Paper short abstract:

This presentation discusses the results of an interview study on the life career development of foreign women in rural areas in Japan and the local community. Social participation is essential for life career development. Language teachers need to encourage them to participate in their communities.

Paper long abstract:

This presentation discusses the results of an interview study on the life career development of foreign women who have migrated to depopulated areas in Japan and the impact of the local community on it.

In Japan, legal reforms have made it easier for foreigners to work and stay in Japan with their families for longer periods of time than in the past, and the number of foreign immigrants is increasing in rural areas. This study focuses on the life career development of migrant foreign women living in depopulated areas, where there are few previous research studies. The local community, which is the place where they live their daily lives, is considered to have a significant influence on the formation of their life careers. The aim of this study is to examine what role the local community has and is expected to play in supporting these women in the development of their life careers.

For this purpose, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six migrant foreign women living in depopulated areas. The interview data was analysed using the M-GTA method.

As a result, it was confirmed that, with regard to [feelings towards the local community] ([ ] is a category obtained in the analysis), the sense of rejection was strong at the beginning of residence, but over time, factors such as [change in social position/role], [contact with local residents], [meeting important people] and [learning Japanese] interacted to make the feeling towards the local community a positive one. In addition, it was confirmed that these factors lead to [positive attitude towards life career development], and that they become able to have a [vision for the future]. At the same time, the study showed that there were an [absence of the concept of 'local community'] in the consciousness of migrant foreign women living in depopulated areas and the difficulty of [having a sense of belonging].

Social participation is essential for life career development. As language teachers, we need to encourage them to recognise their 'local community' and to participate in it.