Japanese university student responses to intercultural scenarios: Contact strategies and perceptions of otherness

Abstract

The internationalisation of educational institutions continues to develop worldwide alongside and within globalisation trends, compelling universities to educate graduates capable of engaging with international issues and of living and working in increasingly pluralistic societies. In Japan, internationalisation remains at the forefront of government policies for tertiary education and closely linked to a demand for interculturally competent global human resources (GHR). Yet, outcomes assessment remains largely limited to quantitative outputs. This study aimed to explore the strategies employed by Japanese first-year university students in response to intercultural contact as well as their perceptions of culturally different others. Responses to three intercultural scenarios in the form of critical incidents were collected from 164 first-year students at two Top Global universities in Japan at the start of the 2019 Spring Semester. Findings indicate that students are generally open and respectful toward culturally different others, but that willingness to interact is context-dependent, as students were more willing to interact interculturally in formal situations. Moreover, findings suggest that despite students’ openness to intercultural contact, the non-Japanese other is nonetheless perceived as an outsider, unable to communicate in Japanese and to understand and follow Japanese cultural norms. Results from this study have implications on current conceptual models of intercultural competence as well as on future strategies to foster an interculturally competent workforce in Japan.