Guilt is fuelling Japan’s gender gap – Here are 3 ways we can stop it

Sep 15, 2020

Men wearing masks pass a metro entry gate at a station in Tokyo March 16, 2011. Public trust in the Japanese government faces its biggest test since World War Two over the handling of the nation's nuclear crisis, raising concerns that a breakdown in confidence could fuel panic and chaos if appeals for calm go unheeded. Foreigners are leaving Tokyo, or shutting themselves indoors, and supermarket shelves are running empty despite authorities assuring citizens there is no need to panic from the crisis unfolding at a quake-stricken nuclear power plant. REUTERS/Issei Kato (JAPAN - Tags: BUSINESS DISASTER) - GM1E73G1C2R01

This experiment surveyed 1,000 working-age Japanese men and women on their preference for varying levels of job attributes affecting work-life balance, including overtime, job insecurity, risk of departmental transfer, and risk of geographical relocation. Image: REUTERS/Issei Kato

Chie Aoyagi

Economist, IMF

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The key factor affecting the figures here is guilt. Image: Aoyagi & Munro (2019)

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Japan COVID-19 Gender Inequality Future of Work

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