Introduction

Isamu Yamamoto's research focuses on the impact of COVID-19 on employment and wellbeing, demographic differences, and labor market dynamics. He uses longitudinal data to analyze socioeconomic factors affecting mental health and evaluates policies on remote work and childcare services.

■COVID-19 Impact on Employment and Wellbeing
・Research Objective: To estimate the impact of intervention and information effects on preventive behaviors and telecommuting during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.
- Title: Intervention and information effects at the individual level during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, Chang Mateus Silva, Yamamoto Isamu （PLOS ONE） 18 （ 11 ） e0294189 Nov. 2023
・Research Objective: To examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employment, lifestyle, and well-being of employees using real-time panel data before and after the pandemic.
■Demographic and Socioeconomic Differences
・Research Objective: To investigate how and from when Japanese citizens have changed their precautionary behavior under circumstances in which the government has only requested their cooperation.
- Title: Japanese citizens' behavioral changes and preparedness against COVID-19: An online survey during the early phase of the pandemic, Muto Kaori, Yamamoto Isamu, Nagasu Miwako, Tanaka Mikihito, Wada Koji （PLOS ONE） 15 （ 6 ） e0234292 Jun. 2020
・Research Objective: To clarify the associations of socioeconomic status-related variables and lifestyle factors with mental health conditions among Japanese adults aged 40 to 69.
- Title: Association of socioeconomic and lifestyle-related risk factors with mental health conditions: a cross-sectional study, Nagasu Miwako, Kogi Kazutaka, Yamamoto Isamu （BMC Public Health） 19 （ 1 ） Dec. 2019
■Employment Vulnerability and Labor Market
・Research Objective: To estimate the effect of comprehensive and diverse regional childcare services on Japanese women's labour participation and well-being.
- Title: Do comprehensive and diverse childcare services affect women’s labour supply and well-being?, Ito Hirotaka, Yamamoto Isamu （Applied Economics Letters） 29 （ 2 ） 173-178 Jan. 2022
・Research Objective: To examine the importance of job task wage premiums and long-term changes in the Japanese labor market by estimating the Mincerian wage function incorporating job tasks.
- Title: Job tasks and wages in the Japanese labor market: Evidence from wage functions, Kobayashi Toru, Yamamoto Isamu （Journal of the Japanese and International Economies） 58 101110 Dec. 2020
・Research Objective: To evaluate the policy impact of the 'Comprehensive Childcare Support Promotion Model Municipality Project' on women's employment and working hours in targeted regions.
■Household Responsibilities and Time Allocation
・Research Objective: To examine the impact of remote work on subjective well-being and identify the characteristics of workers and jobs that contribute to the continuous implementation of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Title: Potential benefits and determinants of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from Japanese Household Panel Data, Ishii Kayoko, Yamamoto Isamu, Nakayama Mao （Journal of the Japanese and International Economies） 70 101285 Dec. 2023
■Mental Health and Wellbeing
・Research Objective: To clarify the prevalence of psychological distress and determine the population most affected by risk factors such as the pandemic, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle-related factors in the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.
- Title: Impacts of anxiety and socioeconomic factors on mental health in the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in the general population in Japan: A web-based survey, Nagasu Miwako, Muto Kaori, Yamamoto Isamu （PLOS ONE） 16 （ 3 ） e0247705 Mar. 2021
・Research Objective: To investigate the longitudinal association between socioeconomic and lifestyle-related risk factors and poor mental health conditions using Japanese representative longitudinal household panel data.
- Title: Impact of socioeconomic- and lifestyle-related risk factors on poor mental health conditions: A nationwide longitudinal 5-wave panel study in Japan, Nagasu Miwako, Yamamoto Isamu （PLOS ONE） 15 （ 10 ） e0240240 Oct. 2020
・Research Objective: To investigate the relationship between overwork and mental health using longitudinal data on Japanese workers.
- Title: Why Do People Overwork at the Risk of Impairing Mental Health?, Kuroda Sachiko, Yamamoto Isamu （Journal of Happiness Studies） 20 （ 5 ） 1519-1538 Jun. 2019
■Remote Work and Telecommuting
・Research Objective: To examine the factors that facilitated the swift transition to telecommuting during the early COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on income, working hours, and anxiety.
■Work Hours and Productivity
・Research Objective: To examine the influence of local peers on the work hours of Japanese managerial-level employees transferred to European branches of global firms.
- Title: Do Peers Affect Determination of Work Hours? Evidence Based on Unique Employee Data from Global Japanese Firms in Europe, Kuroda Sachiko, Yamamoto Isamu （Journal of Labor Research） 34 （ 3 ） 359-388 Sep. 2013
・Research Objective: To investigate whether the number of hours worked by Japanese males is determined by demand-side factors and to offer a possible explanation for their longer work hours compared to counterparts in other countries.
- Title: Firms’ demand for work hours: Evidence from matched firm-worker data in Japan, Kuroda Sachiko, Yamamoto Isamu （Journal of the Japanese and International Economies） 29 57-73 Sep. 2013
■Wages and Economic Factors
・Research Objective: To investigate whether downward wage flexibility is the primary factor of Japan's prolonged deflation.
- Title: Is Downward Wage Flexibility the Primary Factor of Japan's Prolonged Deflation?, Kuroda Sachiko, Yamamoto Isamu （Asian Economic Policy Review） 9 （ 1 ） 143-158 Jan. 2014
■Work-Life Balance (WLB) and Total Factor Productivity (TFP)
・Research Objective: To examine the effect of work-life balance practices on the total factor productivity of firms using Japanese firm-level panel data.
- Title: Effect of Work–Life Balance Practices on Firm Productivity: Evidence from Japanese Firm-Level Panel Data, Yamamoto Isamu, Matsuura Toshiyuki （The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy） 14 （ 4 ） 1677-1708 Oct. 2014
■Supervisor-Employee Relationships
・Research Objective: To investigate the influence of supervisors' abilities, management skills, and characteristics on employees' mental health and productivity using longitudinal data from Japan.
- Title: Good boss, bad boss, workers’ mental health and productivity: Evidence from Japan, Kuroda Sachiko, Yamamoto Isamu （Japan and the World Economy） 48 106-118 Dec. 2018
■Policy Evaluation Analysis
・Research Objective: Evaluation of the policy impact of Job Cafe-related projects on youth employment and labor market efficiency.

Areas of Research

・Public Economics, Labor Economics
・Economic Policy

Social Contributions

・The research supports the development of improved labor policies and corporate management strategies in Japan, particularly in response to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
・It emphasizes the importance of reevaluating traditional Japanese employment practices to enhance work-life balance, increase women's participation, and improve mental health, contributing to a more diverse and flexible labor market.