世論 What Japan Thinks

goo Research, in cooperation with japan.internet.com, carried out their 20th survey on blogging in Japan. Note that I have previously translated their 19th survey. Since the number with blogs and the number commenting on blogs have both increased by a factor of six, I wonder if there is a causative relationship here; is genuine interest in the blogosphere increasing people’s urge to post, or is it just blatant self-promotion for ones blog? For me, it’s a combination of the two!

They surveyed 1,083 people, 41.09% male, 1.94% 19 or under, 27.98% in their 20s, 39.24% in their 30s, 19.94% in their 40s, and 10.90% fifty or older.

Q: In the last month, have you viewed a blog? (Sample size=1,083)

Yes	76.36%
No	17.27%
Don’t really know what a blog is	6.37%

The people who have viewed a blog has basically tripled in the last year and a half, and the don’t knows have dropped over six-fold from 40.80% since that very first survey.

As for what sort of blogs people are usually reading, the most popular answer was the bog-standard daily life blogs, at 39.90%, followed by no theme in particular at 32.04%, with film and music blogs third, way back at 16.93%.

Q: Have you posted a comment on a blog site? (Sample size=827)

Yes	28.05%
No	71.95%

This percentage is over double the number in the first survey 18 months ago, and allowing for the fact that over three times the number of people are now reading blogs, this represents an increase of a factor of six in the raw percentage of blog posters.

Q: In the last month, which blog service provider’s blogs have you visited? (Sample size=827, multiple answer)

Kokorogu	26.00%
Hadena diary	34.22%
My profile	4.72%
Blog people	6.77%
Livedoor blog	44.38%
excite blog	27.21%
Doblog	5.93%
gooBLOG	36.40%
WebryBlog	5.08%
Blogzine	3.63%
JUGEM	8.59%
SeesaaBLOG	7.86%
Yahoo! BLOGS	46.07%
yaplog	16.08%
Ameba Blog	26.12%
Rakuten Blog	34.70%
MSN Spaces	9.67%

Interesting that the above are all Japanese-based services.

Q: Have you made your own blog? (Sample size=1,083)

Yes	31.86%
No, but I want to try sometime	29.46%
No, and I don’t want to	32.23%
Don’t really know what a blog is	6.46%

The percentage with blogs or planning to make blogs has basically doubled in the last year and a half. Those respondents currently with blogs has increased by a factor of six. Most people have just one blog service account, at 66.09%, but the number with two or more has over doubled since the very first survey. However, although the number of blogs has increased, the percentage updating their blogs at least weekly has dropped 2.5% to 60.00%, but since the number of bloggers has increased six-fold, this drop is perhaps not significant. As for why people create a blog, the main reason is people wanting to keep a notebook, at 57.68%.

Q: Has your blog had a trackback? (Sample size=345)

Yes	70.43%
No	29.57%

Q: Have you done a trackback on another site? (Sample size=345)

Yes	37.10%
No	62.90%

At the end of last month, goo Research performed a survey amongst over 20,000 women to find out their attitudes towards breast cancer. This research was carried out on behalf of three organisations, Japan Society of Breast Care, Japan Cancer Society and J.POSH.

The survey details are: the respondents were selected from goo Reseach Monitor Group’s female members, with 21,106 women successfully completing the web-based questionnaire. 1.0% were 19 years old or under, 8.5% were 20-24, 19.5% were 25-29, 26.3% were 30-34, 19.4% were 35-39, 13.3% were 40-44, 6.4% were 45-49, 3.0% were 50-54, 1.8% were 55-59, and just 0.8% were 60 or over. 66.7% were married, and 52.7% had given birth.

