世論 What Japan Thinks

One of the first things one notices, indeed, one cannot avoid getting one’s senses assaulted by them regularly in Japan, is the ubiquitous pachinko parlour. Usage or otherwise of them was the subject matter of this recent survey by MyVoice.

Demographics

Over the first five days of November 2008 15,182 members of the MyVoice internet community successfully completed a private online questionnaire. 54% of the sample were female, 2% in their teens, 14% in their twenties, 6% in their thirties, 30% in their forties, and 18% aged fifty or older.

The only good thing about pachinko are the adverts; one doing the rounds right now is for Star Wars pachinko – I’d love to see Danny Choo doing his Stormtrooper act playing one of these! Another enjoyable one is this:

Research results

Q1: Have you played pachinko? (Sample size=15,182)

Currently play	12.1%
Used to play	47.1%
Never played	40.8%

Q2: How often do/did you play pachinko? (Sample size=current and ex-players)

Five or more times a week	5.0%
Three or four times a week	10.0%
Once or twice a week	34.3%
Once or twice a month	29.4%
Less than once a month	20.6%
No answer	0.7%

Q3: From where do/did you get information on pachinko parlours, pachinko machines? (Sample size=current and ex-players, multiple answer)

Pachinko information web site	33.9%
Poster outside, advertisements inside pachinko parlours	24.3%
Pachinko information magazine	24.1%
Television advertisement, program	23.4%
Friends, family, word of mouth	22.6%
Pachinko machine manufacturer’s web site	18.6%
Email	15.8%
Newspaper, newspaper advertisement	13.5%
Flier handed out by pachinko parlour staff	6.0%
Public transport advertisement	2.0%
Radio	1.4%
Other	3.3%
Nowhere in particular	22.4%
No answer	1.0%

Q4: Why did you stop playing pachinko? (Sample size=ex-players, multiple answer)

Forgot what was fun about it, got disinterested	42.9%
Took too much money to play	27.9%
Didn’t have the spare cash to spend	24.2%
Didn’t win much	19.2%
Got another hobby	10.8%
Got busy at work	10.8%
Got busy with housework, childrearing	10.2%
Environment in pachinko parlours was making me sick	8.5%
Didn’t have anyone to go with	5.3%
Wanted to break free from pachinko addiction	3.4%
Started saving money	2.0%
Family, friends persuaded me to quit	0.6%
Something other than pachinko made me sick	0.4%
Inter-personal relationships got complicated	0.2%
Other	9.4%
No particular reason	11.1%
No answer	1.4%

Q5: Why have you never played pachinko? (Sample size=non-players, multiple answer)

Environment in parlours seems poor	48.5%
Don’t know what is fun about it, not interested	41.8%
I don’t gamble	40.6%
I wouldn’t win	32.8%
Seems poor customer service	32.7%
Takes too much money to play pachinko	26.3%
Don’t have the spare cash	25.3%
Have other hobbies	20.1%
If I tried it once I’d get hooked	16.7%
Don’t know how to play	14.8%
Has a strong image of being a social problem	13.9%
Have houseowrk, childrearing to do	5.9%
Don’t have anyone to go with	5.8%
I’m saving money	5.0%
Busy at work	5.0%
Not at the age for playing pachinko	2.1%
Other	4.0%
No particular reason	5.2%
No answer	4.8%

Q6: What is your image of pachinko parlours? (Sample size=15,182, multiple answer)

Noisy	83.3%
Dirty	32.9%
Crowded	30.6%
Untrustworthy	20.5%
Scary	15.0%
Poor sense	14.9%
Not friendly	13.4%
Spacious	11.4%
Rude staff	10.6%
Confined	8.9%
Bright	8.7%
Dark	8.4%
Clean	6.4%
For older people	4.3%
Fun	3.8%
Polite staff	3.5%
Friendly	2.4%
Leading-edge	2.0%
Conservative	1.9%
Youthful	1.8%
Good sense	1.2%
Empty	0.6%
Trustworthy	0.3%
Quiet	—
Other	9.1%
Don’t know	3.8%
No answer	0.4%

Q7: Do you want to play pachinko in the future? (Sample size=15,182)

Want to play	5.2%
Perhaps want to play	10.6%
Don’t really want to play	28.3%
Don’t want to play at all	55.4%

Finally, there was a free answer question about what kinds of character-themed pachinko machines people would like to see. The answers included the following:

Johnnies male pin-up idols and signers, Disney, Ikko and other gay TV stars, Gundam, Dragonball, Sailor Moon, gold medal-winning swimmer Kosuke Kitajima, Hanshin Tigers baseball team, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, in-vogue comedians, footballers Gaz Miura and Gon Nakayama, the signer DAIGO, baseball players Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui, Edo Harumi, the TV drama “Under One Roof”, Shogun Oda Nobunaga, and Atsuhime and other historical characters.