世論 What Japan Thinks

A popular buzzword these days is 終活, shuukatsu, or basically End of Life Activities, specifically activities relating to tying up loose ends, such as funeral and burial arrangements, before one shuffles off one’s mortal coil, or gets too doo-lally to do so. This survey was conducted by SBI Holdings, a financial company spun off from the SoftBank group.

Demographics

Over the 6th and 7th of September 2013 550 people completed an internet-based questionnaire. All of the sample were aged sixty or older, and there was a 50:50 male and female split.

The survey also had questions on Respect for the Aged Day (16th of September this year) and, more interestingly, on priority seats on the train or bus, and how people feel being offered one.

These End of Life activities are often talked about on television, but mostly with respect to people organising their own funerals and buying cheap plots that they don’t want to burden their children with, but I very rarely hear mention of writing a will. Looking at Q1SQ, writing a will should be first done on reaching adulthood, or at least on getting married – but no, I haven’t. Buying your grave can wait until post-retirement, however.

Research results

Q1A: Do you think End of Life Activities are needed? (Sample size=550)

Yes (to SQ)

52.5%	No
23.1%	Never heard of End of Life Activities
24.4%

Q1B: Do you think End of Life Activities are needed? (Sample size=275, female)

Yes	60.4%
No, never heard of End of Life Activities	39.6%

Q1C: Do you think End of Life Activities are needed? (Sample size=275, male)

Yes	44.7%
No, never heard of End of Life Activities	55.3%

Q1SQ: From what age should one begin one’s End of Life Activities? (Sample size=289)

When one reaches adulthood	2.4%
When one has children	0.3%
When one’s children reach adulthood	4.8%
On retirement	7.6%
One’s fifties	3.8%
One’s sixties	29.1%
One’s seventies	36.0%
One’s eighties	5.2%
After one’s spouse dies	8.0%
Other	2.8%