世論 What Japan Thinks

To most (I hope…) Western men Ladies First and other chivalrous acts come as second nature, but in Japan what we take for granted is unusual or indeed embarassing behaviour for women to experience. This problematic chivalry was the subject of a recent survey by goo Ranking.

Demographics

Over the 19th and 20th of January 2011 1,084 members of the goo Research online monitor group completed a private internet-based questionnaire. 60.2% of the sample were female, 8.5% in their teens, 18.5% in their twenties, 31.9% in their thirties, 23.2% in their forties, 9.5% in their fifties, and 8.5% aged sixty or older. Note that the score in the results refers to the relative number of votes for each option, not a percentage of the total sample. This survey was for the women only.

I’m not sure of the correct etiquette for retrieving a soggy hankie – perhaps one should offer to wash it, but in the modern world I don’t think that would be acceptable. Number two is a strange one – accompanying text suggested that the blowing noise (as opposed to the slurping noise?) would be unacceptable, but blowing on your food is a no-no. However, again I’m not sure of the correct action in that circumstances.

Ranking result

Q: What chivalrous act would cause you a little problem if you were on the receiving end of it? (Sample size=653, female)

Rank		Score
1	Him returning a handkerchief I’d dropped in a puddle	100
2	Him blowing on food to cool it down before eating	92.4
3	Him offering me a piggy-back when I get too tired from walking	87.3
4	Him lifting me down a large step	86.8
5	Him tieing my shoelaces	81.7
6	Him offering to carry my bag with essential items	69.5
7	Him spreading out a handkerchief for sitting on on a bench	66.8
8	Him giving me a “princess lift” when I hurt myself	65.6
9	Him ordering all the food	53.4
10	When departing, him watching and waiting until he cannot see me any more	38.0
11	Him pulling out the chair for me when I wish to sit in a restaurant	32.2
12	Him pulling out the chair for me when I wish to stand	30.2
13	Him lending me his jacket when I’m cold	27.6
14	Him holding out his hand when I descend stairs	27.3
15	Him helping me into my coat	27.1
16	Him giving me food from his plate that he doesn’t like	24.6
17	Him serving up the food	21.5
18	Him looking for an empty seat on the train for me	18.3
19	Him opening the car door	14.4
20	Him letting me go first on the escalator, stairs	13.9
21	Him standing guard for me in a packed train	9.3
22	Him getting in first to a taxi	6.6
23=	Him opening doors for me	5.1
23=	Him letting me sit at the end seat on the train	5.1
23=	When raining, him going first and opening an umbrella for me	5.1
26	Him buying the cinema, train, etc tickets for both of us	4.4
27	Him walking on the outside of the pavement	3.9
28=	Him matching my walking pace	2.9
28=	Him seeing me off all the way to the station	2.9
30	Him letting me sit in the deeper seat in a restaurant	2.7