Inside or Outside: Discourse strategies of Finnish and Japanese workers in Japan

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Degree Thesis

Bachelor’s level (First cycle)

Inside or Outside: Discourse strategies of Finnish and Japanese workers in Japan

Author: Tuomas Hakalisto

Supervisor: Mariya Aida Niendorf Examiner: Herbert Jonsson

Subject/main field of study: Japanese Course code: GJP23Y

Higher education credits: 15 Date of examination: 2021-06-04

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Abstract:

The aim of this cross-cultural study is to analyze discourse strategies between Finnish and Japanese participants regarding the indexing of in- group and out-group dynamics in Japanese communication. This research is going to concentrate on Finnish and Japanese people’s use of

Japanese language to establish uchi/soto (inside/outside) relationships in work-related instances. This study focuses solely on the in-group and out- group dynamics and socio-pragmatic features during interactions with addressees from inside and outside the company, because in these situations the contrast between the dynamics of in-groups and out-groups is often more transparent. The data was processed and analyzed using a Discourse Completion Task (DCT) survey.

This research aims to answer two questions: How different are the

nuanced uses of polite expressions and the politeness strategies between the Finnish and the Japanese respondents, and could it be possible that both respondent groups index uchi and soto relationships in the same way through language use?

The results showed similarities in the use of politeness strategies between both groups. Differences were found in code-switching between various politeness levels. The data only serves as an indicator for the hypothesis and gives further room for future research.

Keywords:

Uchi/ Soto, Refusal, Politeness, DCT, Discourse completion test

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Acknowledgements

The bittersweet moment when the long road comes to its end and new adventures await, it is always important to remember to thank the people who were there to support during the journey.

I would like to show my deepest gratitude for all the supervisors, teachers and supporters that assisted me on my studies during all these years.

Especially, I would like to thank my supervisors Mariya Aida Niendorf, and Herbert Jonsson for their continuous support during this semester and previous semesters as well.

I would also want to express my gratitude for my supporters back home, Japan, and all the people who participated on the surveys and interviews during the making of this thesis.

Thank you so much for everything. 皆様のご協力とご支援、心より感謝申し上げます。本当にありがとうございました。

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1

Introduction

After my exchange period in Japan during 2017-2018, I became fascinated with the differences between Finnish and Japanese ways of interaction. As a Finn, I felt that Japanese had their own unique way to use their mother language in social interactions compared to Finnish people.

When getting used to a new culture, aspects regarding the bonds between language and culture is a difficult feature to grasp for the cultural outsider.

The type of interactions and conversation styles that I was used to in Finland had to be changed in order to fit into the Japanese way of interaction. The one aspect I found especially interesting was how direct and indirect communication styles vary depending on how long one has known another person. The first interactions tended to be more formal and sometimes significant feeling of distance could be observed. This also depended on the individual as well, but the people I met personally for the most part, where more indirect at first, then eventually became more direct when we got to know each other more. This aspect in communication is considerably different when compared to my experiences of the Finnish culture. However, the application of distance in interpersonal relationships and indirectness had some similarities in my opinion when compared to Finnish culture, even though people in general tend to be more direct in Finland.

These situations mentioned above intrigued me to research the differences in communication styles in both Finnish and Japanese cultures and how differently or similarly Japanese and Finnish people form relationships.

This brings us to the topic of Uchi (one’s "in-group") and Soto (one’s "out- group").

Uchi/soto are concepts that have been long discussed in sociological and anthropological studies of the Japanese language and culture. The unique system of in-group and out-group dynamics in various instances in

Japanese society have been studied extensively in various fields.

In this research, uchi/soto or in-group and out-group dynamics in Japanese language will be the main focus through which the pragmatic aspects regarding Finnish and Japanese polite behaviors in social interactions will be compared. There have not been any previous sociological studies related to this topic. Therefore, this research attempts to make a cross- cultural study that compares both Finnish and Japanese ways of social interactions regarding uchi and soto in discourse pragmatics, in order to find out indicators whether Finnish and Japanese use polite Japanese language in a similar way to index uchi/soto relationships.

Furthermore, this study analyzes if there are any traits of L1 language (mother language) affecting the indexing process of uchi/soto among Finnish respondents and whether this process is pragmatically similar to the Japanese. The data was collected and analyzed through a method called the “Discourse Completion Task” or "DCT".

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2 A discourse completion task is a survey type format that is used as a

method for analyzing pragmatic meanings in discourse through a particular speech act and situations relating to the use of this speech act. This study focuses on the similarities or differences in the use of the refusal speech act between Finnish and Japanese respondents and the use of different politeness strategies that appear in these instances. Then the use of different politeness strategies will be analyzed by paying attention to the pragmatic meaning regarding how polite discourse is used in order to index uchi/soto relations.

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Background and Previous Studies

Uchi/soto, has been a widely studied part of Japanese society for many decades, and has many aspects of meaning behind them. These concepts in essence can have various nuances and they appear in many forms in Japanese language. According to Quinn (1994), the words associated with uchi can be characterized by words like familiar, informal, private, family, primary and inside. Soto represents the exact opposite, and in this case can be characterized by words such as unfamiliar, formal, public, outsider, secondary, outside and so on (Quinn, Bachnik, 1994: 38). These nuances are important to understand in order to get a clear picture of the elements regarding the pragmatic meanings of uchi and soto. They can also help to form an understanding about the main pragmatic idea behind both ends of the dichotomy and what these concepts represent sociologically.

According to Bachnik (1994), uchi and soto are Japanese social concepts that can also help us understand important issues outside of Japan. They can provide us with a method to observe the characteristics of "self" and

"social order" that are significant in other countries as well (Bachnik, 1994:

4). Bachnik (1994) discusses the "interdependent self" and the dichotomy between social "self" and the independent "self" as vital characteristics of Japanese society and how they correlate with the formation of uchi/soto.

However, she states that this dichotomy is not completely specific to Japan and refers to the study made by Markus and Kitayama in 1991, that the concept of "interdependent" self is not only a characteristic of Japan but other cultures as well, especially in other Asian countries. The exceptions were Africa, Latin-America, Island pacific-cultures and southern Europe (Bachnik, 1994:18).

To this Bachnik mentioned that uchi/soto or "inside" and "outside" are a fundamental structure that includes "basic orientations of social life" and are a part of "human orientation". These concepts are a generic part of our everyday lives and are found in any language and society (Bachnik,1994:

18). However, this dichotomy works on an individual level, thus the

qualities that represent uchi/soto on a social pragmatic level are completely different for everyone. Therefore, this dichotomy is in a constant state of flux and shifts according to the vertical and horizontal axis across the sphere of self and society (Bachnik, 1994:8-10). This means that one’s soto can be another’s uchi. According to Iida (2008) individuality regarding this duality can be also seen in the "discourse of politeness". Discourse behavior in Japanese language is very essential regarding uchi and soto in social discourse (Iida, 2008: 2-4).

