"It Wasn't This Much Before"... Japanese Becoming Increasingly Introverted, Study Points to the Reasons

Sharp Decline in Extraversion Among Japanese Men and Women Over the Past Decade
Economic Recession and Spread of Individualism Cited as Causes
A Trend Opposite to That Seen in Europe, the United States, and China

A recent study has found that Japanese people are becoming increasingly introverted. The background for this trend is attributed to economic recession and the spread of individualism.

Tokyo, Japan. Photo unrelated to the specific content of the article. Photo by TASS Yonhap News

On September 22, the Asahi Shimbun reported that, according to a personality trait survey conducted by a research team at Aoyama Gakuin University from 2010 to 2021, both Japanese men and women have shown a declining tendency in extraversion over the years.

The research team analyzed data from 49,905 Japanese individuals across 48 studies, evaluating extraversion on a scale from 1 to 7 (with 4 being the median). The average score dropped from 4.05 points in 2010 to 2015 to 3.82 points in 2016 to 2021.

During this period, extraversion was higher among women (4.07 points) than men (3.80 points). However, both genders demonstrated a declining trend in extraversion over time.

A decrease in extraversion indicates an increase in introversion. This suggests that, more broadly, there is a societal trend of declining activity and sociability among people.

The Asahi Shimbun pointed out that this is in contrast to similar studies in Europe, the United States, and China, where extraversion has increased.

The researchers cited economic factors as a reason for the diminishing levels of extraversion among Japanese people.

Japan has experienced a prolonged economic recession, known as the "Lost 30 Years," and the research team analyzed that this economic situation may have also affected extraversion levels among people.

There was a positive correlation found between economic prosperity and extraversion. For instance, in a similar study conducted in China, regions with higher per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rates also saw greater increases in extraversion.

The spread of individualism was also mentioned as a factor behind the decrease in extraversion. The growing trend towards individualism has clashed with Japan’s traditional collectivism, and, unlike the United States or Europe, a form of "individualism that severs ties with others" is spreading in Japan.

The Asahi Shimbun also reported that the spread of social networking services (SNS) may have had an impact. Specifically, the newspaper explained, “While extraverted individuals tend to become even more extraverted through their use of SNS, research results have shown that introverted individuals become more introverted after using SNS.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.