Despite the stagnation of the Japanese economy for some time, foreign direct investment by Japanese corporations in Western nations has been quite active since the early 1980s. In turn, this has resulted in the dramatic increase in Japanese families who reside abroad temporarily (Ministry of Education, Changing Trends of Japanese Families Abroad: http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/toko/hojin98/). Today more than 500 million Japanese people reside in foreign countries temporarily for an extended period of time.

We cannot deny that cross-cultural living creates adjustment problems to those living under such circumstances. Relocation from one's own homeland to a foreign country is likely to pose intense stress on the entire family. Because increasing corporate profits has been the top priority of most of these Japanese business firms, these companies have not paid due attention to the adjustment problem of Japanese families abroad. A decade has already passed since this author raised the issue to the international academic community (Kumagai, 1989). However, little has been accomplished yet to alleviate the problem.

Difficulties in deriving any appropriate solution for the problem are due to the dual nature of the issue. First, it is the community formation of Japanese families abroad on one hand, and second, the alienation of these families from their local communities on the other.

One third of the Japanese people who stay abroad for an extended period of time are minors, and many are school age children. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs conducts an annual survey on overseas Japanese school age children every May, and the results are published in September.

The total count of these children in 1999 was 48,951, and of them slightly more than one third (35.2%) attended Japanese school abroad full time (see Figure 2) (Japan Overseas Educational Services, 1999: 7). Of all the Japanese children overseas a little more than one third (37.5%) reside in North America, while only 708 children (3.9%) attend full time Japanese schools (See Figure 3). The reason for this imbalance is apparent. That is, only three of the 96 Japanese schools overseas are in North American. And because one of these schools is in Aguana, Guam, there actually only two on the North American continent.

As of May 1, 1999, there were 183 Japanese Saturday schools in 57 countries. Of them, however, nearly half were located in North American (82 schools, 44.8%) (Japan Overseas Educational Services, 1999: 8-9).

As a consequence, the majority of Japanese school age children residing in the United States attend American public schools on weekdays. Their cross-cultural experiences significantly impacts the formation of their personality in later years, and it is unknown if these experiences are valuable or problematic. Despite the growing trend of internationalization of Japan, there are a large number of Japanese families who struggles through hardship due to cross-cultural maladjustment.

What, then, really are the problems? Are there any counter measures proposed for these problems? The purpose of this study is to identify the problems surrounding Japanese families and children overseas who are there as a result of foreign direct investments. Discussions are primarily based on the questionnaire surveys and the group discussion interviews with Japanese mothers abroad in 1988, 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997.

The original research focused on Japanese foreign direct investments in the United States in 1987; two key issues were studied in the effort. The first was the attitudes of American workers under Japanese direct investment companies, and the other was the quality of life of Japanese families within the scope of Japan's direct investment. The former topic has been discussed extensively elsewhere (Kumagai, 1996, 1998). This paper examines the quality of life of Japanese families abroad.

Quality of life issues surrounding Japanese families abroad has been the subject of earlier studies (Kumagai, 1989, 1994). Therefore, this paper discusses the results of group discussion interviews with Japanese mothers held in 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997 in thirteen communities in various parts of the United States.

At each site about ten Japanese housewives participated in the research project, and their average age was 36.6 years old when they attended the group discussion interviews at each site. Each session for the group discussion interview typically lasted for about two hours. To conduct each group interview session effectively, a handout explaining the objective of the research and topics to be discussed was distributed to the prospective participants beforehand.

Four discussion topics were suggested in the handout.. They are:

ADJUSTMENT OF THE FAMILY

Problems surrounding the adjustment of Japanese families overseas are grouped into six categories. A schematic diagram of their inter-relationships is shown in Figure 4. They are:

1. New Types of Japanese Families in America

It has been some years since the impact of the cross-cultural education on children has been discussed. Over the years, the nature of the issues has changed. One of the major reasons for such alteration would be due to changes in the kind of the Japanese families who reside overseas temporarily. That is, today a growing number of Japanese firms are sending their employees and their families overseas, but with little prior experiences or knowledge in doing so. It used to be that Japanese families abroad were mostly those in service sectors, such as trading firms or financial institutions, whose business operations extend internationally. Foreign assignments are part of the natural course of business career to these employees and their families.

