2019 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Grown children of foreign parents' experiences of minority language loss in Japan
| Project/Area Number |
18K00698
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| Research Institution | Sagami Women's University |
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Principal Investigator |
中村 ジェニス 相模女子大学, 学芸学部, 准教授 (10622136)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2018-04-01 – 2021-03-31
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| Keywords | minority language / bilingual / mixed ethnic / Japan |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
Results of this study have been disseminated through:
1) An oral presentation at the 6th International Language in Focus Conference in Dubrovnik, Croatia, May 2-4, 2019.
2) An international peer-reviewed journal, Multilingua, Volume 39(2), pp. 213-237 in March 2020.(https://doi.org/10.1515/multi-2019-0040)
Both the presentation and publication examined mixed-ethnic children in Japan and their lost opportunity to acquire the minority language of their non-Japanese parent. In in-depth interviews, ten mixed-ethnic participants shared how family relations, their parents' reluctance to speak the minority language and the prioritization of English contributed to the non-transmission of the minority language in their families. Many of the participants found their lost opportunity to acquire the minority language as regretful. Questions posed by Japanese people about their identity and language reminded some participants of their mixed-ethnicity and inability to speak the minority language. The findings of this research highlights the importance of minority language transmission and maintenance for the social and emotional well-being of mixed-ethnic children and their families.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
1: Research has progressed more than it was originally planned.
Reason
Most of the data collection and analysis for older mixed-ethnic children (ages 18 to 24）have been completed. The results of the study have also been disseminated in a research article in an international peer-reviewed journal.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
In the last stage of the project, I plan to look close at younger mixed-ethnic children (ages 13 to 17) and examined efforts to maintain the minority language in the family. More interview data on these younger subjects will be collected.
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| Causes of Carryover |
The remaining funds would be used to pay gratuity to additional research participants and for paying research assistants helping with the transcription of interview data.
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Research Products
(3 results)
