The Economic Value of Foreign Language Proficiency in Labor Market

Research Project

Project/Area Number	10630040
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Section	一般
Research Field	経済政策(含経済事情)
Research Institution	Osaka University
Principal Investigator	MATSUSHIGE Hisakazu Osaka School of International Public Policy, Associate Professor, 国際公共政策研究科, 助教授 (50219424)
Project Period (FY)	1998 – 1999
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 1999)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,100,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,100,000) Fiscal Year 1999: ¥200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥200,000) Fiscal Year 1998: ¥3,900,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,900,000)
Keywords	foreign language proficiency / job search / earning function / English training / sociological pedagogy / probit analysis / TOEFL / education in Japanese university / 英語所得 / 昇進 / 大卒 / 教育 / 言語 / ロジット分析 / 成績 / 言語能力 / 収益率 / 人的資本 / 仕事キャリア / 大卒ホワイトカラー / 女性労働力 / 離職
Research Abstract	In this study, we attempt to detect the effect of foreign language proficiency on worker's income and job post in Japan. Especially, the value of English in business activities is analyzed. The data set for the analysis is obtained by delivering approximately 13,000 questionnaires to the graduates from two humanity and social science departments of a particular university in Japan and collecting more than twenty percent of them in 1998. Our analysis can be distinguished from other similar studies in the point that new variables such as the score of TOEFL, the amount of investment into English training, the experience of living abroad etc. are introduced in econometric analysis. Earning function analysis is mainly applied in discussing the advantages given to the workers with English proficiency. The following arguments are concluded. 1. Those who are practicing English in business daily master it on the job rather than formal education in schools. 2. Ten percent of them show high level of English proficiency. 3. They have considerable merits in promotion. 4. Their income is higher than others by the degree of 20 to 30percent. These research results are to be presented at the association of Japanese Sociological Pedagogy in the autumn of 2000.