As mentioned above, the dichotomy of uchi/soto work in polar-opposite ways, but the concept of uchi is always "anchored", meaning that one cannot "cross" the upper margin of uchi (‘we’, ’us’, ’our group’, ‘me’, ‘my’,

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‘I’). Therefore, the concept of soto is inherently “unanchored” because the essence of soto itself is more "abstract, objective and general" (Bachnik, 1994:28). The body of this dichotomy "anchors" itself in the end of uchi in a specific social instance and creates an axis according to which people move as agents. According to Bachnik (1994), Japanese are involved into social life through this dynamic relationship of uchi/soto (Bachnik 1994:29).

Diagram 1: An Example of the Axis of Uchi and Soto

(Adapted as an example from text, Bachnik 1994: 28)

Practical example of how uchi/soto is formed in Japanese society could be found from Peak’s (2002) research. Peak (2002) observed the concepts of uchi and soto by investigating how preschool children transition between these spheres. Moreover, Peak (2007) discussed how the dichotomy of inside/outside can be seen in the construction of social life and dynamics of relationships between the child’s home/family and school life (Peak,

2002:144-146).

In the research "shuudan seikatsu" or group life and the behavioral expectations regarding it were one of the answers that the Japanese informants gave as the reason why uchi and soto exists. In this case the school is thought as a place where the group life is more prominent than at home. Peak (2002) states that, as a participant of the group, one must learn to restrain (enryo) oneself on an individual level for the group, thus

"personal goals and desires are secondary to the dynamics of the group itself", and the harmony between the individuals inside the group must be preserved (Peak, 2002:144).

It was also pointed out that family, by definition, does not fall into the category of shuudan seikatsu. The reason for this seems to be because the expectations on how one should interact with others is completely different compared to the interactions one has with the members from their own family. According to Peak (2002) one can drop the social roles needed

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5 for the interactions with the out-group (soto) and freely express themselves and indulge in their own personal desires inside the family (uchi). This forms a bond of trust inside the uchi sphere (Peak, 2002:147-148).

The results of Peak’s (2002) research showed that even though family training has an influence in the development of the child’s social self, it is evident that school system plays a more significant role when teaching Japanese children proper social behavior outside the uchi sphere.

Therefore, group life in early education creates a sturdy support for later social situations in society (Peak, 2002:168). The role of school life is to invoke the child’s enjoyment and interest in group activities that will aid the individual to learn the dynamics of uchi/soto interactions. When the

children are willing to adapt to the group, they will learn the behavior standards from each other. However, children will learn the consequences if one is going against the dynamics of the group and thus, they will need to choose whether to comply with the group or choose to leave the group (Peak, 2002:168). Social life inside the soto sphere can cause some stress to an individual mainly because complying to the needs of the group

overtakes the needs of the individual (Peak, 2002:168-169).

From the perspective of the shuudan seikatsu and the individual, one can recognize that the key elements of uchi/soto take place on a practical level in social interactions. It also shows how these concepts are embedded into the concept of "group".

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1-1:

Inside and outside: Japanese language and politeness as indexes of uchi and soto

Iida (2008) observed the in-group/out-group dynamics, concentrating solely on Japanese interactions inside work-related instances, through the

"discourse of politeness" in several beauty salons. The theory regarding the "Degree of politeness" and the "Discourse politeness theory" (DPT) was first proposed by Usami (2006). The main points of analysis in Iida’s (2008) research were how Japanese index uchi and soto through the Japanese language and how speech acts and politeness in discourse affect this process. Iida (2008) argues that Japanese people view politeness individually and that indexing of uchi/soto in language completely depends on the person. Therefore, it is a part of a more "

complex sense-making process" (Iida, 2008:3-4). She also argues that politeness itself is not only decided by the use of the language but the

"degree" of politeness is also dictated by the situation and the context as well.

The reason for using the "discourse of politeness" as a point of focus in her research, Iida (2008) emphasizes the importance of analyzing the "degree of politeness" (the switch between casual, plain polite forms "-desu, -masu"

and respectful/ humble forms "keigo") in relation to the situation. By doing this it could be possible to measure and define "social distance" between individuals through the horizontal and vertical axes that indicate familiarity and hierarchy (See Diagram 1: 4). The degree of formality is also dictated by the "relative degree of formality and informality of the situation where the participants are located" (Iida, 2008:18). She explains the

implementation of politeness through the degree of politeness as an

instrument that Japanese people use to measure their relative location, the nature of the relationship with others and to define their own position inside those relationships (Iida, 2008:18).

Iida (2008) goes into detail about these social dynamics regarding

politeness from the point of view of the inside/outside spheres. She states that the mobilization of the degree of politeness in interaction is defined by the inside/outside position of both parties in social interaction. Therefore, if a group would be interacting with another group that is outside of their in- group, the level of politeness would drastically increase between the two groups. On the contrary, when interactions happen only inside the in- group, the uchi and soto boundaries are dictated by the hierarchical relationship between individuals (Iida, 2008: 20-21).

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7 Moreover Iida (2008) mentions that according to the literature on Japanese self, Japanese people use the various degrees of politeness to assess and measure the "social distance" and the nature of the situation. The social distance itself is understood in the form of relative distance between both the addressor and the addressee. This relative distance is then measured by the above-mentioned horizontal (close/remote) axis that represents the distance of the relationship, and the vertical (high/low) axis, which dictates the hierarchical position and social rank of both participants (Iida, 2008:

25).

According to Iida (2008), Kondo (1991) explains that the hierarchical positions that are measured through the vertical axis have also specific types of behavior associated with them. Kondo (1991) calls these

behaviors as emotional orientations which range from the more expressive (less polite) to less expressive (more polite), therefore:

Outsiders who can be more expressive are to be positioned higher than insiders, or between the insiders, the more expressive are to be positioned higher than those who are less expressive (Iida, 2008: 31).

