Report on Interviews with Long-Term Western Foreign Residents (LTW) in Japan

Abstract

This paper is a part of an ongoing study on long-term Western foreign residents in Japan (LTW). This study is attempting to gather information on various styles of LTW identity formation in distinct communities within the borders of Japan. This subsequently leads to various depths of integration. This particular paper will act as a preliminary report on 25 interviews performed from 2015. A chart of the basic statistical information for all the respondents has also been added. All the quotes used in this paper are taken from the original transcripts (O’Keefe 2017). Various techniques were used to help with the complex process of coding the interviews (McCracken, 1988; Hernandez, 2009; Saldana, 2015). A progressive line of questioning was used for the interviews to allow recurring themes to be added in the “substantive coding” process (Holton 2007: 265). Quotes were all classified into theoretical coding families (Glaser, 1978) to include factors from the catalysts and the styles-of-belonging found in the hybrid identity model (O’Keefe 2017). A full report on all of the quotes would require them to be broken down into several installments which is why this preliminary report is being offered as a foundation for reference in future work in this series on LTW. Throughout this paper results from a 93 item nationwide survey performed in 2015 will be applied when it supports or disputes quotes from the interviews. The typological diagram of LTW used to classify various hybrid identities will also be introduced. This paper concludes the presence of clear examples of the factors used in the hybrid identity model which are vital to the creation of the final goal to support the typological breakdown of complex evolving forms of LTW identity.