Problems in Japan’s Population Demographics

　　Abstract :Following seismic shifts in its industrial productivity and relations of production since World War II, Japan’s population demographics are also changing; Japan has transited from its pre-war “high-birth, high-death” mode to a postwar “low-birth, low-death” one. The latter mode has resulted in an increasingly aging population structure, and by 2005, Japan has officially entered the stage of population decline. This article tracks Japan’s population demographic changes from World War II till today, and examines their corelated effects on Japan’s economy. From a classical demandandsupply perspective, as these demographic changes took hold in the Japanese society, its economy will inevitably suffer. The effects of many policy attemptsparticularly those at introducing economic incentivesaimed at arresting birth decline have been modest at best. As Marx and Engels argued, population, material and mental productions are interrelated elements; change to any one will affect the others. To effectively resolve its demographic problems, Japan has to adopt an open and practical approach to ensure that all three productions are in step with each other.