Are Japanese values changing?
When Japan’s economy was booming（好景気） in the global market in the 1980’s, many of the Japanese (国民)were buying luxurious items to enhance their lives. Japanese employees lived stable lives due to lifetime-employment management systems（終身雇用） and seniority reward systems (年功序列制度).Nevertheless, this type of management style, which had helped Japan’s blossoming economy, is no longer effective due to increased globalization and the bursting of the bubble economy. According to the world competitiveness yearbook of the International institute for management development, in 1992 Japan was ranked 1st, however, by 2011 Japan had dropped to 27th.
Perhaps, it is just that the Japanese attitudes towards work are changing? After the 2011 Japanese tsunami, the response for volunteer help was overwhelming (圧倒的).In the past, the Japanese, like most developed nations placed a large emphasis on money as their motivation for work. However, the tendency to value work satisfaction （仕事の満足）has been on a recent up rise. According to the Japanese Institute for Labour Policy and Training, it highlights that the Japanese who place more meaning on living spiritually rather than seeking status and wealth. Further, the number of people that supported a more equal society with less inequality exceeded the number of people that supported a society that rewarded a person’s individual success (成功) and talents (才能). Therefore, from this can we infer that the Japanese are no longer interested in a competition based society (自由に競争ができる社会)? Absolutely not.
During the Second World War (第二次世界大戦), Emperor Shōwa was determined to make Japan the world’s strongest nation, and the Japanese people were not hesitant to sacrifice their own lives for this cause. After the war, the Japanese found purpose in working hard for their companies, collectively helping to increase Japan’s global presence. However, due to China’s expected rise and an increase in global competition （世界の競争）, Japan’s economic power is gradually fading（日本の経済大国がだんだん薄らいでいます）. And, Perhaps Japanese values are simply adapting to this change the best way they know how.
Nevertheless, the Japanese do have some values that will never be broken. For instance, a daily rule is to not cause problems to others and to think of others first. Typically in Japan, the Japanese think of the country first. This is a quality that seems to be lost in other developed and developing societies. Since the tsunami, we often hear touching stories of the Japanese banding together. For instance, from a report from Sendai, if one household has water, they will put signs up on their doors for their neighbors to come share with them. It seems as if everything in Japanese society is preparing them for situations to come together.
Despite a possible change in attitudes towards work, the Japanese fundamental principles of selflessness represent a true collectivist society. And even though, I live in the United Kingdom where capitalistic individualism rules, we can still learn some things from the Japanese.
By Christian Gin
