Japanese national identity and the positioning of English as opportunity or obstruction

ABSTRACT

As an aspirational activity, English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education is a compulsory pursuit within many education systems around the world. Common to many such contexts, EFL is taught in relation to a dominant national language and therefore exists within a marginal, non-official or non-native position. However, this domestic marginalization often misaligns with the economic significance, cultural prominence and symbolic capital attributed to English, and this is evident within Japan. Therefore, the teaching of EFL to Japanese nationals within pre-tertiary education can be expected to evoke certain identity-related emotions. Despite such plain sight observations, the affective role played by dimensions of national identity within EFL education remains understudied. Through a path-analysis procedure undertaken with a university student sample, this article explores how dimensions of Japanese national identity predict the positioning of EFL as opportunity or obstruction. The study also examines how this relationship is mediated by an emotional attachment to the local and the foreign language. The research reflects an interdisciplinary exploration of identity and its affective impact upon EFL positioning within contemporary Japanese society.

KEYWORDS:

• English as a Foreign Language (EFL)
• japan
• national Identity

Introduction

Language is a foundational component of national identity formation and maintenance. Language thus serves as one of the preeminent referents through which intergroup appraisals, attitudes and opinions are anchored. Moreover, language is often referenced in relation to an emotional or spiritual dimension. During the early nineteenth century, Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767–1835) asserted that language stood as “the outer appearance of the spirit of the people; the language is their spirit and the spirit their language”. Von Humboldt emphasized that the resultant bond was so tight that “the mental individuality of a people and the shape of its language are so intimately fused with one another that if one were given the other would have to be completely derivable from it” (as cited in Losonsky, 1999, p. 46).

Influenced by European romanticism, in 1897 Japanese scholar Ueda Kazutoshi (1867–1937) gave his own interpretation of the intimate and emotional relationship between the national language, the collective and the nation. Ueda wrote;

A language for the people who speak it is the symbol of the spirit of the brethren, just like the blood shared by their bodies. Therefore, the language of the Japanese nation is the spiritual blood of the Japanese people. The kokutai of Japan is maintained by this spiritual blood, and the Japanese race is unified by the most strong and long-preserved tie. (Cited in Lee, 1996, pp. 89-90)

Wilhelm von Humboldt and Ueda Kazutoshi provide historical context to the assertion that language remains a significant factor within conceptualizations of the nation. Contemporary life shows how the varied processes, exchanges, and interactions stimulated by the forces of globalization possess the capacity to enhance or threaten national identity salience. The economic significance, cultural prominence and symbolic capital of the English language and its marginalized domestic presence within Japan stand as a site of potential conflict, resistance and pushback. Based on two-decades of direct personal experience, it is a self-evident truth that despite aspirational discourses designed to appease the forces of globalization, competent social use of the English language within Japan is a rarity among Japanese nationals (see Nishino & Watanabe, 2008), thus affirming the social reality of its marginalized status.

While the intrinsic need for English proficiency within Japan is exaggerated, as part of the appeasement dynamic, commentators have nonetheless drawn attention to the fact that “the discourses of English-as-panacea and English-as-opportunity hold pervasive discursive power” (Pigott, 2015, p. 221). The contemporary situation reflects one in which the varied aspirational discourses and activities surrounding EFL education routinely fail to deliver the outcomes and opportunities promised, often despite significant personal study investment. The emotions resulting from such bait-and-switch tactics can be expected to stimulate a range of affective emotions with varied implications concerning the way in which EFL is positioned and appraised.

In accordance with the premise outlined above, this article contends that one of the most influential affective variables impacting the positioning of EFL within Japan is the attachment an individual holds to dimensions of national identity, or in other words, the subjective significance assigned by an individual to their inner bond with the nation (Blank & Schmidt, 2003). The current study explores how dimensions of national identity function as antecedents to the positioning of English as opportunity or obstruction. The study further examines how this relationship is mediated by an emotional attachment to the local and the foreign language. The research stands as an interdisciplinary exploration of identity and its affective impact upon EFL positioning within contemporary Japanese society.

