Marginalized Japanese youth in post-industrial Japan: Motivational patterns, self-perceptions, and the structural foundations of shifting values

There is an increasing population of youth in Japan who are being pushed to the periphery of Japanese society. These include the NEETs (Not in Employment Education or Training), the Freeters (low-skill workers in highly insecure jobs), and the hikikomori (social isolates). We argue that Japanese youth marginalization has resulted, in large part, from economic and social structural changes in post-industrial Japan. We further argue that any discussion of values and motivational processes of youth should be examined within the context of the cultural and societal forces that are marginalizing many of them. In doing so, we compare at-risk youth with mainstream youth on independence and interdependence, post-materialist attitudes, and motivational styles. Additionally, we discuss the role that religion has played on helping youth transition into adulthood in the past versus in the present. Finally, we conclude the chapter by discussing the youth volunteer movement in the wake of the March 11, 2011 earthquake and what that might represent for the values and future of Japanese youth.