世論 What Japan Thinks

[part 1] [part 2] [part 3]

DIMSDRIVE Research recently performed a survey to find out what people thought about kimonos. Over one week at the end of January, they got 7,607 people, 60.4% female, from their internet monitor group to reply to the questionnaire. 1.6% of the respondents were in their teens, 19.6% in their twenties, 36.6% in their thirties, 26.2% in their forties, 11.9% in their fifties, and 4.1% sixty and over.

This second half sees some more interesting statistics. Most people don’t buy their own kimono, but I would like to know why. Is it a coming of age present? A wedding present? Do they get them new or as hand-me-downs?

It is also interesting how the kimono’s image is foremostly positive, with the top two answers praising it, but then followed by four very negative images.
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[part 1] [part 2] [part 3]

DIMSDRIVE Research recently performed a survey to find out what people thought about kimonos. Over one week at the end of January, they got 7,607 people, 60.4% female, from their internet monitor group to reply to the questionnaire. 1.6% of the respondents were in their teens, 19.6% in their twenties, 36.6% in their thirties, 26.2% in their forties, 11.9% in their fifties, and 4.1% sixty and over.

Note that I believe that the 浴衣 yukata and 甚平 jinbei, the cheap summer wear that resembles just a fancy dressing gown more than a formal item of clothing, is excluded from this survey; they are focusing on the posh ceremonial item here. I base this supposition on “fireworks display” or “summer festival” not being listed as answers to the question on the place that people last wore one, as at these two places one regularly sees many young people kitted out in cheap and colourful loose cotton garments.

Personally, I’ve never worn a kimono nor have any great urge to wear one, although I should compare the results of this survey with my views on kilts. I own a kilt, which I’ve worn to three weddings here in Japan, and it always goes down well with the natives. In deference to Japan, and betraying my heritage, I do wear Hello Kitty boxers underneath…

This survey will be split into two parts, published today and tomorrow.
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infoPLANT carried out a survey over a week at the end of January to find out what people thought regarding pre-cooked frozen foodstuffs. From the explanations within, this covers a wide spectrum covering both complete meals and individual side dishes. I do not believe that chilled foods are covered by this survey.

A self-selecting sample of 8,578 people, 66.4% female, completed a survey presented through the DoCoMo iMode menuing system. 3% were in their teens, 37% in their twenties, 43% in their thirties, 16% in their forties, and just 2% fifty or older.

This is probably about the most dull survey I have ever translated, so I apologise for that!

Notice that over four in five chose taste as the most important factor, whilst only a quarter stated taste as a reason for using them, suggesting that Japanese consumers are not particularly impressed by the taste of their frozen foods.

In Q2 it was seen that the over fifty group tended more to buy in bulk, and that is reflected in this question where the same demographic noted the highest importance in the best before date. Over fifty year old women also recorded the highest percentage in the safety, maker or brand image, and preparation method questions.
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NEPRO JAPAN recently published an interesting survey on how mobile phones have changed users’ lives. They got replies from 4,610 people who answered a questionnaire available for one day at the start of February through iMode, vodafone live! and EZweb mobile phone service menus. The sample consisted of 40% male, 4% in their teens, 38% in their twenties, 41% in their thirties, and 17% aged forty and over.

Some of the figures are quite amazing, such as one in four spending over three hours a day on their phone. However, when you consider that the average commute for people is over 90 minutes per day (must find exact figures – I’ve just seen an in-train poster stating that statistic) and many people will be busy mailing or gaming (when they aren’t sleeping), the hours soon add up.

Question 3, on whether people use a fixed or a mobile line at home may very well be biased by people who still live at home but do not pay the fixed line phone bill.

Note also that this survey is self-selecting through a mobile phone menu, so people who only spend a couple of minutes per day on the phone are most unlikely to ever have seen this questionnaire!
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MyVoice carried out a survey of its community at the start of this month to see what they thought about self-service (counter service only) coffee shops. 16,311 people, 46% male, completed their internet questionnaire. 3% were teenagers, 24% in their twenties, 37% in their thirties, 24% in their forties, and 12% fifty years old or over.

Japan is apparently the only country in the world (sorry, I can’t find a definite statement of the statistics) where the Coca-Cola Company make more money (or sell more by volume, or something) with a drink other than their signature fizzy brown bevarage, namely their line of Georgia canned coffee, which are, on the whole, either over-sugary, over-milky (a friend got kidney stones from drinking six or eight cans a day and hardly any other liquids, bar beer) or over-bitter for my taste.

Also note that in Japan there is little tradition of carrying out a cup of coffee from a shop. Even around Starbucks, almost no-one will drink their coffee anywhere bar the shop; I personally can only recall one time seeing a Japanese person carrying a coffee cup onto a train, for instance.

Finally, most coffee shops are still smoking. Starbucks is non-smoking throughout (except for seating outside, if available), but other chains often have perhaps only have a quarter or less reserved for non-smokers, and little effective segregation. However, note the last question, about why people like their particular favourite chain – only 9.5% choose smoking segregation (all non-smoking was not an option) as a plus, at most just a fifth of the Starbucks fans, versus 9% who choose that smoking is allowed, which is again just about a fifth of those with a favourite other than Starbucks.

