My research examines shifting masculinities and changing parenting ideologies in low-birthrate societies, especially those in Asia. Specifically, my work investigates the role of Japanese grassroots groups both in advocating for the government’s and corporations’ implementation of family-friendly policies and in creating physical and discursive spaces for men to revise their notions of fatherhood and masculinity. As young adults in postindustrial societies carefully weigh the benefits and costs of family formation, issues of gender equality in the home and workplace intertwine with the sustainability of populations, economies, and cultures. My current book project focuses on how Japanese fathers of young children, drawn to these grassroots groups, are reevaluating ideas about what it means to have fulfilling lives and rewarding family relationships.
2023– Project Assistant Professor, Tokyo College, University of Tokyo
2022–23 Postdoctoral Fellow, Edwin O. Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies, Harvard University
2022 Ph.D. in Anthropology, University of British Columbia
2013 M.A. in Anthropology, University of Kansas
2010 B.A. in Anthropology/Sociology and in Philosophy, Saint Mary’s College of California
Refereed articles
2022 Koike, Evan T. “Men in aprons versus men in suits: Reshaping masculinities within a Japanese nonprofit promoting fatherhood. Ethnography 0 (0): 1–21.
2021 Kolpashnikova, Kamila, and Evan T. Koike. “Educational attainment and housework participation among Japanese, Taiwanese, and American women across adult life transitions.” Asian Population Studies 17 (3): 266–84.
Web-based publications
2021 Koike, Evan T. “Challenging Japan’s Low Birthrate: How Japanese Nonprofit Organizations Focused on Fathering Are Affecting Men’s Performances of Masculinity.” Culture 15 (1).
