From Cultural Knowledge to Interpretive Engagement

The teaching of Japanese culture in foreign language education often assumes that the acquisition of cultural knowledge leads to understanding. However, this assumption remains underexamined, particularly in contexts where learners engage with culture primarily through mediated sources. This study investigates how Vietnamese learners of Japanese interpret selected cultural practices, with a focus on the relationship between familiarity and interpretive engagement. Drawing on data from a reflection-based survey involving forty-two undergraduate students, the study uses ethnographic vignettes to elicit learners’ explanations, comparisons, and reflections. The analysis reveals a consistent gap between self-reported familiarity and the ability to interpret cultural meaning in context. While participants were generally able to recognize practices and associate them with broad values, their responses often remained fragmented and descriptive. Intercultural comparison emerged as a primary interpretive strategy, functioning both as a resource and a constraint. Instances of misalignment, particularly in relation to indirect communication, highlighted the influence of learners’ existing assumptions but also provided opportunities for reinterpretation. The study argues that cultural understanding is not a direct outcome of knowledge acquisition, but a process shaped by interpretation and negotiation across cultural frames.