Q1: Are you concerned about breast cancer? (Sample size=21,106)

	Very concerned	Somewhat concerned	Neither concerned nor unconcerned	Not very concerned	Not at all concerned
All	30.0%	54.5%	11.5%	3.6%	0.4%
Up to 19 y.o.	16.5%	46.6%	22.8%	11.7%	2.4%
20-24 y.o.	23.0%	53.5%	15.2%	7.5%	0.8%
25-29 y.o.	28.6%	55.4%	11.7%	3.9%	0.3%
30-34 y.o.	30.6%	55.7%	10.8%	2.6%	0.3%
35-39 y.o.	31.1%	54.9%	10.4%	3.2%	0.4%
40-44 y.o.	32.0%	54.3%	10.5%	3.0%	0.2%
45-49 y.o.	31.6%	53.7%	12.7%	1.8%	0.5%
50-54 y.o.	33.3%	48.4%	12.7%	4.7%	0.8%
55-59 y.o.	37.2%	48.4%	9.4%	4.7%	0.3%
Over 60 y.o.	32.3%	49.4%	14.0%	4.3%	0.0%

Q2: Where do you get your information about breast cancer? (Sample size=21,106, multiple answer)

Mother	12.9%
Other family or relatives	6.1%
Friends and acquaintances	23.4%
Newspapers	29.3%
Books or magazines	41.0%
TV or radio	53.0%
Internet	45.2%
Local government information leaflet	13.0%
Doctor	15.6%
Medical check-up service organisation	23.3%
Workplace or school health service	3.6%
I’ve never had information about breast cancer	9.7%
Other	0.7%

Q3: Do you know the following information about breast cancer? (Sample size=21,106, multiple answer)

It’s rapidly increasing within Japanese women	48.0%
Over one in thirty Japanese women will get it	18.5%
Once past your late thirties, the chance of breast cancer drastically increases	47.4%
It’s the leading cause of death from cancer in women from 30 to 64 years old	15.1%
If discovered early, the chance of recovery is 95%	51.5%
If you have regular imaging checks, there is a good chance of discovering cancer	45.6%
It’s a disease you can detect yourself	60.2%
Mammography will discover abnormalities much earlier than touching examinations	55.3%
Don’t know any of the above	6.8%

Q4: If you found a lump or other abnormality on your breast, what sort of clinic do you think you would go to? (Sample size=21,106)

Gynecology clinic	51.9%
Obstetrics and gynaecology clinic	9.6%
Internal medicine clinic	3.7%
Surgical clinic	8.7%
Breast specialist	25.8%
Others	0.4%

Q5: Do you know about specialised breast clinics? (Sample size=21,106)

I know about them	26.6%
I’ve heard about them, but don’t know the details	25.2%
Not heard of them at all	48.2%

Q6: How frequently do you have general health check-ups? (Sample size=21,106)

Every six months	3.5%
Once a year	48.3%
Once every two years	6.9%
Less than once every three years	10.5%
Not had one for over five years	13.1%
Not had one for over ten years	7.2%
Never had one	9.8%
Don’t want to answer	0.8%

Q7: What sort of breast examinations have you had? (Sample size=19,799, multiple answer)

Self-examination	25.6%
Visual and touch examination	34.5%
Mammography	15.6%
Ultrasound	17.6%
Never had one	55.3%
Don’t want to answer	0.7%

Q8: How frequently have you had a uterine cancer test? (Sample size=21,106)

Every six months	2.3%
Once a year	25.5%
Once every two years	9.1%
Less than once every three years	9.0%
Not had one for over five years	6.0%
Not had one for over ten years	2.2%
Never had one	44.7%
Don’t want to answer	1.2%

Q9: What was your motivation for having a breast cancer examination? (Sample size=8,706, multiple answer)

It was recommended that I should	10.2%
I saw information about it in the media (roadshow, magazine, TV, etc)	8.2%
It was part of a workplace check	25.5%
It was part of a local government check	34.2%
I felt myself it was necessary	35.5%
Because a friend or acquaintance has breast cancer	6.5%
Because a family member or relative has breast cancer	6.5%
I was motivated by a breast disease other than cancer	3.6%
Other	9.1%

Q10: Why did you not take a breast cancer examination? (Sample size=12,264, multiple answer)

I’d not had lumps or other symptoms recently	62.6%
At my age, breast cancer is not an issue	12.3%
No-one around me is taking them	12.8%
Takes too long to do it	20.4%
Scared that cancer might be found	7.8%
Not part of the workplace or local government health checks	12.0%
Not had an opportunity to take it	43.9%
I don’t know where to get an examination	15.1%
Nowhere locally to get an examination	5.2%
It’s a delicate matter	13.6%
I’m not concerned about breast cancer	3.6%
Other	5.0%

