Presentation of our new theory of developing communities:TheCommunityLife Science Approach

Keywords：Community Life Science Approach, Grand design, Community development, Field research

We arrived at our theory based on the thinking that resolving the dilemma of the decline of rural cities cannot be done solely through the existing Japanese theories and framework on rural welfare. Our new tripartite theory involves 1) drawing ideas from the ecological approach found in social work (SW), expanding that focus from understanding of "people" to understanding of "communities" (CO); 2) adding the viewpoints of medical practitioners, nurses, and life sciences research into the existing dialogue by researchers into social policy and social work; and 3) taking an interdisciplinary interpretation to the subject, utilizing an organic (life) approach rather than an inorganic one, focusing in particular on the mechanisms of creation unique to women.The Community Life Science Approach (CLSA) we devised utilizes a range of field surveys of the work of COs to produce a body of evidence. We launched an interdisciplinary symposium the results of which had implications from the academic and policymaking fields. We then compared the results of the field surveys and the interdisciplinary symposium to substantiate our theory.

Jun MIYAJIMA, Doctor of Social Work, Professor, Chubu Gakuin University Faculty of Human well-being, E-mail:

Kanako OGISO, Master's degreeof Social Welfare, Associate Professor, Gifu UniversityNursing Course , School of Medicine,E-mail:

I. Research summary

1. Background

Japan utilizes population measures, in particular the proportion of women in the population, as an indicator of vitalization or decline of rural communities. This data is used to extrapolate figures on the "potential for decline." Today, rural cities find themselves in precipitous circumstances. Tax money, human capital, and response measures are being taken wholesale, but one might analyze this as attempting to resolve the issue after the fact. In rural communities, structured as they are with life in close proximity (physical or otherwise) to neighbors, residents' dignity hinges on being able to lead the lives they choose and carry out their own lifestyle within the community, be they elderly, disabled, a child raising mother, or a busy worker. In addition, residents in the community must each be treated as people to be respected, and the local customs, culture, and spiritual must not be ignored or allowed to fade into memory. In that sense, for communities to continue to be able to act as inclusive places and spaces and not shut anyone out, a national welfare approach must be constructed in a systematic fashion, with the building of comprehensive community care systems indispensable to this process. However, CO encompassed by the domains of healthcare, sanitation, welfare, and nursing sometimes fail to expand beyond these "protective" elements of community welfare, and economic criticisms have been made of the way they are stretched thin in terms of return on investment in these services.

2. Thrust of research

Building inclusive communities requires emphasizing elements of social policy while treating the promotion of community welfare as a major axis, while at the same time studying the relationship of said approaches with the local policy. If an economic analysis is not used to elucidate the extent of vitalization undergone in the area, such an effort can scarcely be considered proper community building. Further, if the community residents who are the intended recipients of said community policy theories (that go beyond the level of welfare) and approaches do not ultimately experience an inclusive, safe, and comfortable community, the effort cannot be dubbed a success. Further, when considering how to build inclusive communities and vitalizing them, one point of interest is the concept of social capital.

In other words, "encounters" must take on a more expansive dimension that offers multi-polar opportunities and breaks away from the association of "birth" as a loss for women. Existing inclusive societies prefigured on blood and territorial ties are inherently limited. The concept of the "soul" as one point on this axis takes the notion of death and burial as an expulsion of the elderly from the community and expands it into a logic on the spiritual level; only then is inclusiveness built and maintained in an ongoing fashion. In other words, the idea of "saving the souls" of the elderly, who fear death, releases them from the bonds of "expulsion" and contributes to the creation of a peaceful way of life within the CO.

The above trajectory utilizes not only the viewpoint of social policy studies, but history, policymaking, social psychology, happiness studies, and medicine, drawing on a range of field work and discussions among researchers for a multi-layered and inductive process whereby we constructed our hypothetical approach. In other words, we have devised CLSA as a potential new theory for use in community welfare and community activation policies that can broker a way out of the decline and dwindling of rural communities.

3. Research methodology through summary of field work

A. Historical survey: The local culture and customs developed through the intermingling of both individuality and deliberateness, creating the unique feel of the region today.

B. Survey into children and child raising: Mothers today manage their own and their children’s lives around the concept of "fun," and they create new experiences for amusement.The process of creating "fun" is one in which the mothers were vitalized and grew. This process of "fun creation" in turn was disseminated among the children, creating a positive feedback loop.

C. Survey into "debut of an adult community" as a form of rural welfare culture and subject formation: Accepting local residents and inviting those from outside the region to stay and take root creates new forms of "fun" and vitality. Achieving the "debut of an adult community" in a systematic and structural fashion requires collaboration between professionals and amateurs.

