as an organism.

to one another. In other words, we can consider
that Kusanagi’s body is only constructed through

4-3. How is the Body Constructed?

her networks and interactions with others that are

As clarified in this study, the eradication of the

not herself but rather essential to her (hereafter,

mystique bestowed on the human body as an“others that are not oneself but rather essential toorganism is the main theme of Ghost in the Shellone” will be expressed as others)

2: Innocence. This theme is brought to the fore in

In the previously cited talk with Tachibana

the scene in which Batou boards the Locus Solus(Tachibana and Oshii, 2006), Oshii calls “not thefactory ship. In this scene, Kusanagi appears as abody that you have and you were born into, but

gynoid, in a recognizable form. In that scene, thethe second body that you acquired while thinking

film seems to demand us to understand how thefor yourself and being socialized” the “body.” Hehuman body, which was previously absent, isgoes on to explain that “calling it a ghost is

constructed.

cumbersome.” He also argues, “the body cannot

For Kusanagi, the given body is not assumed,

be born without interactions.” Furthermore,

and that its construction comes about in each

Oshii discusses, “whether your partner, yourscene. For instance, the construction of the bodyparent, or your child, whether your cat or dog

as a gynoid is not based on some preceding entity.

that you’ve loved for some dozen years, when one

The body is constructed in the practice of chasingof them dies, you feel that the body decreases, athe truth of the incident. Its construction or the

big hole opens up. I think that the recognized

delimitation of the body is founded on the

body at these times may never recover from such
23

Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA

a large hollow or loss.” These remarks of Oshii

basset hound living with Batou in Ghost in theshow that he presumes that the body schema/

Shell 2: Innocence is an essential being for Batou,

image

similar to Kusanagi. We can see that when Batou

iscreatedthrough

networks

andinteractions with others.
Toborrowis with the basset hound, through their
Harper’sinteractions, he lives the way of a different body

expression, this body schema/image presented

Richardson

andfrom the one when working at Public Seculity

in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence asks us to “setSection 9. Then, as confirmed through theaside our prejudices of both science and common

dialogs between Kim and Batou in Section 3, thissense” and to “reflect on the consciousness offilm suggests that animals also cannot belived experience” (Richardson and Harper, 2002:

understood and appreciated completely by the

online). On this point, we could say that thisframework of humanism.

perspective is identical to Merleau-Ponty’s

As noted above, in Ghost in the Shell 2:121945) .

Innocence, others that cannot be understood andFurthermore, on the point of thinking that theappreciated by the framework of humanism arebodily experience is not necessarily limited byalso positioned as beings related to thethe boundary of the skin (Merleau-Ponty, 1945:

construction of the human body. We could see

173-179), the perspective corresponds to thethis positioning as a form of respect for suchbasic standpoint presented by Merleau-Ponty. On

others. Thus, the body schema/image of Ghost in

the other hand, the body schema/image captures

the Shell 2: Innocence corresponds to thea point that Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology

underlying thought of posthumanism; at the same

does not focus on; that is, the existence of others

time,in our body schema/image.

recognize the underlying thought again.

phenomenology(Merleau-Ponty,

Furthermore, others are not necessarily
existences

that

can

be

understood

the

body

schema/image

makes

us

In this paper, for the sake of convenience, we

andhave analyzed that the body schema/image ofappreciated in the framework of humanism that

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence is based onpraises humans’ ability to understand themselves

posthumanism. However, we can say that theseand the world and their ability to shoulder social

two are actually in a cyclical relationship. This is

responsibility. To adapt this to Batou, the other is abecause the body schema/image itself createsdoll. Certainly, in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,the posthumanistic thought and posthumanism

the doll body is nothing but the representation of

supports the body schema/image; both do not

the human body. Nevertheless, as we have seen

have a tree structure relationship and neither one

in Section 3, Kusanagi’s line, “If the dolls couldof them is leading the way.

speak, no doubt they’d scream, ‘I didn’t want to

5. 
The “Ghost” in Ghost in the Shell 2:

become human…,’” suggests that the dolls

Innocencecannot be understood and appreciated completelyby the framework of humanism.
If we consider the bird that leads Batou from

Finally, this section briefly touches on the

Kim’s mansion to the factory ship to be Kusanagi,

subject of how the concept of the “ghost” isthe other at that point is a bird. Moreover, therelated to the body schema/image in Ghost in the24Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

Shell 2: Innocence that we have elucidated thus

6. Conclusion

far. In Ghost in the Shell, Kusanagi, who is acomplete cyborg, harbors suspicions about her

This paper analyzed the interpretation of theown “ghost.” As mentioned previously, in the

body demonstrated in Ghost in the Shell 2:film, the awareness of I based on the body as an

Innocence based on posthumanism from theorganism is called “ghost.” Therefore, it isphenomenological method. Such analysis has notconceivable that Kusanagi inevitably has doubts

been conducted until now.
In Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, the image ofregarding her own “ghost,” as she hardly has any

doll bodies as artificially constructed forms theorganic components (Nemura, 2014).
However, in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence, thekeynote throughout the film, and those doll bodies

doubts experienced by Kusanagi in Ghost in the

represent human bodies. Then, the body schema/

Shell are barely mentioned. On the contrary, inimage on social constructionism releases us fromthe dialog between Kim and Batou, Batou says,

the mystique bestowed on human bodies as“We are both but worthless humans, though weorganisms.

walk very different paths. Of course, if you don’t

Furthermore, in Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,

believe in ghosts, you’ll never know madness or

the body is constructed in concrete situations

schizophrenia, either,” flatly rejecting Kim’s

through its relations with others. That is, the bodywords that cast doubt on ghosts. Kusanagi also

is based on the “contingency” brought about by

no longer talks about her doubts regarding her

networks and interactions with others that are not“ghost.”oneself but rather essential to one. Moreover, theMoreover, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence,

body schema/image is connected to respect forthrough the concept of “ghost dubbing,” hints

those others that cannot be understood andthat the “ghost” is related to awareness of I. At

appreciated completely by the framework of

the same time, as examined in Section 4, in Ghost

humanism.