In Moody’s (2014) research about uchi/soto regarding identity in

international work envionments in Japan, it is stated that the uchi and soto dichotomy can also be noticed from the use of different address terms and reference terms. According to Moody (2014), the variations in both of these terms are known to be a part of the process of indexing social identities and categories (Moody, 2014: 81). When observed from the perspective of Japanese language, an example of this process could be explained with the use of honorific suffixes. With last name +san, one indexes the outside identity of the other party. With the suffix nickname, first name + kun, chan, the inside identity is being indexed. The last name +san suffix is default practice when referring to someone from the soto position in situations where the status of the addressee cannot be determined easily (Moody, 2014:81-82). Therefore, the reference and address terms, including names and labels, are used to create and manage interpersonal relationships, uchi/soto identities and memberships (Moody, 2014:83).

However, according to Iida (2008) the politeness in discourse that is associated within in-groups (uchi) and out-groups (soto) are perceived individually, just like Bachnik (1994) explained as well. Iida (2008) argues that despite the popular belief of the researchers of the Japanese self, the Japanese people in in-group and out-group interactions perceive,

understand, and implement politeness differently. From her observations of salon workers, Iida (2008) proposes that the conceptions and associations of politeness that the workers had during their interactions can vary from individual to individual. Therefore, one can perceive the formality/

informality of the situation in a completely different way (Iida, 2008:40).

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8 Furthermore, she asserts that Japanese people are not just simply

establishing inside/outside positions inside social interactions through polite discourse. Uchi/soto can be indexed in multiple ways inside different contexts and not solely by politeness (Iida, 2008:42).

Harada (2007), in her case study, discusses the verbs giving and receiving, the polite expressions associated within these verbs, and their practical usage in politeness strategies. Harada (2007) calculated the frequencies in usage of the giving and receiving verbs and their keigo equivalents in Japanese interactions. Harada (2007) focused mainly on the pragmatic use of the humble and respectful forms and the instances where these verbs appeared the most. The main speech acts that were focused on were requests, gratitude, and suggestions.

The analysis was based on a survey data from the "Conversation database of Japan" and the "Uemura corpus" (Harada, 2007:118-119). Harada (2007) also discussed about the uchi and soto nuances of these verbs.

Harada (2007) states that the usage of these verbs is closely linked with the in-group/ out-group dynamics. The choice which forms to use depends on the uchi/soto relationship, the hierarchical relationship and the

relationship of “indebtedness” between the addressor and the addressee.

Furthermore, she explains that the distinction of uchi/soto dichotomy between individuals happens in the form of alteration of positions that are dependent on beneficial trade between individuals rather than solely due to hierarchical relationships (Harada, 2007:130,135). This trade of benefit and indebtedness happen through the use of polite forms that correlate with saving the negative face of the listener (Harada, 2007:135). She analyzed the face-saving elements of the polite expressions of giving and receiving through the Brown and Levinson’s Universal Politeness Theory (1978).

Her study also states that the listeners basic demand for the “boundary of self” not being violated by the speaker is characterized by the negative face. The speaker who is asking a favor from the listener, by deliberately trying to appeal to the positive face of the listener, needs to abase

themselves in order to save the listener’s negative face (Harada, 2007:122).

Moreover, In Harada’s (2007) study, Takiura (2005) argues that this theory of positive and negative face presented in the Universal Politeness Theory is recognizable from the pragmatic use of polite expressions in Japanese language (Harada, 2007:136). However, the validity of this statement will be discussed later. In the instance where the threat of losing face was more prevalent was in the request speech acts. In this case the frequency of the use of the verb stem+ sasete-itadaku (to humbly receive the

permission to -) and the verb stem+ te-itadaku (to humbly receive) as a politeness strategy for face saving, was overwhelmingly high compared to the verb stem+ te-kudasaru (showing respect for the giver) (Harada, 2007:135-136).

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9 Harada (2007) also proposed that the "weight" that moves through the uchi/soto axis dictates the use of the specific usage of the verb. It was found that when the direction of the load was placed from soto to uchi, verb stem+ te-morau and its keigo correspondent verb stem+ te-itadaku was used. In this instance the verb stem+ kureru and its keigo correspondent verb stem+ kudasaru was used as well. On the contrary, when the

direction of the load was placed on the uchi to soto the verb stem+ ageru and the keigo correspondent verb stem+ sashiageru was used. The

respectful form in this case was used to create more distance between the speaker and the listener and this in some cases deviated from the

strategies of politeness (Harada, 2007: 136).

In Haugh and Obana’s (2011) research, they state that according to Ide study made in 1982,1989, 2005 and 2006, the universal theories of politeness, in this case the Brown and Levinson’s (1987) theory, which suggest that pragmatics regarding politeness is universal, is not

necessarily applicable to Japanese politeness (Haugh & Obana, 2011:1-2).

Haugh and Obana (2011) instead present a concept called, tachiba (one’s position, role). They observe this concept at the social and individual levels regarding politeness. Moreover, Haugh and Obana (2011) argue that tachiba can not only account for "normative behaviors of politeness" on formal occasions where honorifics and keigo are used, but also in informal instances between close friends of similar age and family. Haugh and Obana (2011) state that tachiba in essence is a culture-general concept, that correlates with the aspect of (social) role. This has been discussed in the role theory made by Mead in 1934 and Biddle in 1979,1986 that presents similar themes in relation to the concept of tachiba (Haugh &

Obana, 2011:2)

Moreover, Haugh and Obana (2011) assert that tachiba is particularly useful in the analysis of politeness from the contextual standpoint through the discourses between social roles and positions (tachiba) of participants.

Rather than observing politeness through the general theory of politeness, face-saving theories, social position, distance, power, and the role of the participants can provide a new perspective on the theory of politeness (Haugh & Obana, 2011:2-5).

Haugh and Obana (2011) explain that these terms according to Wetzel (2004) are, for example, nakama (friends), uchi (friends, family, relatives).

Terms associated with rank or status were for example meue (high- ranking, superior), meshita (lower-ranking, subordinate), senpai (senior)”.

Moreover, term associated with “social embeddedness of self” was in this case the term shakaijin (a member of society) (Haugh, Obana, 2011:9)

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1-2:

Sociological and cross-cultural studies about Finnish and Japanese cultures

As stated in the introduction of this thesis, direct cross-cultural studies that make comparative analysis between Japanese and Finnish cultures, are relatively rare. Especially the ones that are about the topic of uchi/soto and the features of politeness that correlate with this dichotomy. Therefore, in this section one sociological study and one linguistical study regarding Finnish culture will be covered. These studies can give us some

understanding of the type of topics researched and if any points of comparison could be found regarding Japanese and Finnish cultures.

The first study that we will cover is a case study made by Nishimura, Nevgi and Tella (2008). They made a comparative study of Finnish, Japanese, and Indian cultures on the high/low context culture spectrum. High/low context represents the type of communication on the pragmatic level.

