Reasons why young Japanese people aren’t having sex

The media reports that young Japanese people are having sex much less and many of them aren’t even interested in having sex with their partners. But why is it? Is it even true? There are surveys which have been conducted and apparently the sources of the data say that their numbers are pretty accurate but I personally have no way of verifying the sources of data. But definitely there are some modern social issues which are causing young people to be more withdrawn from the society and people are not seeking bonding with other people.

Factors that may be contributing to the social phenomena (young people in Japan not having sex anymore)

1. Excessive overtime and unreasonably long working hours: My two sisters work for Japanese corporations and these are very male-dominated companies and especially they both work in technical fields, they are even worse. People don’t get off work until 11pm to meet the project deadline and by the time they take the last train and come home, it’s already like 1:30am. Even on the weekend, these Japanese workers are exhausted from work and they have no energy to have sex with their spouse, partner or whoever!

2. The real issue imposed by Japanese corporate culture: Japan has the worst gender inequality amongst the developed nations. Women are expected to be full-time housewives especially after they have their first child. It is almost impossible for Japanese women to manage child bearing and their demanding career in Japanese companies. So many educated women in Japan are choosing to focus on their career advancement instead of focusing on relationship, having sex and getting married.

3. High stress level: I grew up in Japan and so I thought it was the norm everywhere we go but it isn’t..Japan is a very fast-paced country and people feel a lot of pressure to do well over there. For example, I wrote about college entrance examination hell (this is the actual term!) and by the time kids graduate from high school, they are exhausted from the studying and they just want to have fun in college. But because of the pressure, many children end up developing depression, anxiety and more serious social anxiety issues that lead to the recent Hikikomori syndrome. These kids refuse to leave their bedrooms and then they age in their bedrooms. It is a serious issue because it isn’t just about holding a job, going to school..these people can’t function in normal life. Of course no sex without being able to go outside and meet people.

4. Technology: This is weird and I don’t think it is only in Japan but more Japanese men (and women) prefer sex dolls, virtual creatures on video games, phone app to real women. It’s because they are finding it (objects) much easier than real women. Many Japanese men (and women) don’t want to have meaningful relationships with other people anymore. They find it too complicated and too much in general. As far as sex goes, these people feel that their needs are met through virtual creatures.

5. Sex industry: The weird part is that Japan is known for its massive adult industry. You find brothels in red light districts in almost each prefecture and big cities such as Tokyo and Osaka have millions of them. THis is similar to #4, young Japanese men (and maybe women) are looking for no strings attached type of relationships which include sex and they can meet their sexual needs by going to soap or health (herusu club).

6. I am not sure what the reason would be but maybe young Japanese people are not as optimistic about the future as the people in the older generation.When they are not optimistic and kind of depressed, they surely don’t feel like having sex. It makes sense though.

Summary:
These are my personal views on modern social phenomena hitting Japanese society. Do you have any other reason that may be added to the list? Then I would love to hear from you!