in the Shell 2: Innocence, the “ghost” also refers toThis study has advanced the insight of thethe body that is created through networks andbody schema/image expressed in Ghost in theinteractions with others. That is, the film suggests

Shell 2 as well as in Japanese cyberculture. For

that the agency manifests itself through the bodyfuture studies, I intend to examine what types ofmade by networks and interactions with others

worlds and life forms can be created based on theand that the body is constructed along with the

body schema/image and posthumanism in Ghost

manifestation of the agency.

in the Shell 2: Innocence. In particular, I would
like to reveal the world and life enabled by theThus, we can see a major turn in the “ghost”

concept of respect for others.

concept from Ghost in the Shell to Ghost in the
Shell 2: Innocence. The supporting axis of that

Noteturn is the body schema/image examined in thispaper. It can be considered that in Ghost in the1.

T he reasoning adopted by Deleuze and Guattari

Shell 2: Innocence, Kusanagi no longer has doubt

referenced in this paper is mentioned in thisabout her own “ghost” because of the body

work repeatedly and can be assessed as aschema/image.

thought that penetrates the entire work,25

Posthumanism and Constructionism of the Body in the Film Ghost in the Shell 2: InnocenceNEMURA
although it does not have a uniform expression.

he is unable to return to reality and has been

Therefore, specific page numbers are notplaced in a vegetative state.

described.
2.

9.

F
 rom the standpoint of this paper, to make

the

4.

version,

the

area

where

the

underclasses live on Earth is set in Australia.

it seems appropriate to always use quotation

10. Social constructionism in this paper is based onmarks on the word ‘body.’ However, after thethe arguments presented throughout thesefirst appearance, in principle, I do not use

works by Kenneth J. Gergen. Therefore, specificpage numbers are not described.

T he protagonist of the “Ghost in the Shell”

11. This way of thinking has entered our lives. For

series, who is the commander of Public Security

example, according to the final report by the

Section 9, is also called “Major” by her teamProvisional Commission for the Study on Brain

members. With an e-brain and a complete

Death and Organ Transplantation in Japancyborg body, she exhibits superhuman abilities.

(Umehara, 1992), in light of the reasoning

In the earlier work, Ghost in the Shell, she isadopted in recent medicine and biology, a

depicted as having doubts about her own “ghost”“human being” is perceived as one organism

due to an incident involving the Puppet Master.

system or organic integrated body furnishedIn the final scene, Kusanagi disappears.

with consciousness and feeling and it is nowT he word “complete cyborg” means “extension

commonplace to define the death of suchof artificial arms and artificial legs,” that is, toindividual as “human death.”
12. The thought of Merleau-Ponty, as mentioned

replace the entire body with machinery
5.

2012

different implications from the existing concept,

quotation marks to avoid redundancy.
3.

I n the 1990 version, this is a colonized Mars. In(Tachibana and Oshii, 2006).

here, is recognized throughout this entire work.

O riginally, the name of the project that gave

Therefore, specific page numbers are notbirth to the “Puppet Master” in Ghost in thedescribed.

Shell. The “Puppet Master” is a hacking program6.

made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs toReferences

execute international strategies but has acquired

Belmer, Hans (2011) The Doll: Doll Photographa “ghost.”

Collection of Hans Belmer. The refurbishment

S hort is a media and film studies expert who has

version. Kawade Shobo Shinsha.

presented many papers and works on themes
7.

Butler, Judith (1992) “Contingent Foundations:related to film and television.

Feminism and the Question of ‘Postmodernism’.”I n the 1990 version, he is attacked by an

In Judith Butler and Joan W. Scott, Feminists

unidentifiable group including his colleague

Theorize the Political. New York: Routledge. pp.

Harry. In the 2012 version, he is attacked by the

3-21.

police.
8.

Brians, Ella (2011) “The ‘Virtual’ Body and theI n the audio commentary included in the Total

Strange Persistence of the Flesh: Deleuze,

RecallDirector

Cyberspace and the Posthuman.” In Laura

Verhoeven states that the last bright white scene

Guillaume and Joe Hughes (eds.), Deleuze and thesuggests that all of it is Quaid’s dream and that

Body. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

DVD

released

in

2014,

26

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019
Brown,

StevenT.

(2010)

Cyberpunk:

Oshii, Mamoru (2004) Notes for Innocence: Dolls,

Posthumanism in Japanese Visual Culture. New

Architectures, Trips of the Body ＋Talk. Tokuma

York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Shoten Publishing.

Tokyo

Deleuze, Gilles, and Félix Guattari (1991) Qu’est-ce

Richardson, Ingrid, and Carly Harper (2002)

que la philosophie? Paris: Editions de Minuit.

“Corporeal Virtuality: The Impossibility of a

Dovey, Jon, and Helen W. Kennedy (2006) Game

Fleshless Ontology.” Body, Space, and Technology

Cultures: Computer

Games

as

New

2:

Media.

Maidenhead: Open University Press.

2.

http://people.brunel.ac.uk/bst/vol0202/

ingridrichardson.html, accessed at December 12,

Gergen, Kenneth J. (2009) An Invitation to Social

2012.

Construction. Second edition. Los Angeles: Sage.

Saito, Tamaki (2004) “Body, Frame, and Reality.”

Gergen, Kenneth J. (2015) An Invitation to Social

Eureka: Oshii Mamoru, Innocence of Image pp. 75-

Construction. Third edition. Los Angeles: Sage.

84.

Haraway, Donna (2003) The Companion Species

Sato, Tetsuya (2004) “Body as a Suppression

Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness.

