Today's Japanese teenagers are pessimistic and introverted
The Yomiuri Shimbun conducted a nationwide survey on Japanese youths to
primarily investigate the views of today's youngsters on society and life,
as well as how they believe they should lead their lives. The survey targeted
5,000 individuals aged between 12 and 19. Effective responses were sent
in by 2,942 individuals (response rate: 59%).
The survey revealed many interesting findings. In looking at their response
rates, we found that, when asked how they felt about the future of Japan,
24% of the respondents said that it was bright and 75% said that it was
bleak; when asked if they were proud to be Japanese, a total of only 65%
said "Yes" and "Yes, to some degree," while 33% were
not; when asked what they would do if Japan was invaded by another country,
13% said that they would join the armed resistance, 29% said that they
would resist using means other than weapons, 44% said that they would flee
to a safe place, and 12% said that they would surrender.
To the question, "Do you think that today's Japanese society allows
everybody to succeed if he or she makes the effort?", 75% said no
and 24% said yes. When asked what sort of life they wanted to lead, 69%
said that they would do work that they liked; 62% said that they would
like to build a happy family; and 54% said that they would enjoy doing
hobbies and other things they liked to do (multiple answers were accepted).
This survey revealed a generation of youngsters who were pessimistic and
introverted, perhaps reflecting adult society after the collapse of the
bubble economy in Japan.
With the number of children continuing to fall, adults have a major responsibility
to build a society which does not undermine children's natural optimism.
The survey revealed the following to be the work or profession that the
children wanted to do or become in the future.
Boys: (1) Professional athletes, (2) teachers, (3) automotive-related work
including car mechanics, (4) scholars, scientists, and researchers, (5)
engineers and machinery-related personnel, (6) government workers, (7)
doctors, (8) singers and musicians, (9) programmers, (10) policemen and
detectives, and (10) games designers.
Girls: (1) Nursery school/kindergarten teachers, (2) beauticians and makeup
artists, (3) nurses, (4) teachers, (5) welfare personnel and nursing care
specialists, (6) cartoonists and animation-related work, (7) pet- and animal-related
work, (8) clothing and apparel-related work, (9)media-related work, and
(10) singers and musicians.