Family in Japanese Culture

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    Family is one of the deep structure institutions that transmit and endures cultural messages across generations. The role of the family structure in culture cannot be understated, as it both lays the foundation for cultural context and is built upon deeply held values of said culture. As stated in “Communication Between Cultures” by Larry Samovar (n.d.), globalization has been a primary factor to changing dynamics within traditional family structures. This change evolves culture by altering the deep structure institution that transmits values and beliefs. To understand this change, we must first look at the traditional culture. In this blog, Japanese culture is our focal point, and it is important to highlight the traditional and post-globalization family structure.



Throughout this blog I will reference the pillars of Japanese culture that seem to be recurring through all aspects and dimensions of Japanese culture;

1. Hierarchy 2. Harmony 3. Collectivism.


The Traditional Hierarchical Family

At the base of the traditional family structure in Japanese culture lies hierarchy, or more appropriately named, patriarchy. The term “ie" is interchangeable with the term “household" in traditional Japanese culture. The ie model paints a picture of a stem family, with the head of the family being the eldest man, and him having chosen an heir. The head of the family is in complete control over the family, they make financial and legal decisions with the help of other family members. Specific roles and duties are appointed by the head of the family. Keigo is the term for honorific speech, a language acquisition learned first in the family as the proper way to address people higher in the hierarchy, now it is mainly used for business. When observing family structures, the inherent collectivist nature of family is important to note. However, for Japanese culture, the degree of significance for group cohesion in a family is relatively higher than that of my culture. Individuals in a family are much more cohesive and conformed to their families in traditional Japanese culture, evident by the koseki. The koseki is a family-oriented registry list which puts the focus of households/families as the primary unit of society, not individuals. This would track with dependence teaching as the socialization function of family. The identity of the individual does not stop at the individual, it continues to the whole family. The traditional family structure of Japanese culture aligns with broader institutions such as community and worldview through hierarchy and collectivism.

Koseki Japanese Family System

        While this is the traditional family structure in Japanese culture, the reality of the internal dynamics within most families does not strictly follow this, especially not in the post World War II age. But for the sake of following the traditional Japanese culture; I will explain traditional child-rearing practices and how they transmit cultural elements such as gender roles and collectivism. Child-rearing in Japan is distinctly different from raising a child in the United States. Higher cultural expectations are put on the mothers due to gender roles, and the crying or misbehaving of a child in public is seen with much more disrespect. Mothers do not usually hire baby-sitters because it is seen as a failure to be a good mother. Mothers are also deeply involved in their children’s education. Cultural elements like keigo, respect for hierarchy, and group harmony are all transmitted through family. Gender roles in Japanese culture are much like the rest of the world - the man is responsible for making final decisions and being the breadwinner, while the woman is responsible for domestic duties and managing the household internally.

 
New Trends
 Globalization is changing the traditional family structure in all cultures that globalization has reached. The industrialization of Japan also leads to change in the family structure of Japanese culture. Japan is moving away from the family being the unit of society, and single households are trending to be the majority. Since 1985 single households have increased by almost 200%, making 38.1% of the population one-person households. Migration has also affected the traditional family structure. Many young Japanese men who were chosen as the heir of their family left their households for opportunity in bigger cities. Globalization and demographic shifts have transformed the traditional family structure, the family still maintains its central institution in Japanese culture.

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