Apparatus.” Eureka: Oshii Mamoru, Innocence ofChicago: Prickly Paradigm Press.

Image. vol. 36, No. 4. Seido Sha. pp. 123-127.

Laclau, Ernesto (1990) New Reflections on the

Short, Sue (2011) Cyborg Cinema. First published in

Revolutions of Our Time. London: Verso.

hardback, 2005. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

McBlane, Angus (2010) “Just a Ghost in a Shell?” In

Tachibana, Takashi x Mamoru Oshii (2006) “A talk”

Josef Steiff and Tristan D. Tamplin (eds.), Animein Premium 10. NHK. http://sci.digitalmuseum.

and Philosophy: Wide Eyed Wonder. Chicago: Open

jp/project/gis/premium10/, accessed at May 12,

Court, pp. 27-38.

2014.

Merleau-Ponty, Maurice (1945) Phénoménologie de la

Umehara, Takeshi (ed.) (1992) Brain Death Is Not

perception. Paris: Gallimard.

Death. Tokyo: Shibunkaku Shuppan

Nayar, Pramod K. (2014) Posthumanism. Cambridge:

Zylinska, Joanna (ed.) (2002) The Cyborg Experiments:

Polity.
Nemura,The Extentions of the Body in the Media Age.
Naomi

(2014)“A

Phenomenological

London: Continuum.

Analysis of the Corporeal Schema or Body-Image
in Ghost in the Shell of Mamoru Oshii.”

Acknowledgment

Proceedings of 2014 Conference of Social Informatics

This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant
Number 25511014.

Society (SSI). pp. 271-276.

27Translation
Media Gratifications andSuccessful Aging Among the “Young Old”*
Keywords:
uses and gratifications, media, retired, successful aging, morale

Atsushi KOTERA, Toyo Eiwa University

Abstract
Research literature about media use in aging has argued that the motivations to fulfill the needto connect with others or societies facilitate the elderly’s use of media and has suggested thatmedia contribute to their fulfilling life or successful aging. From the uses and gratifications
perspective, this study examines how the elderly’s use of media relate to their successful aging.
The results of a convenience sample survey in the Tokyo area (n=1644) indicated that mostmedia gratifications may not contribute to successful aging among the Japanese “young old” (58～70 years). Scores from the Morale Scale are negatively correlated with media gratifications,especially consummatory gratification in television viewing. This suggests that the previous view
about the role of television in aging is invalid and may be too optimistic.
In addition, the contribution of media gratifications to scores on the Morale showed little
difference between retired and non-retired. This result raises questions about prevailing notions
that the retired elderly lose motivation in their life and media complement their commitment tosociety and their social activities.
Although previous research has tended to accept the activity theory which supposes that
communication would be maintained at an active level throughout the aging process, this study
does not support this hypothesis.

* This essay is a translation of an article from Socio-Informatics 7(3) (2019)28

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019ascertain the motivations for the elderly’s use of

1. Introduction

media as well as to clarify the meaning and value
With the aging of the population well underway,of media for the elderly.

much effort has been devoted to utilizing new

Investigative research has shown that thetechnology, either to improve health/welfare

elderly’s media use is not driven by entertainment-

services or to open up senior markets. These

related motivations but by information-related

proactive approaches to technology in an aging

motivations (Bower, 1973; Davis, 1971; Steiner,society may mitigate concerns about the socially

1963; Wenner, 1976). Some scholars have statedvulnerable, contribute to their safety, and promotethat this tendency is due to the function of

their adoption of a healthy and active life.

television in linking people to society andHowever, these initiatives often ignore theproviding them with a sense of societal belonging

perceptions of end-users and do not consider(Davis et al., 1976; Harwood, 2018; Hilt &whether media contribute to the elderly’s

Lipschultz, 2005; Katori, 2000; Schramm,1969).

happiness or “successful aging.”

Others have mentioned that the elderly possess a

Is it obvious that media contribute to successfulstrong motivation to view television because they

aging? As the paradigm of a media-driven aging

desire to remain socially active and learn aboutsociety is touted by the non-elderly, the popularthemselves and social matters (Ostman & Jeffers,

perception of media may not necessarily match1983). The motivation to stay connected withthe elderly’s actual views. If media use does notothers and with society also seems to drive theircontribute to their successful aging, there may be

use of other forms of media, such as the telephonea need to question anew the paradigm of media in(O’Keefe & Sulanowski, 1995) or the Internet

the information society.

(Dixson, 1997; Kong & Lee, 2017; Quinn, 2013).

Based on these concerns, this study examines

These studies share the view that the elderly

whether the elderly’s use of media contributes toare “active consumers” (Young, 1979), andtheir successful aging. In particular, by applying

ascribe a positive meaning to their media use.

the uses and gratifications approach, thisThat is to say, media use enables social

research investigates which types of media

participation in no small measure and fosters a

produce what types of gratification and how these

happy and purposeful life.

relate to the elderly’s positive attitudes about

As for successful aging, there is an ongoing

their later years.

debate based on the two opposing theories of1

disengagement and activity in the field of

2. 
Media

Gratificationsand“Successful

gerontology. The former argues that as one ages,

Aging”

social disengagement affects individual happiness(Cumming & Henry, 1961), and the latter argues

2.1 Media Use and “Successful Aging”

that remaining active in one’s later life leads to

Several studies of media use among the elderly

higher levels of happiness (Lemon et al., 1972).

have been conducted, with a particular focus on

However, there is no research that directly

television use. From the uses and gratifications

tackles the relationship between media use andperspective, there have been many attempts tosuccessful aging. Using a panel survey, Graney
29

Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

andGraneyevidence

accomplishing activity substitution” (Powell &suggesting that, with age, media use increases as

Williamson,1985) or that an “older person will

physical activity decreases; they also noted that

tend to substitute mass media communication for

the elderly continue to interact with society ininterpersonal communication” (Bliese, 1982).

