Participants’ Comments

　　　Comments on:

　　　　　<Business in Japan’s Aging Society>

　　　　　<Japan’s Aging Society: Gerontological Perspectives>

• Although I know that business market for elderly was large, however did not expect such variety.
• It was interesting to learn about products, services, and business strategies targeting the elderly, especially in Japan. I was surprised to learn that many of the products I took for granted were actually designed with the convenience of the elderly in mind. I think I will be more aware of this kind of design now that I know it exists.
• We learned about how business have developed products and services to cater for the need of elderly people in Japan. I am surprised at the diversity and creativity of this market. At the same time, I realized that it shows how much society is trying to take care of the elderly.
• I was impressed by such a wider range of products targeted for elderly people from daily facilities to healthcare and entertainment. I am happy there are more and more products like this to ensure a happy, safe, and healthy life for the elderly. Regardless, I think the most important thing remains the love and care of family members and local community to these older persons.
• Realizing how many different services there are for the elderly population was pretty surprising. It was interesting to see more services and products for the elderly than I had expected.
• The fact about old people working at fast food restaurants was really interesting.
• Today’s talk on business and aging was very interesting. I felt that businesses that use “old person” or “elderly” in their product or service names often fail because the elderly are self-couscous of getting old.
• I thought the development of products for the elderly is a wonderful initiative in Japan, where the elderly population is expected to further increase in the future. I think today’s talk has given us some kind of vision of what we should be working on as well.
• It is interesting to note that the daughter being close to her elderly mother suggests that the grandmother will spend money on her grandchildren.
• It is good that there are various products/services that help the elderly enjoy life. Not only things that make their life “normal” but also thinking of their leisure & free time to have fun. It was interesting to note that various recreational facilities are used as places of activity for the elderly during weekday days.
• As more and more products and services for the elderly are introduced, we learned that it is also important to consider services and methods to protect the elderly from malicious business approaches to prevent customer problems.
• It is very interesting that there are many products and innovations being made to aid the elderly. However, it is a bit counterintuitive if they are sold at an extremely high price-point. Many seniors may be living on pensions, which may not be sufficient to purchase very expensive products among the general elderly population.
• I think ‘business and aging’ is one of the most interesting topics in our modern society. Thinking about products and services the elderly might need let me not only think about fascinating new products, but also consider the hardships of the elderly. T thought that all the items and activities shown in the presentation slides were amazing and truly needed for our society. However, it seems like most of the truly helpful items/products/services were only for the wealthy older individuals. If I were thinking of or design a product for the elderly, I would want to focus on the underprivileged. For example, inexpensive leisure activities or affordable products that help elderly daily lives.
• There are numerous products for the elderly than I thought. I understand that when we make some products, we need to delicate consideration.
• The rapid advancement of technology is thrilling to me, but also made me anxious about the possibility of complete control over the lives of others through surveillance and protection.
• It was interesting to see how there are many supportive products and services that are made to help the daily living and safety of the elderly. One of the important points that how to design products and services for their safety without invading their privacy.
• I was surprised by the example of the fact that restricting the age and gender of customers can be profitable.
• Although I was familiar with some of the products and services introduced today, the majority of them were unfamiliar to me. I was pleased to learn that many companies are making effects to develop products for an aging society.
• I want to use the knowledge I learned from you presentation for my future career.
• I found the inclusion of elderly into the aging society very interesting and important. Like how it was reflected at the beginning of today’s talk, older persons should not be seen always as someone who needs support but also as someone who we need in business and labor force.
• I think the fact that products labeled as “for elderly” are not well received is related to how the elderly do not perceive themselves as old. This is similar to how Japanese old people do not like being prioritized seats on train by young people because they perceive they are not old.
• It was interesting how internet use among older generations shot up with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. I wonder if this is due to necessity (lifestyle changes) or out of boredom due to government requests to stay at home.
• I am surprised that there are so many technological products for the elderly people. And they are not only for older but also all generations. I feel I want to use some of them. I am also surprised of the expenditure capability of elderly people. It seems that there is a very big market for companies. However, I am afraid that it must be paid attention to some frauds.
• I think the various innovations made for elderly people could be former developed with AI technology or robotics. It is a growing industry and could perhaps be used for entertainment purposes. I also think elderly person can be involved in business ideas.
• A lot of products to support elderly are developed. Also, many kinds of services for elderly to enjoy after retiring life are made recently. It should be noted that people who get older may lose opportunities to relate to people, including helping each other. I think it is same as lost of human dignity.  It is very good to be convenient but excessive dependence on machine is not good.
• I think that the cell phone targeting the elderly people is convenient. My grandmother bought it last year. But the problem was that children including me didn’t know how to use the cell phones for the elderly people, so we could not teach them how to use it. After all, we bought the new one that was the same as our cell phones. So, I think, in business, the design is important but we also need to concern about their real use.
• Not only disadvantaged older persons but also all other people should enjoy the benefit from such products. It is important to care about elderly people but we do not have to stick to the difference of age. It is good to make more comfortable products by using new technology.
• I thought it was reasonable that the elderly would be the target of the business since they are certainly numerous and energetically active. I felt that the product designs for the elderly were not stylish, but I thought this was for visual reasons and because old-fashioned designs are more acceptable to the aged.

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• Great introduction of gerontology and the current ageing situation in Japan. This is a useful issue in our country as well. The lecturer spoke very well.
• Population aging is very interesting and meaningful because it’s the worldwide issue right now. Lots of information and a great overview of Japan’s aging society and the world. Very current, with data and references, the Q&A was spot on, and the English was excellent and easy to understand.
• The lecturer used very vivid charts and speeches to let us understand the super aging in Japan and compared the aging situation of other countries.
• The lectures are so knowledgeable! They were elaborated well! Thank you for your explanation.
• The contents of the lecture are very useful, and presentation was careful. Through this lecture, I can clearly understand the current situation of Japan’s aged society.
• The information of the Power Point is very detailed, letting me get more knowledge about gerontology. And the lecturer is also excellent, using simple and detailed narration for gerontology. I think this lecture is very useful.
• The lecturer provided a comprehensive introduction to Japan’s super aged society, covering topics such as health status, long term care system, elder abuse, assistive devices, and novel robotic equipment. I would like to further build up my expectations for more lectures.
• Knowing that the scope of gerontology is very broad, through the discipline of gerontology on the aging process and growth process of people, we have deepened our understanding of aging in Japan.
• Through this course, I fully understand the aging situation in Japan and other countries. I also saw Japan’s concern for the elderly. Let science and technology change life and make the life of the elderly better.
• Through today’s lecture I have come to understand the current aging process in Japan and how Japan is responding to the development of aging. The average age of elderly people in Japan is much higher than that of any other country in the world. Gerontology is an issue that cannot be taken lightly, and it was evident that Japan is actively addressing this issue.
• We learn how the population is changing in Japan and worldwide. Also, it allows us to reflect on how these changes will affect all of us in near future. The lecturer is presenting very clearly when talking about different data related to the super ageing population.
• It is a great introduction of Japan’s condition, and concept of Gerontology! It enriches and refreshes my knowledge.
• Our country is also aging, and at this stage, how to better face the aging population is a major issue. I learned a lot from the lecturer’s lively talk.

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