Fellow spaniard here :). I think it's quite a different thing: a hikikomori is someone who suffers a depression, has coped with it by closeting him(her)self, and now doesn't know how to got out (nor does him/her want to, in many cases). Ni-nis are a very different phenomenon, a lot less homogeneous and, IMHO, caused mostly by lack of opportunities. The TV tried to present them as lazy rascals (I remember that infamous show from no less than a supposedly liberal channel like La Sexta...), but the reality is different.
There is, however, a risk that a Ni-ni may become a hikikomori, or something very similar.
Unlike Spain, there are opportunities, there's full employment for youth who want it in construction and other heavy work, but "Ni-Ni's" don't want to have anything to do with that.
There's a huge government "free money" project that's heavily criticized as a "Ni-Ni" enabler.
It's actually a British term that has been adopted by Japan. I know this might be splitting hairs, but both the wiki link you're replying to and the parent article cite this:
"an adopted British acronym meaning "not in education, employment or training"
Japan has imbued the word with a meaning unto itself though. I don't think the British version of the word carries the same kind of social condescension that it does in Japan.
Also Hikikkomori means that you literally don't leave your room at all (which is not the case for a NEET). If the hermit needs something, they'll often bang the floor to summon their mother (typically for food)
>I don't think the British version of the word carries the same kind of social condescension that it does in Japan.
It certainly has a large amount of social condescension in Britain -- "not in employment, education or training" was taken up with glee by the tabloids.
>Japan has imbued the word with a meaning unto itself though. I don't think the British version of the word carries the same kind of social condescension that it does in Japan.
Agreed. But that doesn't change the origins of the word - it just highlights the cultural (mis)representation of the term.
> Also Hikikkomori means that you literally don't leave your room at all (which is not the case for a NEET). If the hermit needs something, they'll often bang the floor to summon their mother (typically for food)
To be fair, Hikikkomori and NEET aren't meant to refer to the same people anyway. It just so happens there's overlap in the context. An example in western culture could be "freeloaders" and "unemployed". The former has negative connotations (ie they live of others like leaches) where as the latter just states they don't have a job. While some who are unemployed could be classed as freeloaders, it's also fair to say that some who are unemployed are very keen to find work and support themselves. So there's overlap in the people covered by those two terms but they don't automatically refer to the same group of people.
NEET (ニート) appears to me that it has a much wider, common and regular use in Japan, in particular it's entirely appropriated by the population and media. And there, in their terminology it is distinct from Hikkikomori, which was the point I was making
"A NEET or neet is a young person who is not in education, employment, or training. The acronym NEET was first used in the United Kingdom but its use has spread to other countries including Japan, China, and South Korea."