With the popularity of foreign direct investments in North America during the 1980s, a growing number of Japanese manufacturers have started production in the United States. Not only the economic stagnation of Japan but also the restructuring of Japanese financial institutions during the 1990s has accelerated this trend further. Subsidiaries owned by the larger manufacturers are now often obliged to start foreign direct investments.

In general, these subsidiaries (mostly parts suppliers to the parent manufacturers) have had no previous experiences in sending their employees abroad for an extended period of time. The families of these employees had never thought of an overseas assignment before. Interpreting their foreign stay positively, therefore, has been extremely difficult for these families, especially when it is only a relatively short period of overseas assignment.

As a consequence, there has emerged a growing number of maladjusted Japanese families overseas. The average age of Japanese mothers who accompany husbands for their foreign assignments has been increasing. Many of these couples have been married more than 10 years, and have already passed through the time when they are having babies. The average number of children in these households was two, and the average age of these children was 7.8 years old.

As discussed earlier Japanese school age children residing North America today totals slightly less than 20,000 (17,901 in 1998). Of them, about 40 percent are enrolled in elementary schools, another 40 percent attend junior high schools, and the remaining 20 percent study at high schools.
 

2. Adjustment of Japanese Mothers

The level of competence in oral English of Japanese mothers is poor (x=1.5 on 4-point scale, 1 being very poor and 4 being excellent). Regardless of their age the majority of Japanese mothers expressed difficulties in communicating in English. American ESL teachers pointed out that the extremely limited command of Japanese mothers' English often hinders the proper adjustment of Japanese children in American classrooms.

Perhaps due to the lack of communication skills, the number of American friends with whom Japanese mothers feel at ease is extremely small. Approximately one-third of the respondents had no American friends at all, another one-third had only one, and one-fifth had two. On the contrary, however, Japanese mothers make Japanese friends in America relatively easily. In fact the average number of new Japanese friends per mother is 4.8. As a consequence, Japanese mothers in America have no other alternatives than interacting with Japanese peers who reside in such narrow communities.

It sometimes happens that Japanese mothers in the United States suffer from neurosis, feeling unstable in their psychological conditions. Due to their inability to communicate in English some of these Japanese housewives fear to meet Americans even to say hello in the elevator or while doing laundry in the basement. Thus, these mothers confine themselves in the house, having no contact whatsoever with Americans in the community.

Japanese mothers in trouble cannot consult with American counselors because they cannot make themselves understood in English. American local communities criticize Japanese communities for not handling these problems properly. The Japanese side must solve the problem, not the American side. Such misunderstandings result in cultural friction between these two cultures, and are likely to extend to economic friction. In light of these circumstances, Japanese corporations may need consider discussions with both the prospective employees and their families as well if they would be willing to accept overseas assignment. If Japanese mothers are more positive toward staying abroad, the problem would be much easier to solve.
 

3. Family Stresses and Strains

Although Japanese families abroad are satisfied with their lives in general, they feel that the environments where they live are stressful. Stress inducing factors for husbands, for example, are work-related matters, human relations with American workers, miscommunications, relationships with headquarters in Japan, and children's education.

A large portion of Japanese mothers expressed increases in the amount of parent-child generation conflicts (30.4%) and difficulties in handling their children (48.5%). These statistics indicate that life in a foreign culture is highly stressful to children, which in turn affects the quality of life of the Japanese family. Not only children, but also most people in a foreign culture experience culture shock and alienation, especially during the initial period of adjustment. Nevertheless, the period of maladjustment and the process of adjustment differs from one individual to the other.

Even if Japanese mothers want to discuss children's problems with schoolteachers, their poor command of English prevents them from doing so. Fathers are frequently out at work until late in the evening (6.3% of mothers pointed out that it was the most serious source of conjugal conflict during the past year). With the husbands away from the home so much, mothers have no appropriate person with whom to consult if problems with children arise. Japanese mothers should make efforts to discuss children's problems with their husbands, schoolteachers, counselors and other appropriate personnel. Mothers with constructive attitudes toward the problem make significant positive contributions to the children's welfare.
 

