Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures
The DAP in Japan
Wilson, Amy, Associate Professor

Summary
The Developmental Assets were first introduced in the United States over 10 years ago, and have since received a great deal ofattention from schools, school boards, and various youth, community, and ministry groups across the country. According to recent
newspaper reports, over 10,000 schools and organizations have used Developmental Asset surveys and other resources, and there
are over 500 community-based programs using the Developmental Assets in 45 states and 6 continentsi .
In addition to receiving attention in the United States, various international groups have shown an interest in the Developmental
Assets. The Assets themselves have been translated into at least 14 languagesii, and long-term research projects have been
conducted in the Philippines and Eastern European countries to translate both the Assets and various survey measurements into
other languages in order to investigate the possibilities for the Developmental Assets in those countries. However, to date, there
seems to have been no attempt to apply the Developmental Assets survey measurements into East Asian languages, although theAssets themselves have been translated into both Chinese and Japanese.
This report focuses on the DAP Survey (Developmental Asset Profile), and considers its adaptation and use in Japan. First, it
gives an overview of children in Japan, and explains the issues children face in their daily lives. Next, it explains in detail theimplementation of the DAP survey in Japan, covering translation issues and implementation issues, and gives a preliminary
overview of the results of the Japanese-language DAP survey results taken from over 14,000 elementary, junior high and seniorhigh school students. Finally, it considers the use of the data in the development of practical applications for use in Japan, andgives suggestions for future research.
Children in Japan
Images of the Japanese people are described in many books which are often used in required courses at universities throughout
the country called ‘Nihonjin-ron,’ or the Theory of the Japanese (people). This is because Japanese people tend to feel they can be
be classified and defined as a group, and that they are represented more by their Japanese-ness than the particular region in Japanthey are from, their family history, their gender, or other cultural markers that most people of other nationalities tend to use todefine themselves. The Japanese people prefer to learn how they are viewed by other countries, and numerous books have been
published over the last 150 years or so concerning this obsession. In these books, Japanese people are often described as being
serious, honest, quiet, hard-working, polite, and self-disciplined.
However, these classical images of the Japanese have been changing drastically due to recent globalization and borderless
cultural influences, especially over the last 20 to 30 years. These influences have had a dramatic effect on children in Japan as well.
Materialism and consumer culture has provided a lot of goods and products for everyone to buy freely, and children have becomeless patient, expecting to have their desires fulfilled promptly. The number of children who read books has decreased dramatically,
due to comic books, anime (cartoons), TV programs and the internet. Misinterpretation of the concept of freedom has led parents
and children to do only things they like, and led to concepts such as ‘lonely dining’ (in which families no longer take meals
together) and increased cases of neglect. Furthermore, Japan is an aging and downsizing society. It is said that the population may― 39 ―

