24 October 2025
- RSIS
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- Social markers of acceptance in Japan: examining acceptance criteria for immigrants of different ethnocultural heritages
Social markers of acceptance in Japan: examining acceptance criteria for immigrants of different ethnocultural heritages
This study utilized social markers of acceptance (SMA) to understand whether and how Japanese host national inclusiveness changes according to immigrant place of origin. SMA are socially constructed benchmarks (e.g., linguistic proficiency or genealogy) that receiving nationals use in deciding whether to view immigrants as national ingroup members. Japanese nationals (N = 1,309) participated in an online survey to identify how SMA importance varied with perceptions of immigrant threat, contribution, status and intergroup permeability towards immigrants from China, South America and Western countries. Respondents emphasized ethnic and civic SMA more, becoming less inclusive across all three groups if immigrants were viewed as posing high levels of threat. Differences in marker emphasis towards the immigrant groups were found for perceived immigrant contributions and intergroup permeability. The latter finding underscores that Japanese people may need less permeable intragroup boundaries and a sense of psychological distance before becoming accepting of some immigrants, while more permeable boundaries and a sense of similarity may benefit others in being accepted. Chinese people were seen as the most threatening, Westerners as highest in status and South Americans (who primarily do unpopular blue-collar jobs) as highest in contributions yet lowest in status — suggesting that Japanese view immigrant contributions primarily in terms of doing blue-collar work that Japanese eschew. Overall, the findings did not demonstrate unambiguous double standards in acceptance criteria but rather the shifting role of SMA in constructing social boundaries depending upon the immigrant group being considered, with each boundary condition reflecting different obstacles and enablers for immigrants to belong. Such patterns differed from Western countries, as immigrants to Japan were not necessarily accepted from wealthy nations or the same ethnic group as the receiving majority. Attitudes towards immigrants in Japan were concluded to be both universal and group-specific.
This study utilized social markers of acceptance (SMA) to understand whether and how Japanese host national inclusiveness changes according to immigrant place of origin. SMA are socially constructed benchmarks (e.g., linguistic proficiency or genealogy) that receiving nationals use in deciding whether to view immigrants as national ingroup members. Japanese nationals (N = 1,309) participated in an online survey to identify how SMA importance varied with perceptions of immigrant threat, contribution, status and intergroup permeability towards immigrants from China, South America and Western countries. Respondents emphasized ethnic and civic SMA more, becoming less inclusive across all three groups if immigrants were viewed as posing high levels of threat. Differences in marker emphasis towards the immigrant groups were found for perceived immigrant contributions and intergroup permeability. The latter finding underscores that Japanese people may need less permeable intragroup boundaries and a sense of psychological distance before becoming accepting of some immigrants, while more permeable boundaries and a sense of similarity may benefit others in being accepted. Chinese people were seen as the most threatening, Westerners as highest in status and South Americans (who primarily do unpopular blue-collar jobs) as highest in contributions yet lowest in status — suggesting that Japanese view immigrant contributions primarily in terms of doing blue-collar work that Japanese eschew. Overall, the findings did not demonstrate unambiguous double standards in acceptance criteria but rather the shifting role of SMA in constructing social boundaries depending upon the immigrant group being considered, with each boundary condition reflecting different obstacles and enablers for immigrants to belong. Such patterns differed from Western countries, as immigrants to Japan were not necessarily accepted from wealthy nations or the same ethnic group as the receiving majority. Attitudes towards immigrants in Japan were concluded to be both universal and group-specific.