“somewhat different ways than in their younger

People use media to satiate their desires whenyears.” Other findings also posit that the elderly’s

they cannot be as socially active as they once

media

were.

use

(1974)

cannotdiscovered

KOTERAbe

explained

throughdisengagement theory and that positive attitudes

If this is true, retirement (leaving work) could

toward media are positively correlated withhave a significant impact on media use as it is a

successful aging (Davis et al., 1976; Nussbaum etpivotal event in later life social activities.

al., 2000; Schramm, 1969).

Comstock et al. (1978) concluded that television

These, however, are just only analogicalviewing increased with age because media “serve

hypotheses extrapolated from the amount or

as a source of information and stimulation in

frequency of media consumption among theregard to the outside world that was once

aged, not from empirical research about theprovided by interpersonal ties.” Kubey (1980)

impact of media use on successful aging. It isalso posited that “television is sought to supply aundeniable

need for serious local information which, prior to

that

they

are

just

optimistic

interpretations of media use.

retirement, was found to some extent at work.” If

Do media promote active and happy lives? The

these substitution functions of media existed,

aim of this study is to directly reveal the kind of

media use should affect retirees far more thanrelationship that media gratification has with

non-retirees and should contribute more to

successful aging. In other words, it will verify

successful aging among retirees than non-whether media gratifications possess a positive

retirees. In other words, retiree happiness isrelationship with successful aging (Hypothesis

positively affected more by media use than non-1).

retiree happiness (Hypothesis 2).

2.2 Retirement and Substitutional Function of

3. Methods

Media
According to the uses and gratifications theory,

This study used a social survey to investigate

media functions as an alternative for social

the above issue. The survey was conducted by

activities and interpersonal relationships. In

sending out a questionnaire to 2,600 residents

other words, media is a means to achieve human

aged 58 to 69 years living in the Tokyo

goals and acts as a substitute when those goals

Metropolitan Region (Tokyo Metropolis, Saitama

cannot be achieved directly (Katz et al., 1974).

Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, and Kanagawa

There is some mentions of media offering

Prefecture).2The

functional alternatives in light of the elderly’s

questionnaire

focusedon

media

diminishing capacities for daily activity. Scholars

gratifications and successful aging and featured

contend that “mass media provide to older

questions on the participant’s gender, age,persons

current employment status, and employmentasocially

acceptable

means

of
30

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019status ten years prior (to which participants could

measured. An economic approach, for example,

answer “full-time,” “part-time,” or “unemployed,”measures elements that are thought to contributewhich includes housewife duties).

to

3.1 Media Gratifications

media(newspapers,

aspolitical

infrastructure,publicservices,andclimate,livingregion’s or a nation’s happiness (Frey & Stutzer,

asked about twelve purposes of media use for ten
of

such

environment. These are used to quantify a

For media gratifications, participants wereforms

happiness,andAs successful aging, which indicates a desirable

magazines, television, radio, VCR and DVD,later life, is also difficult to define and evaluate,

landline telephones, mobile phones, PCs, friends,

approaches to ascertain subjective well-being

and music). Respondents used a four-point scale

independent of social attributes or living situation

to signify the applicability of the purposes to their

have being adopted in the fields of psychology

lives (1=not applicable, 2=somewhat applicable,

and sociology. To investigate the factors that

3=applicable,

influence

4=verybooks

2002; Graham, 2011).

applicable).

As

this

successful

aging

empirically,aquestionnaire did not ask about the frequency ofmultitude of operational concepts, such as lifeuse for these forms of media, they were instructedsatisfaction or self-esteem, have been applied in

to select “not applicable” if they did not consume

these fields. In Japan, a unique overarchinga specific form of media.

concept referred to as ikigai, or reason for being,

For the gratification items, a meta-analysis of

has been discussed in the context of successful

preceding research, including Lometti et al.

aging. While the refinement of this concept has(1977), Elliott and Quattelebaum (1979), Kippax

been attempted for empirical studies, consensus

and Murray (1980), Rubin (1983), and Perse andon the concept has not been achieved (Hasegawa

Coutright (1993), was conducted to create a

et al., 2001; Shibasaki & Aoki, 2011).

series of items with high versatility. These items

The present study used the Revised PGC

were as follows: (a) to obtain information on daily

Morale Scale (Lawton, 1975; translated into

life, (b) to know what goes on in the world, (c) toJapanese by Koyano, 1981) as a measure oflearn how to do things, (d) to develop ideas, (e)successful aging, because it is a standardized

to learn what other people think, (f) to releaseself-reporting scale that has been widely used.

tension, (g) to kill time, (h) to get away from daily

Morale originally referred to unit cohesion in the

problems, (i) to be entertained, (j) to share

military or satisfaction within a workplace setting.

experiences with others, (k) to feel less lonely,

Kutner et al. (1956) introduced this concept inand (l) to get energy.

the field of gerontology, and many studies havebuilt on this concept.

