Are Japanese children becoming less welcoming to foreigners?

I came across an interesting article in The Japan Times today about how social media is influencing Japanese children's attitudes towards immigration, and it's worth the read if you haven't seen it already. As a foreign parent who has spent years raising my kids here, it's a topic that certainly caught my attention.

According to a recent survey by University of Tokyo professor Norihiro Nihei, more than 40% of junior high school students surveyed disagreed with the idea that having more foreigners living in Japan would bring benefits to society. That's more than double the proportion recorded in a similar 2022 survey, so quite the significant jump.

One factor being highlighted is social media, where young people can encounter anti-immigration content and misinformation without necessarily looking for it. With 92.9% of Japanese people aged 13 and older using social media, it's a pretty influential part of how younger generations receive information.

I think it's particularly important to consider what this means for children growing up in multicultural environments. I'd hope that children growing up here learn about the positive contributions people from different backgrounds can make, rather than forming opinions based on sensationalized social media posts.