2

acceptable. Key is to remain consistent with whichever style used. Students who have questions

about style issues should consult a manual or on-line reference.

Finally, I encourage students to stay informed of current issues and events. Some of our in-class

discussions will focus the application of academic concepts and theories to unfolding issues and

events and their coverage in the mass media. Of course, this cannot be learned entirely from any

textbook. Stay up-to-date using news outlets of your choice. I provide a list of links to several

“reliable sources” on the D2L homepage. Bear in mind that media sources tend to be biased to

some degree, which will be reflected in their political coverage.

Course Requirements: The student's final grade is based on performance on the following five

major course requirements, the details of which are expressed below:

1. Research Design Project - 40%

2. Class Participation - 30%

3. Policy Memo - 20%

4. Peer Review - 5%

5. Exit Exam / Survey - 5%

1. Research Design Project (40% of final grade)

Each student is required to produce a 12-15 page research design proposal on a topic relevant to

the discipline of either political science or international affairs. For our purposes, the paper will

serve as a systematic plan for an original academic research project. Data collection and analysis

are not expected but you will be required to devise a study for which data could be plausibly

collected and analyzed.

This assignment requires students submit their progress at five stages over the course of the

semester, culminating in the final paper and presentation.

A. Topic Statement and Research question (10% of project grade) First, the student’s topic will be introduced in a clear and concise topic statement,

including the proposal of a well-defined research question. Briefly discuss the topic and

question in terms of why they are worthy ones for academic research, and provide a

rough sketch for how they will be explored within the context of the research project.

This assignment must be submitted to the dropbox by Wednesday, June 3 and will be

evaluated based on level of academic thoughtfulness, overall quality of presentation, and

relevance to the discipline of political science or international affairs.

B. Literature Review (20% of project grade) Second, each student will discuss and critique existing research relating to his or her topic

area. The literature review serves the dual purposes of positioning your research question

in relation to established reference points while also establishing the originality of its

scholarly contribution. Be sure to include only those primary and secondary sources that

are relevant to your research question. Literature reviews must include at least ten

references, most which come from academic journals and books. Full texts of articles are

available via www.jstor.org and other database archives in Galileo.

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The student’s literature reviews, including a bibliography page, must be submitted to the

dropbox by Friday, June 19 and will be evaluated based on its thoroughness,

appropriateness of sources, degree of synthesis and critical evaluation of the academic

literature, compliance with proper citation and referencing standards, and overall quality

of presentation.

C. Student-Instructor Conference (Mandatory) Third, each student will sit for a student-instructor conference during the fifth week of the

semester (June 22-24). At this point, students should be prepared to summarize the basic

framework and methodological details of their chosen research design projects.

D. Working paper (20% of project grade) Fourth, each student will submit a working paper, which represents his or her best effort

at a completed, well-considered research design. These are due in the dropbox by NOON

on Wednesday, July 8. Working papers should effectively address the following:

specification of an original research question, placement of that research question within

the existing stream of academic literature, presentation of appropriate research

methodology, discussion of expected findings, and reflection on the scholarly

contribution the completed project would provide if carried out.

After your working paper is submitted, it will be forwarded to a student colleague who

will review it, offering constructive criticism and recommendations.

E. Final paper (50% of project grade) Finally, each student will submit a final paper, which is a revised (and improved) version

of the working paper. These are due in the dropbox by Friday, July 17.

2. Class Participation (30% of final grade)

As this is a “seminar” course, constructive participation in class discussion is essential and will

be evaluated accordingly. Thirty percent of the course average will be determined based on

contributions to online discussion forums. Participation credit will be calculated at five points

during the semester – on June 8, June 22, July 6, and July 15 – with each score counting

toward 7.5% of the student's final grade.

A variety of discussion topics will be posted. Some will directly relate to assigned course

materials and some will relate to classic political questions or current events of the day, which

may be found in the “24-hour E-TownHall” forum. Students are encouraged to respond to any

and all posted topics and also introduce their own threads in which they facilitate the discussion

in a constructive direction. Only comments which are substantive and course-relevant will count

toward discussion credit. While these will be open discussion forums, by and large, guidelines

are presented below and must be adhered to.

Discussion Guidelines:

1

Iowa and the Future of Gay Marriage in the United States

POLS 4499- Senior Seminar

Professor DeWitt

2

Iowa's Gay Marriage Ruling & the Future of Gay Marriage in the U.S.

Introduction

The issue of gay marriage in the United States is one of the major legal and moral issues

of our time, and is possibly the most important civil rights issues since the 1960s Civil Rights

Movement. The issue first became a public one in 1993 after the Hawaiian Supreme Court ruled

that not issuing a marriage license to a same sex couple violated Hawaii's constitution. Because

the decision was based upon the lack of definition of marriage in the state constitution, Hawaiian

voters quickly passed a constitutional amendment defining marriage to be between a man and a

woman (Cherlin, 2004). But ever since then, the debate over whether two men or two women

should be allowed to marry one another has increased dramatically, from the issue being purely

one of activists, to it being a common topic among politicians, lawmakers, religious leaders,

media sources, and voters across America.

As the public became more aware of the issue of same-sex marriage and proponents and

opponents alike began to emerge, Americans began to fear that marriage between people of the

same sex would be a "threat to social stability" (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2011). Therefore, in

1996, the Federal Government passed the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA. This act stated

that marriages between same sex couple would not be recognized by the federal government for

public federal programs. Also the act stated States did not have to recognize marriages between

same sex couples if their own laws did not recognize it, as states would have to if the marriage

was between a man and a woman.

But despite federal actions and lack of public support for same-sex marriage, many states

have moved forward and are granting or recognizing homosexual couples' rights. The States that

allow same sex couples to have legal status as such include California, Colorado, Hawaii,

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Illinois, Maine, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, and Wisconsin. In these states, same

sex couples are not "married" in the traditional sense, but instead are granted civil unions,

domestic partnerships, or are allowed to designate their significant other as beneficiaries. States

that actually allow, or will allow shortly, same sex couples to marry, or recognize their marriage

from other states include California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and

Iowa and the District of Columbia.

Of the states that allow marriage between same sex couples, Iowa is the most recent and

the most surprising. Most states on the Midwest are "red" states, voting conservatively in

Presidential elections and staying the heart of conservative America. Despite Iowa's tendency to

be a "blue" state in Presidential elections, most people would not associate it with being one of

the first states that grants same sex marriages. However, in April 2009, the Iowa State Supreme

Court ruled that an Iowa State statute that limited marriage to a union between a man and a

woman violated Iowa's Constitution in Varnum v. Brien. My research question is " How is

public reaction to the Iowa State Supreme Court ruling in Varnum v. Brien indicative of public

opinion on the issue of gay marriage and will it show a positive future for the issue?" Because

same sex marriage grows in importance every year, it is important to measure changes in trends

and indicators of the future of the issue.

