Cross-border educational contacts facilitated by online distance education are becoming increasingly common, and there is a need for greater understanding of the perspectives of non-western students in order to avoid projecting false stereotypes onto them or ignoring important differences. This mixed methods questionnaire study (N=424) was designed to develop a comprehensive description of the opinions and learning preferences of a group of learners where knowledge is lacking: Japanese online distance learners. In addition, this study provides background information on Japanese higher...