Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture
In recent years, the number of international students in Japan has been increasing. They suffer from understanding indirect expressions in communication with Japanese people. In this study, we implemented and assessed the impacts of a novel instructional program aimed at teaching social skills in a...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The International Academic Forum
2023-01-01
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| Series: | IAFOR Journal of Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://iafor.org/journal/iafor-journal-of-psychology-and-the-behavioral-sciences/volume-8-issue-2/article-2/ |
| _version_ | 1797777529511084032 |
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| author | Sachiko Nakano Tomoko Tanaka Koji Mikushi |
| author_facet | Sachiko Nakano Tomoko Tanaka Koji Mikushi |
| author_sort | Sachiko Nakano |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In recent years, the number of international students in Japan has been increasing. They suffer from understanding indirect expressions in communication with Japanese people. In this study, we implemented and assessed the impacts of a novel instructional program aimed at teaching social skills in a high-context culture characterized by the frequent use of indirect expressions. We conducted two experiments with students in Japan. Experiment 1 included semi-structured interviews with international students in Japan. Interview analysis revealed that it is difficult to learn to use and understand the intent behind indirect expressions without having first-hand experience communicating with Japanese people who use indirect language, particularly regarding “sassuru” – expressions that allow for multiple interpretations. Experiment 1 highlights the presence of problems that cannot be solved simply by learning Japanese and the challenges of adapting to communication styles characterized by the frequent use of indirect expressions in high-context cultures. Based on Experiment 1, we provided social skills instruction to an experimental group of international students as a teaching intervention. Next, participants in the experimental group and control group (who had not received the social skills instruction) completed questionnaires before and after the experiment. Data analysis verified that the intervention participants (1) developed more awareness of, and interest in, the Japanese culture; (2) became more confident in their interpretation of expressions with multiple meanings and of silence; and (3) became more accepting of ambiguous expressions because they had developed greater understanding. Conversely, the control group participants did not experience similar notable changes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T23:05:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f53f625b5c954b129e08951e485a1324 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2187-0675 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T23:05:14Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | The International Academic Forum |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IAFOR Journal of Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-f53f625b5c954b129e08951e485a13242023-07-19T02:40:53ZengThe International Academic ForumIAFOR Journal of Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences2187-06752023-01-0182193510.22492/ijpbs.8.2.02Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context CultureSachiko Nakano0Tomoko Tanaka1Koji Mikushi2Yamaguchi University, JapanOkayama University, JapanHyogo Prefectural Kobe Takatsuka High School, JapanIn recent years, the number of international students in Japan has been increasing. They suffer from understanding indirect expressions in communication with Japanese people. In this study, we implemented and assessed the impacts of a novel instructional program aimed at teaching social skills in a high-context culture characterized by the frequent use of indirect expressions. We conducted two experiments with students in Japan. Experiment 1 included semi-structured interviews with international students in Japan. Interview analysis revealed that it is difficult to learn to use and understand the intent behind indirect expressions without having first-hand experience communicating with Japanese people who use indirect language, particularly regarding “sassuru” – expressions that allow for multiple interpretations. Experiment 1 highlights the presence of problems that cannot be solved simply by learning Japanese and the challenges of adapting to communication styles characterized by the frequent use of indirect expressions in high-context cultures. Based on Experiment 1, we provided social skills instruction to an experimental group of international students as a teaching intervention. Next, participants in the experimental group and control group (who had not received the social skills instruction) completed questionnaires before and after the experiment. Data analysis verified that the intervention participants (1) developed more awareness of, and interest in, the Japanese culture; (2) became more confident in their interpretation of expressions with multiple meanings and of silence; and (3) became more accepting of ambiguous expressions because they had developed greater understanding. Conversely, the control group participants did not experience similar notable changes.https://iafor.org/journal/iafor-journal-of-psychology-and-the-behavioral-sciences/volume-8-issue-2/article-2/cross-cultural comparisonindirect expressionssocial skillsinternational studentsjapan |
| spellingShingle | Sachiko Nakano Tomoko Tanaka Koji Mikushi Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture IAFOR Journal of Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences cross-cultural comparison indirect expressions social skills international students japan |
| title | Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture |
| title_full | Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture |
| title_fullStr | Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture |
| title_short | Cross-Cultural Social Skills Instruction and Indirect Expressions: Psychoeducation in Japan’s High-Context Culture |
| title_sort | cross cultural social skills instruction and indirect expressions psychoeducation in japan s high context culture |
| topic | cross-cultural comparison indirect expressions social skills international students japan |
| url | https://iafor.org/journal/iafor-journal-of-psychology-and-the-behavioral-sciences/volume-8-issue-2/article-2/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sachikonakano crossculturalsocialskillsinstructionandindirectexpressionspsychoeducationinjapanshighcontextculture AT tomokotanaka crossculturalsocialskillsinstructionandindirectexpressionspsychoeducationinjapanshighcontextculture AT kojimikushi crossculturalsocialskillsinstructionandindirectexpressionspsychoeducationinjapanshighcontextculture |