Description
Existing research into newcomers to Japan has focused primarily on the perspective of researchers.
This means that the views of the newcomers themselves have not been the subject of a great deal of discussion.
Critical narratives of the newcomer as a researcher can reveal the insider’s point of view and provide an opportunity to explore practical application in solving social challenges surrounding newcomers.
This paper describes the author’s experiences as a Chinese person who came to Japan as a newcomer.
To achieve this purpose, the method of autoethnography, which puts emphasis on experiences of persons concerned, is adopted.
The author’s life history has been divided into three distinct phases in this paper.
The first phase covers the period that begins with their arrival in Japan and ends with the completion of elementary school.
The second phase is seen to have begun with entry into junior high school and to have ended with graduation from high school.
The final phase extends from enrolment in university until the present day.
Based the stories, the author’s development process was discussed from the perspective of places of belonging.
