#4945. Why competitive productivity sometimes goes too far: a multilevel evolutionary model of “karoshi”

July 2026publication date
Proposal available till 16-05-2025
4 total number of authors per manuscript0 $

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Journal’s subject area:
Cultural Studies;
Sociology and Political Science;
Business and International Management;
Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management;
Strategy and Management;
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Abstract:
The aim of this paper is to outline an innovative multilevel conceptual model capable of explaining “karoshi” (death from overwork) and its relationship to molecular-, micro-, meso- and macro-competitive productivity (CP). A theoretical model, grounded in the evolutionary biological, psychological, organizational and sociological literatures, is provided. Karoshi is a function of molecular (genetic), micro (individual), meso (organizational) and macro (cultural) evolutionary forces. It is also demonstrated to be a function of time, geography, agri-climate and cultural and ethnic homogeneity. The analysis is purely theoretical and its theoretically informed hypotheses are not tested empirically. As such, further data-driven research is indicated. Karoshi-related deaths are a public health epidemic and increasingly a major obstacle to sustainable CP. More specifically, it constitutes a new and innovative contribution to one’s current understanding of CP by uniquely integrating biology, psychology, organization studies and cultural studies into one overarching model.
Keywords:
Competitive productivity; Cultural evolution; Evolutionary psychology; Genetics; Japan; Karoshi; Work

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