Literature Review

Because the Varnum v. Brien case is the catalyst for this research, it is important to

evaluate the decision given by the Iowa State Supreme Court. This case first began in 2007

between six homosexual couples and the County Registrar of Polk County, Iowa. The couples

went to the registrar to get marriage certificates and were denied them because state law only

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allowed marriage between a man and a woman. The plaintiffs in the case argued that the statute

restricting marriage to a man and a woman made way for disadvantages and hardships with their

family. These included, "the legal inability to make many life and death decisions affecting their

partner including decisions related to health care" (Varnum v. Brien, 2009, pp 9). The county, in

response to the suit, gave five reasons for not allowing same sex marriage. These included

promoting procreation, promoting child rearing by a mother and father, promoting stability in

heterosexual relationships, conservation of state resources, and conserving the integrity of the

traditional marriage between a man and a woman. (Varnum v. Brien, pp10) The case made its

way to the state Supreme Court and the Iowa Justices agreed with the plaintiffs that the law

passed by the legislature banning marriage between two people of the same sex violated equal

rights guarantees of the Iowa constitution. The arguments of both the plaintiff and the

respondent are issues in the same sex marriage debate that come up frequently. Therefore, I plan

to use them as a part of the design model for my study as a method of determining social

acceptance of gay marriage and how the Iowa Supreme Court Opinion can be a major stepping

stone for gay rights cases in the future. I also will connect public opinion to the Iowa decision to

show that case like this in Iowa are important building blocks for gay rights in America.

Despite the arguments made by the Polk County attorney in this case, and recent efforts

in Iowa to change their state constitution regarding gay marriage, public opinion toward

homosexual relationships is not as negative as one might think. In 2007, when this case first

entered the lower courts, Gallup conducted its annual "Values and Beliefs" Survey of which

several questions pertained to same sex relationships and marriages. For the overall and highly

used question on the morality of homosexual relationships, the statistics are leveling out. It

showed that in 2007, 59% of the surveyed population believed that homosexual relations should

5

be legal among consenting adults. This was part of an increase of approval of legal same sex

relationships since 2003 when it had begun to decrease until reaching 46 % approval, where

afterward it began to increase again. In the same study, the survey asked if marriages between

same sex couples should be recognized by the state laws with the same rights as marriages

between a man and woman. The results here showed that 53% of the public thought that they

should be valid, which increased from previous years, while 46 % of the public thought that they

should not be valid. With the same question posed in 2010 in another study by Gallup, the

numbers in opposition to validating same sex marriages dropped and average of 2 points in the

three years between the polls. While this poll is taken from a sample of people from across

America, it has a good chance of representing the feelings of Iowans as well and I believe I will

find similar results when I survey the people.

Since the Varnum case in 2009, there have been many efforts to undo what the State

Supreme Court did. As Michael Klarman of the Los Angeles Times stated in an article in 2010,

"When courts advance social reform more quickly than public opinion supports, political

backlashes often ensue." (Klarman, 2010, para. 5) This was most clearly seen in 2010 in Iowa

when three of the justices involved in the Varnum case were dismissed from the Iowa Supreme

Court because they took part in the original decision in 2009 and in 2011 when the Iowa House

voted on an amendment to the Iowa Constitution banning gay marriage. This seems a bit unusual

given previous statistics, but keeping in mind the quote from Klarman, it rings true. When a

decision like gay marriage arises, the people that are extremely passionate about it come out and

start fighting it. There was a large number of Iowans that felt that the Varnum decision was an

example of the court overstepping their boundaries. But just because a large number in

opposition came to vote only means they represent those who voted, not the majority of the

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opinion. In fact, when people are in approval of something, they tend not to go vote. The real

numbers, according to The DesMoines Register, on the issue has divided people about half, with

forty one percent saying they would vote for a ban, forty percent say they would keep gay

marriage as the court decided, and the rest would not vote or were not sure of the decision. In

the same poll taken by the DesMoines Register, the public was asked if their lives had been

affected by gay marriage. Ninety two percent said that there had been no real change. To me,

these polls show me that the importance of gay marriage as an individual issue is simmering

down. While there are going to be parties that are always against gay marriage, I think the main

opposition is low. I also believe the spikes in opposition to same sex relationships and marriages

are due to a change in voter turnout and an increase in possible interest group activity. With

decisions that carry such large changes such as gay marriage, there are bound to be many

working hard against it and interest groups will fuel the efforts. Then, the voters go to the polls

believing the things they hear the most from the opponents and vote from what they think they

should, instead of what they believe.

Although there is resistance to further same sex marriage and gay rights in the United

States, a decision like Varnum v. Brien can work against that resistance. In a Time Magazine

article by Michael Lindenberger, the author states that the Iowa decision could be good for other

states facing same sex marriage challenges, such as California, a state in which the issue is being

volleyed back and forth between people and government. It could mean that if more Supreme

Courts begin interpreting State Constitutions the way Iowa's did, then state governments may be

less prone to attempt to add bans to gay marriage, which could lead to further advances across

more states for homosexual couples. The article highlights the fact that religious beliefs should

not be a factor when making legal decisions such as these.

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Because this research will focus on the attitudes towards and affects of changing policies

on gay marriage in Iowa, it is important to look at other research addressing other states during

policy change. The first is a study called Attitudes Toward Gay Marriage in State Undergoing

Marriage Law Transformation by Stacey M. Brumbaugh, Laura A. Sanchez, Steven L. Nock,

and James D. Wright. In this study, the authors collected data from telephone surveys in three

states that were undergoing transformations in marriage laws: Louisiana, Arizona, and

Minnesota. The legislatures of these states were debating marriage promotions efforts and

considering covenant marriage (Brumbaugh et al, p 346) in which marriage between men and

women would be promoted and restrictions would be greater.

The study researched attitudes of heterosexuals towards the issue of same sex from three

vantage points. The first vantage point was from sociodemographic characteristics. This

included characteristics such as gender, race, age, education, and socioeconomic status. The

second vantage point was "how marriage, cohabitation, and parenthood histories are associated

with support or opposition for gay marriage" (p 349). The third vantage point was religiosity,

political orientation, and marriage and family policy attitudes. With this the researchers made

five hypotheses. First they hypothesized that sociodemographic characteristics would influence

attitudes toward gay marriage, with women, Whites, and younger people being more supportive

of gay marriage than men, Blacks, and older people (p 349). Second, they hypothesized that

people that live in states that have passed laws promoting traditional marriage or covenant

marriage laws are more negative towards gay marriage. Thirdly, the authors hypothesized that

people that are married and have children are more likely to oppose gay marriage, where as

people that are not married and have lived with a significant other (not married) would be more

supportive of gay marriage. The fourth hypothesis was that religiosity was negatively associated

8

with support of gay marriage. The fifth hypothesis was that political conservatism is associated

with negative support of gay marriage. The first, third, fourth, and fifth hypotheses were

strongly supported by their research, where as research for the second hypothesis showed no

great significance.