Q11: In the area you live in, does the local government carry out breast cancer screening? (Sample size=21,106)

Carries out	53.4%
Doesn’t carry out	2.9%
Don’t know	43.7%

Q12: If answered “Carries out” to Q11, in the area you live in, what sort of breast cancer screening examination does the local government perform? (Sample size=11,274, multiple answer)

Visual and touch examination	75.6%
Mammography	40.0%
Ultrasound	18.8%
Other	14.5%

Q13: Which of the following topics do you want to learn about regarding breast cancer? (Sample size=21,106, multiple answer)

About the disease	50.9%
About hospitals that do screening	59.0%
Infomation about breast specialists	54.4%
About local government measures	40.9%
About disease prevention methods	59.1%
About treatment methods	53.5%
About after-effects	34.9%
About medicines	30.2%
About fees for treatment etc	53.4%
About communities and information exchanges	13.4%
About latest information	31.8%
No information I want	2.4%
Others	0.8%

A bit of a biggie again tonight. I’m surprised that there is no direct question about how often people have had breast cancer checks (is this deliberate as they don’t want to highlight a largish figure?), although I note with a bit of surprise that over a quarter have yearly scanning downstairs, which seems to be higher than I would have expected, especially in light of an article by Rebecca K Green I read on Japan Today reporting that only 3% of women have mammograms, yet here 15.6% say they have had mammograms, and even more have had ultrasound checks, although of course the same people could be getting both examinations.

There’s also the other issues that yearly breast cancer checks are, according to UK calculations, not cost-effective (although it’s a difficult thing to cost), and that testicular and prostate cancer get almost zero coverage, even though they can be just as deadly.

Since this blog, like many others, and like real life too, is littered with adverts, it might be useful to look at how the Japanese perceive advertising. This survey from goo Research attempted to address this issue. This survey was carried out amongst 2,147 people residing in Tokyo and the surrounding prefectures of Saitama, Kanagawa and Chiba. It was performed as a real time survey using mobile phones, whatever that means. I think it means they just phoned mobile numbers from their survey group at random, so people could answer about their current surroundings.
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As someone who chews gum after almost every meal at home, the following survey from goo Research on usage in Japan is interesting to me. I suppose I could add comments on the dodgy state of Japanese teeth, but (a) I’ll resist the temptation, and (b) that sort of comment is often from Americans with unnaturally straight white gnashers. In addition I’ve received wonderful treatment from my Japanese dentist. So, back at the survey, they questioned 2,167 people from their private internet group at the end of August, and obtained the following results.

However, first I will explain a couple of terms. “Functional” gum means gum with medical or other beneficial claims associated with them, whether it be direct ones like some on the market with Xylitol, teeth whitening properties, non-smoking, or more vague claims about relieving dry throats or caffine-laced products. The TOKUHO mark is a stamp of approval by some government body to say the prduct thus stamped has been demonstrated to actually have the healthy properties that are claimed. With most (all?) brands of bottle gums, there is a book of small-sized Post-It Notes ™-like “disposal paper” included that is meant to be used for wrapping your used gum in.

Q: How often do you chew functional gum? (Sample size=2,167)

Almost daily	14.7%
About twice or thrice a week	15.2%
About once a week	12.1%
About twice or thrice a month	13.7%
Less than once a month	21.2%
Don’t chew functional gum	23.2%

Q: What is your reason for chewing functional gum? (Sample size=1,665; multiple answer)

Getting rid of bad breath after food, etc	55.5%
Cavity prevention	45.5%
Preventing tiredness	39.5%
Relaxation	34.0%
Just chew because it’s to hand (eg on top of desk, etc)	23.9%
Instead of cleaning teeth after meals, etc	23.3%
Prevent dry throat	7.4%
Others	3.7%

Q: What type of functional gum do you normally buy? (Sample size=1,665)

	All	Male	Female
Bottle type (loose tabs)	34.7%	36.0%	64.7%
Stick type	34.7%	43.9%	54.7%
Packaged tab type	34.7%	29.0%	73.6%

Q: After buying bottle type gum, how has your gum consumption changed? (Sample size=577)

