Understanding Cultural Diversity among Foreign and Japanese workers

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K04325
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Social psychology
• Research Institution: International Christian University
• Principal Investigator: Sasao Toshiaki 国際基督教大学, 教養学部, 特任教授 (10296791)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: organizational diversity / foreign workers in Japan / cultural complexity

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of the research project was twofold: (1) to develop a psychometrically viable scale for measuring the concept of "multilayered cultural complexity" that would be useful to assess the cultural experiences of foreign workers as well as Japanese workers in several work organizations, and (2) to obtain qualitative data to verify the findings of the above scale in a sample of foreign workers. The results showed that the concept was more complicated than initially thought, and as such, the revision of the scale has gone through several iterations, with a final instrument. Also, as a result of personal and focus group interviews with foreign and Japanese employees, it was found that there were large differences in perceptions of working in diverse work settings.

Free Research Field

social and community psychology

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

このプロジェクトの意義は、日本の職場環境における文化的多様性を評価するための新しい概念が提案されたことと、心理測定尺度が開発されたことにある。この新しい尺度は、日本人労働者だけでなく、外国人労働者の文化的経験を理解するためにも用いることができる。