The differences between the two contexts can be recognized in

communicational behaviors. Nishimura, Nevgi, and Tella (2008), refer to a study made by Hall in 1976 which states that the message embedded into the information is not made clear directly to the listener in the

communication in high-context cultures, whereas the information presented in the communication in low-context cultures is more direct (Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:785). Furthermore, Nishimura, Nevgi and Tella (2008) refer to another study made by Gudykunst and Ting Toomey in 1988 that explain the characteristics of high-context culture stating that:

In a HC culture, communication is indirect, ambiguous, harmonious, reserved and understated. (Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:785).

Communication in the high-context culture thus depends more on non- verbal aspects than verbal aspects (Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:785). On the contrary, in low-context cultures people expect more explanation and the information transferred from person to another is made more directly.

Nishimura, Nevgi and Tella (2008) state that, Gudykunst and Ting Toomey in their 1988 study describe the characteristics of communication in low context cultures as: direct, precise, dramatic, open and based on feelings or true intentions (Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:785).

Moreover, Nishimura, Nevgi and Tella (2008) argue that Finnish and

Japanese belong to high-context cultures, but at the same time believe that Finnish culture is slowly progressing towards the low-context one

(Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:783-784). In this study, different

communication styles between each culture were compared and analyzed

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11 using the classification of Finnish, Japanese and Indian cultures presented in prior research studies by Lewis in 1999 and 2005 and Hofstede in 2008 (in Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008: 787-788).

The results show that through the validated concept of high/low context theory, Finland and Japan share common traits in communication styles, despite the cultural values being significantly different. It was stated that Finnish and Japanese communication styles were the exact opposite to Indians and used silence as part of interaction as well.

Nishimura, Nevgi and Tella (2008) believe that the key aspects of Hall’s theory, presented in studies made in 1959, 1966, 1976 and 1983 regarding the high/low context cultures, and the information presented in studies made by Lewis’s studies made in 1999,2005 and Hofstede’s studies in 1980,1991 and 2008 can provide valid and transculturally relevant results regarding the different pragmatic dynamics of high/low context cultures (in Nishimura, Nevgi, Tella, 2008:795).

The last study to be mentioned briefly is a sociolinguistics study made by Peterson (2010). Her research introduces the system of formal and informal address as a key factor to demonstrate social relations and how people express these relations through the use of language. This study focuses on analyzing formal/informal distinction (also referred to as the “T- V variant”) in Finnish requests. The data is based on a “reported speech act data” in Finnish. Through this data, Peterson’s (2010) study offers analyses on “the power and social distance relations between speakers and the rate of imposition in politeness presented by Brown and Levinson in 1978 and 1987. The concept of requestive goal made by Varghese and Billmyer in 1996 was also analysed (In Peterson, 2010:401).

According to Peterson (2010) one key aspect regarding politeness

strategies in Finnish communication in formal situations was that the direct terms of address were rarely used. Sometimes they were emitted from the conversation altogether (Peterson, 2010:404). She makes a reference to Brown and Gilman’s paper made in 1960’s on terms of address on pronoun use. Their paper suggests that, in Finnish the formal and informal terms of address apply to more than just pronouns and is also affecting possessive forms and verbal markings (Peterson, 2010: 404).

The use of T/V forms (informal/formal addresses in language) in previous studies regarding forms of address and requesting behavior show that the age of the listener, social distance, and the region are factors that affect the use of T/V forms and from what perspective requests are to be made.

The results from Peterson’s (2010) study suggest that the level of politeness changes in response to social relations that were either

formulaic or unproblematic. If the relations between the participants were familiar, the T-form (informal address) was used in almost all of the requests. This indicates that the familiarity dictates the level of politeness

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12 of speech acts in Finnish social interactions. The V-form (formal level) was used in situations where power relations were on the equal level (for example, a supervisor talking to another supervisor). However, this was due to the significant social distance between the speakers. This means that social distance variable was chosen as a catalyst for the use of the V- form. However, why social distance between the speakers dictated the use of the V-form, and not the T- or 0-variants (0-variant: Addresses lacking specific indicators of T/V variants) remained unclear (Peterson, 2010:419).

This data is useful in this research particularly due to the fact that the degree of politeness according to Peterson’s research in Finnish social situations change according to an "axis" of familiarity/unfamiliarity which could indicate that there exists a pragmatic "scale" that dictates the degree of politeness used in Finnish communication.

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Methodology

In order to observe the differences regarding the indexing of uchi/soto in polite discourse and how different politeness strategies are implemented in social interactions between Japanese and Finnish people, the DCT survey (Discourse Completion Test) was chosen as a research method.

Peterson (2010), who also used the DCT survey as a research method for her study of politeness in Finnish requests, states that this method is widely chosen as a type of methodology for quantitative and comparative studies of pragmatics. The reason she gave for this is because the data can be manipulated to fit the desired speech act that needs to be elicited.

Furthermore, DCT allows researchers to collect large amount of data in a short period of time. In addition, the data is instantly analyzable (Peterson, 2010: 406).

DCT has been developed and first implemented as a method in discourse analysis by Blum Kulka & Ohlstain in 1984 for studying the speech act performance of L2 learners of Hebrew (Wojtaszek, 2016:163). DCT uses pre-determined scenarios that are presented to the participant, to which the respondent then imagines themselves into. In these scenarios, the setting, the role of the respondent, the distance (in relation to rank, hierarchy, familiarity), and the implied speech act will be explained to the respondent.

The participants answer to these instances in a "role-play" type of manner, and in a way that is natural to themselves. The answer format can vary from a "multiple selection format" to an "open" answer format. The latter format, in the case of this study, is deemed to be more preferable due to the possibility to flexibly elicit the type of answers regarding the chosen speech act. The free nature of the format also allows the respondent to react and answer to the scenarios in their own way. This increases the possibility for a more accurate analysis on discourse pragmatics.

Peterson (2010) also mentiones that DCT surveys, despite of their favourability in speech act research, have also faced much criticism as well. Moreover, many have claimed that a DCT is not necessarily "robust"

for eliciting accurate speech act data. Researchers Hartford, Bardovi, Harlig and Harris in their 1992 and 2003 studies argue that data received from the DCT does not contain the natural structures of speech acts that occur in "real life" conversations according to Peterson (2010). Relatability to the scenarios was also pointed out to be an issue, for example, a

student being asked to imagine themselves in the position of a teacher. In other words, the problem remains in the process of imagining oneself to act in a position that is unfamiliar (Peterson, 2010: 406-407).

