Deliberative Democracy Index in Japan
Japan: Deliberative Democracy Index was 0.729 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Deliberative Democracy Index in Japan, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, deliberative democracy index in Japan stood at 0.729.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and up 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, deliberative democracy index in Japan peaked at 0.758 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.066, in 1943.
Japan ranks 18th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Deliberative Democracy Index in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.147 | — |
| 1901 | 0.148 | +0.7% |
| 1902 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.149 | +0.7% |
| 1904 | 0.148 | -0.7% |
| 1905 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 0.148 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.147 | -0.7% |
| 1914 | 0.147 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.148 | +0.7% |
| 1916 | 0.149 | +0.7% |
| 1917 | 0.15 | +0.7% |
| 1918 | 0.152 | +1.3% |
| 1919 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.152 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.155 | +2.0% |
| 1925 | 0.159 | +2.6% |
| 1926 | 0.16 | +0.6% |
| 1927 | 0.16 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.16 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.161 | +0.6% |
| 1930 | 0.156 | -3.1% |
| 1931 | 0.147 | -5.8% |
| 1932 | 0.146 | -0.7% |
| 1933 | 0.106 | -27.4% |
| 1934 | 0.106 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.105 | -0.9% |
| 1936 | 0.105 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.1 | -4.8% |
| 1938 | 0.099 | -1.0% |
| 1939 | 0.083 | -16.2% |
| 1940 | 0.074 | -10.8% |
| 1941 | 0.073 | -1.4% |
| 1942 | 0.067 | -8.2% |
| 1943 | 0.066 | -1.5% |
| 1944 | 0.066 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.083 | +25.8% |
| 1946 | 0.231 | +178.3% |
| 1947 | 0.303 | +31.2% |
| 1948 | 0.308 | +1.7% |
| 1949 | 0.308 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.311 | +1.0% |
| 1951 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.472 | +51.8% |
| 1953 | 0.586 | +24.2% |
| 1954 | 0.586 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.642 | +9.6% |
| 1956 | 0.671 | +4.5% |
| 1957 | 0.671 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.68 | +1.3% |
| 1959 | 0.686 | +0.9% |
| 1960 | 0.696 | +1.5% |
| 1961 | 0.712 | +2.3% |
| 1962 | 0.712 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.712 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.713 | +0.1% |
| 1965 | 0.713 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.713 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.713 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.713 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.713 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.719 | +0.8% |
| 1971 | 0.726 | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 0.726 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.722 | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 0.722 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.722 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.722 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.726 | +0.6% |
| 1978 | 0.726 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.726 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.727 | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 0.727 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.727 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.727 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.734 | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 0.732 | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 0.732 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.731 | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 0.731 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.731 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.734 | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 0.737 | +0.4% |
| 1992 | 0.737 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.739 | +0.3% |
| 1994 | 0.738 | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 0.738 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.738 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.737 | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 0.737 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.737 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.737 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 0.738 | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 0.738 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.744 | +0.8% |
| 2004 | 0.745 | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 0.749 | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 0.754 | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 0.754 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.751 | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 0.758 | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 0.757 | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 0.757 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.757 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.725 | -4.2% |
| 2014 | 0.725 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.726 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 0.726 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 0.729 | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 0.728 | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 0.722 | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 0.743 | +2.9% |
| 2021 | 0.736 | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 0.724 | -1.6% |
| 2023 | 0.73 | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 0.732 | +0.3% |
| 2025 | 0.729 | -0.4% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 0.729 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.665, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Japan's 0.729 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.358, 2.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Deliberative Democracy Index in Japan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | +178.3% | 0.083 | 0.231 |
| 1952 | +51.8% | 0.311 | 0.472 |
| 1947 | +31.2% | 0.231 | 0.303 |
| 1933 | -27.4% | 0.146 | 0.106 |
| 1945 | +25.8% | 0.066 | 0.083 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.148 | 0.147 | 0.149 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.1489 | 0.147 | 0.152 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.1563 | 0.152 | 0.161 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.1153 | 0.083 | 0.156 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.1579 | 0.066 | 0.308 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.5616 | 0.311 | 0.686 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.711 | 0.696 | 0.713 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.7237 | 0.719 | 0.726 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.7299 | 0.727 | 0.734 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.7372 | 0.734 | 0.739 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7468 | 0.737 | 0.758 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.7352 | 0.722 | 0.757 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.7323 | 0.724 | 0.743 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More social development data for Japan
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,450 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 56 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 56 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0003 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is deliberative democracy index in Japan?
- Deliberative democracy index in Japan was 0.729 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest deliberative democracy index recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 0.758 in 2009.
- What is the lowest deliberative democracy index recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.066 in 1943.
- How does Japan rank for deliberative democracy index?
- Japan ranks 18th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is deliberative democracy index rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Deliberative Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, as well as the extent to which political elites justify their positions, justify them with the common good, acknowledge counterarguments, consult elites in policy changes, and society deliberates policy changes.