My Global Cultures MA dissertation: listening to the voices of Japanese women in the UK

I enrolled in the Global Cultures MA at King’s College London in January 2022 and successfully completed the two-year course. By that time, I had already earned an LLM and a PhD in my home country, Japan. Some of my course mates asked why I was pursuing another Master’s degree. My motivation for studying the Global Cultures MA was to gain knowledge in Cultural Studies and qualitative research methodologies. In my doctoral thesis, I assessed the ‘global competencies’ of university students who participated in international exchange programs, primarily using quantitative research. While this analysis was meaningful, I wanted to understand the personal experiences of individuals who have encountered different cultures, not just through numbers.

The academic approach at the Global Cultures was quite different from what I had learned in Japan. Initially, I found it challenging to write essays because I lacked a clear understanding of the tutors' expectations. However, I gradually improved as I worked through each module. My most significant turning point came when I created the portfolio for the ‘Gender and Globalisation’ module in the second stage.

For this project, I gathered testimonies from women who worked in Japanese textile mills during the early to mid-20th century, including those of my mother. I also uncovered the radiance and resilience that were present in the melodies and songs sung by these anonymous women, which had been overlooked by history. It became evident that both the intellectual class and male workers often judged these women as ignorant and pitiable, a perception also common in 19th-century Britain.

Additionally, I highlighted a more recent case from Bangladesh, where female factory workers have utilised the internet as a powerful tool to amplify their voices globally, emphasising the need for further solidarity. In my portfolio, I aimed to connect the voices of female workers from both the East and West, spanning both past and present. The feedback I received from my tutor on the portfolio was very positive, which significantly encouraged me.

In the course’s final stage, I focused my independent research on the voices of Japanese migrant women in the UK. There is limited academic research on this topic, and their migration experiences have not been thoroughly examined compared to those of other ethnic groups and Japanese migrants in the USA. Personally, I found this subject particularly interesting because I had to leave my career in Japan to relocate to the UK with my family.

My independent research was documented in the master’s thesis entitled ‘Japanese Women in Britain: Lives and Careers in Migration since the 1950s.’ It focuses on Japanese women who settled in Britain and explores how they left home and rebuilt their lives and careers in British society. I adopted an oral history approach because the method is essential for picking up minority voices, as the words left in documents and other media are often from the majority’s perspective —those who could speak out, those in high positions, or the patriarchs.

The thesis first reviews previous research on international migration and Japanese migrants overseas. This leads to the framework of the study, which analyses the subject from the aspects of context, ethnicity, and strategy. It then provides background information on migration from Japan to the UK and socio-economic situations in both countries. Subsequently, it introduces the source of this study: a valuable initiative for recording Japanese migrants’ life stories since the 1950s — the Wasurena-gusa Project organised by the Japan Association in the UK. 

The latter part of the paper draws on the interviews from the project to explore the experience of Japanese women in migration. There, the voices of 18 respondents are presented in the following framework suggested by previous research:

1. context 1: reason for migration;
2. context 2: starting life in the UK;
3. ethnicity: Japanese identity and compatriot networks;
4. strategy: rebuilding life and career.

Lastly, it discusses how Japanese women have built their lives and careers under the intersection of gender and the status of a migrant.

My research examined the experiences of the women and observed a pattern of three broad groups. The first is those who renounced their Japanese citizenship and migrated for their family before the mid-1960s. They sometimes faced hatred and discrimination against Japan but found their places in each local community through personal efforts. The second group is those who came to the UK voluntarily after the liberalisation of travel abroad in 1964. Although they had different reasons, such as friends’ recommendations or escaping from Japanese norms, they shared a commonality in the migration process: they found work at Japanese companies through compatriot networks, married British men, and settled in the host country. It is also notable that they were often placed in precarious positions at the workplace. The third ones are those with a strong sense of yearning for Britain or a desire to strengthen their expertise. They obtained jobs mainly in the creative sector and, rather than relying on their compatriot networks, used their Japanese backgrounds as a strength to build or rebuild their careers independently.

As no previous studies have identified these aspects of compatriot networks and gender in the migration process of Japanese women in Britain, the contribution of my research is significant. Further research is needed to address the migration experiences of younger generations and compare them with those discussed in my thesis. I am planning to analyse another source of Japanese female migrants’ life histories, most of whom had migrated after the 1990s. It will become clear how recent changes, such as the growing number of Japanese settlers, developments in information technology leading to increased interaction with their home country, and the stagnation of the Japanese economy, have affected the migration experiences of Japanese women in Britain.

After completing the course, I returned to Japan and am now working on international academic and student exchanges at the University of Tokyo. What I learned at King's broadened my horizons and helped me to add new and more rewarding dimensions to my career. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Programme Director, Dr Felipe Botelho Correa; my supervisor, Dr Frederika Tevebring; Dr Jean Smith; Dr Elisa Sampson Vera Tudela; other faculty members; fellow students, Mr Ryan Bradley and student support staff. Last but certainly not least, I would like to extend my heartfelt appreciation to Ms Momoko Williams, the former chairperson of the Japan Association in the UK, who led the Wasurena-gusa Project. Her support allowed me to discover the inspiring stories of Japanese women who have carved their paths in the UK.

About Dr Sayoko Oda

Dr Sayoko Oda is an Assistant Professor at the International Research and Cooperation Office, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the University of Tokyo.

About the Global Cultures MA

The online Master's in Global Cultures will build your interpersonal and cultural skills to help you engage effectively with colleagues, customers, clients, suppliers, and partners in today's interconnected world. Developing the key soft skills to bridge the gaps in the global industry workforce, this course sets you up for success in the modern workplace.