30 Years of Freedom, 30 Years of Loss. What the Youth Survey Reveals.

【Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living releases the results of its “Youth Survey” 30-year change – Major changes in parents/children/friendship/working/study/environment, etc.】
https://www.hakuhodo.co.jp/news/newsrelease/111011/

・Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living conducted a survey of never-married men and women aged 19-22 for the first time in 30 years since 1994.

・The survey revealed the following findings: 1. The presence of mothers has increased significantly over the past 30 years.

・50.7% of young people share common interests with their mothers, an increase of 20.8 percentage points since 1994.
・The number of young people who share common interests with their fathers has also increased over the past 30 years, but the increase in the number of those who share common interests with their mothers has been greater.

・Mothers are the most respected partner, up 14.6 points from 1994, reversing the trend for fathers.
・In the past, there was no significant difference between fathers and mothers in terms of “the person who has the greatest influence on my values and way of thinking,” but by 2024, “mothers” will have increased by 19.6 points.

・Survey Findings, Part 2: “Young people’s love life has accelerated over the past 30 years,” and “Same-sex friendships are becoming more important than opposite-sex friendships.

・In 2024, 67.3% of young people have no one to date, a significant increase of 22.1 points from 1994.

・The top three in 1994 were “my girlfriend” (5th) and “my husband” (10th) in 2024, a significant drop from 1994.
・The top 3 in 1994 were “money,” “luck/luck,” and “ability,” while the top 3 in 2024 were “money,” “time,” and “freedom.

・In 1994, the majority of respondents were of the opposite sex in terms of “a partner with whom I feel comfortable” and “the person I want by my side the most when I am depressed,” but in 2024, both were down more than 20 points.
On the other hand, “same-sex” increased significantly over the 30-year period and turned into the majority, greatly surpassing “opposite-sex.

The above is a quote from the article

30 Years of Freedom, 30 Years of Loss. What the Youth Survey Reveals.

This is a very interesting survey result.

The subjects of the survey 30 years ago were the “junior baby boomers,” who are the parents of the subjects of this survey (currently aged 49-52).

As it says,

Assuming a parent-child relationship, it would not be surprising if the values of the parents were passed on to their children, but I have the impression that things have changed quite a bit over the past 30 years.

What this survey reveals, I think, is a change in the values of marriage.

In the past, there was a sense of value that one was on one’s own after getting married and having children.

Now, however, I have the impression that people are not so bound by the old values, saying that it is okay not to get married or not to have children.

If we were not so tied to the idea of marriage, it would be inevitable that we would not be so active in love.

Also,

The survey also shows that the presence of mothers has been increasing, but I think it is correct to look at the graph as if the presence of fathers, which was too large, has shrunk to the standard level, and the presence of mothers, which was too small, has expanded to the standard level.

Perhaps it could be said that women’s social position has risen compared to the past. (Well, I think it is also correct to say that the too low level has been raised to the standard level.)

Anyway,

I have the impression that the old-fashioned values of “marriage is absolute” and “fatherhood is absolute” have softened over the past 30 years.

In a sense, it may be 30 years of freedom.

In fact,

freedom” is ranked among the top 3 things we want in 2024.

However, here is something interesting,

The last 30 years are also called the “lost 30 years.

Did 30 years of increased freedom give rise to 30 lost years?

Because of the lost 30 years, did we have no choice but to at least live freely?

I am very curious about the relevance of this.

In any case, I believe that “freedom” will be a major point of reference for the next 30 years as well.

When I say freedom, I tend to have a somewhat positive image of it,

It is not.

I believe that the way we deal with and handle freedom is very important.

What does freedom mean to you?

There are several things to think about freedom: freedom of employees, freedom of the president, freedom to live, freedom to starve, freedom of the people, freedom of politicians, and so on.

The results of the survey made me think that freedom is the key to Japan, both in the past and in the future.

See you then

Personally, I believe that freedom without an axis or anything else is not good. An example of an axis would be a belief, an idea, a philosophy, or something like that.