In contrast with the public pension program for employed persons, the one for self-employed persons was established much later than the former, as will be discussed later in this paper.
C. Social Change and Its Impact on the Lives of the Elderly after the mid-1950's
Japan underwent a rapid economic development and urbanization from the mid-1950's. The impact of this change was so profound that it is sometimes referred to as "the second industrial revolution." In 1955 the proportion of the population engaged in agriculture was approximately 41 percent. This proportion was reduced to approximately 9 percent in 1985. Rapid industrialization and urbanization greatly affected the lives of Japanese older persons through a number of changes in the social and economic structure of Japan. I shall discuss some of the important ones below.
a) Impact of Demographic Change
As discussed in Part I of this booklet, because of improvements in the general standard of living as well as in medical sciences, the number of very old persons, aged 80 years or above, has been and is increasing significantly. The growth of the old old means an increase in the demand for various forms of care services. This increased demand is accelerated by the decreased capability of family caregivers, because the more advanced age of dependent older parents means that the age of their caretaking children has also become higher. In many cases, children themselves are already old and their own health is not adequate to provide needed care.
b) Migration of Younger Persons from Rural to Urban Areas
The reduction in the agricultural population means that there was a great migration from rural to urban industrialized areas. As a result, even in rural areas, the proportion of older persons living alone or only with a spouse increased significantly, though the proportion of such older persons in rural areas is still much lower than in urban areas.
c) Influence of the Dispersion of Industrial Areas
In addition to the great migration of the younger generation from rural to urban areas, due to a dispersion of industrial areas caused by the development of the manufacturing industry, a large number of young people were forced to move to other industrial areas to find jobs. Thus, persons who were born and raised in urban locations often have found it difficult to obtain a job in the same urban area where their older parents live. As a result, in urban areas, too, the proportion of old people living alone or only with their spouse has increased.