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decrease by up to 60 million by 2050, a decrease of up to 60 million newborn babies, young children and youth. These trends have
led to an increase in the economical gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots,’ a phenomenon new to a Japan in which a large
majority of the population referred to themselves as ‘middle class’ until the 1990s, and threatens younger generations with heavy
national debts.
Some of the main current social and educational problems found in Japan children are a lack of self-confidence and autonomy,
communication skills, discipline and everyday life skills. Japanese children tend to be afraid of being left alone, and also tend to
attack other children who are different or stand out. The suicide rate is very high: about 30,000 people per year, including children
and adults. Due to a lack of communication and social skills, some children become afraid to go to schools (Toko-kyohi) when
difficulties arise, many tend to shut themselves off (Hiki-Komori), and there is an increased rate of youth who are referred to as
NEETs (Not in Education or Employment). There are also many classrooms in which teachers lose the power of management andcontrol, and teachers are afraid of the so-called ‘Monster Parents,’ who reject any kind of communication or negotiation, andsimply complain a lot. Furthermore, because fewer children are required to help with chores at home, they have lost the everyday
life skills they need to live independently as adults, thus leading to a greater percentage of children who live at home with theirparents as ‘Parasite Singles.’An extensive research study of 50,000 students done by Shigeo Kawamura in 2007 identified five major problems andconcernsiii regarding children and their families and the community around them. First, only 30% of the children surveyed hadbasic living skills, such as looking after themselves and helping at home. Second, less than 30% of the children had 5 or morefriends, thus indicating that the remaining 70% had only a few close friends in schools. Friends in Japanese school life are very
important, and most Japanese children tend to stay in a very small circle of relationships. If these relationships break, children are
in a very weak position, and are often unable to build alternatives. This relates to the third and also the fourth issue - that students
can could relate to others only when they are close friends but not with others beyond these close relationships. Thus, althoughchildren paid a lot of attention to friends in their small circles, relationships tend to stay on a superficial level.
Lastly, Kawamura discovered that 20% of the children could not cope with group activities despite the fact that, in Japaneseclassrooms, teachers are trained to give orders to 30-35 children in a class and have them all do the same activities at the sametime. If a teacher can’t control one or two children in their classroom who can’t participate in joint activities, the classroom isdetermined to have become disrupted, called ‘Gakyuu Houkai,’ or ‘Disrupted Classroom.’ The teacher tends to be labeled as a
failure and many teachers nowadays have mental breakdowns, and supplemental teachers need to be called in.
Through his research, Kawamura made five recommendations. First, he suggests that the notion of ‘Yoi Ko,’ or ‘good child,’ istoo strong in Japan, and parents tend to force children ‘nonverbally,’ through their attitudes and cultural codes, to shape them into
rigid boxes, regardless of the child’s talents, character, or wishes. For example, if neighbors’ children take piano lessons, they feelthey have to provide piano lessons for their children also, and so on. In Japanese culture, it is rare for parents to give either physicalor even verbal praise to their children when they get a bit older, after about 6 years of age. Ironically, before that age, having too
close a relationship with their mother is considered to be another problem for many Japanese children, particularly among boys.
This is commonly referred to as ‘Maza-Kon’ (‘Mama’s Boy’). In particular, togetherness and dependence on mothers by sons is
especially problematic. Mothers (and fathers, of course) should express unconditional love towards their children whether they aregood children (well behaved) or not, so that children can see and feel the love that is necessary for their existence. Second,household topics of conversation are very limited in Japan, normally to topics such as food and gossip. In comparison, research on
American family shows that people talk about various topics including their feelings and opinions, social issues, political topics,
religious matters, cultural events, and so on, both between couples, and also between parents and children. In Japan, people tend tohide their true feelings even within very intimate relationships. In one recent example that has become a rather morbid joke due
the current economic crisis, a husband who has lost his job pretends to go to work every morning with his lunch box, being unable
to tell his wife of his predicament. Obviously, communication among many Japanese is too superficial, even in the family, and the― 40 ―

Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures The DAP in Japan

communication of values between parents and children in particular needs to be stimulated. The third recommendation is thenecessity of teaching basic life skills in the family. Currently, too much of the housework and daily tasks in the home are takencare of by mothers, even if they have full-time jobs. The fourth and the fifth recommendations relate to many families’ tendency toshut itself off and not socialize with neighbors, relatives and other families . In Japan, it is rare to have parties at home, or to invite
others to come to stay overnight, although Japanese had a long tradition of welcoming relatives, friends and guests in the past. But
it is now often thought that cleaning house, cooking, and entertaining others is too ‘troublesome.’ Even when children bring theirclose friends home, social conversations and interactions with parents are very limited. In the same way, traditional community
duties such as participating in community meetings and social gatherings, cleaning public areas in the community, (and the otherkinds of public service that are Japanese versions of charities and volunteer work), are disappearing altogether. Kawamura saysthat staying within very close and intimate relationships without broader and more casual relationships with others throughcommunity and other activities is very dangerous both for the children and to society as a whole. One reason is that it leads topeople who are only interested in their own individual satisfaction, or ‘Kurenai-Zoku’(‘They won’t do it for me/give it to me’
Syndrome). Kawamura’s research concluded that it is time to think about developing these five abilities more completely inchildren, to which we found that the concept of the Developmental Assets can serve as a very useful framework and tool for
improving the current situation.
Another extensive research project was done by the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK), which described five majorchanges in attitudes towards school and home life of junior and senior high school children (12-17 years old) and their parents.
First, children’s study hours have dramatically declined, and about a half of children hardly do homework (0-30 minutes a day),and neither parents nor teachers seem to have found the means to change this. Second, neither children nor parents have a longterm vision and purpose for their lives, but prefer to enjoy their present, everyday life. Third, regarding familial discipline
standards, children want parents to be ‘gentle, understanding and easy to talk to.’ In other words, superficial relationships between
children and parents are ideal, and this is applicable to friendships at schools as well. Fourth, parents hope that all disciplining will
be done by teachers in schools, and that they will not have to be strict at home. They wish to avoid all troubles and conflicts, eventhough it is such challenges which often bring deep understanding towards others when dealt with properly. Fifth, and similar to
the earlier research by Kawamura, children tend to only have close but superficial relationships with friends from the same agegroups, rather than developing deeper and long long-lasting relationships with various children at school and in the community
around them as in the past. Finally, children feel a great deal of irritation and stress towards life which they are unable to control attimes; thus, children have become ‘Kire-yasui,’ or ‘quiet but explosive,’ both in school and at home.
Thus, the desire of children to spend an easy life, without working, but with high expectations for their success or standard ofliving, the desire to have no rules or boundaries and home but strict, almost dictatorial teachers at school, the lack of adult or youth
role models in their lives, and a daily life with too much freedom with little or no duties and responsibilities has brought childrearing in Japan to a critical stage. Amongst the social trends that have led to this crisis, we found that the loss of interest inchildhood in Japan’s rapidly aging society is particularly problematic, and that children, parents, teachers and adults incommunities need to be given the tools to re-discover and learn about a values system, so as to build all of those Japanese qualities
which seem to have been lost for the last several decades.
Developmental Assets in JapanTo date, research on Developmental Assets has been limited to suggestions for the application of the Developmental Assets
Framework in Japanese society. In 2006, a survey of teachers, researchers, and local authorities was conducted asking them about
opinions of which Developmental Assets were particularly applicable to Japanese childreniv . It was an extensive survey which
provided valuable insight on the application of the Developmental Assets to Japanese adolescents, and gave a number ofsuggestions on what adults and government organizations could be doing to facilitate the development of Assets in children, but it
did not actually measure the present condition of the Assets in Japanese children directly. Another study conducted in 2007

