My research focuses on Japanese political and international history from the late 19th to mid-20th century, with particular emphasis on nation and empire building, party politics related to social and economic policy, and the dynamics of international and imperial finance in East Asia.
My first monograph, The Beginnings of National Politics in Modern Japan: The Meiji State Reform under the Parliamentary System, 1890-1898 (Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press, 2016) (in Japanese), explores the dynamic process of Japan’s nation-state formation in the late 19th century. It examines how the Meiji authoritarian state successfully transitioned from the feudal system of the Tokugawa era to a modern framework of central-local governance, culminating in a smooth adaptation to parliamentary rule. This work received the 39th Suntory Prize for Social Sciences and Humanities in 2017.
My second book project, Finance, Empire, and War: International Monetary Politics in East Asia, 1933-1952, investigates Japan’s diplomatic options in the face of the global economic crisis of the 1930s, navigating the tensions between imperial expansion and international economic cooperation. By tracing the roots of the Bretton Woods system in East Asia, the book highlights the efforts of international bankers from Japan, Britain, China, France, and the United States to prevent war and reconstruct regional order following Japan’s aggression in Manchuria.
I am also preparing an introductory volume on the "Long Meiji Revolution," examining nation-building in the context of 19th-century global developments.