This study is important to the research in Iowa because it will provide comparison

between a state that has passed laws in support of same sex marriage versus a state that has

passed anti-gay marriage laws. Also, using many of the sociodemographic characteristics from

this study for residents in Iowa will allow the population of this study to be indicative of the

population of the United States.

At present, Iowan politicians and interest groups are trying to pass an amendment to the

State constitution to ban gay marriage. This has already happened in South Carolina, the state in

which the study Community Context, Personal Contact, and Support for an Anti-Gay Rights

Referendum by Jay Barth, L. Marvin Overby, and Scott H. Huffmon is focused. This study

provides an interesting contrast to the proposed study in Iowa because the state of South Carolina

is nearly a perfect opposite to the state of Iowa. While South Carolina is one of the most

politically conservative states in the U.S., Iowa is generally one of the more liberal states. In this

study, the authors hypothesize that context, or being in a community with significant homosexual

populations will not have an effect on attitudes towards a gay marriage referendum, because

contact with people in same-sex relationships will be more indicative of feelings. Also, they

hypothesized that not all contact with homosexuals has the same affect. Their research

supported their hypothesis with all types of contact having positive effects on support for gay

rights, some types of contact, such familial connections, more so (Barth et. al., p. 361).

9

The issues that have arisen in Iowa and the same sex marriage issue that have been tested

by many of these studies include social acceptance, stability of relationships between

homosexuals, as well as stability of children's homes, and worries of conserving the tradition of

marriage. While the government in Iowa believes that these things can be affected negatively, it

seems that not everyone agrees. In an article called Same Sex Marriage and Negative

Externalities, the researchers take three theories of opposition to gay marriage and examine

them. The first theory states that gay allowing gay marriage will decrease overall marriage

between men and women. The second theory claims that gay marriage will increase divorce

rates. The third states that gay marriage will lessen the importance of procreation in marriage.

(Langbein & Yost, 2009) The study showed that allowing gay marriage did not have an adverse

affect on any of these things. While it did show increase in divorce rate, it is only to be expected

if there are more marriages, whether they be between two men, two women, or a man and a

woman.

Hypotheses

From these variables and method stated above, I have identified three hypotheses.

Hypothesis 1: The sociodemographic characteristics such as age, gender, education, will

affect Iowans' opinion and support of the state Supreme Court ruling in Varnum v. Brien. I

believe that younger, single/divorced/separated, White, and female participants will be more

favorable toward the decision than older, married, Black, and male participants will be.

Hypothesis 2: The participants that show favor to the Varnum v. Brien will be greater

than participants that do not approve of the Varnum v. Brien decision, indicating the Iowans

overall approve of gay marriage.

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Hypothesis 3: The participants that are younger, and in support of the Varnum v. Brien

decision will show favorable attitudes to more pro-gay marriage and gay rights laws in the future

in the United States as a whole.

Methodology

For the design of my research, I plan on forming a set of questions to present to the

participant that will include many of the issues that have come up in Iowa and the same sex

marriage issue, including social acceptance, stability in relationships between partners, as well as

with children, and worries of conserving the tradition of marriage. Based on previous research

and reports from Iowan news sources, I have identified the dependent and independent variables

that will be examined. The dependent variables will be Iowans' approval of the State Supreme

court decision and their attitude toward future pro-gay marriage laws in the United States.

Previous research used sociodemographic characteristics, marital status, relationship

experiences, political orientation, religion, and contact with homosexuals as variables to measure

attitudes toward gay marriage by. For the research to take place in Iowa, independent variables

will gender, race, age, education, socioeconomic status, marital status, religious affiliation,

frequency of attendance at religious services, party identification, and political orientation.

Other independent variable will include attitudes toward social behaviors and norms found in

today's society and whether the individual's being polled has had experience with them. This

would include behaviors such as living with a significant other (non-spouse) outside marriage

and raising children outside marriage. As previous research stated, these behaviors could

indicate positive or negative feelings toward the gay marriage issue.

To measure these variables to I will conduct a telephone survey of registered voters in the

State of Iowa. To ensure an adequate representation of voters across the United States, I will

11

create my statistical population from 500 registered Republican Voters, 500 registered voters,

250 registered non-partisan voters, and 250 registered voters with party identified as "other"

from the state of Iowa. The phone survey will be a series of questions posed to participants

beginning with general questions with the purpose of identifying characteristics of the voter.

These questions would include age, gender, race, education, and self-identified socioeconomic

status, whether they participated in the previous statewide election and presidential election, and

other such questions to satisfy the independent variables. The questions would then be more

subjective. I will ask participants of their approval of the State Supreme Court decision. This

will be measured on a 5 point scale: strongly approve, approve, no opinion, disapprove, and

strongly disapprove. For those that strongly approve and approve, they will then be asked what

makes them feel this way: Do they think everyone should have the same rights? Do they feel that

the there is no reason not to? Or do they feel some other reason for approving. Participants that

disapprove or strongly disapprove of the decision will also be asked why they feel this way.

Participants would choose from, answers such as "I disapprove on moral grounds", "I disapprove

because of religious reasons", and "I disapprove for political reasons". Questions will then focus

on the future of the gay marriage issue. Participants will be asked if they think the federal

government should pass a law or if the United States Supreme Court should make a ruling on

gay marriage in the United States that would be applicable to all states. Participants would also

be asked what sort of time frame they would think reasonable for a law like this to come about.

This would be important because participants that do not approve of gay marriage now may

think that it would be acceptable at a different point in time.

Conclusion and Implications

The issue of gay marriage in the United States is one of the most important issues of our

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time. Every year, the debate grows, becomes more heated, and more important. Although the

United States Supreme Court has yet to give its opinion on the matter, the federal government

and many state governments have decided to make laws in favor of or against gay marriage.

With Hawaii as the leader, states such as South Carolina and Louisiana have created laws that

completely ban gay marriage or the recognition of it or laws that make traditional marriage more

important. The United States Federal Government also passed DOMA, or the Defense of

Marriage Act, so that states would not be bound to recognized same sex marriages from other

states and so that same sex couples would not be able to receive benefits for partners from the

federal government. All of these efforts are against pro-gay marriage activists' arguments of

equal protection under the law, and full faith and credit between states.