D. Survey into implications of "fun, vitality, symbiosis, and community roles" in health of elderly: There is a close relationship between symbiosis and having a place (a role) in the community. Recognizing the role people play is key to inclusion.

E. Survey into creation of culture around peace of mind and tranquility: We re-situated this thinking around the notion that if processes are not generated by residents, the town itself cannot grow. In other words, local municipalities are equivalent to juridical persons and in some ways resemble living things. If we treat them as living things, it naturally follows that they can grow and then die.

4. Synthesis

A. Empowerment, health promotion, and communication exist everywhere. Determine what roles and functions they respectively play.

B. Importance of having metrics in place.

C. History and roles integrate, with symbiosis and "fun, vitality, symbiosis, and roles" exhibiting a synergistic effect.

D. Residents, who comprise part of the "lifeform" that is a juridical person each recognize their role.

E. Roles residents are called on to perform revolve around continuing education of residents. Utilize knowledge of analysis and theory.

F. The terminus of interdisciplinary discussion of this nature is as follows:Existing frameworks and theory on community welfare fail to transcend their inherent problems, so there is a need for a new theory.

Ⅱ. Inquiry

1. Proposal of new theory

Proposing a new theory is tantamount to advocating the replacement of existing theories. Local communities are the accretion of history and culture, and they are constituent parts in civilization. Lifeforms contain mechanisms of production. Humanity has a history of production, containing elements and risks like sex differences, aging, and strength and weakness; humanity has continued to exist with the bilateral existence of these forces. We focused on these mechanisms in our interpretation of local societies, and this is where our new theory, CLSA, is derived from. CLSA is based on the following premises:

A. The idea is not "creating something where there is nothing," but a departure point of "rechecking"

B. Consider that, when trying to break down complex local issues and responding in the form of a troubleshooting-based style, we fall into the dilemma of losing sight of the goal.

C. Overcoming the dilemma requires treating local society as a single lifeform.

D. Describe misgivings with existing theory and plot change towards new way of thinking:

i. COs must break free of the dominant mode of thinking that posits, "rural areas = communities; cities = aggregates"

ii. Explain in simple and logical terms objections to the conservative interpretation of "relapse," "bad traditions," and "emphasis on family"

iii. Must develop techniques to acknowledge creation of welfare-based communities and the history and changes therein while exploring new results.

iv. The towns the subject of the project are treated not as "static," but "dynamic," and not "inorganic," but "organic lifeforms."

2. Use of prior work

We drew on the work of Miller and his general living systems theory. This theory is described in a work by Miller in 1978 and is derived from general systems theory. Miller's interpretation is that living systems are open systems, with material and energy entering and exiting the system by way of its boundaries; these boundaries are described as being stratified into seven layers: cells, organs, lifeforms, groups, organizations, society, and supranational systems. This system is described as generalizable to various contexts.Our theory treats the people that comprise a town and all elements having an impact or synergistic effects therein as a "lifeform," with organic and inorganic elements affecting the same. We hypothesized that life sciences approaches could be used to elucidate the role and functions of this lifeform as an organic body. Science has developed in new ways since Miller's time; for example, the degree to which "cells" and "organs" have been internally mapped is orders of magnitude greater today. Utilizing today's findings in this realm, we leveraged a life sciences approach to employ a system that goes beyond single cells and organs and emphasizes reproductive cells, which produce the "other," and the reproductive organs of women, which produce life.

We endeavored to utilize the particularities of these to inform our approach. We adopted points 3-5 of Miller's system and point 1 (openness) in a specific and qualified manner. As for point 2, we place great importance on the process of "aging" and "regeneration" as crucial elements of life. This allows us to arrive at the conclusion that each organic element comprising a town is an essential life as vital as the others. The argument that follows from this is that if such lifeforms fail to function properly, they are merely being visited by some sort of problem, interruption, disuse, damage, or decline.

3. Obtained suggestion

While elements of a community may appear incomplete, if we consider the existence of neighboring entities, we see that everything in the community is connected. When some problem causes an element to not function properly, this puts the community in a state of non-function. If the problem is left unattended without proper care for a long period of time, it will naturally reach a state of decline (death).

Therefore, problems must be accurately diagnosed. Properly identifying these is essential to extending the life of a community. Creating long-living communities requires diagnosis.What follows is the question of determining what are the risk factors to the life of community and developing an independent way of assessing this based on the actualities of said community. Large, user-friendly facilities are treated as "high risk" to rural cities. The reason is the cost of operating said facilities can throw the finances of the city into peril.

The solution requires focusing on supplementing that which is needed from nearby municipalities and collaborating together in a wide-ranging scope. Examples of what would include high risk activities for a lifeform are as follows.