3.2 Successful Aging

The Lawton’s Revised Scale is made up of 17

What is happiness and what makes someone

questions that include statements such as

happy? The answers could differ depending on“sometimes I feel lonely,” “aging has been betterthe field in which the term is used. Discourse on

than I thought,” “I am satisfied with my life,” andthe definition of “happiness” is often substituted“I am just as happy as when I was young.” Onewith an operational definition of how happiness ispoint is assigned for positively answering each31Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

question. The higher the number of points, the

KOTERAhigh.

higher the morale (the maximum number ofNext, exploratory factor analysis was conducted

points that can be gained is 17).

to condense the gratification items. From theWhile the author is aware that the Morale

results of the maximum likelihood factor analysis

Scale is divided into three factors (agitation,with promax rotation, a factor score for each of

attitude toward one’s own aging, and lonely

the ten forms of media was calculated. The ten

dissatisfaction), a detailed analysis of each

forms of media showed a similar bifactor

individual factor will not be conducted in thisstructure. The following high-load factors werearticle. Instead, only the sums of this scale will belabeled as instrumental gratifications: (a) toused to investigate overall positive attitudes

obtain information on daily life, (b) to know what

toward aging in relation to media use.

goes on in the world, (c) to learn how to do things,(d) to develop ideas, (e) to learn what other

4. Results

people think, and (j) to share experiences withothers. The following high-load factors were

The questionnaires were sent out on November

labeled as consummatory gratifications (f) to10, 2017, and those that were sent back byrelease tension, (g) to kill time, (h) to get away

November 30 were treated as valid responses.

from daily problems, (i) to be entertained, (k) to

The number of collected questionnaires was

feel less lonely, and (l) to get energy.

1,644, a collection rate of 63.2%. Although there

Previous research showed that televisionwere 87 respondents who were 70 years old atviewing can be classified as instrumental use

the time of the survey, they have been included in(goal-directed use of media content to gratify

the data.

informational needs) and ritualized use (habitual

The mean age of the sample was 64.6 years.

use of media to gratify diversionary needs)

There were 750 male (45.6%) and 894 (54.4%)(Rubin,1984), or content gratification and process

female participants. Their occupational statuses

gratification (Cutler & Danowski, 1980). This

were as follows: 515 (31.3%) were employed full-investigation has shown that similar classifications

time, 443 (26.9%) were employed part-time, 682

are useful across media types.

(41.5%) were unemployed, and 4 did not respond

The mean value for the Morale Scale was 11.7

(0.2%).
The

points (standard deviation: 3.78). An extremely
overallgratification

scoresofTV,

weak but significantly positive correlation was

newspapers, books and magazines, and friends

observed with age (r=.087, p<.01). Although(interpersonal communication) are higher thanmuch research has shown that age is not a direct

other media (Table 1). The higher scores forfactor in the reduction of morale, the fact that it

mobile phones compared to landline telephones

shows a positive correlation possibly calls formay indicate some changes in media environment

more investigation from other perspectives. A

among the elderly. Information-related gratifications

significant difference was not confirmed between

from newspapers are evaluated highly as a whole.

morale and gender or employment status.

Friends for entertainment (M=3.04) and music
for releasing tension (M=3.03) are also notedly
32

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

[Table 1] Descriptive statistics of gratifications

television, with a comparatively high coefficient

4.1 Media Gratifications and Morale

compared to other forms of media.

While controlling for the effects of age, gender,and employment status, the results showed no

While the possibility that media use has ansignificant positive correlations in terms of theeffect on morale cannot be denied, evidence here

relationship between media gratifications andsuggests that those with high morale perceive

morale (Table 2). In particular, a weak yet

media as less useful than those with low morale.

significantly negative correlation was seen for

It is possible that people with high morale feel

consummatory gratification among many forms

that other activities are more useful than media

of media, such as newspapers (r=–.071, p<.01),

use. In either event, Hypothesis 1 that “media

books and magazines (r=–.067, p<.05), radio

gratifications possess a positive relationship with

(r=–.062, p<.05), and mobile phones (r=–.059,

successful aging” was not only unsupported, but

p<.05). A negative correlation was observed fora reverse trend was observed.

instrumental gratification (r=–.058, p<.05) andTo reveal the strength of media gratifications

consummatory gratification (r=–.181, p<.001) ofon morale, a multiple regression analysis
33

Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

[Table 2]  Partial correlation between morale

KOTERA[Table 3] Variables that affect morale (n=1333)

and media gratifications (n=1644)

gratifications upon morale is limited; however,there is no doubt that there is a negative relation
between consummatory use of television andmorale.

4.2 Retirement and Media Gratifications
A comparative analysis was conducted toascertain the extent to which media gratifications
affect retirees and non-retirees, respectively.
The sample was divided into six groups basedon current occupational status and occupational
status 10 years prior. Those who were both(stepwise) was conducted with morale as thecurrently employed full-time and were employeddependent variable, and age, gender (dummy

full-time 10 years prior were labeled “actively

variable: male=1, female=0), presence/absence

employed (full-time)” (30.4%). Those who wereof employment (dummy variable: employed=1,

employed part-time during both periods were

unemployed=0), as well as media gratifications aslabeled “actively employed (part-time)” (13.0%).

the independent variables (Table 3).

Those who were currently part-time but were

The result showed that explanatory power was

employed full-time 10 years prior were labeled

low overall (R =.06, p<.001). While gender,“actively employed (full-time to part-time)”

presence/absence of employment, and many

(12.2%). Those who were not currently working

gratification items were excluded as explanatory

but were employed full-time 10 years prior werevariables,

2

the

that

age,

labeled “retired (from full-time)” (14.4%). Those

books

and

who were not currently working but weremagazines, and consummatory gratification of

employed part-time 10 years prior were labeled

PCs exerted positive influences, whereas the“retired (from part-time)” (16.5%). Those who

consummatory gratification of television andwere not employed at any of these points in

instrumental

time

instrumental

results

indicated

gratification

gratification

of

of

PCs

exerted(including

housewives)

werelabeled“unemployed” (16.5%). Other response patterns

negative influences. The influence of media
34

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

hypothesis. However, salient differences were not(3.0%) were excluded from the analysis.

observed between the retired and non-retired

As mentioned previously, the uses andgroups (Table 4).

gratification theory states that people canmaintain social connections in spite of reduced