4. Heavy Dependency on Husbands

When Japanese mothers were in Japan, they usually took the initiative in domestic decision-making in areas such as everyday chores, children's education, and life in general at home. However, the situation changes dramatically when they move to the United States. One of the primary reasons for the loss of autonomy of Japanese mothers abroad is their lack of oral English language skill. Conducting simple conversations in English are just beyond their abilities. These conversations are, for example, talking with school teachers, stating the symptoms of illness to a doctor, explaining the problem of electric appliances over the phone, and making reservations for airline tickets over the phone. More than 80 percent of Japanese mothers in the United States found difficulty in conducting these conversations in English. Therefore, it is necessary for them to depend on their husbands totally.
 

5. Short Period of overseas Assignment of the Japanese Family

The average length for expected stay in America of these Japanese families is 3.3 years. That is, about the time when the family started to feel at ease in the new cultural surroundings, they return to Japan. In some cases, it was the company's policy that the length of overseas assignment was set for as little as two years. With a limited command of English and a relatively short stay in America, it is difficult for Japanese mothers to accommodate to and to appreciate American life fully. In fact, many of them show little in developing friendships with Americans.

The impact of a short period of overseas assignment on school age children is also apparent, especially when these children are in the early years of elementary schools. That is, without mastering the native tongue of the Japanese language, they are placed in English speaking environments. Many studies report hardships that these children went through in coping with the bilingual situation. Although not all children exhibit this problem, many Japanese children under these circumstances get confused and suffer from an identity crisis.

It is widely acknowledged that the younger the child is, the faster it is in acquiring foreign language skill. However, it cannot be generalized, because various factors account for the situation, such as personality of the child, length of overseas stay, and the environments in which the child is placed. Given such a short stay in America, the mastery of English as a language is quite unlikely. Even when a child could acquire a full competency in oral English skill, it does not necessarily mean that the child has mastered English grammar. Taking these realities into consideration, we can say that upon returning to Japan many of these children are placed in a difficult situation because they are not well prepared for coping with the stress of Japanese school entrance examination hell.

It is understandable that Japanese companies cannot assign each of their employees to an overseas operation for an extended period of time, like 10 or 20 years (and it is not clear that is necessarily desirable either). However, some measures need to be taken, especially because its impact on the welfare of both employees and their family members is so significant.
 

6. Satisfaction and Concerns of Japanese Mothers

However, when the question was asked as to what these Japanese mothers look forward to most, nearly one-third of them stated that it was the family's return to Japan. This fact indicates the low degree of Japanese mothers' efforts in adjusting to American life. What they are concerned about during the temporary stay in America are mainly such matters as children's education (47.2%), poor command of their English (15.0%), children's education upon return to Japan (10.2%), and health of the family members (9.4%). A significantly high proportion of Japanese mothers are concerned about the children's readjustment to Japanese schools upon return but do not really encourage them to make the best use of cross-cultural experiences.
 

1. Heavy Study Load of Japanese Overseas Children

Figure 5 Japanese Children's Education in America

1. public school education Monday through Friday,
2. Japanese Saturday School education (once a week and predominantly on Saturdays from 9 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon),
3. ESL (English as a Second Language), tutorial English lessons for children whose native tongue is other than English,
4. correspondence course on Japanese subjects, a program by Japan Overseas Educational Services in Tokyo (parents or Japanese Saturday schools voluntarily adopt the program), and
5. Private lessons such as music, art or sports.

As for private lessons, most children take them out of necessity, not because they have asked to or as hobbies. Japanese parents feel that letting their children take various private lessons helps prepare them for the school curriculum upon their return to Japan. When children are not really interested in these private lessons, it is questionable how much they truly learn from them. They simply add an additional burden to Japanese school age children.

