Asked about this summer's Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics amid the spread of the new coronavirus, 69% of people polled said it was better to postpone the event, 17% said it was better to hold it as planned, while 8% said it was better to cancel it.
The nationwide opinion poll was conducted by telephone by The Yomiuri Shimbun from Friday through Sunday.
Approval of the government's response to the new coronavirus was at 53%, up from 36% in the previous poll conducted from Feb. 14 to 16.
Those who disapproved was at 39%, down from 52% in the previous poll.
The approval rate for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet remained almost unchanged at 48%, up 1 percentage point from the previous poll. The disapproval rate was 40%, down 1 percentage point.
As for the government's request for temporary closure of all elementary, junior high and high schools and others across the country until the regular spring break, 64% said it was appropriate, while 28% said they did not think so. The respondents who support the government policy not to extend the period for school closures was 73%.
About the prime minister making a possible declaration of a state of emergency allowed under the revised law on special measures to counter new strains of influenza, 72% of respondents answered it would be unavoidable to do so if the infection situation worsens and 19% answered it is natural to do so, while 7% said they are against it.
To prevent infection with the new coronavirus, 81% said they avoid going out or going to places where people gather, sharply up from 47% in the previous poll. The respondents who said they aren't avoiding doing so dropped to 18%, down from 52%.
By age group, the percentage of those refraining from going out are 75% for ages 18-39, up from 39% in the previous poll; 86% for ages 40-59, up from 44%; 80% for ages 60 and over, up from 54%.
By gender, 76% of men said they would refrain from going out, more than double the 37% in the previous poll, while 85% of women responded the same way, up from 56%.
Awareness of infection prevention has been increasing among a wide range of people, as the results among young people and men show.
Asked about a series of postponements and cancellations of large-scale events, 87% of respondents said they think self-restraint of holding such events is needed, while only 10% said it wasn't necessary.
The new coronavirus caused widespread rumors of a shortage of paper products leading to disruptions that made supplies run low in stores. When asked if respondents had stocked up on toilet paper, tissues and other daily necessities, 8% said they had, while 91% said they hadn't.
The poll was conducted by calling 878 households on landline phones and 1,148 users of mobile phones using the random digit dialing method. All respondents were eligible voters aged 18 or older. Of them, 1,077 people (543 on landline phones and 534 on mobiles) gave valid answers.
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