There were some observed characteristics forsocial activity with the help of media. Thus, in thethe six groups. Many gratification items were

context of this study, retirement may greatly

excluded as explanatory variables, but theaffect attitudes toward media as it is thought toconsummatory gratification of music remained

be a life event where social activity is greatly

as a positive influencer of morale in the actively

reduced. Media gratifications can be expected to

employed (full-time) group (β=2.471, p<.05).

affect the morale of retirees more than non-In the retired (from full-time) group, theretirees (actively employed or unemployed

instrumental gratification of books and magazines

respondents).

was observed to be a positive influencer of morale

A multiple regression analysis (stepwise) was(β=.197, p<.01), as with the consummatory

conducted by group, with morale as the dependent

gratification of radio among the retired (fromvariable and age, gender (dummy variable:

part-time) group (β=.269, p<.01). While one

male=1, female=0), and media gratifications as

could argue that the instrumental use of books

the independent variables to verify the aboveand magazines acts as a substitute for social[Table 4] Variables that affect morale (by employment pattern)

35

Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

KOTERA

activity, it must be said that media, as a whole,

was a factor that exhibited a negative correlation

does not contribute to morale as a substitute forwith morale in almost all analyses. Previous

social activity considering the exclusion of manystudies have showed that television use among

other gratifications.

the elderly is high compared with other age

Furthermore, the consummatory gratificationgroups, but this may not necessarily indicate thatof television was negatively associated with

it is a positive behavior. The rationale formorale regardless of employment or retirement

consummatory gratification is killing time,

status. This signifies that people with high morale

escaping daily problems, and feeling less lonely.

also lacked motivation to use television forPeople with low morale show a strong tendency

consummatory purpose, as has been observed in

toward consummatory gratifications, which may

previous analyses.

signify that television viewing is an introverted

It seems valid to conclude that Hypothesis 2,

behavior for them. If this is the cause of highwhich states that “retiree happiness is positively

television viewership among the elderly, it could

affected more by media use than non-retiree

be said that television does not facilitate social

happiness,” was not supported. However, it must

participation, but rather supports their social

be pointed out that the total explanatory power

disengagement.

was weak, and morale mostly could not be

The analysis showed no evidence that media

explained solely by age/gender or media

provide a substitute for declining daily activity

gratifications. Media use did not have a large

among the elderly. The result that instrumental

effect on successful aging. The role of media was

gratification of PCs negatively influenced morale

limited, and it may be inappropriate to over-indicates that this activity does not promoteemphasize its role (at least in this research).

social participation. Information gathering via
the Internet might have become more of a passive

5. Discussion

behavior than it had been in the past.
While the uses and gratifications studies

Although no clear conclusion regarding thetheorize the functional alterative of media, somefactors of successful aging has been reached instudies refute this assumption. For example,

the field of gerontology, the positive correlation

Hays et al. (1998) revealed that religious

between morale and age has confirmed that age

media is not a substitute for reductions in

is not necessarily an explanatory variable, as

church participation owing to worsening healthshown in this investigation. At least, it appears

conditions. Even Graney (1975), a proponent ofthat participants in this study do not perceive

media as a substitute for social activities,

aging negatively.

considered media as being unable to totally

The results of this investigation did not support

compensate for losses and suggested there

the hypothesis that media use contributes towould be a long-term drop in social relations. He

successful aging. The results showed that theultimately supported both activity theory andinfluence of media gratification was weak, and it

disengagement

often has a negative relationship with morale. In

reported that substitutes do not always increase

particular, consummatory gratification of television

life satisfaction. If the present study was able to36

theory.

Bliese(1982)

also

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019

make any contributions to the above discussion,

possessed relative generality, they were notit would be that it did not find any evidence toselected by random sampling.2 The analysis

support activity theory (at least in the context ofmight underestimate the effect of residence area

Japan).

because this survey was conducted in the Tokyo

Meanwhile, there are some forms of media

Metropolitan Region. Furthermore, the elderlythat have a positive impact on morale. In thiswho participated in this type of survey may leadsense, this study also does not support

relatively

disengagement

instrumental

disproportionally high morale. This could explain

gratification of books and magazines as well as

the positive correlation between morale and age.

the consummatory gratification of radio and PCs

This study utilized morale as a measure ofare factors that positively influenced morale.

successful aging, but the very concept ofThese media share features that they need to be

successful aging needs to be examined further.

used actively and can be used at one’s own pace

This study has refrained from discussing what iseven with the reduction in cognitive abilities

successful aging and whether the Morale Scale isaccompanied by aging. The elderly use media in

an appropriate measure of successful aging.

different ways as compared to the youth and may

While it is used in many investigations, there are

be gratified differently than people of other ages.

some critiques of this scale and its validity must

theory.

Thefulfilled

lives

and

may

have

As is clear from the weak explanatory power ofbe further verified. The possibility that utilizing

several factors throughout the entire analysis, it

another scale would demonstrate adverse resultsmust be recognized that successful aging among

cannot be denied. In addition, as previously

the elderly cannot be explained solely by media

noted, only the sums of the Morale Scale weregratification and our limited demographic factors.

used in the analysis, though this scale is separated

Some studies have found that income, academic

into three factors (Lawton, 1972, 1975). Subsequent

background, family structure, and past media

analysis would be needed to explain which aspect ofexperience affect media use (Burnett, 1991;

morale relates to media gratifications.
This

Doolittle, 1979; Morrison, 1979; Robinson at al.,research

applied

the

uses

and

2004; Rubin & Rubin, 1982; Schramm, 1969).

gratifications approach, which does not employ

The elderly are more complex than other aged

a relatively objective index, such as amount orgroups owing to their health and living conditions

frequency of use; instead, it utilizes media(Robinson et al., 2004). Thus, the many complex

gratifications (attitudes toward media), which

factors that were not covered in the present

has been criticized as highly subjective. The

investigation are thought to be at play in thevalidity of this type of research must be criticallyrelationship between media gratifications andreviewed. However, it is worth noting that thismorale. These research findings that media has a

research showed that the amount or frequency

negative correlation with morale may beof media use does not indicate a positive

explained

commitment to media.

by

other

strongvariablesthat

The finding that the link between media

determine both of these factors.

gratifications and morale among the elderly is

The limitations of this study need to begenerallymentioned. The first is that while the participants
37

negativeraisesquestionsaboutMedia Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”

KOTERAprevailing notions that media complement or(second edition). Oxford University Press, pp.624-

substitute social activities and promote successful

634.

aging. Previous research may have been too

Bower, R. (1973) Television and the Public. Holt,optimistic. A separate analysis of the biases andRinehart & Winston, Inc.

context of preceding research is needed, and it is

Burnett, J. (1991) Examining the Media Habits of theclear that we still do not understand media use in

Affluent Elderly. Journal of Advertising Research

aging.

