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In my interactions with a young Japanese/American cosplayer, I managed to find out her views on Japanese culture, and what I learned is that, in her view, Japanese Culture is "unhealthy, and perpetuates unhappiness/anxiety/insecurities in the masses". While I do regard this as very concrete and broad, those elements are something I've seen a lot of in my studies of the modern day culture(as well as in other societies, especially America), and hearing that intrigues me about people think of modern day Japanese society, with all it's growth and issues with things like bullying, overworking to the point of suicide, among other things. What do you think of it?

(BTW, this is the full statement in question: http://www.formspring.me/mostflogged/q/1852230590 )

I think a lot of the anxieties and other things this person commented on (not completely unfounded, but seeing how she's state-side, she's probably had bad experiences hanging out with other Japanese here versus actually talking about people that live or lived in Japan) probably pertain to the social requirements found in society, whether those are part of a social hierarchy or part of going through the motions of social advancement (such as getting a good education, job, etc). Although entirely overstressed in any book about the matters of culture in Japan, social hierarchies still pertain much to many people's daily social situations. I still remember one of my Japanese friends while studying abroad telling me that he liked hanging out and being with foreigners more often because he felt other Japanese friends of his don't speak their minds often if they are in a group and there's a defined leader of that group whereas foreigners would speak up on what's on their mind and contribute to the conversation. Sounding kind of stereotypical, he was basically saying that those friends don't speak their minds so often when in a group where a 'leader' determines the social construct and what is okay to discuss, what restaurants to eat at, etc . I bring this up because this resembles an example on how social hierarchies or constructs could contribute to the unhappiness one might be in not being able to directly speak their mind (countering this point, this only depends on the group of friends. friends closer to each other will often agree ahead of time or still speak up on things they want to do but will compromise on).

I think the bigger issues like bullying and suicide (whether intentional or through overwork) are results of the expectations on people when they advance through life. Bullying is multi-faceted problem, however I feel it mainly stems from the fact that a student might not fit in with the 'groups' of students and conform to those social constructs. I am not going all and out saying that the stereotype you see in many high school movies here about not being 'popular' is true, but having friends in other groups tends to reduce the chances of being a target of bullying.

'Unhappiness and anxiety' as your friend put it could stem from the aspect of social advancement within Japan. The anxiety might result from not knowing whether or not once a student graduates college they will find a well paying job anymore. The 'lifetime' employment is rare nowadays and only happens in the largest and most financially sound companies. I know some friends of mine that don't really want that kind of life--devoting numerous amount of time to the job as it is your 'second life'. Examinations are also tough on many high school students (it's compared to our college in terms of workload) but many know if they do well they can get into a good college. I guess the aspects of social advancement and being where you want in your life has the most impact on your happiness and outlook on life.