Japan may still be a man's world, but women are -- finally -- starting to have more fun.
In the latest edition of a government survey that has tracked changing values for decades, Japanese women were deemed for the first time to have more enjoyable lives than men.
The gap was narrow -- respondents chose women over men by 42 percent to 38 percent -- but underscored how far attitudes have changed since pollsters first put the question to the public in this male-dominated country in back in 1963. At that time, an overwhelming 69 percent of respondents said men had more fun-filled lives.
The 2003 survey published this week by the government-affiliated Institute of Statistical Mathematics suggested that an increasing number of people in Japan care more about their families and less about their careers, in a reversal of the values that drove generations of Japanese men to dedicate their lives to their companies.
Japanese women have never been expected to pursue careers, traditionally working at clerical jobs and leaving the workforce upon marriage. Because most live at home until marriage, they typically enjoy more disposable income and less pressure than their male peers.
The survey is conducted every five years. Last year, the institute interviewed 4,200 Japanese adults, obtaining valid results from 56 percent, or 2,350 respondents. As is customary with polls in Japan, it did not indicate a margin of error.