31(5): 33-41.
Comstock, G., S. Chaffee, N. Katzman, M. McCombs

Notes
1.

& D. Roberts (1978) Television and Human

Many Japanese laws and regulations regarding

Behavior. Columbia University Press.

aged individuals define those over 65 years old

Cumming, E. & W. Henry (1961) Growing Old; Theas older adults. As many respondents below the2.

Process of Disengagement. Basic Books.

age of 65 years were included in the survey, theCutler, N. & J. Danowski (1980) Process Gratification

title of this article used the term the “young old”

in Aging Cohorts. Journalism Quarterly 57(2):in lieu of older adults.

269-276.

The survey was entrusted to the Nippon

Davis, R. (1971) Television and the Older Adult.

Research Center. It utilizes the postal mailJournal of Broadcasting 15(2): 153-159.

survey panel called the TRUST PANEL. In theDavis, R., A. Edwards, D. Bartel & D. Martin (1976)

TRUST PANEL, respondents to the center’sAssessing Television Viewing Behavior of Oldermonthly randomly sampled self-administered

Adults. Journal of Broadcasting 20(1): 69-76.

survey become monitors (respondents who

Dixson, J. (1997) Predicting Seniors’ Use of Cyberspace.

have consented to continuous cooperation

Garland Publishing.

become monitors). It is deemed more random

Doolittle, J. (1979) News Media Use by Older Adults.

than free-registration panels. The monitors used

Journalism Quarterly 56(2): 311- 317, 345.

in this survey were selected according to

Elliott, W. & C. Quattelebaum (1979) Similarities in

population ratios (six age generations for each

Patterns of Media Use: A Cluster Analysis ofgender) based on the Basic Resident Registry as

Media Gratifications. Western Journal of Speechof January 1, 2017.

Communications 43: 61-72.
Frey, B. & A. Stutzer (2002) Happiness and Economics:

Acknowledgment

How the Economy and Institutions Affect Human

This study was supported by the Japan Society for

Well-Being. Princeton University Press.

the Promotion of Science Grant-in-Aid for Young

Graham, C. (2011) The Pursuit of Happiness: An

Scientists (17K13862).

Economy of Well-Being. The Brookings Institution.
Graney, M. (1975) Communication Uses and theReferences

Social Activity Constant. Communication ResearchBliese, N. (1982) Media in the Rocking Chair: Media2(4): 347-366.

Uses and Functions Among the Elderly. in G.

Graney, M. & E. Graney (1974) Communications

Gumpert & R. Cathcart (eds.) Inter/Media:

Activity Substitutions in Aging. JournalInterpersonal Communication in a Media World

Communication 24(4): 88-96.

38of

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol. 12 No. 1 Sep. 2019
Harwood, J. (2018) Understanding Communication

Lawton, M (1972) The Dimensions of Morale. in D.

and Aging: Developing Knowledge and Awareness.

Kent, R. Kastenbaum & S. Sherwood (Eds.)

Cognella.

Research Planning and Action for the Elderly.

Hasegawa, A., Y. Fujiwara & T. Hoshi (2001) The

Behavioral Publications, pp. 144-165.

Review of IKIGAI on the Relationship of IKIGAI

Lawton, M. (1975) The Philadelphia Geriatric Centerand Well-Being in the Elderly. Comprehensive

Morale Scale: A Revision. Journal of Gerontology

Urban Studies 75: 147-170. (in Japanese)30(1): 85-89.

Hays, J., L. Landerman, D. Blazer, H. Koenig, J.

Lemon, B., V. Bengtson & J. Peterson (1972) An

Carroll & M. Musick (1998) Aging, Health, andExploration of the Activity Theory of Aging:the “Electronic Church”. Journal of Aging and

Activity Types and Life Satisfaction Among In-

Health 10 (4): 458-482.

Movers to a Retirement Community. Journal ofHilt, M. & J. Lipschultz (2005) Mass Media, an Aging

Gerontology 27(4): 511- 523.

Population, and the Baby Boomers. Lawrence

Lometti, G., B. Reeves & C. Bybee (1977) Investigating

Erlbaum Associates.

the Assumptions of Uses and Gratifications

Katori, A. (2000) Aging and Media. Hokuju Publishing.

Research. Communication Research 4(3): 321-338.

(in Japanese)

Morrison, A. (1979) Mass Media Use by Adults.

Katz, E., J. Blumler & M. Gurevitch (1974) Utilization

American Behavioral Scientist 23(1): 71-93.

of Mass Communication by the Individual. in J.

Nussbaum, J., L. Pecchioni, J. Robinson & T.

Blumler & E. Katz (eds.) The Uses of Mass

Thompson (2000) Communication and Aging

Communications:(second edition). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Current

Perspectiveon

Gratifications Research. Sage Publishing, pp. 19-

O’Keefe, G. & B. Sulanowski (1995) More Than Just

32.

Talk: Uses, Gratifications, and the Telephone.

