Prejudice and discrimination experienced by high-skilled migrants in their daily lives: Focus group interviews with Tokyo metropolitan area residents

Abstract

This study focuses on foreign migrants who migrated to Japan in the 2000s to determine how their daily anxiety and discomfort relate to prejudice and discrimination. This study divided prejudice and discrimination in Japan into specific situations from the perspective of foreign migrants. Focus group interviews (FGI) were conducted with high-skilled migrants living in Japan. The thematic analysis produced examples of direct and indirect prejudice. Direct prejudice describes explicit and conscious exclusion. The codes identified in this study were institutional exclusion, social exclusion, and psychological exclusion. Indirect prejudice refers to an unpleasant feeling during communication, the cause of which cannot be instantaneously ascertained. The codes identified were distinction from the Japanese, forcing Japanese-style communication, and lack of understanding of other cultures. To clarify these ambiguities, this study was organized around the axes of direct and indirect prejudice against foreigners.