Panel Data Research Center

Director: Yoshio Higuchi (Professor, Faculty of Business and Commerce)

Primary Campus: Mita

This center strives to dramatically improve the level of empirical research in Japan by designing, implementing, analyzing, and releasing reliable third-generation panel data. This enables (i) understanding the actual conditions and making international comparisons of changes in household income, inter-stratum mobility, and behavioral changes such as employment, hiring, and investment; (ii) verifying dynamic theoretical hypotheses derived from economic theory; and (iii) conducting policy evaluation analysis with time lags resulting from revisions to the tax and social security systems and changes in laws and policies. Specifically, we are constructing household panel data from a nationwide survey of 4,000 households and corporate panel data using existing financial statements of listed companies and surveys of newly established businesses. In addition to actively disseminating research results via the internet and symposia, we have been promoting empirical analysis by holding free seminars with lectures and exercises on panel data analysis methods to cultivate users of the collected panel data. Furthermore, we are advancing joint research with international organizations such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Luxembourg Income Study, fulfilling our role as one of Japan's leading sources of panel data.

Panel data, microdata, survey design, data analysis, experimental design

■Continuing activities from the previous fiscal year: background, rationale, and goals

Regarding the survey design for the household panel survey, we will examine survey items and methods in questionnaire development meetings with researchers from both inside and outside the university, utilizing the existing application system for adding and modifying survey items. The 2017 JHPS/KHPS survey (the 9th JHPS survey and the 14th KHPS survey) will be conducted in January 2017. For data analysis, we will proceed with analysis by project participants using past survey results and aim to disseminate the findings at various symposia and conferences. For corporate panel survey design and data analysis, we will advance analysis using both panel surveys based on existing statistics and the new business start-up panel survey, building on the issues examined in previous years. Regarding the public release of panel data, we will provide the dataset from the 2015 JHPS/KHPS survey to researchers in Japan and abroad within fiscal year 2016. In parallel, we will also release the survey manuals and dataset construction programs for each survey. Furthermore, we will continue to create and provide weighting variables to correct for data distortion. As the demand for the "New Business Start-up Panel Survey," which has been public since fiscal year 2012, is expected to remain high, we will continue to release it this fiscal year. We will also attempt to further improve the public release datasets and programs to enhance user convenience.

■New activity goals and content for fiscal year 2016, and background for implementation

We will hold a symposium on inequality research in May 2016 to disseminate our research findings. Regarding the Japan Child Panel Survey (JCPS), we will publish a book based on more detailed data analysis of the results from the 1st (FY2010), 2nd (FY2011), 3rd (FY2012), 4th (FY2013), and 5th (FY2014) surveys conducted at our center.

To improve the usability of the integrated JHPS/KHPS, we will proceed with improvements to our website and the creation of weights and disposable income variables.

We are also preparing to launch a new joint research project with the "Cross-National Equivalent File" project, an international study on income, employment, and health conducted at Ohio State University, to build an internationally comparable data program.

Furthermore, as the Keio Household Panel Survey (KHPS), which preceded the Japan Household Panel Survey (JHPS), will now be conducted and its data managed by the same organization, we will continue to explore ways to streamline the JHPS/KHPS survey implementation system and improve management efficiency.

■Implementation details for the fiscal year's business plan, research results, and degree of achievement

In fiscal year 2015, our activities focused primarily on two points:

(1) The design, analysis, and public release of large-scale panel data

(2) Multidisciplinary and dynamic research on economic inequality from other fields of applied microeconomics

Main Publications

Regarding the household panel surveys conducted by this center, in addition to improving the collection rate, we aimed to increase survey efficiency by integrating the JHPS and KHPS questionnaires, completing the 13th wave of the KHPS and the 8th wave of the JHPS. We plan to publicly release the datasets for the 12th wave of the KHPS and the 7th wave of the JHPS during fiscal year 2016. We are also continuing to promote dissemination abroad through English-translated versions. Furthermore, in line with the integration of the KHPS and JHPS questionnaires from the 2014 survey, we have developed data construction programs for both the KHPS and JHPS, as well as a program to merge the two datasets. In addition to these, the Japan Child Panel Survey (JCPS), an accompanying survey of elementary and junior high school students and their parents started in fiscal year 2009, is a rare endeavor that allows for linking children's responses with a wealth of accumulated household information. We are promoting joint research with the OECD Centre for Educational Research and Innovation and the National Institute for Educational Policy Research. We also conducted joint research with the OECD on income inequality and employment using JHPS data, and the results are summarized in OECD (2015) "In It Together: Why Less Inequality Benefits All?" and "OECD Employment Outlook 2015."