No, I think the author's point is that the Japanese culture is the reason that there isn't panicked looting and rioting in the streets. Civil disorder is not uncommon after a natural disaster, especially when basic necessities are on the line. I think Japan as a country has done as well as it has because it is a culture of acting in the best interests of the whole, not of oneself (mostly as a result of its dense population, I would wager).
The preparation and organization played a large part in ensuring a minimum number of casualties, but there's no doubt that it was a culture of doing one's duty/service to society that ensured that all the preparation and organization actually came into play when disaster struck.