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considered the application of the Developmental Assets framework for adults and seniors, and considering their implications foruse in life-long learning . Again, the focus of the research was not on the children themselves.
In order to consider the application of the Developmental Asset Framework to improve the situation of Japanese youth, it wasdetermined that the presence or absence of these Developmental Assets among Japanese youth needed to be measured directly,
and consideration of results compared to the current issues facing youth and the families, schools and communities which support
them. While the most thorough measurement of the Developmental Assets is the A&B Survey (Attitudes and Behaviors Survey), it
was determined that the amount of time necessary to complete the survey (approximately 60 minutes), the cost of data processing,and the necessity of changing certain items to make the survey applicable to Japanese society made it infeasible. Conversely, theDAP Survey (Developmental Assets Survey), because of its shorter length (taking only 15 minutes to fill out), would be botheasier to translate and easier for schools to administer, and data input and analysis would be both more cost-efficient and provide
more versatility for the researchers. For these reasons, it was determined that the DAP Survey would serve as an effective
preliminary measurement of the presence (or absence) of Developmental Assets in Japanese youth.
DAP Survey
Translation Issues
Before implementing the DAP in Japan, it was necessary to translate each of the items. A team of four researchers, two native
Japanese speakers and two native English speakers, went back and forth trying to find a translation for each item that would bothconvey the same meaning as it had in English and be easily understandable even for Japanese elementary school children. After
this process was completed, two of the researchers (one native English speaker and one native Japanese speaker) met with aresearcher from the Search Institute and again went through each item, back-translating into English and verifying the meaning.
There were numerous items which were particularly difficult to translate, due to linguistic and cultural differences. Linguistically,phrases such as ‘I stand up for what I believe in,’ ‘I build friendships with other people,’ and ‘I am serving others in mycommunity’ were difficult to translate because of ambiguous terms such as ‘stand up,’ ‘build’ and ‘serve’, which did not have
simple equivalents in Japanese. The item ‘I have good neighbors who care about me’ was also difficult because of the ambiguous
meaning of ‘care’and what exactly did the English item infer in terms of ‘care.’ The items ‘I have teachers who urge me to develop
and achieve’ and ‘I have parents who urge me to do well in school’ were a challenge because it was necessary to compensate forthe overwhelming pressure parents and schools place on children to be academically successful, thus the translation of the verb
‘urge’ had to be considered carefully.
Due to cultural differences, the item ‘I have parents who are good at talking with me about things,’ ‘I feel good about myself,’ ‘I
care about school,’ ‘I stay away from tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs,’ ‘I express my feelings in proper ways,’ ‘I am developing a
sense of purpose in my life,’ ‘I am included in family tasks and decisions,’ and ‘I am involved in a religious group or activity’ arephrases which were particularly challenging to translate, and some of the Japanese researchers felt that it was these items and theircorresponding Assets which might need to be adapted to fit Japanese culture in future research and application of Developmental
Assets in Japan. For the purposes of obtaining data which could be compared with American data, each item was translated in amanner which most closely matched the item in English, with the exception of two items. The word ‘drugs’ was deleted from theitem ‘I stay away from tobacco, alcohol and other drugs’ because drug use among youth in Japan is such a rarity, and the item ‘I
am involved in a religious group or activity’ was adapted to the item ‘I participate in activities at a temple, shrine or church’ toreflect the differences in religious practices in Japan and avoid the use of the Japanese term for ‘religion,’ which carries negative
implications for many people in Japan because of its wide use in reference to ‘new religions,’ or cult-like groups.
Implementation Issues
In the process of implementing the DAP Survey in Japan, several issues needed to be considered before implementation and― 42 ―

Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures The DAP in Japan

when analyzing the data. Because the DAP Survey was distributed to schools and students filled the surveys out in class, there wasa possibility of teachers trying to explain the meaning of various items and thus unconsciously effecting student’s answers. In
addition, students discussing questions and their responses with other students occurs regularly in the Japanese classroom.
Furthermore, even though the survey takes only 15 minutes or so to fill out, students becoming fatigued in the process ofanswering items which are culturally unfamiliar to them could lead to random marking. In order to avoid these problems, a short
introduction similar to the English version of the DAP was included, encouraging students to answer quickly and honestly,
assuring them that the data would not affect their grades and their privacy would be kept, and letters to the schools explained the
purpose and method of conducting the survey. Nonetheless, there were still a number of surveys which were obviously filled out
randomly, and were thus excluded in the analysis of the data.
DAP Survey Results
After the survey was translated into Japanese, a letter asking for participation in the survey was sent out to educators andresearchers at the university level and in schools asking for their help in finding schools in their region which would be willing toparticipate in the survey. These people then contacted individual schools and sent out letters of request, sample surveys, and a
postcard for replying. Postcards were received from 83 schools, and 81 of these schools gave their permission for surveys to besent to them directly. Surveys were sent out between November, 2008 and March, 2009, and a total of 14,410 responses werereceived from 81 schools in 10 prefectures (Hokkaido, Tokyo, Hyogo, Saga, Ehime, Okayama, Shimane, Yamaguchi, Fukuoka,
and Kumamoto). Survey data was input between December, 2008 and May, 2009, after which the data was edited to exclude
incomplete and ambiguously filled out surveys, and the data for 13,947 surveys was analyzed. The results were compared with
DAP sample data from the US, and differences by gender, school level (elementary, junior high, high school), geographical area
were compared. The results for geographical area did not show clear differences due to a heavy concentration of age groups incertain areas. A more detailed investigation from a different perspective seems to be required, thus the results for geographical area
were excluded from analysis at this time.
Because of the manner of administration of the DAP Survey at the Search Institute, a large data sample was unavailable forcomparison. As a result, it was necessary to compare the results of the survey in Japan to the sample data supplied in the DAP
Users Manual of roughly 2000 6th through 12th grade children in the United States, thus making an in-depth analysis infeasible. A
more detailed and statistically significant analysis will be necessary when further data from the United States is made available,
but a simple analysis of the data from the two countries seems to indicate that the use of the DAP in Japan serves as a viablemeasurement, in that the data seems to show the same trends (See Graph 1). The results are given in numerical values, where 0 14.9 means ‘Poor,’ 15 - 19.9 means ‘Fair,’ 20 - 24.9 means ‘Good,’ and 25 - 30 means ‘Excellent.’
In comparing the results from the two countries, the most obvious difference is that all of the values in Japan are lower thanGraph 1. Asset Category Comparison between Japanese Data and American Data Sample― 43 ―

