Studying the Popularity of Manga Overseas
Asako Kisui wrote in the Yomiuri Shimbun: “A group of researchers on Japanese subculture are delving into the minds of people in foreign countries to discover why exports like manga and anime have become so popular overseas. Kobe University Prof. Kiyomitsu Yui, 59, a sociology expert with the Japan Subculture Studies (JSS), said, "We're in the process of discovering how Japanese subculture has become so widespread by investigating the psychology of foreign people who embrace it." [Source: Asako Kisui, Yomiuri Shimbun, December 14, 2012]
JSS, which was established in 2010 at Kobe University's school of humanities, includes researchers from various Japanese universities. The group also collaborates with professors of the Paris Institute of Political Studies, Yale University and the University of Hong Kong, and has partnered with research institutes in such countries as Italy, Poland and Mexico. [Ibid]
As part of its research the group conducts surveys at cosplay events in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan with financial support from the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry. Participants are asked such questions as when they first discovered cosplay--the practice of dressing as a favorite character--what media led them to it, and how their families and friends reacted to their new interest in this aspect of Japanese culture. The group then compared the results with polls done in Europe. "Some people don't look highly upon the kind of research being done by state-run universities," Yui said. "But our efforts to heighten the quality of Japan's subculture would surely lead to an increase in the number of foreigners who understand Japan today.” [Ibid]
Researchers from 13 countries gathered at international meetings on Japanese subculture in Kobe and Kyoto in June. One researcher gave a presentation on the fan base for animation that depicts gay sexuality called "Boys love manga." "Research on Japanese subculture is a melange--crossing into the fields of sociology, philosophy, art, literature and media studies. To deepen the roots of subculture, we must first grope for its basis," Yui said. [Ibid]
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