Japanese views on dating
 

Ok im new here guys so please be patient! i was just wondering what japanese views on dating are esp for the younger generation since in england it usually means ur sleeping together 99% of the time after a while, but considering the fact that the japanese culture seems more conservative (men wanting more domestic housewives etc) is it the same there?

thanks!

You raise an interesting questions, as we have been talking about the definition of "conservative" here recently.

From my observations, I think Japan is probably very similar to England in that respect.

What makes you think of Japanese society as more "conservative"?

I'm Japanese and I don't call it a relationship if I'm not sleeping with the girl after a while. I believe dozens of my friends, men and women, share the same view. And I'm not even young, approaching 40. And Japanese men who want their wife to be a housewife are a minority. In one pole, less than 1 out of 5 men wanted their wife to be a housewife.

Edit:
And yeah, there is a question of "what is conservative?" too. For example gay rights is a new and more liberal thing for westerners, but for Japanese, being gay or bisexual had been totally OK until the westerners brought in Christianity 150 years ago. Many Shoguns were bisexual or homosexual. So to us, it's wtf?

Good points. There are many more gay, cross-dressing and transgender performers and artists that you see on Japanese TV than you would ever see on American TV.

One example is Ikko.

I disagree that in England, going out with someone means you are automatically sleeping with them... maybe it depends what kind of crowd you hang out with... lol.

hmm, didnt know that, i guess just through what ive read and seen i thought japan was more 'conservative' (ie. no to teenage pregnancies, underage drinking etc like we have in the west) but i was obviously off the mark - my bad - we get a very filtered view on other cultures here in the west for the most part so we dont really know anything other then what were told unfortunately unless we actually go and see it for ourselves

i never said it did automatically i just said it was assumed 99% of the time - i dont think ive met alot of people who would ever think that you werent sleeping with someone who you'd been going out with for say like a year, they would think that was weird if you werent

Totally true. Old folks are more morally corrupted :p

Seriously, it depends, not so much on the generation, but merely how old you are too. I would have said different things when I was in my teens. Instead of 99%, it was more like 50%.

There certainly are teenage pregnancies. I seem to remember some very popular boy band members who have mothers only 15 or 16 years older than them.

I know a couple women who got married to their boyfriends after getting pregnant.

In terms of underage drinking, it happens, but the appeal is lower than it is in the west because alcohol is so accessible. There is less of the "forbidden fruit" aspect. Also kids can't drive, so you don't hear about teenage drinking and driving in Japan.

Very low teenage pregnancy rate compared to Britain and the US, but still at the same level as Netherlands and Denmark. And drinking? We were partying in Izakaya when we were in high-school :D Marijuana use is very rare though.