The DCT survey with the open answer format, allows us to analyze these features from the pragmatic stand point, due to the flexibility and ability to

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14 elicit desired responses from the respondents. Also, the freedom that this answer format gives to the participant allows the researcher more

possibilities for detailed analysis. In DCT, the data will be elicited by implying the use of a specific speech act by the opening question, which involves an addressee. This addressee functions as a catalyst in order to create an interactive situation, where the respondent has to answer

according to the instance with the specific speech act that is being implied.

In this research, the instances for the DCT have been divided into five situations. These all elicit different discourse data regarding the vertical relationship, distance and familiarity between the respondent and the catalyst. The objective of the survey is not explained, only the instructions on how to answer will be given beforehand. Information, for instance, gender, age, work experience in Japan, and the place of work (Japan or overseas) will be asked from all the respondents. Only the information regarding language proficiency and the total time of living in Japan are inquired from the Finnish respondents as extra questions.

The structure of the main DCT survey questions in this research are comprised of three sections. First the situation, the catalyst, and the respondent’s relationship with the catalyst will be introduced. In the same section, the main problem will be introduced by the catalyst (for example, superior asks for the respondent to stay for overwork, but the respondent has to decline due to personal reasons). The catalyst will then make a request or an invitation to the respondent to which the respondent will have to refuse. This elicits the desired speech act and the degree of politeness suitable for the situation. The second section will be the "open" answer format to which the respondent gives their answer as spontaneously as possible. The third section will be presented as a sub-question that inquires the reason for the response. These sub-questions act as a tool to nullify the probability of the respondent not knowing the right "way" to answer due to language limitations. Therefore, this can be used to analyze whether the participant understands the context of the situation. If the perception of the context matches pragmatically between the Japanese and the Finnish respondents, then the answers can be compared.

The DCT survey was divided into Finnish and Japanese language tests and were distributed individually, as well as generally in a social media group. The group consisted of both Finnish and Japanese users. The target groups were either Finnish and Japanese people working for a Japanese company or them having prior experience working in Japan.

The speech act that this study is going to focus on is the act of refusal. The reason for choosing this point of focus is the high possibility of face threat, thus one has to carefully and deliberately use language in order to avoid such threats. Therefore, in these situations, politeness strategies are often used. In Japanese language, the implementation of politeness strategies can be in most cases recognized by the level of politeness used, in this

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15 case, desu/masu form, honorifics (sonkeigo: respectful, kenjougo: humble) and honorific addresses (san, sama, etc). Indirectness, hedging, and silence are also included (Haugh, Obana, 2011). The use of these

politeness strategies also indicates the level of familiarity (uchi/soto) to the listener and one’s own position in relation to the other party.

Instead of focusing on the Universal Politeness Theory by Brown and Levinson, this research will focus on analyzing the use of (im)politeness through the concept of tachiba (position, standing), presented by Haugh and Obana (2011). As an additional point of view, the "degree of

politeness" in the language (informal, standard, humble, respectful) will be used as a point of analysis to determine the horizontal (uchi/soto) and the vertical relationship (hierarchy). The main focus is the comparison of both Finnish and Japanese addressor’s use of politeness levels,

directness/indirectness. Moreover, analysis is made regarding if the use of Japanese by the Finnish informants have any L1 (Mother language) traits and if these match with the Japanese respondent’s use of the language.

The sub-questions presented earlier will furtherly observe this aspect This study uses the same type of analysis and data management system that has been used in Fujiwara’s (2004) research which also used the DCT method that analyzed refusals. Fujiwara (2004) compared politeness in refusal speech acts between Indonesian native speakers, Indonesians, who spoke Japanese as a second language and Japanese native speakers. Fujiwara (2004) made a semantic formula that divides the speech act into direct and indirect sections. The different types of politeness strategies are listed, categorized, and then marked by letters representing a specific refusal strategy. The parts of the speech act sentences are then marked by the letter that corresponds to the particular politeness strategy (Fujiwara, 2004:24), for example:

Table 1: Direct refusal strategies (Adapted from: Fujiwara, 2004:25)

Direct strategies:

A: Fulfilling statement Ex: お断りします。(o-kotowari shimasu) I will humbly refuse (Humble)

B: Unfulfilling statement (Potential

neg.) Ex: 行けません (ikemasen) I can’t

go (Polite)

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16 Table 2: Indirect refusal strategies

(Adapted from: Fujiwara, 2004:25) Indirect strategies:

C: Excuse, Reason

(C-1: Clarified excuse, C-2:

Vaque Excuse.)

Ex今日は友達と約束があるんで

す。(Kyou wa tomodachi to

yakusoku ga arun desu) I promised to meet my friend (polite)

D: Unfortunate feelings Ex 残念だなあ。(Zannen danaa) lit: That is so unfortunate

(colloquial)

E: Apology Ex すみません。(Sumimasen) I am

sorry (Polite)、申し訳ございませ ん。(moushiwake gozaimasen) I apologize (Humble)

F: Wish Ex 行きたいんですが。

(Ikitaindesu ga) I really want to go but.. (Polite)

G: Statement for future

associations Exまた今度ね。(Mata kondo ne)

Lets meet again.

H: Gratitude Ex ありがとうございました。

(Arigatou gozaimashita) Thank you so much.

I: Well- disposed reaction Ex 面白そうですね。:

(Omoshirosou desu ne) Looks/sounds interesting

J: Filler (J-1= Hedging) Ex あの… (anou) Well…、それは ちょっと。(sore ha chotto) That is a bit difficult、あいにく(Ainiku)残念 ながら(Zannen nagara)

Unfortunately.. (polite)、

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17 This semantic formula will serve as a point of reference for the analyzation process of the DCT responses. Each respondent’s answers will be

analyzed in the following manner, for example:

Table 3 (Adapted from: Fujiwara, 2004: 25-26) K: Repetition

K-1: Confirming question

Ex 金曜日ですか。(Kinyoubi desu ka?) It was Friday, right?

Ex 何時に集合する予定ですか。 (Nanji ni shuugou suru yotei desu ka) What time are you planning to meet up?

L: Condition L-1: Proposal

Ex もっと早く言ってくれたら行

けたのに。(Motto hayaku

ittekuretara iketa noni..) If you had told me earlier I would have been able to go.

Ex 来週の木曜日がいかがでしょう か。(Raishuu no mokuyoubi ga ikaga deshouka) Is Thursday next week plausible for you?

M: Honorific addresses Ex さん、さま: (san, sama)

あいにく、今夜は予定が入っておりまして参加できませんが ( Unfortunately, I cannot join because I have plans for the evening)

(J-1+ Formal) (C-1+ Polite, Humble) また誘ってくだされば、ご一緒させていただきたいです

(If you could invite me again, I would like for you to let me to accompany you.)

