The Economic Growth in Japan and the US After Second World War, Essay Example

Introduction

The rapid economic growth in the U.S. and Japan after World War II was an aspect that affected social relationships quite profoundly. One of the effects was depicted through mate selection in both the U.S. and China through the records in the 1950s and 1960s. The change was impactful on the dating customs, courtship experiences, and general approach towards marriage, as shown from both countries. Economic status affects social cultures, as shown from how people perceive and depict the dating culture. As people had more money to spend, the dating and marriage records in the U.S. and Japan showed more people getting married or starting dating because they could support families. High levels of marriage and courtship status both in the U.S. and Japan showed that growth of the economy, as demonstrated by an increase in GDP, makes people more stable and shapes them to think of marriage. The essay compares the experiences of dating and marriage as shown through economic growth cases both in the U.S. and in Japan.

The Influence of Rapid economic Growth on Marital relationships after World War II

There are different ways in which the Second World War impacted the marital status of the Japanese and Americans. One of the effects was young people in the ages of early twenties getting marriage or being active in courtship or dating statuses (Ogasawara & Igarashi, 2021). Having positive growth in the economy positively influences marriage cultures, as depicted through Japanese and U.S. citizens. The American cultures of marriage in the 1950s and 1960s showed an increase of around 80 % of people being involved in dating and marital status. Based on the legal age in the U.S. being 18 years, the positive growth in the economy made the average age of the groom to be around 23 years while the average age of the brides was about 20 years (Homei, 2016). Most of the older women of the age of 40s and 50s were left to be homemakers.

As shown through the people’s cultures both in the U.S. and Japan, not all people were involved in early marriages. Some of the Japanese men got engrossed in the war and decided to marry in the later stages of their lives as they dedicated themselves to protecting the country (Ruggles, 2016). However, most men got into early marriages based on creating families to be strong social support units to help them achieve more through life. Some of the men also decided to do polygamy as they felt that they were in stable positions to support two or more wives. After the Second World War, polygamy both in the U.S. and in Japan was still legal, and people could choose if they were in stable states that would sustain them in raising a family. In both the U.S. and China, the father’s family units were headed majorly as males are often good in family leadership positions (Fielding, 2017). In cases where the man had died or even divorced, the mother was often the head of the family unit.

Changes in some of the external economic factors can directly impact how people perceive marriage and dating. As seen through the period after the Second World War, improved technology would enhance productivity and better infrastructure that helped people in profound ways (Schumm & Newsom, 2016). Lower poverty levels and the increase in living standards lessen the struggles that people go through and open up doors that can help them support other needs in life, such as the need for marriage and eventually raising a family. Poor economic status in different countries increases the rates of divorce based on heightened levels of conflict among partners and family units at different levels. During the rise in financial situation, people can meet basic needs efficiently by providing food, shelter, clothing, and even education for themselves and the other members of life (Fouka, 2020). An increase in technology, infrastructure, and other tangible avenues of economic life would potentially make more people date, court, or get into marriages early.

Conclusion

To conclude, there was an overall approach of people taking dating and the notion of marriage positively, as indicated through the early marriages in the U.S. and Japan. The bride and the groom started marriage as early as in their early twenties. People have more money than they can spend increases the chances of them choosing to have partners or even making decisions of starting families. There was even marriage more than one wife if one is in a stable position to provide to them efficiently and rapid growth in economic helps people to meet their needs in life efficiently. Generally, the people who got married in both earlier and later stages of life in the U.S. and Japan had positive perceptions of marriage. Based on the above points, the growth in the economic status through positive indicators such as an increase in the level of GDP has positive influences on how people view the idea of marriage, dating, or courtship.

References

Fielding, T. (2017). Japan: Internal migration trends and processes since the 1950s. In Internal Migration in the Developed World (pp. 173-202). Routledge.

Fouka, V. (2020). Backlash: The unintended effects of language prohibition in US schools after World War I. The Review of Economic Studies, 87(1), 204-239.

Homei, A. (2016). Midwife and Public Health Nurse Tatsuyo Amari and a State-Endorsed Birth Control Campaign in 1950s Japan. Nursing History Review, 24(1), 41-64.

Ogasawara, K., & Igarashi, E. (2021). The Impacts of the Gender Imbalance on Marriage and Birth: Evidence from World War II in Japan. arXiv preprint arXiv:2102.00687.

Ruggles, S. (2016). Marriage, family systems, and economic opportunity in the USA since 1850. In Gender and couple relationships (pp. 3-41). Springer, Cham.

Schumm, W. R., & Newsom, K. C. (2016). Age at first marriage. Encyclopedia of Family Studies, 1-3.