Association Between Daily Convenience Store Use and Social Capital Among Young People in Japan: An Exploratory Secondary Analysis of Cross-Sectional Study Data.

The number of convenience stores in Japan has increased dramatically since their introduction in the 1970s, offering a wide range of essential services. However, epidemiological research on their use and public health impacts remains limited. This study aimed to explore the characteristics of freque...

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Published in:Inquiry (00469580) Vol. 63; pp. 1 - 10
Main Authors: Goto, Aya, Whitelaw, Gavin H., Tabuchi, Takahiro
Format: research tables/charts Journal Article
Published: Sage Publications Inc. 3/23/2026
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: 3/23/2026
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        atl: Association Between Daily Convenience Store Use and Social Capital Among Young People in Japan: An Exploratory Secondary Analysis of Cross-Sectional Study Data.
      aug:
        au:
          Goto, Aya
          Whitelaw, Gavin H.
          Tabuchi, Takahiro
        affil: Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
      sug:
        subj:
          Social Capital In Adolescence
          Convenience Stores Utilization
          Public Health
          Residence Characteristics Evaluation
          Trust
          Japan
          Human
          Male
          Female
          Adult
          Middle Age
          Adolescence
          Descriptive Statistics
          Secondary Analysis
          Exploratory Research
          Sex Factors
          Funding Source
          Grocery Stores
          Odds Ratio
          Confidence Intervals
          Health Status
          Comorbidity
          Chi Square Test
          Multiple Logistic Regression
          Multivariate Analysis
          Data Analysis Software
          Summated Rating Scaling
          Adult: 19-44 years
          Middle Aged: 45-64 years
          Adolescent: 13-18 years
          Male
          Female
      ab: The number of convenience stores in Japan has increased dramatically since their introduction in the 1970s, offering a wide range of essential services. However, epidemiological research on their use and public health impacts remains limited. This study aimed to explore the characteristics of frequent convenience store users and the association between daily use and social capital, measured as general trust in one's neighbors and trust in mutual help/reciprocity among them. This was a secondary analysis of the 2025 Japan Society and New Tobacco Internet Survey (JASTIS 2025)—a cross-sectional, web-based survey. The total number of respondents included in the analyses was 21 282. Convenience stores were used more frequently than supermarkets, with 8.1% reporting daily use, compared with 5.2% for supermarkets. Daily users were more likely to be men, younger, unmarried, living alone, and to have higher but unstable income and multiple health comorbidities. Among teenagers and young adults, daily convenience store use was significantly associated with higher social capital (aOR 2.18 [95% CI 1.14-4.15] for general social trust; aOR 1.88 [95% CI 1.02-3.44] for mutual help/reciprocity), while no such association was observed for supermarket use. Among teenagers and young adults, daily convenience store use was associated with higher social capital, while no such association was observed in older age groups or for supermarket use. These findings suggest that convenience stores may serve different social functions across age groups and warrant further investigation into underlying mechanisms.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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