山口県立大学学術情報第３号 〔国際文化学部紀要〕 2010年３月

those of the American sample; all of the values from the American sample, with the exception of ‘Constructive Use of Time’ (18.8,
Fair) are between 20 and 25 points, and thus fall into the ‘Good’ category, while the values for the Japanese data are between 15
and 20 points (except for ‘Constructive Use of Time,’ 14.8, Poor), or the ‘Fair’ category. While it is likely that some of thedifference is due to a lower level of Assets in the children in Japan, the main reason is most likely due to the response ambiguity
seen in almost any survey conducted on Japanese people . There were three Asset Categories, however, in which the scores wereparticularly low, and which require further consideration: ‘Constructive Use of Time’ (US average 18.8, Japan average 14.8),’Positive Values’ (US average 20.9, Japan average 16.5, and ‘Positive Identity’ (US average 21.2, Japan average 15.0).
The overall average of the Japanese data for the Developmental Asset Category ‘Constructive Use of Time’ was 14.8 points, thelowest score of all the categories, and was the only score which fell into the ‘Poor’ (0-15 points) range. A closer look at the scoreof the individual items making up this category (see Chart 1 below) reveals that while the values for involvement in sports
activities or other groups (21.5) and spending quality time at home with parents (18.8) are actually much higher, and are generally
on par with the results with other items in the survey, the scores for participation in religious activities (6.6) and involvement increative activities (12.3) are much lower that scores for other items. A further investigation of the differences between different age
groups and gender reveals that high schools students scores are particularly lower for involvement in religious activities (4.1),
sports and club activities (20.3) and spending quality time with parents (16.9), and that while male respondents showed a great
deal less involvement in creative activities (10.1 vs. 14.4) and had somewhat less quality time at home with their parents (17.7 vs.
19.8) than female respondents, female respondents had lower values for involvement in religious activities (6.4 vs. 7.0) andinvolvement in sports groups or clubs (20.2 vs. 23.0).

Chart 1. Japanese Data for Asset Category ‘Constructive Use of Time’ (Total, School, and Gender)
Total

Elementary

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

FemaleI participate in activities at a temple,
shrine or church

6.6

8.9

7.0

4.1

7.0

6.4

I am involved in a sport, club, or othergroup.

21.5

21.2

22.9

20.3

23.0

20.2

I am involved in creative things such asmusic, theater, or art.

12.3

12.6

12.3

11.9

10.1

14.4

I am spending quality time at home withmy parent(s).

18.8

20.6

18.9

16.9

17.7

19.8

Asset Category Item

Constructive
Use of TimeIn regards to the Asset Category ‘Positive Values’ (Japanese average 16.5), the items which lowered the overall average were ‘Itell the truth even when it is not easy’ (14.9), I am helping to make my community a better place’ (10.3), and ‘I am trying to help
solve social problems’ (11.7) (See Chart 2). Results for high school students were all much lower than those for younger
respondents (13.9, 6.7, 10.3) respectively, while differences by gender for these items were all one point or less.
Finally, for the Asset Category ‘Positive Identity’ (Japanese average 15.0), the items which negatively affected the results were ‘I
feel good about myself’ (11.0), and ‘I deal with frustration in positive ways’ (14.9). Both of these items showed a declining scoreby age (Elementary 14.0 to High School 9.5, and Elementary 15.9 to High School 14.0), and while there was not a great deal ofdifference by gender for ‘I deal with frustration in positive ways’ (Male 15.1, Female 14.7), the difference for ‘I feel good about
myself’ (Male 12.4, Female 9.7) was dramatic.
In regards to Context View, the data from Japan again follow the same general trends as that of the Asset Categories (see Graph2) in that each value itself is between 3 and 6 points lower than the American sample data. The values are higher for Social, Family
and School (19.0, 18.8, 18.4), but lower for Personal and Community Context Views (17.0, 14.7), and the difference between theAmerican data is also more pronounced (4.2 and 5.5 points respectively), thus indicating the need for further investigation of theindividual items making up each View in order to reveal the cultural characteristics or asset deficiencies which might have caused― 44 ―

Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures The DAP in Japan

Chart 2. Japanese Data for Asset Category ‘Positive Values’ (Total, School, and Gender)
Total

Elementary

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

FemaleI stand up for what I believe in.

16.6

16.7

16.5

16.7

17.2

16.0

Asset Category Item

Positive
Values

I stay away from tobacco and alcohol.

25.5

26.1

25.8

24.7

25.1

25.9

I think it is important to help other people.

24.7

25.8

24.4

23.9

24.1

25.2

I take responsibility for what I do.

17.5

18.2

17.1

17.3

17.3

17.7

I tell the truth even when it is not easy.

14.9

15.9

15.0

13.9

15.2

14.6

I am helping to make my community abetter place.

10.3

13.5

10.9

6.7

10.7

10.1

I am developing good health habits.

16.9

19.1

17.1

14.5

17.5

16.3

I am encouraged to help others.

17.1

18.3

17.2

15.8

16.8

17.4

I am trying to help solve social problems.

11.7

12.9

11.9

10.3

12.2

11.2

I am developing respect for other people.

16.5

17.2

16.0

16.2

16.4

16.4

I am serving others in my community.

9.8

11.9

10.4

7.1

10.2

9.4

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

FemaleChart 3. Japanese Data for Asset Category ‘Positive Identity’ (Total, School, and Gender)
Asset Category Item

Positive
Identity

Total

Elementary

I feel in control of my life and future.