(G+ Respectful) (F+ Polite, Humble)

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18 The frequency of these values between all the participants will be collected and made into a quantitative chart that calculates the overall usage of these expressions. Another chart will be used to calculate the frequency of the different degrees of politeness used between all the respondents.

Numbers in the charts indicate frequency of use for each politeness strategy and politeness level.

An extra interview is held with one Finnish respondent that has worked in Japan for over a year. The respondent has significant knowledge on Japanese culture and high proficiency in Japanese language. The

respondent was asked about their job, their position in the workforce, and their associations with members from their in-group and out-group.

The interviewed respondent was inquired about topics relating to cultural differences and similarities between Japanese and Finnish workplaces and the interactions that happen inside these areas. The respondent was also asked about whether they felt included into the work environment or not.

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19

Results and Analysis

21 people responded to the questionnaire in total, ten of which are Finnish and eleven of which are Japanese. The survey was made into two

separate questionnaires, one made in Finnish and another one in Japanese. These two surveys were then distributed to a social media group that has over 3000 Japanese and Finnish members. Individual distributions were also implemented to single respondents. The target informants were Finnish and Japanese workers having experience on either being employed by a Japanese company in the past or are currently working for one. Before the survey, the participants were asked for their consent regarding the use of the data in this thesis.

Most of the respondents were female in both groups with 60% of female informants in the Finnish respondent group and 63.6% of female attendees in the Japanese group (See Appendix A: 1-1 chart 1, 1-2 chart 1). The range of age between both genders varied from twenty-three to fifty-five years in the Japanese group and twenty-five to fifty-three years in the Finnish group (See Appendix A: 1-1 chart 2, 1-2 chart 2). 36.4% of the overall Japanese respondents had ten or more years of work experience in Japan. 27.3% had one to three years of work experience and another 27.3% had five to ten years of overall work experience. The remaining 9.1% had work experience from three years to five years in total in Japan.

(See Appendix A: 1-2 chart 3)

The majority of the Finnish respondents had around one to three years and five to ten years of work experience in Japan. The remaining 30% minority had around one month to one year, three to five years and over ten years of work experience in Japan. Furthermore, extra questions were asked regarding the language ability and the years of living in Japan in total. Half of the Finnish respondents had approximately five to ten years of

experience in using Japanese. 30% of the second half had around one to four years of experience. The remaining 20% had approximately four to five years and over ten years of using Japanese as a foreign language (See Appendix A, 1-1 chart 3, 4, 5).

The Finnish respondent statistics regarding living experience in Japan for the most part indicated that from the majority of the overall ten

respondents, 60% had approximately five or over ten years of experience living in Japan. On the contrary, the remaining 40% had around one to five years of living experience (See Appendix A: 1-1 chart 5). Out of both

Japanese and Finnish respondents, the majority is employed in Japan. The minority (10%,18.2%) were currently living in other countries, for instance, The United Kingdom, Sweden, Finland and so on (See Appendix A: 1-1 chart 6, 1-2 chart 4). The numbers of Finnish respondents suggest that most of the results gathered from this group were from people who had sufficient experience and knowledge of Japanese language and culture.

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20 In the DCT survey, the participants answered five pre-determined

instances that imply the horizontal and vertical relationships and the

speech act that was going to be elicited. The data was categorized into two sections. One including the analysis of different politeness strategies, while using the semantic formula by Fujiwara (2004) as an analyzation method, and the comparative results that focused on the various degrees of

politeness.

The first question in the survey tried to elicit refusal strategies and use of polite language when addressing someone from the soto sphere. In this case the customer. This question mainly focused on eliciting high degree of politeness (kenjougo, sonkeigo) and use of honorific addresses, including the use of indirect refusal strategies.

The second question focused on eliciting polite discourse in an interaction with a senior co-worker. This instance implies vertical relationships in uchi context. The main objective of this question is the elicitation of moderate degree of politeness with the occasional use of humble and respectful forms. The third question concentrates on the interactions between a subordinate and a superior that index vertical or horizontal relationship in uchi/soto context. In this instance the use of significantly high degree of politeness and indirect refusal strategies were expected.

The objective of the fourth question was to elicit low degree of politeness and direct refusal strategies. This instance implies close horizontal relationship in uchi context. The last fifth question implies vertical relationship in uchi context between senior and junior co-workers. The main objective of the last question was to elicit low to medium degree of politeness together with direct and indirect refusal strategies. Extra notes were added to analyze the respondent’s sub-question answers. The main point of analysis was the relations between the addressors and the

addressee’s tachiba and the exchange of interactions that happen between them which dictate the type of politeness and discourse strategies. General values relating to work ethics and relationship maintenance/ building was also taken into consideration during the analyzation process.

The answers were analyzed according to the semantic formula presented in the methodology section (See also Appendix C: raw data). The analyzed speech acts were then collected into a comparative chart that displays the frequency of politeness strategies and degrees of politeness by both groups (See Appendix B: calculated data). The reason for only making a comparative analysis is that the number of respondents is still insufficient and thus any quantitative analysis cannot bring reliable results. Therefore, the analysis only focuses on finding any points of similarities or differences that can be compared together.

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21 Analysis 1-1: Q1: Customer

According to the processed data (See Appendix B, 1-1: table 1,1-2: table 1), the use of high degree of politeness by both groups was apparent.

Moreover, the Japanese respondents used significantly more, humble (kenjougo) and polite (teineigo) forms to address someone from soto position than the Finnish respondents. Respectful forms were also used by the Japanese. However, some informal forms were used by few Finnish respondents, but the context of this instance was clear to all the

respondents. The use of politeness strategies where substantially the same. Both groups used humble and polite forms of apologetic

expressions followed by clarified and vague excuses as indirect refusal strategies. Moreover, the amount of humble proposition was also used by both groups.

The answers in the sub-questions field show similar tendencies for

acknowledging and protecting the tachiba (position) of the customer in both respondent groups. However, according to one of the Finnish respondents, the way he addressed the customer was covered during the company training (See Appendix C 1-2: Respondent 9). One 30-year-old male Finnish respondent also mentioned that they decided to interact with the addressee with humble expressions and indirect strategies, because they think it was a natural way to address the other party in this context (See Appendix C 1-2: Respondent 19).