Furnishing the Imagi(N)ation

Collective identities exist on a multitude of social-psychological levels as observable through the human tendency to form groups and communities with similar others. Common referent points for the affirmation of kinship include, race, religion, gender, language, and nationality. Illustrating the attitudinal dimension involved in collective bonding, Munch (2001) describes how collective identities require reference to the core “attitudes which all members of a collective have in common in their thoughts and behaviour” (p. 137). While collectives, and the identities they claim cascade throughout society, even in times of aggressive Derridean deconstruction, perhaps the most salient index of belonging and contrastive reference point remains the nation.

French philosopher Ernest Renan (1823–1892) is widely credited with two of the most enduring conceptualizations of the nation, the Willensnation (i.e. the nation as an act of political will) and the Kulturnation (i.e. the nation as cultural, linguistic and ethnic entity as an act of nature). Renan (1885 [1995]) positions the nation as an emotive network of interpersonal relationships embodied within a shared moral conscience (see Wodak et al., 2009). The shared moral conscience is experienced in abstraction wherein the imagination makes real that which cannot be seen or experienced in person. Belief in the nation as a community of like-minded others can therefore be categorized as an act of metaphysical faith.

Benedict Anderson’s (1983) notion of imagined communities provides a more contemporary illustration of the abstract faith required to formulate identities referenced through the nation. The nation is therefore brought into existence only “when sufficient people believe in some version of collective identity for it to be a social reality” (Fulbrook, 1999, p. 1). The comprehension of a social reality also infers certain performative aspects of affiliation (i.e. to be Japanese) which must be upheld in accordance with the shared moral conscience of the community of similar others (i.e. we are Japanese). In the process of imagining ourselves and our place of belonging, opportunities for collective differentiation are fundamental. The differentiation between an imagined us and an equally imagined them is a primary factor in collective identity formation (i.e. to know someone as a friend requires that someone else be known as an enemy).

Differentiating between our language, culture, race, religion and nation, and their language, culture, race, religion and nation is often turbulent and involves the exploitation of division and conflict. As witnessed around the world almost daily, the consequences of blind faith communion are often disastrous with individuals willing to kill or be killed in order to uphold the imagined communities to which their own belonging is referenced . It is telling that the significance of the nation as a construct to kill or be killed for is such that it is normative for nations to assemble formalized fighting armies and weapons to be utilized against others when the national salience is challenged (see Clifford, 1997). 

While violence is a common means through which nations remain cohesive, nations are more routinely maintained through the mundane practices and exchanges involved in everyday liflife. One particular example commonplace within Japanese society is the use of corporate slogans when the nation is under threat, not from external nations, but rather from localized natural disasters (see Ohashi, 2011). In the aftermath of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, All Nippon Airlines (ANA) emblazoned many of their domestic aircraft with the message “kokoro wo hitotsu-ni gambarō Nippon” (with a single heart, don’t give up Japan!). Moreover, and as a signal toward membership within a unified international community, several ANA international route aircraft featured the official English translation of the same message, “Forward together as one Japan” (All Nippon Airways, 2011). The chosen aircraft operated on routes to Taipei, New York, Frankfurt and London. One can argue that these routes reflect cities within countries that Japan holds a preferable affiliation through either economics, history and/or politics.

Speaking further to the need for differentiation between in-group and out-group, the reciprocity of national identity kinship is also observable during times of threat. After the Great East Japan Earthquake evidence of international unity and cohesion could be seen through newspaper headlines outside of Japan. On 12 March 2011 the front page of “JoongAng Ilbo” (South Korea) featured the term “Ilbon chimmol ” (Japan sinking) set to an image of burning Japanese houses submerged in water. This message is an implicit affirmation that “in your time of need we remain part of your out-group”. In contrast, on 13 March 2011 “The Independent on Sunday” (UK) featured a large red circle set to a white rectangular background with a culturally typical message of support written in Japanese and English (ganbare, nihon, ganbare, tohoku/don’t give up, Japan! don’t give up, Tohoku!). This message is a more explicit affirmation that “in your time of need we are part of your in-group”. Although perhaps conincidental, it might be significant that ANA did not fly the special “Forward together as one Japan” aircraft to locations within South Korea.