1. Opinions of Japanese Mothers

1. Small number of students in the classroom
2. An appropriate teacher-student ratio,
3. Counselors that always make themselves available to students,
4. Teachers who try to encourage the good qualities of each student, and
5. Frequent contact between parents and teachers.

Japanese mothers, as they observe what their children learn at American local schools, understand clearly the differences in school education between Japan and the United States. In American education, various programs and assistance are available to meet the needs of an individual student. Stated concretely, American teachers encourage each student develop as individuals, teachers docment and record a child's progress, and teachers guide students so that they can express themselves clearly and competently. For Japanese children at American local schools, teachers are most willing to extend individual counseling, not only for regular subjects, but also ESL programs and relationships with American peers.

What do Japanese mothers perceive of their children's English ability and their adjustment in American life? As is true for the Japanese language, English contains the dual nature of both formal-public and informal-play languages. Thus, the mastery of English language imposes a significant burden to Japanese school age children. There is a high correlation between the level of English ability of Japanese school age children in America and the degree of their adjustment to American local school. A more interesting finding is that a child who did well at schools in Japan does not necessarily do the same in American curriculum. In fact, the reverse occurs quite commonly.

Parental attitudes have significant impacts on the adjustment of their children to foreign environments. That is, when the parents are under strain their children are likely to get nervous. When the parents are relaxed, however, the adjustment of children progresses relatively smoothly in both everyday life and studies. Japanese parent should keep in mind that their children usually feel proud of being Japanese and to be able to explain Japanese culture, manners and customs clearly. Japanese children need help mastering these social skills from Japanese parents.

In facilitating the adjustment of Japanese children at American public schools, it may be wise to let these children attend grade levels lower than what they actually are. As the adjustment of the student progresses, the child can be advanced to a higher-grade level step by step. In this way, children feel at ease in adjusting to new surroundings in America. With the pressure off academics, Japanese children will learn English more quickly. Japanese parents should consider what is best for their children in adjusting new life in America rather than being concerned about what others would think of them.

The primary concern of most Japanese mothers is children's education upon return to Japan. Many of Japanese parents consider it more important for their children to prepare well for the fierce entrance examination competition in Japan rather than making efforts for their children adjust to school life in America. This short-sightedness of Japanese parents makes it difficult for their children to view the valuable cross-cultural experiences in America positively.

Japanese parents consider drills (based on Japanese curriculum) as essential for their children adjust properly to Japanese schools. Usually these drills are studied under the supervision of their mothers. As children themselves do not really want to work on the drills, their effectiveness is questionable.

1. Opinions of Children

The children neither consider studies at Japanese Saturday schools seriously, nor work hard on the homework assigned. Japanese mothers, not the children, are the ones who feel it is necessary to do the homework. The homework (such as writing Japanese characters) does not have any practical use for Japanese children at the moment. Since Japanese children seldom write Japanese characters in daily life in America they have little motivation in memorizing these characters. As discussed earlier, most Japanese children in the United States must cope with a heavy study load, so there is little incentive for them to learn what they see no immediate use for at all.

Characteristics of the kyouiku-mama (an education-minded Japanese mother) syndrome are apparent among Japanese mothers abroad. Mothers' expectations for the educational achievement of their children are extremely high. When mothers were asked how much education they would want their children to receive, more than nine out of ten responded 'higher education' (56% up to undergraduate education, and 37.9% graduate or professional schools). A great majority of Japanese mothers consider that it is very important for their children to successfully advance to higher educational institutions (71% regard it as important and 26.5% as very important).

Attitudes of kyouiku-mama are shown up in children's activities as extremely heavy study loads composed of five different types of programs. Children spend as long as a time on homework (2.6 hours on a weekday, 1.3 hours on Saturdays and 1.8 hours on Sundays) as they do socializing and playing with other children (2.5 hours on a weekday, 2.2 hours on Saturday and 2.1 hours on Sunday). It often happens that the playmates of a Japanese child are Japanese peers rather than Americans, and Japanese children communicate with each other in Japanese.

