Okay, I have to ask: what's the deal with nose picking in Japan?

July 28, 2019 9:01 AM

I am here, teaching kids down near Yamaguchi, and I've noticed more than of my few kids do this in class. Vigorously. And many many adults seem to have little to no shame about the act. Is this NOT a taboo here? And if so, is it going to be weird for me to come down on kids for doing it in my class? I don't want to be culturally insensitive. But I also don't want to gag. Thoughts?
posted by rileyray3000 to Human Relations (7 answers total)

I can't speak to the cultural aspect but, if you are teaching at an English-language school, you can make it part of the lesson. "In the US/UK/etc., we use a tissue instead of our fingers" or "In [my country], after we rub our nose, we wash our hands or use hand sanitizer!" Let's practice this in class so you're prepared when you visit [target country]!! If they're in middle or high school, you can have a great meta conversation about it with the help of some news articles or videos., a la pros and cons, etc.

I was a public schoolteacher in the US, and a lot of kids do it here, too, although most do it furtively. If someone sneezes and it's kind of gross, I always walk over and hand them a tissue. I just say, "Here you go!" If I can see it was gooey, I also give them hand sanitizer or ask if they need to go to the bathroom to wash up. They always respond positively and eventually do it themselves or offer the supplies to classmates!

However, your situation is a bit different, as you said. If all else fails, keeping a private collection of hand sanitizer and lotion behind your desk helps! (And, for anyone who is anti-hand sanitizer, I really get it. But as a schoolteacher, sometimes you need to prioritize your own health in the immediate futurel!)
posted by smorgasbord at 9:22 AM on July 28, 2019 [2 favorites]

I have never heard of nose picking being acceptable, but I do know that nose blowing is considered much more impolite, while sniffling is much more accepted than in the U.S., so possibly this is some extension of that? But I’m still pretty sure all of my Japanese relatives would be appalled if someone were snot foraging in public.
posted by Diagonalize at 7:19 PM on July 28, 2019

I'd discuss this with my supervisor, before adding anything about hygiene (and your opinions thereof) to your lesson.
posted by Rash at 8:19 PM on July 28, 2019 [3 favorites]

When I taught in the Chiba/Tokyo area, this was not a common thing that I noticed. To throw out a few ideas: Maybe it's regional. Are you teaching in a public/private classroom or an eikawa or something else? It might also depend on the background/class of the kids too. Or maybe, depending on their age, they think you don't mind because you aren't Japanese.

I agree that a Japanese co-worker might have more insight into what's going on.
posted by past unusual at 8:24 AM on July 29, 2019

Are these little kids (say under 7) or older ones? Nose picking is pretty common among little kids of all backgrounds.
I have little kids and will notice them and their friends/classmates picking their noses at different times. I'll tell them to cut it out. I taught in Japan for a couple of years and don't have any memories of kids picking their noses, which to me means they either didn't or they did but not at a rate that I thought was more than kids in general.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 9:42 AM on July 29, 2019

Different practices surrounding hygiene/bodily functions are viewed very differently cross-culturally.

Example- I lived in China for a while- blowing one's nose in public is considered gross there, as is wearing shoes in the house.

Just some food for thought.
posted by bearette at 2:55 PM on July 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

Whenever I see someone picking their nose and eating it I remind myself that it's just dried up phlegm and I'm swallowing phlegm with each swallow I take. It still squicks me out, but a bit less.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 5:43 PM on July 29, 2019