Personal, Portable , Pedestrian Review

Personal, Portable , Pedestrian (PPP)is a collection of case studies investigating the different dynamics of Ketai in Japanese cultures. Each contributor takes great space and time to explore Ketai and understand not just the use of technology but it as an extension of the culture and personalities of those who use it. PPP attempts to take, Ketai, which on the surface appears to be unique to Japan make connections to other cultures.

The book is divided into 5 sections which help the reader make thematic connections between the research conducted, as well as lessen the complexity of the studies. Each researcher has a different method of rationalizing qualitative data of understanding Ketai .

Some based their research in the historical context of the evolution of Ketai over time and use the space in a manner that shows the technology is more than just an instrument of communication but also helps others understand Japanese culture.

The studies do not just focus on social implications of Ketai and the utilization of the technology but also look at how growth of the technology and access have changed how the gadgets are used. Research methods allow the opportunity to draw understanding of Ketai from different perspectives. Each work looks at an aspect of Ketai, building a bank of observations and a vocabulary that can be taken further by the next researcher. Western societies do not understand the complexities of Ketai. Substantiating research in history allows connections to form between the present and the past emphasizes how technology is becoming an extension of culture and interactions among people.

The editor points out that it is not enough to study the interactions between people and the technology; to fully comprehend the impact of Ketai researchers must explore theoretical and methodical basis that lie beneath the surface.(5)

In Kenichi Fujimoto’s chapter, “The Third-Stage Paradigm: Territory Machines from the Girls Pager Revolution to Mobile Aesthics,” he uses ethnological reasearch to discover how Ketnai among Japanese youth is used as opposed to adults. The author sets up the parameters of research by first looking at sociological terms and creating a vocabulary to discuss Ketai and how it has evolved over time. Defining the vocabulary that is used within the article is helpful for the author as well as the readers. Once a background is formulating the author then has the space to create a working term to describe what is occuring.

Fujimoto uses the common idea of class as a starting point for the article. From class, the author explores different historians’ ideas eventually establishing a three-tiered paradigm to analyze Ketai, not only as a culture class between different generations, but as a discussion of place and its importance within Ketai. From these definintions the boundaries of the study are established. Fujimoto wants the audience to understand his rational for definging common sociological terms. Common terms allow the reserch to transcend different cultures. There are similrities and differences can be seen more easily understood by creating these definitions. This type of setup illustrates Fujimoto’s use of reflexive thought to make sure that the study has some type of universal purpose and can be used as a reference in others research.

It would be a flaw in the research if Fujimoto did not discuss specific vocabulary in Japanese culture. Fujimoto recognizes the faults in focusing only on soicological terminoligy as a basis for his research. The author explains, “I see paradigm norms and structures as including both the mental and the material” (Ito 93). To bring give the study more depth, He looks at Japanese vocabulary to make sense of Ketai within sociological contexts.

Another research method the Fujimoto’s study looks at is the public versus the private. At one point the discussion involves Ketai in public spaces and how it augments interactions in public and private because a private conversation is taking place over the techinical tool while physically being in a public space.

Fujimoto’s chapter an illustration of how to create a vocabulary for his studies. In PPP it is just one type of research method used by the its contributors. By rooting his study in history it gives makes his study more reputable, and context so that Ketai is not looked at as just a current phenomena, instead it is something that has developed over time.















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