Date of Defense
4-27-2018
Date of Graduation
4-2018
Department
Communication
First Advisor
Annette Hamel
Second Advisor
Robert Dlouhy
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to compare two groups: Japanese students studying or who have studied at American universities, and Americans who are studying or have studied at Japanese universities. The inclusionary criteria were American students who had studied at a Japanese university and Japanese students who had studied at an American university. Exclusionary criteria were those who did not meet the criteria above. Prospective participants were invited to participate through Facebook and email. Interviews were conducted either faceto- face at the Bernhard Center at Western Michigan University, or by telephone. Prospective participants were informed of the purpose of the study, the risks and benefits of participating, and their confidentiality. After agreeing with these terms, the prospective participants signed the informed consent forms. Interviews were conducted in English with both American and Japanese participants with the same questions, and lasted between thirty to sixty minutes. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed for analysis. Only the student researcher transcribed the interviews on a private computer and omitted the names of the participants. Once the transcriptions were complete, the recordings were erased. The student investigator searched for repetitiveness in the American and Japanese groups to see if there were common ideas that their group shared. This study focused specifically on American and Japanese students to compare responses of each group to provide helpful information to universities for future international students. This information will help American and Japanese universities understand the integration process of the international students from these groups and will be able to provide the resources to make future international students comfortable and successful during their experiences abroad.
Recommended Citation
Wilp, Annelise, "Intercultural Communication in the U.S. and Japan" (2018). Honors Theses. 2982.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/honors_theses/2982
Access Setting
Honors Thesis-Open Access
Defense Presentation