Increased greatly	31.5%
Increased slightly	42.1%
Stayed about the same	23.6%
Decreased a little	0.2%
Decreased a lot	0.4%
I didn’t buy other gums before buying bottles	2.3%

Q: What do you use the “disposal paper” in the bottles for? (Sample size=577)

Throwing away the chewed gum	64.9%
As a memo pad	19.1%
Just throw it away without using it	10.4%
Didn’t know there was disposal paper inside	4.2%
Others	1.6%

Q: Do you check whether the gum has an effect when you buy it? (Sample size=2,167)

Always check	15.3%
Sometimes check	42.6%
Don’t really check	30.7%
Never check	11.4%

Q: Do you check whether the Tokuho mark is present when you buy gum (of any kind)? (Sample size=2,167)

Always check	4.7%
Sometimes check	22.1%
Don’t really check	44.2%
Never check	29.1%

Q: Do you check whether the Tokuho mark is present when you buy functional gum? (Sample size=1,665)

Always check	5.7%
Sometimes check	26.2%
Don’t really check	47.2%
Never check	21.0%

Recently (how recently is not stated!) goo Research published this survey on blog awareness and usage in Japan, their 19th survey in their series on blogging. 1,042 Internet users aged from teens to their 50s were surveyed, with 58.83% (uggh, what’s with the two decimal places? I’ll round to one for the rest of this story) of the sample women. The following results were obtained:

Q: Within the last month, have you looked at someone else’s blog?

Yes	75.4%
No	18.9%
Don’t know what a blog is	5.7%

The viewers percentage has tripled since their first survey last April and the don’t knows have decreased from almost 41% first time out.

Q: Within the last month, have you posted a comment on someone else’s blog?

	All	Male	Female
Yes	25.4%	22.2%	27.8%
No	74.6%	77.8%	72.2%

Q:Have you made a blog yourself?

Yes	27.2%
No but I want to try sometime	33.3%
No, and don’t plan to	32.2%
Don’t know what a blog is	7.3%

The number not knowing what a blog is has increased! Perhaps people paniced at this question and realised they didn’t really understand things after all?

There now follows a large table describing what blogs people use, but rather than reproduce the whole lot, the highlights from the sample of 283 bloggers are livedoor leading at 17.7%, down from 23.4% last time (last month?); goo at 16.2% down from 17.7%; and Rakuten at 15.2% from 15.6%. Yahoo! and not listed others are the only gainers, 2% and 4% respectively.

One reason for more losers than winners is that the question allows multiple answers. The last time the average blogger used just under one and a half services; this time it is just under 1.4 services, suggesting either people are keeping less blogs or moving their blogs to a single provider.

Q: About how often do you update your blog? (Sample size=283)

Daily or so	21.9%
Twice or thrice a week	26.9%
Once a week	13.8%
Twice or thrice a month	14.1%
Once a month	5.6%
Once every two or three months	6.7%
Less than once every six months	11%

Q: Has your blog received a trackback? (Sample size=283 I think)

	All	Male	Female
Yes	68.2%	72.6%	65.5%
No	31.8%	27.4%	34.5%

On the other hand, only 33.9% have sent a trackback to another blog.

Q: Do you use an affiliate (cash-for-clicks) program? (Sample size=283)

I participate in one already	16.6%
I definitely want to join one	26.5%
I want to join one	25.1%
I don’t really want to join one	14.8%
I don’t want to join one	6.4%
Don’t know	10.6%

Finally, bloggers and those who wanted to be bloggers were asked what were the three most important factors when selecting a blog service to build a blog in. Of the 630 respondents, the top three answers were “Easy to make” at 77.5%, “Easy to understand management system” at 59.0%, and finally “Freedom of layout” at 37.1%. Strangely, I thought, magazine recommendations was right down at the bottom, less than 1% selecting it as a key factor.

Personally, I’ve always thought it was a daft idea, and never knew why companies are pushing it so hard over here in Japan. The last thing you want from a mobile is for the battery to run out, and trying to follow the action on a tiny screen with a non-existant aerial seems like a lesson in frustration. This survey seems to back up my opinions. It was carried out at the end of July, amongst 2,156 people from a private internet survey group, 55.1% male, predominantly under 50 years old.
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