But as the years move on, support for gay marriage is changing. The 2009 Iowa Supreme

Court decision in Varnum v. Brien is possibly indicative of this. Unlike most Midwestern states

which are politically conservative, Iowa is a politically liberal state and could be considered a

"deep blue" state. Iowa is also a surprising state to be leading pro-gay marriage laws in the

United States. If such an unexpected state can have a decision that allows a gay marriage, what

is there to say that other unlikely states will not do likewise? Based on previous research and

examination of local news in Iowa, it can be hypothesized that Iowans generally approve of gay

marriage and that the public opinion of Iowans toward gay marriage will indicate favorable

results for the issue in the future. Through the research design as outlined, I believe that

important information can be gathered on how public opinion towards gay marriage has changed,

how it will continue to change, and how gay marriage will be a legally accepted norm in the

future for United States citizens.

13

References

Barth, J., Overby, L., & Huffmon, S. H. (2009). Community Context, Personal Contact, and

Support for an Anti-Gay Rights Referendum. Political Research Quarterly, 62(2), 355-

365. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Brumbaugh, S. M., Sanchez, L. A., Nock, S. L., & Wright, J. D. (2008). Attitudes toward Gay

Marriage in States Undergoing Marriage Law Transformation. Journal of Marriage &

Family, 70(2), 345-359. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2008.00486.x

C h e r l i n , A . J . ( 2 0 0 4 ) . T h e d e i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z a t i o n o f a m e r i c a n m a r r i a g e . J o u r n a l

o f M a r r i a g e a n d F a m i l y , 6 6 ( 4 ) , R e t r i e v e d f r o m

h t t p : / / w w w . j s t o r . o r g / s t a b l e / 3 6 0 0 1 6 2

Clayworth, J., and Thomas Beaumont. "Iowa Poll: Iowans Evenly Divided on Gay Marriage Ban

| The Des Moines Register | DesMoinesRegister.com." The Des Moines Register | Des

Moines News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Des

Moines, Iowa | DesMoinesRegister.com. 21 Sept. 2009. Web. 4 Apr. 2011.

<http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20090921/NEWS10/909210321/Iowa-Poll-

Iowans-evenly-divided-gay-marriage-ban>.

Jones, J. M. "Americans' Opposition to Gay Marriage Eases Slightly." Gallup.Com - Daily News,

Polls, Public Opinion on Government, Politics, Economics, Management. 24 May 2010.

Web. 24 Mar. 2011. <http://www.gallup.com/poll/128291/Americans-Opposition-Gay-

Marriage-Eases-Slightly.aspx?version=print>.

K l a r m a n , M . ( 2 0 1 0 , A u g u s t 1 5 ) . I s p u b l i c o p i n i o n o n g a y m a r r i a g e a h e a d o f t h e

s u p r e m e c o u r t ' s ? . L o s A n g e l e s T i m e s

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Langbein, Laura, and Mark A. Yost. "Same-Sex Marriage and Negative Externalities." Social

Science Quarterly (Blackwell Publishing Limited) 90.2 (2009): 292-308. Academic

Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 6 Apr. 2011.

Lindenberger, Michael A. "The Meaning of Iowa's Gay Marriage Decision." TIME. 4 Apr. 2009.

Web. 30 Mar. 2011. <http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1889534,00.html>.

Lindenberger, Michael A. "The Meaning of Iowa's Gay-Marriage Decision." TIME Magazine. 4

Apr. 2009. Web. 30 Mar. 2011.

<http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1889534,00.html>.

"RealClearPolitics - Politics - Mar 15, 2011 - Gay-marriage Rallies Draw Hundreds to Iowa

Capitol." RealClearPolitics - Opinion, News, Analysis, Videos and Polls. Associated

Press, 13 Mar. 2011. Web. 4 Apr. 2011.

<http://www.realclearpolitics.com/news/ap/politics/2011/Mar/15/gay_marriage_rallies_d

raw_hundreds_to_iowa_capitol.html>.

Saad, Lydia. "Americans' Acceptance of Gay Relations Crosses 50% Threshold." Gallup.Com -

Daily News, Polls, Public Opinion on Government, Politics, Economics, Management. 25

May 2010. Web. 24 Mar. 2011. <http://www.gallup.com/poll/135764/americans-

acceptance-gay-relations-crosses-threshold.aspx?version=print>.

Saad, Lydia. "Tolerance for Gay Rights at High-Water Mark." Gallup.Com - Daily News, Polls,

Public Opinion on Government, Politics, Economics, Management. 29 May 2007. Web.

24 Mar. 2011. <http://www.gallup.com/poll/27694/Tolerance-Gay-Rights-HighWater-

Mark.aspx>.

15

Same-sex marriage. (2011). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com.proxygsu-

ken1.galileo.usg.edu/EBchecked/topic/753687/same-sex-marriage

Shulte, Grant. "Iowans Dismiss Three Justices." The DesMoines Register.com. 3 Nov. 2010.

Web. <http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20101103/NEWS09/11030390/Iowans-

dismiss-three-justices>.

Varnum v. Brien. Supreme Court of Iowa. 3 Apr. 2009. Iowa Judicial Branch. Web. 30 Mar.

2011. <http://www.iowacourtsonline.org/wfData/files/Varnum/07-1499(1).pdf>.

Wiser, Mike. "Supporters, Opponents of Same-sex Marriage Rally in Des Moines." Quad-City

Times: Quad Cities, IA/IL. 16 Mar. 2011. Web. 04 Apr. 2011.

<http://qctimes.com/news/local/article_1ef89c8a-4fb8-11e0-ab16-001cc4c0

POLS 4499 – Senior Seminar – DeWitt

Research Design Project Grading Rubric

General Guidelines: Students will submit a 12-15 page research design paper (not to exceed 20 pages with references). Students should segment their research designs into the following four sections, with subheadings: Introduction, Literature Review, Data and Methods, Conclusions and Implications. The grading rubric is below. See syllabus for more details.