I seem to have written far too much about Starbucks already! I’m much more a tea and table service man myself.
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goo Research, in cooperation with the Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun Ltd, performed an internet-based survey in Decemeber of 2005 amongst 1,076 people regarding their views on NEETs and Freeters. At the same time, 218 companies also answered a similar set of questions, and the answers have been gathered together for presentation in this report, although the text does not make it clear whereabout the company answers have been included. Unfortunately, neither the sex nor the age breakdown of the survey is available, as that might have provided extra clues to interpreting the results.

First, I had better translate a couple of terms. NEET, or Not in Education, Employment or Training, was first coined in the UK to refer to teenagers, mainly, who left school with neither a job not ongoing education lined up. In Japan, it refers to a much wider population; there is no age limit, and as for employment, NEETs may do casual or very short-term labour (in fact, there are a number of heavily-advertised web sites that advertise these pocket-money jobs) and may very well have completed a university degree, but due to various factors have not decided to commit themselves to a job. I am not sure from where exactly they get money to support themselves, but it is most likely from their parents.

Freeters, on the other hand, is a purely Japanese word, formed by taking the English word “freelance”, or perhaps just “free”, and the German word “arbeiter”, meaning part-time, or at least not a full employee, 正社員, seishain. Many of the part-time jobs are in the service industry, so a freeter may flit from flipping burgers in McDonalds for three months, to doing the late night shift at the local convenience for another two months, to two weeks not working at anything at all.

The essential difference is perhaps that a NEET spends more time not working whereas a Freeter works just enough to fund his own time off. Along with the overall decrease in young people, with NEETs and Freeters not contributing much in the way of taxes, the ability of the government to pay pensions in the future is further threatened by the casualisation (is that a word?) of the workforce.
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[part 1] [part 2]

goo Research recently performed a large investigation into HIV and AIDS awareness amongst the Japanese. 38,474 people supplied answers to the questions posted in an open to the public internet-based survey, availiable for a week at the end of November. The demographics were 2.7% 19 or under, 25.4% between 20 and 29, 39.8% from 30 to 39, 22.8% between 40 and 49, 7.2% between 50 and 59, and 2.3% sixty and over.

The second half of the survey sees that there is still a small but perhaps significant minority of those with prejudices against those with HIV and AIDS. There is also a larger minority with some reservations about these matters, but I think that, for instance, there has to be some rational discrimination – obvious ones like disallowing blood transfusions or regulations regarding working in environments where there are the risks of blood contamination are present, such as masks and gloves for food preparation.
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[part 1] [part 2]

goo Research recently performed a large investigation into HIV and AIDS awareness amongst the Japanese. 38,474 people supplied answers to the questions posted in an open to the public internet-based survey, availiable for a week at the end of November. The demographics were 2.7% 19 or under, 25.4% between 20 and 29, 39.8% from 30 to 39, 22.8% between 40 and 49, 7.2% between 50 and 59, and 2.3% sixty and over.

One of the more interesting results is the figure that almost one in three blame foreigners or Japanese playing around overseas as the reason for the increase in AIDS cases in Japan. This is an important figure to note, as it is an often recited statistic that a big number of Japanese blame foreigners for nasty diseases, an attitude I feel is a bit racist, especially as it usually comes from people who complain about discrimination from the Japanese. Whether or not 31.7% does represent a big number, and from that 31.7% how many are worried about the Japanese playing away from home versus the foreigner contingent, I’ll leave that for others to discuss.

Also of note are the condom usage statistics. Unfortunately, those in monogamous relationships are not listed separately, as that certainly affects usage rate, as does the low rate of usage of The Pill (must find some stats on that!).
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Trivia no Izumi (Fount/Spring of Trivia) outdid itself tonight, with a survey to find out when people who had been married for three years first heard their wife pass gas! They interviewed 1000 Japanese husbands by means of an internet poll, and as you can see in the pie chart on the right, almost half the wives (43%) couldn’t keep it in for more than a year. 29% first let rip in the second year, 16% avoided a bottom burp until their third year, and 12% of husbands have been spared their wives’ anal emissions.

For good measure, this segment of the show also had face-to-face interviews with some of the husbands describing the how and where of their wives’ flatulance, accompanied by their wedding photos, leaving their neighbours in no doubt who they were talking about!

To finish up this item of trivia, they persuaded one of the wives who had never passed gas in front of her husband to try to do it, so their hidden cameras could capture this moment for posterior-ity…

Oh, and I certainly will not tell you what category my wife falls into!

[ part 1 | part 2 | part 3 ]

Continuing on from part two, the Cabinet Office, Government of Japan (that seems to be the official title anyway), conducted a wide-ranging survey regarding the people of Japan’s everyday life. This is rather a large survey, so it will be published in three parts on subsequent days. 6,924 people participated in the poll, conducted by face-to-face interviews in various areas throughout Japan. In this section, many Japanese say they want to live away from their children in their old age, and work is defined by salary.

Q13: In your opinion, normally with whom and how is the best way to live in old age?

Live with son (and wife if applicable)	15.1%
Live near son (and wife if applicable)	8.7%
Live with daughter (and husband if applicable)	5.7%
Live near daughter (and husband if applicable)	7.2%
Either son or daughter is best	10.6%
Live separate from children	38.0%
Other	1.8%
Don’t know	12.8%

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