A. Invasive procedures like surgery, surrogate pregnancy, implantation of multiple fertilized eggs, and rejuvenation of ovules

B. Overcoming the risks associated with high-risk medical treatment requires securing advanced expertise and a legal and orderly infrastructure, as well as ample informed consent.

Ⅲ.Conclusions

1. Our theory treats CO as lifeforms.

2. Interpretation of "relapse" and "allergic reaction" in Co.This means that by identifying the "allergen," the cause can be treated.

3. Problems in CO represent an opportunity to identify the cause and discover treatment and response measures. We believe these efforts could potentially transform into "fun" for residents. In other words, residents should be confident that "problems" can produce "dreams."

4. If only problems are found, consider implementing the concept of "regenerative medicine" from the life sciences in other words, encourage migration and inclusion of people from other places.

Our proposed theory, CLSA, ties in with embryology. The creation of life involves the "male" and "female" sex differences and the mechanisms of internal organs, elements which are largely beyond the control of human beings. By offering a stimulus, an impasse can be opened and new possibilities achieved. In our approach, we aim to elucidate mechanisms of reproduction that would resemble the algorithms involved in reproductive medicine. We successively identify what blockages prevent future reproduction. This scientific approach must be incorporated in community welfare and research performed to develop effective algorithms.

If we treat communities as lifeforms in this way, just as the Mayan and Egyptian civilizations declined, communities eventually "age," lose their vitality, and become cultural relics. When considering this cycle of decline, rather than treating such systems as closed, "male" systems involving decline (death), if we treat them as "female" systems that produce life and eventually close, ergo, that their function is one of production, regeneration, and transmission, the community resembles an open system. When a community-as-lifeform reaches old age, it may try to execute this process of production, regeneration and transmission, but this "birth" carries attendant risks accompanying old age. Therefore, communities must consider that they will eventually face a time when they will have to properly assess what stage of life they find themselves in. There are elements here that cannot be forecast; this process resembles the emotional state associated with infertility treatment, i.e., not wanting to give up. We therefore treat local communities as lifeforms and deem that they must maintain a level of "activity" that produces new life, with that process cared for as a mechanism of the lifeform itself. If the community is not imbued with the functionality to continuously produce new life (production, regeneration, and transmission), it naturally will be unable to do so.

We interpret local communities as "parent bodies" that produce the next generation; these communities, as parents, are lifeforms. The central nucleus engaged in raising the next generation continues to be women and mothers. The lifeform responsible for producing and raising life is referred to as a "mother." In this way, local communities are both lifeforms and, at the same time, possess the qualities of women. If we focus on the mechanism of producing and raising the next generation, we can interpret these sites as "local spaces for residents, or equivalent to the womb." This perforce requires the explanation of numerous mechanisms. We do not here intend to interpret women in a mechanistic fashion as reproductive organs; the focus is on the mechanism of "creating life."We believe that an ideal space as occupied by members of the community should resemble a "womb."

1. The role of the womb is to conceive children, have them grow, and send them out into society.

2. When each element is in a positive environment, the process of fertilization and implantation of eggs and sperm occurs naturally.

In this way, we likened places with multiple functions and suitability as central spaces in the community as "womb-like places;" when women ovulate, the villi in the uterus grow and make preparations to receive implanted sperm. After this time, the villi decline, and this is accompanied by menstrual pain. In humans, this cycle generally takes about 28 days. This mechanism can be metaphorically used to describe the cycles at work in local communities.

CLSA could developed based on a comprehensive study, inflected through the field of medicine and in particular life sciences, of the process of lifeforms creating life and of the logic behind vitalization of life. It aims to create a new measurement metric for analysis. A clear demarcation of "birth" in the context of lifeforms cannot be achieved using the existing logic of life sciences and theory of life; even the idea of the "here and now" is reduced to a conceptual image. This means that by utilizing the logic of these fields, the concept of the "here and now" in the context of social policy studies and theory of community welfare is largely shifted, with new demarcations being needed. One example is the concept of "from birth to the grave" being shifted to "from encounters to the soul." The expanded scope this idea offers in turn requires presenting new approaches to clearly measure the field produced therein. In other words, CLSA is a theory that begins with case studies and treats the exchanges and commentary of people as truth; it is an extension of social constructionist approaches that emphasize life stories and narrative. Because it is also a theory of analysis that targets local communities, it requires a framework for clearly elucidating that domain. Treating these daily-changing domains as "lifeforms" required the wide adoption of existing approaches from the field of ecology. In addition, local policy is a form of system. In order to structurally incorporate people as lifeforms within this system and the concept of wishes, prayer and soul, we incorporated elements of general living systems theory. Going forward, we bear the responsibility of substantiating the validity of the CLSA method.