Hakuhodo Media Environment Laboratory Classifies Consumers into 7 Information Intake Types

Hakuhodo Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Kenji Nagura) and its Media Environment Laboratory (Director: Taiji Yamamoto) conducted a survey targeting 14,452 consumers aged 20 to 60 regarding their awareness and behavior when encountering and becoming interested in "new information they were not previously interested in."

* The number of people in each type is an estimate based on a population of 71.9 million people aged 20-60, according to the Population Estimates by the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The sum of proportions may not equal 100% due to rounding.

In recent years, with the increasing volume of information circulating in society, consumers tend to live within an "information sphere" constructed solely of information that is necessary and comfortable for them. In such an environment, delivering new information and content to consumers has become a challenge. Against this backdrop, we report on the "7 Types of New Information Intake Methods" and their information behaviors, as revealed by an analysis of how consumers take in information.

As a result of asking 39 questions about attitudes towards information intake, it was found that consumer information intake methods can be broadly divided along two axes: "text-oriented vs. video-oriented" and "external stimuli like societal trends vs. self-conviction." Based on these two axes, cluster analysis revealed that there are seven types of new information intake methods.

- The largest group is the "Air-Reading Conformity Type" (21.3% / estimated 15.33 million people), who don't want to be left behind by their peers.

This group, which strongly emphasizes conformity with others, wanting "not to be left behind by societal trends," and quickly grasping key points through text, accounts for over 20% of the total, making it the largest group.

- The rise of the "Independent Immersion & Conviction Type" (17.1% / estimated 12.31 million people), who harbor "distrust of mass media" and a desire for "exclusivity."

Approximately 90% of respondents answered that "information disseminated by the media cannot be trusted." This group, which seeks out rare information themselves, often starting with online videos (horizontal format videos, etc.) rather than television, represents a significant segment.

- Information behavior further diversifies through the combination of "text vs. video" and "external stimuli vs. self-conviction."

From the "Proactive Trendsetter Type" (9.6%), who get ahead of trends on social media and act as diffusion hubs, to the "Meticulous Logical Investigator Type" (12.8%), who thoroughly verify data and evidence, consumers' "information spheres" are fragmented and diversified depending on their preferred media and attitudes.

Details of the 7 Types of "New Information Intake Methods"

Type 1: Proactively adopts trends on social media and disseminates them: "Proactive Trendsetter Type" 9.6%, estimated 6.92 million people

Highly responsive to trends: Responds strongly to trends, with 81.5% (overall +51.8pt) saying "I actively pursue trends and fads," and 73.6% (+38.3pt) saying "I get interested when something is trending on social media timelines."

Acts based on information from social media: Prioritizes social media for new information entry points, with 23.7% (+7.6pt) using text-based SNS (like X), 26.2% (+5.9pt) using image-based SNS (like Instagram), and 20.8% (+8.6pt) using short-form videos.

Influenced by "oshi" (favorite person/character) and recommends to others: Functions as a purchase driver and diffusion hub, with 47.6% (+25.2pt) saying "I buy something if my oshi recommends it," and 62.0% (+21.3pt) saying "my family/friends actually used a product I recommended."

Type 2: The largest group, the "Air-Reading Conformity Type" (21.3%, estimated 15.33 million people), who don't want to be left behind by their peers.

Pronounced "don't want to be left behind" mentality: Emphasizes conformity with peers, with 34.6% (+10.5pt) saying "I don't want to be left behind by societal trends," and 32.4% (+11.6pt) saying "I feel like I'll be left behind if I don't know about it."

Quickly grasps key points through text: Primarily uses text, with 59.9% (+20.6pt) finding "text easier (faster) to get the same information," and 57.1% (+18.9pt) finding "explanations in text easier to understand." Tends not to investigate deeply, even when exposed to information.

Type 3: The "Major Confirmation Reaction Type" (18.1%, estimated 13.01 million people), who are convinced by information from TV, conversations, and stores and then act.

