Abstract
This study investigates the use of the phrase daijoubu as a refusal expression when declining a bag at convenience stores among domestic and international Japanese learners. The study surveyed 48 international learners and 52 domestic learners, examining their reasons for using or not using daijoubu. The results indicate that domestic learners are more influenced by their linguistic environment compared to international learners, and their use of daijoubu is not related to their Japanese proficiency level or length of stay in Japan. While international learners tend to place greater emphasis on understanding the expression’s meaning, domestic learners often exhibit a tendency to blindly imitate native speakers. Furthermore, it was revealed that international learners have fewer opportunities to encounter practical usage scenarios, leading to a limited understanding of daijoubu as a refusal expression.
