| I'm not aware if he is referring to the Japanese or the Italian phenomena (they have common roots but are very different). In Italy, I see many friends entrapped in this kind of behaviour, the major causes are: - The corruption of the bankers that are stealing an increasing quantity of money from the people (regardless if you're poor or rich or if you work or not). This factor is not only creating a major problem for the younger, but is a concurring cause of concern for the other generations as well: they're committing suicide more and more and more often than ever before. - The rejection of both the cultural roots of christianity and consumerism, combined with a strict thinking about what is considered an accepted social behaviour and a strict regulation of the market to prevent if from a total collapse. - An unrestricted and unregulated immigration crisis that provides an ever cheaper quantity of individuals willing to work for a miserable wage. - Least but not least the total incompetence of the government and the EU, both blocked by a strict thought of political correctness that keeps them from applying needed actions that would properly respond to changes in the local and global, economical and geopolitical landscape. It is indeed a problem of the culture of the society, and the hikikomori phenomena is only one of the consequences of a society that is forced to change, but is not able to do it properly. |