Table of ContentsOverview of JapanJapanese CulturePolitical StructureThe Status of Men and Women in Japanese CultureThe Prevalence of Social Withdrawal in JapanPotential Solutions to the Problem of Social Withdrawal in JapanOverview of JapanJapan is located in South Asia Northeast. It is an island in the Pacific Ocean bordering China, North and South Korea, and Russia to the east. Japan is a group of islands, the largest of which are Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu and Hokkaido; covering approximately 97 percent of Japan's total land area. Demographically, it has approximately 127 million people, most of whom are concentrated in metropolitan areas such as Tokyo. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Japan is one of the major economic powers. It prides itself on being the third largest economy in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) and purchasing power. Generally, Japan can be considered a developed country with a relatively high standard of living. According to reports from the World Health Organization, Japan reports having the third lowest infant mortality rate. Japanese Culture Japanese culture has progressed since historical times, from traditional Jomon arts to today's contemporary Japanese culture, which has been influenced by other cultures such as Asian culture, European culture and North American culture. American. Changes within Japanese culture have been influenced by increasing technological advancements which have resulted in increased mass communication and, consequently, an assimilation of cultural concepts into Japanese culture. In Japan, everyone has a social responsibility to comply with societal rules. norms governed by contemporary Japanese culture. However, there are exceptions, particularly among the younger generations who try to mock the conformity of contemporary Japanese culture. Japan is generally a collectivist society, implying that the needs of a group take priority over the needs of an individual. The Japanese language plays a crucial role in determining Japanese culture.Political StructureThe system of governance in Japan is based on constitutional monarchy, which has existed since the 1890s. The Japanese constitution advocates gender equality. It also places the emperor as head of state. The parliament of Japan is known as the Diet and consists of the House of Councilors and the House of Representatives. Members of the Upper House are elected from constituencies, both nationally and locally. Members of the Lower House are generally elected at the local level. The Lower House has more political power than the Upper House, with the Prime Minister and other ministerial positions elected by the Lower House. Each prefecture has a locally elected governor. Prefectures serve as government agents and have limited authority in terms of taxation and other legal codes within the Japanese government structure. Municipalities also have limited authority and serve to provide daily services to Japanese citizens. Some of the basic roles of municipalities are to provide education, police and fire protection services in accordance with directives issued at the higher level. Japan is divided into 47 prefectures with varied political structures. Concretely, there are 43 ordinary prefectures; The metropolitan prefectures are made up of three and one administrative prefecture. One of the most important divisions concerns the division of labor. According to beliefsJapanese laws regarding ritual purity, most aspects of ritual life exclude the participation of women. For example, women have no authority to access certain sacred places and some communities in Japan prohibit women from fishing and engaging in economic activities. Many of these prohibitions are being ignored by most Japanese communities, with some conservative communities still adhering to these beliefs. The societal context of Japanese culture is based on neo-Confucianism, according to which social roles are distributed according to hierarchical relationships. This is why Japanese culture promotes the domination of the husband over the wife and the domination of the father over the children. In the late 19th century, family norms were codified, placing women in society as subordinate to their male counterparts. The Status of Men and Women in Japanese Culture Traditionally, women were confined to take care of matters of a domestic nature; this norm is still present in current Japanese culture. The husband is the head of the family and represents the family to the outside world. In the domestic setting, the wife has the authority and control to manage the daily events of the family. Family structure is an element of Japanese culture that takes precedence over equality between men and women as adopted in the Constitution of Japan. Women's participation in society reflects gender divisions. The Japanese language incorporates different speaking styles for women and men, with women required to use more polite speech than their male counterparts in order to denote deference and show that they respect the hierarchy. Since historical times, the family has been the fundamental unit of Japanese society. At the societal level, the family is of greater importance than the individual. This means that traditional family laws are strictly respected both at the individual level and at the level of society as a whole. Family norms are imperative in determining the entirety of contemporary Japanese culture. Japanese culture represents a perfect example of gender affiliation. For example, in Japanese society, men are considered superior to women. In the family context, there is a gender-based division of labor, in which husbands are considered the sole breadwinners and wives' responsibility falls to the household. It is necessary to note that the family represents the most influential unit in determining Japanese culture. Marriage norms in Japanese culture are divided into two categories: love marriage and arranged marriage. Love marriage is based on a mutual attraction existing between two individuals. Arranged marriage is common in the traditional setting in which marriage is a negotiated process based on the views of the parent. In arranged marriage, background check of the spouse and their family is an important requirement. The domestic unit comprises a nuclear structure, comprising parents and their children. In present-day Japan, extended kinship groups do not play a significant role in the daily life of the domestic unit. Japanese culture places ultimate importance on the importance of family survival over multiple generations. Head of the family, the husband is responsible for managing the family lineage with the children. In order to manage this effectively, the head of the family must ensure that the family honors past ancestors who played an important role in the family's existence by passing on the family's family assets, traditions and social status to the next generation intact,without breaking the lineage. Traditionally, the land was never divided. Sharing land would harm the survival of the family until the next generation. In most scenarios, the inheritance was given to a single child; usually the eldest son of the family. Parenting patterns define the relationship between children and their parents. Japanese standards state that a male child must have a bond with his father, and similarly, a girl child must have a bond with her mother. The traditional framework advocates master-apprentice bonds between parents and their children. Care of infants generally falls to women, mainly between the ages of 20 and 30. Raising children is a fundamental responsibility for women according to Japanese norms and beliefs. For a child's education to be considered appropriate, it requires an emotional attachment between the parent and child. Social issues are an integral part of any community, and Japan is no exception. Important social issues that clearly emerge from Japanese culture are gender divisions, women refusing the role of mother, increasing unemployment rates, and the growing inefficiency of the education system. The most significant social problem within the Japanese community is the problem of social withdrawal, known as Hikikomori in Japanese. The following provides an overview of social withdrawal among the Japanese people and its impacts. Social withdrawal involves isolation and confinement due to various personal and social factors. Japanese people are known to suffer from extreme degrees of social withdrawal. According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Defense, individuals who suffer from Hikikomori, also called social withdrawal, refers to an individual who isolates themselves from society for a period of at least six months. Social withdrawal begins with cases of school refusal. The Prevalence of Social Withdrawal in Japan Social withdrawal is a common phenomenon in Japan. Around a million Japanese suffer from social withdrawal. Social withdrawal is common among adolescents and young adults aged 30 to 40. The trend towards social withdrawal is set to increase due to the increase in cases of school refusal, accelerated by the growing societal pressure from society towards more mature young people. short-term effects on the individual and society as a whole. One of the impacts associated with social withdrawal among Japanese people is that most Japanese people who experience social withdrawal are young students; such isolation means they will not be able to complete their studies. Another short-term effect is the elimination of personal relationships by individuals suffering from social withdrawal. Increased antisocial behavior alters the way an individual associates with those around them, and in extreme cases, victims find themselves in complete isolation. One of the important long-term impacts of social withdrawal is that the individual remains unproductive for long periods of time. This implies that he/she does not participate in any developmental activities and hence hinders the process of societal development. In addition, the increase in cases of social withdrawal will necessarily have long-term effects on the social framework. As most victims are young, they will grow up with increased unproductivity associated with social withdrawal and, ultimately, economic problems will arise if the situation is not addressed as soon as possible.Potential Solutions to the Problem of Social Withdrawal in JapanThe Cause Fundamental to the social isolation of youth in Japan is social pressure. Social pressure manifests itself in various ways, including educational pressure, family pressure, societal pressure, possibly due to past.