Japanese Family

Japanese Family

The family in Japan is called “kazoku” in Japanese. It is basically composed of a couple as is the family in other societies. The Japanese family is based on the line of descent. Ancestors and offspring are linked together by an idea of family genealogy, or keifu, which does not mean relationships based on mere blood inheritance and succession, but rather a bond of relationship inherent in the maintenance and continuance of the family as an institution.

In any given period of history, all family members have been expected to contribute to the perpetuation of the family, which is held to be the highest duty of the member. Traditionally, raising the children, supervising education, doing the housework and home accounting are the mothers’ jobs. The Fathers’ job is to provide a monthly income for the family. Modern young working parents are sharing their roles, such as housework, taking care of children and supervising education. However, families with junior high school and older children tend to carry on the traditional roles.

Recently, schools have instituted an “Open School Day for Fathers” to encourage fathers to participate in school activities. However, regardless of the schools’ efforts, the participation rate of fathers is still small. The reasons for that are: it is not easy for fathers to take time off from work and some fathers are bashful to participate in school activities.

Therefore, a mother who has so many roles at home can only take a part time job. It is not easy for a working mother to maintain a good work-life balance. If grandparents are living together or near by, a mother can work with support from grandparents, such as taking care of the children. The day care center in Japan is not so flexible yet. When a child gets sick, usually her/his mother is called to pick up the sick child. If a mother has to work using a day-care center without depending on grandparents’ support, the mother and father need to discuss about sharing roles and jobs in daily life; otherwise, the load on the mother could be very heavy.