Dynamics of Identity: Japanese Language Learners and Discourses of Nihonjinron

The study found that national/cultural identity is a pervasive background influence on individual identity. The findings highlight that a series of intercultural transactions and contexts from the virtual and real world, creates opportunities for internal conversations. These experiences are crucial conduits to highlighting the importance of a decentring framework that enables the development of cosmopolitan agentic language learners. An implication of this research is that there needs to be a shift in curriculum approaches in the EFL context that acknowledges the influences of national discourses within the language learner's local context.