Kippax, S. & J. Murray (1980) Using the Mass Media:
Need

Gratification

andPerceived

Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly

Utility.

72(4): 922-933.

Communication Research 7(3): 335-360.

Ostman, R. & D. Jeffers (1983) Life Stage and Motives

Kong, J. & G. Lee (2017) Elderly’s Uses andfor Television Use. International Journal of Aging

Gratifications of Social Media: Key to Improving
SocialCompensation

andSocialand Human Development 17(4): 315-322.

Pressure.

Perse, E. & J. Coutright (1993) Normative Images ofInternational Journal of Cyber Behavior, Psychology

Communication Media: Mass and Interpersonaland Learning 7(3): 23-35.

Channels in the New Media Environment. Human

Koyano, W. (1981) An Analysis of the Revised

Communication Research 19(4):485-503.

Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale.

Powell, L. & J. Williamson (1985) The Mass MediaJapanese Journal of Gerontology 3: 83-95. (inand the Aged. Social Policy 16(1): 38-49.

Japanese)

Quinn K. (2013) We Haven’t Talked in 30 Years!

Kubey, R. (1980) Television and Aging: Past, Present,

Relationship Reconnection and Internet Use atand Future. The Gerontologist 20 (1): 16-35.

Midlife. Information, Communication & Society

Kutner, B., D. Fanshel, A. Togo & T. Langner (1956)

16(3): 397-420.
Robinson, J., T. Skill & J. Turner (2004) Media Usage

Five Hundred Over Sixty: A Community Survey on
Aging. Russell Sage Foundation.

Patterns and Portrayals of Seniors. in J. Nussbaum

39Media Gratifications and Successful Aging Among the “Young Old”
& J. Coupland (eds.) Handbook of Communication
and

Aging

Research.

Lawrence

KOTERA

Society vol. 2: Aging and the Professions. Russell

Erlbaum

Sage Foundation, pp. 352-375.

Associates, pp. 423-446.

Shibasaki, Y. & K. Aoki (2011) A Review of Studies on

Rubin, A. (1983) Television Uses and Gratifications:

IKIGAI of the Elderly People. Archives of

The Interactions of Viewing Patterns andYamaguchi Prefectural University 4: 121-130. (inMotivations. Journal of Broadcasting 27: 37-51.

Japanese)

Rubin, A. (1984) Ritualized and Instrumental

Steiner, G. (1963) The People Look at Television: A

Television Viewing. Journal of Communication

Study of Audience Attitude. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

34(3): 67-77.

Wenner, L. (1976) Functional Analysis of TV Viewing

Rubin, A. & R. Rubin (1982) Older Persons’TV

Viewing

Patterns

andfor Older Adults. Journal of Broadcasting 20(1): 77-

Motivations.

88.

Communication Research 9(2): 287-313.

Young, T. (1979) Use of the Media by Older Adults.

Schramm, W. (1969) Aging and Mass Communication.

American Behavioral Scientist 23(1): 119-136.

in M. Riley, J. Riley & M. Johnson (eds.) Aging and40

Editor’s Notes
We are very pleased to announce the publication of Volume 12 of JSI, Journal of Socio-Informatics.
Through the peer review process, one of the two submitted papers has been accepted as original
paper. This issue has also two translated papers from the Japanese version of Socio-Informatics (ShakaiJoho-Gaku).
We want to provide a kind of fruitful public space open to every researcher who has interest in socioinformatics from all over the world. We are inviting you, our readers, to submit papers on socioinformatics or other related fields.
The Call For Papers of JSI is available on http://www.ssi.or.jp/eng/index03.html.
Cordial greetings,

The Editor

Editorial Board of The Society of Socio-Informatics
Editor in Chief
Yorio KITAMURA, Ritsumeikan University
Editor in Subchief
Yuko TSUCHIYA, Hiroshima University of Economics

Editorial board members
Kunikazu AMAGASA, Showa Women’s University
Kaoru ENDO, Gakushuin University
Hiroyuki FUJISHIRO, Hosei University
Kenji IIJIMA, Prefectural University of Kumamoto
Kenichi ITO, Gunma University
Tomoko KANAYAMA, Institute of Advanced Media Arts and Sciences
Shogo KATO, Tokyo Woman’s Christian University
Yuuki KATO, Sagami Women’s University
Nobuaki KAWAI, Jissen Women’s University
Takahiro KAWAMATA, The University of Nagasaki, Siebold
Shigeo KAWASHIMA, Aoyama Gakuin Women’s Junior College
Sangmi KIM, Nagoya University
Tadamasa KIMURA, Rikkyo University
Yuko KITORA, Doshisha Women’s College of Liberal Arts
Ron KORENAGA, Rikkyo University
Atsushi KOTERA, Toyo Eiwa University
Keita MATSUSHITA, Jissen Women’s University
Kunihiko NAKANO, Shimane University
Morihiro OGASAHARA, Toyo University
Akiko OGAWA, Nagoya University
Shungo SAKAKI, Tokyo University of Technology
Isao SAKUMA, Bunkyo University
Seiichiro SAKURAI, Meiji Gakuin University
Yuichi SASAKI, Tokyo Keizai University
Masahito SHIMAZAKI, Akita Prefectural University
Akashi SUGIYAMA, Kyushu University
Soichiro TAKAGI, The University of Tokyo
Toru TAKAHASHI, Chuo University
Nobumoto UEHARA, Tokyo International University
Hitoshi YAMAMOTO, Rissho University
Shaoyu YE, University of Tsukuba

Journal of Socio-Informatics Vol.12, No.1
Sep. 2019
Published
The Society of Socio-Informatics (SSI)
Akuahakusan Bld.5F, 1-13-7, Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo
113-0001 Japan
Tel. 03-3812-5223 Fax. 03-3816 -1561
Print/Binding
Shobi Printing Co., Ltd.