A survey has revealed unexpectedly high levels of interest in cosplay among Japanese women, with some 30% having either tried it or wanting to try it.
The online survey was conducted by market research firm iShare, and asked 565 Japanese men and women aged 20-40 about their attitudes to cosplay.
When both genders were asked whether they had an interest in cosplay, 9.9% answered they would like to try, 8.3% had actually tried it, and 28.5% were interested in watching it but not cosplaying themselves, making for a total of 46.7% with an interest.
However, amongst women the numbers were higher, with 13.6% interested in trying, and 14.7% actually having tried it. Younger women were even more interested, with 15.8% wanting to try amongst those in their twenties.
17.5% of those interested listed anime and manga as the theme of cosplay they would most like to undertake, after which came kigurumi (almost certainly referring to cartoon character suits) with 14.7%, maid and waitress uniforms (12.4%) and military uniforms (also 12.4%).
Top anime subjects for cosplay were Haruhi, Fullmetal Alchemist, as well as visual-kei bands like L’Arc en Ciel.
Although many Japanese women are quick to condemn men for having an interest in anime-related cosplay, it seems many are interested in trying themselves…
