Tokuzō Fukuda was a pioneer of modern Japanese Economics.

Fukuda introduced Economic Theory and Economic History

Economic history

Economic history is the study of economies or economic phenomena in the past. Analysis in economic history is undertaken using a combination of historical methods, statistical methods and by applying economic theory to historical situations and institutions...

 for the Social Policy School and the Younger Historical school of economics

Historical school of economics

The Historical school of economics was an approach to academic economics and to public administration that emerged in 19th century in Germany, and held sway there until well into the 20th century....

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He graduated from the Tokyo Higher School of Commerce (today's Hitotsubashi University

Hitotsubashi University

is a national university specialised in the social sciences in Tokyo, Japan. The University has campuses in Kunitachi, Kodaira, and Kanda.Hitotsubashi is considered as one of the most prestigious universities in Japan. It is ranked 25th in the world in 2011 by École des Mines de Paris.Hitotsubashi...

). After he was appointed lecturer of his Alma Mater, he studied in Germany, among others under Karl Bücher

Karl Bücher

Karl Wilhelm Bücher was an economist, one of the founders of non-market economics, and the founder of journalism as an academic discipline.- Early life :...

, and he earned his doctorate from Munich University. His thesis dealt with the social and economic development in Japan (original title: "Die gesellschaftliche und wirtschaftliche Entwicklung in Japan") and was supervised by Lujo Brentano

Lujo Brentano

Lujo Brentano was an eminent German economist and social reformer.Lujo Brentano, born in Aschaffenburg into one of the most distinguished German-Catholic intellectual families , attended school in Augsburg and Aschaffenburg...

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After returning to Japan, he became professor of his Alma Mater and later at Keiō University

Keio University

,abbreviated as Keio or Keidai , is a Japanese university located in Minato, Tokyo. It is known as the oldest institute of higher education in Japan. Founder Fukuzawa Yukichi originally established it as a school for Western studies in 1858 in Edo . It has eleven campuses in Tokyo and Kanagawa...

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During the years known as the period of "Taishō Democracy"

Taisho period

The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...

, he joined with others to establish Reimeikai

Reimeikai

was a Japanese "educational society" formed in Japan's Taishō period. The members declared themselves committed "to strive for the stablization and enrichment of the life of the Japanese people in conformity with the new trends of the postwar world."...

 which was a society "to propogate ideas of democracy among the people." This group was formed in order to sponsor public lectures.

After World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, he stood for Democracy (Liberalism), from a critical standpoint towards Marxism, and emphasized the solution of social and labour problems by the government. He is also considered a pioneer of the welfare state

Welfare state

A welfare state is a "concept of government in which the state plays a key role in the protection and promotion of the economic and social well-being of its citizens. It is based on the principles of equality of opportunity, equitable distribution of wealth, and public responsibility for those...

idea. As an advisor to the Ministry of Home Affairs, he also worked out policy drafts.