This study examined the relationship between online class environments and the economic burden and mental health among university students at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey participants were 909 undergraduate students, and graduate students in Hokkaido who responded to the first wave of the two-wave panel survey. The survey was conducted from July to September 2020. This study used K6 and GAD-7 as indicators of mental health. The results showed that students with both a high economic burden and a high burden of on-demand online classes after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic had a high probability of exceeding the cutoff points (indicating severe depression and anxiety) for K6 (above 13 points) and GAD-7 (above 10 points). The number of live online classes predicted lower depression. The discussion focused on the characteristics of online classes and discussed why they were associated with mental health and how to reduce the sense of burden in classes. In addition, we pointed out the importance of economic support for university students, since economic burdens were related to mental health.

No abstract

In recent years, universities have established numerous classes and courses related to sports management and sports business, leading to the realization of an environment that nurtures sports talent. On the other hand, there are concerns that employment opportunities for students having studied the fields mentioned above, especially at universities in rural areas, are insufficient and that a gap is being formed between the content taught at universities and skills required by the sports industry. On conducting a survey in a prefecture, we found that small-scale organizations with less than 50 employees accounted for more than 80% of all the sports-related organizations and companies. There is a slight upward trend in the employment demand for new graduates fresh out of college. However, there is not an upward trend for hiring new graduates and mid-career workers who have only high school diplomas. In the sports industry in the prefecture the employment environment seems rather harsh when taking into account the recent trend that the number of new recruits has been increasing in private companies throughout the country. In addition, when hiring new graduates, the sports-related organizations in the prefecture have looked for general things like a bright and cheerful personality and good communication skills as a part of the factors it considered to be the properties of sports, and there was little demand for sports-specific knowledge. It seems that companies require people who are well versed in basic business customs and business skills, rather than those with specialized knowledge of sports. Accordingly, there is a need for universities to augment employment opportunities by building connections proactively with sports-related organizations that are conducting business development and make students more competitive by training them in general business customs and business skills. Further, the sports-related companies and organizations within the prefecture need to close the gap between the educational environment and industry.

In this study, data based on resources available for public access were collected from 138 sports universities throughout the country in Japan in order to quantitatively grasp the ways in which curricula are being implemented. The aim of the study was to reveal the characteristics of the existing curriculum organizations in these universities. The results showed that in 25% of the departments, the subjects and courses related to sports did not provide students with the opportunity to learn about sports management as part of the curriculum. Even when sports management was studied, only 25% offered lectures on the subject, clearly indicating that such curricula are not intended for the development of the human resources of those who would become assets in the field. However, in curricula that incorporated the study of sports management, over 70% used lectures and seminars and they most often took the form of a synthesized curriculum, which moves between theory and practice through multiple lectures and seminars. When we looked at the various departments, we realized that multiple lectures and seminars form the core of the curriculum organization for many of them. Nonetheless, we clarified that in the departments of economics and management, lectures on subjects related to economics and management are compulsory. In curriculum organization, the relevance of one subject in relation to others must be taken into consideration. Moreover, the relationship between lectures （theory） and seminars （practice） is of great significance. Therefore, a future task would be to analyze what individual classroom practice involves and to examine the links between the various classes.

An interview survey was conducted to ascertain the kind of management talent sought by a professional sports club. In order to conduct the survey, one club was selected from each of the J1, J2, and J3 groups in the 2014 season. Semi-structured interviews were conducted based on: 1. skills and qualifications required for work, 2. organization and work content of the club, 3. growth process of the club management, and 4. human resource development policy of the club. The results show a division in the abilities required to run a professional sports club, ranging from requiring highly versatile abilities such as worker fundamentals, drive, and job compatibility to specific abilities tailored to the business of a professional sports club. The foundation of a professional sports club's business is entertainment. Therefore, skills in communication to entertain people and in gaming business management are required. In addition, as sponsorship of local companies is a key focus for management, the ability to demonstrate communication that generates empathy and responsive management is essential. Clubs that are recognized as public assets of a community tend to build business models that utilize volunteers. Strategic communication to promote spontaneity was identified as an important strength to effectively manage this business model.