1. Organization (10%) Does the paper have a clear sense of logical order that fully integrates the critical elements of research design? Is the paper well-structured and partitioned into appropriate sections (introduction, literature review, data and methods, conclusions and implications)? Are transitions between parts of the paper smooth and effective? 2. Overall Development (10%) Does the paper demonstrate critical thinking that is clear, insightful, in depth, and relevant to the research topic? 3. Mechanics and Referencing (10%) Is the paper free from spelling or grammatical errors? Are all sources properly referenced in a bibliography page? 4. Syntax and Diction (10%) Does the author use sophisticated language that engages readers, manipulate sentence length to enhance the total effect of the paper, use precise language that expresses complex ideas clearly? 5A. Introduction (Topic and Research Question) (15%) Is the paper’s topic interesting and course relevant? Is the research question clearly presented and of proper scope? Is the “so what” question adequately addressed such that the research topic and question are demonstrated to be program-relevant and worthy of academic research. 5B. Literature Review (Theory) (15%) Does the paper include a clearly-written, concise yet comprehensive, review of existing scholarship and theoretical foundations related to the research question as posed? Does the author effectively summarize and synthesize research from an adequate variety of sources while also pointing out gaps in the literature that the proposed study would plausibly fill? 5C. Data and Methods (15%) Are relevant variables adequately defined – both conceptually and operationally – and clearly presented? Are testable hypotheses (or a plausible research question) identified and properly formulated? Does the author intelligently elaborate on a sound plan for data collection / analysis? 5D. Conclusions and Implications (15%) Does the author expand on the likely results of the study in light of how the findings might contribute to greater academic understanding regarding the research topic area and the field of political science or international affairs more generally?

1

Japan’s devastating defeat in the World War II, after bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima,

left little hope for the country’s successful future. However, Japan amazed the world community by

its phenomenal ability of taking new direction in its development principles and accomplishing its

present status of the second largest economy in the world after the US only. The recuperation of

Japan after World War II started with the efforts of American-led Allied forces under the supervision

of General MacArthur whose primary targeted goals were demilitarization and democratization of

the country (Green 2001).

After the war Japan committed itself to the new plan of transformations and particularly, to

the idea of demilitarization. Since the end of the World War II, Japan has not been involved in any

military action, and its position of a pacifist state was officially formulated under the Article 9 of

Constitution “Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese

people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means

of settling international disputes” (Hayes 2005, 295). Despite all these changes, Japan’s Asian

neighbors still view the former as a distrustful country which will eventually revive its aggressive

nature. These Asian countries are not willing to erase the memories of atrocities committed by Japan

before and during the war (Li 2007).

There are various controversial aspects in the domestic and international politics of Japan that

make its Asian neighbors’ skepticism justified. The main contradiction is connected with Japan’s

foreign policy and the Article 9 of the Constitution. Although Japan is committed to non-

militarization and to bilateral relationships with the US, it has been developing military resources and

has been exhibiting trends toward multilateralism (Green 2001).

Another compelling reason that Japan still lacks trust in the region is the widespread

distortion of historical facts in the national textbooks of Japan about the events during and before the

war (Ienega 1993-1994). It is aimed to hide the reality of crimes committed by Japanese, and those

textbooks are approved by the government. This issue has sparked numerous debates and tensions

2

between Japan and Eastern Asian countries. One such event took place in April 2005 in Beijing with

thousands of demonstrators in front of Japanese Embassy (Collins 2005).

There is also the aspect of Japan’s immigration regulations. Japan is very strict not only with

immigrants who live in the country for decades but also with immigrants who are newcomers. The

last legislation that was approved in November 2007 became the culmination of the whole

legislation. According to the new immigration law, all foreigners entering and leaving Japan are

subject to a rigorous inspection process, involving fingerprinting and photographic identification.

The government has justified this to its own citizens as an anticrime measure and to the United States

as an antiterrorism measure, however many believe that this is an obvious step to revival of Japanese

xenophobia (Fackler 2007).

As such, I have detected at least three major aspects that Japan needs to concentrate on and

make improvements in order to enhance its image in the region of East Asia. Though Japan has

officially declared its demilitarization and desire to reconcile the relationships with its neighbor

countries, in reality it has not adhered to those rulings, and it has led Japan not to be perceived as

truly willing to disconnect itself from its historical practices. Japan will not be able to improve its

image among its neighbors unless it makes constructive transformations in its official foreign policy

approach. Its rulings about its military status that will be in accordance to the actuality, eliminating

the distortion of historical facts in the official textbooks and development of more liberal

immigration laws, will demonstrate that Japan is positively predisposed to the idea of cultural

pluralism.

The purpose of this paper is to elaborate the reasons for the distrustful attitudes of East Asian

nations toward Japan, to propose a possible study to affirm those assumptions, and to make a number

of policy recommendations. In the literature review section, I will present views of academics on the

evolution of Japan’s role regionally and internationally and their beliefs for why Japan still has

problems with of integration in the region. Subsequently, I will present my hypotheses regarding the

3

issues that impede Japan’s relations among its neighboring countries. In the Methodology section, I

will define independent and dependent variables conceptually and operationally, suggesting research

techniques that will be appropriate to collect data for the defined variables. Finally, in the

conclusion, I will make my policy recommendations and will elaborate on the contributions of the

study to the academic understanding of international affairs.

Literature Review

Japan’s diplomatic status in the world and especially in the region of East Asia has been in

the center of scholars’ attention since Japan’s commitment to pacifist ideas and recognition of the US

as its guide in foreign policy decisions. There is a plethora of literature where academics try to

understand the nature of Japan’s foreign policy, the development of its relations in the region of East

Asia, and how perceptions have changed among Japan’s neighboring countries after the former

renounced the right of war and maintenance of any type of military force.

Many scholars agree on the idea that Japan after World War II has made many successful

efforts to improve its relations in the region which indicates that Japan is positively predisposed to

developing multilateral approach in its foreign policy. Sueo Sudo’s article (1988) “Japan-ASEAN

relations: New Dimensions in Japan’s Foreign Policy” presents a valuable analysis of Japan’s

Southeast Asian policy in which he identifies 3 distinct periods after World War II. The first phase

was from 1952 to 1964, characterized by payment reparations through economic diplomacy. The

second phase from 1965 to 1975 is characterized by Japan’s active partaking in the economic

development of the region and the creation of several interregional institutions such as the Asian

Development Bank, the Ministerial Conference for the Economic Development of Southeast Asia,

and the Asian and Pacific Council. If the first two periods were influenced by the US presence, the

third period was initiated by the Prime Minister Takeo Fukuda’s new doctrine of Japan's positive

politico-economic role in Southeast Asia which led Japan to become a member of ASEAN in 1977.

The author believes Japan’s intentions of joining ASEAN were political because Japan wanted to

4

extend its cooperation in the region in order create a positive image among its neighbors. Sudo

considers Japan’s engagement with ASEAN as a demonstrator of the development of multilateralism.

The author believes that if Japan wants to play a greater international role, it needs active and

positive foreign policy in which its commitment to ASEAN should be a priority (Sudo 1988). The

same theme is also echoed by Bhubhindar Singh (2002), stating that East Asian countries have

positively changed their attitudes toward Japan as a result of latter’s economic involvement in

ASEAN. He believes that East Asian states view Japan as a vital regional player in order to

counterbalance the growth of China. Even the continuing discussions of revising the Article 9 of

Japan’s Constitution do not surprise many ASEAN countries as they would have in the past: “Many

ASEAN countries took them as inevitable developments.” (Singh 2002, 294) However, Singh (2002)

is convinced that Japan has to sustain its treaty with the US because Asian countries view their

alliance as a guarantee of peace in the region.

