I remember watching a public TV special on TV in the States about two years
ago about Japanese children.  One of the things they said on this show was
that in Japan babies sleep with their mothers until they wean and then theyt
sleep with a sibling or another relative- perhaps grandmother into adult
hood.  Japanese people do not ever have a time in their life when they sleep
alone.  iT would be disrespectful to make an elderly relative sleep alone.

Are there any Japanese members on this list who can address this?

Nancy Sherwood- Perth, Australia