Analysis 1-2: Q2: Senior co-worker

In this instance, both groups used the same amount of polite and humble forms, as well as respectful expressions (See Appendix B: 1-1 table 2,1-2 table 2). The use of politeness strategies stayed relatively similar,

especially apologetic expressions were used as a form of hedging in most cases. Strategies that imply wishes for future associations were also used significantly by both parties as either a way to consider the feelings of the senior colleague, and as a way of maintaining good relationships. One 23- year-old male Japanese respondent also used gratitude as a way to be respectful for the invitation thus being considerate for the senior tachiba of the addressee (See Appendix C: 1-2, Respondent 6). Several Finnish respondents also mentioned the importance to maintain relationship with one’s own co-workers and politeness. Majority of both groups value interpersonal relationships and the importance of maintaining them (See Appendix C:1-1, 1-2). Interestingly, the type of excuses used as refusal strategies were different between Japanese and Finnish respondents.

Finnish respondents used significantly high amount of clarified excuse. On the contrary, the Japanese respondent used vague excuse as a refusal strategy. However, half of the Japanese respondents also used direct refusal strategies as well. From the Finnish participants, only one used direct speech acts as a refusal strategy (See Appendix B:1-1: Table 2).

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22 Analysis 1-3: Q3: Department chief

The situation presented in this scenario brought up similar results when comparing the usage of formal expressions. Both groups understood the context regarding vertical relationships in an uchi environment. The type of politeness levels varied from the use of basic polite forms (teineigo) to humble forms (kenjougo). Some respectful (sonkeigo) forms were used by the Finnish respondents. The humble forms were used by both groups to elevate the tachiba of the addressee (See Appendix B, 1-2 Table 3).

Emphasis for prioritizing teamwork could also be recognized from the sub- question answers from both groups (See Appendix C: 1-1). This factor is also observable from the data concerning politeness strategies. According to the data, both groups used same types of politeness strategies towards superiors.

Apology, propositions and condition were implemented often. Moreover, clarified and some vague excuses were used as well by both groups (see Appendix B,1-1: Table 3). Use of direct refusal strategies were used by both Japanese and Finnish respondents but indirect strategies were significantly more common in this scenario (See Appendix B, 1-2 Table 3).

Analysis 1-4: Q4: Colleaque (Same age)

In this situation close horizontal relationship (uchi) was implied. The data shows that majority of Japanese participants used informal language more often than Finnish respondents. The use of informal expressions are also observable from the Finnish participants as well but the use of basic polite language, even humble language could be noted (See Appendix B: 1-2 Table 4). This could not necessarily be solely because of limitations in language proficiency, but rather could be due to individual sense regarding the distance to the addressee. However, the perception towards the equal tachiba and its influence on informal language is shared between the Japanese and some Finnish respondents. This can be observed from the sub- questions (See Appendix C: 1-1,1-2).

Type of politeness strategies used when refusing to a close distance relationship addressee varied between both groups. Clarified and vague excuses were used by both Japanese and Finnish, but vague excuses were more apparent. Furthermore, apology and proposition were used by both groups. Condition was also used as a refusal strategy by the

Japanese participants. However, the amount of direct refusal strategies where less apparent despite the implied close horizontal relationship.

Some direct refusal strategies were used by both groups but in the end indirect refusals were more transparent, even though the tachiba of the addressee should allow direct refusals to be made (See Appendix B: 1-1 Table 4). Moreover, well-disposed reactions were used more by the Japanese respondents. 23-year-old Japanese male respondent explained in his answer that even though formal language is not used in close relationships, consideration for the other person is often considered as

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23 important, as well as showing gratitude. This could be the reason for the common use of indirect responses in this instance (See Appendix C:1-2 Respondent 6).

Analysis 1-5: Q5: Junior co-worker

This instance implied vertical relationship in uchi context, where the

addressor is higher in the vertical hierarchy than the addressee. Majority of the Japanese respondents used informal language when interacting with someone lower in the vertical relationship scale. Some politeness was used by one Japanese respondent, but this could be used as a politeness strategy. On the contrary, the use of informal and basic polite forms where divisive in the Finnish group.

This could be due to language proficiency, misinterpretation of the situation or because of the horizontal distance. Formality could also be used as a politeness strategy. Honorific addresses were used when addressing the third party in propositional clauses that indicate social distance by both groups (See Appendix B: 1-2 Table 5). The use regarding refusal

strategies was identical. Apology was once again used first, followed by a clarified or vague excuse that ends with a propositional question. Direct strategies were used mostly by Japanese. Clarified excuse was used mainly by Finnish respondents (See Appendix B: 1-1 Table 5). Both groups emphasized the aspect of teamwork and prioritized helping their junior co-worker.

The analyzed data suggests differences in code-switching and degrees of politeness between the Japanese and Finnish respondents. The use of refusal strategies where comparable, and both groups seemed to have understood the context behind each instance. Sub-question answers from both Japanese and Finnish indicate mutual positive attitude towards maintaining and building relationships with people from both uchi and soto spheres, and verbal behavior in refusal situations were for the most part identical.

The most common way of using politeness strategies in refusal situations between both groups was apologetic in all instances. Japanese and Finnish respondents both used the same amount of apology as a first reaction, followed with the use of indirect strategies. Generally, both respondent groups used indirect reasoning that were either clarified or vague. Afterwards, the use of proposal and suggestion was mainly used followed by gratitude or apology at the end of the sentence. The same amount of future associative wishes and relationship maintenance was emphasized by both groups in questions where interpersonal relationships were the main focus (See Appendix C: Questions 2, 4 and 5).

In the fourth and the fifth question, majority of the Japanese and Finnish respondents emphasized the importance of teamwork, especially when helping junior co-workers. Significantly less amount of indirect refusal

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24 strategies was used in close horizontal relationship instances and vertical relationship situations where the addressor was higher in the social hierarchy than the addressee. However, few respondents from Japanese and Finnish group used significant amount of indirect communication as well.

Despite the similar usage of refusal strategies, the use of politeness levels where in some instances contradictory. Half of the Finnish respondents used unnecessarily polite expressions in situations where the tachiba (position) of the addressee in relation to the addressor could have allowed informal speech to be used. The use of basic politeness in interactions with close horizontal relationship addressees, and with junior colleagues was the main instance where the degree of politeness was needlessly high. The reason for this could be due to discomfort in using informal speech patterns in conversation with co-workers or due to misinterpretation of the context of the relationship. However, the other half of the Finnish respondent group did implement the same degree of politeness identically with the Japanese participants in all questions. The use of giving and receiving verbs were used appropriately in both uchi and soto contexts by Japanese people, and by most of the Finnish respondents.

