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When the Japanese Only Want to Speak to You in English
Native English-speakers frequently encounter the following problem when they attempt to master a foreign language: You address a person who speaks your target language in their language, and they respond -- in English.
I devoted an entire chapter of Why You Need a Foreign Language & How to Learn One: Second Edition to this problem. For our purposes here, though, we will consider a few sides of this issue that are applicable to students of Japanese:
1. The Hen na Gaijin complex lingers: Japan has been a major force in the world for more than 20 years now, but some Japanese are still surprised (and may even feel uncomfortable) when they meet foreigners who speak their language well. In the book, I lay out the historical basis for this attitude. However, not all Japanese succumb to the hen na gaijin complex -- believing that only a "strange foreigner" would have the inclination to actually master their language.
In fact, a growing number of Japanese realize that the internationalization of the Japanese language is an inevitable consequence of their nation’s status as an economic superpower. Languages succeed in the world when the people who speak them succeed.
2. This situation is partly our fault. We English-speakers have historically been lazy linguists. If you are learning Japanese or some other language, you are part of the solution. But remember that many native English-speakers are still part of the problem: they assume that the rest of the world always can -- and always should -- deal with them in English. If a Japanese person sees you on the street and assumes that you can't speak Nihongo, he or she is making a statistically reasonable assumption.
3. The Japanese who are most interested in English gravitate toward foreigners. If you participate in the usual types of formulaic cultural exchange activities while in Japan, then you will likely encounter a disproportionate number of Japanese who are eager to practice their English with gaijin. Conversely, you will often find that the Japanese you meet outside the standard cultural exchange venues have minimal interest in speaking English, and will gladly speak Japanese with you. The point here is that you have to get off the beaten path a bit.
4. Many English-speakers overestimate their Japanese language abilities. This isn’t because we have some genetic flaw which prevents us from learning languages effectively. Rather, we simply haven’t had to use foreign languages to communicate with other peoples in the way that many Europeans and Asians have. Therefore, we often overestimate how far a beginning/intermediate level of language ability can really take us.
Many Japanese have therefore had the experience of meeting foreigners who speak a few words of their language -- but quickly falter when they have to depart from a set conversational repertoire. Think about the gaijin you have met who know Konnichiwa, O-genki desu ka, and little else.
The solution to this problem is simple: keep studying, practicing, reading, and listening. Never be satisfied with your present level of ability in Japanese.