Sherry Turkle spends a part of Alone Together talking about Japanese customs of respect and companionship. There's a whole industry of actors that look like you who will go visit your elderly relatives in nursing homes. Best part is when interviewed, the elderly relatives usually know what's up, but don't care because hiring an actor is a sign of respect.

I've actually got a Google News alert on Lesley Downer because this sort of stuff is what she writes about. Infrequently lately because she's working on a book, but stuff like this fascinates me:

Kyoko, of course, is not the girl's real name. She did not meet Mr. A by chance and does not work for a design company, as he thinks. She is an agent paid to seduce him. She texts the team from her mobile and has a couple of GPS devices in case they lose her. Her bodyguard will move in if there are problems. And the whole operation is paid for by Mr. A's wife, who gets an illustrated report every time an encounter takes place. The aim is to have Mr. A fall so completely for Kyoko that he wants to marry her and asks for a divorce. Failing that, his wife will have a dossier with evidence of infidelity.