世論 What Japan Thinks

japan.internet.com recently reported on a survey by Rakuten Research into older men’s awareness of housework.

Demographics

Over the 16th and 17th of May 2013 400 male members of Rakuten Research aged between 50 and 69 years old completed a private internet-based questionnaire. Exactly 25.0% were in each age band 50 to 54, 55 to 59, 60 to 64 and 65 to 69 years old. Furthermore 40.2% were retired, and 69.5% appear to be married.

For my own part, I manage about an hour of housework per weekday, usually doing some shopping on the way home, washing the dishes and folding up the drying. At the weekends, it’s probably closer to two hours as I help with hanging up the washing and airing the quilts.

Research results

Q1: How interested are you the following housework tasks? (Sample size=400)

	Very interested	Somewhat interested	Not really interested	Not interested at all
Cooking	15.0%	47.0%	28.5%	9.5%
Shopping	12.8%	55.3%	27.5%	4.5%
Cleaning	2.3%	27.0%	53.0%	17.8%
Washing clothes	1.3%	20.8%	55.5%	22.5%

Q2: How often do you actually do the following housework tasks? (Sample size=400)

	5-7 days a week	3-4 days a week	1-2 days a week	2-3 days a month	1 day a month or less	Never
Cooking	9.0%	8.0%	17.0%	13.0%	24.5%	28.5%
Shopping	5.0%	15.8%	43.3%	21.8%	9.8%	4.5%
Cleaning	3.3%	4.8%	23.8%	21.8%	28.8%	17.8%
Washing clothes	2.8%	6.0%	17.0%	11.0%	21.0%	42.3%

Q3: Which of the following goods are you interested in? (Sample size=400, multiple answer)

Microwave oven, toaster	33.3%
Food ingredients, spices	32.8%
Pots, frying pans, knives	32.0%
Refrigerator	31.3%
Coffee maker, espresso maker	29.5%
Rice cooker	25.0%
Vaccuum cleaner	22.5%
Home bakery	19.3%
Dish washer, dish dryer	16.8%
Washing machine, clothes dryer	16.0%
Food processor	12.3%
Juicer, mixer	11.3%
Other kitchen appliance	0.5%
Other household appliance	0.8%
None in particular	29.0%

Q4: How much time did you spend before retirement and now spend after retirement on housework every day? (Sample size=161, those retired)

	Didn’t/don’t do	Up to 30 minutes	30 minutes to 1 hour	1 to 2 hours	2 to 3 hours	More than 3 hours
Before retirement	36.6%	34.2%	24.2%	5.0%	0.0%	0.0%
After retirement	20.5%	17.4%	28.6%	23.6%	6.8%	3.1%