There is provided a light diffusing element, which has a high
haze value and strong diffusibility, has backscattering suppressed, and is low in cost and excellent in productivity.A light diffusing element of the present invention includes: a matrix containing a resin component and an
ultrafine particle component; and light diffusing fine particles dispersed in the matrix, wherein: refractive indices of the resin component, the
ultrafine particle component, and the light diffusing fine particles satisfy the below-indicated expression (1); and the light diffusing element comprises a concentration adjusted area, which is formed in an outer portion of a vicinity of a surface of each of the light diffusing fine particles, and in which a weight concentration of the resin component decreases and a weight concentration of the
ultrafine particle component increases with increasing distance from the light diffusing fine particles:|nP−nA|<|nP−nB| (1)where nA represents the
refractive index of the resin component of the matrix, nB represents the
refractive index of the ultrafine particle component of the matrix, and nP represents the
refractive index of the light diffusing fine particles.