Exploring the Decline and Transformation of Street Cultures in Post-1990s Japan

• In Event: Roundtable: New Research on the Role of Street Culture and Crime

Abstract

With the shift in communication tools and the rise of individualism in Japan after the late 1990s, street cultures associated with collective, rebellious juvenile delinquency—such as Bosozoku (Japanese motorcycle youth gangs that emerged in the postwar era)—have gradually faded. In recent years, juvenile delinquency has increasingly taken on individualistic tendencies, often characterized by solitary or antisocial behavior. However, certain elements of past street cultures—particularly those newly introduced from the United States—have been absorbed into subcultures such as tattooing, rapping, and drifting. This research aims to explore these historical street cultures and examine their transitions, focusing on how they have either faded or evolved into new forms of subcultural expression.

Author

• Yoshie Udagawa, Nippon Institute for Research Advancement Tokyo, Japan