15.9

16.8

15.2

15.7

16.1

15.6

I feel good about myself.

11.2

14.0

10.0

9.5

12.4

9.7

I feel good about my future.

16.5

19.8

15.9

13.7

16.4

16.4

I deal with frustration in positive ways.

14.9

15.9

15.0

14.0

15.1

14.7

I overcome challenges in positive ways.

15.8

17.3

15.3

14.6

16.2

15.3

I am developing a sense of purpose in my life.

16.3

18.4

16.1

14.4

16.8

15.8

Graph 2 Context View by Country

such a difference.
For the Context View ‘Personal’ (Japanese average 17.0), the items which were significantly lower (more than 0.5 points) than
17 points and thus had the most negative effect on the overall data were ‘I feel in control of my life and future’ (15.9), ‘I feel goodabout myself’ (11.2), ‘I feel good about my future’ (16.5), ‘I deal with frustration in positive ways’ (14.9), ‘I tell the truth evenwhen it is not easy’ (14.9), and ‘I am developing a sense of purpose in my life’ (16.3) (See Chart 4). As stated previously, theaverage of each item goes down with age, but the degree of change varies with each item. Some items, such as ‘I deal withfrustration in positive ways’ (Elementary average 15.9, High school average 14.0) and ‘I tell the truth even when it is not easy’(Elementary average 15.9, High school average 13.9) are relatively static, while other items, such as ‘I feel good about myself’(Elementary average 14.0, High school average 9.5), ‘I feel good about my future’ (Elementary average 19.8, High school average― 45 ―

山口県立大学学術情報第３号 〔国際文化学部紀要〕 2010年３月

Chart 4 Japanese Data for Context View ‘Personal’ (Total, School, and Gender)
Asset Category Item
I stand up for what I believe in.

Context View
Personal

Total

Elementary

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

Female

16.6

16.7

16.5

16.7

17.2

16.0

I feel in control of my life and future.

15.9

16.8

15.2

15.7

16.1

15.6

I feel good about myself.

11.2

14.0

10.0

9.5

12.4

9.7

I avoid things that are dangerous or unhealthy.

21.3

22.7

21.3

19.8

21.2

21.3

I enjoy reading or being read to.

17.3

19.1

17.3

15.5

15.7

18.9

I stay away from tobacco and alcohol.

25.5

26.1

25.8

24.7

25.1

25.9

I feel good about my future.

16.5

19.8

15.9

13.7

16.4

16.4

I deal with frustration in positive ways.

14.9

15.9

15.0

14.0

15.1

14.7

I plan ahead and make good choices.

16.6

17.5

16.7

15.6

16.7

16.5

I take responsibility for what I do.

17.5

18.2

17.1

17.3

17.3

17.7

I tell the truth even when it is not easy.

14.9

15.9

15.0

13.9

15.2

14.6

I am developing a sense of purpose in my life.

16.3

18.4

16.1

14.4

16.8

15.8

I am developing good health habits.

16.9

19.1

17.1

14.5

17.5

16.3

13.7), and ‘I am developing a sense of purpose in my life’ (Elementary average 18.4, High school average 14.4), show a dramatic
drop in score.
Finally, the Japanese data for the Context View ‘Community’ (Japanese average 14.7) revealed that the items which brought thisview down to the level of ‘Poor’ (0-15) were ‘I am helping to make my community a better place’ (10.3), ‘I am involved in a
religious groups or activity’ (6.6), ‘I am trying to help solve social problems’(11.7), ‘I am given useful roles andresponsibilities’(13.1), ‘I am involved in creative things such as music, theater, or art’(12.3), and ‘I am serving others in mycommunity’(9.8) (See Chart 5). Differences due to age were not very prevalent for ‘I am involved in creative things such as music,
theater, or art’ (Elementary average 12.6, High school average 11.9), ‘I am trying to help solve social problems’ (Elementary
average 12.9, High school average 10.3), ‘I am given useful roles and responsibilities’ (Elementary average 14.6, High school
average 11.2), but are more pronounced for ‘I participate in activities at a temple, shrine or church’ (Elementary average 8.9, Highschool average 4.1), ‘I am serving others in my community’ (Elementary average 11.9, High school average 7.1), and ‘I am

Chart 5 Japanese Data for Context View ‘Community’ (Total, School, and Gender)
Total

Elementary

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

FemaleI accept people who are different from me.

18.7

20.0

18.4

17.8

18.6

18.8

I am helping to make my community abetter place.

10.3

13.5

10.9

6.7

10.7

10.1

I participate in activities at a temple, shrine or
church.

