日本語学習者が使用する不自然な「に」について ― 位置を表わす名詞「上」「中」「裏」に着目して ―

Abstract

Learners of the Japanese language tend to use the particle ‘ni’ unnaturally in sentences with transitive verbs that take the ‘o’ particle, as in ‘search inside the desk’. Previous studies on the particle ‘ni’ have noted that learners of Japanese have a strategy of using ‘ni’ after words like ‘ue’ or ‘naka’, yet there has been no mention or research on the use of ‘ni’ in transitive verb sentences with the ‘o’ particle. Therefore, this paper addresses the unnatural use of ‘ni’ and conducts a quantitative survey among learners of various backgrounds, including different native languages, proficiency levels, and learning environments. The survey revealed that the unnatural use of ‘ni’ is widespread among learners, regardless of their native language, level, or learning environment. It also became clear that intermediate learners use the unnatural ‘ni’ the most, and that learners whose native language is Korean use it less than learners of other languages. Furthermore, learners who use the unnatural ‘ni’ tend to rely on ‘ue’ or ‘naka’ as cues rather than on the verbs. Among these, beginner JFL learners and intermediate JSL learners showed a tendency to use ‘ue’ and ‘naka’ as cues. These findings suggest that Japanese learners are prone to using the unnatural ‘ni’ in sentences with transitive verbs that include ‘ue’ or ‘naka’, regardless of their native language, level, or learning environment. In the future, it will be necessary to carefully consider not overemphasizing sentences that connect ‘ni’ after ‘ue’ or ‘naka’, especially in Japanese language education settings for beginners to intermediate learners.