Explaining Japan's Lack of Green Parties : A Social-Milieu Approach

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Although Japan is a highly industrialized country, it still lacks any significant green parties. This apparent Japanese exceptionalism in terms of green parties cannot be clarified by such conventional explanations as its electoral institutions, party competition, and degree of post−materialism. This paper will instead utilize the German−developed framework of social−milieu studies to explain this phenomenon. It focuses on green parties’ potential support bases, paying attention to the characteristics of green milieu parties. German milieu studies have found that alternative or techno milieus with high educational and occupational qualifications and left−libertarian value orientations have supported the German Green Party. Our data show that an ironist milieu can be regarded as a potential basis of support for Japanese green parties, as Japanese ironist are more leftist toward political and economic issues and more liberal in their cultural attitudes. However, German alternatives tend to be active, while Japanese ironists tend to be passive and disinclined to participate in various groups or to associate with others. Such passivity inclines them to retreat into their private lives without expressing their left− libertarian value orientation in the political arena. Our findings therefore suggest that a milieu exists that could potentially support Japanese green parties, but that these parties have been failing to gain support from it because of its members’ passivity and apolitical behavior.

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