6.6

8.9

7.0

4.1

7.0

6.4

I am involved in a sport, club, or other group.

21.5

21.2

22.9

20.3

23.0

20.2

Asset Category Item

Context View
Community

I am trying to help solve social problems.

11.7

12.9

11.9

10.3

12.2

11.2

I am given useful roles and responsibilities.

13.1

14.6

13.5

11.2

13.4

12.9

I am developing respect for other people.

16.5

17.2

16.0

16.2

16.4

16.4

I am involved in creative things such asmusic, theater, or art.

12.3

12.6

12.3

11.9

10.1

14.4

I am serving others in my community.

9.8

11.9

10.4

7.1

10.2

9.4

I have a safe neighborhood.

22.0

22.9

21.8

21.4

22.0

22.0

I have good neighbors who care about me.

17.4

20.0

17.5

14.8

17.0

17.8

I have neighbors who help watch out for me.

16.9

19.5

16.9

14.2

16.4

17.3

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Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures The DAP in Japan

helping to make my community a better place’ (Elementary average 13.5, High school average 6.7). Differences in gender forthese items were all 1.0 points or less, with the exception of ‘I am involved in creative things such as music, theater, or art’ (Male
10.1, Female 14.3) where there was a 4 point difference.
Observations and Discussion
Because a full data set from the American Sample was not available for in depth analysis, it was not possible to make a directcomparison of individual items on the survey. However, through a simple analysis of the data, the Asset Categories and Context
Views with scores markedly lower than the American sample data were further analyzed by looking at the individual items thatmade up the category and considering whether a cultural characteristic may have caused that effect, or if it is something which isdue to a lower level of Assets in Japanese children.
As Kawamura (2007) recommended in his research report, it is time to refocus our efforts on children, and make an effort to 1)
provide unconditional love, 2) communicate values, 3) teach basic, daily life skills, 4) interact with other parents and otherfamilies, and 5) become involved in community activities. As evident in the results from the DAP Survey (See Chart 6), theserecommendations are directly related to the problems which they are currently facing,. Six of the Items with the lowest scorescome from the Context View ‘Community’ (‘I participate in activities at a temple, shrine or church,’ ‘I am serving others in mycommunity,’ ‘I am helping to make my community a better place,’ ‘I am trying to help solve social problems,’ ‘I am involved increative things such as music, theater, or art,’ and ‘I am given useful roles and responsibilities’), most of which relate to becoming
involved with people and working together to make their surrounding environment a better place, and would serve to remedy someof the problems brought to light by both Kawamura and the NHK Survey. Another two of the low-scoring items are in the Context

Chart 6 List of Items with Total Average of 15 or Less (Poor) Japanese Data
Asset Category

Item

Total

Elementary

Jr HighHigh
SchoolMale

FemaleTime

Community I participate in activities at a
temple, shrine or church.

6.6

8.9

7.0

4.1

7.0

6.4

ValuesCommunity I am serving others in mycommunity.

9.8

11.9

10.4

7.1

10.2

9.4

ValuesCommunity I am helping to make mycommunity a better place.

10.3

13.5

10.9

6.7

10.7

10.1

Identity

Personal

11.2

14.0

10.0

9.5

12.4

9.7

ValuesCommunity I am trying to help solve
social problems.

11.7

12.9

11.9

10.3

12.2

11.2

Time

Community I am involved in creative
things such as music,
theater, or art.

12.3

12.6

12.3

11.9

10.1

14.4

Empowerment

Community I am given useful roles andresponsibilities.

13.1

14.6

13.5

11.2

13.4

12.9

I feel good about myself.

FamilyI have a family that provides
me with clear rules.

14.2

16.2

14.1

12.3

14.2

14.1

Personal

I deal with frustration inpositive ways.

14.9

15.9

15.0

14.0

15.1

14.7

Personal

I tell the truth even when it
is not easy.

14.9

15.9

15.0

13.9

15.2

14.6

FamilyI seek advice from myparents

15.0

17.5

14.1

13.5

13.8

16.1

SocialCompetencies

SocialI build friendships withother people.

15.2

17.6

15.2

12.8

15.3

15.0

Learning

School

I enjoy learning.

