ABSTRAKPenelitian ini dilakukan untuk memberikan pemahaman terkait konstruksi pengetahuan dan stereotip tentang magang di Jepang, realitas dan pengalaman yang signifikan, serta strategi individu maupun kolektif dalam menghadapi permasalahan dan perbedaan realitas. Pendekatan yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah pendekatan kualitatif dengan metode penelitian Antropologi, yaitu melakukan observasi partisipan dan wawancara mendalam dengan trainee asal Indonesia yang bekerja di pabrik material baterai Kichinan, Kitakyushu. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan pengetahuan trainee mengenai Jepang dan magang di Jepang dikonstruksi oleh berbagai pihak yang memanipulasi pengetahuan untuk kepentingan masing-masing, sehingga pengetahuan yang telah dikonstruksi kurang relevan dengan realitas trainee. Selama menghadapi realitas hidup dan magang di Jepang, trainee terus melakukan proses belajar, mengubah dan memperbarui pengetahuannya, hingga pengetahuan tersebut dapat dijadikan acuan dalam menentukan strategi. Para trainee menggunakan strategi kolektif berupa solidaritas berdasarkan hubungan senior-junior. Di samping itu, masing-masing mereka memiliki strategi individu untuk mengatasi berbagai permasalahan selama hidup dan magang di Jepang.

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ABSTRACT

This research was conducted to complement another research about Indonesian trainees, providing comprehensive and deep understanding of the construction of knowledge and stereotypes of internship in Japan, reality and significant experiences, and strategies by both individuals and collective in dealing with problems and differences of reality. This research used qualitative approach by Anthropological research methods, which is doing participant observation and indeepth interviews with Indonesian trainees who work in the Kichinan battery material factory, Kitakyushu. The results showed that knowledge of trainees about Japan and internship in Japan were constructed by various parties who manipulated knowledge for their own interests, so the knowledge which was constructed is not relevant to the trainees. While confronting the realities of life and internship in Japan, trainees continued the process of learning, changing and reforming of their knowledge, so that knowledge can be used to determining proper strategies. The trainees used a collective strategy consisting of solidarity based on senior-junior relations. In addition, each of them has an individual strategy to resolve various problems during life and internships in Japan.