National Identities and the Self-Concept

Numerous approaches have aimed to conceptualize and measure dimensions of national identity (e.g., Bar-Tal, 1993; Bloom, 1990; Dekker & Malova, 1995; Finlayson, 1998; Gellner, 1983; Keillor & Hult, 1999; Kosterman & Feshbach, 1989) including components deemed specific to the Japanese context (Karasawa, 2002). While processes of differentiation are vital in the affirmation of identity, the imagined inner bond between members is primed through socialization, often prior to actual contact with differentiated others. As Dekker et al. (2003) outline, “the most important process is national socialization, because the first national emotions and rudimentary beliefs that one acquires result from early socialization rather than from early perceptions, inferences, and experiences” (p. 349) (see also Csepeli, 1982). The nation can therefore be discussed as an integral part of the self-concept, one nurtured through state-sanctioned forms of socialization (i.e. schools) (see Horio, 1988; Passin, 1982; Schneer, 2011; Young, 2009).

Two of the most influential theorizations concerning the self-concept include identity theory (Burke, 1980) and social identity theory (Hogg & Abrams, 1988; Tajfel, 1978). Both theories frame the individual within a social network of systems that shape and regulate interpersonal emotions and behaviours. Identity theory is rooted in symbolic interactionalism and concerns the role-related behaviours of the individual and how society dictates social behaviour through its impact on the self. It is therefore essentially a micro-sociological approach which suggests that the individual self comprises multiple components known as identities. Identity theory consequently “views the self not as an autonomous psychological entity but as a multifaceted social construct that emerges from people’s roles in society; variation in the self-concepts is due to the different roles that people occupy” (Hogg et al., 1995, p. 256).

Social identity theory focuses more on group-level processes and intergroup relations. Social identity can be defined as addressing “that part of an individual’s self-concept which derives from his knowledge of his membership of a social group together with the value and emotional significance attached to that membership” (Tajfel, 1978, p. 63). The foundation of social identity theory indicates that the social categories into which one belongs provide “a definition of who one is in terms of the defining characteristics of the category” (Hogg et al., 1995, p. 259). Social identities reside in the mind of the individual as cognitive evaluations of reality and therefore, as documented above, require the perception and recognition of others for legitimacy. Language is a primary referent used in the pursuit of in-group salience and for the purpose of differentiating between us and them.

English in the Japanese Imagination

It has been argued how within Japan “‘otherness’- specifically, English and the presence of foreigners – ironically builds national identity among students” (McVeigh, 2002, p. 148). These dynamics, in which the comparative-other serves as platform for the affirmation of self, have been replicated through popular culture outlets such as television (Hambleton, 2011), sporting events (Tamaki, 2019) and food consumption habits (Omori, 2017). An advantage of these discourses being disseminated through popular culture rather than political rhetoric is that popular culture is scrutinized to a far lesser extent and is able to reach and thus influence a greater number of people. Grounded upon discourses of ethnolinguistic homogeneity, the inner bond among the Japanese collective is almost always pursued in relation to the Kulturnation (i.e. the nation as cultural, linguistic and ethnic entity as an act of nature) rather than the Willensnation (i.e. the nation as an act of political will).

In attempting to understand how English might be conceptualized in relation to identity as a Japanese national, it has been suggested that “Japan’s English education policy can be seen to be covertly undermining the ideologies it outwardly purports to support: failing at English is simultaneously an act of resistance against globalization” (Pigott, 2015, p. 217). Endowed with economic significance, cultural prominence and symbolic capital, English could therefore be used to advance rather than diminish nationalistic sentiment. Kawai (2007, p. 37) documents how the spread of English “puts nation-states in a dilemma in which they have to promote the English language – a foreign language – as well as an indigenous national language that often plays a strong symbolic role for nationalism”. Resistance to EFL within Japan, tapered by a tactical awareness of its global significance, has been observed within nativist discourses promoting sociocultural, ethnolinguistic, and biological uniqueness (see Befu, 2001; Carroll, 2001; Dale, 1986; Thorsten, 2004).

In 1872, the founder of Japan’s modern education system, Mori Arinori (1847–1889), penned a letter to American linguist William D. Whitney (1827–1894) seeking support for the proposed adoption of a simplified English language within Japan. Mori argued that if the Japanese failed to “adopt a language like that of the English, which is quite predominant in Asia, as well as elsewhere in the commercial world, the progress of Japanese civilization is evidently impossible” (as cited in Kawasumi, 1978, p. 47). English was propagated throughout the early education system as a means of maintaining sovereignty in the face of external threats (Mori, 1873, as cited in Suzuki, 2002). Similar defensive positions have since been espoused. A report produced under Prime Minister Obuchi Keizō on 18 January 2000 entitled “Japan’s Goals in the 21st Century” (Prime Minister’s Commission on Japan’s Goals in the 21st Century, 2000) framed English as a requirement for maintaining national development (i.e. for the purpose of economic nationalism).

Even within educational contexts where EFL is taught as an aspirational activity, nativist discourses which problematize EFL learning and uphold us/them differentiations are apparent.¹ Two examples are shown below. The first derives from the promotional literature of a nationwide EFL conversation school and the second is taken from the promotional material of a current university.

The truth is that the English and Japanese languages exist on different wave lengths. For this reason, a normal Japanese person’s brain cannot distinguish English which is on the non-Japanese wave length from noise, and thus can’t catch what is spoken in English … It is important to listen repeatedly to and speak with native speakers in order to activate the language field within our brain. (Cited in Seargeant, 2009, p. 97.)

To master a foreign language … is not an easy task for Japanese. One of the reasons for this sad truth lies in our linguistic system, which has a peculiar structure. Another reason is non-linguistic. We have exclusively developed our own customs and traditions through our unique historical and geographical background. In other words, people in a country surrounded by the sea such as Japan tend to have far more trouble in learning a foreign language than those residing in countries bordering immediately on others. Thus [sic], we believe that having linguistic talent is not good enough to overcome this handicap; we Japanese must have incessant drive and go through thousands of repetitions to acquire foreign languages. (Cited in Pigott, 2015, pp. 222-223)

Other considerations surrounding the position of EFL include pervasive native language ideologies such as the belief that “Japanese culture, as manifested by language and social customs, can be carried only by the Japanese who are the result of the specific amalgam of the Japanese archipelago” (Kowner et al., 1999, p. 75). Rather than being seen as problematic, this ethnolinguistic logic is accepted as the natural order. Moreover, the naturalization of such views allows them to serve as a psychological safety mechanism when confronted with a poor EFL performance. Failing at English is recast as an act of resistance and as evidence that one is an authentic and non-colonized Japanese national (see Fujiwara, 2005). These views illustrate that the contemporary education system in which EFL education resides remains an important battleground in the struggle between contrasting historical narratives and contestations of a consensual national identity (Bukh, 2007).

The Current Study

The position of EFL education within Japan remains contentious and the implications for national identity are understudied. For the individual and the collective, the nation is imagined and identities referenced in relation to the nation (i.e. national identities) are affirmations of an inner bond with others of a shared moral conscience and performative expectations. Identity theory states that individuals assume role identities on the basis of the relationship between society and the self-concept. On a more collective level, social identity theory outlines how collectives establish and maintain differentiations through processes of comparison and evaluation. The current study explores how dimensions of Japanese national identity predict the positioning of EFL as opportunity or obstruction among a population of Japanese university students. Moreover, the current study also examines how this relationship is mediated by an emotional attachment to the local and the foreign language. The inclusion of language-related mediators draws support from the observation of Christopher (1983) who points toward the negative impact of an insular national consciousness in forming emotional connections with English and English speakers. The interactions to be tested are shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Conceptual overview of the interactions to be tested

Methods

Participants were 151 consenting university students drawn from two Japanese universities. One university was a large private university based in the Kantō area while the other was a small public university on Hokkaidō. The population comprised 54 (35.8%) female and 97 (64.2%) male students all of whom were Japanese nationals. Gender was not used as a variable within the current study. The mean age of the sample was 19.9 years (SD = 1.34). The 151 students were non-language majors but were enrolled in compulsory EFL classes as part of their undergraduate degree programme. Participants were sent a URL to an online Japanese language survey compiled by the author. The survey included questions pertaining to demographic information in addition to 35-individual statements answerable on a 6-point Likert-type scale ranging from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree”. The items pertaining to national identity were taken from Karasawa (2002) and Kosterman and Feshbach (1989) while the additional statements were more holistically informed. The 35-items represented eight hypothesized variables, four of which were fixed as predictor variables, two of which were fixed as mediators and two of which were used as criterion variables.

Predictor Variables

• Commitment to National Heritage (α.78). A distinct aspect of national identity within Japan addressing culture and symbolism in addition to the importance of maintaining tradition. Four items were used: the traditions of Japan should always be protected and honored, symbols such as the national flag and anthem mean a lot to me, I am proud of the Japanese imperial family, and all Japanese citizens should actively honor the customs and culture of Japan.

• Nationalism (α.63). A perception of national superiority and dominance over others. Four items were used: Japan should always put its own national interests over other countries, Japan should only care about its own needs, security and economic strength, Japan should aim to protect its culture and people from outside contamination, and Japan is more important than all other countries.

• Patriotism (α.65). Denotes national pride through love for country. Four items were used: I love the nation of Japan unconditionally, I am proud to be a Japanese, If I were born again I would want to be Japanese, and Japan is the only country I want to live.

• Internationalism (α.63). The importance of international sharing, welfare, openness and empathy. Three items were used: Japan should work with other nations for mutual benefits, Japan should welcome people, business and cultures from other places, and cooperation with other nations is something Japan should do more often.

Mediator Variables

• Japanese Emotional Attachment (α.79). An emotional attachment to the Japanese language. Four items were used: the Japanese language is beautiful, the Japanese language is close to my heart, the Japanese language expresses my individual identity, and I admire the Japanese language.

• English Emotional Attachment (α.80). An emotional attachment to the English language. Four items were used: the English language is beautiful, the English language is close to my heart, the English language expresses my individual identity, and I admire the English language.

Criterion Variables

• English as Opportunity (α.78). The positioning of English as an opportunity. Six items were used: studying English makes me feel like a global citizen, studying English is an opportunity that I welcome, studying English is a positive thing for Japanese people, studying English positively impacts Japanese culture, studying English positively impacts Japanese society, and studying English is useful for Japanese people like myself.

• English as Obstruction (α.77). The positioning of English as an obstruction. Six items were used: studying English makes me feel less Japanese, studying English is an obligation that I resent, studying English is not a good thing for Japanese people, studying English negatively impacts Japanese culture, studying English negatively impacts Japanese society, and studying English is a waste of time for Japanese people like myself.

Analysis

All data were subject to descriptive assessments of normality as well as reliability analyses. Assumptions of multicollinearity concerning the tolerance and variance inflation factors (VIFs) statistics were assessed in addition to the assumption of independent errors as assessed by the Durbin–Watson Statistic.

As shown in Table 1, Commitment to National Heritage had a positive correlation with Nationalism (r =.39, p < .0.01) and Patriotism (r = .55, p < .0.01) emphasizing the dominance of cultural referents in Japanese national identity referents. Cultural referents within conceptualizations of national identity have been detailed through cultural nationalism (Yoshino, 1992), although this limits culture to an existence within a distinctly nationalistic framework. Framing culture as an explicit component of nationalism fails to consider that cultural referents are configurable in ways that do not seek to dominate others. To position cultural referents removed from the dominance orientation, Commitment to National Heritage functions within Japan to split the difference between Nationalism and Patriotism.²

Table 1. Zero-Order Correlations, Means and Standard Deviations

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1. Commitment to National Heritage	-	.39**	.55**	.08	.72**	.27**	.29**	−.00
2. Nationalism		-	.40**	−.18*	.28**	.09	.11	.39**
3. Patriotism			-	.07	.63**	−.00	.15	−.04
4. Internationalism				-	.25**	.24**	.50**	−.42**
5. Japanese Emotional Attachment					-	.24**	.32**	−.09
6. English Emotional Attachment						-	.49**	−.05
7. English as Opportunity							-	−.36**
8. English as Obstruction
Mean	14.70	11.33	15.17	13.77	16.77	14.10	26.47	10.68
SD	4.73	3.51	4.24	2.45	4.29	3.97	4.88	4.66

Note: **p < 0.01

Commitment to National Heritage had no significant correlation with Internationalism, which suggests that identities drawn in relation to cultural and symbolic referents neither contribute to, nor detract from, an individual’s capacity to subscribe to a worldview characterized by international sharing, welfare, openness and empathy. The positive correlation between Nationalism and Patriotism (r = .40, p < 0.01) is of particular interest. In theory, a nationalistic orientation can be expected to parallel a love of country as expressed through Patriotism, yet it is also possible for a love of country to exist in the absence of any nationalistic orientation. Therefore, in order to better understand the specifics of Nationalism and Patriotism, an examination of how they impact other variables is required. Nationalism had a negative correlation with Internationalism (r = −.18, p < 0.01) whereas Patriotism, like Commitment to National Heritage, had no significant correlation with Internationalism. Nationalism is therefore the only dimension of national identity to be inconsistent with Internationalism.

The correlational analysis shows a positive relationship between an Emotional Attachment to English and an Emotional Attachment to Japanese (r = .24, p < 0.01). It is therefore possible to hold an emotional attachment to both languages rather than this being an either-or proposition. This non-binary inclusivity is not apparent in relation to the positioning of English as Opportunity or Obstruction (r = −.36, p < 0.01). Commitment to National Heritage (r = .29, p < .0.01) and Internationalism (r = .50, p < .0.01) were positively correlated with the positioning of English as Opportunity. Nationalism was positively correlated with the positioning of English as Obstruction (r = .39, p < .0.01) whereas Internationalism was negatively correlated with the positioning of English as Obstruction (r = −.42, p < .0.01). Patriotism is therefore the only dimension of national identity to have no significant relationship with the positioning of English as Opportunity or Obstruction.

Commitment to National Heritage (r = .72, p < .0.01), Nationalism (r = .28, p < .0.01), Patriotism (r = .63, p < .0.01) and Internationalism (r = .25, p < .0.01) all correlated positively with Japanese Emotional Attachment. Commitment to National Heritage (r = .27, p < .0.01) and Internationalism (r = .24, p < .0.01) correlated positively with English Emotional Attachment. From these correlational relationships one can argue that Commitment to National Heritage is the most flexible dimension of national identity as it permits positive emotional attachments to both the local and the foreign language.

In order to assess causation, a path-analysis model was tested by means of SEM and initially returned a goodness-of-fit of χ2 = 2.34(2) = 1.17, p = .309, GFI = .99, AGFI = .93, CFI = .99, RMSEA = 0.03. An alternative model was tested with the non-significant paths removed which returned a goodness-of-fit of χ2 = 18.08(12) = 1.507, p = .113, GFI = .97, AGFI = .91, CFI = .98, RMSEA = 0.05 (Figure 2). Although the alternative model tested had a reduced goodness-of-fit, it possessed a greater number of degrees of freedom suggesting that the model was a better overall fit than the original model. To assess the mediation effects of Japanese Emotional Attachment and English Emotional Attachment between the dimensions of Japanese national identity and the positioning of English as Opportunity or Obstruction, bias-corrected bootstrap confidence intervals (CIs) were used as recommended by MacKinnon et al. (2004). This procedure involved the generation of 2000 bootstrap samples and 95% bias-corrected CIs. Significant positive indirect effects were observed between Commitment to National Heritage→ English Emotional Attachment→English as Opportunity (β = .156, p < 0.01, 0.067, 0.275) and between Internationalism→English Emotional Attachment→English as Opportunity (β = .180, p < 0.05, 0.081, 0.363). Significant negative indirect effects were observed between Patriotism→English Emotional Attachment→English as Opportunity (β = −.104, p < 0.01, −0.205, −0.019).

Figure 2. Path analysis of the alternative model (standardized coefficients) showing direct and indirect effects [χ2 = 18.08(12) = 1.507, p = .113, GFI = .97, AGFI = .91, CFI = .98, RMSEA = 0.05]

Note. **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.

Discussion

Informed by the notion that language and language-related attitudes are significant in the formation and maintenance of national identity, the current study departed with an intent to explore how dimensions of Japanese national identity impact the positioning of EFL as opportunity or obstruction among a population of Japanese university students. The study also examined how this relationship was mediated by an emotional attachment to the local and the foreign language. From the tested model shown, several observations can be made which contribute toward understanding these relationships. 

In terms of the direct impact of dimensions of Japanese national identity upon the positioning of English, Commitment to National Heritage and Patriotism had no affect. From this, it can be said that identity referents related to culture, tradition and symbolism, in addition to a love of country, do not directly influence the way in which individuals position English within Japan. However, Commitment to National Heritage and Patriotism had an indirect effect on the positioning of English as Opportunity when mediated through English Emotional Attachment. The mediated relationship highlights the significance of language-related emotions and how such emotions can connect national identities with positional appraisals of foreign languages. Patriotism had a negative causal impact upon English Emotional Attachment (β = .-23) whereas Commitment to National Heritage had a positive causal impact (β = .38). Referents of culture, tradition and symbolism cannot therefore be conflated with a love of country. When Patriotism is conceptualized as a love of country, and when this dimension of national identity is dominant, an emotional attachment with English appears to be not possible. This is further underpinned by the positive causal relationship between Patriotism and Japanese Emotional Attachment (β = .32). Commitment to National Heritage therefore represents a dimension of national identity which does not speak to an emotional bond between the individual and the nation or its reflective cultural components. The absence of an emotional component (i.e. love) within Commitment to National Heritage does not prohibit an individual from having an emotional attachment to English in addition to Japanese. In terms of future research, it would be of interest to assess whether this pattern of affiliation is upheld with other foreign languages such as Korean or Chinese or whether the economic significance, cultural prominence and symbolic capital attributed to English award it a unique emotional status.

From a social identity perspective, Brewer and Miller (1996) document how explicit social identification is not always dependent on the counter-identification with an opposing out-group. That is, in-group salience is achievable without reference to an out-group, meaning that “citizens may have a strong identification with the nation without adopting a hostile attitude towards foreigners” (Billiet et al., 2003, p. 242). In the path-analysis model, nationalism had a positive causal impact on English as Obstruction (β = .38). This indicates that Nationalism is a dimension of national identity that actively affirms the obstructional appraisal of English. However, there was no corresponding relationship between Nationalism and English as Opportunity. This outcome could point toward the changing parameters of nationalism within Japan. Suzuki (2015) argues that it is China, rather than the US, which now serves as the primary national-other used in the construction of Japanese nationalism. It may also point toward a loss of status attributed to English as a tool for Japanese national development as described in “Japan’s Goals in the 21st Century” (Prime Minister’s Commission on Japan’s Goals in the 21st Century, 2000) (see Usui, 2000).

From the path-analysis, it is also apparent that the performative role of Internationalism was different from that of Nationalism. The student sample were conceptually able to distinguish between and isolate these two dimensions of national identity. Internationalism had a direct negative impact upon English as Obstruction (β = −.34), indicating that a national identity conceived in relation to “the necessity of opening Japanese society to the international community” (Karasawa, 2002, p. 656) is inconsistent with positioning English as Obstruction. In contrast to Nationalism, this link is further affirmed through a positive causal relationship between Internationalism and English as Opportunity (β = .40). This reflects common discourses which conflate internationalization in Japan exclusively with English speaking. Internationalism also had a positive causal impact upon Japanese Emotional Attachment (β = .18) and English Emotional Attachment (β = .23). Subscription to a worldview characterized by international sharing, welfare, openness and empathy facilitates an emotional attachment to both the local and foreign language. Internationalism also had a positive impact upon English as Opportunity when mediated through an English Emotional Attachment.

Conclusion

This article has argued that one of the most influential affective variables impacting EFL within Japan is the attachment an individual holds to dimensions of national identity. Concerns and speculations surrounding Japanese national identity and the position of English remain central to contemporary Japanese society. It is therefore curious that research linking the two themes is rare, especially within EFL educational research wherein the English-speaking native-speaker teacher (i.e. the ideal differentiated other) remains central (see Rivers, 2016, 2018a, 2019; Houghton & Rivers, 2013).

Given its status in pre-tertiary education and as an aspirational activity frequently referenced across society, the individual citizenry of Japan are required to psychologically manage the performative demands of being Japanese alongside the expectation of acquiring English for some vague purpose relating to cosmopolitan upward mobility. While these demands are often cast as mutually incompatible, as reflected in the convoluted discourses and activities which surround English in Japan, the current study indicates that individuals are able to position English as an opportunity while maintaining a self-concept drawn in relation to an identity as a Japanese national. As the data reveal, certain configurations of national identity are more conducive than others to this process.

Among the four dimensions of national identity used in the current study, Nationalism and Internationalism had a direct causal impact upon the positioning of English. Internationalism was found to be the most consistent dimension of national identity related to positioning English as it predicts both opportunity and obstruction. In contrast, Nationalism was limited in its predictive power to positioning English as Obstruction. These outcomes challenge those who have suggested that the Japanese view of internationalization hides false motives of a nation-building nature. For example, Kubota (2002, p. 14) argues that “kokusaika essentially blends Westernisation with nationalism, failing to promote cosmopolitan pluralism”.

