Issues in Introduction of Concept of Employee Engagement in Japanese Companies

Abstract

According to research firms, employee engagement in Japan is extremely low compared with that in other countries. This is a major problem for Japanese companies, and they are implementing various measures to improve their employee engagement. However, this is a relatively new concept with no clear definition, and it is also unclear whether the concept of employee engagement fits the corporate culture of Japanese companies and the characteristics of Japanese people. Taking this point as a problem, and based on previous research on employee engagement and the current study, the authors concluded that a theoretical system suitable for Japan, different from the Western concept of social exchange theory, might be necessary to define employee engagement in Japan.