Japan needs to have more babies. The population of Japan is declining, and the birth rate is a base problem. People just aren’t having enough babies anymore. This will be problematic, as Tomm says “The consequences have had negative effects as fertility rate continues to decline and life expectancy continues to increase”. After the birth rate has been declining for the past four decades, the old far outnumber the young at a ratio of nearly 2:1(“Japan Age structure”). There aren’t enough workers to pay into social security. Social problems like traditional gender roles and stereotypes negatively impact the growth of the population. Because of their work-centric lifestyles, social problems, and child related expenses, Japan’s birth rate is severely declining.
First, the lifestyle of the Japanese is very different to that of Americans. Whereas people in America generally spend lots of time with their families, the people of Japan typically only see each other at certain times such as meals or weekends. This is due to a heavy focus on business and work life, especially since seniority at a company determines your wages and potential for promotion (Huen 2). As part of the seniority aspect of work, many women are reluctant to have children as it forces them to take time away from work in order to have a baby and to raise the child. According to Huen, “The Japanese employment system thus offers workers something close to permanent job security if they are patient about advancement, with predictable pay increases, company housing and several kinds of fringe benefits, all in return for workers’ loyalty and commitment to the company”. This system causes many women not to want children until their careers are well on the way to becoming ...
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...r people leaving the workforce. If something doesn’t change, Japan may not even be able to survive.
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Document F examines the lives of 2 children effected by the OCP. They both felt it helped them in the long run, but all of the attention and pressure to do well was on them. This leads to the creation of the “Little Emperors.” This can lead to a poor ability of cooperation in the next generation. The amount of pressure on a single-child to do well can also lead to an increase of depression and suicide among the new generation, which is not the correct way to decrease population. Document B dives into the issue of fertility rates before and after the OCP takes effect. A year before the Policy takes effect China’s fertility rate is 2.7; in 2008 it is 1.7. This change is unnatural and extremely savage. Social issues are only the tip of the iceberg; the One Child Policy also caused a gender gap beyond
Hane, M., Peasants, Rebels, Women and Outcastes: the Underside of Modern Japan, New York: Pantheon Books, 1982.
Japan is facing a de-population crisis. Birth rates have be dropping since the economic boom of the 1970s, and the drop in birth rates is accelerating. Actual population is now around 127 million, but at current rates of decline is expected to drop to 100 million by the middle of this century, and by the start of the next century, to around 40-50 million people. In addition, Japan has the longest life-expectancy in the world, and its “pensioners” are growing as the workers who support them in their later years are declining rapidly. Sixty years ago, there were about eleven workers to support each pensioner; today there are only two. Japan’s current debt load is higher than Greece’s debt, and that could ultimately result in major economic issues. Sakanaka Hidenori, in his Immigration Battle Diary, urges Japan to consider the options available to address the population issue and its economic repercussions. He argues that they can either stay the course and prepare for the changes this will cause, or change immigration policy and prepare for the cultural ramifications of that decision.
Li, Hongbin, Junjian Yi, and Junsen Zhang. "Estimating The Effect Of The One-Child Policy On
Trager, James. Letters from Sachiko: A Japanese Woman's View of Life in the Land of the Economic Miracle. New York: Atheneum, 1982. 167. Print.
With all the different economic opportunities, it is no wonder some Americans see procreation as a supplemental source of monetary income. During the twentieth century, we propagated the American Dream and placed pressure on Americans to settle down and start families. Prior to the twentieth century, many couples would have children, who would often then become labor assets; children would tend the fields or do various jobs around the home to save the family money by avoiding outsourcing. As the population grew, the laws of supply and demand triggered a need for new technology; this technology made it easier to sustain the population but also made the need for the extra children obsolete. This did not stop Americans from breeding.
N. Gleicher, D. Barad, Does gender selection devalue women?, Fertility and Sterility, Volume 88, Supplement 1, September 2007, Page S260, ISSN 0015-0282, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2007.07.887.
In the article, “A Small Town in Japan Doubles it’s Fertility Rate,” the author talks about why the fertility rates in the small town of Nagicho are increasing, and the effects that it has had on the town. The author explains the reasoning behind what has happened to make the fertility rates grow, in relation to why it is necessary. The author uses a woman that lives in the town to better convey why the fertility rates are growing, stating that she will receive rewards such as a “celebratory gift, of ¥300,000 ($3,530) for having a child,” and “¥90,000 a year for each child she has in school.” This article conveys the events that take place in order to increase a certain populations fertility rates, and the positive and negative outcomes that
Men are likely to get hired if they have children and tend to get paid more. In contrast, women are less likely to get hired even though they have more quality and children. This is when the gender inequality come in. In this article “The Motherhood Penalty vs. the Fatherhood Bonus” the author presented the role and the impact between the roles of the genders. Michelle Budig, a sociology professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst put it this way, “The inequality of gender role reveals when men get paid high for having children and women pay the biggest price for the low income” (Qtd. in Miller). According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, 71 percent of mothers are with their children working at home and 40 percent are the primary bread winner (Pew Research Center). In this perspective of women working at home and men working in career shift the qualification between them. The inequality is that employer sees the father as a commit worker and a mother as a distraction in workplaces because women have extra hours of work to do at home with their children and house chores. Claire Miller states that, “one of the worst career moves a women can make is to have children” (Claire Miller). As for the women in the United States, there are a lot of negative impact for them if they decide to have babies. The quality for them shrink to the corner while men hold the advantage of having
Increasing Numbers are Opting Not to have Children, but Face Pressure from Family Members and Issues in the Workplace." Los Angeles Times: 0. Nov 10 2000. ProQuest. Web. 9 Feb. 2014 .
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7) Richards, Lucinda. “Controlling China’s Baby Boom.” Contemporary Review Jan. 1996: 5-9. Wilson Select Plus.
According to Global Road Warrior, Japan's population as of July 2013 is at 127,253,075 people, with an over-whelming majority of the public being elderly. "The Report says that two out of five Japanese will be over the age of sixty five by 2060" (PressTvGlobalNews). This sort of issue has yet to happen in all of history, so what is the cause of this crisis? It is becoming wildly believed that the media, influence and life style changes are having a great impact on this population decline.
A contributing factor to this, according to Mary Brinton, sociology professor at Harvard University, is that women continue to balance family with the demand of work and being available all the time (Gender Inequality and Women in the Workplace, 2016). As a result, women take on a “second shift” when they get home from work and in choosing to progress professionally many are having less children or waiting longer to have children. There seems to be a correlation between gender equality at home and the workplace with lower birth
For the past decade, the Japanese economy has been one of the strongest and most stable economies in the world. In analyzing why it has been so successful, several factors must be considered. First, the education system of Japan is one of the highest ranked in the world. The reason for this is that Japanese children go to school and study more than students in most other countries. The school year lasts for 240 days and each school day is very long. Furthermore, most students go to "cram schools" to study even more after the regular school day is over. This is all in preparation for the college entrance exam (Morton, 251-255). Some people have also said that this prepares Japanese youth for their future in companies with jobs that require great dedication and 80 to 90 hour work weeks.