Stanford Japan Barometer

Tracking Japanese public opinion on politics, security, immigration, and society.

The Stanford Japan Barometer is a multi-wave public opinion survey run by the Stanford Japan Program, part of the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC) at Stanford University. Using survey experiments embedded in each wave, the project tracks how Japanese attitudes on governance, security, and immigration evolve over time — and identifies the causal mechanisms behind them.

Latest News

Energy Dependence, Not Alliance Obligations, Moves Japanese Opinion on JSDF Dispatch to the Strait of Hormuz

A vignette experiment fielded one month after the February 2026 election finds that the Japanese public is skeptical of dispatching the Self-Defense Forces to the Strait of Hormuz by default — but energy-security framing significantly raises support, even when the message advocates for diplomacy over dispatch.

March 31, 2026

Japanese Public Favors Skilled, Japanese-Speaking Immigrants — But Resistance to Chinese Applicants Remains Strong

A three-wave panel experiment finds that Japanese respondents strongly prefer high-skilled immigrants who speak Japanese, while showing markedly lower support for applicants from China — a penalty that language ability barely offsets. Security framing effects have grown stronger one month after the election.

March 27, 2026