PUBLIC OPINION ON THE CONCEPT OF IKUMEN. A discourse analysis of contributions made on a Japanese bulletin board

Abstract: The aim of this thesis has been to find out what opinions can be found about ikumen on the internet bulletin board Hatsugen Komachi and how these opinions relate to the government policies (Ikumen Project) encouraging, men’s involvement in childcare. Discourse analysis has been used as both theory and method in this study. Words that were frequently used together with ikumen were identified and analyzed in order to understand how contributors regard the term ikumen and if their views are similar to or differ from the aim of the Ikumen Project. It was found that there is a discrepancy between how ikumen is thought of and promoted by the Ikumen Project and how it is thought of by the contributors of Hatsugen Komachi. Furthermore, there was no consensus among the contributors as to what an ikumen actually is.