In Tsuneo Akaha’s (1991) article we learn that Japan has taken clear steps toward the idea of

militarization when it adopted Comprehensive Security Policy in 1980 initiated by Prime Minister

Masayoshi Ohira. The new policy included three main levels of national security measures: self-help

or self-defense; efforts to render the whole international system conducive to Japan's security; and

intermediate-level efforts to build a favorable security environment in the region. That

comprehensive security policy demonstrated Japan’s willingness to expand its international role

beyond economic measures and include a new military dimension. The author believes that the

reassessment of Japan’s security policy was a result of international developments since 1970s such

as the Cambodian conflict, the invasion of USSR in Afghanistan, and Iran-Iraq war where Japan’s

economic efforts were either unproductive or became a reason for international criticism. However,

Akaha views Japan’s national security regulations positively by assuming that East Asian countries

have to welcome it as well and not to be suspicious about its intentions because Japan’s goal is to

5

bring peace and stability through constructive actions. The author also visions Japan’s diplomatic

revival and military expansion as an avoidance of hegemonic expressions by any power in the region.

Similar to Akaha, Julie Gilson (2004) in the “Complex regional multilateralism: ‘strategising’

Japan’s responses to Southeast Asia” argues that Japan’s increasing official assertiveness in the

region of Southeast Asia demonstrates the active trend toward multilateralism and bilateral

relationships with the US are viewed by her as necessary supportive mechanisms for developing

more balanced system of multilateral approach. She believes that Japan has created close

relationships with its regional neighbors through various economic initiatives and institutions such as

ASEAN, ODA, APEC, and those trends demonstrate Japan’s inclination toward Asia. The author

also analyzes the positive change of the US position toward Asia because of the economic interests

and fight against terrorism. This type of approach from the US legitimizes and further initiates

Japan’s multilateral approach in the region which results in the improvement of Japan’s image in the

region as a precondition.

In addition, the US’ position regarding Japan’s multilateralism and active participation in

international developments has been favorable. Despite Japan’s generous financial contributions

during the Second Gulf War, the US was very critical of Japan’s approach, urging for human and

military contributions as well (Bowen 1992). It was a very confusing situation for Japan because on

the one hand, the international community wanted to see Japan demilitarized as a guarantee for its

inability of potential aggression, on the other hand, the US and its western allies expected Japan to

show active participation in resolving military conflicts. As a continuation of the topic, Michael

Green argues that Japan has actually demonstrated more of independence from the US in its South

East Asian policy being involved in ASEAN, and he considers that it is time for Japan to develop

mature foreign policy in order to respond constructively to international demands.

Soon after the criticism of the US during the Second Gulf War, Japan’s parliament approved

a legislation allowing Japanese forces to participate in UN peacekeeping operations (PKO) which is

6

discussed in George Aurelia’s (1993) article “Japan’s participation in UN peacekeeping operations:

radical departure or predictable response.” Aurelia believes that Japan’s participation in PKO can

help Japan to improve its image of a peacekeeper because UN PKO contributions belong to the

category of international security but not a traditional category of military defense. However, Japan

still needs to adjust the Article 9 in order to justify its military activation. It is necessary to mention

that despite categorical announcements of the Article 9 of Japan’s constitution, the latter has started

developing military power since 1954 calling it Self-Defense Forces (Hayes 2005). However, such

maneuvers by Japan violate the Article 9 of the Constitution which is a reason for Japan’s Asian

neighbors to believe that even the constitutional provision is not a guarantee for Japan’s

demilitarization (Hayes 2005). They consider that Japan has a well-constructed plan to hide behind

the US and the Article 9 while invisibly expanding its military in order to revive its aggressive

nature.

Thus, Article 9 is in the center of political debates in Japan. Mayumi Itoh’s (2001) article

“Japanese Constitutional Revision: A Neo-Liberal Proposal for Article 9 in Comparative

Perspective” presents views of politicians from different political parties on the question of amending

the Article 9. However, he emphasizes the changing views of liberal politicians who are also in

support of amending the constitution and as the LDP is the dominant party, the potential for Article

9’s transformation becomes real. The author believes that in case of the constitution’s revision, Japan

has to make all efforts to ensure its Asian neighbors that making SDF constitutional does not mean

that Japan will become aggressor but it is necessary in order to balance the contradictions between

official claims and the reality.

Besides the numerous contradictions in the foreign policy of Japan that affect its image in the

region of East Asia, there is also an aspect of Japan’s strict immigration laws that do not favor

foreigners, being designed to maintain the homogeneity of Japan’s population. There are minority

groups such as Koreans who have lived in Japan for two or three generations but they are still unable

7

to obtain citizenship. They are subject to economic and social discrimination, without having access

to certain types of jobs such as in education or administrative work (Hayes 2005). Though some

improvements have been made, they are only on local level (Takao 2003). The central

administration’s approach continues to be concentrated on the traditional notion of homogeneity

which can be illustrated by 1989 relaxation of immigration policy that allowed only foreigners of

Japanese descent to migrate to Japan (Takao 2003).

The other major issue that does not allow East Asian states to believe in the sincerity of

Japan’s intentions is the problem of accuracy of historical events in its history textbooks. As Saburo

Ienaga (1993) examines, militaristic values from Japan’s past have been presented to schoolchildren

since 1920s. The author claims that “Japan's textbooks have taught generations of its children that

war is glorious, and have concealed many of the sad truths of war, with sometimes tragic results”

(Ienega 1993, 130) and concludes that China’s and other Asian nations’ fears of militarism’s

resurgence in Japan is absolutely justified. In 2005 Japanese government authorized the

publication of the middle-school history textbooks containing numerous historical distortions

regarding the events of World War II; it caused mass demonstrations by Chinese and Koreans which

indicated that negative memories about Japan are still fresh among its neighbors, and Japan’s image

will not be improved until it practices the presentation of false history to its citizens, fueling the

negative feelings of its neighboring nations.

These sources offer a broad range of viewpoints regarding the issue of Japan’s distrustful

image among East Asian countries which is embedded in its undefined foreign policy practices,

immigration restrictions, and distorted history textbooks. Regarding Japan’s foreign policies one

thing that I noted as common among scholars is that all agree on the undeniable change in Japan’s

international role as more active. However, I also noted a gap that they mainly concentrate on the

economic aspect of its involvement, without paying much attention to the necessity of its diplomatic

development. My policy recommendation will be concerned for Japan to create a multilateral

8

diplomatic approach rather than to be only involved economically. In the areas of strict immigration

laws and falsification of facts in textbooks, scholars agree that these are aspects that harm Japan’s

image, especially in the region of East Asia, and they have to be improved as well in order to

enhance Japan’s image as a peacekeeper and advocate of democratic principles.

