We set the four areas for the research; namely “megalopolis Osaka and its surrounding areas”, “areas in western Japan”, “traditional capital Kyoto and its surrounding areas”, “megalopolis Tokyo and its surrounding areas”. The research has clarified the change of social structures in those areas. The research has deepened the study on the social status and the marginal status. The formation, development and the actual process of solution of “Buraku problem” has been clarified substantially, and the progress in the structure of local control has been studied. In addition, the research has developed the historical study on “iki-daore”, the dead or the sick on the street, in modern days

We set the four areas for the research; namely “megalopolis Osaka and its surrounding areas”, “areas in western Japan”, “traditional capital Kyoto and its surrounding areas”, “megalopolis Tokyo and its surrounding areas”. The research has clarified the change of social structures in those areas. The research has deepened the study on the social status and the marginal status. The formation, development and the actual process of solution of “Buraku problem” has been clarified substantially, and the progress in the structure of local control has been studied. In addition, the research has developed the historical study on “iki-daore”, the dead or the sick on the street, in modern days.

Japanese society, a highly modernized society, is assumed to be a risk society, and thus this study aims to investigate in a positivistic view problematics produced in social and/or community acceptance of others under the risk society surroundings. This sociological study tries in particular to explicate theoretically a current socio-cultural contexts of a risk society in which social diversification due to lack of the acceptance is intensified, the sociological investigation which aims to approach to the problematics in the concepts of 'politicization and sub-politicization' shown in the U. Becik's argument of reflexive modernization. It is performed in the three years-process : in the first year, it fully summarizes, to construct working hypotheses for a social survey, the previous studies concerning the social acceptance and the risk society and reflexive modernization ; in the second year, we constructed a questionnaire to prove hypotheses, and executed a web survey on the people's value concern ; and in the third year, we tried to construct a theory of the social or the community acceptances of others or constructs troublesome to community by studying the result of the survey, and we explicated among others a type of causal relation of traditional community relations to a positive understanding and acceptance of others in society or a community.

Our project has contributed to scholarly investigations on East Asian Community in terms of the collection of historical materials on "Asianism" in postwar Japan, the promotion of mutual historical understandings between Japan and Korea, and the development of new methodologies for Asian Studies. The Construction of the database of Japan Socialist Party documents, the publication of three volume bulletins on "Historical Recognition in Japan and Korea," and three volume book series "Ajiagaku no susume (Introduction to Asian Studies)" are the examples of our accomplishments.

Although the Home Ministry was a key national organization in the pre-World War II period in Japan, researches have scarcely been made to grasp the whole picture of the organization. In order to overcome such a situation and formulate the new history of the Home Ministry, this study promoted the baseline research of the organization mainly during 1910s to 40s when the Home Ministry and internal affairs were reorganized and transformed.Through two years of study, the following results were achieved. First, with the object of grasping the status of research on the Home Ministry and internal affairs, relevant books and articles were investigated, which were cataloged under the categories of general administration, officials, local administration, police administration, social administration, public health administration, shrine (religious) administration, public works administration, air defense administration, and overseas territories/borders, and the preparation for Web publication (preliminary version) was completed. Secondly, in order to collect the personnel data of the Home Ministry officials, the database of personnel information of officials Who worked at the headquarters of the Home Ministry from 1887(Meiji 20) to 1943(Showa 18) were established based on the directory of government officials that the Cabinet issued, and the preparation for Web publication was completed. Thirdly, a research for historical sources, especially which central and other organizations own, was promoted with the aim of grasping the whereabouts of historical materials relating to the Home Ministry and internal affairs. Personal history data at the Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room at the National Diet Library were particularly photocopied and collected to prepare a baseline for full-scale research. The whereabouts of the historical materials issued by the department of social affairs were researched and the list was made. Fourth, the〈new history of the Home Ministry〉study group was organized mainly with doctorate students, which deepened the research through fourteen study meetings and proceeded with cataloging of research literature and establishment of personnel data. Lecturers were invited from outside four times to obtain specialist knowledge on the baseline study. Fifth, documents about Hoichi Nakano, a Home Ministry official (local official) during the Taisho to the beginning of Showa Period, were obtained in the course of the study. By organizing and interpreting the documents, a new historical material was added to the study of the Home Ministry officials and internal affairs. Through the process above, the specific baseline for the formulation of the new history of the Home Ministry was solidified

　社会局とは、第一次世界大戦後の社会問題の深刻化、社会運動の高まりに対応して設置された内務省の一部局であり、内務行政が社会行政に本格的に進出したことを明確に示す特徴的な機構であった。本研究では、この内務省社会局にあって社会事業の推進にあたった官僚たちを検討の俎上にのせ、官僚としての基本性格とその政策構想を探ることを課題とした。研究にあたっては、まず、基本史料の調査・収集を重点的にすすめ、国立国会図書館憲政資料室所蔵「大野緑一郎関係文書」、法政大学大原社会問題研究所所蔵「協調会文庫」などに含まれる社会局関係史料、とくに救貧法制の立法化に関係する基礎史料を調査・収集した（「救貧法問題資料」「救護法案」「救護法案資料」「救護法沿革資料」「公救護法案」「公救護法参考書」など）。また、山崎巌・灘尾弘吉などを中心とする社会事業官僚の著作の調査を実施し、著書をはじめ、『社会事業』『社会政策時報』『斯民』などの雑誌に掲載された論策を収集した。さらに、官僚たちの談話・回想類の収集にもつとめた。そのうえで、人事関係の資料にもとづいて社会局の全般的官僚配置をおさえつつ、収集史料に依拠して社会事業官僚の位置に検討を加え、その性格を探った。つづいて、山崎・灘尾という二人の官僚に注目して社会事業官僚の政策構想を探りつつ、１９２０年代半ばから３０年代にかけての社会事業行政の展開方向を見通した。とくに山崎については、著書『救貧法制要義』に即して救護法にかけた社会事業行政の構想を検討し、西欧における救貧の理念・現実と、日本における救貧の伝統・現実をどのようにみていたのか、そして、いかなる救貧システムを導入しようとしたのかに分析を加えた。また、灘尾については、著書『社会事業行政』などを主たる素材としながら、戦時体制下の社会事業のあり方を展望した。