The Ibasho of Foreign Residents in Japan – Navigating Belonging and Foreignness
(2024) SOCM05 20241Sociology
- Abstract
- The current Japanese population of 124 million is expected to decrease to 104 million by year 2050 (Takahashi et al., 2003) with a rapid aging population and, thus increasing immigration is one of the responses to this demographic concern. Hereon onwards, it will be relevant to understand the social patterns of foreign residents living in Japan and finding out more about their livelihoods as non-native residents. This paper will focus on understanding how foreign residents in Japan negotiate ibasho (RQ1) and the changes ibasho undergoes when being adopted by them (RQ2). Ibasho is a Japanese sociological concept indigenous to Japan. Previously ibasho has been primarily researched in youths, Japanese identity, education, and community... (More)
- The current Japanese population of 124 million is expected to decrease to 104 million by year 2050 (Takahashi et al., 2003) with a rapid aging population and, thus increasing immigration is one of the responses to this demographic concern. Hereon onwards, it will be relevant to understand the social patterns of foreign residents living in Japan and finding out more about their livelihoods as non-native residents. This paper will focus on understanding how foreign residents in Japan negotiate ibasho (RQ1) and the changes ibasho undergoes when being adopted by them (RQ2). Ibasho is a Japanese sociological concept indigenous to Japan. Previously ibasho has been primarily researched in youths, Japanese identity, education, and community building. The focus on foreign residents has only been limited to migrant youths in Japan, which is why this project will address the current foreign residents outside of the already existing scopes. A qualitative research method is applied, and ten transcripts of foreign residents are explored in thematic analysis. It has been observed that (1) the foreign residents do construct ibasho according to the three common conditions; subjective, objective (Sumida, 2003), and relationships (Abiru, 2012), and (2) they do so beyond the local proximity. They shape ibasho according to their lives before and during Japan as individuals giving meaning to their environment and people around them. The results in this paper contribute to the overall understanding of current migration trends in Japan, ibasho research, the concept of belonging, and social sciences. (Less)
- Popular Abstract
- Japan's population, currently at 124 million, is expected to drop by year 2050 with a large majority of the people aging quickly. To deal with this, Japan is considering allowing more immigrants into the country. It becomes important to understand the social patterns of foreign residents and their lives as non-native residents with the increased immigration. This study focuses on how people from other countries living in Japan find their place, called ibasho, and how ibasho changes depending on them. Ibasho is a Japanese concept about where people feel like they belong. The previous research has only addressed Japanese communities, particularly among youths, Japanese identity, education, community building, migrant youths, leaving a gap... (More)
- Japan's population, currently at 124 million, is expected to drop by year 2050 with a large majority of the people aging quickly. To deal with this, Japan is considering allowing more immigrants into the country. It becomes important to understand the social patterns of foreign residents and their lives as non-native residents with the increased immigration. This study focuses on how people from other countries living in Japan find their place, called ibasho, and how ibasho changes depending on them. Ibasho is a Japanese concept about where people feel like they belong. The previous research has only addressed Japanese communities, particularly among youths, Japanese identity, education, community building, migrant youths, leaving a gap regarding the broader foreign resident population.
To explore this, ten foreign residents were interviewed to understand how they negotiate ibasho and how ibasho changes when adopted by them. It is revealed that these individuals create their own sense of belonging based on their experiences and relationships, even if they are not originally from Japan. They construct ibasho according to three common conditions: subjective feelings, physical circumstances, and interpersonal relationships, shaping their sense of belonging beyond local proximity and incorporating aspects of their lives both before and during their time in Japan.
By examining how these individuals form and transform their ibasho, the study provides valuable insights into the complexities of social integration and the evolving nature of community and identity among Japan's immigrant population. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9153465
- author
- Vu, Madeleine LU
- supervisor
-
- Bo Isenberg LU
- organization
- course
- SOCM05 20241
- year
- 2024
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- ibasho, Japan, migrants, foreigners, qualitative research, belonging, sociology
- language
- English
- id
- 9153465
- date added to LUP
- 2024-06-03 10:14:21
- date last changed
- 2024-06-03 10:14:21
@misc{9153465,
abstract = {{The current Japanese population of 124 million is expected to decrease to 104 million by year 2050 (Takahashi et al., 2003) with a rapid aging population and, thus increasing immigration is one of the responses to this demographic concern. Hereon onwards, it will be relevant to understand the social patterns of foreign residents living in Japan and finding out more about their livelihoods as non-native residents. This paper will focus on understanding how foreign residents in Japan negotiate ibasho (RQ1) and the changes ibasho undergoes when being adopted by them (RQ2). Ibasho is a Japanese sociological concept indigenous to Japan. Previously ibasho has been primarily researched in youths, Japanese identity, education, and community building. The focus on foreign residents has only been limited to migrant youths in Japan, which is why this project will address the current foreign residents outside of the already existing scopes. A qualitative research method is applied, and ten transcripts of foreign residents are explored in thematic analysis. It has been observed that (1) the foreign residents do construct ibasho according to the three common conditions; subjective, objective (Sumida, 2003), and relationships (Abiru, 2012), and (2) they do so beyond the local proximity. They shape ibasho according to their lives before and during Japan as individuals giving meaning to their environment and people around them. The results in this paper contribute to the overall understanding of current migration trends in Japan, ibasho research, the concept of belonging, and social sciences.}},
author = {{Vu, Madeleine}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{The Ibasho of Foreign Residents in Japan – Navigating Belonging and Foreignness}},
year = {{2024}},
}