Research Hypotheses

My observations allowed me to define three major aspects that are barriers for Japan to be

psychologically accepted among its East Asian states which are still suspicious of Japan’s

remilitarization and the revival of its aggressive nature. According to these three aspects, I will

formulate three separate hypotheses.

The first factor is contradictions between the official foreign policy of Japan and the real

actions of Japan. Japan’s foreign policy is shaped by the Article 9 of the constitution and Yoshida

Doctrine. The Article 9 states that Japan forever renounces war as its right and will never maintain

“land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential” (Hayes 2005, 295), and according to

Yoshida doctrine Japan recognizes the US as its only director in foreign policy decisions (Green

2001). However, since 1954 Japan has started developing military power calling it as Self-Defense

Forces, and since 1992 Japan has sent its troops to participate in UN peacekeeping operations after

the US’s criticism of Japan’s solely financial contributions during the Second Gulf War (Aurelia

1993). Those activities by Japan are absolutely contradictory to the Article 9 which prohibits any

military power, no matter how it is called, and Japan’s neighboring states are convinced that the

former hides behind the US-Japan alliance and the Article 9 while undetectably expanding its

military power (Li 2007). In order for Japan to have more trustful relationships in the region, it needs

to reconcile those contradictions and develop more transparent foreign policy. As such the first

hypothesis can be stated as follows:

9

Hypothesis 1: The less contradictory Japan’s official foreign policies and real actions, the more trustful will be the attitudes of East Asian states toward Japan. The second factor is the strict laws against Japanese immigrants who are being indirectly

excluded from Japanese society through measures of social and economic discrimination. Until

recently they were officially not allowed to work in educational or administrative institutions and

until 1992 they were required to be fingerprinted as aliens (Hayes 2005). Though those rulings have

been outlawed, in 2007 Japan adopted a new immigration law, according to which all foreigners

entering and leaving Japan will be subjected to a rigorous inspection process, involving

fingerprinting and photographic identification (Fackler 2007). Foreigners will also be required to

answer a series of questions. The government explained the new laws to its own citizens as an

anticrime measure and to the United States as an antiterrorism measure, however many believe that

this is an obvious step to the revival of Japanese xenophobia (Fackler 2007). This issue is the basis

of my second research hypothesis.

Hypothesis 2: Less restricted immigration laws will lead to more improved relationships and better attitudes of Japan’s Asian neighbors toward the former. The third aspect is concerned with Japan’s government’s promotion of nationalism through

the distortion of historical facts in the textbooks, trying to hide the aggressive nature of Japan before

and during the World War II. The textbook content first developed into a regional spark point in

1982, when schoolchildren in Japan were denied an unbiased historical perspective (Collins 2005).

The Japanese attack of China was portrayed as “advancement;” the Nanjing massacre of 1937 in

where 300,000 people were massacred, was depicted as a consequence of Chinese army’s “heavy

resistance” (Collins 2005). After several protests in Korea and China, Japanese schoolbooks were

somewhat improved (He 2007). In April 2005 Chinese public was again irritated, learning that

Japanese government had approved the publication of history textbooks containing numerous

historical inaccuracies regarding the events of World War II (Yutaka 2003). Asian countries

consider that Japan denies and even beautifies the history of its country’s aggression which in turn

10

leads to the notion that Japan has a potential to revive its militaristic nature (Ienega 1993).

Subsequently, these attitudes create distrust among Asian countries about the real intentions of Japan

and cause frictions in their relationships. My final research hypothesis can be stated as follows:

Hypothesis 3: The more accurate the presentation of history by Japan, the less suspicious Asian nations will be regarding Japan’s military intentions. If the three research hypotheses are supported, then I would expect the evidence to show that

whenever Japan violates its official foreign policy, practices discriminatory immigration laws, and

presents false facts in its history textbooks, they will cause distrust among East Asian countries about

Japan’s truthfulness in its commitment to demilitarization and reconciliation of relationships. On the

other hand, I would expect to discover that improvements in these areas would lead to the

enhancement of Japan’s image in the region as of a true advocate of peace.

Methodology

The dependent variable in my study is the image of Japan among its East Asian neighbors

while the independent variables are contradictions in Japan’s foreign policy of pacifism and bilateral

relationships, the strict immigration laws and the official presentation of false history in Japan’s

textbooks. These independent variables are among the primary reasons why Japan still lacks trustful

relationships in the region of East Asia. As I am studying three different independent variables that

influence the state of the dependent variable which is Japan’s image among its regional neighbors, I

will need to develop multiple case studies in order to examine the impact of each independent

variable on the formation of the dependent variable.

The first independent variable is Japan’s foreign policy. Every country has its own foreign

policy which is a set of objectives, outlining that specific country’s interactions with other countries

on an official basis. Each state’s foreign policy is primarily aimed to promote its national interests

(Payne, Nassar 2008). When the official foreign policy of Japan was established after the World War

11

II, Japan’s national interests were economic and moral recovery of the country (Green 2001). They

believed that those national interests could be achieved by demilitarization when Japan would put all

its efforts into the building of the economy, and low diplomatic profile without any involvement in

international disputes. However, as Japan achieved high levels of economic growth, its national

interests changed into having a more decisive role in international affairs and ensuring its national

security (Hayes 2005). These activities toward diplomatic expansion and multilateral relationships

have not been officially recognized which have caused uncertainty among East Asian states about

Japan’s intentions.

In order to test hypothesis, perform data analysis, and make recommendations in the area of

Japan’s foreign policy I would employ a qualitative methodology of exploring how the role of Japan

has changed in international affairs and especially, in the region referring to their policy changes and

the emergence of new legislations. I would look for Japan’s involvement in international or regional

organizations. Then, I would explore Japan’s military status: if it has military forces, if they have

been involved in any international operations. Despite my own observations, I would refer to the

views of respected academics about Japan’s foreign policy changes and how they evaluate those

transformations. I believe these case studies would enable us to make informed recommendations

regarding the ways Japan has to change its policies in order to eliminate controversies between its

official foreign policies and the reality.