15.5

18.3

14.9

13.5

15.6

15.4

B&E
Identity
ValuesSupport― 47 ―

山口県立大学学術情報第３号 〔国際文化学部紀要〕 2010年３月

View ‘Family’ (‘I have a family that provides me with clear rules,’ ‘I seek advice from my parents’), and are indicative of the lackof conversation and teaching of daily life skills and values which Kawamura points out, in addition to the data provided by the
NHK survey indicating the children’s lack of rules and boundaries and children’s tendencies to desire an easy life of freedom withno duties or responsibilities.
Low-scoring items in the Context View ‘Personal’ were ‘I feel good about myself,’ ‘I deal with frustration in positive ways’ and‘I tell the truth even when it is not easy,’ which relate directly to Kawamura’s call for building self-respect/self-esteem in children,
promoting positive thinking and self-confidence, and teaching them to be able to have self-control. ‘I build friendships with otherpeople’ (Context View ‘Social’) is directly related to Kawamura’s recommendation that children need to build human relationships
outside of their ‘normal’ inner circle in order to combat the current problems related to having only a few friends and otherwise
superficial relationships. The final item ‘I enjoy learning’ (Context View ‘School’) is directly related to the results from the NHK
Survey, which showed that almost half of the students surveyed have virtually no study time at home and no desire to work, buthave high expectations for life.
Conclusion
Through the translation, implementation and analyzing of the DAP Survey in Japanese, we found that it seems to provide an
excellent indication of the presence of the Developmental Assets (or lack thereof), and promises to become a valuable tool forfamilies and educators in Japan. Future research could include a further investigation into the differences between the Americanand Japanese data (if a larger and more detailed American data set could be made available), and an in-depth investigation of thepossible links between the Developmental Assets and the high-risk and positive behavior patterns that are typical in Japanesesociety. This would be a much more time-consuming undertaking, but would have the immeasurable benefit of being able to adapt
the Developmental Assets to more accurately reflect behaviors, values and issues which are typical in Japanese society.
This report was based on the oral presentation with the same title given at Healthy Communities, Healthy Youth 2009
Conference in Cincinnati, Ohio on November 4th, 2009. We would like to express our great respect and appreciation for thecooperation given to us by the Search Institute as a whole, and to Peter Benson and Eugene Roehlkepartain for their continued
interest and cooperation in this project.
References
Institute for American Values (2003), Hardwired to Connect: The Scientific Case for Authoritative Communities. YMCA of theUSA, Washington, D.C.
Iwano, Masako & Wilson, Amy (2007), The Potential of Values Education in the Socialization of Children : Child development
through the practice of the Full Circle Learning Program. Bulletin of the Faculty of International Studies, Yamaguchi
Prefectural University, Vol.13 pp.7-20.
Kawamura, Shigeo (2007), “De-ta De Kataru: Katei, Chiiki no Kadai” (Speaking with Data: Issues for Families and Communities.
Toshobunka-sya Publishing.
Lerner, Richard M. and Benson, Peter L. (2003), Developmental Assets and Asset-Building Communities: Implications for
Research, Policy, and Practice. Klewer Academic/Plenum Publishers, New York.
Minneapolis Star Tribune, At 50-Year Mark, Institution still has a Heart for Kids, January 24, 2009.
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Chousa Kenkyuu Houkokusho (Report on Survey Research of Developmental Assets of Children in Adolesence).
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Adaptation of Surveys across Cultures The DAP in Japan

Childhood. Search Institute, Minnesota.
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and Society: From the Point of View of Life-long Learning) . Hokuouji Publishers.
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Children First Japan (http://childrenfirst.ypu.jp/index.html)
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i

Washington Times, March 25, 2009(http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/mar/25/search-institute-a-beacon-for-youth/ )Minneapolis Star Tribune, January 24, 2009 (http://nl.newsbank.com/)ii
iii

http://www.search-institute.org, Search Institute, retrieved November 30, 2009.
Kawamura, Shigeo (2007), “De-ta De Kataru: Katei, Chiiki no Kadai” (Speaking with Data: Issues for Families and Communities.

Toshobunka-sya Publishing.
iv

National Institution for Educational Policy Research (2006) Kodomo no Seichou-Katei ni Okeru Hattatsu Shisan ni Tsuite no Chousa
Kenkyuu Houkokusho (Report on Survey Research of Developmental Assets of Children in Adolesence).

v

Tatsuta K & Iwaki K (2007). Katei, Gakkou, Syakai de Hagukumu Hattatsu-Shisan (Developmental Assets in the Home, School andSociety: From the Point of View of Life-long Learning) . Hokuouji Publishers.

viSmith, Tom W., 2003. Developing Comparable Questions in Cross-National Surveys. In Cross-Cultural Survey Methods. Harkness, Van deVijver and Mohler, (2003), John Wiley & Sons, Inc., p.82.

― 49 ―