While these observations may retain truth in some samples, they require subscription to a particular configuration of what Internationalism in Japan should represent (i.e. cosmopolitan pluralism). The format of EFL activities within Japan certainly lend themselves toward this worldview, albeit in spite of the domestic preference for hiring white native-speaker English speakers from Western contexts. These actions and the desired outcomes reflect an ideological worldview that frequently encounters resistance from those within Japan who wish to structure their own national identity affiliations in alternative ways. It can be argued therefore that Internationalism within Japan, and its conflations with EFL, stands as a more intolerant and ideologically narrow dimension of national identity than Nationalism. Internationalism casts the positioning of English as an either-or-binary, whereas Nationalism concerns itself only with positioning English as Obstruction.

In terms of the mediation variables, the current study has shown that Japanese Emotional Attachment does not mediate the relationship between national identity and the positioning of English. However, English Emotional Attachment serves a more significant mediatory role between dimensions of national identity and the positioning of English. Forty years ago, Hayes (1979, p. 372) described how it “may very well be that the Japanese do not want to learn English”. Today, it might be more accurate to suggest that many Japanese do not want to learn English if it threatens their identity and self-concept as a Japanese. Stephan et al. (2009, p. 43) have outlined how “because of the needs they fill, groups are as dear to us as life itself, and we fear their destruction almost as much as we fear our own”. It might be reasonable to believe that English represents a threat to certain Japanese identity configurations. Therefore, fostering an English Emotional Attachment in a manner that does not threaten or undermine individual identities drawn from the nation seems important for the equitable promotion of English as an aspirational provider of upward mobility.

To date, such ideals have only been pursued through government action plans rather than within academia. For example, and in reference to the 12 July 2002 document entitled “Developing a Strategic Plan to Cultivate ‘Japanese with English Abilities’ – Plan to Improve English and Japanese Abilities” (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), 2002), Hashimoto (2009, p. 28) cautions how the mandate appears inconsistent in that the title indicates “that the focus of the plan is the improvement of the English used by Japanese people, but for some reason, the importance of the national language must also be addressed”. Promoting English within Japan while disregarding the national language is not only inequitable and indicative of an intolerant and distinctly ideological form of cosmopolitan pluralism but also unrealistic given the understandable status threats and anxiety generated (see Rivers, 2018b).

Finally, and reflecting a limitation of the current study, the national identity profiles of individuals should not be considered static except in extreme cases (Calhoun, 2007). In reality, individuals take aspects of identity affiliation from a broad range of referents and ebb-and-flow between them within an ever-changing sociopolitical landscape. Similarly, it is also somewhat problematic to speak of individual and collective identities as ones that remain delineated from one another. Instead, it is perhaps more accurate, although methodologically more challenging, to view the dichotomy between individual and collective identities as masking a more complex reality in which identities are interwoven within a state of constant flux. The data in the current study provide a foundation for more sensitive measures and methods to be devised which attempt to uncover the complexity of the individual experience in relation to national identity and EFL within contemporary Japan.

Acknowledgments

Sincere gratitude is extended to the anonymous reviewers and the editor for insightful feedback given on an earlier version of this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

¹ The long-standing JET Programme (http://www.jetprogramme.org) serves as another such example of EFL being used as a solution for greater nation-state-orientated concerns. The initiative was devised in response to an ongoing trade conflict between Japan and the US during which Japan was accused of being exclusively focused on its own economic interests. Hisaeda Jōji, the Director of the Second Cultural Affairs Division at the time of the programme’s inception, remarked that it was “a significant part of national security policy” that the young English-speaking Westerners placed within the Japanese education system were to “go back to their respective countries in the future and become sympathizers for Japan” (as cited in McConnell, 2000, p. 266).

² The notion of ethnocentrism is of potential relevance here and warrants attention. Sumner (1906) defines ethnocentrism as a “view of things in which one’s own group is the center of everything, and all others are scaled and rated with reference to it” (p. 13). Ethnocentrism typically maintains the characteristics of nationalism in being pro-in-group and anti-out-group (Balabanis & Diamantopoulos, 2004; Dutton, 2019). However, divergence from nationalism appears when affirmations are recognized on a fragmented level of society, (e.g., through multiple “ethno” minority groups within a singular nation-state apparatus). Therefore, nationalism and ethnocentrism can at times run in opposition to one another depending on the composition of the specific society (see Mihalyi, 1984/5). In homogenous societies, one would expect them to align more harmoniously.