It is somewhat surprising to find that Japanese children spend relatively long hours watching television (2.2 hours on a weekday, 2.7 hours on Saturdays and 3 hours on Sundays). This may indicate that Japanese children are isolated at school and in the community. With the recent influx of Japanese families in the United States, some Japanese children feel it is not essential to acquire English language skills as a means of communication at school or in the community.

4. Comments by the Director and Teachers of Japanese Language Schools

As of November 30, 1998 there were 81 Japanese Saturday schools in North American, 73 in the United States and 8 in Canada. (Japan Overseas Educational Services, 1999b: 19-21). Their programs, however, are not standardized to any degree, and are more or less left to organizing committees represented by parents of each Japanese Saturday school.

The author of this paper visited 12 Japanese Saturday schools in various parts of the United States in 1988, 1993, 1994, and 1995, and had opportunities to meet with Japanese children, teachers, and parents. The size of the student body at these Japanese Saturday schools differs widely, from as small as 16 to as large as 800. When the student body is large the program is likely to be organized by the grade, and subjects covered are similar to the regular Japanese school from 9 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon. When the student body is small, however, the students from the first to eighth grade are divided into four or so groups, and study informally. In the latter situation, Japanese children enjoy interacting with each other rather than studying. Furthermore, some of these Japanese Saturday schools offer ESL programs not only for Japanese children but also for mothers, especially when only limited number of local American schools offer such programs to Japanese communities.

Japanese Ministry of Education approves of Japanese Overseas Schools and Saturday Schools for the period of compulsory education (elementary and junior high school education), but not high school, kindergarten, or ESL programs. However, unofficial or informal programs could be developed by the organizing committee of each Saturday school.

The Japanese Saturday school possesses dual functions. First of all it is the educational institution where Japanese children learn Japanese and the subjects taught in Japan. At the same time, it has an important role for Japanese parents as a place to exchange information, especially on Japanese education. As activities of Japanese families in the United States are generally confined to the Japanese communities, parents are most interested in exchanging information they possess. Thus, the function of Japanese Saturday school as an information exchange center is important and cannot be ignored.

So what are the problems surrounding Japanese Saturday schools? Four issue are evident. They are the recruitment of instructors, pupils and students, finance, and parents. Let us discuss each of these problems briefly.

a. Recruitment of Instructors

American local school teachers elaborated five major issues that Japanese children have. They are children's study, ESL programs, socialization, mother and teacher relations, and cross-cultural experiences of children. A brief discussion on each will follow below.

1. Children's Study

English, and oral skills in particular, is one of the most serious problems that Japanese children struggle with in American local schools. Problems in reading and writing are not as serious as oral skills in English. As a consequence, Japanese children in the classroom tend to be reticent.

Generally speaking, the older a Japanese child is who starts living in America, the more likely it is that problems occur in acquiring oral English skills. Furthermore, personality of the child can also affect the level of learning. When the child possesses positive attitudes, then the acquisition of oral English skill progresses smoothly. Japanese children tend to perform better in mathematics and sciences rather than in subjects on humanities. With regard to foreign language acquisition, Japanese children tend to do better in Spanish than English, perhaps due to the similarity in pronunciation.

b. ESL Program

The ESL (English as a Second Language) program is a tutorial program commensurate to each student's English ability. Therefore, not all Japanese children need to take the program, especially when the command of English is reasonably good. Some parents hire American college students for their children as tutors in English. In studying English, Japanese children possess difficulties in areas such as hearing, vocabularies, pronouncing sounds not existing in the Japanese language, inability in making complete sentences, plurals, articles, and being quiet and not willing to speak out in the classroom.

c. Socialization

Shyness of Japanese children has significant impact not only on their performance in the classroom, but also on their socialization. Not being able to communicate in English, results in difficulties making American friends, and consequently leads them to interact only with their Japanese peers. Thus, Japanese children tend to isolate themselves from their American peers. Sometime, problems such as bullying and truancy of Japanese children occur.

Japanese children in America have limited opportunity to learn and use formal Japanese, and therefore, their abilities in Japanese deteriorate. They have difficulties in mastering English on one hand, and they cannot develop Japanese language skills properly on the other. In these difficult circumstances, Japanese children sometime suffer from psychological problems.

