Japanese General Social Survey, 2000 (ICPSR 3593)

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This survey, based on the General Social Survey in the United States, was designed to solicit political, sociological, and economic information from people living in Japan. Questions on crime and the judicial system queried respondents about the death penalty and the appropriateness of punishments given to juvenile and adult offenders, whether respondents had ever been punched or beaten, whether respondents had been victims of robberies within the last year, and whether there was an area, within one kilometer of their homes, where respondents were afraid to venture. Questions on family issues covered topics such as when divorce was the best course of action for those involved, the frequency that families dined together and performed household chores, the health of respondents' marriages, the roles of spouses within marriage, whether one or both spouses should change their surnames, the ideal number of children a couple should have, whether there was a sex preference for children, whether the respondents had pets and the benefits of pet ownership, where respondents would like to be buried, and whether in some cases, physical punishment of children by parents or teachers was acceptable. Questions on finances included items on the state of respondents' finances during the last few years, how their family's income compared to other Japanese families, how their family's income compared to that of Japanese families 15 years ago, whether the income tax rate was high, the amount of pension respondents would receive upon retirement, how respondents' families organized their finances, and the ease of improving one's standard of living in Japan. Political questions addressed whether the government should be responsible for the livelihood and medical care of the elderly, whether the government was usurping individual responsibilities, whether respondents would vote for a woman gubernatorial candidate, government spending, respondents' commitment and sense of belonging to the political process, and whether one of the government's duties was to reduce family income disparities. Also, respondents were asked to rate their political views on a scale from Conservative (1) to Progressive (5). In terms of health, information was solicited on the health of respondents and their spouses, whether a doctor should be able to painlessly end a patient's life if the patient's condition was terminal, whether respondents had signed organ donation cards, and the frequency of smoking, alcohol consumption, and sexual relations in the last 12 months. Quality of life questions addressed the frequency with which respondents read the newspaper, the average number of books respondents read per month, the average number of hours respondents watched television, whether respondents attended any job- or hobby-related classes, the amount of satisfaction respondents received from life, the frequency respondents went on trips lasting at least two days, and how often respondents participated in leisure activities like fishing, jogging, mahjong, etc. Respondents were asked to give their opinions concerning a married person having sexual relations with someone other than their spouse, sexual relations between two adults of the same sex, whether pornography leads to the breaking down of morals, whether the client, the teen, both, or neither party was responsible for teen prostitution, and whether pornography should be banned completely, not available to anyone under 18, or not be regulated at all. Information gathered on religion included whether respondents believed in life after death and whether they and/or their spouses followed a religion and the extent of their participation. Respondents were polled for information regarding their social status, whether it was desirable for three generations of family to share a home, whether men should learn to cook and care for themselves, the trustworthiness of most people, the general motivations of others, whether respondents were members of any groups like religious, trade, or social service organizations, and to what degree respondents utilized technology like computers, e-mail, and the Internet to perform daily life tasks. Demographic information includes age, sex, employment status, marital status, household income, and religious orientation.

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