The problem of strict immigration laws is the next issue to be explored. Immigration laws

are the national policies which regulate the immigration phenomenon in a country. The case of

Japan’s immigration laws are particularly important because Japan has continually been as a highly

homogenous country; however, after the World War II Japan needed workforce to recover its

economy, and large groups of immigrants from Asian nations such as Korea and China were brought

into the country (Hayes 2005). But ethnic minorities in Japan have been continually subjected to

discrimination and exclusion from Japanese society. To perform data analysis in the field of Japan’s

12

immigration laws, I would employ a mixed quantitative-qualitative technique by surveying a

representative sample of immigrants. For my survey, I would include not only Asian immigrants but

also immigrants from non-Asian states in order to avoid a bias connected with the ethnicity because

ethnic minorities such as Koreans have different history of relationships with Japanese people than

other non-Asian nations: “there have been occasions in the past where Koreans have been the victims

of gross brutality at the hands of the Japanese” (Hayes 2005, 151). Thus, the inclusion of other

minorities would help reduce the bias. Sample questions would include: What is your nationality?

How have your official rights changed in the country? How do you feel about your assimilation into

Japanese society? These questions would help me assess how the attitudes of East Asian countries

stem from Japanese immigration laws.

The last aspect is connected with the distortion of historical facts in Japanese textbooks,

hiding the atrocities that were done by Japanese to Asian nations such as Korea and China.

According to a widespread opinion among East Asian nations, those distortions are intended to

revive the idea of nationalism, ethnocentrism that will lead to the young generation being more

supportive of military empowerment. As Pempel (1992) correctly mentions, many democracies

practice the one-sided presentation of history in their educational systems in order to develop

patriotism and loyalty but in Japan’s case that issue is particularly delicate because the country is

committed to pacifist ideas and the reconciliation of relationships with other nations, especially in the

region. So, its efforts of reconciliation will be useless if Japan continues to practice the presentation

of false history. To test the last hypothesis, regarding Japan’s educational practices and their

influence on the worldviews of schoolchildren, I would again employ a mixed qualitative-

quantitative quasi-experimental method. I would take two different schools, in one school we would

teach the distorted history where Japan is justified in its military actions without presenting the other

side, and in the other school we would teach an objective, two-sided view of history. We would

continue our experiment for several semesters in order to get objective results. Afterwards, we would

13

conduct a survey, trying to assess how democratic the views of each group is and how critical their

opinions are regarding the military standing of Japan and the relations in the region of East Asia.

Then we would observe how the views of representatives of other Asian nations change in

communication with people who were exposed to the true history and with the students who have

been taught a biased history. I would expect that students exposed to the unbiased history facts be

better predisposed to the idea of Japan developing more positive image in the region of East Asia,

while students taught the official historical perspective, would be ignorant to the idea of Japan’s

image in the region, assuming that Japan has not been the perpetrator.

To make policy recommendations, we will also need to analyze the domestic policy

environment which means we have to define the views of the leading political groups and the public

in order to see how they are inclined to policy changes. To perform analysis in the area of policy

environment, I will refer to academic sources, exploring a qualitative case analysis technique.

Reviewing an extensive set of literature on that topic, I will try to penetrate the optimal idea of how

the dominant political powers view policy changes and if the public’s opinion is in accordance with

the government’s inclinations. Based on these assessments, we will be able to make applicable

policy recommendations.

It is necessary to mention that by exploring the cases with Japan’s foreign policy,

immigration laws, and educational techniques, we will obtain only an overall knowledge of why

Japan is still viewed suspiciously by its regional neighbors and what could be done to improve

Japan’s image. The limitation of the study is that we do not conduct studies in some other

regional countries in order to know how they would view changes in Japan’s policies. However,

if we include studies in other countries, it will involve new variables which will expand the

scope of our research considerably.

14

Conclusion

I have only outlined the methodology that I would employ to define selected reasons of

Japan’s psychological non-acceptability in the region of East Asia, and our conclusions should be

based only after the studies have been conducted. However, based on my strong presumptions and

the knowledge gained from the study of academic sources on the topic, I think the likely results will

be in favor of the existence of problems in areas of Japan’s foreign policy, immigration laws, and

educational system. The results will more likely indicate that the problems in those areas hamper the

relationships of Japan with its regional neighbors, Based on this facts, I will try to make a number of

recommendations that should lead to the improvements of the image and relationships of Japan

among East Asian states.

As we learned, Japan had a radical historical transition after World War II. Prior to that

period, Japan was a militaristic state, supporting the idea of ethnocentrism and strict homogeneous

society. After the World War II. Japan adopted the policies of democratization and demilitarization

to detach itself from its past. That transition was very radical and could not be utilized by the nation

immediately. However, if Japan really desires the achievement of a final disconnection from its

historical past, it has to abolish its endorsement of nationalism through falsification of historical

facts. It should develop patriotism through introduction of the true history by elaborating the idea of

Japanese nation’s greatness that is able to face the bitter truth and never repeat its historical

misdeeds. In the area of immigration laws, Japan needs to develop less discriminatory principles,

allow the immigrants that have lived in Japan for two or three generations become citizens, and

promote warmer atmosphere for multicultural relations. In that way, East Asian states will be more

convinced that Japan is committed to recovery of their relationships. Most importantly, Japan needs

to make adjustments in the area of its foreign policy. First, they have to moderate the language of the

Article 9 in order to justify their possession of SDF forces and participation in UN PKO. As we

15

studied, Japan is already involved in numerous international organizations such as ODA, APEC, and

ASEAN. Though these are mainly economic organizations, they have created a positive ground for

Japan to develop multilateral relations instead of being committed to the bilateral US-Japan relations.

Many observers agree that Japan’s involvement in different international institutions is evidence of

Japan’s willingness to come out from its diplomatic isolation. However, in order for Japan to make

those foreign policy changes and not to look as a potential threat to its East Asian neighbors, Japan

needs to initiate creation of a solely diplomatic organization called “Partnership for Peace” that

should include primarily regional countries. The main purpose of the institution will be the

collaboration for the preservation and maintenance of peace in the region. The foundation of the

organization should be the diplomatic cooperation; however, it will inevitably include an economic

aspect as well because the settlement of any conflict in a member country will also involve economic

contributions. By creating this organization, Japan will officially manifest its multilateral foreign

policy approach and display its commitment to the regional peace and cooperation. I strongly believe

that the above mentioned changes in the foreign policy of Japan will contribute to the improvement

of Japan’s image among East Asian nations.

The findings of my study suggest valuable ideas for political science and international affairs

in general. First, the study demonstrates that even in extreme cases, it is diplomatically incorrect for

any country to make categorical enactments as Japan did by the endorsement of the Article 9 and the

commitment to strict bilateral relations with the US. Such commitments can bring gridlock when the

national interests and international arrangements change. Second, the study implies that in the era of

intensive globalization when nations merge and their interests largely become the same, it is

inappropriate for any country to promote nationalism and policies of exclusion based on ethnicity.

This practice can lead to the country’s isolation, damaging its image and foreign relations.

16

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