One of the most effective ways of child socialization is through the participation in sports activities. American children play sports on Saturdays, while Japanese children attend classes at Japanese Saturday schools. Due to the time conflicts Japanese children cannot join their American peers.

　

d. Mother and Teacher Relations

It is rare that Japanese fathers take part in their children's schooling. Thus, mothers are obliged to make contact with schoolteachers. As discussed earlier, however, these mothers typically have a poor command of English, which becomes an obstacle in establishing a good relationship with a child's teacher.

Japanese mothers should not be afraid of expressing themselves to American teachers. When a Japanese mother is unable to communicate with an American teacher, the father, juggling his busy schedule at work, must accompnay the wife to school to assist with the conversation. Sometines this is not always possible, and some American teachers will exchange a comments notebook with the parents by sending it back and forth with the student.

Japanese mothers in America must consider what they can contribute to American local schools which their children attend. Especially if they are small, the school authorities greatly appreciate any voluntary services. Poor command of English is usually not a problem. What matters most is the willingness of Japanese mothers to take part in school activities of their children.

e. Cross-cultural Experiences of Children

Adjustment of Japanese children in foreign culture is affected significantly by the attitudes of their parents. The experiences of Japanese children studying at American local schools are valuable in their later years. Living in America while in childhood will not only contribute to the foreign language acquisition, but it also will enhance cross-cultural understanding, enabling them to act independently and assertively. It is ironic, however, that Japanese children educated in America tend to become too self-expressive to readjust in Japanese society.

　

COMMUNITY RELATIONS

The overall attitude of American workers employed for Japanese companies is favorable due to economic reasons (Kumagai, 1996). That is, Japanese companies provide American workers with job opportunities, and generate favorable economic impacts in the community. Some Japanese companies in America are cautious enough to disperse Japanese employee housing. It is a deliberate effort by the company to ensure that the Japanese families will have more contacts with American families, rather than being limited to Japanese families in a single neighborhood. Otherwise, Japanese families are likely to interact only with each other, which is quite detrimental to amicable community relations.

　

Figure 6  Dynamics of Community Relations of Japanese Families in the U.S.A.

When the impact of Japanese investment in the community is strong Japanese families in America do not impose serious problem on community relations. However, if the impact of Japanese investment in the community diminishes, underlying community relation problems may be revealed. The problems that Japanese families in America have are threefold, namely weak relationships with American families, indifferent participation in American local schools, and lack of commitment to community activities. The dynamics of community relations are shown in Figure 6.

When Japanese children receive special educational benefits at American public schools (e.g. ESL tutorials, school counseling, etc.) Japanese parents should appreciate the benefits that they are receiving. The tax money paid by American residents covers all expenses for these programs. Community relations are established on the basis of reciprocity. Therefore, Japanese families need to express their appreciation by taking part in the community activities. Constructing friendly community relations is not a difficult matter. It simply requires an active involvement of Japanese families in community activities.

　

COMPLICATED ISSUES

The nature of the problem relating to the adjustment of Japanese families abroad is indeed quite complicated. These problems are found not only in America but also in Japan. Examples of the problem in Japan are readjustment of Japanese families upon their return to Japan, and the dispersion of the family members across the national boundary.

1. Readjustment to Japanese Society:

　

Figure 7 Readjustment of Japanese Families to Japanese Society

Readjustment to Japanese society is a difficulty of all the members of Japanese families, namely, fathers, mothers, and especially children. Each of these family members is confronted with problems in assuming a correct role in Japanese society. (See Figure 7.) For example, fathers will feel quite regiments by the hierarchically structured business organizations to which they return. Mothers are likely to find difficulties in readjusting to everyday life in the tightly knit local communities of Japan. Returnee children are obliged to conform to the Japanese educational system, which is quite different from the American counterpart. The emphasis in American education is placed on logical reasoning and creativity, whereas in Japanese education rote learning, or the amount of information, is what counts most.

