Japan's Top Marriage Condition 'Appearance' Hits Record High... What About South Korea?

Japanese Women Say "Husband's Appearance Is Important"... Men Prioritize Women's Economic Power
Korean 20s and 30s Generation Say "Personality Is More Important Than Economic Power and Appearance"

[Asia Economy Culture Young Intern Reporter] In Japan, the proportion of women who consider 'appearance' as an important condition for a marriage partner has reached an all-time high. In contrast, men have shown an increased tendency to prioritize women's 'economic power,' indicating a shift in the conditions of the Japanese marriage market.

According to TV Asahi, ANN News, and others on the 23rd, the 16th Basic Survey on Birth Trends conducted by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (IPSS) in Japan revealed that 81.3% of women answered that they emphasize or consider men's 'appearance' as a condition for a marriage partner.

This is the highest record since the same survey was conducted in 1992. In the 1992 survey, 67.6% of women said they valued 'appearance,' showing an increase of 13.7 percentage points over 20 years.

The response that women consider men's economic power as a condition for marriage remained high. Among the conditions women selected for their male marriage partners, economic power was 91.6%, similar to the level 20 years ago.

On the other hand, Japanese men have shown a higher tendency to value women's economic power compared to the past. The proportion of men who consider women's economic power important increased by 17 percentage points compared to the 1997 survey. The media analyzed, "Women seek men's appearance, and men seek women's economic power," suggesting that the traditional marriage conditions for men and women seem to have reversed.

Regarding this, Kazuhisa Arakawa, a researcher on singles, said, "As women's income rises, changes in the economic environment have a very significant impact," adding, "It is not that appearance was chosen over economic power, but economic power is the base with appearance added on top. The increase in conditions seems to have created a very difficult situation for men."

What about marriage conditions in Korea? The rate of non-marriage among the younger generation is increasing, and the views on marriage of men and women in their 20s and 30s are changing compared to those in their 40s and 50s. According to a 2009 survey by the marriage information company Noblesse J targeting office workers living in the metropolitan area, women tended to prioritize appearance and personality over their husband's ability, while men prioritized personality and appearance as criteria for choosing a spouse.

Later, in 2016, a survey on the ideal spouse conducted by the marriage information company Duo and the Department of Psychology at Seoul National University found that both men and women ranked 'personality' as the top condition for a spouse (men 34.7%, women 33.3%). Following that, men considered appearance (17.5%) and values (6.8%) in order, while women considered economic power (16.5%), occupation (9.9%), and family background (9.3%) as conditions for marriage. This shows an increasing proportion of people valuing 'personality' over 'economic power' and 'appearance.'

Additionally, in August this year, a survey conducted by the marriage information company Bienarae on 538 unmarried men and women (269 men and 269 women each) found that when asked about 'continuing a relationship with a partner who has good conditions but is not an ideal type,' 32.0% of male respondents answered they would 'force marriage,' while 33.1% of female respondents said they would 'decide based on the partner's attitude toward themselves.'