Zenishikyo
Conducted a questionnaire survey regarding the “image of a joint grave” More than 70% of people in their 40s and above know what a “joint burial grave” is and have an image of it.
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The only organization in the grave industry officially recognized by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the National Stone Products Cooperative Association (hereinafter referred to as Zen-Ishikyo) (Minato-ku, Tokyo, Chairman: Ryuzo Kato), aims to grasp the reality of satisfaction levels with graves, which have become increasingly diverse in recent years. In order to do so, we conducted a survey of 431 men and women in their 40s and over across the country regarding their image of a joint grave. We have summarized the answers obtained.
[Summary of survey results]
◇More than 70% of people know what a “joint burial grave” is and have an image of it.
◇ Compared to men, women have a better image of a joint grave. ◇ By age group, many people in their 40s have a “good” image of “coal burial graves,” while those in their 50s and above have a “bad” image.
◇ Do you want to enter a joint grave? When asked about this question, many answered, “I don’t want them to join my family.”
◇ Regarding joint graves, the majority of respondents said they would like to be present at the interment.
― Research overview ―
[Survey target] Nationwide, men and women over 40 years old
[Survey period] March 1, 2024 to March 26, 2024
[Survey method] Internet survey
[Number of valid samples] 431 people
Q What is your image of collective graves?
*A group grave is a place where ashes are removed from an urn and buried together with the ashes of others.
[Image 1: https://prtimes.jp/i/15761/52/resize/d15761-52-863fd990242e06fef23c-0.jpg&s3=15761-52-0fb04fd50b33bedd4777c06c3d2d82d4-229×282.jpg]
[Image 2: https://prtimes.jp/i/15761/52/resize/d15761-52-f36f13eb6df242033c14-1.jpg&s3=15761-52-4da912d14a14d8f247eaf0163c2ca464-710×291.jpg]
[Image 3: https://prtimes.jp/i/15761/52/resize/d15761-52-4ce1b903c75afd447660-1.jpg&s3=15761-52-adb0a28347dbac9c9cbc923e047f9f12-712×281.jpg] Overall, the largest number of respondents answered “It’s neither good nor bad,” at 45.9%, followed by “I can’t imagine it at 23.9%,” “Bad at 18.6%,” and “Good at 11.6%.” It can be seen that other than the 23.9% who answered “I can’t imagine”, about 70% of people understand what a joint grave is like.
Additionally, there was a gender difference in the response that “I can’t imagine”, with a higher percentage of men saying they couldn’t imagine it. By age group, the percentage of people in their 40s who had a “good 15.8%” was higher than the “bad 14.5%.”
On the other hand, for those in their 50s to 70s, the ratio is reversed, with a high proportion of those answering “bad”. In particular, among those in their 70s, 27.8% said it was “bad,” exceeding the 23.7% who said “I can’t imagine it.”
Among the free answers from those who answered “good,” one response was that “maintaining graves has become difficult due to the declining birthrate and increasing number of unmarried people, so group burials are rational.” On the other hand, the overwhelming majority of those who answered “bad” said “I don’t like going in with other people.”
Q After you and your family pass away, would you like to be buried in a joint grave?
[Image 4: https://prtimes.jp/i/15761/52/resize/d15761-52-bcdeb070ff41319f1286-3.jpg&s3=15761-52-e167d60b880aac6bd23f44e7f99ef34e-1013×440.jpg] *Those who have some kind of image about collective graves (370 people in total who answered that it is good, bad, neither good nor bad)
When it comes to yourself, 42.4% don’t know, 39.6% don’t want to join, and 18.0% want to join.Do you want your family to join? Regarding the question, more than half answered, “I don’t want to participate,” at 56.7%.
Q: When ashes are interred in a joint grave, there are cases where it is not possible to be present at the interment.What do you think about being present at the interment?
[Image 5: https://prtimes.jp/i/15761/52/resize/d15761-52-9cb9786053abf14f4a91-4.jpg&s3=15761-52-6547ad33217c2e47d7f20f173f9ebb3e-404×359.jpg] *Those who have some kind of image about collective graves (370 people in total who answered that it is good, bad, neither good nor bad) Unlike general graveyards, it is not always possible to be present at the interment of ashes at communal graves, and in many cases the remains are handed over to the management office of the cemetery and interred there. More than half of the respondents answered, “56.4% would like to be present,” which is much higher than “10.2% who do not want to be present.”
“summary”
In this survey, 23.9% of people answered that they “can’t imagine” a joint grave, and on the contrary, about 70% of people can imagine what a joint grave would look like. In the era when general graves (individual graves) were the norm, many people did not even understand the word “joint enshrinement,” but in recent years, with the issue of successors to graves, there is no longer a need for a successor called a permanent memorial grave. As the number of grave types increases, it becomes necessary to choose between burying the remains individually or enshrining them together, which means that there are more opportunities for general consumers to make this choice. This shows that the issue of succession has become an urgent issue.
Furthermore, when asked if they would like to go to a joint grave, even if they were unsure, they clearly stated that they did not want their family to go there. Although we know that we must accept the new form of collective graves as a trend of the times, many people feel a sense of reluctance to have their remains shared with the remains of others.
This is supported by the fact that when asked whether or not they would like to be present at the interment of the ashes in a joint grave, overwhelmingly more people said they wanted to be present than those who did not, indicating a strong sense of wanting to mourn for their family as usual. understood.
In order to ensure that consumers and their families and relatives do not regret the type of memorial services they desire at graves, Zenseki-kyo has established a “Grave Consultation Desk (Free Consultation)” to resolve all concerns regarding graves. We are opening. We will continue to strive to ensure that businesses involved in graves provide accurate knowledge and information to consumers. ◆What is the “Japanese Stone Products Cooperative Association” (Zensokukyo)? The National Stone Products Cooperative Association (Zensokukyo) brings together stone companies and related companies from 47 prefectures across the country, and plays a leading role in the stone industry through strong organization and collaboration, as well as responding to consumer needs. This is an organization that aims to provide accurate responses and the healthy development of the stone industry. At the National Stone Products Cooperative Association, we aim to provide accurate information to consumers and to promote the healthy development of the stone industry, in order to preserve the memorial service culture that the Japanese people cherish.
[Trade name] National Stone Products Cooperative Association (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry approved 2012004 Information No. 5) [Established] November 22, 2012
[Location] 5th floor, 2-9-14 Shiba Daimon, Minato-ku, Tokyo
[Management site] Minna no Ohaka https://minnanoohaka.com/
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