KAROSHI - DEATH FROM OVERWORK - OCCUPATIONAL-HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF JAPANESE PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

There is considerable international interest in Japanese production ma nagement (JPM), known in the West as ''lean production.'' Advocates of this new form of management argue that it improves both economic prod uctivity and health. In Japan, however, the relationship between JPM a nd sudden death due to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease has been an important topic of debate since the 1970s. Japanese have named these types of deaths karoshi, which means ''death from overwork.'' I n North America and Western Europe a number of studies have demonstrat ed a significant relationship between high job strain (high production demands and low levels of control and social support) and cardiovascu lar disease. This article reviews the elements of JPM and examines the ir potential health consequences. The authors present an overview of k aroshi, discuss its possible connections to specific ideological and o rganizational characteristics of JPM, and suggest the job strain mecha nism as a possible pathway between karoshi and JPM. They conclude by d iscussing the need for comparative research that examines the health e ffects of work organization and management methods cross-culturally.