[1st Japan-Korea Joint Public Opinion Poll] Comparative Analysis Results of Japan-Korea Public Opinion

Overview of the Survey

The Genron NPO, a Japanese non-profit organization, and the East Asia Institute (EAI), a South Korean think tank, conducted a joint public opinion poll targeting citizens of both Japan and South Korea from March to April 2013. The objective of this survey is to continuously grasp the understanding and perceptions of each country's citizens towards the other, and their changes, thereby contributing to the resolution of various perception gaps and the promotion of mutual understanding between the two nations.

The results of this survey will also be reported at a new private dialogue forum between Japan and South Korea, the "Japan-Korea Future Dialogue," to be established in May by the two organizations with the aim of improving Japan-South Korea relations. This survey will be utilized in conjunction with the dialogue. The method of conducting a joint public opinion poll and then holding dialogues based on the survey results was first introduced by the Genron NPO in the "Tokyo-Beijing Forum," a private dialogue between Japan and China launched in 2005, and the same method has been adopted for the current dialogue.

The public opinion poll on the Japanese side was conducted from March 30 to April 15, targeting men and women aged 18 and over (excluding high school students) nationwide in Japan, using the visit-and-leave-behind method with collection. The number of valid responses was 1000. The educational background of the respondents was as follows: junior high school or below: 10.5%, high school: 45.1%, junior college/technical college: 20.8%, university: 19.7%, and graduate school: 2.5%.

In contrast, the public opinion poll on the South Korean side was conducted from March 25 to April 15, targeting men and women aged 19 and over nationwide in South Korea, using face-to-face interviews by enumerators. The number of valid responses was 1004. The educational background of the respondents was as follows: elementary school or below: 5.5%, junior high school: 8.7%, high school: 39.5%, currently attending or dropped out of university (including vocational colleges): 11.6%, university graduate: 33.2%, and graduate school: 1.4%.

Separately from this public opinion poll, the Genron NPO and the East Asia Institute conducted a survey of opinion leaders in both Japan and South Korea from early to mid-April. On the Japanese side, questionnaires were sent to 2000 individuals, including domestic opinion leaders who had participated in past discussion activities and surveys by the Genron NPO, and responses were received from 575. These respondents are considered to represent the average intellectual class in Japanese and South Korean society, and by comparing the results of the public opinion polls in Japan and South Korea, we aimed to supplement the perceptions of the general Japanese and Korean populations.

The occupations of the respondents on the Japanese side were: company executives/employees: 20.7%, media: 3.3%, national public servants: 3.0%, local public servants: 2.1%, politicians/party officials: 0.9%, academics/researchers: 33.6%, NPO/NGO officials: 5.9%, officials from various organizations: 5.7%, students: 5.4%, self-employed: 3.1%, and others: 16.3%. Similarly, on the South Korean side, opinion leaders within South Korea were selected, and responses were obtained from 393 individuals. The occupations of the South Korean opinion leaders were: politicians: 3.8%, professors: 36.1%, researchers: 18.3%, company executives/employees: 6.6%, public servants (including employees of public institutions): 11.5%, journalists: 7.6%, NGO staff: 2.8%, professionals such as lawyers, accountants, and doctors: 6.9%, and others: 6.4%... (Continued)