The 2001 U.S. Poll on Opinions Toward Japan
(Summary)
June 2001
The following is a summary of the results of the 2001 U.S. Poll on Opinions Toward Japan.
1. Overview of Results
The favorable image of Japan and positive evaluations of U.S.-Japan relations sustained over the past several years have on the whole remained at high levels.
2. Specific Findings
(Figures in brackets represent last year and the preceding year respectively. Please refer to the attached graphs for past trends in response ratings to each question other than (4)).
(1) Degree of Favorable View of Japan and Perception of Japan as a Dependable Ally or Friend
| - Rating of respondents who view Japan "favorably" (Click to see Graph 1) | ||
| General public: 40% | Opinion leaders: 75% | |
| (43%, 43%) | (79%, 74%) | |
| - Rating of respondents who consider Japan as a dependable ally or friend (Click to see Graph 2) | ||
| General public: 61% | Opinion leaders: 85% | |
| (60%, 61%) | (87%, 87%) | |
(2) Evaluation of Overall Bilateral Relations Between Japan and the U.S.
| - The most important partner to the U.S. in the Asian region (Click to see Graph 3, Graph 4) | ||
| 1: Japan | General public: 49% | Opinion leaders: 72% |
| (53%, 51%) | (72%, 75%) | |
| 2: China | General public: 22% | Opinion leaders: 20% |
| (22%, 21%) | (3%, 2%) | |
| 3. Russia | General public: 6% | Opinion leaders: 2% |
| (6%, 8%) | (3%, 2%) | |
| - Evaluation of the present level of U.S.-Japan cooperation in general: Rating of positive responses, either "excellent" or "good" (Click to see Graph 5) | ||
| General public: 40% | Opinion leaders: 74% | |
| (42%, 44%) | (81%, 63%) | |
| - U.S.-Japan relations in the future (Click to see Graph 6) | ||
| (Will improve) | General public: 45% | Opinion leaders: 36% |
| (49%, 50%) | (35%, 42%) | |
| (Will not change) | General public: 39% | Opinion leaders: 50% |
| (37%, 35%) | (59%, 47%) | |
| (Will get worse) | General public: 10% | Opinion leaders: 11% |
| (8%, 10%) | (4%, 8%) | |
| - Degree of mutual understanding between the people of Japan and the U.S. (Click to see Graph 7) | ||
| (Good) | General public: 26% | Opinion leaders: 15% |
| (23%, 25%) | (8%, 11%) | |
| (Fair) | General public: 51% | Opinion leaders: 60% |
| (53%, 50%) | (63%, 62%) | |
| (Poor) | General public: 21% | Opinion leaders: 25% |
| (21%, 23%) | (28%, 27%) | |
(3) Evaluation of the Japan-U.S. Security Arrangements
| - Maintenance of Japan-US Security Treaty (Click to see Graph 8) | ||
| (The Treaty should be maintained) | General public: 85% * | Opinion leaders: 85% |
| (84%, 84%) | (86%, 89%) | |
| *: highest historical level | ||
| - The contribution of Japan-US Security Treaty to peace and stability in Japan and the Far East (Click to see Graph 9) | ||
| (Rating of positive responses, either "Great deal" or "Moderate amount") | General public: 73% | Opinion leaders: 83% |
| (71%, 74%) | (83%, 87%) | |
| - Importance of Japan-US Security Treaty for U.S. security interests (Click to see Graph 10) | ||
| (Rating of positive responses, either "very important" or "somewhat important") | General public: 89% * | Opinion leaders: 82% |
| (86%, 86%) | (85%, 86%) | |
| *: highest historical level | ||
(4) Economic and Trade Relations
| - The main reasons for Japan-US trade imbalance | ||
| "The closed nature of Japan's market" | General public: 44% | Opinion leaders: 52% |
| (51%, 55%) | (52%, 63%) | |
| "Macro-economic discrepancies in both countries" | General public: 26% | Opinion leaders: 35% |
| (25%, 22%) | (34%, 25%) | |
| "U.S industry's weak competitiveness" | General public: 21% | Opinion leaders: 7% |
| (17%, 17%) | (8%, 7%) | |
| - The most effective means of restoring Japan's economic growth (This question was asked to opinion leaders only) | ||
| General public: 79% | Opinion leaders: 11% | |
| (76%, 82%) | (13%, 12%) | |
(5) Evaluation of Japan's International Role
| - Does Japan play an important international role commensurate with its economic strength? (Click to see Graph 11) | ||
| "Yes" | General public: 64% | Opinion leaders: 61% * |
| (67%, 67%) | (59%, 55%) | |
| *: highest historical level | ||
| "No" | General public: 21% | Opinion leaders: 38% * |
| (18%, 22%) | (39%, 44%) | |
| *: lowest historical level | ||
(Notes)
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Period conducted: March 2001
-
Survey methodology:
(1) For the "general public" group, telephone interviews were carried out with 1509 people (men and women aged 18 or over).
(2) For the "opinion leaders" group, telephone interviews were carried out with 375 people in leading positions in the field of politics, administration, business, academia, labor, media and religion.
(3) The reliability of the survey:
The degree of reliability is 95% for both groups. The sampling error is + / - 3% for the "general public" group and + / - 5% for the "opinion leaders" group (meaning that, if the same survey were to be carried out 100 times on a sample of the same size, the same results as the present survey would be produced by 95 of those surveys, with a margin of error of + / - 3% for the "general public" group and + / - 5% for the "opinion leaders" group).
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