To investigate the code-switching differences further, one Finnish

respondent was able to participate into an interview (Appendix E: interview transcript). The respondent is a 25-year-old male, working for a major tech company as a solution engineer but due to his proficiency in both English and Japanese, he was also assigned translation and interpretation work in interactions with foreign company branches. He described the interactions in the workplace as relaxed and casual, which he believed was a part of the company’s progressive mindset despite the fact that he was practicing the use of keigo (polite language) during training. He explained in detail the interactions that he had with his superiors and even higher-ranking leaders.

The respondent used Japanese as the main language of interaction in the workplace. He felt that the workplace as a company had a relaxed attitude towards vertical relationships, even stating that he did not have to worry about the use of extremely polite Japanese (respectful and humble) in some interactions with his co-workers and superiors. However, he did state that this would change when interacting with people outside the company through email which would require extremely polite forms to be used, which he said is challenging. The respondent did explain that asking for guidance and using correct degrees of politeness did cause some tension due to the concern of being considered as impolite.

Due to the respondent being a rather new employee in the company he said that he did not have any juniors yet. However, he understood the vertical and horizontal context in those interactions. He explained the reason for using polite Japanese to juniors and same-age co-workers in the DCT as a way to index distance in horizontal relationships in order to be considered appropriately polite. He assumed that this was due to the workplace environment being the main dictator of this, but he did state that

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25 outside the workplace he would use informal language with his juniors. He also stated that in most cases his age was considerably higher, compared to his co-workers who had started working in the company before him, and that his age itself gave him senior status in his team despite him being a new employee.

The respondent felt that the rules regarding vertical and horizontal relationships in Japan were not necessarily followed closely in all instances. He gave an example about his interactions in a kendou (traditional Japanese sword fighting) club during his exchange period in Japan, stating that the rules concerning vertical relationships in these instances were not closely followed. He said that if everyone was a part of the same class everyone had an equal standing, but in workplace

interactions the age would dictate the position (tachiba) of the addressee and the degree of politeness in language use.

He also mentioned that if the junior employee’s abilities in some work- related tasks exceed his own abilities it would create a teacher/student relationship and in this case he as a student would speak politely to the junior and vice versa.

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26

Discussion

The results suggest that the data regarding politeness strategies were overall similar between both the Japanese and the Finnish respondent groups. The only differences could be seen in code-switching, in which the Japanese group stayed the most consistent and gave close to the same results. This was stated in the previous research as well (Harada 2007, Iida 2008, Bachnik 1994, Peak 2002). The Finnish group’s application of code switching was divisive. One half of the Finnish group’s use of code-

switching was identical to the Japanese group, whilst the other half of the Finnish group used code-switching that ranged from either excessively polite or too impolite in relation to the DCT instance presented. It is difficult to ascertain whether this was due to complications with the language proficiency or with cultural differences regarding code-switching. In some responses the influence of the L1 pragmatics were transparent, for example, respondent 15 used extremely informal Japanese in some

situations towards all five addressees that could indicate the first language having an influence on the use of Japanese language (See Appendix C: 1- 1).

The data regarding Finnish respondents who successfully used appropriate politeness levels were mostly people with long work experience in a

Japanese work environment and who had also spent longer time studying the language. This indicates that these factors also play an important role when analyzing discourse pragmatics of L2 usage within one group. The switch that occurs between the horizontal/ vertical axis (Bachnik 1994) can be observed when comparing single answers from each respondent

individually together in instances of high vertical hierarchy and close

horizontal relationships. The effect that this switch has to the language use can be noticed from the use of code-switching in different politeness levels.

This was suggested in the previous research section as well in Bachnik (1994), Iida (2008), Harada (2007), and Tokuchi (2001).

The use of indirect refusal strategies was significantly high in frequency, when compared to the direct refusal strategies. The use of these varied between interaction with addressees from vertical and horizontal

relationships in both uchi and soto contexts, especially in the Japanese respondent group. The direct refusal strategies were used mostly in close horizontal relationships. On the contrary, indirect refusal strategies were used especially towards addressees from one’s distant horizontal (soto) plane, and in vertical relationships where the addressee was higher in the social hierarchy than the addressor. The contexts regarding these

instances were furtherly clarified as understood from the sub-questions of both respondent groups.

This indicates a characteristic that is prevalent in high-context cultures according to Nevgi, Tella, Nishimura (2008) and could thus vaguely imply similarities in communication elements between Japanese and Finnish

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27 people’s use of language in these instances. The sub-questions from both respondent groups indicate similarities in attitude towards relationship maintenance, team orientation, and emphasis on the importance of polite interaction.

However, it is important to note that it is still difficult to determine which situations were affected by the presence of L1 pragmatics in the Finnish group. The indirect communication styles could be either learned or adapted through experience and by the influence of the L2 culture.

The use of indirect refusals was also used depending on the tachiba of the addressor. The common instances where most of the face-saving

strategies occurred were during interactions with the members of high hierarchical rank, customer interactions and with junior colleagues. These types of strategies imply that the role (tachiba) of the addressor and the relationship with the said addressor dictates the type of refusal strategies being used. This was suggested in the study of Japanese politeness in social interactions made by Haugh& Obana (2011). This was observable in the answers of the Japanese group, as well as in Finnish respondents to some extent.

The data from the interview also clarifies this. Respondent 1 explained during the interview, that he chose to use polite discourse mainly as a politeness strategy depending on the role of the addressor. The

respondent stated that he would use moderate politeness levels generally in the workplace, but this would change depending on the addressor and their position in the uchi/soto axis.

Furthermore, when asked about the reason why he chose to use polite forms towards colleagues that were lower in the social hierarchy than him, he explained that he would be polite at first just in case and use the

distance of the horizontal relationship as an indicator when to be polite or informal. However, the respondent did state that he would feel awkward when using highly polite Japanese due to its complexity and would feel concern if he would say an expression that would not fit into the situation.

This is understandable because Finnish language does not have strict politeness levels.

This could give an explanation why some of the Finnish respondents chose to use polite forms towards addressors whose tachiba would allow informal speech used as well. However, it is important to consider the fact that as stated earlier by Bachnik (1994) and Iida (2008), uchi/soto dynamics in (im)polite language is heavily dependent on the individual’s own

perception. Therefore, the various uses of basic politeness in informal situations can be due to the respondent’s interpretation on who is a part of their personal in-group/ out-group. However, it became clear that the nuances regarding uchi and soto contexts in polite discourse are thus dependent on various aspects including individual perspectives, situational contexts, and relationship dynamics. Both groups did understand the

Inside or Outside: Discourse strategies of Finnish and Japanese workers in Japan

Degree Thesis

Bachelor’s level (First cycle)