Video x Mass Media driven: Primarily video-oriented and TV-focused, with 96.7% (+27.8pt) finding "video easier (faster) to get the same information," and 58.8% (+14.7pt) citing "TV/commercials" as an entry point for new information. Also values real-life conversations, in-store experiences, and image-centric SNS as information entry points.

Strongly influenced by "what everyone is paying attention to": 76.5% (+28.9pt) are interested in "things featured in mass media," and 68.2% (+20.4pt) think "things that are hits, selling well, or talked about seem good."

Most likely to respond to ads and campaigns: High affinity for ads and campaigns, with 64.5% (+11.8pt) saying "I buy things during campaigns or time sales."

Type 4: The "TV-Reliant Follower Type" (15.3%, estimated 10.97 million people), who intuitively understand key points primarily through TV.

Prefers short, concise, and curated information: Seeks information that is "short, to the point, and conclusions first" (77.9%, +21.5pt overall) and believes "only curated information is needed" (78.6%, +18.5pt), prioritizing quality over quantity.

Does not actively seek information: Weak in active search, with 41.2% (+13.0pt) saying "I don't actively seek it, but I see it repeatedly and naturally hear about it," and 57.2% (+13.1pt) citing "TV/commercials" as the primary entry point for new information.

Judges based on intuition and first impressions: Intuitively grasps atmosphere through video and acts after widespread adoption, with 90.7% (+21.8pt) finding "video easier to get the same information," 65.5% (+19.0pt) tending to "judge things by intuition and sensibility," and 31.3% (+7.8pt) saying "I start using something after many people in the world have started using it."

Type 5: The "Meticulous Logical Investigator Type" (12.8%, estimated 9.22 million people), who thoroughly verify data and evidence.

Prioritizes text, data, and evidence: Highly focused on text and evidence, with 93.0% (+53.8pt overall) finding "text easier (faster) to get the same information," 87.7% (+22.3pt) feeling "uneasy if I don't check data and evidence," and 92.1% (+19.6pt) feeling "frustrated if the reasons why are not explained."

Actively searches and verifies multiple sources primarily through text: Actively seeks new information through search (33.1%, +10.5pt), covers various information sources to learn about one thing (87.5%, +21.0pt), and delves into text information through entry points like newspapers, magazines, and books (30.5%, +9.2pt) and text-based SNS (like X) (25.9%, +9.9pt).

Type 6: The "Independent Immersion & Conviction Type" (17.1%, estimated 12.31 million people), who distrusts media and seeks "information only for themselves."

Strong distrust of mass media: 89.9% (+26.8pt overall) responded "information disseminated by the media cannot be trusted."

Prioritizes horizontal videos and web articles: Values horizontal videos (40.2%, +8.2pt) and news sites/web articles (49.0%, +7.3pt) as contact points for new information. Online videos serve as an entry point for interest.

Values "information only for oneself": Tends to seek rarity and exclusivity, with 52.3% (+9.7pt) wanting "to possess information that only I know."

Type 7: The "Energy-Saving Empathy Type" (5.7%, estimated 4.13 million people), who lives quietly at their own pace.

Extremely low information contact: Active information seeking is almost below the overall average for all items, with 25.1% (+17.9pt overall) having "no applicable" triggers for learning new information, and 31.6% (+18.2pt) having "no applicable" triggers for becoming interested.

Continues with "the usual" and distances themselves from trends: Actively distances themselves from trends, with 34.0% (+15.6pt) saying "I continue to use what I always use rather than new things," 16.8% (-12.8pt) saying "I actively pursue trends and fads," and 22.8% (-12.6pt) saying "I get interested when something is trending on social media timelines."

"Consumer Information Sphere Survey" Survey Design

Survey Area: Nationwide

Survey Method: Internet Survey

Survey Target Conditions: Men and women aged 20-69

Number of Respondents: 14,452

* Weighted back by sex and age based on the December 2025 Population Estimates by the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

Survey Period: May 29, 2026 - June 2, 2026

Survey Organization: M.R.S. Advertising Research Co., Ltd.

Sample Composition: Sample Composition: