Internal Scandals and Management Organization of Trading Company in the Prewar Period

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K01779
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 07070:Economic history-related
• Research Institution: Kobe University
• Principal Investigator: FUJIMURA Stoshi 神戸大学, 経済経営研究所, 准教授 (00346248)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 経済史 / 高等教育 / 企業経営 / 商社 / 内部不祥事 / 学歴

Outline of Final Research Achievements

While trading companies in the prewar period had a significantly higher percentage of graduates (those with completed higher education) among their employees than other industries, the difference in treatment between graduates and non-graduates in terms of career paths and wages was less pronounced.
In this project, we examined internal scandals that occurred in trading companies during the prewar period in order to clarify the reasons for this.The analysis revealed that internal misconduct such as embezzlement (dismissal cases) were overwhelmingly committed by non-graduates, and therefore, companies actively recruited graduates, and the number of internal misconduct cases decreased as the number of graduates increased.This can be evaluated as the significance of higher education that has succeeded in producing personnel with a high sense of discipline.

Free Research Field

経済史、教育史

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本課題は二つの問題が交差する潮目になっている。
その一つは商社の研究である。海外貿易が不可欠な日本で、輸出入業務で最も重要な役割を果たす存在が貿易商社であり、その内部構造や人事政策を明らかにする意義は大きい。
二つ目は高等教育である。大学進学率が５割を超えた現在では高等教育の必要性が、絶えず批判的に問われ続けている。しかし本研究では、高等教育が規律意識を育成し、従業員の規律ある行動が企業に良い影響を与えたことが、明確な数値を伴って判明した。それは高等教育の意義を考えるときに大きな意味を持っている。