The returnee children are called TCK (the Third Culture Kids) (Useem, 1973). Returnee Japanese children from the United States possess the first culture of Japanese culture to which they were born, the second culture of American culture which they experienced through living there, and the third culture that they experience upon their return to Japan. The third culture is not identical to the first culture although both are found in Japan. The third culture is the new creation based on the first and adding the second. With the third culture already a part of themselves, the readjustment process of these returnee children into Japanese society does not always progress smoothly. In fact, many of these returnee children find the readjustment problematic in coping with the fierce examination hell, standardized school life, or being bullied because they are now perceived as "different." It is hoped that the time will come when these returnee children feel their cross-cultural experiences to be truly valuable.
 

2. Dispersion of the Family Members across the National Boundary.

　

Figure 8  Dispersion of the Family Members across the National Boundary

The complicated nature of the issue is seen in the dispersion of the family members across the national boundary, as shown in Figure 8. Japanese businessmen assigned to American operations sometimes leave their families in Japan. Such alternative living arrangements are necessary so that the children can prepare for the entrance examination properly.

As society in Japan has been aging very quickly, many Japanese families in America have left elderly parents in Japan. A large proportion of Japanese elderly today still adopt co-residency living arrangements (i.e. elderly parents living with one of their children). However, the relocation of elderly parents to a foreign culture is not practical. Adjustment to a new culture is difficult enough for young people, and much more so for the elderly who often lack flexibility and have physical and psychological problems as well. Due to the recent trend in the reduction of family size in Japan, it is extremely difficult to find relatives to take care of elderly parents while families are assigned abroad. Yet, being accustomed to traditional family relations, the Japanese people so far have been reluctant to place the elderly in public institutions. From now on, however, Japanese elderly must acquire and be equipped with independent rather than interdependent lifestyles.

Another kind of newly emerging cross-cultural family exists. That is, parents return to Japan leaving children abroad. Keio Academy of New York is an example. Of the total student body of 420, approximately 100 fit into this new category. These Japanese students usually live in the dormitory, and visit Japan during the school recess in the summer. When these children visit Japan, they are very likely to have conflicts with parents.

CONCLUSION

The imminent nature of the problem calls for appropriate measures to be taken. It is beyond the scope of any individual family to solve, but cooperation within business and administrative sectors is essential. It is easy to say but difficult to realize. Nevertheless, such a fundamental approach would eventually prove most effective.

Some encouraging situations have emerged recently. That is, with the coming of information society, the Internet will prove one of the most effective means to alleviate the problem. The applications of this new media to the problem of Japanese families abroad is a theme that is discussed in another paper by the author.

BOOKS AND ARTICLES:

Japan Overseas Educational Services　1997　　Japan Overseas Educational Services, September issue.
Japan Overseas Educational Services　1998　　Japan Overseas Educational Services, September issue.
Japan Overseas Educational Services　1999　　Japan Overseas Educational Services, September issue.
Kumagai, Fumie 1989 "Japanese families abroad." International Migration, 27, 4 (December): 595-600.
Kumagai, Fumie 1994 "Taibei Toshikaniokeru Nihonjin Kazoku no Tekio--Ibunka tono Tatakai" (Japanese Families in America under Foreign Direct Investments--Battle against the Cross-Cultural Adjustment." Shakaigaku Soron (Sociology), No.120: 1-28.
Kumagai, Fumie 1996 Nihonteki Seisan Shisutemu inYu-Esu-Ai--Masatsukara Sogorikaihe (Japanese Production System in the U.S.A.--From Friction to Friendship). Tokyo: JETRO.
Kumagai, Fumie 1998 "From friction to friendship: Alleviating intercultural communication problems resulting from Japanese foreign direct investment in the United States, Scotland, and ASEAN with emphasis on Malaysia." Kyorin University Review of the Faculty of Foreign Languages, 10: 1-21.
　

URLs

Ministry of Education: http://www.naec.go.jp/kaigai/sijo2703.html
Ministry of Education, Changing Trends of Japanese Families Abroad: http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/toko/hojin98/
 
 
 
 

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